Tag: Soups

Daily Thoughts

Italian Sausage & Spinach Soup

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It is cold here in Dallas and getting colder by the hour. I love it. The fireplace is on, Randy is working in his little cubby office and we just finished having a cup of coffee and a donut from our favorite donut shop in the world. Seriously we sit there and after each bite, we look at the donut to see if we can possibly see what they do to make then so soft. We just cannot figure out why these donuts are so different. When the rest of the world discovers this place, Dunkin won’t stand a chance. But on to my soup story. Over the weekend, I bought some Italian ground sausage and fresh spinach and had just picked up some spinach-ricotta filled tortellini from Trader Joes, I decided to make us a soup for the cold weather we knew would be here this week. This soup is so good and so filling and goes perfectly with garlic bread. Yep, thats all you need. Garlic bread and soup and then of course some of these amazing cinnamon twists from Donut Palace at Frankfort and the Tollway in Dallas. I cannot lie, I also get a jelly filled donut so I don’t have to decide between the two.

2 cans (8 oz each) tomato sauce

2 cans (14.5 oz) chicken broth

1/2 lb of mild ground Italian Sausage

2 cups chopped fresh spinach

1 small onion, chopped

1 carrot, diced

1/2 bell pepper

1/2 teas Italian Seasoning

1 teas fresh garlic or 1/2 teas garlic powder (I added a little more plus a little more garlic as we love it with added flavor)

In a small skillet, brown the meat with the onion and bell pepper until meat is done. Add the seasonings, and add salt and pepper to your liking.

Transfer to a large saucepan. Add the meat mixture to the saucepan and add the tomato sauce, chicken broth, (Also, you might want to add about a cup of water to the mixture) cup up carrot, 2 cups of chopped fresh spinach and cook for about 30 min over low heat until carrots and spinach are done. Add about 2 cups of the tortellini to the boiling soup and cook according to the package directions. Mine said to cook them about 5 min. We both sprinkled a little parmesan cheese over the top and indulged ourselves with the soup and a few (no I won’t tell you how many slices we had) of wonderful hot garlic/butter bread. But we did save room for the other donuts that were still in the box. And forgive me, we ate the soup so quickly, I forgot to take a picture. But will be making it again very soon, so will add a picture to this post when we do.

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Tuesday Taco Soup

Chocolate Castles2 Comments

I know it is still Monday, but what a great soup this would be to make tomorrow for your dinner. Finally made it to the store for groceries. Because of eating at home so much and trying to think of different meals, other than the weekly spaghetti, meatloaf, tacos, or friend chicken, I was really in the mood to think of some new things to make. As I stood there on the aisle with the hamburger meat, I began to think of taco soup. From there, I started thinking about sloppy joes, homemade nachos, baked pork ribs and homemade chicken noodle soup. As soon as I put away the groceries, I started the taco soup. We just finished dinner and both of us sat there and said how much we enjoyed it. All that to say, I thought I would share the recipe with you. Sometimes the recipes (that really aren’t a recipe but just items you throw in to cook together end up being really better than you hoped). Remember I was making this for 2 people but it still made enough for us to have for lunch tomorrow, even though we both ate 2 bowls tonight.

1/2 lb ground round

1/2 large onion

2 medium carrots, diced (or 1 large carrot)

1 large potato, peeled and diced

1/2 green bell pepper, rinsed and diced

2 celery ribs, finely diced

1/2 can (8.75 oz) whole kernel corn, drained

1 (14.5 oz) can petite diced tomatoes with juice

1 small can (8 oz) of tomato sauce

1 can Ranch Style Beans, not drained (use juice and all)

2 cups water

1 teas garlic powder, salt & pepper to taste

1 teas Goya Adobo Seasoning

Brown the hamburger meat in a large cooking pot with the celery, onion and bell pepper. Sprinkle the Goya Adobo seasoning and garlic over the meat as it cooks.

Add the rest of ingredients and cover. Bake in preheated 350 degree oven for 2-3 hours, depending on how large or small you diced the carrots or potatoes. After 1 1/2 hours, I removed soup from the oven to check on it. I ended up adding about 1 more cup of water to the mixture and continued baking for another 1 1/2 hours.

Top with garnish, such as fried tortilla strips, fresh cilantro, sour cream and shredded cheese. I fried tortillas and sprinkle sharp Cheddar cheese on them. Placed in a preheated 450 degree oven until cheese melted and served them along side the soup. A great soup for a cold evening!

Chicken · Daily Thoughts · Soups · Uncategorized

Italian Chicken Vegetable Soup

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Isn’t it so much fun to create something that turns out really good from just things you already have in your house? This soup turned out to be a winner. I had half of a chicken breast left over and decided to try something different.

This made 4 bowls of soup.

1/2 large chicken breasts, cut into very small pieces
2 slices of bacon,cut into tiny pieces
Fry the chicken pieces with the bacon pieces (sprinkle garlic powder (about 1/2 teas) and oregano (about 1/4 teas) over the chicken as it cooks) in a small skillet until chicken is browned and almost done and bacon is crisp. Set aside.
In the crockpot, add the following:
1/2 chopped onion
2 stalks celery, chopped in small pieces (I like to use the inside of the celery stalk which has the leafy pieces as they add so much flavor)
2 carrots, sliced
1 ear of fresh corn, sliced off the cob
2 cups chopped fresh spinach
2 small russet potatoes, cut into small cubes
1 zucchini or mexican squash (I had mexican squash so I used that. Also, I cut out the very inside of the squash, as I like the outer portion with the skin as it doesn’t get squishy like the meat of the squash does when cooked for long periods of time)
1 (14.5 oz) can of diced tomatoes with oregano and garlic (if you can’t find this, buy either just plain diced tomatoes or italian flavored diced tomatoes)
1 can of chicken broth
1 can of water
Salt and pepper to taste
1/2 envelope of McCormick Italian Spaghetti seasoning packet
If this is not enough liquid to cover the ingredients, add either another can of chicken broth or water until all ingredients are covered and there is plenty of juice

Add all ingredients to crockpot and then pour the meat mixture over the top. Stir and set temperature to low and about 6 hours, Check the veggies after about 4 hours and if still need to cook, I changed the setting to high for the last couple of hours. The soup was delicious. Served it with grilled french bread made with butter and garlic.

Chicken · Daily Thoughts · Soups · Uncategorized

Crock Pot Green Chile Enchilada Soup

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Yes, these are recipes that I have posted before but if you are like so many others right now, you might not have time to go scrolling through to look at recipes from years back. Because it is story and very overcast today, I thought this soup sounded like something that would taste good tonight.

4 chicken breasts, cooked and shredded (or a rotisserie chicken)
2 (14.5 oz) cans chicken broth
2 ((15 oz) cans mild green enchilada sauce
2 (4 oz) cans of diced green chiles
2/3 cup water
1 tablespoon cumin
1 tablespoon chile powder
1 teas onion powder (or diced onion, frozen or fresh)
1 teas garlic powder (I use 2 because we love garlic and we have heard that it helps ward off infections, don’t have a clue if that’s true, but it gives me an excuse to use a lot of it)
2/3 cup corn (if frozen, thaw out before putting in in crockpot)
1 (8 oz) bar cream cheese, cubed
Salt and Pepper to your liking
Monterrey jack Cheese

Place all ingredients into crock pot, except the Monterrey jack. Stir the ingredients until they have combine. Cover the crockpot and then ook on high for 3 1/2 hours. When ready to serve, sprinkle some of the Monterrey Jack over each serving bowl. (Actually I like to put it in the serving bowls first and pour the soup over it, allowing it to melt into the soup)

Daily Thoughts · Meats · Soups · Uncategorized

Indian Taco Soup?

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You are probably thinking I have totally lost it. But…hear me out. Saturday we were at Costco and of course if you have been reading my blog for any length of time or have read some of the stories in Princess on the Porch, you know that Mr. Adventure loves to go to Costco and see how many samples he can eat before they run him out of the store. Well, I do have to admit, this past Saturday was one of the best sample days we have had in a long time. First of all, they were giving away samples of CARAMEL APPLES! There were about 5 different flavors so I ended up hiding around the corner because I was too embarrassed to keep going back for another sample, but not Randy. He would ask me what flavor I wanted this time and would just head on over to the counter and take another sample and bring it to me. After about 4 times, I told him that he just couldn’t go back. But Oh my goodness, they were delicious. If you are wondering why I didn’t just buy one, I had just had the report from my doctor that my Bad cholesterol was 150 over what it should be, not to mention the total cholesterol of 311. So I had better just stick to samples until I can get my numbers down just a tad. BTW, the way this doctor got my attention was this; “well, Trudy, since you cannot take statins, will you promise me you will stay off fats and start exercise? Then three months from now, we will check your numbers again and see if you are a women of your word.” WHAT? A woman of my word? You are kidding me. So what am I suppose to do with the 6 lbs of butter in my fridge and the 3 lb block of cream cheese? Do I just pour my quart of whipping cream down the drain and use my 5 lb sack of shredded cheese for potting soil? Of course I’m a woman of my word. When I say that butter is my life, I truly mean it!

Back to Costco. One of the samples on Saturday was Tasty Bite Madras Lentils. Absolutely delicious. Both of us agreed that they were so good, and I’m sure very healthy, as they are lentils for petes sake, that you could actually use them as a topping for cheese enchiladas. (oops, there I go again, stop it Trudy, you cannot have cheese anymore) So we bought a box of them. They tasted just like a really good chile, but with no meat, just lentils.

This morning, trying to make up for the caramel apple samples I had on Saturday, oh, and the Mexican breakfast of huevos rancheros yesterday… and the Kentucky Butter Cake last night, I thought maybe a low cholesterol taco soup would be good for us tonight before I go to Bunco and snack on the bowls of M&M’s the ladies always have at the tables. So I gathered up all the veggies in the fridge and even used a 1/2 lb of ground turkey instead of beef. After all, us high cholesterol gals need to learn to eat turkey in place of beef, right?

So here was my taco soup with ground turkey, onions, celery, yellow squash, fresh spinach, chopped cabbage,carrots, a little left over rice and added a can of Rotel tomatoes with green chiles, plus a 2 cups of waterAdd your garlic, cumin and chile powder, and wa la….you have taco soup. But wait; what if I added a packet of the Madras Lentils to it? Wouldn’t that just add a little more spiciness and flavor? So I opened it up and poured it in and put the pot of soup in the oven. Baked it at 300 for 2 1/2 hours. The soup is delicious. But then I looked at the packet of the Madras Lentils to see all of the ingredients.  It is actually an Indian food! Really? Either Randy and I have totally lost our taste buds or Indian food taste a lot like Mexican food. All I know is that it added such a great flavor to the taco soup that we will make all our taco soups with it. Isn’t Madras a Spanish word? You have got to try these Madras lentils. Now for the kicker. They might sound healthy, but when you look at the ingredients on the package, (which I guess I should have done before adding them to the soup), they have butter and cream in them. Now my low choldestol taco soup isn’t very low cholesterol, but it sure is good.

Lesson learned from this Costco trip. Indian people use Spanish words in their foods. Caramel apple samples are not the kind of apples that “one a day keeps the doctor away.” If I don’t want to disappoint my doctor by my character, I guess I’m going to have to stay away from Costco Sample Saturdays!

Chicken · Daily Thoughts · Soups · Uncategorized

Chicken Wild Rice Soup

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Last week a dear sweet new friend of mine, Marilyn, from church knew that I was struggling with bronchitis and brought this great soup over for our dinner. To say it was great is really an understatement. It was so good, I kept standing at the counter eating it out of the container it was in even before dinnertime. She said I could post it after telling me that she combined about 3 recipes to get this result. Of course with whipping cream in it, what did I expect except a most wonderful soup.

1 box (6 oz) long-grain and wild rice mix, prepared according to directions on box.

2 cups diced cooked chicken

1 table oil

2 cups sliced mushrooms

1 cup chopped onion

1/2 cup sliced celery

2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

3 3/4 cup chicken broth

1/2 teas dried tarragon

1/4 teas dried thyme

1/4 teas pepper

1/2 teas salt

1 cup heavy whipping cream

2 tables cornstarch

2 tables white wine

Saute mushrooms, onion, celery and garlic in oil until tender. Add rice, broth, chicken, tarragon, thyme, pepper and salt; bring to a boil over medium heat. Combine cornstarch and small amount of heavy cream tomato a smooth paste. Stir into vegetable mixture along with rest of heavy cream and wine.Cook 3 to 5 min until soup is thickened.

Serves 4 to 6 depending on size of bowls you use

Daily Thoughts · Uncategorized

Sausage,Spinach & Sweet Potato Soup

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IT is a beautiful day here in Arizona and we are preparing to leave for a party where there will be a tremendous amount of food to consume during Super Bowl. To allow our clothes to be a little loose so we won’t have to unzip our pants during the party, we ate soup for several dinners this week, hoping to loose a pound of two. This was one of the soups which I had found in a Taste of Home magazine and decided to try. I can testify that this recipe will stay in my stack of “favs” for a long time. Not only was it simple, but it was delicious.

Because we live in an area which does not have an immediately supply of black eye peas, I substituted Am’s Organic Lentil Vegetable soup. Before you get excited and think, “oh my gosh, she has finally done it, she has realized that if she wants to live past 70, she had better get with the program and go organic and quit having chocolate cream pie for dessert every night.” No, it was just the only bean soup I could find on the shelf that wasn’t black beans, pork and bean or pinto bean soup. So don’t get excited and start sending me packets of organic veggies to plant. Just not going to happen besides, I already have my chocolate cream pie piled high with whipped cream ready for dessert tonight.

Ingredients:

2 links of sweet Italian sausage, taken out of casing

1 medium sweet potato, peeled and cubed

1 medium sweet onion, diced

1/2 medium green or red bell pepper, seeded

1 small can of tomato sauce or the regular size can of diced tomatoes

1 can (15 1/2 oz) black-eyed peas, rinsed and drained (( substitute Amy’s and did not drain them, but used the whole can, juice and all)

2 cans reduced sodium beef broth (here once again, I used 2 beef bouillon cubes and 2 cups water because I didn’t have any beef broth in the house)

2 cups chopped fresh spinach

1/2 package cheese tortellini

Garlic cloves, salt, pepper, and a about 1 teas Italian Seasoning to taste.

Add the Italian sausage to a big Dutch oven which has been sprayed with Pam and crumble and cook until no longer pink. Add the rest of the ingredients except the spinach. I added more water while soup was cooking to give it more broth. Cook for about 2-3 hours over low heat until sweet potato and other vegetables are tender. The last 30 minutes of cooking, add the chopped spinach and the cheese tortellini . Cover and cook until spinach is wilted and tender and tortellini is done ( it floats when it is done)

Serve with hot crust Italian garlic bread.

Soups · Uncategorized

Mexican Wedding Soup

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Randy and I love Italian Wedding soup, so when I saw this in the new Taste of Home Magazine, I got excited to see that I could have a recipe that would make it with a whole new taste. Am looking forward to having this soup over the weekend. Thanks Taste of Home!

1 tables veggie oil or canola

2 medium carrots, chopped

2 medium celery ribs, chopped

1/2 cup frozen corn, thawed

1/2 cup chopped onion*

1/2 teas garlic powder

2 qts chicken stock

1 cup soft bread crumbs

1 envelope reduced sodium taco seasoning

1 large egg

1 lb ground chicken

1  cup acini di pepe pasta

2 tables minced fresh cilantro

1/4 teas salt

Cubed avocado and sour cream

In a Dutch oven, heat oil over medium heat. Add carrots, celery, onion and corn; cook until tender. Stir in stock. Add garlic powder, if desired. Increase heat to high; bring to a boil.

Meanwhile, combine breadcrumbs, taco seasoning, egg and chicken; mix lightly. With wet hands, shape into 1 1/2″ balls. Reduce heat to simmer. Gently drop meatballs into stock. Cook, covered, until meatballs are no longer pink, about 8-10 minutes. Stir in pasta. Simmer, covered until pasta is tender, 6-8 minutes. Sprinkle with cilantro and salt. Serve with avocado and sour cream.

*I added about 1/2 teas garlic powder and the onion to the soup.

Daily Thoughts · Soups · Uncategorized

White Bean With Italian Sausage Soup

Chocolate Castles

Found this in an old Southern Living Magazine. Will be perfect for sitting outside on the porch (oops, excuse me, I forget out here they are called Arizona Rooms), watching the sun go down and having a bowl of soup with garlic french bread. The recipe originally called for Chorizo, but I don’t like it so I used Mild Italian Sausage

1 lb mild Italian Sausage (our preference, but they make it in hot if you like that option better, feel free to use (after all, the Sausage Police won’t come get you if you do), casing removed

2 tables olive oil

1 large yellow onion, chopped (about 2 cups)

2 medium carrots, chopped (about 1 cup)

1/2 lb small red potatoes, chopped

3 garlic cloves, minced

1 teas paprika

1 teas kosher salt

1 tables tomato paste

2 (15 oz) cans great Northern beans, drained and rinsed

1 container (32 oz) chicken broth

1/2 cup fresh parsley leaves, chopped

Cook sausage in a Dutch oven over medium high heat, stirring constantly, until browned and crumbled, about 8 minutes.

Drain all on paper towels. Wipe Dutch oven out with paper towel, to remove grease.

Heat the oil in the Dutch oven over medium high heat. Add onions and next 5 ingredients and sauce until tender. About 5 minutes.

Stir in tomato paste and cook 1 minute, stirring.

Add beans, chicken broth and sausage; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer, stirring occasionally for about 20 minutes. Stir in parsley, and serve!

Soups · Uncategorized

Happy New Year Stew

Chocolate Castles1 Comment

Happiest of New Year’s to all! We are in anti-shopping mode for a few days after the last 2 weeks of shopping for gifts, then taking back a few items and then spending some of the gift cards we received. So the thought of going even grocery shopping just has me wanting to do cook anything that is left in the frigid to avoid going grocery shopping. This morning I thought about how long had it been since we really had just plain ole (when you live in the south, you can use that term, “plain ole”) veggie soup. So after going through every drawer in the (oh my gosh, I almost said, “ice box) fridge, I found enough veggies to actually make vegetable soup. No meat, just veggies. To add some extra flavor I added a can of mild green chile sauce and chicken base granules. Lots of garlic to ward off any winter colds and WA-la, you have a great soup. Since I had some fresh black eyed peas which I was going to cook today for good luck, I threw those in also.

Ingredients

1 cup of frozen chopped onion, celery & green bell pepper (I buy those little bags of the creole frozen combination at Kroger for about $1.27)

1 tables olive oil

1 zucchini, diced

1 cup chopped carrots

2 peeled and diced potatoes

2 cups chopped cabbage

1/2 cup fresh black eyed peas

1 can diced tomatoes

1 can of mild green chile sauce

2 tables chicken granules

12 cup frozen Lima beans (I know, I know, you can omit these if you don’t like them, like so many don’)

Sauté the onion, celery-pepper mix in the heated olive oil. Add garlic to your liking and stir until onion is tender. Add all the rest of the ingredients and bake in a 300 preheated oven for about 2-3 hours, or until vegetables are tender.

Serve with corn bread muffins. Ours is in the oven while we are off to the movies. Have a glorious and blessed New Years! image