Panera, Watch Out!

Busy day here folks, but I just had to take time to share  a couple of recipes with you. Hope you enjoy them, too!

Today was my turn to host A Circle of Friends, our little quilting group. We started sewing together when our kids were small and have been through births, weddings, empty nests, deaths, menopause, and lots of other challenges and fun times.

I love these girls!

Today we worked on lap quilts for our local cancer center, using the stash of one of our sweet members who lost her own battle with cancer last year. Our hearts were broken when she passed away, but we had to regroup and soldier on.

I wanted to serve something different and yummy that could be prepared ahead of time so I could spend our  time together sewing, not cooking.

And all recipes came through for me again. I really like that website!

I made Italian Sausage Soup....

NGREDIENTS:

1 pound sweet Italian sausage, casings removed 1 cup chopped onion 2 cloves garlic, minced 5 cups beef broth 1/2 cup water 1/2 cup red wine 4 large tomatoes - peeled, seeded and

chopped 1 cup thinly sliced carrots 1/2 tablespoon packed fresh basil leaves 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano 1 (8 ounce) can tomato sauce 1 1/2 cups sliced zucchini 8 ounces fresh tortellini pasta 3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

DIRECTIONS:

1.	In a 5 quart Dutch oven, brown sausage. Remove sausage and drain, reserving 1 tablespoon of the drippings.
2.	Saute onions and garlic in drippings. Stir in beef broth, water, wine, tomatoes, carrots, basil, oregano, tomato sauce, and sausage. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer uncovered for 30 minutes.
3.	Skim fat from the soup. Stir in zucchini and parsley. Simmer covered for 30 minutes. Add tortellini during the last 10 minutes. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese on top of each serving.

It was delicious and easy, and I give it 5 stars. I made it on top of the stove and transferred to the crockpot and added the frozen cheese tortellini. It was in the crockpot for about 4 hours and was perfect.

and

 Focaccia Bread....

INGREDIENTS:

2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour 1 teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon white sugar 1 tablespoon active dry yeast 1 teaspoon garlic powder 1 teaspoon dried oregano 1 teaspoon dried thyme

1/2 teaspoon dried basil 1 pinch ground black pepper 1 tablespoon vegetable oil 1 cup water 2 tablespoons olive oil 1 tablespoon grated Parmesan cheese 1 cup mozzarella

DIRECTIONS:

1.	In a large bowl, stir together the flour, salt, sugar, yeast, garlic powder, oregano, thyme, basil and black pepper. Mix in the vegetable oil and water.
2.	When the dough has pulled together, turn it out onto a lightly floured surface, and knead until smooth and elastic. Lightly oil a large bowl, place the dough in the bowl, and turn to coat with oil. Cover with a damp cloth, and let rise in a warm place for 20 minutes.
3.	Preheat oven to 450 degrees F (230 degrees C). Punch dough down; place on greased baking sheet. Pat into a 1/2 inch thick rectangle. Brush top with olive oil. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and mozzarella cheese.
4.	Bake in preheated oven for 15 minutes, or until golden brown. Serve warm.

This bread was sooooooo easy and delicious. I will be making it again and again.

Thank you All Recipes for coming to my culinary rescue.

Now, excuse me.

I have sewing to do!

Linking up to:

Imparting Grace