Sweet & Savory - Cheddar Broccoli Soup

Just thinking about the scrumptious combination of cheddar cheese and creamed broccoli makes my mouth water!  This soup is a lunch or brunch favorite.

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 cups milk
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 tsp. thyme
• a few drops of hot sauce (I used Cajun Sunshine)
• 3/4 tsp. salt, optional
• 1 medium onion, pureed
• 3 cups chicken broth
• 4 cups broccoli, chopped
• 1/8 tsp. garlic pepper
• 2 cups milk
• 4 Tbsp. flour
• 4 Tbsp. butter
• 2 cups shredded Sharp Cheddar Cheese
• Croutons, bread, or crackers

INSTRUCTIONS:

• Place chicken broth, onion, broccoli, garlic pepper, thyme, bay leaves, and hot sauce inside a large sauce pan or stock pot.
• Bring to a boil and reduce heat.
• Cover and simmer for 12 minutes or until broccoli is softened.
• Remove the bay leaves.
• Pour mixture into food processor and pulse until smooth.
• Pour into large bowl.
• Melt butter in sauce pan in which you cooked the broccoli.  
• Add flour and salt until a paste forms.
• Add milk and cook, stirring continuously, until mixture thickens.
• Add cheddar cheese and stir until dissolved and mixture is smooth.
• Pour in broccoli mixture and heat until well blended.
• Use additional chicken broth or hot water to thin, if necessary.

SERVING SUGGESTIONS:

• Serve with bread, crackers, or croutons.
• Sprinkle additional shredded cheddar cheese before serving bowls or cups of soup.
• Serve with freshly fried, crumbled, drained, bacon chunks.

Enjoy!

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Sweet & Savory Monday ~~ Autumn Soup

A bowl of hot soup deserves a warm welcome on these cool, windy, rainy days! Paired up with bread, rolls, or crackers, your family or dinner guests will be happy diners.  I prepared this recipe in a crock pot, but it could be easily cooked on your stove top in a soup pan or saucepan.

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 cups diced tomatoes
• 1 medium zucchini, diced
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 2 Tbsp. garlic, diced
• 2 Idaho Burbank Russet medium sized potatoes, diced
• 1 cup carrots, diced
• 1 cup corn
• 1/2 cup salsa
• 1 tsp. salt, optional
• 1 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
• 1 tsp. Italian seasoning
• 1 cup corkscrew noodles or variety of your choice

DIRECTIONS:

• Wash and prepare all veggies
• Place inside crock pot or soup pan/sauce pan
• Fill pan with enough water to cover vegetables
• Cook until vegetables are tender

Here's a nifty 90 idea if you are using your crock pot ~~

Whoever designed these crock pot liners deserves more than a High 5! Before placing the ingredients into your crock pot, place liner inside which helps to make clean up so much easier.

I prefer to make large batches of soups and stews so that I can have left overs. In addition, these containers of soup can be frozen in order to be heated and served at a later date.

This is a great way to get all of your daily servings of vegetables in one fell swoop!  Be creative and add your own favorite veggies.  Another health aspect of preparing your own recipe is the absence of preservatives.  

Enjoy Autumn's bounty and stay warm!

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Sweet & Savory Tuesday ~~ Lentil Soup w/Parmesan Bread

When the calendar turns to Autumn, it's time to pull out the soup recipes!  Here's one of our family favorites for your enjoyment.

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 lb. ground beef, browned in skillet
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 pint jar diced tomatoes or 1 - 8 oz. can tomato sauce
• 1/2 - 1 cup salsa
• 3 - 4 carrots, sliced or cubed
• 3 - 4 Idaho potatoes, cubed
• 1 - 2 cups lentils, rinsed in colander
• 3 quarts of water - give or take - depending upon how thin or thick you like your soups.  I like them with a lot of broth and my ever lovin' prefers them much thicker, so I strive to find a happy medium.
• 1 - 2 Tbsp. Chili Powder
• 2 tsp. Cumin
• Salt & pepper, optional

DIRECTIONS:

Place all ingredients in soup pan or stock pot on stove and cook 2 - 3 hours or until lentils are tender  ~~~ or ~~~

Place all ingredients in crock pot and cook on high setting for approximately 6 hours.

**** NOTE:  Some people opt to prepare this recipe omitting the ground beef.  It's delicious either way!


PARMESAN BREAD INGREDIENTS:

• 1 1/2 cups Bisquick Baking Mix
• 1 Tbsp. sugar
• 1 Tbsp. dehydrated minced onion
• 1 egg
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1/4 cup apple juice
• 1/2 tsp. leaf oregano 
• 1/4 cup Parmesan Cheese

DIRECTIONS:

• Heat oven to 400 degrees.
• Mix all ingredients except Parmesan cheese to a soft dough.
• Spread dough in a greased round layer pan, 8.5 x 11 inches.
• Sprinkle with Parmesan Cheese.
• Bake 20-25 minutes. 
• Cut into wedges.  
• Serve warm.

Here's to Healthy Eating & Happy Dining!

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Sweet & Savory Friday ~~ Navy Bean Soup & Cornbread

      
INGREDIENTS:

• 2 Cups Dried Small Navy Beans
• 1 - 8 ounce package diced ham
• 2 - medium onions, chopped
• 1 - Tsp. freshly ground pepper

DIRECTIONS:

• Sort through dried beans to remove gravel and debris
• Sprinkle 1 tsp. baking soda over beans and mix together in large bowl
• Cover beans with water and soak over night
• Drain and rinse beans with water in colander the following morning
• Place in crock pot or in large saucepan on stove top
• Add diced ham
• Chop onions and add to mixture
• Add pepper 
• Cover with water and cook 6 hours on high setting on crock pot or cook on stove top until beans are tender

HELPFUL HINTS & SUGGESTIONS:

• If preparing the bean soup in a crock pot, add just enough water so that it covers the beans by about one inch.
• I process the onions in my food processor until they are the puree stage, and this seems to help them blend into the soup nicely.
• If possible, stir the soup several times during the day while it is cooking.
• This soup is delicious if served with cornbread.  I add a 4-oz. can of diced mild green chilies to the standard cornbread recipe.

BEANS ARE BENEFICIAL!

• Aside from fresh meat, beans are one of the least expensive sources of protein.
• Beans contain a boat load of nutrients including antioxidants, along with vitamins and minerals such as copper, folate, iron, zinc, potassium, magnesium, phosphorus, and manganese.
• You can prepare a healthy, inexpensive meal for your family using beans as the main course.
• Several varieties of beans are grown within our great state, so you will be helping to support your local economy while feeding your family.

Happy Eating & Reading!

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Sweet & Savory Tuesday: What's The Secret Recipe In Sheila's Soup?

   

Do you believe there’s a lot of psychology with respect to the color, texture, and appearance of food?  About a decade ago, I was asked to help with a large wedding reception in another state.  My job was to stand behind the buffet table heavily laden with brimming serving trays and refill the containers when they were near empty.  Since most caterers have an artistic and creative flair, the one preparing this spread was no exception. SCC had cooked up a couple of scrumptious sauces to go along with the two meat entrees and a colorful salad.  When it came time to clean up after the bride, groom, and their guests had departed, the two sauces and salad were virtually untouched, despite the fact that they were delicious.  Why, you might ask?  It was probably because of the overall appearance of the ingredients. So, before you reject this hearty winter soup due to its color ~~ read on!

Sheila’s Split Pea Soup

Ingredients:

• 2 cups dried green split peas
• Approximately 8  - 10 cups of water
• 1 cup finely chopped carrots
• 1 cup finely chopped celery
• 1 cup finely chopped onions
• 1 cup cubed ham, optional
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 tsp. dried thyme leaves
• Salt and pepper, optional

• Directions: 
• Carefully sort through the peas to remove small rocks or other debris.
• Rinse peas in a colander.
• In a large saucepan or stockpot combine the peas, water, carrots, celery, onions, ham, bay and thyme leaves.
• Bring to a boil over high heat, reduce heat, skim the top surface if it becomes “frothy”, cover, and summer until peas are tender (which is approximately 3 hours).

• 
  
•     Sheila’s suggestions:
•          I usually double this recipe as it freezes well.
•          I cook the soup in a crock pot for approximately 4 hours on the high setting as opposed to cooking it in a stockpot on the stove top.
•      Using the food processor, I blend the carrots, celery, and onions together to where they are almost to the puree stage before adding them to either my crockpot or stockpot.  This seems to help the overall consistency of the soup once it is finished.
•      Since I don’t always have a bone-in ham, what I have found to be the easiest and fastest is to purchase an 8 ounce package of the already diced up ham.  Some grocery stores carry these handy dandy containers wherein the ham has been cut into about ½ inch cubes or some are about ¼ inch cubes.  If you can score the small cubes, they cook up quite nicely in the soup.

The Secret Ingredient:

·        The dried thyme leaves really enhance this recipe!  Years ago I made a large container of this soup and took to a family engaged in the middle of fall harvest.  The husband, who originally could not stand that “gaggy green soup”, could not get enough of it!

Suggested Condiments:  (I would suggest experimenting with these to see which ones you might like.  I would not use all of them at the same time!!!)

•     Diced tomatoes or salsa
•      Large dollop of sour cream
•        Fresh cilantro
•        Coriander
•        Seasoned croutons
•        Parsley

Achieving the consistency that you might like in this soup might be a fun exercise.  My husband likes thick soup, you know, the kind that you could throw against the wall and it would stick.  I like it just about the consistency of water.  So my goal is the Happy Medium.  Works every time!

If you have a variation to this hearty winter soup, please leave a comment below.

Happy Reading & Cooking!

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