Days 6 & 7: Recipe Fail

Our weekend plan was leftovers and a crock-pot vegetarian stew, which after 8 hours was still crunchy. Is it just me, but who wants crunchy carrots in their stew? So, that one is a recipe fail. The boys had egg pancakes and I had hummus and tabouli instead.

Today (Sunday) is the last day of my no-dairy, no-sugar, no-alcohol detox. I'm glad to have more cooking options, but it wasn't too hard and I do feel better. It's worth a try.

Here's a recipe I made up for lunch, using leftovers from the week's menus. I think it turned out pretty tasty, but I love all flavors Mexican. If you happen to make Huevos Rancheros (from Day 4), you should have leftover sauce and chips, which is part of this recipe.

Made-Up Chilaquiles Soup

1 tsp. pureed garlic in a jar

½ tsp. oregano

½ tsp. cumin

¼ tsp. red pepper flakes

8 oz. firm tofu, diced (because this is what I had left, could be any amount, or left out)

6 cups veggie stock

Leftover huevos rancheros sauce

2 oz. yellow corn chips

2 tbsp favorite salsa

½ tsp. salt

3 cups baby spinach (again, what I had left around, adjust at will)

1 tbsp cilantro pesto*
sliced green onions

Sauté garlic, oregano, red pepper, and cumin until you can smell the cumin toasting. Add tofu and sauté a little bit. Add 4 cups of the stock, the leftover sauce, and the chips. Bring to a boil, then simmer until reduced a little and the chips break up (they will disintegrate, flavoring and thickening your soup). Add remaining 2 cups of stock, salt, spinach, pesto, and salsa. Heat through until spinach is wilted.

I served with sliced green onions on top for crunch.

* I used cilantro pesto because I had some in the freezer and I didn't have any fresh cilantro. I liked the addition of the pine nut flavor so you could toast a few pine nuts for a garnish and chop fresh cilantro instead. Oh and I didn’t have any limes or lime juice and I wished for a tiny drop, so that would be a good addition too!