Hot & Sour Chicken Soup

(not my picture...mine didn't turn out)

I tried this out tonight and my kids really liked it! It's good and fast to make (approx. 30 minutes)

Hot & Sour Chicken Soup - from allrecipes Cookbook

3 c. chicken broth

1/2 c. water

2 c. sliced fresh mushrooms

1/2 c. sliced bamboo shoots, drained

2 t. grated fresh ginger

2 cloves garlic, crushed

2 t. soy sauce

1/4 t. red pepper flakes

Add all these ingredients into a big soup pot. Bring to a boil then reduce to low and cover and simmer.

1 lb. boneless chicken, cut into thin strips

1 T. sesame oil

2 green onions, chopped

3 T. red wine vinegar

2 T. cornstarch

1 egg, beaten

Place the chicken in a bowl and drizzle with the sesame oil. Stir to coat. In a separate bowl, mix the cornstarch and vinegar. Return the broth to a boil. Add the chicken and return to a boil. Drizzle the egg into the broth while stirring. Stir in the cornstarch mixture. Simmer over medium heat until chicken is cooked. Serve with green onions.

What to do (or not) with those dried bean soup mixes

Okay so this post may be kind of lame: dinner out of a bag. But I am kind of pissed at dried bean mixes right now. So you all get a lame post.
We (meaning mainly Shawn) cooked a ham for Christmas. It was a butt (butt hee, hee) roast and it was awesome. We carved all the meat off of it and froze the bone. I had grand plans for soup and fitness. After we froze said ham bone we proceeded to eat like pigs for the next 2 weeks. Ugh, I feel like crap!
So with fitness and ham bone in mind I went to the grocery store and bought a 15 bean soup mix. You know, the kind that come in a bag, dried beans with a little flavor packet. That is what I bought. I was excited to kick off our new healthy eating with some wholesome and tasty soup.
So I followed the package directions. I put the beans in a large stock pot with 2 quarts of water and let them soak overnight. I let them soak more like 12 hours. Then the package said the drain the beans and cover with 2 quarts of fresh water and simmer for 2 1/2 hours.Here we get to the part of what you DO NOT do with bean soup. DO NOT do as the package says and then go off to take your Sunday afternoon nap. You will come back to your bean soup boiled dry in your Grandma's favorite, very good, stock pot. You will have to throw out said bean soup and maybe yell at your husband just a little. Babe, I'm sorry, it wasn't you it was the soup I was mad at, or maybe the nap, or maybe the smell. Burnt beans stink. Then you will have to start dinner over again on a Fast Sunday when you haven't eaten all day. Bummer.
So here is what you really need to do:

• Cover beans with 2 quarts of water and soak overnight. That part is sound advise.

• Rinse the beans with cold water. Several times. There is a reason for this. It cuts down on flatulence problems later on. Rinsing the beans washes off a sugar molecule which our stomachs cannot digest. That is where bean toots come from. Who knew? Thank you wikipedia, and Shawn.

• Return beans to stock post and cover with 4 1/2 quarts fresh water. 2 quarts is not nearly enough. Dumb directions. Also add any meat you are using at this point. We added the ham bone and then were going to remove it before adding spices. It is in the garbage now. You can also use 1 lb diced ham or sausage. If you use sausage, cook it first. Bring to a boil then reduce heat to a simmer for 2-2 1/2 hours.

• After simmer time is over, add 2 cans of stewed tomatoes, 1/2-1 c diced onion, 2 garlic cloves-minced, 1 tsp. chili powder (I added more than this), and salt and pepper to taste. I also threw in the seasoning packet from the bean mix. This is where I must confess that there were not actually any beans in my bean soup. I burnt them all up. I just happened to have a can of dried soup base mix from the LDS cannery in my basement. It had pasta, rice, and lentils in it. So no beans, but we pretended and practiced our bean toots anyway.

• After adding seasoning, simmer soup for another 20-30 minutes. Serve hot with bread sticks, because that would be yummy. We also topped ours with Parmesan cheese because we had it and Parm makes everything taste better.

So I have rambled, but I feel much better. Here is a ingredients recap:

Bean Soup with Ham

1 bag of dried bean soup mix
1 ham bone- if you happen to have one laying around
1 lb. ham or sausage (if using sausage, fry it up)
2 can stewed tomatoes
1/2-1 c. diced onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp. chili powder
salt and pepper to taste

Follow above directions, especially the nap part. By all means take a nap, I love naps, but not while your soup is cooking. Enjoy your soup.

By the way I got a new camera for Christmas. A Canon Rebel T1i. Doesn't it take great pictures?

Broccoli Cauliflower Soup and Breadsticks

First of all, I apologize to any of you who actually read this blog. I guess I have been busy lately. Claire has kind of turned into a um, high maintenance child. Syd's homework load has been unbelievable this year. I love her teacher, but we have an hour to 1 1/2 hours of homework on a good night. Plus Brynn has ballet, Syd has Tae Kwon Do, I have a new calling which keeps me hopping (Stake YW Sports Director) and Shawn is the 2nd counselor/Scoutmaster for the Young Men. So we are busy.
So I decided I will aim for one post a week. We will see how that works. I've stockpiled a few so we should be good for a while. Here is a double header for today.



Broccoli Cauliflower Soup

This is a recipe I got from my mother-in-law, Julie, when Shawn and I first got married. I don't use a recipe to make it so it has morphed into something a little different, but it is still easy and yummy! Shawn's family calls it Relief Society Soup. I think Julie got the recipe at RS or used to take it to RS lots or something. This recipe is very much a to-your-taste recipe. Just combine things until it reaches the right consistency and flavor for you.

• 1 head broccoli
• 1 head cauliflower
• 2 cups milk
• 1/2 cube- 1 cube butter
  
• instant potatoes- I like the potato pearls you get from the church cannery but potato flakes also work
• 2 cups grated cheddar cheese
• 1 Tbs. Lawry's seasoning

Wash and cut broccoli and cauliflower into bite-size pieces. Place in a large stock pot and just cover with water. Place on stove and bring to a boil. Boil until veggies are fork-tender. Without draining veggies, pour in milk and add butter and Lawry's seasoning. I use less butter, but if you want more of that flavor add the whole cube. When butter is melted, add instant potatoes. I usually add 3-4 cups of potatoes. Add one cup at a time and mix well between cups. Stop adding when soup reaches the consistency you like. Remember soup will continue to thicken a little bit. When potatoes have been absorbed well add cheese. Serve soup hot. This soup reheats well, or can be made earlier in the day and kept in a crock pot on low.



Breadsticks

These are some great breadsticks that my mom used to make. They are best if eaten the day they are made.

• 1 1/2 c. warm water
• 2 Tbs. sugar
• 1 Tbs. yeast
• 1 tsp. salt
• 4 c. flour
• 2 Tbs. melted butter
• Garlic salt
• Parmesan cheese
  

Combine warm water and sugar and let dissolve. Then add yeast and let it rise for 10 minutes. Pour yeast water in a large bowl or Kitchen Aid. Add salt and flour. Mix well. Let dough raise 10 minutes. Roll out dough on a floured surface until it's 1/2-3/4 inch thick. Use a pizza cutter to cut into bread sticks. Place on 2 greased cookie sheets. Brush with melted butter and sprinkle with garlic salt and/or Parmesan cheese. Let breadsticks raise 20 minute or until double in size. Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes. Serve hot with yummy Broccoli Cauliflower soup.

Polish Mushroom Soup

So I once again stole a photo from the Martha Stewart website because we once again ate all the food before it had a photo opp. But here is the deal: this photo sucks! Sorry, Martha it is true. I guess I have no right to complain because after all, I should have taken my own picture, but come on. So I apologize for the crappy photo. But this soup is amazing! You may question it when you see the ingredients (sour cream in soup?) but it is so good!
This recipe has a few odd ingredients so I modified it slightly. Here is what I did: The recipe calls for Polish borowik and shiitake mushroom, but try finding those in Cache Valley, so I just used just over 1 pound of white button mushroom. I also don't keep beef stock around that much so I added boullion to 3 quarts of water and that seemed to work just fine. Now for orzo. For those of you who don't know what the crap that is (I didn't), it is a small seed-shapped pasta. They are sometimes called melon seeds. I found them in the Hispanic section in my grocery store.


Any other changes I noted on the recipe. Let me know if you try this. Shawn and I think this soup is fantastic. So did my girls and that is saying something where mushroom are concerned.

Polish Mushroom Soup

Serves 8 to 12

5 to 6 ounces (about 4 to 6) dried mushrooms such as Polish borowik or cèpes

12 large dried shiitake mushrooms

3 quarts beef stock

5 medium ribs of celery, chopped

2 large onions, chopped

5 carrots, chopped

1 pound white button mushrooms, sliced- I quarted the, becuase I think they taste better that way. Yes I know it is strange, but it is true.

2 tablespoons parsley, finely chopped- I used 1 tsp dried parsely

2 tablespoons dill, finely chopped- I used 2 tsp. dried dill

1 tablespoon coarse salt

1 cup orzo

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

2 tablespoons flour

1 cup sour cream

Table salt and freshly ground black pepper

1. Rinse the dried mushrooms. Place mushrooms in 2 cups of cold water, and soak for at least 4 hours or overnight.

2. In a large pot, bring the stock to a simmer. Add the celery, onions, and carrots. Strain the dried mushrooms, reserving the soaking liquid. Add the strained soaking liquid to the soup. Chop the hydrated mushrooms into 1/4-inch pieces slightly larger than the diced vegetables, and add to the soup. Add the sliced white button mushrooms.

3. Cover, and cook the soup until the vegetables are tender, about an hour. Bring the soup to a boil. Stirring constantly, add the orzo. Reduce the heat to a gentle boil, and, stirring occasionally to prevent the pasta from sticking, cook until the orzo is cooked through, another 6 to 8 minutes.

4. Meanwhile melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. Add the flour, and cook, stirring constantly until smooth, 3 to 5 minutes. Remove 1 cup of the broth from the soup, and add to the roux, whisking constantly until slightly thickened and free of lumps. Stir the thickened liquid into the soup. Add the chopped parsley and dill.

5. Finish the soup with sour cream: Add 1/4 cup of the thickened soup to the sour cream. Whisk until smooth. Add the sour cream to the soup, whisking constantly until it is well incorporated, about 3 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Clam Chowder

It was cold in Louisiana today, 35 degrees. I know that doesn't seem cold for those of you in Utah and Idaho, but I was freezing. It was definitely soup weather and clam chowder sounded to good. The picture doesn't do it justice, but trust me it is YUMMY!

Grandma Lee's Clam Chowder

2 cans clams

1 c. chopped onion

1 c. chopped celery

2 cups chopped potatoes

3/4 c. butter

3/4 c. flour

1 qt. half and half

salt and pepper to taste

Put chopped vegetables in pan and drain clam juice on vegetables. Cover with enough water just to cover the vegetables. Simmer until tender. Set aside. Melt butter and add flour. Add half and half. Stir until blended. (this will be thick) Add juice and vegetables. Add clams. Serve hot.

*I used 1 pint of half and half and 1 pint milk

Zuppa Tuscana Soup

A new post, finally! We recently went to California for a week with Shawn's family. While we were there we each took a night cooking dinner. My sis-in-law, Becca, made this awesome soup. So today she is our guest writer. So go make dinner tonight, Becca style. It's super easy as super yummy! Thanks for the great recipe Becca!

ZUPPA TUSCANA (BECCA STYLE) RECIPE:

Yield: about 4-6 generous servings

Ingredients:

6-9ish med-lg potatoes

2ish carrots, diced up super-tiny

2 cubes chicken bullion, "smooshed"

water

1 lb Italian sausage (I like Jimmy Dean the best.)

1/2 large onion, diced

1 can evaporated milk

1/2 cup milk

1/2 - 1 cup fresh grated Parmesan cheese *divided

kale, de-stemmed and chopped

salt/pepper, to taste

Directions:

Wash and slice potatoes (the thinner, the quicker they cook). Put in a large pot and cover with water. Toss in the carrots and chicken bullion, too. Boil until tender, stirring occassionally (to make sure they don't burn to the bottom). Using a potato masher, just mash up the potatoes a little in the water (sometimes my spoon does the trick, too).

While the potatoes boil, brown italian sausage and onions in a frying pan. Drain if desired (I don't.).

Put the sausage/onion mix into the potato pot. Add the evaporated milk, milk, Parm cheese and the kale. Add lots of pepper and salt to taste. Warm (don't boil at this point) until the kale is wilted a tiny bit and the whole thing is warm/hot.

Serve warm, sprinkled with even MORE Parmesan cheese... and ENJOY!

PS. I've also used like 2 tsp. of minced garlic in it, and it was yum that way, too.

Turkey Noodle Soup

Oh man, a post about something besides dessert? I am branching out. This is a proud moment.
We went to my mother-in-law's house for dinner on Sunday. She had cooked a turkey and so kindly gave me the carcass. Hooray! Hmmm, how many people get excited over a turkey carcass? Me and my dad's dog. I boiled the carcass (yuck) in enough water to just cover it for about an hour. Then I strained the liquid and was left with a beautiful stock for soup (Yum).
So if you are lucky enough to get your hands on a fresh turkey carcass, make yourself some yummy, hearty soup!

Turkey Noodle Soup

1 quart turkey stock
2 cups turkey- diced
2 cups celery- diced
2 cups carrots- diced
1 medium onion- diced
1 recipe fresh pasta- see post below
Salt and pepper to taste

Boil celery, carrots, and onion in just enough water to cover until fork tender. Add turkey stock, turkey and bring back to a boil. Add noodles and boil for 4-5 minutes more, stirring often. Season with salt and pepper to taste. I like mine with lots of pepper. Enjoy!