Thank you Walmart, one of my favorite brands, for sponsoring this post!
I’ve talked about Walmart’s new membership Walmart+ before on the blog, but they just came out with a new benefit which launched in early December! As a Walmart+ member, you can enjoy Walmart+ free shipping with no order minimum on items from Walmart.com (excludes oversized/freight & Marketplace items). This is perfect for those last minute gifts! Christmas is literally around the corner, so take advantage of the free next day and two day shipping on items from Walmart.com without having to worry about a minimum order. I always procrastinate on purchasing gifts, but at least I still have time to order items this week!
By being a Walmart+ member, I also take advantage of their free delivery from the store ($35 minimum purchase). Restrictions apply. On this particular day, I ordered some Christmas gift wrapping necessities on my Walmart app and got it delivered to my house. You can’t go wrong with kraft paper, plaid ribbon, cute gift tags, and a little ornament to add that extra touch to your gifts. Make sure you buy a lot of tape, so you don’t run out!
Along with the gift wrapping items, I also ordered this Lego Dinosaur for Bash’s gift because he loves dinosaurs and Legos right now. Another item I got delivered to me was this Guesstures game. This gift is for all the kids which we can bring with us on vacation with Cecilia’s family.
Remember this blog post where I talk about doing gingerbread houses? I saved all of the candy, marshmallows, frosting, and graham crackers for when we were ready to do gingerbread houses, but of course all of that already got eaten and we haven’t even done our gingerbread house decorating tradition! Again, Christmas is getting closer and closer, so I decided to get the gingerbread village kits delivered at my doorstep. The kids got so excited when they saw these boxes.
While the kids worked on their gingerbread houses, I made one of our favorite soup dishes. It’s called the Italian Sub Stoup by Rachael Ray. The first time I had this soup was when I got home from the hospital after having Johannah. Nick’s boss’s wife made this for me, and I’ve been making it ever since! That was 11 years ago! I’m not much of a planner and have never meal planned, so it’s convenient to use Walmart+ on groceries. I was able to order the soup ingredients on the app and get it delivered at my doorstep. It was free delivery since I spent a minimum of $35. When they deliver your items, they set all the bags outside the front door. I like how there’s no direct contact with the delivery driver. If you’re looking for a good soup, you have to try this one! Here’s a direct link to the Rachael Ray Italian Sub Stoup, but I also have it listed here too:
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, 2 turns of the pan, plus 1/4 cup for croutons
- 3/4 pound, 3 links, hot or sweet Italian sausage, split and meat removed from casing
- 1/4 pound piece stick pepperoni, diced (I usually get the mini pepperoni slices)
- 1 ham steak, diced (about 1/2 to 3/4 pound) (I get the already diced ones)
- 1 green bell pepper, seeded, quartered and sliced
- 1 medium yellow onion, peeled, quartered and sliced
- 1 (15-ounce) can diced tomatoes
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 6 cups chicken stock
- 1/2 pound gemelli pasta or other short-cut pasta (I get the fully cooked ready pasta)
- 5 cups cubed crusty bread
- 3 large cloves garlic, cracked from skin
- 1/2 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano, a couple of handfuls
- 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
- 2 bunches arugula, trimmed and coarsely chopped (about 4 cups)
- Place a soup pot or deep sided skillet on the stove top and preheat to medium high heat. Add olive oil, 2 turns of the pan and the sausage. Brown and crumble the sausage, drain off excess fat if necessary then add the ham and pepperoni. Cook meats together 2 minutes then add peppers and onions and cook 2 or 3 minutes more. Add diced tomatoes and season with salt and pepper. Add chicken stock and bring stoup to a boil. Stir in pasta and cook for 8 minutes. Make croutons while pasta cooks.
- In a large skillet heat about 1/4 cup of olive oil, 4 turns of the pan over medium heat. Add garlic and cook 1 minute. Add bread to garlic oil, toss and toast the cubes 5 or 6 minutes. Season the toasty cubes with red pepper flakes, oregano and lots of grated cheese.
- Stir arugula into soup just before you serve it up. Ladle up the stoup and float several toasty garlic bread cubes in each bowl.
ITALIAN SUB STOUP INGREDIENTS:
I highly recommend trying Walmart+ for yourself! They have a free 15-day trial, but I have a feeling you’ll get hooked. 😉