I talk about food, you read it.
Soup
Chicken Tortilla Soup
0Since its still January, national soup month, I want to share another soup that is now on my top 5 list of soups. Tortilla soup has been something I have wanted to make for a very long time. I love Mexican food but I always seem to get hung up on the ooey gooey cheesy meals then I miss out of Tortilla soup. It’s actually pretty healthy but still super delicious, which is a great combination, as long as you don’t overload it with cheese and sour cream. Don’t let the long list of ingredients overwhelm you, it’s actually really easy!
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1 small onion, diced
- 2 tablespoons minced garlic
- 1 jalapenos, finely diced (leave out the seeds if you don’t want spicy)
- 1 chipotle in adobo sauce, minced (or a tsp of chipotle powder)
- 1 small yellow pepper chopped
- 1 can of corn
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1 can fire roasted diced tomatoes (or regular diced)
- 1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
- 4-5 cups low-sodium chicken broth
- 3 chicken breasts, boneless and skinless
- 2 limes, 1 juiced, plus wedges for garnish
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1/2 cup roughly chopped fresh cilantro leaves
- 1 (8-inch) flour tortilla, grilled, cut into thin strips (or chips) (optional)
- 1 avocado, pitted, sliced
- 1 cup shredded Monterrey cheese (OR SOUP CREAM)
In a large soup pot, heat vegetable oil on med-high. Add diced onion, garlic, jalapeno and chipotle, stirring, cook until they start to become soft, about 8 min. Add yellow pepper, corn, tomatoes, black beans, cumin and chicken broth. Bring temperature back up to a low simmer.
To cook the chicken, you can do this 2 ways.
One-add chicken breasts right into the soup and poach in soup for 20 min, or until done.
Or two- you can poach in a separate pot for 20 min. If you chose to cook in a separate pot, poach in chicken broth and you might want to add some seasonings like whole black pepper corns, chilli powder, chipotle powder, cumin and salt. It will help give your chicken some flavour. Just remember to taste it before you put in the raw chicken. I used this cooking method, which worked out well. I also ended up adding some of the cooking liquid to the soup because my soup reduced just a tad too much.
Once chicken is cooked, using your desired cooking method, remove it from the liquid and place on a plastic cutting board too cool. Once cooled, shred with a fork, add back to soup.
Add limes juice and cilantro, taste and adjust seasoning with salt and pepper. Garnish with tortilla chips, avocado, sour cream or grated cheese…or all of the above. I used avocado and sour cream with a few chips on the side. If you don’t like spicy as much as me, you can leave out the chipotle pepper but don’t leave out the fire roasted tomatoes. I think the Smokey flavours really go so well with the acid from the lime.
I absolutely loved this soup. It was spicy, flavourful, packed full of healthy vegetables, chicken and avocado. It made enough for me to freeze some too and I can’t wait for another tortilla soup night!
French Onion Soup
0January is National Soup Month and I would assume this was started as part of a cleansing or New Year’s Resolution to eat healthier. I know after eating my way through Christmas I sure can use a few more lighter meals in my repertoire. I made some pretty remarkable soups last year but I got new French onion soup bowls for Christmas that I have been dying to use, so my decision was a fairly easy one when it came to thinking of soups to make.
French onion soup has got to be one of the easiest soups to make. With just a few ingredients you can transform a few stinky onions into something amazing! Okay, it’s more than a few but I promise, it’s not complicated.
Ingredients
- 2 large yellow onions, peeled and sliced
- 1 large red onion, peeled and sliced
- 2-3 shallots, peeled and sliced
- 2 garlic cloves, minded
- 2-3 tablespoons butter
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 cup red wine or ½ cup brandy
- 5-6 cups chicken stock or a blend of chicken and beef stock (low sodium)
- 2-3 dried bay leaves
- 2-3 sprigs of fresh thyme
- 1-2 springs of fresh rosemary (optional)
- Salt and pepper
- 1 baguette, sliced, I prefer diced
- 1-2 cups Swiss, gruyere or emmenthal cheese
In a medium to large heavy bottom pot, melt the butter with oil over medium heat. Add onions, shallots, garlic and salt, pepper. Stir so everything is coated in oil. Some recipes say cover, other don’t but what you’re wanting to do is to let the onions slowly caramelize becoming golden in colour. Stirring every 10 min or so, this can upwards to 45 min to an hour.
Deglaze the pot with wine, which means pour it in and stir the crud off the bottom. Allow to reduce by a little over a half. Now deglaze again with stock and add bay leaves, thyme, and rosemary. Add more pepper and let it reduce again by a third. Taste and adjust seasoning. Preheat your oven to broil.
Pour into soup bowls and top with bread and cheese, broil for 1-2 min until cheese is bubbly. If you don’t have oven proof bowls you can lay the bread on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, top with cheese and then place the cheesy bread on the soup.
I absolutely love this soup. It rich tasting, filling and delicious. It will warm your bones on a cold day and even though there isn’t’ much to it, it sticks to your bones as well. J and I love this soup. I know my measurements are slightly open to interpretation but that’s because I don’t really measure. Just taste it while you’re making it and adjust it to how you want it. That’s the best way to cook!!
Beer and Cheddar Soup
4I have been waiting patiently for what the weather network tells me is snow to begin falling. I come home from work to put on comfy pj pants, an oversized hooded sweat shirt, floppy slippers to anxiously wait, curled under a wool blanket, for the first sparkling snowflake to fall outdoors. Unfortunately, all I have seen in the past month is rain. Wet, sloppy, cold rain that doesn’t fulfill my winter wonderland dreams. Regardless of the type of precipitation, it’s still rather cold out which means cozy foods like soup.
I found a recipe for soup in Food & Wine magazine consisting of cheddar, bacon and beer that seemed like it would be the perfect end to a cold day. I happily dog eared the page thinking I would try it right away. I put the magazine on the kitchen island and then started to reluctantly move it daily from side to side, out of the way, while cooking other things for dinner refusing to put the magazine away. It wasn’t until J asked me why the magazine was still sitting around, not in use, that I really felt sorry I hadn’t made it. I doubted it, thinking it wasn’t a “real” meal and that J wouldn’t like it. I don’t know why I would think he wouldn’t like something involving cheese, beer and bacon but I put it off over and over. I have now accomplished my mission and request that everyone make this soup. It has a gourmet quality to it but is easy to make. I am officially hooked on this soup!
Ingredients
- 1/2 pound bacon sliced 1/3 inch thick (this is like 1/3 of a package)
- 1 celery rib, finely chopped
- 1 small onion, finely chopped
- 1 jalapeno seeded and chopped (I used jarred, but fresh would probably be better)
- 2 garlic cloves minced
- 1 tablespoon fresh thyme chopped
- one 12 ounce bottel of lager or pilsner
- about 2 1/2 cups low sodium chicken broth
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1/4 cup flour
- 1 cup heavy cream (I used 1/2 cup)
- 1/2 pound sharp yellow cheddar shredded (I used aged cheddar)
- 4 ounces smoked cheddar shredded
- sat and pepper
In a large saucepan, cook the bacon over meoderate heat until the fat is rendered and the bacon is crisp. about 7 minuites. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the bacon to a bowl. Add the celery, onion, jalapeno, garlic and theyme to the saucepan (with bacon fat still in it) and cook over medium heat stirring, until softened, about 8 minutes.
Add half the beer and cook until reduced by half, abotu 5 minutes. Now add the chicken broth and simmer.
Meanwhile, in a small skillet, melt the butter. Add the flour and cok over medium heat, stirring until lightly browned, about 2 minutes. Whisk this roux into the soup until incorperated and bring to a simmer again. Cook until thickened and add the cream cheddar cheese and the remaining beer and simmer, stiring occasionally until thick and creamy. Add bacon peices and season with salt and pepper. If you think the soup is too thick you can always add a bit more stock but mine was the perfect consistency.
I can’t believe I put off making this soup and I will never make that mistake again. This soup isn’t for the faint of heart or people watching their hearts as the main ingredients can probably make ones heart stop but in the grand scheme of things life is short so why not indulge once in a while and eat something that puts comfort foods to shame. Move over mac and cheese, there is a new cheesy meal in town. I made mine with soft pretzels since, as I have told you before, I am totally addicted to carbs. They were the perfect thing to dunk in your smokey cheesy soup and you can make pretzel sandwiches the next day! Now go make this, its amazing!
Roasted Tomato Soup
1When J and I got home from Vegas I saw that I had a lot of tomatoes ready that I had been ripening on the windowsill. It’s getting rather cold at night and with the increase of rain I didn’t want to lose everything to blight. Some still were victims of the nasty rot but I did manage to salvage a lot and make a delicious roasted tomato soup out of them. This soup curbed my craving for vegetables and was extremely flavourful. It was the perfect meal after a weekend of debauchery.
Ingredients
- Handful of tomatoes 8-10 (I used Roma, cherry, yellow and some unnamed varieties)
- 1 onion chopped large
- 6 cloves of garlic
- ½ olive oil
- Salt and pepper
- 3-4 cups chicken stock
- Sprig of thyme
- Sprig of rosemary
- ½ cup heavy cream (optional, I didn’t add)
- Fresh basil chopped for garnish
- Fresh grated parmesan for garnish
Wash and half tomatoes, chop onion and throw in a bowl with peeled garlic cloves. Toss with olive oil to coat and season with salt and pepper.
Dump onto a parchment lined baking sheet and cook for 20-30 min, until onions and tomatoes are soft.
Remove roasted vegetables and transfer to a large stock pot. Pour in chicken stock to cover and throw in the whole springs of thyme and rosemary. Simmer on med-low until reduced by a third.
Remove springs of herbs. Use am immersion blender to puree soup until smooth. Alternatively this could be done in the blender. Add cream while blending if using. If you’re soup looks too think you can also add more chicken stock at this point. Season to taste.
I found this soup to be fresh, flavourful and didn’t leave me feeling like I was missing anything. I originally was going to put a baguette slice on top and broil some cheese but opted for fresh basil and cheese shavings instead. You could easily slip some cream into the soup as well to give an even richer flavour but I wanted to keep with my healthy theme and leave it out. I personally don’t think it needed to be a heavy creamy soup but maybe when it snows it will be time for something like that. I was even more impressed that J had 2 bowls full when neither of us is really “soup” people. I can’t wait to make this again!
Tuscan White Bean Soup
0When October 1st came and went I became very excited for all things fall. I tried to have a scarf day at work, had a pumpkin spice latte from starbucks and dreamed about all foods that I could make this season. While scarf day didn’t work out, this recipe for Tuscan White Bean Soup sure did. It’s reminiscent of curling up on the couch and cuddling with your loved ones. Let the cold snap begin for all autumn soups will keep me cozy!
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoons butter
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 shallots, chopped
- 1/2 small onion chopped
- 1/2 cup dry white wine
- 2-4 sage leaf
- 2 (15-ounce) cans cannellini beans, drained and rinsed (also known as white kidney beans)
- 3 cups low-sodium chicken broth
- 4 cloves garlic, cut in 1/2
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- Small bunch of thyme leaves for garnish
- Rustic bread for dipping
- Extra-virgin olive oil, for drizzling (I used white truffle oil)
Place a medium, heavy soup pot over medium heat. Add the butter, olive oil, onion and shallot. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the shallots are softened, about 5 minutes. Add wine and reduce for about 5 minutes. Add the sage, beans, and stock and bring the mixture to a simmer. Add the garlic and simmer until the garlic is softened, about 20 minutes. If you have an emersion blender, blend soup to desired consistency (preferable smooth). If not, pour the soup into a large bowl. Carefully ladle 1/3 to 1/2 of the soup into a blender and puree until smooth. Be careful to hold the top of the blender tightly with a cloth, as hot liquids expand when they are blended. Pour the blended soup back into the soup pan. Puree the remaining soup. Once all the soup is blended and back in the soup pan, add the pepper Keep warm, covered, over very low heat.
This soup couldn’t have been any better. It had such a great flavour! The only complaint from J was that he wasn’t sure about the consistency and would have preferred it slightly thinner. I liked the thickness of it and thought it was perfect for dipping your bread into but to each their own. If you want something soupier, then add another cup of broth or simmer for 5-10 minutes less then what I wrote.
Creamy Mushroom Potato Leek Soup
1The other day I had an odd craving for mushroom soup. Since it was between meals and I actually had some time to kill, I decided to sit and google some soup recipes. I found some great ones that I will save for another day, but the two varieties I kept going back to was a wild mushroom soup and potato leek soup. I almost made my mind up, thinking that the mushroom soup was to be made first, until I saw a beautiful bunch of leeks at the grocery store. They were very inexpensive so without a second thought I threw them in my basket. The very next day I ran into a perfect package of assorted mushrooms at the grocery store, and again without second thought threw them in my basket. How could anyone walk away from these delicious weird looking mushrooms?
I didn’t want to make 2 different types of soups since most recipes make enough for an army but what was a person to do when they purchase too many ingredients? Well, you put all the recipes together and make up your own soup. Yes, it still ended up being enough to feed a small army, but just throw it in the freezer if you like it and save it for another day!
Ingredients
- 3 potatoes, peeled and cut into large pieces
- 4 leeks, whites only, thoroughly washed
- 1 medium onion, peeled diced
- 1-2 small shallots minced or diced small
- 2 quarts chicken stock
- 5 ounces fresh shiitake mushrooms
- 5 ounces fresh portobello mushrooms
- 5 ounces fresh cremini (or porcini) mushrooms
- 1 cup cream
- splash of white wine
- 1 1/2 teaspoons finely chopped fresh thyme leaves
- Salt and pepper
- 1/2 packet of prosciutto chopped
Clean the mushrooms by wiping them with a dry paper towel. Coarsely chop the stems. Slice the mushroom caps 1/4-inch thick and, if there are big, cut them into bite-sized pieces. Set aside.
Peel and chop potatoes and boil in a large pot of water until tender.
While potatoes are boiling make the stock, heat the olive oil and 1 tablespoon in a large pot. Add 2/3 of the chopped mushroom stems, the onion, leeks, the sprig of thyme, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper and cook over medium-low heat for 10 to 15 minutes, until the vegetables are soft.
Add white wine and reduce by half.
Add 6 vegetable stock, bring to a boil, reduce the heat, and simmer uncovered for 30 minutes. Add the cooked, drained potatoes. With an emersian blender, blend until most leeks are incorporated and soup is desired consistency.
Add remaining mushrooms, cream, salt and pepper. Taste and adjust seasoning.
Garnish with chopped parsley and prosciutto.
I loved the soup, but I have to be honest that combining these two soups together really takes away from the originals. I loved the chunks of wild mushroom but the potato leek definitely overpowered the delicate mild flavour of the mushrooms. The prosciutto was also a little lost as well. I think there was a lot of flavours going on in this soup and each one sort of masked the flavour of the other. If you don’t mind the mushrooms having a more subtleness and love potato then you would love this soup. If you looking for one or more of the main ingredients to stand out then you’ll have to make some adjustments. Other then that, it was a great soup!!
Irish Onion Soup
2Another recipe I had on my Irish themed dinner was Irish Onion Soup, made with Guinness. I absolutely love French onion soup so I was pretty excited to try this. I was also excited to have a second recipe to use the Guinness Beer that was now in my fridge. There isn’t a lot of difference between French onion soup and Irish onion soup other then the alcohol that is used so it’s super easy.
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 5 cloves minced garlic
- 8 cups thinly sliced onions
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves, chopped
- 1/4 cup sherry vinegar
- 1 1/2 cups Guinness draught
- 6 cups beef stock
- 6 slices country bread cut 1/2-inch thick, toasted
- 1/2 pound Irish Cheddar, sliced thin or grated
Directions
Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over high heat. Add garlic and cook briefly to release aroma. Add onions, season with salt, lower the heat to med-low to low and cook for about 20-30 minutes stirring occasionally until the onions are golden brown.
Add the thyme, vinegar, and beer. Reduce beer by half and add the beef stock. Bring to a simmer and cook for 10 more minutes.
Preheat the broiler. Transfer soup to an ovenproof serving dish or individual ovenproof soup bowls. Top with toasted bread slices and sliced Cheddar. Broil until cheese melts and starts to brown slightly. Serve piping hot.
I didn’t have Irish Cheddar so I used white cheddar instead and it tasted just fine. The soup initial tasted really sweet but there was definitely a slight bitter aftertaste. This was definitely heavier than regular French onion soup and filled us up but I think I prefer the original French version.
Cauliflower apple chamomile soup
0I know it’s still technically summer and on friday it was about 28 degrees outside but for some reason I had a craving for soup. It might be that it’s now September, all the fall fashions are in the mall and the commercials are all about back to school. I have even come across Halloween stuff in some stores. For lunch I really wanted something cozy and delicious so I made Cauliflower apple chamomile soup.
Ingredients
- 1 head cauliflower, stems removed and cut into small florets
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 1 medium yellow onion, diced (about 1 cup)
- 1 clove chopped garlic
- 1 Golden Delicious apple, peeled, cored and coarsely grated or diced small
- ½ tsp chopped fresh thyme leaves
- 4 cups low-sodium vegetable or chicken broth
- 3 sleepy time tea bags
- Grated cheese of your choice for garnish. (parm or smoked gruyere
Preheat oven to 400°F.
Toss cauliflower in 2 tablespoons oil and season with salt and pepper. Transfer to a parchment-lined sheet pan and roast, tossing occasionally, until tender and golden, about 25 minutes. Meanwhile, heat remaining oil over medium heat in large saucepan and add onions and garlic. Season with salt and pepper and cook, stirring often, until onions are translucent, about 5 minutes. Add apples and thyme and continue to cook, stirring often until softened, about 3 minutes. Add cauliflower, tea bags and broth, bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer until tender, about 15 minutes.
In a blender and working in batches, purée cauliflower mixture until smooth. Return to saucepan and adjust seasoning if needed. Reheat over medium heat, if necessary, and ladle into warm bowls. Garnish with grated cheese.
I really enjoyed this soup, the apple gives it a slight sweetness and the tea just adds more depth to the broth and brings it to another level. If you chose to try a smoked cheese like I did then just add a very small amount because it can overwhelm the soup very easily. The smokiness does add something extra but the soup is amazing all on its own as well! The phot really doesn’t do it justice, its soo YUMMY!
Bok Choy soup with pork meatballs and a Banh Mi from Golden Pizza & Sub
1My mom and I bought a big bag of Bok Choy to share. Normally I would just whip up a stir fry but I actually am getting a little tired of using Bok Choy in stir fry’s so even though it was 29 degrees yesterday I decided to make soup. I found a recipe on another blog called Las Vegas food adventures that included pork meatballs. It was really easy and tasted great! The only thing I would change is adding a little less brown sugar because I found the meat balls to be a little sweet. This could also be because I added a little hoison sauce to the meat balls because I ran out of soy sauce, other than that the recipe was perfect. The meatballs would also be perfect in sandwiches as well!
Ingredients
Soup
- 5 cups basic chicken stock
- 2-3 slices unpeeled fresh ginger
- 2 minced green onions
- 2 tablespoon sherry (or Chinese cooking wine)
- 2 tablespoon soy sauce
- 6-8 bunches fresh baby bok choy
Meatballs
- 1 lb ground pork
- ½ tsp mashed garlic
- ½ tsp grated fresh ginger
- ½ cup very finely minced green onions
- 2 tsp light brown sugar
- 3 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1/2 tsp sesame oil
Bring the soup ingredients-except the bok choy and green onions to a simmer.
Combine all of the meatball ingredients, mix well and form into 1 inch sized balls
Jason also went to Golden Pizza and Subs to grab a chicken banh mi sandwhich. We usually order the Vietnamese meatball but he thought that since the soup had a type of meatball that we should get chicken. I have to admit, I was a little apprehensive because I have only had the meatball. I liked it so much that I never thought to try a different kind before and WOW, the chicken is really good too. Its like a dry shredded chicken breast but with the sauce it was perfect. Now I am excited to try the other sandwiches!
