Foodie Friday: Creamy Italian Sausage Soup

This weekend will be a hectic weekend for our family. The Bean is performing in her high school musical, and we will attend all three performances. We could dine on fast food for a quick and easy meal, but I am over fast food. Instead, I have planned a few simple meals we can put together quickly that are filling and delicious and don't create too much mess.

A family friend was selling Mariana hoagies for her children's elementary school. Tonight, we shall have subs and creamy Italian sausage soup for dinner before the musical. The Bibbed Wonder and I have a full morning planned in the studio. I have to attend a funeral, be home in time to feed The Bean after school, and then go to the school to watch the musical. I'm planning to make the soup this morning and then put it in the crockpot on the warm setting so it is ready when The Bean gets home from school.

Today's recipe is for creamy Italian sausage soup. It is simple and delicious. The Bean enjoys it, and I have all the ingredients on hand. If you are experiencing cold weather like we are, this recipe will help warm you.

Creamy Italian Sausage Soup

1 lb sweet Italian sausage. browned

1 tbsp olive oil

1 small onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 can (14.5 oz) diced tomatoes

2 quarts chicken stock

1/2 cup heavy cream

1 cup ditalini pasta

1/2 cup Parmesan cheese

1/2 tsp each dried basil, oregano

Salt and pepper to taste

Fresh parsley for garnish

Directions:

Brown sausage in oil, breaking up while cooking. Remove and set aside.

Cook onion and garlic in the same pan until fragrant and translucent.

Add tomatoes, stock, herbs, and return sausage. Simmer gently.

Add pasta and cook until al dente per package instructions.

Stir in cream and Parmesan until melted. Season and garnish with parsley.

Stay safe, be smart, enjoy good food, and keep washing your hands on this cold February weekend.

Smells Like Spring

A beautiful picture of lilacs to make you smile

As I sit in my dad's den, looking out the large front window at the barn, the snow is falling, the barn roof is covered, and it looks grey and miserable. I am over winter. It can go away. Despite the single-digit temperature and blowing snow, the soap studio today will smell like spring. The scent of spring gives me hope that warmer weather is not far away and also reinforces that Old Man Winter is just being an a**hole.

Today, The Bibbed Wonder and I will make Lilac and Honeysuckle soaps. Honeysuckle is my absolute favorite seasonal soap, and I know many of you feel the same way. My friend and mail person, Cynthia....said in a sing-songy voice every time she enters the studio to pick up packages...Sinnnnnnnnn-Theeeeeeeee-AAAAA! asked me for a small vial of honeysuckle essential oil because she recently purchased a diffuser. She has purchased several vials of honeysuckle essential oil but claims none smell as good as the one we use in our soap. Of course, I will bottle a small vial for Cindy to enjoy. Our honeysuckle essential oil comes directly from the processor in India. Someday, I hope to travel to India to meet the lovely family who owns the essential oil company. Their emails and communications are beautiful and personable, and their practices align with my beliefs; I connect with them even though we are worlds apart. Isn't it odd that we can feel connected to people across the globe whom we have never met? Perhaps I am just weird.

Anyhow, I digress. We are making the first of our spring scents, and I am quite excited. The Bibbed Wonder is fighting me about bringing the Honeysuckle soap on full-time. He believes it is popular and special because it is only available for a limited time. I believe it has proven to be a top seller year after year and earned a permanent spot in our inventory. We shall see who wins this battle. What is your opinion? Truly, I would love to have my trusted soap family's input. You may take comfort in knowing you will have saved us several days/weeks/months of heated arguments and frustration by sharing your opinion in the comments section. Don't be shy. We value your feedback.

Along with Honeysuckle, we will also make Lilac soap. I was on the fence about making the lilac soap this year. I had the idea of replacing it with a beautiful violet-scented soap. However, so many of you have requested the lilac soap that I felt I could not disappoint you. Personally, I am not a fan of lilac-scented products. There is a twenty-year-old lilac bush that grows near the barn. I believe this was a Mother's Day gift to my mom from me many years ago. I love the scent of lilacs wafting in the air for the brief time they gloriously bloom. However, in my early twenties, my mom used to burn a lilac-scented candle. For almost a year, the stress of leaving the farm to drive to Marionville, PA, every Sunday evening to return to my teaching job at a juvenile treatment facility created so much stress that I would vomit at least once before I left. I will forever associate the scent of lilacs with the stress and vomiting during that period of my life. Regardless of how I feel about lilac scents, many of you have lovely memories and enjoy the fragrance. So, you will have lilac-scented soap and moisturizer this spring.

I spent all day yesterday creating little one-inch lilacs from soap frosting to place atop the lilac-scented soap. Although I am satisfied with the results, I know I have much to learn and can do better. They look a bit amateurish, but I believe they pass as lilacs. I foresee a cake decorating class in my future. I dabble, but I am a long way from being proficient. If you know of a good cake decorating class, please share. I watch videos, but there is nothing like one-on-one instruction to learn artistic techniques. The Bibbed Wonder thinks they look good and are passable. I take that as a win.

We will enjoy the scents of spring on this grey, snowy day. The meteorological spring is March 1st, and the official start of spring is March 20th. Spring is less than a month away, dear reader. There is light at the end of the tunnel. Although I genuinely feel like Old Man Winter is indeed an a**hole and will happily escort him out, I trust in the natural rhythm and respect that everything needs to pause to regenerate. I don't understand why taking a pause can't be a mild 40+ degrees. Sigh. My new mantra is: spring is coming, spring is coming, spring is coming. Repeat until you believe it.

On this snowy winter day, stay safe and be smart. Spring is coming, and your favorite spring scents are coming. Please share your opinions in the comments, and keep washing your hands.

Finally, Soap Dough Success

Well, dear reader, I am thrilled to share that I have finally made a successful batch of soap dough. This may not seem like a big deal to many, but it is an achievement for me. I have been dabbling at making soap dough for over a year. I have read articles, watched videos, created lists of do's and don'ts, and experimented with four recipes. At long last, I have made a soap dough that is soft, pliable, not sticky and hardens nicely. I believe this success will take my soap design to a new level.

So, what is soap dough, you may ask? Soap dough is moldable, pliable, clay-like soap. Remember sculpting clay from your childhood? That is soap dough. The dough remains soft and supple as long as it is not exposed to air. However, once exposed to air and allowed to cure, it hardens and retains its shape. Soap dough can be used to create three-dimensional shapes, extruded into embeds and placed inside the soap, or rolled flat and cut into shapes using cookie cutters or presses. The possibilities are endless.

The next question you may ask is, what do I intend to do with soap dough? Thus far, I haven't done anything very creative or exciting. I have made tiny pearls, rolled them in glitter, and called it good. It's been a week, and it's only Wednesday, but that is a story for another day. Sigh. Today, I intend to try my hand at sculpting tiny lilacs for our spring lilac-scented soap. Now, remember, dear reader, this is a learn-as-you-go process, and I make no promises for my success. If I have learned one thing about myself, it is that my expectations and vision far overreach my talent and capabilities. However, always the optimist, I look forward to creating something beautiful with successful results. Please cross your fingers, send out good juju, make a wish on an eyelash, etc., for good results. Don't pray for me. The Universe has far bigger fish to fry than my success with soap dough...insert a wink.

If I am being transparent, I am at a bit of a loss. I have had so many failed attempts that I am unsure what to do with my success. I have to sit down, look at our list of seasonal soaps, and really delve into the design aspect. I will also need a few new tools, but again, I need to assess my needs before I shop. Just know I am excited about the aspect of creating something truly beautiful and unique. I believe, dear reader, the soap dough will take holiday soaps in a new and unique direction. I can't wait.

With that, I am off to the soap studio earlier than usual because I can't wait to get started on the lilac project. On this blistering cold February day, stay safe, be smart, have fun with everything you do, and keep washing your hands.