Chili Soup

It's that time of year that a comforting soup just hits the spot! The other week, my kids asked if I could make some chili soup. I've made chili before which they love, but never in soup form. So I was tickled to have a reason to try out a new recipe! And let me tell ya, it was a hit! This was also a simple recipe to throw together and even better, it freezes well. You can make adjustments to suit your taste. I made ours with a little bit of spice to it as the kids like spicy food. I also topped my bowl with mozzarella cheese, diced red onion and cilantro (I ♥ that stuff!)

Cream of Broccoli soup

I meant to post this recipe several days ago, on St Patty's Day actually. It was kinda funny. For breakfast I had my usual green smoothie (made with a spinach base and just rocks! SO healthy for you and incredibly tasty). Then for lunch, I had some leftover cream of broccoli soup I had made and just laughed how all my meals were "green". So not intentional! Of course for dinner we had the typical St Patty's meal of corned beef at cabbage at my parents house.

This soup is one my kids all give a thumbs up approval for. It's super easy to make and doesn't take long at all. I've made some changes to the original recipe cuz that's how I roll!

Cream of Broccoli Soup
3-4c chopped broccoli
1c chopped mushrooms
2 cloves of garlic, minced.
4c chicken broth (or base)
4 Tbsp butter
4 Tbsp flour
1/4 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp salt
16oz sour cream (i've also used light cream in place of this)

Saute broccoli, garlic & mushrooms in 2 Tbsp butter. Add 3 1/2 c of broth. In a skillet, melt 2Tbsp butter, add flour, salt & pepper and 1/2c chicken broth till thick. Then stir in sour cream. Add to the rest of the mix and heat.

Soup!

Yesterday I finally had some time to tear up my kitchen (and maybe having 40lbs of sausage in the freezer that I only paid about $13 for played a part in my cooking itch lol). I decided to make 3 different kinds of soup for not only supper last night but to freeze as well for those days I need something quick for dinner. I figure if I'm chopping up stuff for 1 kind've soup, why not just keep chopping and make several pots of soup. In the long run, it cuts down on work doing it all at once.

I made 2 soups I've cooked many times, chicken corn noodle soup (which was simple to make with the chicken stock I've made and frozen in the past) and Zuppa Toscana that I previously shared here . I also tried a new soup recipe as well. I just got my favorite magazine last week in the mail, Taste of Home, (I'm a field editor of this as well!). When I saw a Lentil Tomato soup listed, I knew I had to try that. They gave the basic recipe then at the end there was some suggested added ingredients you could also toss in (sausage, kale & garam masala).

Lemme tell ya, the kids & I loved this soup! It was simple & inexpensive to make & tasted really good. I added the sausage & kale and while I didn't have garam masala, I had a few of the seasonings that make this up so I added what I had on hand. I made a double batch so I'd have plenty to freeze.

Since several of you on facebook were asking for the recipe, I just figured I'd share it here to make it easy to reference. :) And of course, a recipe isn't final without a picture.....

Lentil-Tomato Sausage Soup in back

Lentil-Tomato Sausage Soup

4 1/2c water

4 med carrots, sliced

1 med onion, chopped

2/3c dried lentils, rinsed

1 can (6oz) tomato paste

2 Tbsp minced fresh parsley

1 Tbsp brown sugar

1 Tbsp white vinegar

1 tsp garlic salt

1/2 tsp dried thyme

1/4 tsp dill weed

1/4 tsp dried tarragon (I didn't have this)

1/4 tsp pepper

In a large saucepan, combine the water, carrots, onion and lentils, bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 20-25 min or until lentils & vegetables are tender. Stir in the remaining ingredients, return to a boil. Reduce heat, simmer uncovered for 5 min to allow flavors to blend.

*If you want, you can add any combo of the following: a 1/2lb-1 lb of cooked sausage, 3c of fresh kale the last 5 minute of cooking or 3/4tsp garam masala.

The true measure of a man is how he treats someone who can do him absolutely no good.
~ Ann Landers

Zuppa Toscana Soup

So the kids & I made another one of our favorite soups. In fact, we made a double batch of it so we would have plenty to not only eat but freeze for later meals as well. Pretty much any soup we like I am able to freeze so I always make plenty for that very reason.

This soup is a copycat recipe to the Zuppa Toscana you can get at Olive Garden.

Here is a pic of a few of the ingrediants. And yes, I used a lot more sausage than you see (the rest was cooking as I took this pic)

This soup is SOOO good!! A few things I change, I don't add quite the amount of cream it calls for. ( I try to cut out a few calories where I can without compromising taste). I also use whatever sausage I get  marked down on sale. lol! This batch of soup had a combo of Shady Maple's onion & pepper sausage & some regular sausage. I also tossed in a little bit of crushed red pepper because we love food with a little spice to it.

The kids could hardly wait to dig into it! They would even eat this as a snack! And yes, it tastes even better than it looks! Oh, and for those who are paleo or low carb, I have also used cauliflower in place of the potatoes with wonderful results!!!



1 lb Italian sausage (or whatever flavor you prefer, spicy is good!)
2 large russet baking potatoes, sliced in half, and then in 1/4 inch slices
1 large onion, chopped
1/2 can oscar meyer bacon bit (I used some real bacon, cooked, since I happened to have some on hand but you can skip this ingredient as well)
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups kale or 2 cups swiss chard, chopped
2 cans chicken broth
1 quart water
1 cup heavy whipping cream (though I use light cream with no problem)


-Cook sausage either by baking or sauteeing
-Drain sausages on paper towels and cut into slices.
-Place onions, potatoes, chicken broth, water, garlic in pot, and cook on medium heat until potatoes are done.
-Add sausage and bacon.
-Salt and pepper to taste.
-Simmer for another 10 minutes.
-Turn to low heat.
-Add kale and cream.
-Heat through and serve

 ~Your integrity will always be remembered longer than your prosperity.~