Butternut and Turkey Sausage Soup

 This is a big pot of soup. Reduce by at least half, maybe three fourths.  

 
From the Carney Clan in Florida. 

Ham & Tater Cheese Soup

Ingredients:

• ½ TBSP. extra virgin olive oil
• ½ medium onion, chopped
• 1 ribs of celery, diced
• 1 lb. Yukon gold or red potatoes, peeled and diced (approximately 4 cups)
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
  
• 1 teaspoon roasted garlic powder
  
• 1 teaspoon salt
• ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
• dash cayenne or lemon drop pepper, more or less to taste
• 2 cups chicken broth, low-sodium
• 1½ cups milk, divided
• 1½ tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
• 1 cup cooked ham, diced small.
  

Instructions

1. In a large sauce pan over medium-high heat, add the oil. Once hot, add the onions and celery and saute for 3-4 minutes until they start turning clear. Then add in the garlic and continue to saute for another minute or two.
2. Add the peeled and diced potatoes, salt, and pepper to the pot.
3. Pour the chicken broth over the potatoes and make sure that they are covered, adding additional water as needed.
4. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat and simmer for 10-15 minutes, or until fork tender.
5. While the potatoes are boiling, pour ¼ cup of milk in a large bowl and whisk in the flour until smooth. Pour the remaining milk in the same bowl; set aside.
6. Optional: Once the potatoes are fork tender, use an immersion blender to partially blend the mixture - you want about 1/4 blended to make a creamier soup.
7. Add the milk mixture to the pot and continue to simmer for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
8. Add the sharp cheddar cheese and diced ham. Continue to simmer until the cheese is melted and ham is heated through, stirring constantly.
9. Remove from the heat. Serve immediately with additional cheddar cheese, green onions, and bacon on top.

Tsumommy's Clam Chowder

Ingredients:
2 Tbsp butter, melted
2 slices bacon, chopped (maybe 3 or 4)
2 stalks celery, finely diced
1 small onion, finely diced
½ tsp kosher salt
2 bay leaves
8 small yellow potatoes, diced small with skin on (¼” cubes)
2 Tbsp flour
8 oz clam juice
1 cup half&half
½ cup milk
¼ cup white wine
1½ pounds clams
Freshly ground black pepper

Instructions:

Cook the clams. Clean them. Dice them (fairly small). Set them aside. 
 
In a stockpot over medium heat, cook the chopped bacon.
Add the butter. When it’s nicely warm, add celery, onion, bay leaves & salt to the bacon/butter mix.  Cook until veggies are soft, stirring continuously.
Sprinkle the flour in and mix carefully, stirring constantly, making a roux.
 
Add cubed potatoes and the liquids: clam juice, half&half, milk, white wine.
Simmer until potatoes are soft. Stir as needed. Do not boil.
Add the diced clams. Heat the mixture up again. 
 
Serve. Add pepper to taste in the bowls.
Serve with crackers, and perhaps white wine.

Verdict: Really good! Makes enough or 4 or 5 servings.

Sue’s Potato Leek Soup

Ingredients:

1 pound uncooked red or purple potatoes, diced large (golf ball size)
3 cups uncooked leeks, chopped
3 cups kale, chopped
1 bratwurst or sausage per person (optional)
1 TBSP canola oil
3 cups low-fat milk (1%? 2%?)
½ tsp salt
¼ tsp ground nutmeg
Pepper to taste.


Instructions:

• Cut potatoes into golf-ball size pieces. Spread on microwavable plate, cover & cook on high until tender, about 6 minutes.

• In stockpot, heat oil over medium heat. When it’s warm, add chopped leeks, chopped kale & salt. Cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 5 minutes. 
 
• Dice the sausage (if you're using them) and fry over medium heat.

• Add cooked potatoes, milk & nutmeg to stockpot and reduce heat to medium low. Mash potatoes into small chunks. Simmer until flavors blend, about 5 minutes.

• Serve in wide bowls, perhaps with crackers or toast. Garnish with pepper, finely chopped green peppers.

• Enjoy. 
 
COMMENT: Also works with rice milk instead of dairy milk; makes it vegetarian.

Vegetarian; no sausage.

Not vegetarian; with sausage.

 

TJ's Curried ButterNut Soup

Ingredients:
1 large butternut squash.
1 1/2 heads of garlic, smashed.
2 Shallots, finely diced.
3 TBSP Red curry paste.
2 cans coconut (cream, milk or combination).
4 cups strong veggie broth.
Some (4 or 5?) chicken thighs, sliced thinly against the grain.
A bunch of broccoli. Be generous.
Some yellow/Dutch potatoes.
A bunch of crushed/chopped peanuts.

Instructions: Cook this is a stockpot. Cast iron is a good idea.
• Peel squash. Quarter it. Remove seeds & goop.
• Rub squash with high-temperature oil.
• Roast squash: 45 minutes at 425. Turn halfway through.
• Cook curry paste for two minutes.
• Add shallots and garlic. Cook 'till translucent.
• Dice the cooked squash. Add to curry, onions, garlic. Re-heat.
• When it's hot, add broth & coconut. Re-heat again. Blend 'till very smooth with immersion blender.
• While it’s simmering, cook chicken, broccoli & potatoes separately (Reminder: they take different times). Season liberally with salt & pepper.
• Combine solids with blended liquids just before serving. Dust with peanuts.
• Serve and enjoy!

Comment: This is delicious! 

Meat Stew

Ingredients:

2 TBSP olive oil 

2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced. 

1/4 red onion, thinly sliced. 

1/2 cup carrots, sliced thinly. 

1/2 cup celery, sliced thinly. 

1 cup turkey broth. 

1/4 lb lean hamburger, cubed.

1 ea Italian sausage link, cubed. 

4 slices bacon, cubed. 

1/2 roasted chicken breaks, cubed. 

1/2 cup roasted tomatoes. 

2 tsp dried sage. 

1 TBSP Herbs de Provence. 

Salt, to taste.

Lemon drop pepper, to taste

Instructions

Fry hamburger, sausage and bacon until thoroughly cooked. 

At the same time, saute garlic and onions in olive oil in a separate pan until tender. Add carrots and celery to saute.

Blend tomatoes with 1/2 cup broth to create a tomato paste. Add to saute mix. 

When the carrots and celery begin soften, add the rest of the turkey broth and bring to a simmer. Add all the meat. Add the spices and simmer until flavors are well combined and the stew has thickened. 

Serves 2 or 3.

Pumpkin Soup from Fresh Pumpkin

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons olive oil, divided

One 2-pound sugar pie pumpkin

1 medium yellow onion, chopped

2 large or 3 medium garlic cloves, pressed or minced

1 TBSP butter

¼ teaspoon sea salt

¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon

¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg

Dash of cloves

Tiny dash of cayenne pepper

Freshly ground black pepper

2 TBSP chicken broth concentrate

½ water

2 cups whole milk

Instructions

    Preheat oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Peel pumpkin, remove seeds, cut into 2”-ish cubes. (You can roast the seeds if you’d like for garnish).

    Drizzle ½ tablespoon olive oil over the flesh of the pumpkin and place the chunks onto the baking sheet. Roast for 35 minutes or so, until the orange flesh is easily pierced through with a fork. Set it aside to cool for a few minutes.

    Heat the remaining 1½ tablespoons olive oil in a large Dutch oven or heavy-bottomed pot over medium heat. Once the oil is shimmering, add onion, garlic and salt to the skillet. Stir to combine. Add butter. Cook, stirring occasionally, until onion is translucent, about 8 to 10 minutes. Add milk and bring back up to temperature.

    Add the pumpkin flesh, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, cayenne pepper, and a few twists of freshly ground black pepper. Use your stirring spoon to break up the pumpkin a bit. Pour in the broth. Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for about 15 minutes, to give the flavors time to meld.

    Once the pumpkin mixture is done cooking, remove the soup from heat and let it cool slightly. Use an immersion blender to blend this soup in the pot. (Alternatively, use a stand blender, which yields the creamiest results, but cool the soup some, first.)

    Ladle the soup into individual bowls.Consider garnishing with shredded cheese, perhaps parmesan or another hard cheese, or maybe with those roasted nuts..

    Let leftover soup cool completely before transferring it to a proper storage container and refrigerating it for up to 4 days (leftovers taste even better the next day!). Or, freeze this soup for up to 3 months.

Served this with fried garlic toast.

Roasted Tomato Soup

Ingredients

4 or 5 pounds Roma tomatoes - halved and roasted

3 cloves garlic - peeled

1½  TBSP olive oil

1 tsp salt - divided

Some freshly ground black pepper

1½ tsp butter

1 onion - sliced

½ cup fresh basil - plus more for serving

1 TBSP chicken bouillon concentrate

1 cup milk (your choice what kind)

½ tsp red chili flakes - plus more, if desired

optional croutons or crackers

Instructions

    Roast the tomatoes and garlic (400° for maybe 45 minutes).

    Sauté the onions in olive oil and butter. Sauté on lower heat for at least 10 minutes or until starting to brown and caramelize. Stir often.

    Add the tomatoes, fresh basil, broth, and red chili flakes to the pot. Bring to a low simmer, reduce heat to low. Add the oven-roasted tomatoes to the pot with their juices, and return to a simmer.

    Simmer. Simmer the soup uncovered and over low heat for approximately 20 minutes.

    Puree with an immersion blender. Avoid over-blending; you want some chunks. You may also use a stand blender.

    Season and serve. Return soup to your pot and season with additional salt and pepper, to taste. Garnish with fresh basil, croutons, or a splash of fresh cream, or crack an egg into a bowl of cool soup and microwave 4 or 5 minutes until egg is done.

Yummy!