The temperature is dropping, and food prices are going up! Time for Soup for supper! No, not canned soup. Hearty soup you can make with the ingredients you like, and cooked for a taste everyone will enjoy! It’s easy: Everything in one pot. Soup can warm you and your family up in a hurry while it fills your home with delicious smells. It’s a simple way to give your family a hearty, healthy meal full of veggies. Also great way to use up leftovers! With meat or without meat, soup has tasty warmth for a chilly day, especially when you need a hearty meal in a hurry.
Winter veggies are great for delicious, hardy soups: Leeks, onions, parsnips, carrots, beets, broccoli, sweet potatoes, squash, and peppers. Start with the basics and then add what you like:
Chop an onion, some celery, and a couple of sliced carrots. Cook in a tablespoon of olive oil until the onion is soft. Include some garlic in the mixture if you want.
Add a few cups of veggie or chicken broth & bring to a boil.
Add “hard” veggies like parsnips, potatoes, leeks, or cabbage.
Season with a bay leaf & a pinch of thyme, or any of your favorite spices.
Simmer until the veggies are slightly soft. About 15-20 minutes.
Add broccoli or green beans (soft veggies) in the last 5 minutes.
TIP: Don’t overcook the veggies. They’ll get mushy & the soup loses taste.
Taste and season it the way you like it.
“Play” with your soup. Want more protein? Add cooked beans. Brown chunks of chicken or beef first; set the meat aside & add in the last 5 minutes. Try the recipe below!
What do you get? Delicious warmth, a dish you made for your own taste, a meal you can make any time and serve when you need it, hearty nutrition with a big dose of vitamins and energy, and some $$ saved in your food budget!
Comfort Soup & Supper
RECIPE: HEARTY VEGETABLE SOUP
Make it with or without meat
INGREDIENTS:
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 cup chopped yellow onion
1 cup chopped red bell pepper & 1 cup chopped yellow bell pepper
1½ tablespoons minced garlic
2½ teaspoons chili powder
1½ teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon smoked paprika (optional)
½ teaspoon dried oregano
4 cups chicken broth
2 (14.5-ounce) cans of fire-roasted diced tomatoes, undrained
1 (15-ounce) can black beans, rinsed
⅓ cup chopped fresh cilantro
2 tablespoons lime juice
2 cups shredded cooked chicken (optional)
TO MAKE:
NOTE: If using meat, cook it before you make soup.
Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add 1 cup each onion, red bell pepper, and yellow bell pepper; cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 5 minutes.
Add garlic, chili powder, cumin, paprika, and oregano; continue cooking, stirring constantly, until fragrant, 1 to 2 minutes.
Stir in chicken broth, undrained tomatoes, rinsed black beans, cilantro & lime juice. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer, uncovered and stirring occasionally, until the flavors blend, about 20 minutes.
Adding Meat? Stir in 2 cups of cooked, shredded chicken; simmer, undisturbed, for 5 minutes. Check the taste for salt & pepper.
TIPS AND TRICKS
PREPARATION: Cut up pepper, onion & chicken. Place in airtight plastic bags in the fridge up to a day before. You’ll be ready to go when you want to make the soup
THICKER Soup: A teaspoon of cornstarch dissolved in about 1/3 cup of broth can thicken your soup. Dissolving the cornstarch before you stir it into the soup prevents lumps.
HEARTIER Soup: Add cooked rice or noodles for a heartier dish. Cook separately & add at the end so rice & noodles don’t get “mushy.”
BUDGET HELP: Use beans instead of chicken or beef for good protein and save you $$. Beans give you fiber for healthy digestion, antioxidants for better health, and fewer calories.
MAKE IT FANCY BEFORE YOU SERVE: Add ½ Tablespoon sour cream, slices of avocado, and a few tortilla chips to each bowl.
STORAGE: Soup keeps well up to 5 days in an airtight container in the fridge. The flavor even gets better!
SOUP SIDE DISHES:
Dippers for Soup: Got some stale bread? Toast it up. Cut it into finger-sized strips and serve with soup. Delicious dunked into soup.
Crunchy Salad: Try fast & easy Carrot, Beet & Apple salad. Shred or cut into small pieces 1 large beet, 3 carrots, and 2 apples. Mix with 1 tsp olive oil & 3 tsp apple cider vinegar. Tangy, crunchy, full of healthy flavor.
WARMING - UP WITH SOUP: ENJOY!