Italian Endive and Bean Soup

I remember eating this as a kid and loving it...yes, I was a little odd. I still crave it. Now I finally have the recipe.

Ingredients:

1 cup white beans, cooked
1 head of curly endive, cut into 1 inch pieces
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 49.5 oz. can of rich chicken broth
1 can water
2 TB olive oil

Directions:

Wash endive well and cool til tender. Drain. In large pot saute garlic in oil until lightly golden brown. Add broth, water, beans, and endive. Heat together fro about 10 minutes to blend flavors. Sprinkle in some fresh ground pepper. Serve. I think I sprinkled some Parmesan cheese on top when I was a kid.

Kirchik - Sauerkraut-Bulgur Soup

I grew up in little Armenia in southern Cali. Seriously 3/4 the population was from Armenia. Maybe that is what drew my mother to this Armenian soup. She made this for us when we were kids and we all loved it. Us smiths love our sour. It is really good. really good. Trust me!

Ingredients:

1 small onion, chopped
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cups tomato puree
1 large russet potato diced
1/2 cup bulgur, fine grade
2 quarts rich chicken stock
salt
pepper
sliced green pepper
parsley
sour cream

Directions:

In 5 quart pot saute onion in butter until golden. In bowl soak sauerkraut in water, drain and chop. Add onions and cook until done, adding water if mixture gets too dry. Add tomato puree, Saute 5 to 7 minutes.

Add potatoes, bulgur and stock and cook 15 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Garnish with sliced green pepper and parsley. Makes 4 servings.

*I think we had it with sour cream too.

Split Pea Soup

I had a ton of left over ham after our Christmas dinner and so I made some split pea soup with it. Mainly to prove to my husband that split pea soup is really yummy despite its not so appealing appearance. Stewart dubbed it "Shrek Soup" so they kids would try it and it worked. My kids then thought it was cool and tried it and liked it.

1 pound green split peas

2 smoked ham hocks or left over ham works too :)

2 ribs celery--finely chopped

1 medium onion--finely chopped

1 medium carrot -- finely chopped

2 cubes chicken boullion

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon salt ( I didn't add this and it tasted great)

1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

1/4 teaspoon pepper

8-10 cups water

1 bay leaf ( I didn't add this because I didn't have it on hand)

In a large saucepan combine all the ingredients; bring to a boil. Reduce heat and leaving mostly covered simmer for 3 hours, stirring occasionally. Remove and discard bay leaf. Remove that ham hocks; when cool enough to handle, cut meat into bite-sized pieces. Return meat to the soup and heat through. If you want a smoother texture put half of it in the blender and blend till smooth. Return blended soup to the saucepan and mix well.

Yield:6-8 servings

Tony Roma's Baked Potato Soup

1/2 medium brown or yellow onion chopped
1/4 cup butter
1/3 cup flour
1 quart chicken broth
2 cups half and half
7 to 8 medium potatoes, baked until tender., peeled and cut into small cubes
Seasoning slat to taste
Garlic pepper taste
Shredded Cheddar cheese
Crumbled cooked bacon
Finely chopped green onions

In large soup pot, cook onion in butter over medium heat until tender. Blend in flour until smooth; cook for 1 minute, stirring. With wire whisk, slowly whisk in chicken broth and half and half stirring until smooth over medium heat. Add seasoning slat and garlic pepper to taste. Bring to a boil and let it boil for 1 minute. Reduce the heat to low and add the potatoes. Adjust seasoning as needed. Serve with bacon, cheese, and green onion sprinkled on top. A rich yummy soup the whole family will enjoy!

Spicy Peanut Soup

I am trying a bunch of soup recipes because I am sort in love with this cook book of mine that is all soup recipes. This one is great for those of you who enjoy a good curry or like Thai food. It isn't Thai and it isn't a curry but it is creamy yet spicy and totally DELICIOUS!!! I mean it. This soup is really good. Stewart had like five bowls. If you gear up to try it I hope you like it half as much as we do. I made some changes and I am just writing it as I did it. * Mine didn't look like that. It was thinner and the colors of the vegetables were really vibrant.

2 TB oil
1 large onion, minced
2 garlic gloves, crushed
1/2 to 1 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper *it called for 1 teaspoon I used probably 2/3 teaspoon
1 red bell pepper, finely chopped
1 1/2 cups finely chopped carrots
1 1/2 finely chopped potatoes
2-3 celery stalks sliced
3 3/4 cups chicken stock
6-7 TB crunchy peanut butter *would be totally fine with creamy too
2/3 cup whole corn kernels
salt and pepper to taste

1.) Heat oil in large pan. Add onion and cook for about 3 minutes. Add cayenne pepper and garlic and cook for another minute.

2.) Add the red pepper, carrot, potatoes, and celery. Stir well and cook for 4 minutes longer. stirring occasionally.

3.) Add corn, chicken stock, and peanut butter, stirring until thoroughly combined.

4.) Bring to a boil. Cover and simmer for about 20-25 minutes until all the vegetables are tender. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve and enjoy!

Tomato and Vermicelli Soup

There aren't many soups that you want to eat in the summer but this one is really a perfect summer soup. It is totally Fresh and Fantastic! We loved it. If you have a lot of tomatoes growing and you need new ways to use them up this is a good way to go. Even Stew who doesn't really like pasta, cilantro, tomatoes, and onions (which are all in this soup) said "this is really delicious".

2 TB olive
1/3 cup vermicelli * I used more like a cup broken into smaller pieces
1 onion, roughly chopped * use a small onion or half a larger one
1 garlic clove chopped
3 cups peeled, seeded, and roughly chopped tomatoes * I did not bother to peel or seed
1 quart chicken STOCK * I used Rachael Ray's Chicken STOCK, stock is different then chicken broth
1/4 teaspoon sugar
1 TB finely chopped cilantro
salt and pepper to taste
grated Parmesan cheese served on the side

1.) Heat oil in a large soup pan. Add vermicelli and saute over medium high heat until golden brown: don't burn

2.) Remove the pan from heat and lift out the vermicelli and a draining spoon and drain on paper towel, set aside

3.) Puree the onion, garlic, and Tomatoes in a food processor until smooth. Return the pan to the heat when the oil is hot add the puree. Cook, stirring constantly for about five minutes.

4.) Then add the vermicelli, stock, sugar, cilantro, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil then lower the heat and cover the pan and simmer the soup until the vermicelli is tender.

5.) Serve with sprinkled cilantro and Parmesan cheese. And Enjoy!!!

Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup

Hello people who look at this blog! I am sorry I have died to the world of food, but no worries I am slowly making a recovery. :O) This recipe makes it in my blog because it is the only new thing I have tried lately and because I really liked it.

This is why I think it is a winner:
-my kids get veggies in a kid friendly way
- had a slight creamy taste
- it's a whole meal in one dish
- was different then your average chicken noodle
- easy, most time spent is with chopping

My notes on this recipe: I used way less herbs. I did dashes, not tsp. I didn't add the salt. It is thick, Stewart asked if we needed forks when he set the table. :O) I used cream of mushroom too because I only had one can of cream of chicken - you wouldn't even know it tasted great. I used less chicken, less money if I didn't add it and my kids wont eat it. I think I might add more water if I added it all. Please know that when you cook you do what you would like. In my book recipes are only spring boards from which you can explore and customize to your taste.

Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup

8 cups Water
2 T. Chicken Bouillon
2 can cream of chicken soup
1 sm. Onion, chopped fine
1 1/2 cups Carrots, chopped
1 1/2 cup Peas, frozen
3 cup Chicken, cooked and shopped into small pieces
one large stalk celery chopped
1/2 tsp Thyme leaves, crushed
1/4 tsp Salt
1/4 tsp. Pepper
1/4 tsp. Parsley flakes
1/4 Basil
1/8 tsp Oregano
1 (12 oz.) pkg. Egg noodles, any type - I like no yolks, healthier

Mix water, bouillon and cream of chicken soup together in large soup pot. Then add everything else. Cook until noodles are done and then remove from heat and let sit for 10 - 15 minutes to thicken and cool. EAT!!! I put rolls in the oven while it thickened. Timing was perfect.