A "Lace Like" View

of Winter!!

This view just never gets old.  We had snow falling overnight and our magical view appeared- again.  Snowflakes sitting on branches of the Japanese Maple and on the leaves of the bushes is so pretty.

Enjoy!

A Typical Winter Day...

Just enjoying the scenery!

Well, not really!!  Sometimes we hear the owls at night, but we have never seen one.  That was until today!  Very early this morning I glanced out our kitchen window and saw a baby owl on our deck.  Now that was really cool!  And very exciting!!  When I carefully returned to the window with the camera, the owl was gone.

This afternoon it's been snowing.  I was watching the snowflakes float down.  While looking at the trees, suddenly an owl came into view!  This owl was larger and perched on a branch.  Every so often it would shake the snow off his head.

Look carefully...

It enjoyed its perch for quite a while.  Suddenly, it was gone and then returned again to the same spot.   

What a very cool day I will not forget!!
  
Enjoying Nature!

Turkey Veggie Soup

Turkey Veggie Soup
2 portion sizes in covered containers
are in our freezer.

When it's chilly and we're wearing hats & gloves whenever we're outside, a large bowl of hearty soup is so yummy at dinnertime.  Making a batch of soup is easy and I always enjoy the fact that I freeze the extra portions for other meals.  On another night taking a container of soup out of the freezer for dinner is even easier!

That night was Saturday night!  Earlier last week it was 63°F outdoors!  I did write 63°F!  What a change from cold with wind chill weather.  Saturday the wind chill made it just outright frigid.  Brrr!  Bring out a bowl of hearty tasty soup.  

Turkey Veggie Soup is one of our faves!  There are many spices to flavor the browned ground Turkey while this soup is really making itself on the stove.

Last week while putting the ingredients together, I found there was no chopped Spinach in our freezer.  Chopped Broccoli was a great substitute!

We were really hungry at dinnertime, so there was no photo op of hot hearty steaming soup in bowls.  The photo above shows the portions in freezer containers- getting ready to be placed in our freezer.

When reheating it for dinner, I add about 2/3 of another can of Chicken Broth to the pot.  Rice always absorbs the extra liquid, so more broth is needed when reheating.

If you've never enjoyed this soup, make a batch.  It is so good! 

Turkey Veggie Soup

Ingredients:
1 lb. Ground Turkey, browned
4 cans (14.5 ounces each) College Inn Light & Fat Free Chicken Broth
1 can (14- 20 ounces) Diced or Whole Tomatoes (cut into pieces), drained
1 box (8- 10 ounces) chopped frozen Broccoli (or Spinach), thawed
1 Cup White Rice, uncooked
1 lb. Baby Carrots (rinsed)
1 pkg. (10- 14 ounces) defrosted Green Beans- optional
1/4 teaspoon Ground Black Pepper
3/4 teaspoon Paprika
1/4 teaspoon Basil
1/4 Teaspoon Oregano
1 Tablespoon dried Parsley

Method:

1. Brown Ground Turkey and drain. 
2. Place in large pot or Dutch Oven.
3. Add remaining ingredients to pot, stir.
4. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to simmer.
5. Simmer about 45- 60 Minutes- until Rice and Carrots are cooked.
6. Stir occasionally while simmering.

Serve with a slice of  Rye or homemade bread!  A bowl of hot soup on a winter evening is so good!

My freezer containers are always ready to pack away the extra portions.

Enjoy!
Yummy!