Minestrone Soup
Posted: November 3, 2019 Filed under: Beans, Lentils, & other Legumes, CSA, Dairy-Free Recipes, Low Calorie Recipes, Soup & Stew Recipes, Vegan Recipes, Vegetable Recipes, Vegetarian Recipes | Tags: food, minestrone, recipes, soup, vegan, vegetables, vegetarian 4 Comments
I have been making this Minestrone Soup recipe for over 20 years. It’s one of our favorite soups. This soup is very versatile and can easily be tweaked to use what you have on hand. Garbanzo or cannellini beans are excellent substitutes for the kidney beans. Other veggies, like green beans, can be added to this soup. If you like a brothier soup, add 1 or 2 cups more of vegetable broth when you add the pasta. This recipe freezes very well.
Minestrone Soup
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
3 stalks celery, chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
8 cups vegetable broth
1 can (15.5 oz.) kidney beans, drained
1 can (14.5 oz.) diced tomatoes with juices
1 can (6 oz.) tomato paste
2 medium carrots, peeled and sliced
2 – 3 teaspoons dried basil
½ cup dry pasta (small shells, ditalini, or elbow macaroni)
2 medium zucchini, quartered and sliced
1 cup fresh spinach or kale (optional)
salt and black pepper, to taste
Parmesan cheese, for serving
Heat the olive oil in a soup pot over medium-high heat. Add the onions and celery and sauté until tender, about 10 minutes. Add the minced garlic and sauté 2 more minutes. Add the vegetable broth, kidney beans, diced tomatoes, tomato paste, sliced carrots, and dried basil. Bring the soup to a boil, lower heat to medium low, and simmer 10 minutes. Add the dry pasta; return to a boil. Lower heat and simmer 5 – 7 minutes. Add the zucchini and spinach or kale, if using, and cook until tender, about 5 more minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste and serve. A sprinkle of freshly grated Parmesan cheese is a perfect topping for this soup.
Chicken and Snow Pea Noodle Soup
Posted: May 19, 2019 Filed under: Asian Noodles, Asian Recipes, Asian Soups, Chicken Recipes, CSA, Dairy-Free Recipes, Soup & Stew Recipes | Tags: chicken, food, recipes, rice vermicelli, snow peas, soup 2 Comments
I joined a new-to-me CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) recently and got my first box of fresh produce this week. The box included: collards, red Russian kale, red leaf lettuce, strawberries, spring onions, and snow peas. Off to a good start. I am so excited to see what the next 11 CSA boxes hold.
I created this soup recipe to use the snow peas and a spring onion from this week’s CSA box. Spring onions are not the same as green onions (AKA scallions), but if you can’t find spring onions I think green onions are an acceptable substitute. This article is a nice explanation of the difference between spring onions, green onions, and scallions.
I used a couple of shortcuts for this soup. I used ginger paste from a tube that I got at Trader Joe’s and pre-cut matchstick carrots I got at Publix. It’s okay to use the shortcuts. It’s okay to make your life easier when you can.
Chicken and Snow Pea Noodle Soup
1 tablespoon canola oil
1 clove garlic, made into a paste
1 tablespoon of ginger paste (or 1/2-inch piece fresh ginger, made into a paste)
1 – 3 tablespoons sriracha or sambal olek, to taste
1 medium-sized spring onion, white part and some green, thinly sliced
8 cups chicken broth
2 chicken breasts, thinly sliced
1 carrot, julienned (or about 1/2 cup of matchstick carrots)
8 ounces snow peas, trimmed and halved
juice from one lime (about 2 tablespoons)
2 tablespoons of fish sauce, or to taste
rice vermicelli noodles, cooked according to package instructions and drained
cilantro (mint and Thai basil would be nice too)
fresh chile, thinly sliced
Heat the oil in a soup pot over medium-high heat. Add the garlic paste, ginger paste, and sriracha or sambal olek. Cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Add the sliced spring onions and cook another minute or two. Add the chicken broth and bring to a simmer. Let simmer for 5 minutes.
Add the chicken to the simmering soup and cook until no longer pink. Add the carrots and snow peas. Bring the soup back up to a simmer. Add the lime juice and fish sauce and take the soup off the heat.
Serve the soup over cooked rice vermicelli noodles. Top with fresh cilantro leaves and sliced chiles, if you would like.
Quick Broccoli and Cheese Soup
Posted: May 29, 2018 Filed under: Soup & Stew Recipes, Vegetable Recipes, Vegetarian Recipes | Tags: broccoli, broccoli and cheese soup, cheddar, food, recipes, soup, vegetarian Leave a comment
So, Publix had 8 ounces packages of Kraft shredded cheeses on sale for $1.40 this past sales cycle. That’s the lowest price I have ever seen for them. I may have gone a little crazy and bought more shredded cheese than I needed. My cheese drawer is stuffed. I’m pretty sure my family thinks I have a problem.
This morning my plan was to come home after I dropped the kidlet off at school and work on an online class I need to finish before heading to work. Instead I made this Quick Broccoli & Cheddar Soup for breakfast. I used some of the cheese! Priorities.
Quick Broccoli and Cheese Soup
4 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
4 cups vegetable broth (chicken broth is fine too)
1 10 – 12 ounce package of frozen chopped broccoli (cuts & florets are fine too)
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese, plus a little more for garnishing (I like mild cheddar)
1 cup half & half or milk
salt and pepper, to taste
In a small soup pot over medium heat, melt the butter. Whisk in the flour and let cook for a minute. Whisk in the broth, a little at a time, until smooth. Add the frozen broccoli. If I am using frozen broccoli cuts or florets, I will run a knife through them to make the pieces smaller before adding them to the soup. Bring the soup to a gentle boil, stirring often. Whisk in the cheese and then add the half & half. Warm through and then turn off the heat. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve with additional shredded cheddar cheese for garnish.
Lentil Soup with Ham
Posted: December 28, 2017 Filed under: Beans, Lentils, & other Legumes, Dairy-Free Recipes, Gluten-free Recipes, Pork Recipes, Soup & Stew Recipes, Uncategorized | Tags: comfort food, dairy-free, food, Gluten-free, ham, lentils, recipes, soup Leave a comment
I cooked a ham for Christmas dinner this year. When I cook ham, I usually buy a very small boneless ham because only two of us will eat it. This year I bought a bigger, semi-boneless ham. It was actually less expensive than a smaller ham, but now I have tons of leftover ham. I’ll freeze some and then get creative with the rest. This should be interesting. : )
Lentil Soup with Ham
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, diced
2 stalks celery, diced
2 carrots, peeled and diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup dried lentils, picked over and rinsed
8 cups chicken(or vegetable) broth
1 medium zucchini, diced
1 cup of ham, diced
salt and pepper, to taste
In a soup pot, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add the onions, celery, and carrots. Cook until the vegetables are tender. Add the minced garlic and cook 1 minute longer. Add the dried lentils and chicken broth. Bring to a simmer and cook for 20 minutes. Add the diced ham and zucchini and cook until the lentils have reached the desired level of tenderness, 10 to 20 minutes. Season the soup to taste with salt and pepper.
Minestrone Soup with Ravioletti
Posted: December 17, 2017 Filed under: Beans, Lentils, & other Legumes, Pasta Recipes, Soup & Stew Recipes, Vegetarian Recipes | Tags: beans, food, minestrone, ravioletti, recipes, soup, vegetarian Leave a comment
This is a riff on my Minestrone recipe. I bought some ravioletti (mini ravioli) on clearance at Aldi for 74¢ and thought it would be a nice, hearty substitution for pasta. I adore it. I have also made this soup using tortellini.
If you want a brothier soup, feel free to add some additional vegetable broth or water.
Minestrone Soup with Ravioletti
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
3 stalks celery, chopped
2 carrots, peeled and sliced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 can (6 oz.) tomato paste
8 cups vegetable stock
1 can (15.5 oz.) kidney beans, rinsed and drained
2 – 3 tsp. dried basil
1 can (14.5 oz.) diced tomatoes and their juices
2 medium zucchini, quartered and sliced
1 cup fresh spinach, roughly chopped
1 package ravioletti (mini ravioli), your choice of filling
salt and black pepper, to taste
Heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onions and sauté until they start to soften 3 to 4 minutes. Add the celery and carrots and cook until tender, another 4 to 5 minutes. Add garlic, sauté for a minute. Stir in the tomato paste and cook yet another minute. Add veggie stock, kidney beans, basil, and diced tomatoes. Raise heat and bring the soup to a boil. Add the zucchini and ravioletti; return the soup to a boil. Lower heat and simmer, stirring often, 8 to 10 minutes or until the zucchini and ravioletti are tender. Stir in the spinach and season the soup to taste with salt and pepper. Take off the heat and serve.
Shrimp Laksa
Posted: October 9, 2017 Filed under: Asian Noodles, Asian Recipes, Asian Soups, Curries, Dairy-Free Recipes, Gluten-free Recipes, Seafood & Fish Recipes, Soup & Stew Recipes | Tags: Asian noodles, dairy-free, food, Gluten-free, laksa, recipes, shrimp, soup Leave a comment
Laksa is a spicy noodle soup that is popular in Singapore and Malaysia. There are a gabillion different variations of it. Some have a curry-coconut broth while others have a sour fish broth or tamarind-based broth. Laksa can be made with seafood, chicken, beef, and/or tofu. This particular Laksa recipe is one I came up with after scanning about 20 other Laksa recipes online. It’s not all that authentic, but it is quick, tasty, easy to prepare, and the ingredients can be found in most American grocery stores.
Shrimp Laksa
1 tablespoon canola or vegetable oil
1 medium onion, quartered and thinly sliced
1 clove garlic, finely minced
1 1-inch piece of ginger, peeled and finely minced (or about 1 tablespoon of ginger paste)
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1/4 teaspoon ground turmeric
1 tablespoon (or to taste) sambal olek (sriracha can be substituted)
4 cups broth (vegetable, chicken, shrimp, etc…)
1 13.5 ounce can coconut milk
1 pound shrimp, shelled and deveined
1 package rice vermicelli, cooked according to package directions
fish sauce, to taste
fresh cilantro
fresh lime wedges
chopped fresh chiles (optional)
Heat the oil in a soup pot over medium heat and sauté the onion softened. Add the garlic and ginger and cook for another minute. Add the cumin, coriander, turmeric, and sambal olek (or sriracha). Add the broth and bring to a boil.
As soon as the soup comes to a boil, reduce the heat and add the shrimp and coconut milk. Let cook until shrimp is pink and cooked through, about 3 – 4 minutes. Season to taste with the fish sauce, about 1 tablespoon.
Divide the cooked rice noodles in bowls and ladle the soup over the noodles. Sprinkle with fresh cilantro and serve with lime wedges and chiles (optional).
Chicken and Gnocchi Soup
Posted: April 25, 2017 Filed under: Chicken Recipes, Soup & Stew Recipes | Tags: chicken, food, gnocchi, recipes, soup Leave a comment
I really like this flavorful, brothy soup. The gnocchi, Italian dumplings, and chicken make this soup more substantial. You can find packages of pre-made gnocchi by the dried pasta in the grocery store.
This soup is pretty quick to fix, but you can save time by using part of a rotisserie chicken (just add at the same time as the gnocchi) or leftover cooked chicken in the soup.
Chicken and Gnocchi Soup
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
8 cups chicken broth
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-sized pieces
1 14.5 oz. can diced tomatoes with juices
1 16 oz. package of potato gnocchi
2 cups fresh baby spinach
5 leaves fresh basil, chopped
salt and pepper, to taste
Parmesan cheese, grated
Heat the olive oil in a soup pot over medium-high heat. Add the onion and saute until just softened, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and saute 1 minute more. Add the chicken broth, chicken pieces, and diced tomatoes and their juices. Increase the heat to high and bring the soup to a boil. When the soup comes to a boil, add the gnocchi. Cook until the gnocchi rises to the top, about 3 – 5 minutes. Stir in the spinach and fresh basil and take the soup off the heat. Season to taste with salt and pepper and serve. Grated Parmesan cheese can be sprinkled on top just before eating, if desired.
Southwestern Split Pea Soup
Posted: October 17, 2016 Filed under: Beans, Lentils, & other Legumes, Dairy-Free Recipes, Gluten-free Recipes, Soup & Stew Recipes, Vegan Recipes, Vegetable Recipes, Vegetarian Recipes | Tags: food, Gluten-free, recipes, soup, split peas, vegan, vegetarian 2 Comments
I haven’t blogged in so long. Life has been really busy. I’m not getting into the kitchen much. Plus, it’s been so hot this summer, I don’t even want to cook to avoid heating up the house. To make things worse, the hard drive on my computer died and I lost so many pictures, including food pics for future posts. I thought I had backed up my computer this past spring, but that appears to not be the case. I lost a year and a half worth of pictures and documents. Stop what you are doing and back up your hard drive right now. I’ve been spending my extra time trying to compile my pictures from various sources and organize them. I’m not sure if I will ever finish this daunting task.
It is finally starting to cool down here in South Carolina. It was only in the low 80’s today. My hubby is out of town and my youngest son didn’t have a soccer game today so I got to spend some time cooking. I baked some brownies and then started working on this soup.
Southwestern Split Pea Soup
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
2 stalks celery, chopped
2 carrots, peeled and chopped
1 jalapeno, seeded and minced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
1 10 oz. can diced tomatoes and green chiles (Rotel)
7 cups vegetable broth
1/2 cup green split peas
1 large Russet potato, peeled and diced
1 cup frozen corn
1 zucchini, chopped
fresh cilantro, chopped
In a soup pot, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the onion, celery, carrots, and jalapeno. Cook until the vegetables are tender. Add the minced garlic and cook 1 minute longer. Add the cumin, chili powder, coriander, Rotel (including the juices), dried split peas, and vegetable broth. Bring to a simmer and cook for 20 minutes. Add the potato, corn, and zucchini. Cook until the split peas and potato are tender, about another 20 minutes. Season the soup with salt and pepper. Stir in the chopped cilantro and serve.
Tortilla Soup with Shrimp and Avocado
Posted: July 28, 2016 Filed under: Dairy-Free Recipes, Gluten-free Recipes, Seafood & Fish Recipes, Soup & Stew Recipes, Tex Mex/Mexican Recipes | Tags: avocado, food, recipes, shrimp, soup, tortilla soup 1 Comment
This soup is incredibly good! Plus, it’s fast to make. Perfect for a weeknight dinner. If you are in a rush, you can just skip baking the tortilla strips and just crumble some purchased tortilla chips over the top.
Tortilla Soup with Shrimp and Avocado
corn tortillas, about 12
cooking spray
1 tablespoon canola oil
1 onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 jalapenos, seeded and minced
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1 14.5 ounce can petite diced tomatoes (with juices)
8 cups vegetable or chicken broth
1/4 teaspoon ground cayenne
1/4 teaspoon Mexican oregano
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 pound shrimp, peeled and deveined
avocado, diced
fresh cilantro, chopped
lime, cut into wedges
Preheat oven to 400° F. Stack the fresh corn tortillas and cut in half. Re-stack and then cut into then strips. Arrange the corn tortilla strips on a baking sheet, spray with cooking spray, and sprinkle with a little salt. Bake in the oven until golden (about 8 – 10 minutes), stirring occasionally to ensure even browning. Remove from oven and let cool.
In a soup pot, heat the canola oil over medium-high heat. Add the chopped onion and cook until softened and starting to brown. Add the garlic and jalapeno and continue to cook for another minute or two. Stir in the ground cumin. Next, add the petite diced tomatoes and juices, broth, cayenne, Mexican oregano, and tomato paste. Stir well and bring to a boil. Once the soup has come to a boil, add the peeled and deveined shrimp and cook until the shrimp is done, about 5 minutes.
Ladle the soup into a bowl. Top with diced avocado, fresh cilantro, and a handful of the baked tortilla strips. Serve with a wedge of lime to squeeze over the soup before eating.
Cream of Cabbage and Potato Soup
Posted: June 24, 2016 Filed under: CSA, Soup & Stew Recipes, Vegetable Recipes, Vegetarian Recipes | Tags: cabbage, CSA, food, potatoes, recipes, soup, vegetairan Leave a comment
Cabbage. So much cabbage. I have gotten 4 or 5 heads of green cabbage in my CSA boxes this season. I’ve been struggling to come up with new ways of using it. I have fallen back on old favorites like stir fries, Fried Cabbage, vegetable soups, Southeast Asian Cabbage Salad, Vegetarian Hot and Sour Soup, and Coleslaw. I also made Stuffed Cabbage Rolls (which I will blog later). And, I made this soup.
I was really happy with how the soup turned out. It was delicious! It reminded me of my Cream of Cauliflower and Potato Soup. That is a good thing.
I sprinkled a little shredded cheddar cheese over my first bowl of soup. It’s a wonderful compliment to the flavors of the cabbage and potatoes. The soup is also wonderful without cheese.
Cream of Cabbage and Potato Soup
3 tablespoon butter
1 large onion, chopped
1/2 head green cabbage, cored and shredded
1 carrot, peeled and diced
3 large potatoes (or 6 smallish), peeled and diced
7 cup vegetable broth (or chicken broth)
1 cup half & half or cream
salt and pepper, to taste
cheese (cheddar, Swiss, Edam, etc…), shredded (optional)
In a soup pot, melt the butter over medium-high heat. Add the onions and cabbage and cook until tender, about 10 minutes. Add the diced carrot, diced potatoes, and vegetable broth and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the potatoes are tender, about 20 minutes. Add the half & half and season with salt and pepper. Serve. Sprinkle with shredded cheese of your choice, if you desire.
Recipes for Sustenance 