Rice and Lentil Soup

Rice and Lentil Soup - adapted from Frozen Assets
1 12 ounce can tomato paste
2 16 ounce cans diced tomatoes, with juice
12 cups water (original recipe said 8 but this was not enough)
2 cups uncooked lentils
2 cups uncooked rice
2 cups onion, diced
2 cups frozen cut green beans
2 cloves garlic, minced
Salt
Pepper

1. Combine all ingredients in a large stock pot. Heat to boiling. Turn down heat and simmer for one hour until lentils are soft and rice is cooked.

2. Cool. Pour into freezer bags. Seal. Label. Freeze.

Makes 10 servings.

Chicken Vegetable Chowder

This recipe came in a big booklet of slow cooker recipes that my friend Tricia sent me. This is the first recipe that I tried and it was yummy. We thought the broth could have been thicker but the flavour was tasty.

Chicken-Vegetable Chowder
1 pound boneless skinless chicken thighs -- cut in 1" pieces
3-4 carrots, chopped
8 oz sliced fresh mushrooms
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup water
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/8 teaspoon dried thyme leaves
1 3/4 cup chicken broth
1 can condensed cream of celery soup
1/2 cup milk
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour (**could add more - we would have liked it to be thicker)
2 1/2 cups fresh broccoli, chopped

In 3 1/2 to 4-quart Crock-Pot slow cooker, combine chicken, carrots, mushrooms, onion, water,
garlic powder, thyme and broth; mix well. Cover; cook on low setting for 7 to 9 hours or until
chicken is no longer pink. Skim fat from slow cooker if necessary.

In small bowl, combine soup, milk and flour; beat with wire whisk until smooth.

Add soup mixture and broccoli to chicken mixture.

Cover; cook an additional 30 minutes or until broccoli is tender. (We found it only took about 20 minutes).

Serves 5.

Chicken Noodle Soup

The other day, I wasn't feeling well and I got to craving some good old fashioned chicken noodle soup. I had bought a whole chicken to roast and carve to make chicken and rice casseroles, so I knew it would be the perfect time. I boiled the carcass for broth, threw in some veggies, barley, and noodles and voila - a delicious, hearty, warm soup!

Chicken Noodle Soup
The carcass of one chicken
Water
1 onion, quartered
Salt, to taste
Poultry seasoning, to taste
1 onion, finely chopped
3 stalks celery, chopped
5-6 carrots, chopped
4 oz mushrooms, sliced (if desired)
1-2 cups cooked chicken
Salt, to taste
Thyme, to taste
Chicken bouillon, optional (only if you find your broth doesn't have enough flavor)
Bay leaf
1/3 cup barley
1 1/2 cup wide egg noodles

1. Place the carcass from your chicken in a large stock pot. Cover with water (about 8-10 cups). Season with salt and throw in quartered onion. Boil for 45 minutes to one hour. Drain, removing bones and onion and reserving broth. **If you don't have a chicken carcass, or you don't want to do this, you can just use 8 cups of premade chicken broth.


2. Return broth to pot. Add veggies, chicken, barley, and seasoning. Cover and simmer for 30 minutes-1 hour, until veggies and barley are soft. Taste, season further, if necessary. I found that my broth wasn't as flavorful as I would like, so I just added a quick sprinkle of bullion to boost the flavor.

3. Once veggies and barley are tender, add egg noodles and continue simmering for 10-15 minutes, until noodles are cooked.

Serve with warm toast or crackers. Later this week, I'm going to give SnoWhite's wheat crackers a try. Enjoy.

Makes 10-12 servings.

This recipe is being linked at Tasty Tuesday, Tempt my Tummy Tuesday, Tuesday's at the Table, and The Grocery Cart Challenge Recipe Swap.

Chicken Tortilla Soup

Chicken Tortilla Soup
4 cups chicken broth
1/2 cup water
1 large can diced tomatoes
1 red onion, chopped (could use a regular onion)
4 cups chicken, chopped/shredded (you could use less)
2 cups black beans (or 1 can, rinsed and drained)
1 1/2 cup corn
1 cup green beans
3/4 tsp cumin
2 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp chopped cilantro
2 flour tortillas
Olive Oil
Garlic Powder
Grated cheese, for topping

1. Combine all ingredients in your slow cooker. Cover and cook on low 7-9 hours or high 4-5 hours.

2. About 15 minutes before serving time, brush tortillas with olive oil and cut into thin strips. Sprinkle with garlic powder. Spread on a baking sheet.

3. Bake at 375 for 5-10 minutes, until browned and crispy.

Serve soup with tortilla crisps and shredded cheese.

Makes a million servings. Or maybe 10-12.

Butternut Squash Soup

My sister told me about this recipe earlier in the fall when she made it. Her little guy devours it (well, he devours mostly anything) so she considers it a keeper. She made it for us during the few days that she and I, and her little man, were hanging out at my parent's house waiting for the rest of the family to arrive. With the evaporated milk, it's quite rich. It's not for the faint hearted. All of the girls, and Little H, loved it, but my dad said he would have preferred it served in a smaller portion as an accompaniment to a meal, rather than a large bowl as the meal itself. If you are looking for something less rich, I would suggest replaced the evaporated milk with regular milk or cream.

Butternut Squash Soup - from my lovely sister (who doesn't have a blog but really should)
EVOO
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves of garlic, minced
8 cups butternut squash, chopped and peeled
1 sweet potato, peeled and chopped
2 or 3 apples, peeled and chopped
1 carton of vegetable or chicken broth
1/2 tsp dried rosemary
1/2 tsp thyme
1 cup evaporated milk (or make your own)
Some skim milk (if needed)

Heat EVOO. Fry onions and garlic until soft. Add remaining ingredients except for milk. Add water until squash is just covered if necessary.

Bring to a boil and simmer until squash is very tender.

Puree, adding skim milk to thin veggies, if necessary. Do NOT comb your hair before doing so. Trust me, this is a crucial step. Sorry, Mom, I just had to. :)

Add evaporated milk and heat and serve.

Little H and Aunt LiLi gives this soup two thumbs up!

Sausage and Potato Chowder

This delicious chowder came as a result of three things. 1. I got a brand spanking new slowcooker from my MIL for Christmas and I was dying to try it out. 2. I had some cooked sausage leftover from when I made Christmas Morning Casseroles for the FD's family Christmas. And 3. I have a ton of potatoes in the cold cellar!

Sausage and Potato Chowder
4-5 medium potatoes, peeled and chopped
1 onion, chopped
3 medium carrots, chopped
2 stalks celery, chopped
1 cup frozen corn
2 cloves garlic, minced
Salt
Pepper
4 cups beef or chicken stock
1 cup water
1/2 lb sausage, cooked and crumbled
2 C milk
1/4 cup flour
1 cup grated cheddar cheese
Parsley, for garnish

1. Combine all vegetables in slow cooker. Season with garlic, salt and pepper.

2. Add broth, water and sausage.

3. Cover and cook on low for 4-6 hours, until vegetables are tender.

4. Whisk flour into milk, until dissolved. Stir into soup. Add cheese. Stir.

5. Cover and continue cooking on low until cheese is melted and soup is heated through.

6. Garnish with parsley and serve.

Makes 8-10 servings.

This recipe is being shared at Tasty Tuesday, Tempt My Tummy Tuesday, and Tuesday's at the Table. Head over there to see some great recipes and thank the lovely ladies for hosting such great blog carnivals!

Soup in a Jar

This week's theme at the Ultimate Recipe Swap is food gifts. One thing that I think is such a great idea for food gifts is making soup mixes, cookie mixes, muffins mixes and so on, to giveaway in jars.

My MIL has some great books that give many ideas of how to put these kinds of gifts together so last weekend while we were visiting, I copied out some of the ideas to put together. Earlier this week, I put together a few jars of Love Soup.

Love Soup
1/3 cup beef boullion
1/4 cup dried minced onion
1/2 cup dried split peas
1/2 cup macaroni
1/4 cup barley
1/2 cup lentils
1/3 cup long-grain white rice
1/2-1 cup tri-coloured spiral pasta

1. Layer all ingredients in the order given in a quart sized jar. Pack each ingredient before adding the next. Seal jar.

2. Attach instruction label to the jar which gives the following instructions:

Love Soup 1 jar Love Soup Mix
1 pound ground beef, browned and drained

Remove the tri-coloured spiral pasta from the Love Soup Mix and set aside. Place the remaining ingreidents in a large soup pot. Add 12 cups of water. Bring to a boil. Lower heat and simmer for 45 minutes. Add tri-coloured pasta, ground beef and simmer 15 minutes more. Enjoy!

I put mine together in snowman jars that my MIL and I found at a craft show earlier this year.

This is a quick and easy gift idea that only required about 10 minutes of my time and a number of ingredients that I always have on hand anyway.

There is nothing better than the gift of a piping hot bowl of soup!

This recipe is being linked at Tatertot's and Jello as a part of the Holly Bloggy Christmas Bash. Head over to Tatertot's and Jello to see some more great homemade gifts and to enter the giveaway!

Beef Barley Soup

This is a comfort soup at it's finest! Another soup that reminds me of my Grandma K. I'm not sure why, I guess because I spent lots of "sick days" at her house while I was growing up, she probably made this for me a lot. It seems like the perfect soup to eat on a chilly evening, with the Christmas tree lights lit and a fire burning in the background.

Beef Barley Soup
1/2 onion, chopped
2 stalks celery, chopped
4-5 carrots, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
EVOO
2 C leftover roast (chopped/shredded)
1/2 T oregano
1/2 T Montreal Steak Spice
1 tsp garlic powder
6-8 cups beef stock**
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1 large can diced tomatoes, with juices
1 cup pot barley

**As the soup sits, the barley will really absorb the broth. It's often necessary to add more broth and/or water to the soup the next day. Or, you can leave it as it is, and enjoy a more "stew-life" version of the soup for leftovers, which is what I do.

1. Heat EVOO in a large soup pot. Add vegetables and minced garlic cook for 10-15 minutes until vegetables are beginning to soften.

2. Add roast, oregano, Montreal steak spice and garlic powder. Cook for a few minutes.

3. Add stock, Worcestershire sauce, tomatoes and barley. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 1-1 1/2 hours until barley is expanded.

Makes 8-10 servings.

Roasted Veggie and Pumpkin Curry Soup

Whenever we have roasted veggies of any variation for dinner, I am always sure to make enough for leftovers so I can make soup. Roasted vegetable soup is one of my favourites. This time, I also had some canned pumpkin leftover so I decided to make something a little different.

Roasted Veggie and Pumpkin Curry Soup
3-4 cups leftover roasted veggies (any combination and variation will work - and you can also roast veggies specifically for the soup if you want -mine had onions, mushrooms, carrots, turnip and potatoes)
2-3 cups water
1 cup canned pumpkin
1-3 tsp curry powder
1/8 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp salt
2 cups milk

1. Place vegetables in a medium saucepan. Add enough water to nearly cover. Bring to a boil and simmer for 15-20 minutes.

2. Using an immersion blender, process vegetables until smooth. Alternately, you could transfer the mixture to a food processor.

3. Add pumpkin, curry powder, brown sugar and salt. Stir to combine.

4. Return pot to the stove over medium heat. Slowly add milk, stirring constantly, until well integrated. Heat over medium until soup is hot throughout, but do not boil. Taste and add more curry powder, brown sugar or salt to taste. Blend once more, if needed to make soup entirely smooth.

Serve with a light drizzle of heavy cream, or a dollop of sour cream, if desired.

Makes 8-10 servings.

This recipe is being shared at Tasty Tuesday, Tempt my Tummy Tuesday and Tuesday's at the Table.

Cider Pork and Vegetable Stew

Cider Pork and Vegetable Stew - adapted from Better Homes and Gardens
2 large pork chops, cut into 1 inch cubes
1 onion, chopped
3 large carrots, chopped
2 medium potatoes, chopped
2 stalks celery, chopped
1 cup turnip, chopped
1 package mushrooms, sliced
3-5 T flour
1 apple, coarsely chopped
3 cups apple cider or apple juice
1 tsp dried rosemary
Salt
Pepper

1. Cut pork chops into small cubes. Brown meat for 5-10 minutes, until partially cooked.

2. In a 5qt slowcooker, combine pork and all vegetables. Sprinkle with flour and stir to coat.

3. Stir in juice, rosemary and salt and pepper.

4. Cover and cook on low for 8-10 hours. If necessary, add a few more T flour halfway through cooking time to thicken stew.

Enjoy a delicious blend of hearty autumn flavours!

Makes 6-8 servings.

This recipe is being shared at the Grocery Cart Challenge Recipe Swap.

Root Vegetable Soup

Last week, while I was visiting my parents, I made a pot of soup for us to have for lunch and for my mama to have for leftovers over the next couple days. It was a definite "use what's kicking around" type of soup but it turned out to be delicious.

Root Vegetable Soup
1 onion, chopped
4-5 carrots, chopped
1 cup turnip, chopped
2 parsnips, chopped
1 large can diced tomatoes
1 pkg onion soup mix
4-6 cups water
2-3 tsp boullion powder (beef or chicken would be fine)
3/4 cup red lentils, rinsed and soaked
1 tsp Italian seasoning
Salt
Pepper

1. Place chopped veggies in a large stock pot.

2. Add onion soup mix, boullion and spices.

3. Stir in tomatoes, lentils and water. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer 1 1/2-2 hours, until veggies and lentils are tender.

Garnish with shredded cheese. Makes about 8-10 servings.

Cabbage Soup

This soup reminds me of my Grandma K. Is it because it's her recipe? I'm not even really sure. For some reason, the smell and taste of it just makes me think of sitting at her kitchen table. Not a bad memory, at all.

Cabbage Soup
1/2 lb ground meat
1 onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
3-4 carrots, chopped
3-4 stalks celery, chopped
2-3 medium potatoes, cubed
4 cups stock (beef or chicken - I used chicken)
1/4 cup tomato sauce
Salt
Pepper
Italian seasoning
4 cups cabbage, sliced finely

1. Brown meat with onion. Drain and add all remaining ingredients except for cabbage.

2. Let simmer for 1-2 hours, until carrots and potatoes are soft. Add cabbage about 30 mins-1 hour before serving.

Makes 6-8 servings.


This recipe is being linked at the Grocery Cart Challenge Recipe Swap.