I recently joined a produce co-op called Bountiful Baskets.  It's one of those "pool your money and everyone gets some stuff" places.  This past Saturday was the first time I participated and picked up my bounty.   It was pretty awesome.  For $10, I got a laundry basket full of stuff.  
A bag of potatoes, a bag plus 2 loose onions, lettuce, kale, melon, bananas, beets, apples, kiwi, mushrooms, tomatoes, and strawberries.  Pretty good haul.

But then the question arose.  What do I do with it now?

Enter the Olive Garden.  They are one of my most favorite places to eat.  One of mine and my boyfriend's favorite things to order are the soup, salad and bread sticks.  And, one of the soups I often order is the Zuppa Toscana.

Lo' and behold-  I have most of those ingredients right there!   So, a homemade version was in order.  To be honest, I think it turned out better than the restaurant's!!  I served it with some Pillsbury crescent rolls.  Yum!

Ingredients:

• 1 pound ground turkey sausage (I used ground turkey and threw a bunch of garlic powder, basil, oregano and parsley in it), cooked and drained
• 2 potatoes, cut into very thin slices
• 3/4 cup chopped onion
• 6 slices bacon (I used turkey bacon)
• 1&1/2 teaspoons minced garlic
• 2 cups kale- washed, dried and shredded
• 1 15-ounce can of low-sodium chicken broth
• 2&1/4 cups water
• 1/3 cup fat-free half & half

Directions:

1. Cook bacon until crisp.  Crumble and set aside.
2. Place onion in a large saucepan and cook over medium high heat until almost clear.  Add garlic and cook for about a minute longer.
3. Add chicken broth, water and potatoes.  Simmer for about 15 minutes.
4. Add bacon crumbles, sausage, kale and half & half.   Simmer for about 4 more minutes. 
5. Serve hot with bread!

I am a fan of broccoli. I am in heart with broccoli. Pour some cheese on it, and it's mouth ecstasy. Imagine how excited I was to find this recipe!

I added cooked, diced chicken breast to it.  It was delish!  Even my boyfriend liked, it, and he hates cottage cheese.  Easy and tasty = a definite keeper!
Ingredients:

• 3 eggs
• 1 cup cottage cheese
• 1/2 cup cheddar cheese
• 3 tablespoons flour
• 2 teaspoons salt
• dash of pepper
• 2 packages (10-ounces each) frozen broccoli
• (I added 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts- grilled and diced)

Directions:

1. Beat eggs, then add cottage cheese, cheddar, flour, salt and pepper. Beat well together.
2. Cook broccoli as directed and drain well. Add to egg mixture.  Add chicken if using.
3. Pour into greased baking pan at 350*F for 30-35 minutes.

Serves 6-8

   Hmm..  This sounded good, in theory.  However, I am not sure I am pleased with the final product.  It may be that one hour is a bit too long for my oven.  It may just be the consistency of the bread.  Either way, it is a bit tough... not soft and chewy like I would expect a bread like this to be.   Also, the pineapple is a bit overwhelming to the other ingredients.  I could not taste the blueberrry at all.  For having so much pineapple and blueberries in it, I expected it to be much sweeter than it turned out to be.  Might have to try cutting down the pineapple and adding a bit of sugar to it next time, if there is a next time. 


Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 egg
• 2 tablespoons melted butter
• 3/4 cup pineapple juice
• 2 cups flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 cup drained crushed pineapple
• 1/2 cup fresh or frozen blueberries
• 1/2 cup nuts (any kind)

Directions:

1. Combine sugr and egg; cream with butter.  Add pineapple juice.
2. Combine flour, salt, and baking powder and add to sugar mixture.
3. Stir in pineapple, blueberries and nuts. 
4. Pour into a greased 8"x4" loaf pan.  Bake at 350*F for 1 hour.

  I found an absolutely easy and fabulous sounding recipe online a few weeks back.   Two simple ingredients that many households already have on hand:

•   a box of yellow cake mix, and
•   a 15-ounce can of pumpkin.   

I had both.  :)
I only had one of the huge cans of pumpkin, so I guesstimated on half.

Combine.  

Bake at 350*F for about 20-25 minutes. 

The batter is super yummy.  I'm hoping the muffins are as well.  I'll let you know in about 30 minutes!

*Very cakey.  Yummy and squishy.  They are more of a dessert muffin than, say, a breakfast muffin.  Super tasty though!  I'll definitely make them again.   Great one for the kids to try their hand at baking!

    I had a lot left over after filling my muffin pan, so I used the rest to make a mini loaf.  We'll see how that turns out.  I'm betting pretty scrumptious.  I plan on taking it to work.