Wednesday, January 16, 2013

A Winter Warm-Up...

Hi there!  Welcome to Wednesday at The Classic Card!

Today I've got a treat for you... the recipe for the Lasagna Soup I served at my Soup-er Saturday event.  I'm sorry it has taken me so long to post this.  I appreciate your patience!

Without further ado, here it is! 

Lasagna Soup

Makes 8 cups (obviously, I doubled the recipe for Soup-er Saturday)

1 pound mild Italian sausage (the bulk kind)
2 cups chopped yellow onion
1 cup diced carrots
2 cups white button mushrooms, sliced
2 tablespoons minced garlic

4 cups chicken broth (2 cans)
1 can Italian-style stewed tomatoes (14 -15 oz)
1 cup rotini pasta ( I threw in a little extra)
2 cups baby spinach

Garnishes:
one cup provolone or fresh mozzarella, diced
shredded parmesan and thinly sliced fresh basil, for serving

Brown the sausage in a large saucepan over medium-high heat, stirring to break it up into small pieces.  When beginning to brown, add onions and carrots and saute about 3 minutes.  Stir in mushrooms and garlic and saute another 3 minutes.

Add broth and tomatoes (I added extra broth to make it more "soup-y," but if you want a stew-like soup, don't add extra broth) and bring to a boil.  Stir in the pasta (add more if you want) and simmer until the pasta is just cooked.  Add the spinach and cook about 1 minute more, until the spinach is wilted.  Taste and correct the seasonings.  You may want to add some salt and a bit of pepper.

To serve, place some cubed provolone in each bowl, ladle the hot soup over it, and then allow each person to garnish their bowl with the shredded parmesan and fresh basil.  A crusty loaf of garlic french bread is just perfect with this!

This recipe is from Splendid Soups and Spectacular Sides from Cuisine at Home.

OK, now that we have that out of the way, let's talk about card-making!  There's lots of news from Stampin'Up! and I will just briefly mention it here.  First of all, Stampin'Up! is coming out with a special collection of stamps to celebrate their 25th Anniversary.  It's called the "Best of 25 Years."
Each month, beginning right now and going all year, there will be a different theme.  January 2013 is "The Best of Birthdays" and the set features one new image and 5 popular stamp images from the past.  Each set will sell for $14.95.  When you receive your set, peel off the 25-year proof of purchase sticker and place it on your Best of 25 years collector's card (I will have these for you!) When you have 6 stickers, you can send your card in for a free stamp set of your choice valued up to $14.95.  When you collect an additional 6 stickers you can redeem them for another free stamp set ($14.95 or less).  You can see January's Best of Birthdays set on the Stampin'Up! web site www.stampinup.com  Click on the "shop" button at the top of the page and you'll see a menu down the left-hand side.  Choose "Best of 25 Years."

I recently emailed you with two new single stamp assortments that Stampin'Up! just came out with. 
There are some amazing images in these sets... I've got quite a wish list going.  You can check out these new stamps on the Stampin'Up! web site www.stampinup.com  Just click on the "shop" button and when you see the menu on the left-hand side of the page, click on "new arrivals."

The other announcement from Stampin'Up! is that they are coming out with a subscription to a crafting kit each month.  It's called "My Paper Pumpkin."  You are Cinderella, slaving away over a hot stove, or washer and dryer.  Your life is so routine and mundane.  Then along comes your own personal pumpkin ( magic carriage!) and sweeps you into another world...the world of creativity and crafting fun.  For all the details go to www.mypaperpumpkin.com.  Each kit will be different and will be a surprise.  You can try it out for one month if you want.  If your kits start to pile up, you can opt to skip a month or two.  Actually, I think it sounds quite fun, especially if you love surprises. 

Before I leave you, I feel obligated to post a card for you.  After all, I know that's why you come here, so here it is...


 
Isn't this a warm and sunny card?  This is another card I made at the demonstrator event I attended recently. It is supposed to make you feel like you're enjoying a warm, sunny day but it's not working for me! I guess if you really want to warm up, you'll have to try the Lasagna Soup!  This card  features the new stamp sets "Oh, Hello" (page 4 of the Spring catalog) and "Secret Garden" (page 17).

Thanks for stopping by today friends!
Don't forget to come back on Friday for another classic card.
Hugs,
Susan

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