I have been on the road now for 23 days straight and I’m ready to hangout at home really soon. I love seeing my road buddies and seeing new places and learning new things and meeting new people. BUT by the end of this trip, I will have been on the road for 3 cities, 25 days, 75 meals. That’s a lot. I’m ready to be in my own kitchen and eat my own food.

And I know just what I’m going to make as soon as I get settled.

Simple Sweet Potato Soup

This is one of my favorite easy to make comfort foods. It’s my go-to when I’m sick and freezes really well, so I usually have some in my freezer in case of comfort emergencies.

Ingredients
1 big sweet potato (peeled and chopped)
1 piece of uncured bacon
1/3 of an onion (chopped)
1 Cup Broth (read the label if you buy it)
Water to cover
Salt and Pepper to taste if you feel the need

Directions:
Get out a small sauce pan. This is going to make about 3 servings. Start by sautéing the onions with the bacon until the onions go clear. Keep an eye on your temperature or the onions will start to burn and caramelize. Burned onions will give your soup an acidic flavor and a bad color.  Next, add the sweet potato and give it a stir or two with the onions, then add water to cover the sweet potatoes. Bring to a boil, then turn back your heat. Stir occasionally and boil down until the potatoes are mushy. Add the broth when the potatoes can be easily smushed with a fork, and smush away! I wait to add the broth because a lot of the water will boil off as the potatoes cook. This is the time to add the salt and pepper. Anytime I add salt and pepper, I, of course, start singing Push It by Salt ‘n’ Peppa. I feel this is a crucial part of the cooking process and highly recommend you do the same. Give it another few minutes, stirring occasionally, while the broth cooks down. Stop cooking it when the consistency is a bit thinner than you would like it to be. The soup will thicken from the sweet potato. I like mine to have a stew-like consistency.

Pumpkin Soufflé

Souffles are a great way to really impress a group, if they’re done right. The key is to move quickly once you’ve started the egg whites. You can’t stop to text, Facebook, or put out a fire. Anytime you spend with egg whites needs to be quality, focused, one-on-one, just you and the egg whites time.

Ingredients
3 slices of uncured bacon
1 Cup of mini portabellas, sliced
3/4 Cup pumpkin puree
3/4 Cup of almond milk
3/4 Cup of coconut milk
2 Tablespoons of Melt (a delightful oil blend that needs to be refrigerated to be solid) (you can also use coconut oil or palm oil but it makes for a heavier soufflé)
1/2 teaspoon of salt
1/4 Cup coconut flour
4 egg yolks
8 egg whites
1/2 teaspoon of cumin
1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon
olive oil

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Cook up the bacon in a skillet and drain it on paper towels to absorb excess grease. Grease ramekins generously with your favorite grease. I like to use coconut oil or Melt. Throw the mushrooms into the bacon pan along with a little olive oil and sauté them until tender. Heat milks in a saucepan. Add melt and whisk briskly. Slowly whisk in flour and spices.

In a separate bowl, beat yolks vigorously. Add pumpkin to the yolks. Remove milks from heat. While whisking, add small amounts of egg yolks. Adding too quickly or not whisking will cook the eggs. Once this mixture is blended, set aside.

Now it’s time to beat those egg whites until fluffy and they form peaks. I like to make mine just a little bit dryer than I would for a meringue. As soon as the egg whites are stiff, start folding them into the yolk mixture. Fill to a little more than 3/4 full. Place the ramekins on a cookie sheet and bake until a toothpick comes out clean. How long it cooks, depends on the size of the ramekins.

Meat Muffins

I can never eat a whole meatloaf – and I’ve tried. I just love meatloaf! I had never had meatloaf until I was about 26, and I couldn’t believe how enjoyable I found it. Then, I made my own and everyone else’s just wasn’t as good anymore.

Ingredients
1/2 Cup almond meal
1 shallot (chopped)
1 1/4 pound of lean ground beef
1 1/4 pound of lean ground pork
1 egg
salt and pepper

Directions:
Bring out the mixing bowl! And make sure you wash your hands – we’re gonna get dirty. Meat dirty! While you’re pulling out pans, grab a little skillet and a muffin tin. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.

First step – put the meat in the bowl. And it’s time to sing a little more Salt n Peppa. What d’ya think? Shoop? Whatta Man? As soon as you know, just add the salt and pepper.

Get out your smallest skillet. On a medium heat, toast the almond meal. This brings out more of the nut flavor and less of a sweet almond flavor. Don’t eat it when it starts to smell all tasty and roasted, unless you make extra because you know you’re going to do it. Once you’ve got that toasted, dump it in over the meat.

While the pan is still warm, toss your shallots on there with a little oil of your choice. Sauté until clear, then toss those into your bowl of meat.

Next up is the egg. Crack that lil buddy into a custard cup or small bowl and beat it lightly with a fork. If you’re feeling fancy, you can use a whisk. You just don’t want to end up with all the yolk in one meat muffin and all the white in another one. Pour the egg over the meat.

Here comes the part where you roll up those sleeves and get dirty. If you prefer, you can use a spoon, but I’ll judge you for it and your blend won’t be as blended as quickly. Really smush it all together. Massage it. Knead it. Squish it. When you feel like everything is well mixed, start balling it up. Make the balls a little bit large than the recess of the muffin pan. These will shrink, but maintain their shape, so ball aesthetically. Pop them in the oven. I recommend putting a cooking sheet under the muffin tin to catch any drips.

I like to freeze these in individual baggies for lazy nights or when I just pop home for a few days, so I cook them through. If you prefer your meat not to be well done, certainly, cook them for less time. Whatever floats your boat.