Tomato Soup with White Beans and Pasta

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 Tbsp. olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 1/4 tsp. dried oregano
• 2 15 oz cans diced tomatoes (I used seasoned--you can use one with chili peppers if you want more of a kick)
• 28 oz. low-sodium chicken broth (I used 28 ounces of water and added an envelope of dry soup mix)
• 1/2 cup small pasta
• 1 15 oz. can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
• Salt and pepper
• 2 Tbsp. finely chopped fresh parsley

DIRECTIONS:

1. Warm oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat.  Add garlic and cook, stirring frequently, until fragrant, about 1 minute.  Add oregano, stir once, then add tomatoes with juice and chicken broth.  Bring to a boil.
2. Add pasta, stir, and cook until just tender, about 8 minutes.  Stir in beans, lower heat and simmer until warmed through, about 5 minutes.  Season with salt and pepper.  Stir in parsley and serve, drizzling each portion with additional olive oil if desired. 
3. Can sprinkle a little cheese on the top before serving, if desired.  (We used parmesan--yummy!)

*The serving size on the recipe said it served 4 so I quadrupled it.  I now have a mountain of soup.  We could probably eat it for a week, so I would say that it probably really serves 6-8. 

Most all of the kids really liked it and the grown-ups all really liked it too!

Chewy Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies

1 cup butter, softened
1 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
2 tbsp milled flax
6 tbsp water
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/4 cups whole wheat flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
3 cups quick-cooking oats
1 cup walnuts (optional)
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 325 degrees
In a large bowl, cream together the butter, brown sugar and white sugar until smooth.  Beat in flax and water, then stir in vanilla.  In a separate medium-sized bowl, combine the flour, baking soda and salt; stir into the creamed mixture just until blended.  Mix in the quick oats, walnuts and chocolate chips.  Drop by heaping spoonfuls onto ungreased baking sheets.  Bake for 12 minutes.


This one is another favorite at our house.  So yummy!  You'd never guess they're whole wheat cookies!  I found the basic recipe on All Recipes.com but tweaked it by substituting in some healthier ingredients.