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  • In general, mankind, since the improvement in cookery, eats twice as much as nature requires. Benjamin Franklin

    After eating chocolate you feel godlike, as though you can conquer enemies, lead armies, entice lovers. Emily Luchetti

    Chemicals, n: Noxious substances from which modern foods are made. Author Unknown

    After dinner sit a while, and after supper walk a mile. English Saying

    There is no sight on earth more appealing than the sight of a woman making dinner for someone she loves. Thomas Wolfe

    I prefer to regard a dessert as I would imagine the perfect woman: subtle, a little bittersweet, not blowsy and extrovert. Delicately made up, not highly rouged. Holding back, not exposing everything and, of course, with a flavor that lasts. Graham Kerr

    No man in the world has more courage than the man who can stop after eating one peanut. Channing Pollock

    A nickel will get you on the subway, but garlic will get you a seat. Old New York Proverb

    As for butter versus margarine, I trust cows more than chemists. Joan Gussow

    We are living in a world today where lemonade is made from artificial flavors and furniture polish is made from real lemons. Alfred E. Newman

    Hunger is the best sauce in the world. Cervantes

    I refuse to believe that trading recipes is silly. Tuna fish casserole is at least as real as corporate stock. Barbara Grizzuti Harrison

    Nothing would be more tiresome than eating and drinking if God had not made them a pleasure as well as a necessity. Voltaire

    If we're not willing to settle for junk living, we certainly shouldn't settle for junk food. Sally Edwards

    Shipping is a terrible thing to do to vegetables. They probably get jet-lagged, just like people. Elizabeth Berry

    Dyspepsia is the remorse of a guilty stomach. A. Kerr

    Soup is liquid comfort. Author Unknown

    The breakfast slimes, angel food cake, doughnuts and coffee, white bread and gravy cannot build an enduring nation. Martin H. Fischer

    One of the very nicest things about life is the way we must regularly stop whatever it is we are doing and devote our attention to eating. Luciano Pavarotti and William Wright

    Happiness is a bowl of cherries and a book of poetry under a shade tree. Astrid Alauda

    Eat little, sleep sound. Iranian Proverb

    If organic farming is the natural way, shouldn't organic produce just be called "produce" and make the pesticide-laden stuff take the burden of an adjective? Ymber Delecto

    There is a lot more juice in grapefruit than meets the eye. Author Unknown

    As the days grow short, some faces grow long. But not mine. Every autumn, when the wind turns cold and darkness comes early, I am suddenly happy. It's time to start making soup again. Leslie Newman

    It would be nice if the Food and Drug Administration stopped issuing warnings about toxic substances and just gave me the names of one or two things still safe to eat. Robert Fuoss

    Stored away in some brain cell is the image of a long-departed aunt you haven't thought of in 30 years. Stored away in another cell is the image of a pink pony stitched on your first set of baby pajamas. All it takes to get that aunt mounted on the back of that pony is to eat a hunk of meatloaf immediately before going to bed. Robert Brault, www.robertbrault.com

    Plant a radish, get a radish, never any doubt. That's why I love vegetables, you know what they're about! Tom Jones and Harvey Schmidt

    Sugar is a type of bodily fuel, yes, but your body runs about as well on it as a car would. V.L. Allineare

    He that eats till he is sick must fast till he is well. English Proverb

    Anyhow, the hole in the doughnut is at least digestible. H.L. Mencken

    My soul is dark with stormy riot, Directly traceable to diet.Samuel Hoffenstein

    The more you eat, the less flavor; the less you eat, the more flavor. Chinese Proverb

    Happiness is life served up with a scoop of acceptance, a topping of tolerance and sprinkles of hope, although chocolate sprinkles also work. Robert Brault

    It's bizarre that the produce manager is more important to my children's health than the pediatrician. Meryl Streep

    When baking, follow directions. When cooking, go by your own taste. Laiko Bahrs

    Food is so primal, so essential a part of our lives, often the mere sharing of recipes with strangers turns them into good friends. Jasmine Heiler

    Vegetables are a must on a diet. I suggest carrot cake, zucchini bread, and pumpkin pie. Jim Davis

    Food is an important part of a balanced diet. Fran Lebowitz

    Researchers have discovered that chocolate produced some of the same reactions in the brain as marijuana. The researchers also discovered other similarities between the two, but can't remember what they are. Author Unknown

    Tell me what you eat, I'll tell you who you are. Anthelme Brillat-Savarin

    The greatest delight the fields and woods minister is the suggestion of an occult relation between man and the vegetable. I am not alone and unacknowledged. They nod to me and I to them. Ralph Waldo Emerson

    The spirit cannot endure the body when overfed, but, if underfed, the body cannot endure the spirit. St Frances de Sales

    Chocolate is like medicine - but as with medicine, the key is the proper dose. Don't overdo it. Edward "Grandpa" Jones

    All I really need is love, but a little chocolate now and then doesn't hurt! Charles Schulz

    Most of the food allergies die under garlic and onion. Martin H. Fischer

    This is every cook's opinion -no savory dish without an onion, but lest your kissing should be spoiledyour onions must be fully boiled.Jonathan Swift

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February 25, 2010

Jen’s Tuscan Bean Soup

This is an easy soup recipe that I found in a magazine years ago and amended to our taste.

My kids like it because of the shell pasta. It freezes well so you can save leftovers for a busy day in the future.

Jen’s Tuscan Bean Soup

  • 1 onion, chopped
  • 1 red bell pepper, chopped
  • 3-4 cloves garlic, pressed or finely chopped
  • 2 TB olive oil
  • 2 C or 1 can diced tomatoes
  • 4 C broth
  • 4 C or 2 cans cooked kidney beans
  • 2 tsp powdered thyme
  • 2 C whole grain seashell pasta
  • 1 C packed spinach or chard, chopped (or substitute frozen green peas in a pinch)
  • 3/4 tsp sea salt (I prefer Real Garlic salt-I’m addicted to it actually)

First chop your pepper, onion and garlic. The easiest way to do this is with a small chopper. They’re cheap, save a ton of time, and make it hard for kids to pick things out.

Put the chopped onion, pepper and garlic in a pot with the olive oil. Sauté until softened (about 5 min).

Add tomatoes, beans,

and broth. I have some broth powder I use, but this time I used some liquid bouillon I bought at Costco. They both work. Homemade is the healthiest, of course.

Prepare your broth before adding to pot.

Simmer for 15-20 min while you prepare the rest of the ingredients.

Chop your spinach or chard. This can easily be done with a knife. I line up the leaves,

snip off the stems,

and cut into slices.

Measure your thyme,

and salt. Sea salt is much healthier than the bleached, chemicalized iodine stuff at the grocery store, and it tastes considerably better.

Add thyme, salt and pasta to the pot to simmer for 5 minutes. If you let it cook for much longer than this, the pasta will absorb more broth and get very large. This is fine, but I added more water and salt  the last time it happened.

Then add the greens last.

Serve with toast or wheat crackers and fresh ground pepper. A one-pot meal. Yum!

5 Comments

  1. Lori says:

    Yum! I didn’t know “Real Salt” had a garlic salt (guess i need to look around better)I too am addicted to garlic and salt, i use the real salt then add my garlic-parsley. I would probably add some chicken too it.

  2. This looks delicious! I can’t wait to try it!

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  • About Jenni

    I am a do-it-yourself, happily married, mother of six rambunctious kids. I finished my master herbalist degree last summer and am now learning aromatherapy! I am passionate about empowering people, especially women, mothers and fathers, to be teachers, chefs, and doctors in their own homes.
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