Classic Comfort Minestrone Soup

I know everybody has green on their mind and is feeling a little Springy today.

The weather has a little bit of a snap to it today and the wind is blowing something fierce. After a week and then a weekend of glowing sunshine, I am feeling a little bit of a throwback to winter time and I am thinking it is a perfect day for a big pot of soup. I think it feels like a minestrone day. No, it isn't Irish and it isn't green, but it sounds delicious and it is very easy and it can be super duper good for you. That meets all the check marks on my list today.

Minestrone is one of my favorite soups to make, it seems I am only limited by the contents of my pantry. You can add just about any vegetable / protein to a minestrone soup and have it take fantastic. I choose to make mine meatless with lots of beans, because I happen to love beans and I think they are perfect in soups. It is personal preference and you can put chicken, sausage or beef in yours. Anything goes! You are only limited by the contents of your pantry (or your willingness to run to the store).

Here is what ended up in mine:

2 tablespoons olive oil,
1 medium red onion, chopped
2 medium carrots, peeled and diced
1 large celery stalk, diced
1/4 teaspoon red-pepper flakes
1 teaspoon minced fresh rosemary, or 1/4 teaspoon dried
Coarse salt and ground pepper
1 can (14.5 ounces) whole peeled tomatoes, drained and finely chopped
1/4 head Savoy or green cabbage (1/2 pound), cored and thinly sliced
1 can (15 ounces) garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained
1 can (15 ounces) cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
1/2 pound green beans, trimmed and cut into 1-inch pieces
1 garlic clove, minced (optional)
1/4 cup thinly sliced fresh basil,
3/4 cup grated Parmesan, for serving

VARIATIONS
For variations on this classic version, try swapping zucchini for green beans, kale for cabbage, and any type of beans for the chickpeas and the cannellini beans.


It couldn't be easier to make -
STEP 1
In a large pot, heat oil over medium. Add onion, carrots, celery, red-pepper flakes, rosemary, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until onion begins to turn golden, 5 to 8 minutes.
STEP 2
Add tomatoes; cook until some of the liquid evaporates, 1 minute. Add cabbage, beans, and 7 cups water; bring to a boil. Stir in green beans.
STEP 3
Reduce to a simmer, and cook until all the vegetables are tender, about 20 minutes. Season with salt and pepper; stir in garlic, if using, and basil. Serve sprinkled with Parmesan and, if using, torn basil. Drizzle with more oil, if desired

Healthy Clam Chowder

In my mind creamy Clam Chowder has also seemed to be one of the most indulgent soups you can eat. I imagined it to be full of heavy fats and sodium and that making a good for you version was basically going to amount to flavorless seafood in a bowl of skim milk. I couldn't have been more wrong. 

This soup is creamy while still being really good for you. I added extra potatoes, carrots and celery to bump up the amount of veggies in it and cut down on the bacon to just a sprinkle. (it really doesn't need it)

Our local seafood counter didn't have fresh clams, so we used the canned ones and it wasn't a problem at all. It did take a while at the grocery store to find the clam juice since I was sure it was buy the tuna fish and canned seafood and the store clerk was sure it was on the juice aisle. (NOT on the juice aisle people!)  Be sure that you read the label for sodium, you don't need it for taste or flavor and lots of brands add a ton to theirs. We had no trouble finding one that didn't have any sodium added. 

Easiest Black Bean Chili

I just love Chili.  I could happily be a chili cook-off judge and live a very enjoyable life. 

But sadly, there is only one other person in my family that feels the same way as me. 

But all my family members like refried beans and hummus (so mashed beans) and nearly everyone of them will eat black beans. -  I have No idea why black beans are the exception to the rule of, "I don't like beans"  but they are.  So this chili recipe with just black beans was something everyone in my family enjoyed. 

This recipe is made with a few cans from the pantry and staples like onions, garlic and spices. If you don't have ground turkey on hand, you can use ground beef or leave it out all together and have a meatless chili. It is going to be delicious either way.  

Golden Lentil and Rice Soup

It is almost a guarantee that if a recipe calls for ginger, it becomes one of my favorites, and I am starting to feel that way about Turmeric. The base and familiar taste of the basic curries that we love, it is becoming very popular around the natural / health food scene.  I just think it tastes good, if it is going to be good for me as well, that just makes it a win-win!

I made this soup for a lunch meal and planned on taking half to my parents, since it was so heavy in the "bean" dept, I didn't plan on giving Joseph any of it at all. But as it was cooking, he began to wander into the kitchen, "whatcha making?"  code for  - -  "I think I want some of that"

I said, "Lentil and rice soup, but don't worry, you don't have it eat it".  I guess once the pressure was off, that made it okay to try. So after I blended it smooth (and I did the entire soup, not just half), I dished him up a bowl with a scoop of brown jasmine rice (also brown rice isn't his favorite).  There was no way he was going to like this soup - absolutely no way. 

(Which are the last words of every kitchen chef who thinks that they know everything)

He LOVED it, he kept saying to me, "We need to eat like this All the time" 

For a vegetarian soup, it is very hearty and creamy. With the addition of the brown rice, you won't need a huge bowl to feel really full. And you'll stay full and have tons of energy that lasts without having that "Oh my gosh!, I am So full" feeling.  

If it is too thick for you once you have it blended, go ahead and add a bit more water to thin it out, of you can add chicken or vegetable broth if you want.  

Soup or Sauce Mix, I can't live without it

This little mix here, is pure kitchen magic. I use it nearly once a week when the fall and winter roll around and I start making a lot of soups, skillet meals and casseroles. I had to make a new batch up this weekend and thought I would share it with you, because it is the most amazing thing in my pantry. 

It practically makes dinner all by itself!

It is basically, dry milk, corn starch (as a thickening agent), and flavor from chicken bullion, onion and seasonings if you add them.  I mixed it up in a bowl and then put it in a jar for you guys, but normally, I just dump all the ingredients into a zip top plastic bag and mix and store it in the same bag. 

If you are wondering what to do with the stuff, you use it any way that you would normally use a can of "Cream of -----" Soup. Except!! this is chemical, preservative, strange ingredient, fat, and gluten free. 

Food Sense has a free Cookbook that you can download and it has the most wonderful easy recipes that you can make. I am not kidding, it actually makes me a much better cook.  You'll wonder how you ever lived without this in your pantry. 

Cabbage Patch Stew

If you are looking for a filling veggie stew that is easy and so flavorful, this is it! 

You can add extra veggies or whatever you have on hand, the recipe allows for a lot of  improvisation. 

Slow Cooker Butternut Squash Soup

I just love soup made with squash. It has that beautiful creamy texture but it gets all that thick creaminess with pureed squash and not cream.  I love that you can use the base for a spicy curry soup, or a hot chipotle soup. This one is full of fresh sage and topped with crispy bacon. It is the ultimate bowl of comfort. 

By putting it in the slow cooker, you don't have to stand at your stove and stir it, but if you don't have the hours to wait for the slow cooker, you can put this in your insta pot, or just boil and the simmer it on your stove top. 

Ingredients:

2 cups vegetable stock

2 cloves garlic, peeled and minced

1 carrot, peeled and diced

1 Granny Smith apple, cored and diced

1 medium (uncooked) butternut squash, peeled, seeded and diced

1 sprig fresh sage

1 white onion, diced

1/2 teaspoon salt, or more to taste

1/4 teaspoon freshly-ground black pepper, or more to taste

pinch of ground cinnamon and nutmeg

1/2 cup canned (unsweetened) coconut milk

Garnishes – Bacon crumbles and parsley

Directions:

Add vegetable stock, garlic, carrot, apple, butternut squash, sage, onion, salt, pepper, and cinnamon & nutmeg to your slow cooker.  Toss to combine.

Cook for 6-8 hours on low, or 3-4 hours on high, or until the squash is completely tender and mashes easily with a fork.  Remove and discard the sage.  Stir in the coconut milk.

Use an immersion blender to puree the soup until smooth.  (Or you can transfer the soup in two batches into a traditional blender, and puree until smooth, being very careful when working with the hot liquid.)  

Taste, and season with additional salt, pepper and cayenne if needed.

Serve warm, with optional garnishes if desired.

Slow Cooker Pumpkin Chili

I was anxious to try this recipe thinking that my kids would not be fans of it. When I served it, I just said, "chili" and left out of the pumpkin part.  All my kids loved it. It is very mild and doesn't have the spice that some chilies are famous for. 

It has a sweetness from the pumpkin and the spices are perfection. And honestly the pumpkin adds a thickness to it that makes it feel like you are eating a really substantial stew. 

It has the added benefit of being all vegetarian, and you can make it with cans that you can have on hand in your pantry. It can make a great stand-by meal that you can have on your menu, just in case. 

And although it can be made in the crock pot, you don't have to make it that way, you can easily just add the ingredients and heat it up on the stove. 

Ingredients

1 medium onion, diced

1 medium pepper, diced

1 tbsp olive oil

2 15 oz. cans pumpkin

2 15 oz. cans diced tomatoes

2 cups vegetable broth (or chicken broth)

15 oz. can Great Northern Beans

1 tbsp. maple syrup

1 tbsp. chili powder

1 tbsp. cumin

1 tsp. granulated garlic

1 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. pumpkin pie spice

1/2 tsp. pepper

4 oz. cream cheese

Directions

Heat olive oil in medium sized sauté pan.  Sauté onions and peppers until translucent, about 4 minutes. 

Add sautéed onions and peppers to crockpot. 

To crockpot add all ingredients except the cream cheese.  

Cook 2-3 hours on high, or 7-8 hours on low. 

Before serving, stir in cream cheese until melted. 

Creamy Tomato Soup

If you are someone who makes tomato soup from a condensed can (ME!) I highly recommend that you try this recipe. It is easy as can be, can be made with things you already have in your pantry and how a taste that you just won't believe!

I'm feeling like today is the day you make some tomato soup from scratch. 

Ingredients

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

1/2 cup onion (chopped)

2 cloves garlic (chopped)

1 1/2 cups low-sodium chicken broth

1 1/2 cups water

3 cups low-sodium diced tomatoes (canned)

1/2 cup whole milk

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

Directions

1. Heat oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add onion and garlic and cook until soft, approx 3 minutes.

2. Add chicken broth, water, and tomatoes, bring to boil. Lower heat and cook uncovered for 25 minutes or until mixture begins to thicken.

3. Remove from heat. Blend in a blender until smooth, if you’d like. Soup can be smooth or chunky. Return to pot and heat over medium heat until soup is hot.

4. Stir in milk and black pepper.

Easy Anything Curry

I hope that I am not the only person out there that has been confused by the word "Curry"  - is it a spice, it is a complete dish, is it a method of cooking?  What does it contain, why are there so many different colors and heats and why can't I understand it!

So I did some research and it turns out that any dish that starts with some chopped onions, garlic, ginger and chilies and then fried with spices mixed in and finished by adding canned tomatoes - Makes a Curry!

The spices that you use can very the color, the eat and even the name of the dish. But as far as making a simple curry - There you have it. 

It is not wonder people are making these everyday of the week. I feel so out of the loop. 

I started my curry sauce and then let it simmer while the rice cooked. That means dinner could be done from start to finish in 30 minutes. 

Ingredients : 

Since Curry can vary so much - I have put in Italics that ingredients that you don't Have to have. 

2 tbsp vegetable oil

1 tsp cumin seeds

1 medium red onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, diced 

1 inch piece of ginger, peeled and diced

1 or 2 green chiles, seeded and diced 

1 tbsp cumin powder 

1 tbsp corriander powder 

1/2 tsp chile powder or cayenne pepper 

1/2 tsp turmeric 

1 can of petite-diced or crushed tomatoes

2 tbsp fresh, chopped cilantro (for garnish)

Instructions

Heat the oil in a sauce pan, dutch oven or pot until it gets really hot (i.e. when a drop of water hits the pan, it sizzles like crazy).

Add the cumin seeds and fry until they start to brown. (You may not be doing this if you don't have cumin seeds)

Add the onion and stir well. Mix it up occasionally. When the onion starts getting soft and translucent, it's cooked enough.

Add the garlic, ginger and chiles. When the garlic turns light brown, it is time for the next step.

Put in the spices, stir well, and cook for another minute or two.

Pour in the tomatoes and stir occasionally. You want to make the tomatoes' water evaporate, so the sauce is thicker. Aim for something roughly as thick as tomato sauce; not too watery and not too thick.

** Now - Add your anything ingredient. 

This can be anything that you can think of -  from canned red beans to zucchini to pieces of leftover chicken. 

I chopped up some raw sweet potato and use a bag of frozen stew vegetables. 

Stir well, to let it absorb the ingredients. If the sauce starts gets too dry, just add some water and mix well.  - Since my sweet potatoes and the potatoes in my frozen stew veggies were both uncooked, I have to simmer mine for 20 minutes or so. 

Add the cilantro as garnish (cooking destroys a lot of its flavor and fragrance) and salt and pepper to taste.

Serve with long-grain rice and the fantastic homemade naan from yesterday.