Butternut Squash Soup with Chipotle Chiles and Garlic

Holy heat, Batman! The last time I made this soup, I found it to be beyond my comfortable heat threshold. I thought perhaps that I had added more chipotle chiles than were called for in the recipe, so tonight I made certain that I stuck to the measurements exactly.

Well, it wasn't me. The recipe calls for two teaspoons of minced chiles plus an additional teaspoon of adobo sauce. For me, it's WAY too hot.

The sweetened croutons help to offset the heat, and the flavors are fantastic, but for me, this has just too much heat. Tommie has had a lousy day today, so this will at least cheer him up -- the hotter the better for him.

I'm giving this soup 3 stars. Tommie's going to definitely disagree with me on that -- he's gonna love it. I'm making a note to remind myself to try it with only one teaspoon of the chiles next time. Now if you'll excuse me, I have to find some more tissues and some water. Ouch!

Spinach-Onion Quesadillas with Avocado-Chipotle Salsa

Yum. We were craving Mexican, so quesadillas it was. What makes this dish delicious is the chipotle chiles in adobo sauce that flavors the guacamole. I'll have to remember this if I ever just want chips and dip. Who needs the quesadillas, right?

We're giving this dish a 4. The guac is a 5 hands down. But since this isn't the healthiest recipe in the book, we knocked the score down a bit. That said, sometimes you just want comfort food, ya know?

One more thing: I give my photo 1 star. Not my finest.

Smoky Sweet Potato Puree with Spiced Spinach

Go Canes!!! It's not often that my dinner is orange and green, but looky there!

This is the first time I've made this dish, and overall I'd say it was a success. The recipe calls for chipotle chiles in adobo sauce mixed into the mashed sweet potatoes, and that flavor combo works great. The sweet and the smoky blend perfectly.

After much thought, Hubby and I have decided that this dish gets 3.5 stars. Flavor = 5 stars. No protein-- I deduct a half point. But the kicker was texture. We felt it needed something crunchy or solid to offset the mushiness. So, for that we take off another point.

Though I'm loathe to say this: Meat eaters -- this would be a great side dish to pair with a simple meat. Your body will thank you for feeding it nutrient-rich spinach and sweet potatoes to fight off those free radicals.