Travel League, Thanksgiving,

Tonight (Thursday) I'm too tired to write much at all. Bowling really took it out of me today. Went to lunch at the Red Lobster which was enjoyable. Saw friends we hadn't seen since the end of the Winter season last April. Then on to the bowling alley. The bowling seemed to go on and on and on and by the end of it I was totally whacked. We didn't get out of the alley until about 4. It was quite funny, I was using my cane to get up to the alley then propping it up while I hobbled around throwing balls then picking it up again. The women on my team started bringing me my cane when I had finished each time. Nice of them but it became a joke too and if the woman who followed me forgot I pretended to be teed off and complained about the poor service. That part was fun. My bowling was, of course, lousy. I am still not able to bowl properly of course. Things are better but I am not back to normal by any means.

Got home and it was almost time to fix supper. I had done a few preparations in the morning and also make a whole batch of tomato sauce for the freezer. After supper whilst waiting for Jeopardy I tried to have a zizz but was too keyed up to do so. Ah well.

Last day of September, unbelievable really, the year seems to have been shooting by. Another week and it is Thanksgiving in Canada.

Here's a quick soup with some interesting sounding dumplings. A more complicated tomato soup than the one I usually make, but it sounds good.

Tomato Soup with Parmesan Dumplings

 Looking for the perfect quick and easy tomato soup recipe? Here it is, a delicious tomato soup that

can be made in under 30 minutes, but, don't let the speed fool you. This quick bowl of comfort not only offers up depth of flavor, but also is elegantly topped with Parmesan dumplings to make it a perfect entertaining first course.

Ingredients

Tomato Soup

2 tbsp butter
1 large white onion, chopped
1 tbsp shallots, chopped
1 large garlic clove, minced
2 small carrots, peeled and chopped
2 small celery stalks, chopped
1 small red bell pepper, chopped
3 sun-dried tomatoes, not oil-packed, coarsely chopped
2 tbsp tomato paste
1 tbsp fresh lime juice
½ tsp sugar
½ tsp kosher salt
¼ tsp freshly ground black pepper
Dash cayenne pepper
3 cups chicken broth
1 (28oz) can diced tomatoes, undrained

Parmesan Dumplings

1/3 cup flour
2 tbsp freshly grated Parmesan cheese
2 tsp chopped fresh basil
¼ tsp baking powder
¼ tsp kosher salt
1 egg, lightly beaten
2 tsp vegetable oil

Thinly sliced fresh basil, for garnish

Directions

1) For the soup, in a large saucepan, heat butter over medium heat. Add onion, shallot and garlic, cooking 4-5 minutes until tender. Add carrots, celery, red pepper, sun-dried tomatoes, tomato paste, lime juice, sugar, salt, pepper and cayenne. Cook, stirring occasionally, 4-5 minutes to soften vegetables. Add chicken broth and diced tomatoes. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat to low and simmer 20 minutes. Remove from heat and either puree directly in soup pot using a handheld blender or place half of the tomato soup mixture in a countertop blender. Cover and blend until smooth. Transfer to a large bowl and repeat with remaining tomato soup. Return all of the soup to the saucepan. Reheat when ready to serve.

2) For the Parmesan dumplings, combine flour, Parmesan, basil, baking powder and salt in a medium bowl. In a small bowl, lightly whisk together the egg and vegetable oil. Stir egg mixture into flour mixture with a wooden spoon until combined. Bring a medium pot of water to a boil. Using ½ tsp measuring spoon, drop slightly rounded dough into boiling water. Cook 4 minutes and remove with a slotted spoon. Rinse with cold water and drain well. Serve with soup. Garnish soup with sliced basil
Yield: 25 dumplings

Serves 6

Have a great day