Potato Soup
11:51 AM - Posted by Leanne - 0 comments
Potato (Aloo)Image via Wikipedia
My husband and I were reducing ham stock yesterday, and I got the craving for potato soup.  I have never made potato soup before and was disappointed with the recipes I saw on line, so I decided to try making my own. My family loved it. It is a hearty soup which can be enjoyed anytime of year, but I look forward to making it with my home grown, organic potatoes, leeks, celery, and carrots this fall. This recipe used home made ham stock, but if you don't like to use pork, you could use a chicken or vegetable stock.

2C. ham stock (homemade)
6-8 potatoes, cubed
1 C. leeks, diced
5 C. water
2 medium carrots, diced
3 stalks celery, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 C. cooked ham,  diced (optional)
cracked pepper to taste
salt to taste
1 C. milk (I prefer to start with raw)
1 C. sour cream
1 tsp. tarragon
1 tsp. Xanthan gum

In a crock pot combine all ingredients except the milk, sour cream, and xanthan gum.  Slow cook for 8-10 hours.  In the last 1 1/2 hours add the milk and sour cream. I was not at home 1 1/2 hours prior to serving, so I heated the milk up to, just under boiling, in a sauce pan and added to the crock pot with the sour cream.  Before serving, thicken the soup with Xanthan gum.  This will produce a smoother soup than without Xanthan gum.  Garnish with Parmesan cheese if desired.


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Barbecue Meatballs
8:16 AM - Posted by Leanne - 0 comments
Meatballs
Image by 1JLS via Flickr
My Dad made the best meat loaf and meatballs when I was growing up.  He had his secret little recipe, which he admits was just adding what he thought would taste good.  Unfortunately his recipe used saltine crackers, which I can no longer eat, so my latest challenge was to make a meat ball that was as good as Dad's but gluten free.  Here is what I came up with my first run.  It still needs tweaking,in my opinion, but everyone enjoyed them.
I used 2 pounds of hamburger because I have 4 kids, but you could cut the recipe in half or leave it the same and just have left overs or freeze for an easy dinner later. 

2 pounds  hamburger
3 gloves garlic, minced
1 onion, minced
salt and pepper to taste
1-2 eggs ( depend on the leanness of your hamburger, leaner = more egg)
Gluten free tortilla crumbs
BBQ sauce ( either a reliable gf version or make homemade)


Preheat oven to 350. In a large mixing bowl, mix all of the above ingredients except the BBQ sauce.  I started out with 1/4 C. of the tortilla crumbs and add as needed to produce a mixture that would form nice meat balls.  By hand form the meatballs in to bite sizes and then place on a cookie sheet. When all the meatballs are formed bake in the oven for about 15 minutes, then turn to get them evenly browned.  They can also be made in a frying pan on the stove, but I get better results baking them.  Once the meatballs are cooked all the way through and have a nice golden color, you can transfer to a crock pot or sauce pan and cover with BBQ sauce and heat until sauce is bubbly.  The meatballs will be ready to serve at this point.
Not in the mood for BBQ sauce, you can always use some homemade cream of mushroom soup and have Swedish meatballs instead.
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