Tuscan Vegetable Soup with Sage

This is a healthy and delicious soup for a cold winter day. Serve with nice mozzarella garlic bread.

3 TB olive oil

4 TB fresh sage, chopped

4 cloves garlic, fine mince

1 cup frozen peas

1 cup green beans, cut in 1/2" pieces

1 cup zucchini, diced

1 cup diced carrots

1 stalk celery, diced

1 sweet potato, peeled & diced

1 can white beans, drained and rinsed

6 cups (2 big packages) vegetable broth

1/2 tsp red pepper flakes

salt & pepper to taste

ricotta is optional  

Heat oil, cook garlic & sage.

Add all ingredients except for broth and kale, cook 5 minutes.

Add broth & kale.

Simmer 20 minutes. 

Slow Cooker Country Style Beef Ribs

Unlike short ribs, country style beef ribs do not render much fat. This recipe calls for a simple tomato and red wine barbecue sauce that is lightly sweetened with honey. With the addition of cayenne it is slightly spicy so you may want to cut down on that.

Serve in bowls over rice pilaf.

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 8 hours

Total Time: 8 hours, 20 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 pounds country style beef ribs
• 1 1/2 cups ketchup
• 1/2 cup red wine, reserving half for deglazing pan
• 1/3 cup onion, finely chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 2 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
• 2 teaspoons herbes de provence
• 1 teaspoon dry mustard
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne powder
• salt

Preparation:

Combine ketchup, 1/2 of the red wine, soy sauce, honey, Worcestershire sauce, herbs, dry mustard, black pepper, and cayenne in a bowl. Set aside. In a large pan, heat olive oil. Add onion and cook for 1-2 minutes. Add garlic, and cook for an additional 1 minute. Remove with slotted spoon and set into bowl with sauce mixture. Sprinkle both sides of ribs with salt and pepper. Add to the pan and sear the meat on all sides (about 2 minutes per side). Make sure the pan is good and hot. When meat is done searing, remove and place them into slow cooker. Keep pan hot and add 1/2 of the red wine (1/4 cup) to pan allowing it to deglaze. Let the mixture bubble for 30 seconds. Turn down heat. Add sauce mixture to pan and heat through. Once the sauce is well mixed, pour over meat and turn on slow cooker for high heat. Cook for 30 minutes on high and reduce heat to low and cook for 6-8 hours.