Roasted Garlic Soup

Hello everyone! Sorry for my brief hiatus. Life just took over and I wasn’t really making anything new to post!
While meal planning this week I was looking for a fun, vegetarian option for dinner. I remembered coming across this recipe for garlic soup that I have been wanting to try forever. It is so incredibly simple to make and it taste great! Very simple flavors, which I love!
I got the recipe from the blog Healthful Pursuit. I love her recipes, I would highly recommend checking them out!

Roasted Garlic Soup
Ingredients
–2 bulbs garlic
-3 shallots
-1 TBS olive oil
-1 head cauliflower (cut and rinsed)
-6 cups vegetable broth
-1 tsp salt

Directions
Preheat oven 350 degrees. Peel the skin off the garlic while still keeping the bulbs in tact. Cut off about 1/4″ off the top of the bulb to expose the garlic. Place in aluminum cool and cover with 1 tsp olive oil. Fold the foil and place in the oven for 40 minutes. When done, let cool for 5 minutes then squeeze the garlic out of the skins.

Cut shallots and place in spite pan with some olive oil. Cook for about 6 minutes, until they start to brown.
Place shallots, cauliflower, broth, garlic and salt in pot and bring to a boil.

Once boiling cover, simmer and cook for an additional 20 minutes.

Once finished either use an immersion blender to blend the soup, or put in a blender until smooth.

I served with homemade vegan biscuits. But it would be great with some bread, crackers, or on its own!

Ham Bone Soup

Last fall I bought a ham and purposely bought one with the bone in so I could save the bone for soup!
Fast forward 4 months later and I finally found a recipe I wanted to use the game bone for! I didn’t want to make regular ham and bean soup… I actually didn’t want much meat in it at all (we are on a budget to buy a house so I choose meat carefully).
This recipe took about 2 hours to make so it’s not too long. And I honestly believe this is the best soup I have EVER made! I literally tasted it and said “I’m awesome” out loud. Which probably would have been better if I wasn’t only talking to my dog when I said this haha!
I highly recommend trying this recipe. It will be a staple in my kitchen from now on! Thanks to the nytimes website for the recipe!

Ham Bone Soup
Ingredients
4 strips nitrate free bacon, cut into 1/2″ strips
2 celery stalks, diced
3 large carrots, peeled and diced
1 onion, peeled and diced
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 ham bone (about 1.5 lbs)
8 cups water
1 bay leaf
2 1/2 tsp salt
1/2 head cabbage chopped
3 cups cooked white beans
1 small bunch of kale, chopped
Hot sauce (optional)

Directions
In a soup pan, cook bacon then remove with slotted spoon.
Add celery, carrots and onions. Cook about 5 minutes.
Add garlic, cook 1 min.
Add ham bone and bay leaf. Top with 8 cups water and 2 tsp salt.
Bring to a boil on high heat, then cover and simmer on med-low heat for 30 min.
Add cabbage and simmer another 30 min.
Add beans and simmer 15 min. Then add kale and 1/2 tsp salt and simmer another 15 min.
Add a dash of hot sauce (optional… and I added a few dashes).
Top with bacon bits from first step. And ENJOY!!!

Stuffed Pepper Soup

Today was one if the most relaxing days I’ve had in a LONG time! Perfect timing as well since I’ve been fighting a nasty cold all week.
Since we were pretty much snowed in, I decided that it would be a perfect soup day! I decided to make stuffed pepper soup. I love the simple ingredients and I love peppers!

Stuffed Pepper Soup
Ingredients

• 3 Cups cooked brown rice (optional)
• 1 lb lean ground beef (or turkey)
• 1/2 cup chopped green pepper
• 1/2 cup chopped red pepper
• 1 cup diced onion
• 3 cloves garlic, chopped
• 2 cans petite diced tomatoes
• 1 3/4 cups tomato sauce
• 2 cups low sodium chicken broth
• 1/2 tsp dried marjoram
• Salt and pepper to taste

Directions
In large pot, brown meat. Drain fat and reduce heat to medium-low. Add peppers, onion and garlic. Cook about 5 minutes on low heat.
Add tomatoes, tomato sauce, marjoram and chicken broth. Season with salt and pepper, cover and summer on low for 30 minutes.
You can either add the rice to the pot, or, individually to each bowl of soup.
Enjoy!!

 

Ham and Bean Soup

The weather here (besides today’s crazy 70 degrees with tornado warnings in Mid-November Illinois weather) has been pretty dang chilly. This weather always make me want to eat soup, all day every day. I’ve been craving this simple soup for a week and FINALLY had a day at home where I could make it! This is probably one of the most simple soups ever.

This is also great to use if you have a leftover ham but if not you can certainly just buy a small amount from the store (like I did.) A ham hock is also a nice addition (you can also buy those separately from the grocery store.) I got lucky and found 3 packages ham hocks at the store, I’m going to freeze the other two!

This is a great soup for a chilly day!

Ham and Bean Soup in the Crockpot

Ingredients:

• I lb package dry Great Northern Beans
• 6 cups water
• 1 lb ham, diced
• 1 ham hock (optional)
• 2 tsp onion powder
• salt and pepper to taste

Direction

Rinse beans in colander, and remove any rocks. Put the beans, ham, water, and onion powder in the crockpot. Cook on low for 8 hours.

The great thing is that you don’t have to do anything after the 8 hours are up! It’s ready to eat! I found that I didn’t need to add any salt or pepper to it because the ham is salty by nature.

Hope you enjoy!

Skinny, Loaded Baked Potato Soup

It’s snowing. Which isn’t helping my urge to put up Christmas decorations, even though a Thanksgiving isn’t for another 2 weeks!
Because it’s snowing I thought I’d make soup!!
The website I got this recipe from is http://www.skinnytaste.com I absolutely loooove her recipes as she takes regular food and finds ways to make them “skinny.” No complaints there!

Loaded Baked Potato Soup
Ingredients

• 2 potatoes
• 1 small head cauliflower
• 3 strips cooked turkey bacon
• 1 1/2 cups chicken broth
• 1 1/2 cups lowfat milk
• 10 oz reduced fat cheddar cheese
• 1/2 cup scallions
• 1/2 cup reduced fat sour cream
• Salt and pepper to taste

Directions

• Poke holes with fork into potatoes. Microwave for 5 minutes, turn, microwave again for 3-5 minutes.
• In the meantime, steam cauliflower until fully steamed through. Drain and return to soup pot.
• Add milk, broth and potatoes to pot. Bring to a boil. Once boiling, turn down heat. With am immersion blender, blend until it reaches the desired consistency. I like mine mostly blended with a few little chunks.
• Add half of the scallions, sour cream, salt and pepper. Stir. Let cook on low for 10 minutes.
• Add bacon, crumbled, and stir in cheese. Top with the rest of the scallions.

You would never guess this soup was mainly cauliflower! Yum!

 

Crockpot Potato Cauliflower Soup

Hello all! Sorry I’ve been MIA lately. The wedding is 6 days away to needless to say I haven’t been home too much to cook! I’m hoping after the wedding I’ll have more time, I have TONS of recipes I want to try. AND it’s officially Fall!!! So that means it’s time to start making yummy soups.

I thought I would make a coup for Kev and I to have for the week with our crazy schedule coming up. I wasn’t so sure about it while it was cooking but it turned out great, and it’s in the crockpot which makes it super easy to make.

Crockpot Potato Cauliflower Soup

Ingredients

• 1 medium head cauliflower, cut
• 4 potatoes washed and diced
• 32 oz chicken or vegetable broth
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, diced
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1 cup frozen peas (for later)
• 1/2 cup milk or cream (for later)
• shredded cheese (for later)

Directions

Place all ingredients (except for the peas, milk and cheese) in crockpot. Cook on low for 6 hours, stir occasionally.  I added a little more salt than usual as i think it brings out the flavor in the cauliflower. I also added more pepper because I LOVE pepper!

After 6 hours, use an immersion blender to blend your soup mixture. It should come out as a thick soup. I added a little bit more chick en broth to thin it out a little more to my preferences. Then, add the milk/cream and the peas and stir to combine. Cook on low for 30 more minutes to cook the peas.

When done, serve with shredded cheese on top! I’ve seen pictures that add crumbled bacon and green onions as well, but I didn’t have any of those.

This recipe was really yummy, and a nice comfort food for chilly Fall nights.

 

Enjoy!

Roasted Vegetable Soup

Ok so I know it was like 85 degrees outside today and I decided to make soup. Normally I won’t eat soup when it’s hot outside because I burn up after I eat cup. But I saw this recipe and absolutely HAD to make it! I am so glad I did, this was so easy and tasted wonderful. It was also a great way to eat veggies for dinner!

Roasted Vegetable Soup

Ingredients:

• 2 cans whole tomatoes, drained
• 2 medium zucchini, diced
• 2 cups corn kernels
• 2 T EVOO
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 4 cups vegetable or chicken broth (veggie if you want this to be a vegetarian dish)
• 1 tsp onion powder
• 1/4 tsp chili powder
• 1 pinch allspice
• 1/4 cup heavy cream

Directions:

Preheat oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit. Spread the vegetables out on a baking sheet, drizzle with olive oil and salt.

Roast the vegetables in the oven for 45-60 minutes. Until the tomatoes start to lose their shape, and the corn/zucchini start to caramelize. Remove the veggies from the oven and place in blender, blend until smooth. Once blended thoroughly, pour in to a soup pot.

Stir in the chicken broth and spices, bring to a simmer. Remove from heat and stir in the cream.

Serve hot, and enjoy!

Homemade Chicken and Noodles

It’s been really rainy here the first few weeks of spring. I’ve been wanting to make soups but haven’t been home at all to do it! So, today after sleeping a bajillion hours (after working the Illinois Marathon all day yesterday and then chaperoning a prom!) I decided today was the day to make one of my FAVORITE soups! Mmm chicken and noodles!

This recipe takes a while but oh. my. gosh it is so worth it. I always make a huge batch and just eat it throughout the week. Ultimate comfort food 🙂 I also got this recipe from The Pioneer Woman, who has some of my absolutely favorite recipes! You could be an overachiever and make your own egg noodles (which I want to do one day), but, these Reames egg noodles are some of the best I’ve found! You can find them in the freezer section and I promise you, you will not regret buying them!

Ingredients:

• 1 whole cut up fryer chicken
• 2-3 whole carrots, diced
• 2 stalks celery, diced
• 1/2 medium onion, diced (optional)
• 1 teaspoon Salt
• 1/2 teaspoon Tumeric
• 1/4 teaspoon White Pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon Ground Thyme
• 2 teaspoons Parsley flakes
• 16 oz frozen Reames noodles
• 3 Tablespoons all-purpose flour

Directions:

To get started. Throw your whole fryer chicken in a pot, and cover it with about 4 quarts of water. I personally do about half water, half chicken broth, but that’s my own personal preference. Bring to boil, reduce heat to low, simmer for 30 minutes.

Remove chicken, with two forks, remove as much meat from the bone as you can, place the bones back in the pot, cover, and simmer for 45 minutes. Shred the remaining meat and set aside. Yummy.

When the broth is almost done simmering, dice the carrots, celery, and onion (if using). I also like to get all of my herbs and spices ready as well.

Remove bones with a slotted spoon, making sure to get any little bones that may have detached while simmering. Add the carrots, onion, celery, herbs and spices. Stir to combine, let simmer for about 10 minutes to combine.

Increase heat and add the frozen egg noodles and chicken. Cook for 8 to 10 minutes.

Mix flour with a little water, stir until smooth. Pour into soup, stir to combine, let simmer for another 5 minutes. The broth should thicken a little bit.

Now it’s time to eat! Enjoy!

Chicken Quinoa Vegetable Soup

I tend to make a large batch of soup just about every week for Kevin and I to have for lunches, or on nights where I don’t feel like cooking. This week I decided to make this soup that I found on Pinterest. It’s very good and hearty!

Chicken Quinoa Vegetable Soup

Makes 4-5 servings

Ingredients:

• 1 T EVOO
• 1 small onion, diced
• 2 stalks celery, diced
• 2 large carrots, diced
• 1 cup sweet peppers, diced
• 1 small zucchini, diced (I didn’t have zucchini but used peas)
• 32 oz chicken broth
• 1 tomato, diced
• 3 medium Yukon Gold potatoes, diced in to 1 inch pieces
• 1.5 cups cooked quinoa
• 2 chicken breasts, shredded
• 1 T dijon mustard
• 1/2 T hot sauce
• salt/pepper to taste

Directions:

• Heat oil in large pot. Saute celery, carrots, peppers, onion, and zucchini until soft. 
• Stir in chicken broth, potatoes, and tomatoes. Increase heat to high until broth starts to boil. Reduce to medium high and cook for about 10 minutes, or until potatoes are cooked through.
• Add chicken, quinoa, hot sauce, mustard, salt and pepper. Reduce heat to low and let cook for 10 minutes.
• Serve and enjoy!