Meatless Monday: Irish Vegetable Soup

Hey, we're back! We know, it's been a few weeks. Life has been beyond crazy for both Test Kitchens. Not much actual "cooking" has taken place in the Wisconsin Test Kitchen. We've had a lot of re-heating leftovers, warming up chicken nuggets or pulled pork, and dumping random ingredients into the slow cooker: but not a lot of actual new cooking.

With the exception of a really tasty vegetable soup we made a few weeks ago in an attempt to clean out the fridge. Necessity is the mother of invention, right? That's pretty much how this vegetable soup was made!

Irish Vegetable Soup

2 T butter
8 carrots, peeled and thinly sliced
1 large onion, finely chopped
5-6 medium sized potatoes, cleaned and cut into chunks (I used purple- this could explain the strange color of my soup)
6-8 stalks celery, cleaned and thinly sliced
1/2 t minced garlic
2 t curry powder (more if you like a strong curry kick. We're fans)
6 cups vegetable stock
salt and pepper to taste

In a stock pot, melt the butter. Add the carrots, celery, onion, potatoes, garlic and curry powder. Cook, stirring occasionally until the vegetables start to soften- about 13 minutes. 

Add the vegetable stock, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and let soup simmer for about 30 minutes, or until vegetables are fully cooked and soft. Season with salt and pepper.

Remove soup from heat, and let cool slightly. Use an immersion blender to combine, until the soup is blended smooth and all the same consistency. 

Now that we're getting into the crisp months of fall, this is the perfect (and inexpensive) recipe to warm up to. We hope to have more recipes for you soon, and can't wait to get back to our football picks!

Stay Cool,
The Cool Dads Crew

Football Friday: Peach Cobbler

There's nothing better than visiting the farmers market right now, and seeing all the glorious, ripe, beautiful peaches. Peach season is pretty much the best thing ever: it symbolizes everything tasty and sweet about summer. Maybe that's why Kevin in the Wisconsin Test Kitchen has been asking for peach cobbler.

We finally had time on a Friday night to make a pan of it; and it didn't disappoint. This is the perfect dessert to whip up on game day for your hungry friends with a sweet tooth: it's easy to prepare and will feed a crowd. We used fresh peaches but if you're in a hurry; canned ones will work as well.

Peach Cobbler
Recipe modified from: http://recipesfoodandcooking.com/2014/07/27/southern-peach-cobbler/


½ cup butter - melted
1 cup sugar
1 cup flour
1½ teaspoons baking powder
⅛ teaspoon salt
¾ cup milk.
3 cups fresh peaches

1/4 cup brown sugar 

1/4 cup pecans, roughly chopped (optional)

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees
Melt 1 stick of butter in an 8"x8" casserole dish

Mix together sugar, flour, baking powder and salt. Add to the butter and stir in milk.

Sprinkle the peaches over batter. Do not stir.

Sprinkle brown sugar and pecans over the top of the peaches. Do not stir.

Bake at 350°F. for 1 hour.

This was delicious served warm with whipped cream or ice cream on top of it. 

Stay tuned: regular season football starts in a few weeks; and we'll have our Cool Dads predictions as well as more tasty recipes. 

Stay Cool,
The Cool Dads Crew