Silken Turnip and Potato Soup (and How To Make Chicken Stock)

Wrinkled old turnips?  Come on down! We love using you in soup!

I read this recipe in The Washington Post and first tried it when the farm share overwhelmed me with turnips provided us with an overabundance of turnips.  My whole family likes this.  I'm happy to make it earlier in the week and serve it the night before Thanksgiving, when I'm busy prepping and don't feel like cooking or eating a heavy meal.

Awaiting the sour cream garnish.

This soup tastes very rich, but it's made without any cream.  In fact, if you use vegetable broth and oil instead of the chicken stock and butter, it would make a vegan offering on your Thanksgiving table.
I don't usually have vegans at my table, so I make chicken stock for the base of this soup.  Whenever I roast a chicken, or pick up a rotisserie chicken at the store, I save the carcass for chicken stock.  Today I grabbed a soup pack and, armed with 1950 Betty Crocker's New Picture Cookbook, made up a batch.

Swiss Chard, Corn, and Feta Pizza (Pizza Night!)

This pizza was inspired by a flatbread at SmittenKitchen.  The combination of leeks, corn, and chard sounded just delicious.  I haven't gotten any leeks from my CSA farm share this year, though.  So I knew I'd need to sub in some onions.  I grew up eating the entire piece of Swiss chard, and I hate to waste edible food, so I adapted it based on what I had on hand.
I'd been experimenting making pizza sauce with fresh tomatoes, so I smeared half the pizza with the sauce that didn't get put up (I ran out before I finished).  Half of this pizza is <gasp> naked!  It's ok, though, I covered up the bare dough with stuff.  It's totally safe for kids.

You don't normally see fluorescent pink in nature.

Quick and Crunchy Multi Grain Pumpkin Muffins

The overnight soaked-oatmeal muffins only work if you remember to set them up overnight, or at least an hour before baking.  Somedays, though, you remember to thaw a cup of pumpkin puree but forget to soak the oats.  And forget to put a tea bag in your mug of hot water . . .

For those days, here's a quick and crunchy muffin with the same whole grain goodness in less time.