Chicken and Blackbean Soup

I saw a crock pot recipe for a chicken, salsa and blackbean soup and decided that that was what I was going to have for dinner tonight. But I wanted to use my leftover rotisserie chicken and I didn't want to use the crockpot. So after unsuccessfully trying to find a recipe I wanted to use here's what I came up with. The ingredient list is kinda long...but if you have a well stocked pantry you should have most everything on hand.

2 cups diced cooked chicken (I just tore the chicken into smallish pieces)
2 cans chicken broth
1 can of water
1.5 tbs cumin
1 tbs chili powder
1 tsp mexican oregano (optional)
2 cans black beans rinsed
1 can corn
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
4 cloves garlic minced
1 tbs olive oil
1 tbs hot sauce (optional)
2 cups salsa (I used Old El Paso)
optional add-ins:
cooked brown rice
sour cream
shredded cheddar
chopped green onions

In a large pot saute the garlic in the olive oil for about 3 minutes. Add the chicken broth plus fill one can with water and add to the pot. Add the black beans. Using a potato masher mash the black beans to your preferred consistency (I also added 1 extra can of black beans I had run through the blender to make the soup thicker). Add all other ingredients except the add-ins. Bring to a boil then turn down the heat and let simmer for 30-45 mins. Put rice on the bottom of your bowl then spoon in the soup and top with sour cream, cheese, and onions. Enjoy!

NOTE- I made two seperate pots of this. Once I added everything but the meat I set aside a small pot for the Vegetarian. Instead of adding chicken I added 2 veggie bugers that I had cut up. In retrospect I would have just added one to such a small pot. Though honestly, it really didn't need anything extra since I had already added that extra can of beans. We all loved it. And the Veggie's friend ate 2 bowls...which is a big deal, this boy eats like a bird. My toddler loved it, and it didn't take near as long to have her finish her dinner than the usual days. This is definately something we'll make again.

Chicken Curry Soup

I made this last night for the sick vegetarian staying with us. Her friend...who's a boy (but don't say boyfriend)...took her to the ER yesterday b/c she had a high fever and was feeling awful. Knowing they'd be there for quite a while and would be hungry when they came back I made this soup for her. It's pretty good. I liked it. I didn't add chicken but I would next time I make it for the rest of us.

1 cup thinly sliced chicken breast (this is easier to do if the meat is a slightly frozen)
2 tbs olive oil
2 cups chicken stock (or vegetable stock)
2 cups water
1 chicken or veggie bullion cube
2.5-3 tbs curry powder
1/2 tbs parsley
4 cloves smashed garlic
1 clove smashed and minced garlic
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1/2 butternut squash diced into larger pieces
1 med sweet potato diced
1 large diced carrot
1 small onion, diced
1 stalk celery diced

saute the chicken on med-high heat with salt and pepper and 1 clove of minced garlic until no longer pink. Add the rest of the ingredients and bring to a boil. Let simmer for 30 mins or until veggies are soft.

NOTE-My vegetarian doesn't mind chicken stock but to make this truly vegetarian stick with vegetable stock. You can also substitute the chicken for Quorn chik'n tenders or tofu. This soup isn't spicy but it has a lot of flavor and is perfect for what ails ya.

Peppery Potato Soup (Crock Pot)

2 cans chicken broth
4 small baking potatoes, halved and sliced crosswise
1 large onion, quartered and sliced
1 stalk celery, sliced
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 cup half and half
1/4 c all purpose flour
1 tbsp butter

Combine broth, potatoes, onion, celery, salt and pepper in Crock Pot and mix well. Cook on LOW 6-7 hours. Stir half and half into flour; stir mixture into slow cooker. Cover and cook one hour. Slightly mash potato mixture with potato masher. Cook uncovered 30 minutes or until slightly thickened. Just before serving, stir in butter. Garnish with celery leaves and parsley if desired.

Chicken Noodle Soup

It's been way too long since my last post. I've made plenty of yummy meals thinking "I need to blog this!" But I'm a procrastinator and I can't remember most of what I wanted to post. So I was determined to post this since we all loved it! And since my resident vegetarian has been MIA this week I could devote all my attention to a yummy meat filled meal! :)

This was adapted from a recipe in my Betty Crocker cookbook (I love that cookbook!)

Total prep/cook time: appx 1 hr 30 mins

3-3 1/2 lbs cut up chicken (I had 3 1/2 lbs of fresh bone-in breasts so I used those)
6 cups cold water
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
2 chopped stalk celery
2 chopped medium carrots
1 chopped small onion (I roughly chopped it)
2 sprigs of thyme
1 tbs chicken bouillion granules
4 cloves of garlic-smashed but not crushed
1 cup of chopped asparagus
1-1 1/2 cup of egg noodles
1 cup boxed chicken stock (optional)

Start by making the chicken and broth. Now, really you're supposed to make the broth, discard the veggies, cut new veggies and make the soup. But I thought that was a waste of veggies and time. Remove excess fat from chicken, place chicken (giblets-except liver, and neck if you're using a whole cut up chicken) in a 4 quart pot. add remaining ingredients except noodles and asparagus and heat to boiling. Skim any foam from the broth and reduce heat. Cover and simmer for about 45 mins or until chicken is fully cooked (use a meat thermometer or check if juices run clear). Remove chicken from the broth and debone. Using only breasts really helped this process go quickly. You might want to let the chicken cool...my poor fingers. waiting for the chicken to cool is a good time to skim the fat from the broth. Cube chicken then add back to the pot. Add the noodles and asparagus and heat to boiling then reduce the heat and allow to simmer uncovered for 7-10 minutes or when noodles are soft. Serve with bread or crackers (my daughter loved that I added goldfish crackers to swim in her soup).

Note: Now, when I made this I had a box of chicken stock in my fridge and I didn't feel like I had enough "juice" (as my daughter would say) once I added the noodles. So I added probably a cup of stock. Then today when we reheated it I added another cup of stock. It was chock full of chicken and noodles and so yummy and really didn't take much effort! Next time I might add shredded cabbage and/or squash just to play around with it a little. I hope you enjoy this recipe!!

Chicken Noodle Soup

4 chicken breasts boiled and cut into pieces
2 qt water
8 chicken bouillon cubes
5-6 cups egg noodles
2 cans cream of chicken soup
1 8 oz sour cream

Bring water to boil, add bouillon cubes. Add egg noodles and cook until tender, about 10 minutes. Add soup and heat thoroughly. Add chicken. Just before serving stir in sour cream. This recipe is from a lady at our church, delicious!

Cowboy Stew

2 lb. ground chuck
2 large onions
2 cans diced tomatoes
2 cans Ro-Tel tomatoes
2 cans cream-style corn
2 cans mixed vegetables (drained)

Brown ground chuck and onions together. Drain any excess grease. Add all other ingredients. Simmer on stove medium heat for 90 minutes or in crockpot on low for a few hours. Serve with crackers.

*Variations- You can also add two cans of Spanish rice if you like, I prefer it without the rice though. For you veggies out there you can use the ground "meat" crumbles.

My mouth is really set for this soup but it's just too hot right now! The first cold snap we have I am making this!

Hearty Vegetable Stew

My plan tonight was to make vegetarian chili...but after talking to Steph she had me craving Vegetable soup. My problem was that it's the day before payday and I've already gone WAY over my budget for groceries this month. This recipe could also be called "End of the month whatever I have left over Vegetable stew". You can throw in whatever you have on hand...well almost ;). Normally I would use a broth as the base but I have a vegetarian in the house and all I had was either chicken or beef broth, no vegetable broth. So I compromised and it turned out great!

3 ribs celery
1 small onion
1/2 a poblano pepper
1 bag frozen veggies or 3 cups fresh veggies
5 cups of low sodium V8 juice or other vegetable/tomato juice
3 cups water
1 cup of barley
1 can pinto beans
1 can diced tomatoes
1 cup frozen diced potatoes (I used O'brien hashbrowns)
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
1/4 tsp celery salt (optional)
1/2 tsp basil
1/2 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp thyme
1/2 tsp cumin
1 tsp onion powder (optional)
2 large bay leaves
2-3 cloves of garlic (crushed or chopped)
2 tbs of butter or olive oil
1 cup of morning star "meat" crumbles (optional)

Heat butter or olive oil over medium heat in a stock pot. Saute celery, onions, poblano pepper and other fresh veggies for 3 minutes. Add water and V8 juice and the rest of the ingredients except the meat crumbles. Set heat to high and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and allow to simmer for an additional 30-40 minutes until barley and veggies are tender. During the last 10 minutes throw in the crumbles. Taste and add spices as needed. Enjoy!!

Note: I'm also cooking for a toddler so I have to watch the heat...However, the rest of us love to heat up our dishes with hot sauce. So I simply put out the hot sauce for each person to add according to their taste. If this was an adult only meal I would have added several hearty dashes of hot sauce to the stew. Also, I actually probably added a lot more salt and pepper than I mentioned in my recipe. So you might want to play around with the spices and continue to check. If you used canned veggies you'll need less salt b/c of the sodium content in canned vegetables.

Speaking of spices...I know this recipe calls for a lot of different spices..and many of my recipes might. I'm always buying new spices to stock my rack so that I'm never lacking spices. lol, in fact I bribed the movers with Pizza to allow me to pack my spices when I moved from Germany. If you don't have all the spices, that's ok...use what you have and improvise. But I do recommend stocking up here and there with different spices or at least investing in a good spice rack that comes with the spices. You can find them for $20+.

Turkey Vegetable Soup

I was in a rush to find something yummy and quick for supper. I had a package of skinless chicken thighs (and already have plans for them) and 2lbs of ground turkey. Having just a few choices mean you have to be creative. The following recipe can be followed, but really it should serve as a guideline to just help you think of things to use to help you create your own soup.

1 lb browned ground turkey
3+ cups chicken broth or vegetable broth
3 chopped and steamed carrots
1 can diced tomatoes
1 can diced tomatoes w/ green chiles
1/2 red bell pepper
2 stalks of celery chopped
Leftover corn from last night
2 cans tomato sauce
3 chopped garlic cloves
chopped onion
Freshly ground pepper

Allow it to simmer for a while.

I wish I had had either potatoes or beans to throw in there. Black beans would have been fabulous. Any left over veggies that you have in your fridge that would blend well could be added.

I topped it w/ grated cheddar. YUMMY!



I know for a fact that Jammie's making her own Veggie Stew tonight, so hopefully we can get her to post it soon! :D

Spicy Black Bean Chicken Soup

Spicy Black Bean Chicken Soup

Shredded boneless skinless cooked chicken (I usually just use leftover chicken from the past night or so.)
2 drained and rinsed cans of black beans
1 can of chicken broth
1-2 cans of rotel (according to taste)
Occasionally I add corn.
Garlic salt
Onion powder
Pepper

Combine in pot and simmer for 30 minutes.