True confession, I was a picky eater when I was young. I was the hamburgers at Chinese restaurants, grilled cheese sandwiches at steakhouses, and pizza every other night type of kid and it drove my parents crazy. Now as a parent, I’ve raised picky eaters but not because I still am one, rather it must be in the genes but I can at least relate. It wasn’t until college and living on my own that I began to eat different foods, and try new flavors. Today as a travel blogger, I’ve had many opportunities to go outside my comfort zone and sample new and different cuisine and it’s been exciting to my palate. One of my goals for 2016 is to cook more at home since the kids’ schedules has us all over the map most of the week. We’ve been eating far too many dinners out, and I need to focus on more easy to prepare meals and introducing new menus with a variety of flavors to our repertoire. It may take all year and as my oldest daughter will start college in the fall, we need to get a jump start on this quickly!
With the rise of Pinterest and the sole fact I’m on the internet all day, I haven’t purchased a magazine or browsed a cookbook in…months! In the Safeway checkout line, a few magazine headlines caught my eye and I immediately tossed them onto the conveyor belt with my groceries and looked forward to enjoying them with my coffee. A half-hour turned into an hour that morning, then it turned into 2 and a half hours after I realized I’d read both Sunset® and Real Simple® magazines cover-to-cover. One pot, make ahead, slow cooker dishes had my name all over them and were easy to prepare and I was excited to find one I wanted to adapt. When I can make the time, magazines and books are two things I love having tactile interaction with rather than electronically, I think that spurred my inspiration.
The original recipe I found was for a French cassoulet made with white beans and kielbasa. The words in that last sentence are a picky eaters’ nightmare, believe me the kids’ big eyes and quizzical faces said it all. But something as easy as swapping the sausage to something more familiar and easily liked in our part Portuguese household, the game is changed.
Slow Cooker Linguica and Bean Soup
{or Slow-Cooker Kielbasa and White Bean Cassoulet}
1 1/2 cups dried white beans (great northern or navy)
1 pound linguica, cut into 1 inch pieces {or kielbasa}
3 cups low sodium chicken broth
1 14.5 ounce can of diced tomatoes and their juices
1 medium yellow onion finely chopped
2 tsp minced garlic* {or 2 cloves finely chopped}
2 teaspoons thyme leaves -in the spice section {fresh}
Kosher salt and black pepper
8 1/2 inch slices of baguette, buttered and toasted {cut into cubes}
Parmesan cheese
{1/4 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley}
Combine the beans, linguica, broth, tomatoes, onion, garlic, thyme, and 1/2 tsp. salt into 4-6 quart slow cooker
Cover and cook until the beans are tender and creamy. Low for 7-8 hours (check the beans after 7 hours) or high for 5 hours. Season with salt and pepper.
Serve topped with the baguette. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.
*1 tsp of minced garlic is about equal to one clove, per the jar.
This took me a whole 10 minutes or less to prepare. It took me longer in the grocery store looking for the items. So let me tell you the house smelled amazing from the beginning. Of course the kids remained skeptical at the new smell of thyme and the strong onion smell, but I promised the finished product would be worth it. Because I do cut corners when I cook and rarely use more than garlic pepper, ground pepper, and garlic salt in my every day cooking I did some substitutions. I did use less onion because I know my family and their stomachs are sensitive. I’m still experimenting with herbs, so I chickened out with jarred thyme leaves rather than fresh. Parsley…well I just don’t like it, I don’t know why but I don’t and I won’t use it. See, I’m still picky. I added parm to top each individual serving, that’s just me, everything is better with cheese.
The end result was very tasty, comfort food at it’s finest. The soup thickened to more of a stew that held up to the crispy baguette and I would use spicy linguica next time for an added kick.
I may be one of few, but I actually love grocery shopping when I’m not in a time crunch and preparing meals in the kitchen. Trying new things is definitely is hard when there is a tough crowd (picky eaters) but I love giving it the old college try. Slow cooker meals can be done when the kids are in school and the prep time is quick and allows for more “me time” in the day. Then when it’s time to serve, it stays hot throughout the evening as my husband gets home from work and the kids trickle in from practice, dance, and girl scouts.
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Need a little “me time” of your own? Take advantage of $1.00 off participating titles (PEOPLE®, InStyle®, People StyleWatch®, Real Simple®, and Sunset®) with this digital offer until 2/15/16 while supplies last. Get inspired for 2016 in the kitchen
This post is part of a social shopper marketing insight campaign with Pollinate Media Group®, Real Simple®, and Sunset® Magazines but all my opinions are my own. #pmedia #NewYearMeTime http://my-disclosur.es/OBsstV