James and I made a rookie mistake yesterday: we bought produce from Costco. Now I have enough garlic to fight off an entire army of vampires.

We also ended up with 24 oz. of cremini mushrooms, or baby portabello mushrooms. I’m pretty sure we’ll be eating mushrooms until they grow out of the tops of our heads. However, the surplus of mushrooms allowed me to make one of our favorite soups… so I suppose we can’t complain too much.

This mushroom soup was one of the first things I learned how to cook from scratch a few years ago–which should tell you how easy it is to scrape together. The most important ingredient (apart from the titular mushrooms of course) is paprika–or rather, Hungarian sweet paprika, which gives this soup its je ne sais quoi. If you don’t have any on-hand, you can easily substitute regular paprika; of course, I would still recommend buying Hungarian paprika at your local European market or deli. The earthy sweetness of this particular paprika is really hard to replicate.

The “hardest” part of this recipe is reintroducing liquids back into the pot and evenly distributing the roux, or the mixture of flour and butter that coagulates around the mushrooms and onions. And it’s not really that hard–just pour the broth into the pot a little bit at a time (¼ c. or so) and stir. At first, the introduction of liquid will create a paste; with the addition of more liquid, this paste will break into lumps and eventually dissipate into the broth, leaving a glossy, thick soup.

I should also note that I halved the recipe since James and I are no good with leftovers, but these measurements are easily doubled and/or tripled for the amount of people you need to cook for.

Lastly, I switched out the sour cream for greek yogurt to make this recipe a little more healthy; I think we actually prefer the yogurt to the sour cream because the flavor is milder–almost like a creme fraiche. And I threw in cayenne pepper because I didn’t have hot paprika on-hand–but feel free to leave it out if you don’t like a little kick at the end of each spoonful. This soup is hearty enough to be served on its own but also pairs well with some warm, crusty bread. Enjoy!

Recipe adapted from Closet Cooking.

James and I are fortunate enough to live near Little Osaka in West Los Angeles–honestly, we probably patronize restaurants on this street at least twice a week. It is invaluable to have such a great array of places to eat near us, especially because traffic in LA can be so restrictive! It’s almost to our detriment that we live so close by; at times, it’s hard for me to muster the energy to cook something when I know we can eat delicious food for relatively cheap prices on Sawtelle. Our proximity to Little Osaka has also made me quite content to dine out for a lot of my favorite foods instead of trying to create them at home.

The only time I do try to make some of the dishes I enjoy at home, however, are when I think that the cost of eating out is grossly imbalanced with the effort it takes to make the dish. Corn potage falls into that category quite easily, as the ingredients are easy to obtain and the recipe itself is quite easy to make.

We first encountered corn potage at Curry House on Sawtelle and instantly became enamored with its sweet, creamy flavor and thick texture. Japanese cuisine has embraced corn and tends to highlight it in peculiar ways–yes, I’m talking about corn on pizza and ice cream–but this particular preparation has been lovingly adapted from French cuisine. The word “potage” is an old French term for thick stew (potted dish, literally); as for how potage mades its way to Japan, well… I came up empty in my cursory research. Musings aside, corn potage has become a very popular Western-style food in Japan–but maintains its French origins in its preparation by building its flavor from a basic roux of butter and flour. Blending the corn into the broth creates the mushy consistency that normally takes hours for traditional potage soups, making for a soup that is hearty but altogether different than corn chowder.

I absolutely love corn potage with crusty bread, as a side with katsu curry, or even by itself–but then again, I am nuts about corn in general and love eating it in just about any preparation or style. Even if you don’t necessarily feel the same way, I hope you give it a try and enjoy it!

Recipe adapted from Little Japan Mama.

It’s that time of year again: when the all of your favorite machines at the gym are occupied no matter what time you try to beat the crowds. Taking high-quality pre-workout will give you energy for intense gym sessions. (Well, let’s pretend that we were the ones going to the gym during the holidays, shall we?) Additionally, if your natural collagen levels have declined, then you may consider trying collagen products from NativePath. Fitness pictures and memes dot your Pinterest page; your fridge is stocked with fresh healthy fruits like Rotab Mazafati Bam Dates and veggies, just begging to be blended into a nutritious smoothie. You’ve waved a tearful goodbye to your holiday leftovers and chips that you love to crunch on whilst watching your favorite show. All is well in January… or so you think.

Then February hits. The gym is looking post-apocalyptic: deserted and with a few determined stragglers. You are sick and tired of disguising kale and spinach with copious amounts of banana and strawberry in your smoothie, and those chips are looking mighty good at the store when you stop by after work. You’re back to pinning amazing cupcakes on Pinterest. Where, oh where hast thy resolution gone?

Don’t get me wrong–I’m not dissing on resolutions. I think that they’re great. But creating one that is realistic seems to be the hardest part. So why don’t we start with trying to eat just a bit healthier? But healthier is expensive, is more time-consuming… and those chips…

That’s where this spring pea soup comes in.

I first discovered this recipe in Dorie Greenspan’s book Around My French Table (which is now becoming dog-eared on my shelf) last year, when I was desperately trying to get fit in time for summer. And even though the other fad no-carb recipes have come and gone, I still make this soup regularly because it really is that good (delicious)–and easy (only 15-20 minutes!)–and most importantly, healthy!

Please give it a try; I think you’ll find that even if your resolutions fall by the wayside–as mine inevitably do each year–you will keep this in your recipe box.

Recipe adapted from Dorie Greenspan’s Around My French Table.

When I tell my friends in Colorado that the nights are cold in Los Angeles, I get at best a jealous eye-roll and at worst a derisive laugh. I’ve already been told numerous times by different people that I’ve “lost my Colorado card.” Honestly, I’m fine with that; I can’t claim to miss the sub-zero wind chills, the 200% chance of eating it in a driveway on black ice or the biting pricks of pain at my earlobes when I step outside. I miss the snow when I’m feeling sentimental, but I think that’s almost exclusively connected to the Christmas season. I still remember being absolutely sick of snow in Februaries past when living in Denver; by the time May came around, I would be stir-crazy for summer. (Colorado’s Spring looks a lot like everywhere-else’s mild winter and only stops to become summer sometime in May.)

Whether I’m cold in Los Angeles or freezing in Colorado, however, the frigid weather always puts me in the mood for soup. I love rich, hot soup that warms me from the inside out. Even better if it’s a soup that is both substantive and comforting–no thin chicken broth for me, thank you. I want flavor that will linger on the tongue and keep my belly warm!

Broccoli cheddar soup is one of those comforting, homey soups to me. When it’s cold outside and I’m in the mood for soup, the first thing that usually comes to mind is broccoli cheddar in a sourdough bread bowl. Creamy and luxurious, but packed with fresh vegetables that give the roux-based soup substance. Plus, broccoli and cheddar are a match made in heaven!

I usually wing it when it comes to throwing together the ingredients, but I hope that this recipe will serve as a good guideline to you when you’re in the mood for something comfy on a cold day. If you really want to up the ante on the creaminess of the soup, you can use half-and-half instead of milk and use an extra tablespoon of butter. Whether you add your own flourishes to this bare-bones recipe or stick to the basics, I hope it keeps you warm!

James and I are very, very spoiled in Los Angeles: we are surrounded by and constantly patronize amazing restaurant. At first it was overwhelming–then it quickly became euphoric. We have our favorites… we have our regular haunts… but the first question on our minds when we decide to go out and grab food isn’t “What good food can we dig up around here?” but “Do we want to eat something we know is delicious, or discover something delicious today?” And chain restaurants? Yeah, they don’t usually fit in either category–especially with the amount of selection out here.

(I know I sound absolutely insufferable, but stay with me! I’m almost there.)

However, there are times in which we miss the things we grew up with–that we were so comfortable with when we didn’t have the options we have now. And during those times, I try to bypass eating at said chain restaurants by making them myself. James loved eating at Chili’s because he loved their steak fajitas–so I make them with fresh homemade tortillas and a jalapeno-lime marinade. We both can’t get enough of movie-theater popcorn, laden with untold amounts of trans-fat, fat and… more fat! So we pop and flavor the popcorn ourselves. And sometimes, we crave Olive Garden… so I make their trademark zuppa toscana soup and breadsticks.

Obviously the true recipe is secret and well-guarded so this is my copycat version of it, tweaked and adapted from a comment on a copycat recipe page. I haven’t had Olive Garden in a long time so I can’t speak to its 100% authenticity–but I do know that it is very tasty, and on our rotation for fall/winter fare. Even a friend of mine that popped by for dinner last night who normally turns up his nose at chains in general (and Olive Garden especially!) was won over by the rich, meaty and creamy flavor of this soup.

I’m not going to speak to the Italian authenticity of the soup, either–I mean, in my mind, Olive Garden is to Italian food as Panda Express is the Chinese food. But I guarantee that this soup will hit the spot if you’re looking for something filling on a cold night. The best part is that it gets better as it sits for longer–so you can make it a day ahead of time and heat it up for an even richer broth.

Lastly, I’ve made a separate page for the breadsticks recipe that you can find here. Can’t beat the combo of soup & breadsticks, right? Enjoy!

Recipe adapted from the top comment here at food.com.