navy bean soup with sausage & spinach

I think we're experiencing one of the last cold spells of the year here in Louisiana, so I wanted to make one last hearty, soul-warming soup. This soup was incredibly easy, but boasts huge flavor and major filling power. In short, it's AWESOME.

Lately I've been trying to ween myself off of my bouillon crutch. I usually use chicken bouillon (Better Than Bouillon brand) to add oomph to my soups and just make the whole process super easy and flavorful. What I've found recently, though, is that I really enjoy the subtly of broths made simply by the vegetables and herbs that I use in the soup. This soup is a perfect example. Plus, this way you can be in complete control over the sodium.

I used smoked sausage in this soup, but there are a couple of options if you don't want to use sausage. You can substitute the sausage with bacon (about 6 ounces should do), or you can use a smoked ham hock. The ham hock doesn't need to be sauteed, just add it in when with the beans, herbs, and water. If you want to do a vegetarian version, just add a little liquid smoke to give the broth that nice smokey depth. The vegetables and herbs should add all of the flavor that you need!

This recipe makes a huge batch, but it can be easily halved... which I totally should have done! Oh well, guess I'll have some stocked in my freezer for a while. No complaints here. It's delish!

Oh, P.S. Both my sausage and spinach were on sale. One hint for spinach... avoid the small, salad sized bags of spinach and look for the large bags of "cooking spinach". They're about three times the size of bagged salad spinach and contain the exact same thing. Mine was on sale for $2.50, which is less than the small bags of "salad" spinach!!

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chunky beef stew

As I was sitting at work last night all hungry and tired, I read an email from Ashlee, a reader who had recently had some out of this world beef stew. She was writing to ask if I had a recipe, which I didn't, but her description of the beef stew that she had tasted made my mouth water, so I knew I had to make some ASAP.

This beef stew knocked my socks off. Okay, so maybe I was really hungry and really in the mood for red meat, but it is still undeniably good. Not to mention, it was seriously easy to make.

I'm a firm believer that any time beef and tomatoes come together, red wine should join the party, but I made this stew sans red wine just to make sure that it would still be delicious for those who didn't want to use wine. I have to say, it was surprisingly good even without the wine, but if you want to use wine, just sub one cup of the beef broth with whatever red wine you have on hand.

My pot made about 8 cups, which could be anywhere from 6-8 servings. In the south we put anything with any sort of gravy over rice, so I suggest stretching this beef stew even further by serving it over some inexpensive rice. You'll get 8 big servings that way.

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vegan red lentil stew

It's soooo cold here! (read: below 75 degrees) So, I've been really into soups lately, if you can't tell.

Earlier this week I got an email from Lindsay with a red lentil soup recipe that she had found on Bodyrock.tv (link may be NSFW) and it looked scrumptious! Seeing that I had a big bag of red lentils in my cupboard, I had to make it.

I made a few changes to amp up the flavor a bit and I have to say it turned out really, really well. Serve it with some hearty bread (or pita like in the pictures) to make sure that you have complete proteins. Legumes + grains = all of the amino acids that you need.

Make sure you get red lentils and not brown or green for this recipe. Red lentils break down very quickly when cooked which is what makes this stew thick and hearty! Even though I probably over paid for these red lentils, can you believe how inexpensive this is? I mean, WOW.

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chipotle chicken chili or "C3"

I know, I know, I just made a chicken soup-type dish. Well, sometimes you've gotta work with what you've got. I have a ton of chicken in the freezer, I had some chipotle peppers in adobo sauce left over from another test recipe, and it's getting all fall-like outside. What does that add up to? Chili, of course.

I went pretty light on the chicken in this recipe to keep costs down (even though I got a crazy-good deal on the chicken) and beefed it up with a couple different types of beans and corn. Most of the flavor in this dish comes courtesy of the sweet-spicy-smokey chipotle peppers in adobo sauce. They definitely have a kick, so start with just two peppers and a couple spoonfuls of sauce, and add more to taste.

The V8 juice was my biggest cost and I could have done better. V8 offers a depth of flavor that plain tomato juice can't, so I wouldn't suggest skipping this secret ingredient. Check the bottom shelves of the juice aisle for the large metal cans because they cost less than the resealable plastic jugs. If you have some left over, into the freezer it goes! (makes a great base for soups and cocktails!)

If you can't get a good deal on chicken like I did, you can easily make this into a vegetarian stew. Just add some diced sweet potato for bulk and you're good. Although it's so far from chili at this point that I don't know if it can go by that name anymore, but who cares, it tastes good.

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chicken & lime soup

It's soup season and I couldn't be happier. Soup is tasty. Soup is filling. Soup freezes well. Soup is where it's at.

This is kind of a remake of my old caldo xochitl recipe, but better. A recent trip to a Mexican restaurant made me want to redo this recipe and add more lime, among other things. What we have here is the perfect mix between spicy, salty, and sour - that same famous combo that makes Chinese hot & sour soup so delish. I highly suggest adding a few cubes of avocado because the creaminess perfectly balances the other sharp flavors. If avocados aren't affordable, try sour cream or some cheese.

This soup really doesn't need a whole lot of chicken because it's shredded, which means that you'll have a little chicken in every spoonful. I used only one chicken breast that was about .75 pounds. And before you ask, I bought the chicken breast on special for $1.87 per pound. These sales aren't always around, but when they are you have to take advantage and just stock up your freezer. Keep your eyes peeled for deals, they're out there!

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spinach tortellini soup

Aaaannnd WE'RE BACK! Yesss! I have electricity again! :D Life is good.

For my first recipe after over a week of hiatus, I wanted to start with something super fast and easy. I had to replace everything in my refrigerator and freezer, so I wanted to make something that didn't require a lot of ingredients and that I could use to stock up my freezer. This soup was perfect.

My grocery store has cheese tortellini in three areas: dry pasta goods, the freezer aisle, and near the dairy with other fresh pastas. I checked all three places and the frozen cheese tortellini was by far the most inexpensive. You will probably want to do some price comparing on your own.

I'll admit, this soup is not super heavy on the tortellini. Because it's the most expensive ingredient, I went light with it. Each bowl (2 cups of soup) had about 5 or 6 tortellini in it. If you want to beef this soup up on the cheap, try adding a cup of plain pasta (uncooked). I would go with something small, like orzo or those tiny, short tubes.

Instead of adding extra pasta, I served mine with some crusty french bread to sop up the rest of the rich tomatoey sauce. I also tried a little parmesan sprinkled on top and that was fantastic!


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how to: make chicken broth

I'm going to start this by admitting that this is the VERY first time that I've ever made my own chicken broth. I've been meaning to for years... and it's almost hypocritical of me not to, but for some reason I never got around to trying it.

So, don't read this post as a "definitive guide" to making chicken broth, but rather a "here is my experience, you should try it too!" Also, because I know there are A LOT of you who have been doing this for years, I'd love it if you'd share your tips, tricks, and experiences in the comments so that we can all learn from each other :)

So what was my experience? OMG, so easy. Seriously, dump it all in the pot and let it go. Come back later and you have a magical golden liquid full of flavor and good for you nutrients. Why wouldn't you want to do this?! Plus, I always get warm and fuzzy inside when I know that I've reduced my waste. By making broth you get to use every last bit of goodness in your chicken and vegetable scraps. I can't wait to make some vegetable broth too!

A couple good tips I've already gotten from readers:

1) Save your vegetable scraps from other recipes in the freezer until you're ready to make broth. Just make sure they're well washed first to remove sand and dirt.

2) Theresa suggested making the broth in a slow cooker instead of on the stove top for even less baby sitting. Let it go all night and you'll have an ultra-amazing broth by morning!

I can't wait to hear everyone else's tips!

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kale & chickpea soup

I know hot soup may seem characteristically out of place, especially since I'm posting it on the unofficial first day of summer. But, at my work place it's a perpetually cold 65 degrees every single day and a warm bowl of soup is still much appreciated mid-day.

I love this soup because it's light, and packed full of veggies with all of their varied flavor and TEXTURE. Plus, as you may already know, I'm in love with kale... and I love chickpeas only second to kale.

Anyway, I kept this soup simple. I seasoned with bay leaf, oregano, and just a touch of curry powder to add a slight "sweetness." I have a feeling this soup would be amazing with a full-out curry flavor. So, if you love curry, go ahead and up the curry powder for more of an Indian flare. Chickpeas, kale, and potatoes all go really well with curry.

Serve this soup with some hearty bread and you've got a really great, albeit light, meal!

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chicken noodle soup

It's been incredibly warm and summery here all winter, but today was cold, dark, and rainy. Which is perfect because I had planned to make a big 'ol pot of chicken noodle soup to soothe my tired, achy body. I hadn't made chicken noodle soup from scratch in probably 6 or 7 years, but I knew it was exactly what I needed. There's no bouillon needed here, folks. This broth is the real deal. Every time I've made this soup I'm always surprised at how just a few simple ingredients can create such a flavorful broth.

This soup is seriously easy but it does require some time to simmer. It can easily be adapted for the slow cooker, if that fits your schedule better. Just pop everything in the slow cooker and cook on high for four hours or low for eight. Pull the chicken out at the end and remove the meat from the bones in the same manner.

Speaking of bones, you really want to get chicken on the bone for this recipe. The bones and connective tissue add a lot to the flavor of the broth. Yeah, it sounds scary to the uninitiated, but I promise, bones are the secret to a good broth.

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slow cooker potato soup

I've hesitated to make potato soup for quite some time because all I could think about is how creamy and carby it must be. Surely it's not good for me to eat that every day, right? Well, that's right... unless you make it like this.

I made this super delicious, veggie packed, low fat potato soup and guess what? It's also super inexpensive! That's what I'm talkin' about. To make this soup healthier, I left the skins of the potatoes on, added celery and carrots, and used 1% milk thickened with flour rather than cream.

This soup is so delicious that not only did I gobble down two bowls as soon as I was finished making it (tsk, tsk), but I didn't even bother to add the "toppings" that I had bought for it (cheddar, green onion, parsley). For that reason, I decided not to include any toppings in the price break down. It's good enough to stand alone. Besides, there are way too many topping options and everyone will probably use something different... you can do sour cream, cheese, green onion, parsley, bacon, smoked paprika, or nothing at all because IT'S ALREADY DELICIOUS.

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easy egg drop soup

I always want something light after the gluttony of holiday meals, so this week I cooked up some easy Asian food. This egg drop soup comes together in just a few minutes and has endless possibilities. I added mushrooms and spinach to try to sneak in some veggies, but if you just want a plain, brothy soup, you can leave them out. If you want something heartier, you could even add some noodles.

It's been a cold, rainy day and this soup is just what I needed to warm me up inside and out! Plus, it's so easy that I was able to whip it up without exhausting myself, despite being under the weather!

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creamy chicken & rice soup

Believe it or not, in the 2.5 year history of this blog, I have never made a basic chicken noodle soup. Well, I almost made it this weekend until I went perusing through my pantry to see what left over ingredients I had that needed to be used. I found a half bag of wild rice mix that I had left over from this holiday rice dressing last year. It's a really delicious mix of all sorts of wild rices and since I had kept it tightly sealed, I thought it was definitely worth using.

You don't have to use wild rice for this recipe, although it gives a really nice texture. White or brown will certainly work in a pinch. See the step by step photos for cooking adjustments for white or brown rice.

If you don't like creamy soups (this one isn't super creamy), you can skip the milk mixture at the end of the recipe and use chicken broth instead. Then you'll have yourself a delicious, clear broth chicken and rice soup. You've got options!

I also used the carrots and celery that I had left over from this recipe a couple of weeks ago. I just cleaned and sliced the entire bunch then froze half to use later. I was happy not to have to peel and chop today!

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Sausage & Kale Soup

It's once again the season of warm, hearty soups and you can't get much heartier than this one! With Italian sweet sausage, tons of veggies, beans, and hearty kale, this soup has a little bit of everything. It's sure to make you belly warm, full, and happy.

You can also make this vegetarian by adding a second (or maybe even a third?) can of beans instead of the sausage, and swapping the chicken base for a vegetable base. Also, you'll probably want to double up on the herbs and spices since the Italian sausage is well seasoned and added a LOT of flavor.

This soup comes together easily and is perfect for freezing. So, stock your freezer now for those chilly winter days ahead when you don't feel like going to the grocery!

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spicy coconut & pumpkin soup

This one is a keeper for sure. It's super quick to make and insanely delicious - my favorite combination! If you're looking for an easy side dish to an Asian, Indian, or Middle Eastern flavored meal, this will do the trick.

The soup is creamy but not overly heavy which makes it doable despite the strong summer heat. It's spicy, thanks to the crushed red pepper flakes, but completely customizable. If you're leery of the heat, start with half the amount and work up from there. OR spice it up with a mild curry powder in place of the cumin and crushed red pepper for maximum flavor without the heat.

I garnished my bowl below with a little plain yogurt. The cool, tart flavor of the yogurt was a nice contrast if you have some on hand.


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ham & bean soup

Have you ever seen those bags of 16 bean soup mix in the dry bean aisle at the grocery store? Well, they're kinda like the ramen of the bean world. They come with their own packet of "flavoring" that you're supposed to boil with the beans to yield a delicious hearty soup. Well, beans, salt and MSG doesn't sound too appetizing so I made my *own* seasoning.

Something special happens when you boil meat, bones and all of the connective tissue into a broth. It might seem frightening at first and it certainly doesn't look very appetizing but I promise you that every soup you've eaten that has that certain "je ne sais quois" has this magic broth. From homemade chicken noodle soup to Vietnamese pho, they've all got the boiled bones and slow-cooked gelatinized tissues. So, please over look the unsightly ham hocks and believe me when I tell you they *make* this soup. You can use smoked turkey wings instead if you'd like. They'll still give you great flavor and they have less fat but they're also more expensive.

Also, if you don't have a slow cooker, you cane make this on the stove top in a pot. Just let it simmer with a lid in place until the beans are soft (2-4 hours).


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super quick tomato soup

Last summer I made some tomato soup from scratch with fresh tomatoes and it was delightful but I've been meaning to make a quick version with canned tomatoes ever since. I definitely needed something quick and satisfying today so I whipped up a pot.

The recipe below is skeleton recipe that can be taken in about a million different directions. Here are a few ideas:

• Low carb: skip the brown sugar and bread crumbs and add 1/4 cup of half and half instead.
• Smoked Paprika: add a dash of this super versatile spice for a smokey, earthy flavor.
• Spinach: Stir in a handful of fresh baby spinach for extra flavor, fiber and nutrients.
• Sour Cream: Stir a spoonful of light sour cream or plain yogurt into your bowl for extra creaminess
• Fresh Herbs: If you have access to fresh basil, slice it thin and stir it in for a punch of flavor.
• Vegetarian: Use vegetable base or broth in place of the chicken base.

And I'm sure there are many many more possibilities! Of course, it's great by itself too. A few goldfish crackers or a grilled cheese and you've got a great, simple lunch.


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cuban chorizo stew

I came across this post on the Parsley Thief a couple of weeks ago and was very inspired by the combination of coconut milk and black beans (two of my favorite ingredients!). So, I had to give it a try. I had some extra chorizo in my freezer from when I made the chorizo and sweet potato enchiladas so I decided to use that along with a couple other things to turn the recipe into a stew. It turned out FANTASTIC! I also cooked some jasmine rice to serve along with it. Basmati would also be great.

The flavor combination of the stew is perfect. Hot spices mellowed out by the creamy coconut milk and a little acidity from the tomatoes to cut through the coconut cream. A little fresh cilantro to liven it up and everything is in perfect balance!

If you're a vegetarian or are not crazy about all of the fat in chorizo, this stew would still be stunningly delicious without the chorizo. Or, you can try some vegetarian chorizo (sold with other refrigerated meat substitutes, usually in the produce section) which is much lower in fat and calories.

The night before I made this recipe, I whipped up a batch of black beans in my slow cooker. If you haven't tried this method for cooking beans yet, YOU MUST. It's so easy and saves so much money. All you have to do is put in the dry beans and water, turn it on high and let it do it's thing for four hours. Then, I ladle the beans and liquid into three containers (2 cups each, roughly equal to one can each) and refrigerate or freeze them until use. It only takes ten minutes of total effort. Seriously, try it. Here is my post with more detailed directions.


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coconut chicken soup

Oh, I've been wanting to make this soup for such a long long time! There are few things that I like more than coconut milk so I just knew this was going to be good. ...and there was no "lite" in my coconut milk this time, folks. It was full fat, creamy coconut goodness!

I was really pleased with how simple this soup was to prepare. You pretty much just throw everything in a pot and heat it up. How "soup"er easy!

This recipe is basically an Americanized version of Tom Kha Gai. Tom Kha Gai doesn't require many ingredients but there are some that can be hard to find if you don't have an Asian market near by. So, here are the ingredient substitutions that I made:

• ginger in place of galangal
• lime peel in place of keffir (lime) leaves
• red pepper flakes in place of red bird's eye chilis

I know the soup is probably 100 times better with the original ingredients but it still tasted fantastic with the substitutions and I know these ingredients are more realistic for most of you. If you have a chance to get the good stuff, by all means do! I did not make a substitution for the lemongrass because it is a major player in the flavor and there really is nothing like it. Check the produce section of your grocery store near the fresh herbs. Sometimes you can get it minced up in a tube, which will also work.

A word of warning about the fish sauce... if you're not familiar or acclimated to it, go easy or don't use it at all. And by all means, DO NOT SNIFF THE BOTTLE or else that's all you'll be able to taste in the final soup and you won't be happy. Just speaking from experience. The fish sauce gives the soup a deep, savory, salty, umami flavor. Prior to adding the fish sauce, the broth tasted really light and fresh - more like coconut milk. Honestly, I liked the broth both before and after the fish sauce. Two totally different beasts but both good.

Because I live in the south and we put rice in anything remotely liquidy, I also cooked up a batch of jasmine rice and served the soup over it. The soup was good by itself but once I added the fragrant jasmine rice, it went from good to HEAVENLY. So, give that a thought.


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hearty meatball soup

Today's recipe is brought to you by the word mirepoix.

Via wikipedia: Mirepoix (cuisine), a traditional French culinary combination of onions, carrots and celery aromatics.

I felt it important to share this piece of culinary terminology with you since I start just about every soup with this wonderfully perfect mix. Once you have your carrot, celery, onion and garlic sweating away in a pot, you can add just about anything to it and make a delicious soup. So that's what I did with my meatballs.

You can actually go three different ways with the broth for this soup.
1) Make an ultra thick, tomatoey, almost sauce-like base (as I've done below).
2) Keep the tomatoes but have a more soup like broth by skipping the tomato sauce and using only diced tomatoes.
3) You can make a clear beef broth by skipping the canned tomatoes all together and just using beef broth (or bouillon and water).
It's up to you.

Next time, I think I'll skip the tomato sauce so that I can have a tomato and beef broth... and maybe add some kale. Mmmmm, yes.


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swamp soup

***Disclaimer: Dear Louisiana friends, this soup has nothing to do with real swamps, swamp culture, Cajun or Creole cuisine. It simply looks swampy to those living in non-swampy areas because it's thick and has green stuff floating around in it.***

Despite it's swampy appearance, this soup is simply one of the best things I've ever eaten. My mom had been raving about this soup for months and, to be honest, it didn't sound that special. Then she made a batch when I was visiting over Christmas break. I swear to you, I would have brought the whole pot home with me on the plane if I thought the TSA would have allowed it!

If you like tomato soup, you'll adore Swamp Soup. It's like tomato soup on steroids and with the grilled cheese built right in. The broth is incredibly thick and hearty, it's full of tons of vegetables that add texture and flavor, plus you get these nice, creamy, gooey bits of swiss every other bite. It's TO DIE FOR. Plus, it's so healthy that you really don't have to feel guilty about eating that second bowl. ;D

The soup comes together really fast so it's reasonable for a week night dinner. You can have the whole thing assembled in about a half hour. I prefer to let mine simmer a little while after assembly but it can be eaten just as soon as it is heated through. Assembly is even faster if you have pre-chopped and frozen carrots left over from your last soup waiting in the freezer.


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