Veggie Beef Soup (Good Luck and Lots of Cash) and Cheesy Biscuit Bread

Or, how to get those peas and greens in for wonderful New Year.  This is a tasty old fashioned vegetable beef soup that's easily adaptable for whatever you have on hand.   It's also perfect for when it's unrelentingly cold outside.  The soup requires very little prep and is full of favor.

Ingredients:
1 T olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
3 carrots chopped
1 bunch of celery chopped with leaves
1 small head of cabbage, coarsely shredded
2 lbs ground beef
4-6 cups chicken or beef broth
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
1 quart tomato juice
1 12 oz bag of frozen filed peas with snaps
4 cups of shredded fresh collard greens

In a large stock pot sauce the onion on medium heat for a couple of minutes, then add the celery and carrots.  Sauté for another five minutes, then add the cabbage, ground beef, salt and pepper.  Add enough broth to cover.   Add the tomato juice.  Bring to a boil, then lower heat and simmer.  While simmering add the bag of field peas and green and cook for at least an hour.  Stir occasionally to break up the meat.

It's even more delicious the next day!

Perfect to pair with the soup?  Cheesy Biscuit Bread.  See the chunk missing?  That was how much Tommy ate while his soup was cooling.

I devoured another considerable chunk during the first half of the nail-biter of a game for the Dawgs (and another few chunks during the TWO overtimes).  Side note- GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO DAAAAWWWGGGGSSS!

Ingredients:
2 cups Bisquick
2/3 cup milk
2 eggs, beaten
6 green onions, chopped
2 T olive oil
1 T Dijon mustard
2 cups shredded extra sharp cheddar cheese (I used white cheddar), divided in half
3 T butter, melted

Combine Bisquick, milk, eggs, onion, oil, mustard and 1 cup cheese in a medium bowl, stir well.
Pour batter into a greased 10-inch pie pan, and drizzle melted butter on top.
Bake at 375 degrees for 30 minutes
Top with remaining cheese and bake an additional five minutes.
Cut into wedges and serve!

I credit a bowl of this every day this week to helping me survive this cold snap!

Well, Hello!

I have been so touched by the e-mails and comments requesting a return to blogging!  And frankly, I need an access of my favorite recipes that I can access on my phone, or email to someone.  So, early resolution is to get back blogging!

For those who have forgotten my life details (how dare you have a life of your own?!), I'm Samma- married to Morgan for coming on nine years.  We live in East Tennessee, and have three crazy kiddos- 5,3, and 1, and a rescue golden retriever.  I'm an attorney and work for my family's business as their in-house counsel after several years in a wonderful firm.

Here's what my life really looks like- covered in children and my favorite furball.

I love to read, cook, pretend to paint, garden and jazzercise (for real, it's fantastic).  As mentioned, I chronicle good food, good times, and our adventures.

Thanks for visiting!

Rainy Day Sausage Cornbread Casserole

It rained, and rained, and rained, and rained yesterday. For the millionth day in a row.  My friend, Whitney said it was a weekend suited only for reading and roasting chickens.

I was thinking cornbread and collards, myself.  And finishing up S-Town.

I saw my friend Channa at the grocery store yesterday, and got the giggles when we both proudly grabbed ham hocks out of our buggies.  She was making Slow Slow Chicken and lady peas (Whitney wasn't the only one on the last chicken train).

Mine was for this big old pot of collards.  Excuse the blurry picture.  The steam fogged my camera right up.  I used Paula Deen's recipe this time (I switch up my collard technique depending on my mood). They were mighty tasty.

Especially when paired with Sausage Cornbread Casserole.  

This comes from a Southern Living Cookbook- Fix It & Freeze It/Heat It & Eat It.  

We'd rummaged in the fridge for lunch, so I wanted something a bit more substantial for dinner.  So I added an extra pound of bulk sausage. Oops.

This took it from a bread with sausage and black eyed peas in it to a sausage and black eyed pea casserole held together with cornbread.  Morgan compared it to eating a slice of sausage ball.  He was not wrong.  Nor is eating a big old piece of sausage ball.  It's a delicious way to balance out all those antioxidants and fiber from the collard greens.

Sausage and Cornbread Casserole

Ingredients:

2 lbs mild bulk sausage

1 medium onion

1 cup white cornmeal

1/2 cup all purpose flour

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp baking soda

2 large eggs, lightly beaten

1 cup buttermilk

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1 (15 oz) can black-eyed peas, drained

2 cups shredded cheddar (You can even use pre-shredded here)

3/4 cup cream-style corn

1( 4 oz can) chopped green chiles, drained

1.  Preheat oven to 350.  Brown sausage and onion in large skillet over medium heat until sausage is no longer pink, stirring the sausage into crumbles.  Drain.

2.  Combine cornmeal, flour, salt and baking soda.  In a separate bowl, stir together eggs, buttermilk, and oil until combined.  Add to dry ingredients, stirring until just moistened (it will be lumpy).  Add sausage mixture, peas, and remaining ingredients to batter stirring well.

3.  Pour into a greased 13x9 baking dish.  OR 2 8x8's.  I like to stick one in the freezer after baking it.  Always good to have an extra supper on hand!

4.  Bake at 350 for about an hour (mine went over for about 10 minutes), until golden and set.

To cook from frozen- Bake at 350 for 1 hour, covered.  Uncover and cook and additional 10 minutes.

Now I'm going to have a leftover slice for breakfast, cuddle my fussing baby, and draft some contracts for work.  However, when I see you in the grocery store making a good blog recipe, and you ask for more, I can't help but squeeze in some room for blogging!