Tuscan Bean Soup

I saw this recipe on Pioneer woman and it looked so good. Most of her recipes aren't very healthy so I was excited to see this and give it a try. The original recipe called for shrimp, but I left that out. I also didn't have fresh basil so I put a dollop of pesto on the soup once I ladeled it bowls. It was delicious!

Ingredients
5 cloves Garlic, Minced
1 whole Medium Onion, Diced
3 cans (14.5 Ounce) Cans Great Northern Beans, Drained And Rinsed
2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
1 teaspoon Red Pepper Flakes
2 teaspoons Dried Oregano
1/4 cup Tomato Paste
3/4 cups Dry White Wine
1 can (28 Ounces) Whole Or Diced Tomatoes
6 cups Low Sodium Chicken Broth
1 bunch Kale (more If Desired)
Plenty Of Torn Fresh Basil or prepared pesto

Preparation Instructions
Heat olive oil in a large pot over medium high heat. Add onions and garlic and stir to cook for 3 to 4 minutes. Add tomato paste and stir to cook about 2 minutes, getting lots of flavor in the bottom of the pan. Stir in red pepper flakes and dried oregano; stir and cook for another 30 seconds.
Pour in wine and whisk, scraping the bottom of the pan a bit as you go. Allow this to bubble up and reduce, cooking until the wine is reduced by half.
Add canned tomatoes. Drain and rinse beans, then add to pot. Pour in chicken broth. Stir to combine and allow it to simmer for 20-25 minutes. Sprinkle in salt and pepper to taste.
Rinse the kale and tear it into chunks. Stir into soup. (It'll shrink quite a bit, so don't be afraid when you first add it!) Allow the soup to simmer for another 5 minutes, tasting and adding salt and pepper (or even more red pepper flakes) as needed.

Thank you Pioneer Woman!

Olive Garden's Pasta E Fagioli

I found the original recipe on crockpot 365 and it is also on my friend Maleah's blog. I don't use a full lb of beef and I decided I liked it better with italian seasoning rather than all oregano. You can use any combination of veggies that you want. You could add broccoli, squash, green beans, asparagus, corn, etc.. We all love this soup at our house!
Ingredients:
1/2 lbs ground beef, cooked and drained
1/2 onion, chopped
1 cup carrots, chopped
1 cup celery, diced
2-14 ounce cans diced tomatoes
1 can red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 can white kidney beans, drained and rinsed
4 cups(32 oz) beef stock
1-2 teaspoons italian seasoning
salt and pepper
3-4 cups spaghetti sauce
1/2 dry pasta shell macaroni(added during the last hour of cooking)

Add all ingredients except pasta to crockpot. Cook on low 8 hours and add the pasta during the last hour.

Time saving tip: I usually assemble this in my crockpot the night before I plan on cooking it. I keep it in the fridge overnight and just have to plug in my crockpot in the morning. If I end up having a hectic morning I'm so glad I took the extra time the night before.

Chunky Vegetarian Chili

1 T olive oil
1 onion, chopped
3-4 peppers, variety of yellow, red, and green
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
1 T brown sugar or honey
1-2 T chili powder
1 t cumin
1 t italian seasoning
28 oz can of diced tomatoes
1 can of rotel
2 15 oz can black beans
1 15 oz can kidney beans
1 15 oz can pinto beans
1 cup corn

Heat oil in large pot over med-high heat. Add onion, peppers, garlic, saute 5 minutes. Add remaining ingredients and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 30 minutes. Makes approximately 8 cups. I like to make this in the crockpot too!

Sweet potato and black bean quesadillas

1 package of whole wheat tortillas
1 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
2 sweet potatoes, peeled and grated
½ yellow onion, grated
1 tsp. chili powder
1 tsp. ground cumin
Salt and pepper
1 can drained and rinsed black beans
1 cup cheddar cheese

Preheat a large skillet and add 1 tbsp. olive oil. To the large skillet, add grated onion and sweet potato and cook 15-20 minutes until onions and potatoes are soft. Turn skillet with potato mixture off, gently fold in black beans, cumin, chili powder, salt/pepper.. Clean out skillet with a paper towel, spray with nonstick cooking spray, and return to heat. Add one tortilla to skillet, brown on one side, flip over. Sprinkle with cheese, then add ½ cup of potato mixture, then sprinkle with more cheese. Fold one side over, brown for 4-5 minutes,then flip and brown the other side. Top with salsa, sour cream, or cilantro. I like to eat these with tomato soup!