a hit and a miss

 i love trying new recipes, that's a huge reason in why i post a weekly menu.

well i found a recipe i absolutely loved and another i wouldn't make again.

a couple sundays ago we had leslie and greg over for dinner and found out about their exciting engagement news.  if i would have known we would have been celebrating, i would have made something a little nicer than soup and sandwich. thankfully i had a bottle of champagne on reserve in the cupboard.  but let me tell you the soup and sandwich i served them was also pretty delicious. 

the recipe came from real simple, it was tomato soup with roast beef, cheddar and horseradish panini. 

ingredients

• 2 tablespoons olive oil, plus more for the grill pan
• 2 large onions, chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 28-ounce can whole peeled tomatoes
• 3 1/2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• kosher salt and black pepper
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 2 tablespoons prepared horseradish
• 8 slices sandwich bread
• 8 ounces thinly sliced roast beef
• 8 ounces sharp white Cheddar, sliced
• 2 cups baby arugula (1 1/2 ounces)

directions

1. Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the onions and garlic and cook, stirring often, until softened, 5 to 7 minutes. Add the tomatoes (with their juices), broth, thyme, and ½ teaspoon each salt and pepper. Simmer, stirring occasionally, until slightly thickened, 15 to 20 minutes. Working in batches, in a blender, puree the mixture until smooth.
2. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, stir together the sour cream and horseradish. Form sandwiches with the bread, roast beef, Cheddar, arugula, and half the horseradish mixture. Heat a lightly oiled grill pan over medium heat and cook the sandwiches until the cheese is melted, 5 to 6 minutes per side. Top the soup with the remaining horseradish mixture and serve with the sandwiches.

this recipe was super easy and super good!  enjoy.

as far as the miss, i found another recipe from real simple for shrimp tacos and black beans.  i love tacos and i love shrimp so i thought it would have been a slam dunk.  where the recipe fell short for me is in the frying of the shrimp.  you coat the shrimp in a corn meal batter and then fry them in oil.  too much grease for me.  next time i would just cook the shrimp in a skillet and skip the frying step.