Tasty Treats By Michi

You know when it's freezing outside and all you crave is some delicious soup to warm you to the core?  Well, I actually don't know what that's like. You know why? I live in South Florida! However, this soup was absolutely perfect and definitely hit the spot, even on a warm 87 degree Florida day. :)

We paired the soup with some Italian bread toasted with garlic, oil, and mozzarella, and then topped with basil and tomato.  This little sandwich was to die for! Even with fat free mozzarella cheese! I found a new brand of fat free cheese that is now my favorite.  

My husband actually thinks this soup tastes like the old Olive Garden minestrone soup.  He loved it!  We froze half of it to have it again in a couple of weeks and I can't wait to enjoy it for the second time! :) 

Ingredients for Tomato Soup: 

• 3 tbsp of extra virgin olive oil
• 2 carrots, peeled and chopped
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 3 gloves of garlic, minced 
• 2 34 oz jars of Classico Tomato & Basil Pasta Sauce
• 1 32 ounce box of Swanson Organic Chicken Broth
• 2 15 ounce cans of cannellini beans, drained and rinsed 
• 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
• 1.5 cups of Barilla Bitalini Pasta
• 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper

Ingredients for Mozzarella, Tomato, & Basil Sandwich: 

• 1 loaf of Italian bread
• 4 ounces or 1/2 a block of Lifetime Fat Free Mozzarella Cheese
• A few fresh basil leaves
• 1/2 tomato, sliced into circles 
• 3 cloves of garlic, minced 
• 3 tbsp of extra virgin olive oil 

Directions: 

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.  

Warm the olive oil in a large soup pot over medium-high heat.  Add the carrots, onion, and garlic and saute until soft, about 5-10 minutes.  Add the jars of tomato sauce, chicken broth, cannellini beans, red pepper flakes, pasta, and pepper.  Simmer for about 15-20 minutes. 

While the soup is simmering, put the minced garlic in a small bowl with the olive oil.  Cut the loaf in half and then in half again, like a sandwich.  Then, using a brush, brush the garlic and oil all over the inside of the bread.  Add about three pieces of mozzarella to each piece of sandwich, along with a little more oil, and three or four leaves of basil.  Wrap the sandwiches in foil and bake for 10-15 minutes, or until the cheese is soft and melted.  Remember, it's fat free cheese so it won't melt the same as regular fat cheese, but it will be soft.  

After the sandwiches are done, add some tomato slices to each sandwich and serve along side with the soup.  This makes about 8 servings of soup, so save some room in your freezer to have some more soup later! 

We eat leftovers pretty much every single day, so eating them in a new way is always a great thing!  The day after we make Spaghetti and Turkey Meatballs (link to recipe above) we almost always make meatball subs.  This is a quick and easy meal and it really makes our leftovers taste like something different.  Enjoy :). 

Ingredients: 

• Turkey Meatballs
• Kraft Fat Free Mozzarella Cheese
• Tomato Sauce (I like Classico Tomato and Basil)
• 1 loaf of Italian Bread
• Oregano

 Directions: 

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.  Heat the spaghetti and meatballs from the night before in the microwave until hot.  While the meatballs are heating, slice the loaf of bread in 6 inch or 12 inch pieces, or however large you want each sub be.  Then, slice each piece in half lengthwise.  Put as many heated meatballs in the sub that can fit.  Spoon some spaghetti sauce over the meatballs, sprinkle with oregano, and then top with some fat free mozzarella cheese.  Spoon some more sauce on top if you like. 

Put the subs on a baking sheet and heat them in the oven for about 10-12 minutes or until the bread is toasted and the cheese has melted.  Serve with some leftover spaghetti on the side. 

Yummy and filing!