No Noodle Wonton Soup

I love Asian flavours!  Whether it's the spicyness of garlic or ginger, or the freshness of lemongrass, Asian flavours have a unique taste and aroma.  While eating gluten-free, I have missed Wor Wonton soup.  I remember going out for Chinese food with Michael one night and watching him eat only the meat part of the wonton while setting aside the noodle wrapper.  Sometimes it is a lot of work to enjoy something we love.  This week, I decided to create my own wonton soup without the noodle wrappers. Easy enough?! Actually, it was. :)


No Noodle Wonton Soup 

Broth
1 Tbsp. sesame oil
1 Tbsp. minced/pureed ginger
1/8 cup shaved lemongrass (how to cook with lemongrass)
1/4 cup finely chopped red onion
900 mL beef broth (low sodium)
900 mL chicken broth (low sodium)
1 Tbsp. rice wine vinegar
1/4 cup Bragg's soya sauce

Meatballs
2 lbs. grass fed, grass finished ground beef (or pork)
2 finely chopped green onions
2 tsp. pureed ginger
2 minced garlic cloves
1 tsp. Bragg's soya sauce

Other Ingredients
1 cup baby bok choy
10-15 sugar snap peas
1 cup sliced celery
1 cup broccoli florets
1 can baby corn
10-15 uncooked shrimp (remove vein and shell if needed)


Directions
In a large soup pot, sautee the oil, ginger, lemongrass, and red onion over medium heat. Once the onion is translucent, add the broths, rice wine vinegar and soya sauce.  Turn down to simmer.

In a medium mixing bowl, thoroughly combine the meatball ingredients.  Create small meatballs by rolling the mixture between your hands.  In a medium frying pan, heat some butter over medium heat.  Brown the meatballs on either side and set aside.  Make sure they are cooked enough that they will not fall apart once placed in the broth. 2-4 minutes on each side should do the trick.




Chop all the vegetable ingredients into bite sized pieces.  Place the meatballs and shrimp into the broth and slowly bring the heat up to low-medium heat.  Let simmer for 5 minutes.  Add in the vegetables for about 5 minutes right before serving.  Do not simmer the vegetables too long as they will become soggy and limp.  The best part of wonton soup is the crisp vegetables!

Meaty Crockpot Chili

This all started on Friday night when my brother Brad texted me and asked: Have you made Mark Sisson's Texas Chili?  I hadn't, but he highly recommended it.  I was a bit disappointed he didn't invite me over to try it!  Either way, by Sunday I was thinking I would try making it, but add some more ingredients. You know, add a bit of Alyssa food flair! Brad suggested adding in the ground beef for texture and I thought adding bacon would be good too.  This recipe still falls into the paleo category because it does not include any beans. Mark's spice blend is the perfect amount of spice (not too spicey!) I have to include that Michael didn't really like it...didn't like the spices he said.  It is a rare day when that one doesn't like something I have made.

Meaty Crockpot Chili

1 tsp. butter
1/2 white onion, diced
2-3 garlic cloves, minced
1 red bell pepper, diced
2 lbs. stew meat (cut into 2 cm cubes)
1 lb. ground beef
6-10 strips of bacon, sliced
1 can (156 mL) tomato paste
1 can (796 mL) diced tomatoes
2 cups beef broth
3 Tbsp. chili powder
1 Tbsp. dried oregano
1 tsp. paprika
1 tsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. each salt and pepper

1. In your crockpot, add all of the ingredients from the tomato paste down.  Mix thoroughly.
2. In a large skillet, melt butter over medium heat.  Add onions and garlic. Sautee until translucent. Add bacon and red pepper and sautee for 5-10 minutes until fat is rendered. Pour mixture into crockpot.
3. Reheat skillet and brown the stew meat in 2-3 batches, placing each batch into the crockpot once browned.
4. Brown the ground beef over medium heat and add to your crockpot.
5. Set your crockpot for 6-8 hours cooktime.  I only cooked mine for 4 hours so much of the liquid was still there (as you can see in the picture).