Hamburger-Vegetable Soup with Tortellini

Today is a second day of snow day so there's no school for my son and myself.  Yesterday I did housework that included laundry, vacuuming, mopping, and dusting!  It's very rare that I got to do dusting when I do my weekly cleaning--ooppsss--as that chore is very tedious and I do not like it at all.  If I can do dusting at least once a month, it is already a triumph for me.  Hey, I am not perfect, are you? :)

I also did some baking which I will probably post the recipe in here.  I do like having snow day because I get to catch up with my chores and to play around in the kitchen.  And yes, I am the kind of person who can't sit still because I will end up eating snacks all day long.  Plus, being at home always makes me hungry; I think it's the comfort of the home that brings calm, stability, or equilibrium to my mind that the immediate response--at least for me--is hunger.

Speaking of being hungry, this past weekend I made this soup which was soo good and easy.  It defines comfort food with rich tomato broth and the pillow-like texture of cheese tortellini.   The flavor is very similar to having hamburgers; that's a plus!

 Wouldn't this be great to have on snow days?

Hamburger-Vegetable Soup with Tortellini

Serves 6 to 8


1 pound lean ground beef
1 cup chopped yellow onion
1 teaspoon vegetable oil, if needed
1 can (14 1/2 ounces) petite diced tomatoes, no-salt added
6 cups beef stock or broth
2 cups tomato juice
1/4 teaspoon dry Italian seasonings
1 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground pepper to taste
2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
2 to 3 drops Tabasco sauce
1 package (10 ounces) frozen mixed vegetables, rinsed
1 package (9 ounces) cheese-filled tortellini
Freshly grated Parmesan cheese for topping


In a large Dutch oven over medium heat, brown meat with onion until meat is no longer pink, about 5 minutes.  Add oil if needed to keep meat from sticking.  Add tomatoes, stock, tomato juice, dry Italian seasonings, salt, pepper, Worcestershire sauce, and Tabasco sauce.  Bring to a boil.  Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, uncovered, for 30 minutes.

Increase heat to medium-high.  Add vegetables and tortellini and cook, uncovered, until vegetables and tortellini are tender, about 10 minutes.  Ladle into a bowl and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.


Source:  adapted from The Big Book of Soups and Stews by Maryana Vollstedt

Banana Bundt Cake with Toffee Sauce

I'm not kidding when I said I'm going to put this recipe on the blog but boy, did it take a long time for me to do it!

This cake was a hit in my family that I made it twice in a month.  I do love it as well, I thought the cake was very tender, not too sweet, and it allows you add a variety of ingredients to it; for example, dried fruits, chocolate chips, or nuts.  I keep the add-ons less than a cup because I fear that if it's too much, the batter will get too heavy and dense.

The original recipe didn't have anything on it but I added dried currants because they're my number one choice for dried fruits.  These were soaked in a bit of rum for a few hours.   Plus since I had that leftover toffee sauce from making sticky toffee pudding tart, I decided to use it up on this cake.  Everything worked well together and flavor profile was sublime.

I hope you'll enjoy it as well as my family did!

Banana Bundt Cake with Toffee Sauce

Makes one 10- or 12-inch Bundt cake


3/4 cup dried currants
1/4 cup rum or apple juice
3 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter, at room temperature
2 cups sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 large eggs, at room temperature
4 very ripe bananas, mashed (about 1 1/2 to 1 3/4 cups)
1 cup sour cream

About 1-1 1/4 cup Toffee Sauce


Place a rack in the center of the oven; preheat oven to 350F degrees.  Generously butter and flour or coat with baker's spray a 10- or 12-inch Bundt cake pan.

Combine dried currants with rum or apple juice and let macerate for a few hours.  Whisk together flour, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl.

Use a paddle attachment on a stand mixer, beat butter and sugar at medium speed until fluffy and pale in color.  Beat in vanilla, then add eggs, one at a time, beating for 1 minute after each.  Turn the speed to low, add bananas.  Slowly add dry ingredients and then all of the sour cream.  Fold the macerated currants with juice with a spatula until just combined.  Pour batter into prepared pan.  Smooth the top and bang the pan gently against the counter a few times.

Bake for 45 to 50 minutes or until a skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean.  If the top starts to brown quickly, cover it lightly with a piece of foil.  Transfer the cake onto a rack and let cool for 10 minutes.  Unmold the cake to a rack and let it cool to room temperature.  If desired, the cake can be covered with plastic wrap and left overnight to develop more flavor.

When the cake is cool, drizzle the toffee sauce over the cake, letting it drips down the sides.


Source:  adapted from Baking with Dorie, Better Homes and Gardens Special Interest Publications, 2017