I am done with seasonal trends...well unless it comes to food.
When I think of seasons, I think of candles. My grandparents used to take me to the Yankee Candle Factory when I was little and I joked that my nose hurt afterwards from excessive smelling. It was actually true because I felt compelled to sniff every single scent, including the "fresh cut grass" candle which always brought a chuckle to my eight year old mind. I like smells. Smell is definitely on of my most heightened sense, which can sometimes be a bad thing. A certain smell can take me back 100% to a feeling. For example, the smell of subway bread baking always makes me think of my freshman year dorm, where I lived above a Subway sandwich shop. The smell of Dove Cucumber makes me think of summer camp in sixth grade where I first started where deodorant.
Well even if you like a good smell, the candle gods created some sort of rule that only certain nice smells can be sold during certain times. This angers me. In the winter months we can get cozy by a fire with our peppermint mocha candle smoke blending into the clouds surrounding the open embers. In Summer, my windows are wide and the breeze mixes with the Yankee Candle beach scent that basically is just the smell of sunscreen, but oh so pleasant. Fall...well don't even get me started about fall. Cider, apples, cinnamon, leaves. I want to live in a world where it is permanently fall. Therefore, I have entered a dilemma. If you notice, a particular season is missing from my list. Oh of course...Spring. Do you know what scent gets associated with Spring? Flowers. I hate floral scents. It gives me an immediate migraine. I one time bought "Spring" style candles from Bath and Body works and almost puked before I even lit them. You may disagree with me, but I have unearthed my apple scent candles from the cupboards and decided to light them instead for April and May and bask in the delicious scents once more before Summer comes in full force.
Well even if you like a good smell, the candle gods created some sort of rule that only certain nice smells can be sold during certain times. This angers me. In the winter months we can get cozy by a fire with our peppermint mocha candle smoke blending into the clouds surrounding the open embers. In Summer, my windows are wide and the breeze mixes with the Yankee Candle beach scent that basically is just the smell of sunscreen, but oh so pleasant. Fall...well don't even get me started about fall. Cider, apples, cinnamon, leaves. I want to live in a world where it is permanently fall. Therefore, I have entered a dilemma. If you notice, a particular season is missing from my list. Oh of course...Spring. Do you know what scent gets associated with Spring? Flowers. I hate floral scents. It gives me an immediate migraine. I one time bought "Spring" style candles from Bath and Body works and almost puked before I even lit them. You may disagree with me, but I have unearthed my apple scent candles from the cupboards and decided to light them instead for April and May and bask in the delicious scents once more before Summer comes in full force.
I can complain all I want about springtime scents and the fact that I now have allergies, but one thing Spring excels at is food. Seasonal food. Nothing warms my heart more than walking into the grocery store after a blistery March and seeing fresh asparagus on sale, mint that isn't dried, and strawberries. Today I even saw my first glimpse of corn on the cob still in their husks. Like my love of fall candles, I also enjoy the traditionally autumnal activity of making soups in the spring. If you even dare scoff at me, I recommend a spoonful of pea soup before you speak up. My ultimate favorite soup to make is Italian Wedding Soup. It cures all things for me. This week, it helped aide in curing my newfound allergies. I mixed things up with this traditionally winter dish and added in fresh peas, dill and fennel (all sring time necessities). I love using ground chicken to make my meatballs for Italian Wedding Soup and recently I have discovered that the addition of chicken sausage helps give the meatballs the right amount of juiciness and flavor while keeping the recipe still healthy. If you can't find raw chicken sausage or have ground beef on hand, feel free to use whatever meat you have to create the meatballs.
Ingredients:
For the meatballs:
1 pound ground chicken
1/2 pound chicken sausage (casings removed)
1 cup bread crumbs
1 large egg
1/2 cup parmesan cheese
1 tsp red pepper flakes
1 tsp dried oregano
2 cloves garlic minced
2 tbsp milk
3 tbsp fresh parsley
1 tsp kosher salt
For the soup:
2 tbsp olive oil
2 carrots peeled and diced (1 cup)
2 stalks of celery diced (1/2 cup)
1 medium yellow onion diced
3 gloves garlic
1 bulb of fennel diced (frawns removed, about 2 cups)
1 cup fresh peas
10 cups chicken stock
1/2 cup dry white wine
Juice and zest of one lemon
1 cup orzo or ditalini
1/4 cup fresh dill
3 cups fresh spinach
1/2 cup
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix meatball ingredients together in a medium sized bowl. Drop 1 - 1 1/4 inch diameter meatballs onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake for 10 - 15 minutes, until meatballs are browned. The meatballs should not be cooked through. They will finish cooking in the soup. In a large stock pot heat olive oil to medium heat. Add carrots, celery, onion and fennel and cook for five minutes. Add in garlic and stir to combine and cook for an additional two minutes. Add chicken stock and wine and bring to a boil. Once boiling add chicken meatballs to the pot and the orzo. Simmer for roughly 10 - 12 minutes or until pasta is done. Lower the heat to low and add in lemon juice and zest, dill, and stir in the 3 cups spinach. Cook for about 3 minutes until spinach is completely wilted. Ladle into bowls and top with extra 1/2 cup parmesan cheese.
For the meatballs:
1 pound ground chicken
1/2 pound chicken sausage (casings removed)
1 cup bread crumbs
1 large egg
1/2 cup parmesan cheese
1 tsp red pepper flakes
1 tsp dried oregano
2 cloves garlic minced
2 tbsp milk
3 tbsp fresh parsley
1 tsp kosher salt
For the soup:
2 tbsp olive oil
2 carrots peeled and diced (1 cup)
2 stalks of celery diced (1/2 cup)
1 medium yellow onion diced
3 gloves garlic
1 bulb of fennel diced (frawns removed, about 2 cups)
1 cup fresh peas
10 cups chicken stock
1/2 cup dry white wine
Juice and zest of one lemon
1 cup orzo or ditalini
1/4 cup fresh dill
3 cups fresh spinach
1/2 cup
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix meatball ingredients together in a medium sized bowl. Drop 1 - 1 1/4 inch diameter meatballs onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake for 10 - 15 minutes, until meatballs are browned. The meatballs should not be cooked through. They will finish cooking in the soup. In a large stock pot heat olive oil to medium heat. Add carrots, celery, onion and fennel and cook for five minutes. Add in garlic and stir to combine and cook for an additional two minutes. Add chicken stock and wine and bring to a boil. Once boiling add chicken meatballs to the pot and the orzo. Simmer for roughly 10 - 12 minutes or until pasta is done. Lower the heat to low and add in lemon juice and zest, dill, and stir in the 3 cups spinach. Cook for about 3 minutes until spinach is completely wilted. Ladle into bowls and top with extra 1/2 cup parmesan cheese.
RSS Feed
