Grilled cheese (mozzarella & Basil Pesto) and Broccoli Soup

This was a great meal. The girls had the "fancy" grilled cheese and Jen and I had 1/2 sandwich and the soup. This meal was fun to make and much more fun to eat. I do not have a food processor so I used my blender to make the pesto and soup. I got the soup recipe from watching a Chef Ramsey's Kitchen Nightmare over the summer. I saw how he made it with no effort and he said how good it was. I didn't believe how good or easy the broccoli soup would be, but Chef Ramsey didn't disappoint. It was great! The girls all tried one spoonful of the soup and they all liked it (for the most part). The grilled cheese was a hit with everyone.

Grade: A+

Grilled Cheese (Smoked Mozzarella & Basil Pesto)

Ingredients:

Basil Pesto

2 c fresh basil leaves

1 c fresh Italian flat-leaf parsley leaves

1/2 c grated Parmigiano-Reggiano

1/2 c pine nuts, toasted

3 garlic cloves, peeled and roughly chopped

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 c extra-virgin olive oil

Grilled Cheese Sandwiches

Bread

slices of smoked mozzarella

butter

I added cheddar cheese

*for pesto, in a food processor combine basil, parsley, Parmigiano-Reggiano, pine nuts, garlic, salt, and oil and pulse until well combined but still rough in texture.

After you make the pesto, assemble the sandwich like a regular grilled cheese putting pesto, on one half and mozzarella on the other. Put them together and place in a frying pan.

Super Easy Broccoli Soup:

All you need is:

water

salt

2 large heads of broccoli. Cut the florets off of the broccoli and make the stems cut down to the same size.

1. Water in a large stock up to a boil. Place the broccoli in the water for 3 1/2 to 4 minutes.

2. Using a slotted spoon pick the broccoli out of the water and into a blender.

3. Add water from the broccoli pot into the blender. Do not start with too much water as you can always add more if the soup is too thick.

4. Puree the mixture. If too thick add more water. Make sure the water is from the pot that you boiled the broccoli in.

Emily: sampling the soup

Sarah: thinks it is so good, she needs to kiss before she eats it!

Lucy: Copying Sarah

Emily: Finally feeling good enough to eat it all up!

Anna:Not pictured (sorry)