Snap happy

I have only had my new phone a little over a month and already have nearly a thousand pictures on it...300 plus of food. No telling how many pictures I took over the past 4 months if I add in the other two cameras I have! I love taking pictures!! People, food, babies, buildings, more babies, seashore...Snap, snap! So fun!

I am also thinking...wouldn't it be fun to try to bring to the table some of the beautiful food I have taken pix of?

Our Green Table's New York Twin...the glorious "Market Table" at ABC Kitchen

 

When I got home, after a couple of days of "Where am I?", I began where I usually do after being gone...cleaning out the 'fridge. Oh me. I am here to tell you that yes, old eggs really do float. I had quite a bobbling fleet. Checking things out and throwing things out wiled away the afternoon and pretty soon it was nearly dinner time.  Double Oh me.

And so, to save the day, I looked at a couple of pictures on my phone and then looked at what I had on hand to cook up. I remembered a luscious lentil soup that I had recently and copied it and then tossed together a spring salad copied from my fave "take out". Perfect time to toast up the fabulous bread I gleefully got through security, too.

Oh my...this bread is worth the trip to New York!

No secret that thick soups, salads and grain-y dishes are my favorite dishes to cook and eat. All copycats turned out pretty well...not picture perfect but close. Here is the soup. I am making the salad again this weekend. Whatever you are celebrating this weekend, make it happy!

Aurora's Amazing Minestrone...restaurant version

My copycat before Parmesan

Copycat Lentil "Minestrone" (That is what the restaurant called it, although a non-traditional, pasta-less version)

2 cups lentils
7 cups water or veggie broth
Herbs of choice...lots of them (I used Herbes de Provence and extra rosemary)
6 garlic cloves or what the heck, the whole head
3 bay leaves
1 tablespoon Worchestershire (get vegetarian kind)
1 teaspoon Old Bay seasoning
Veggies: onion, zucchini, carrots, spinach, escarole, frozen corn and peas (unless you can get fresh spring peas!)

Simmer washed and picked over lentils in herb-garlic-water until tender. Depending on the lentil used, this make take up to 45 minutes, more or less. Start checking for tenderness at about 30 minutes. Then, add olive oil sauteed sliced mushrooms, diced onion, zucchini strips and carrot strips, if desired. Caramelize them for extra flavor. Toss in some frozen peas and corn. Let cook for about 15 minutes. Last 5 minutes, toss in cherry tomatoes, spinach and escarole (I didn't have this) and warm through. Season with sea salt and fresh black pepper. Serve with an extra drizzle of olive oil (a must...restaurant soup was really well seasoned with lovely olive oil) and lots of fresh Parmesan. Serves 4-6.

Anything you cooked up that turned out "picture almost perfect"? Anything you put in your lentil soup to make it amazing? I added a little Dijon to the leftovers and loved that taste variation...nice and snappy!