Living A Vintage Life: Vintage Victuals

I know, I'm a bit late on Sunday getting this done. I'm only batting .333 right now - about as good as a lot of pro baseballers, but still not too impressive and at a miniscule fraction of the pay! I keep losing track of what day it is - I guess if I quit playing hooky from Sunday service I wouldn't have this problem!

Vintage Victuals is where we are venturing today. A wonderful website with piles of wonderful recipes that are vintage, entirely doable, beautifully photographed and not the least bit objectionable like the black & white photographed 'goodies' you'll find in old 'Joy of Cooking' cookbooks.
I do apologize for being a bit redundant on Nora's Foodie Friday, but a blog with the word 'victuals' (or 'vittles' as Granny Clampett says) deserves a second look and there's always room for more cooking inspiration.

Some of these recipes are sophisticated and modern looking, like the Lemon Crab Pasta; some are local faves, such as the Legendary Hot Brown, unique to the Louisville, KY area AND a wonderful solution to endless turkey leftovers.

Then there are beautiful classics, like sweet and humble Georgia Peach Cobbler.

Belly up to the computer screen with a glass of iced tea and prepare to experience a calorie-free, visually  tour of the 'good ol' days'!

FOODIE FRIDAY -- M is for MINETRONE

It's spring--at least according to the calender. The weather, however, is still stuck at STORMY. And in my house, the best remedy for stormy weather is SOUP!! Nothing like a pot of old-fashioned, made from scratch soup to warm and comfort you from the inside out! One of our favorites is a fresh take on MINESTRONE. Here is the definition of MINESTRONE from one of my favorite web sources: http://whatscookingamerica.net/Glossary/M.htmminestrone (mih-nest-ROE-nay) - Means "big soup." It is a thick vegetable soup that generally contains pasta. Pretty broad. In our house, the MINESTRONE is usually vegan, unless we add a touch of freshly grated Parmesan cheese over the top. It varies each time I make it, but here is a good basic recipe: Ingredients: * 2 tablespoons olive oil * 1 medium onion, chopped * 2 stalks celery, diced * 2 carrots, peeled and diced * 2-3 cloves garlic, pressed * 1 medium zucchini squash, sliced * ½ teaspoon dried oregano and/or basil * 1 pinch hot pepper flakes (optional) * 1 bay leaf * 2 tsp branches of fresh thyme or 1 tsp dried * 1 LG can CRUSHED tomatoes * 1 can white (cannelliini), garbanzo OR kidney beans, drained and rinsed * 1c. frozen green beans * ½ bunch kale or ½ head of cabbage, cut into bite sized pieces * 2 cups cooked small whole wheat pasta (optional) * Sea salt and freshly ground pepper * To serve: * Grated Parmesan cheese (optional) Preparation: Warm olive oil over medium heat in a soup pot. Add onion, celery, carrot, and garlic and cook 5 minutes, stirring frequently. Add squash, oregano, hot pepper, bay leaf and thyme, and cook 4 minutes. Add the tomatoes, beans of choice, 6 cups of water and two generous pinches of sea salt; bring to a boil, and cover. Reduce heat, and simmer 25 minutes, until vegetables are tender. Add green beans and kale, and cook, uncovered, for 10 minutes. Stir in pasta. Discard thyme branches (if fresh was used) and bay leaf, adjust seasoning and serve, with a sprinkling of Parmesan cheese if desired. Serves 4-6

glasbake soup mugs from jenzee09 on etsy