Chicken Tortilla Soup

Ingredients:
1 Tbl olive oil
1 onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 tsp chili powder
1 tsp dried oregano
1 (28 oz) crushed tomatoes
1 can chicken broth
1/2 cup frozen corn
1 can white hominy
1 can chopped green chilies
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
2 boneless chicken breasts, cooked and cut into pieces
¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro

Optional:
Crushed tortilla chips
Cubed avocado
Shredded cheese
Sliced green onion

In a medium soup pot, heat oil over medium heat. Sauté onion and garlic until soft. Stir in chili powder, oregano, tomatoes and broth. Bring to a boil and simmer for 5-10 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Stir in corn, hominy, chiles, beans and chicken. Simmer for 10 minutes. Add cilantro just before serving. Once soup is in bowls, feel free to top with the optional ingredients as you see fit!

I thoroughly enjoyed this recipe and froze the extras!

White Bean Chili

When I first found this recipe in a magazine, I thought there would definitely be possibilities with this warm and fiber packed soup. But when I put it to the test I was more than pleased with the results. I altered it from the original one I found and this is what I came up with….enjoy!

Ingredients: makes three large servings

1 can great northern white beans
1 can diced tomatoes with juice
½ cup chicken broth
2 tsp cumin
1 ½ tsp chili powder
2/3 cup frozen or fresh corn (I used frozen)
2 cups cooked chicken, diced (about 9 oz)
Monterey jack cheese- 1/3 cup is 1 serving

Directions:
Combine all ingredients except corn, chicken and cheese in a large pot. Cover and bring to a simmer. Simmer for 30 minutes or until beans are soft; stir in corn and chicken, and simmer uncovered for another 10 minutes. Remove from the heat.

From this point, you can either add the cheese to the pot or divide into single servings and let the individuals add their own cheese.

I divided mine into single servings and then added 1/3 cup cheese to each. Total points plus with cheese is 9. Soup alone is 6 points plus.

Leek and Potato Soup

This versatile soup is good as a side dish, a warm creamy appetizer at a party or even as a main course.

Serves: 2-3 for main dish
Ingredients:
10 oz potato, peeled and chopped, about 2 cups
2 cups sliced leeks, about 2 leeks if using the green parts
3 cups water
¾ tsp salt
Pepper to taste
3 Tbl heavy whipping cream

Bring leeks, potatoes, water and salt to a boil. Cover and simmer for 20-30 minutes or until tender. To finish the soup, puree the soup through a food processor or blender and add cream. You can serve right from the blender or put back in the soup pot.

I tried to just use a potato masher but the blender is the way to go to get a thick creamy stick to your ribs soup.

*Note: If you don’t mind a green tint to your soup, feel free to use the stalks of the leeks. I also used a can of chicken broth in place of 14 oz of the water.

Spaghetti and Meatball "Stoup"

"Stoup"- according to Rachael Ray is thicker than soup but thinner than stew and this is a great recipe for your first adventure into stoupland. I've adapted mine from Rachael's recipe and I think I did pretty good.

Source: adapted from Rachael Ray

Serves: 2- her original recipe is written for 4, but I am firm in believing only cooking the amount of servings you have people. Feel free to double or make alterations for you and your family/guests

Ingredients:

10 baby carrots, sliced

2 ribs celery, sliced

1 small or 1/2 large onion, chopped

1 clove garlic, chopped

1 8oz can of tomato sauce and 1/2 of another small can

2 cups chicken/vegetable broth

1/2 ground beef/turkey/venison

1/8 cup bread crumbs, Italian if you have them. If not, add a tsp or two of Italian seasoning

1/8 cup plus 2 Tbl egg beaters

2 cups egg noodles

Preheat a med. soup pot over med. heat. Add a tsp of olive oil, carrots, onions, celery, garlic and saute 5 minutes. Add tomato sauce and broth and cover pot. Turn up heat and bring to a fast boil.

While your soup is warming up, start making the meatballs. Mix the ground meat with the bread crumbs and the egg beaters. Roll into meatballs. I try to make an even number for easy splitting.

Once the tomato and broth mixture is reached the boil, slide the meatballs into soup. Bring back to a boil and then stir in spaghetti. Reduce the heat and simmer soup 10 minutes more stirring one or two times, until pasta is tender and meatballs have cooked through.

Feel free to serve with crusty bread but I have never chosen this route. Enjoy!

SUNDAY Slow Cooked Soup: Beans and Greens

Nothing says cold winter day better than a pot of beans cooking all afternoon. And when I say, all afternoon, I don't mean standing over the stove baby sitting them. This wonderful soup is a low maintenance meal that you will cook again and again. It may sound tough and labor intensive, but give it a chance. I enjoy cooking throughout the day and warming up at the end of the night with a hot bowl of soup and nice glass of vino.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cup dried Great Northern white beans

1 med. onion, chopped

1/2 bell pepper, seeded and chopped

1 lb turkey sausage (kind of like kielbasa)

4 cups chicken broth

4 cups water

1 bunch of greens, stems removed and chopped....feel free to experiment with this one...but my preference is collard greens

to taste: salt, pepper and red pepper flakes

Directions:

1. Place the beans in your soup pot with enough water to cover them. Covered, bring to a boil and then turn off heat. Let the beans stand at least one hour.

2. Drain the beans and set aside. In the same soup pot, add the onion, bell pepper and sausage. Cook until the vegetables and sausage are slightly browned, about 5 minutes.

3. Add the beans, chicken broth and water to the pot. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer for 2 hours.

4. Add the greens, salt and pepper. Stir well and continue cooking over low heat, covered, until the greens are tender. Another 30-45 minutes.

*I normally start step one when I get up and just leave them in the warm water until I'm ready to start the remainder of the steps.

*The greens may seem like a lot but they really cook down. If this is your first time using them, feel free to use less. We just found ourselves really enjoying them so every time I make this I end up adding more and more.

*There are recipes out there using canned beans that don't take near as long...but I just find this slow cooked meal really self-gratifying, extra yummy and relaxing. Plus, no sodium in dried beans like there can be in the canned ones.