Chicken-Vegetable Chowder

This one is a Pillsbury Annual Recipe. I've used a lot of theirs. Mostly they include crescent rolls. But this one doesn't. I made it while in the middle of pregnancy, so I wasn't really digging it. But Aaron said it was good, so I might have to make it again once my gag reflex is in check.

Ingredients

1 lb chicken, cut into 1-inch pieces

1 cup carrots (chopped or baby carrots sliced in half)

1 cup sliced fresh mushrooms (I used canned)

1 medium onion, chopped (about 1/2 cup)

1/2 cup water

1/4 tsp garlic powder

1/8 tsp thyme

1 can (14 oz) chicken broth

1 can cream of chicken soup

1/2 cup milk

3 tbsp flour

1 box (9 oz) frozen broccoli

In slow cooker, mix chicken, carrots, mushrooms, onion, water, garlic powder, thyme and broth. Cover; cook on low heat for 7 to 9 hours. About 35 minutes before serving, skim fat from slow cooker. In small bowl, beat soup, milk, and flour with wire whisk until smooth. Add soup mixture and broccoli to chicken mixture. Cover; cook on low heat setting 30 minutes longer or unti broccoli is tender.

I think you could easily adjust this to stovetop cooking if you didn't have time to start it early.

Smokey Potato Chowder

We got this recipe courtesy of the best man from our wedding. It wasn't his recipe, but a woman from his family.

Ingredients

6-8 large potatoes

1 quart milk

3/4 cup flour

1/4 cup butter

2 tsp liquid hickory smoke

1 can cheddar cheese soup or 1 1/2 cups cubed Velveeta

8-10 sausage links, cooked

onion (dried or fresh, to taste)

salt & white pepper

Peel and cut potatoes into cubes. Put into large saucepan, cover with water and cook until tender by still slightly firm. While potatoes are cooking,k put milk into wuart har with flour and shake until blended. Drain water off potatoes. Put potatoes back on low heat. Stir in butter, being careful not to mash the potato cubes. Pour in milk. Add cheddar cheese soup, rinse soup can with milk. Sti careful until well blended. Season with salt, white pepper, onion, and liquid smoke to your own tastes. Stir often to keep milk from sticking to bottom. Cut cooked sausage links into slices and add to soup. Heat until milk has thickened. Taste for any additionla seasonings needed. More milk may be added if soup is too thick or more flour may be stirred in it too thin.

I doubt we stay to these directions to staunchly, so feel free to vary where you want to. It's a great soup, nice flavor, and really comforting on a cold day.

Shepard's Pie Soup

One of my favorite websites is Supercook.  You can list the ingredients you have and don't have and it will spit out recipes that you can make with those ingredients.  Supercook was my friend tonight and inspired a recipe tonight that will probably become a regular in our house.

I was planning on making my Mom's shephard's pie for dinner, which I thought Julie had blogged about and I was going to add a link to, but she hasn't so next time I make it I'll share it with you.  Anyways, I had made my Mom's Homemade Macaroni and Cheese for lunch and it ended up taking all of my cheese.  So I didn't have any to top the casserole with.  I went to supercook, put in the ingredients that I had been planning on using, and out came a recipe to make soup.  I strayed a little from the original recipe, so I'm going to give you what I made instead of what the original recipe was.  If you want to see the original, go here.

Ingredients:
1 lb ground beef
1/2 onion, chopped
3 large potatoes
1 jar marinara pasta sauce
1 can corn
salt and pepper

Dice potatoes into 1/4 to 1/2 inch cubes and put in large pot to begin cooking.  Cook ground beef and onion in a skillet until beef is browned.  Drain all but 1 cup of the potato cooking water; the potatoes will not be cooked thoroughly yet.  Add the rest of the ingredients to the pot and cook 30 minutes or until the potatoes are tender.

I served it with biscuits on the side.  I don't have a biscuit cutter, so I use a heart shaped cookie cutter.  Adds a little something special, I think.

Black Bean and Sausage Soup

I thought for sure I'd done this already, but I hadn't. So good!

Ingredients

1 cup dry black beans (can use canned beans)
2 cups chicken broth
1 cup chopped onion
1 cup chopped celery (2 stalks)
1 tsp ground coriander
¼ tsp salt
1/8 – ¼ tsp ground red pepper
4 cloves garlic, minced
8 oz. cooked, smoked turkey sausage or polish sausage, chopped
Dairy sour cream, shredded Monterey Jack cheese, fresh cilantro (optional)

Rinse beans. In a large saucepan or Dutch oven combine beans and 6 cups water. Bring to boiling; reduce heat. Simmer for 2 minutes. Remove from heat. Cover; let stand for 1 hour. Drain and rinse beans. Return beans to saucepan. Stir in 2 cups water, broth, onion, celery, coriander, salt, red pepper, and garlic. Bring to boiling; reduce heat. Simmer, covered, for 1-1 ½ hours or until beans are tender.

If desired, mash beans slightly. Stir in sausage; heat through. IF desired, serve topped with sour cream and cilantro. -OR-

Prepare as above through step 1. In crock pot combine chicken broth, 2 cups water, onion, celery, coriander, salt, red pepper, and garlic. Stir in beans. Cover and cook on high heat for 5-6 hours. If desired, mash beans slightly. Stir in sausage. Cover and cook for 30 minutes more.

Or just used canned beans like we do. Then you only have to cook it for like 30 minutes and then add the sausage. Just cook long enough to get your veggies the way you like them.

In this one, we added some leftover rice just for fun. It added just a little extra. But this is a great recipe. I highly recommend using the optional ingredients. They're fun and tasty to add.

Leftover Soup

This is a 100% Denney creation. We had a lot of leftover veggies, one hot dog, a bit of chicken, and decided to make a soup. From the picture, it probably looks way scary. Don't be afraid. This isn't so much of a "cook this recipe" but a "look what you can do if you try." We used this recipe for our basis. We used the same seasonings, and proportions. But we used some chicken, one hot dog, and our vegetables were different. We also chose not to use beans. Our veggies included corn, mushrooms, celery, maybe carrots. Honestly, I'm having a hard time remembering. The hot dog taste was a bit weird, because it didn't really feel right. But the taste of the soup was not bad. We were pretty darn impressed with ourselves. So this is just a testament to experimenting with your tools. You slowly build up an arsenal of recipes you are comfortable and familiar with. Use those as tools and get creative. Sometimes because you just want to be creative and other times because you just aren't sure what you can make with the odds and ends in your fridge. Just don't be afraid to try!

Roasted Tomato and Black Bean Soup

This one I took out of the Readers Digest and was very excited about. It was pretty darn good. I really enjoyed it.

Ingredients
7 medium tomatoes, quartered
1 large onion, cut into large pieces (about 1 1/2 inches)
3 garlic cloves, peeled
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
5 cups chicken or vegetable broth
2 15.5-oz. cans black beans, drained and rinsed
1 1/2 tsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. chili powder
1/4 tsp. hot pepper sauce, like Tabasco (I didn't have this part, but I can imagine the kick it would add!)
1/4 cup sour cream
1/4 cup chopped cilantro (Mine is freeze-dried, not fresh)

Preheat oven to 375. Toss tomatoes, onion, and garlic with oil, 1/2 tsp salt, and 1/4 tsp pepper in a large bowl, then transfer to baking sheet. Roast until garlic cloves have softened, edges of onions are browned, and tomatoes have collapsed, 35 to 40 minutes, stirring onces after first 20 minutes.

Transfer roasted vegetable mixture to 4 qt. saucepan. Add broth, beans, cumin, chili powder, and remaining 1/2 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp pepper. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer 10 minutes. Remove from heat and blend until smooth with immersion blender or in batches in regular blender. Stir in hot sauce. Divide among 4 bowls and garnish with dollop of sour cream and sprinkle of cilantro.

Really, this was yummy. I want to make it again with garden tomatoes. I think that would be so yummy.

Chicken and Rice Soup

This is another Emeril recipe. It turned out pretty great. A very chicken-noodley-comfort-food feel to it.

Ingredients
2 tbsp olive oil
1 1/2 cups chopped yellow onion
3/4 cup chopped celery
3/4 cup chopped carrots
2 tsp minced garlic
2 tsp salt
1 tsp Baby Bam
1 tsp Italian Seasoning
1 Bay leaf (I don't have individual Bay leaves, so I just dump some of my crushed bay leaves in.)
1/8 tsp crushed red pepper
8 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth (If I don't have this, which is usually the case, and I make it with water and chicken boullion, I leave out any additional salt.)
1/4 cup uncooked long-grain rice (I only had plain rice. Not instant, but not long-grain)
10-12 oz. boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley (until I have a garden, mine's never fresh)

Heat a large saucepan over high heat. Add the olive oil and, when hot, add the onion, celery, and carrots. Saute until soft, about 4 minutes. Add the garlic, salt, Baby Bam, Italian Seasoning, bay leaf, and crushed red pepper. Saute for 2 more minutes. (Do not allow garlic to brown.) Add the chicken broth and bring to a boil, Cover and reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer for 20 minutes. Add the rice and stir well to combine. Cover and continue to simmer for 20 minutes. Add the chicken and cook until just cooked through, about 5 to 6 minutes. Add the parsley, stir well, and serve.

I had never made a soup that cooked the meat product like that. I was a bit skeptical, but it worked great. I have since done it a few more times in different recipes and I love this method. This was a great soup. Definitely going to eat it again.

Tortellini in Brodo

Or as Emeril taught me, Tortellini in Soup. So super yummy! I loved this recipe!

Ingredients
2 tbsp olive oil
1 ½ onions, chopped
¾ cup chopped celery
¾ cup chopped carrots
1 tbsp minced garlic
1 tsp Italian seasoning
1/8 tsp crushed red pepper
8 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth
9 oz. fresh cheese filled tortellini
2 tbsp minced parsley
Salt, to taste if necessary
½ cup finely grated Parmesan cheese
Heat a large saucepan over high heat. Add the olive oil and, when hot, add the onion, celery, and carrots. Saute until soft, about four minutes. Add the garlic, italian seasoning, and crushed red pepper and saute for 2 more minutes. Add the chicken broth and bring to a boil. Cover, reduce the heat to medium-low, and simmer for 20 minutes. Add the tortellini and cook for 5 minutes (or longer if pasta directs). The pasta should be al dente. Stir in the parsley, taste, and adjust the seasoning if necessary. Remove from heat and ladle into soup bowls. Garnish each bowl with 1 tbsp cheese. Serve.

The big odd looking white sections (not the noodles) are the Parmesan cheese. Then there are also a few non-organic items in there (two orange, one white). They're plastic ice cubes. They cool the food down without watering it down. I forgot about the picture before I put them in.

Split Pea Sausage Soup

I'll be the first to admit that anytime I read split pea soup I do not get hungry. I even dread making it for like a week before I do it. However, in the end I eat it and think, "Hey, this is okay. I kinda like it." Needless to say, it's a good recipe and I've eaten it many times. It just has a stigma, you know? Poor split peas. Anyway, another make ya feel good for eatin good recipe.

Ingredients
1 pound smoked kielbasa
1 pound dry split peas
6 cups water
1 cup chopped carrots (2 medium carrots)
1/2 onion, chopped
1 cup chopped celery (2 stalks)
1 tbsp minced fresh parsley
1 tsp salt
½ tsp coarse black pepper
2 bay leaves (I just have chopped bay leaves, so I use about 1-2 tsp.)

Cut sausage in half lengthwise; cut into ¼ in. pieces. Place in pot; add remaining ingredients. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 1 ¼ to 1 ½ hours or until peas are tender. Remove bay leaves.

Another easy recipe, and it's pretty good for ya. I'm including this in my beans category because I keep my dried split peas with all my dried beans. I don't know if it's actually a bean. Maybe it is.

Vegetable and Red Lentil Soup

This one came out great and I'm sure it's insanely healthy for you. Once you chop up the veggies it's one of the really easy dump-in-the-crock-pot-and-leave-it recipes. Love those.

Ingredients

1 can (14 ½ oz.) vegetable broth (Check sodium levels on those things. Some of them are insane. I found one with like 1/3 the sodium of the others. Same goes with chicken broth.)
1 can (14 ½ oz.) diced tomatoes, undrained
2 medium zucchini or yellow summer squash (or 1 of each), diced (I used one of each)
1 red or yellow bell pepper, diced
½ cup thinly sliced carrots
½ cup red lentils, rinsed and sorted (may substitute with brown lentils)
½ tsp salt
½ tsp sugar
½ tsp black pepper
2 tbsp chopped fresh basil or thyme (I used basil. For no reason really.)
½ cup croutons or shredded cheese (optional)

Combine broth, tomatoes with juize, zucchini/squash, bell pepper, carrots, lentil, salt, sugar and black pepper in crock pot; mix well. Cover; cook on low 8 hours or on high 4 hours or until lentils and vegetables are tender. Ladle into shallow bowls; top with basil, croutons, and cheese.

Like I said, hearty and easy. I did make one mistake and cooked my basil with the soup. Although mine wasn't fresh, so it wouldn't be as potent I imagine. Anyway, it was good. And made me feel good for eating healthy. Yay for that.

Chili!

So here's your standard crock pot chili! I've been making crock pot meals on Sundays with our church starting at 1 this year and choir practice right after, there's not time for elaborate cooking when we get home. This came out great. Like I said, it's a standard chili, but there's nothing wrong with that. It's refreshing every now and then.

Ingredients

1 lb. lean ground beef (or turkey)
1/2 onion, chopped
1 green sweet pepper, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced (Can't go wrong with more garlic either)
1 15-oz can dark red kidney beans, rinsed and drained (may use dried beans)
1 14 ½ oz. can diced tomatoes, undrained
1 8 oz. can tomato sauce
2-3 tsp chili powder
1 tsp dried basil, crushed
1/2 cup flax seed

In a large saucepan, cook ground beef, onion, sweet pepper, and garlic until meat is brown and onion is tender; drain fat. Stir in kidney beans, undrained tomatoes, tomato sauce, chili powder, basil and ¼ teaspoon black pepper. Bring to boiling; reduce heat. Simmer, covered for 20 minutes. -OR-
Cook ground beef, chopped onions, chopped green sweet pepper, and minced garlic. Drain fat. Combine in crock pot beef mixture; kidney beans, rinsed and drained; tomato sauce; diced tomatoes, undrained; chili powder; dried basil, crushed; and black pepper. Cover; cook on low heat for 8-10 hours or on high heat for 4-5 hours.

I made a few alterations to the recipe. It's a bit bulkier than the original (from Better Homes and Gardens.) I also used dried beans. I measured out two cups and then cooked them. This of course equaled more than 15 ounces of beans when they were cooked. However, with the added meat (it was originally 12 oz.) it's not super beany or anything.

We like to top our chili with cheese (cheddar or swiss) and/or saltines. Generally speaking, we also eat it with corn bread (coming next!)

Chicken Tortilla Soup

This is a recipe Aaron found in the Reader's Digest and wanted to try. It turned out great. We just made it again for the second time and enjoyed it even more.

Ingredients
6 corn tortillas, cut into ¼ inch strips (You can most certainly use more tortillas. These are yummy!)
5 tsp olive oil, divided
½ tsp salt
¾ lb. boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into ½ inch cubes
1 large onion, chopped
5 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth
1 lb. red potatoes, cut into ½ inch cubes
1 cup frozen corn
1 can (4.5 oz) chopped green chilies
¼ cup minced fresh cilantro
¼ tsp pepper
3 tbsp lime juice
1 tbsp chopped garlic
1 tsp basil

In large resealable plastic bag, combine tortilla strips, 2 tsp oil, and salt. Seal bag and shake to coat. Arrange tortilla strips on ungreased baking sheet. Bake at 400 for 8-10 minutes or until crisp, turning once. Remove to paper towels to cool.

In large saucepan, saute chicken in remaining oil until lightly browned. Add onion and garlic; cook, stirring frequently, until onion is tender. Add broth and potatoes. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer 10 minutes. Add corn, chilies, cilantro, and pepper, and heat through. Stir in lime juice. Top each serving with tortilla chips.

This has quite the citrus flavor. I wouldn't skimp on anything, especially not the cilantro or lime juice. It's a great soup.

Cream of Broccoli Soup

Yesterday wound up being a cold and dreary day, so it was lucky I had already planned to have Cream of Broccoli Soup! It's not too difficult and I just love a creamy soup.

Ingredients

2 cups water
4 tsp chicken bouillon granules
20 oz frozen chopped broccoli
2 tbsp finely chopped onion
2 cans condensed cream of chicken soup
2 cups evaporated milk
2 cups sour cream (16 oz)
1 tsp dried parsley flakes
¼ tsp pepper


In a large saucepan, combine the water and bouillon. Add broccoli and onion. Bring to a boil; reduce heat. Simmer for 10 minutes or until broccoli is crisp-tender. Combine soup, milk, sour cream, parsley and pepper; add to broccoli mixture. Cook and stir for 3-5 minutes or until heated through.

I really enjoy this recipe and as long as the broccoli pieces aren't too big, Joseph is able to eat it (and enjoy it) too.

White and Black Bean Chicken Chili

So Sunday was a day of misfires in the kitchen. Thankfully last night we had a wonderful success, thanks to a recipe from Jared and Anita. I just call it White Chicken Chili. It's actually like a soup. But whatever you call it, it's good!

Ingredients:

* 1 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts halves, cut into 1 inch pieces
* 1 med yellow onion, chopped
* 4 garlic cloves, minced
* 2 tbs olive oil
* 2 (14.5oz) cans cannellini beans, (reserve liquid from one can) drained and rinsed
* 1 (15oz) can black beans, drained and rinsed
* 2 1/2 cups low sodium chicken broth
* 1 can of kernel corn
* 1 (4oz) cans diced green chiles
* 1 tbs ground cumin
* 1 1/2 tsp dried oregano
* 3/4 tsp salt
* 1/2 tsp black pepper
* 1/4 to 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper or chili peppers of your choice, dried flakes, or diced. I like Serrano diced or dried red peppers. 1/4 tsp of red pepper flakes will be medium spice, 1/2 tsp will be medium hot spicy. Typically, 1 Serrano pepper diced will make it medium hot spicy. Start less, you can always add more!!!
* 1/2 cup heavy cream or 3/4 cup milk

Saute the onion, garlic, chili peppers of your choice, cumin, and oregano in a large pot with medium hot oil for 2-3 minutes. Push to side of the pot and add chicken. Cook the chicken until it's no longer pink on the outside. Add all remaining ingredients, including reserved white bean liquid, except the cream or milk. Increase heat to med-high; bring to a boil. Cover and reduce heat to low; simmer 10 mins or until heated through. After it's heated. Remove from heat and add cream or milk. Serve with cheese, fresh cilantro, and sour cream. Can also be made in a crockpot. After cooking the chicken, onions and garlic, put all the ingredients, except the cream or milk, into a crockpot and let cook for the day. Add cream or milk before serving.

This stuff is killer good. We ended up adding more seasoning than it calls for (well, Aaron did) so ours had some real kick to it, but I think it would've been perfect just the way the recipe is. We used milk and cayenne pepper. We also ended up not using the liquid from the can of beans (because I put cutting board remnants in the can on accident.) Definitely a keeper still!

 

The only cheese we had was cheddar, but I think it would've been better with a white cheese. Swiss, maybe Monterrey or Colby. Cilantro definitely would've been an awesome addition. We just didn't have any at the time.

Lentil and Sausage Soup

Tonight's cuisine was courtesy of the Better Homes & Garden Cookbook. This is one I became acquainted with in Missoula and have since come to enjoy very much.  I must say that it was pretty awesome. It's a really easy recipe and tastes pretty great. I must say that growing up I wouldn't have touched this type of thing. But I have since evolved to eat things like beans, vegetables, and yeah, that's what I used to avoid pretty much. But now I really enjoy these things and I feel good because I know they're good for me.

Ingredients
2 14-oz. cans chicken broth
1 ½ cups water
1 cup red lentils (brown are easier to find)
1 cup sliced celery (2 stalks)
1 cup sliced carrots (2 medium)
½ cup chopped onion
1 tsp snipped fresh thyme or ½ tsp dried thyme, crushed
1/8 tsp ground red pepper
2 cloves garlic, minced
6 oz. cooked, smoked sausage links
Optional: shredded cheese, saltines or croutons

In a large saucepan combine chicken broth, water, lentils, celery, carrots, onion, dried thyme (if using), red pepper, and garlic. Bring to boiling; reduce heat. Simmer, covered, for 20-25 minutes or until vegetables and lentils are tender. Stir in fresh thyme, if using, and sausage. Heat through.

I used shredded mozzarella. You could use swiss or monterey or maybe colby jack. I used mozzarella because it's what I had at the time. I prefer croutons to saltines because they can be seasoned and they don't get soggy as fast. I also added a tbsp of flax seed to my soup. One tbsp gives you two grams of fiber and in the soup it was basically tasteless. I'll have more posts about flax seed. It's great to add to different types of things.  I was also liberal with the spices. We prefer our food to be spicy versus bland.  Makes for good soup!