Soup Recipes

Beef Noodle Soup

2 tablespoons oil
1/2 pound boneless beef sirloin steak, cut into thin strips
1/4 cup chopped green onion
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
3 cans (10-1/2 ounces each) condensed chicken broth
3 cups water
2 cups cooked vermicelli or very fine egg noodles

Heat Crisco in 3-quart saucepan. Add beef. Cook over medium-high heat until beef is browned.

Add onion. Cook, stirring occasionally, about 2 minutes, or until onion is tender. Stir in flour.

Add chicken broth and water. Heat to boiling, stirring occasionally. Reduce heat to low.

Simmer about 5 minutes.

Stir in noodles. Simmer until soup is heated through.

Makes 10 to 12 servings

Art Linkletter’s Minestrone Soup

2 servings cooking spray (2 seconds of spray)
1-1/2 tablespoons olive oil
6 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped
2 large Spanish onions, diced
6 carrots, scraped and diced
3 large celery stalks, sliced
1-1/2 teaspoons salt
1 medium cabbage (2 pounds), shredded
10 large kale leaves (2 ounces), chopped
1/2 teaspoon thyme
2 bay leaves, broken
3 quarts water
1 28-ounce can plum tomatoes
1 pound chickpeas, cooked
1 cup penne or small shells
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt

Lightly coat the bottom of a 10-quart pot with cooking spray. Heat olive oil; add garlic, onions, carrots, celery, and 1/2 teaspoon salt, and cook over low heat until onions are wilted but not brown. Add cabbage, kale, thyme, bay leaves, and remaining 1 teaspoon of salt. Increase heat, stirring constantly for about 1 minute; then add water, tomatoes, and chickpeas, and bring to a full boil. Lower heat and simmer, covered, for 45 minutes. Add the pasta and cook for an additional 15 minutes, or until pasta is tender. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Suggestion: Serve with a hearty multigrain bread. Garnish with carrot curls or fat-free grated cheese. Note: This soup freezes well and is a great “comfort food.”

Yield 12 servings

Amish Chicken Noodle Soup

3 lb. chicken
2 qts. water
2 tsp. salt
1 1/2 c. chicken stock
2 c. celery, chopped
2 c. carrots, chopped
1 tart apple, chopped
1 c. onions, chopped
Dash pepper
4 c. egg noodles

Place chicken in kettle with 2 quarts water. Cover until tender (about 2 1/2 hours). Remove chicken from kettle and strain broth. Debone chicken and return to kettle with strained broth.

Add chicken stock, celery, carrots, apple, onions, and pepper and cook until vegetables are tender.

Add noodles and cook 8-10 minutes.

Cheddar Con Cerveza Soup

3 qts. whole milk
1 qt. heavy cream
1 T. butter
1 leek, halved, white only, rinsed and coarsely chopped (use green tops for garnish)
1 lg shallot, coarsely chopped
1/2 C. celery, diced
1 T. garlic, fresh and chopped
1 T. dried whole thyme
1 t. kosher salt
1 t. ground white pepper
6 oz. Harp Lager Beer (or your favorite full-flavored beer)
6 C. Wisconsin Mild Cheddar Cheese, shredded

In a double boiler large enough to hold one gallon of soup, bring milk and cream to a simmer. Melt butter in a small pan and saute leek, shallot, celery, garlic, thyme, salt and pepper until lightly browned over medium-high heat.

Pour beer into pan and stir to loosen bits from bottom of pan. Remove from heat. Strain the mixture through a fine sieve into the double boiler and bring the mixture to a simmer. Don’t boil or the liquid will break. Gradually add the cheese, stirring constantly with a wire whisk until the cheese is thoroughly incorporated. Serve immediately.

Servings: 8

Pizza Medley Soup

10 C. water
1 lb. bulk Italian sausage, uncooked, crumbled
2 T. chicken base (stock concentrate paste)
1/2 t. garlic salt
1/2 t. pepper
1/2 t. dried basil
1/2 t. dried oregano
1/2 C. chopped onion
1/2 C. chopped celery
1/2 C. chopped carrots
1/2 C. chopped green pepper
2 C. rainbow rotini, uncooked
2 4-ounce cans sliced mushrooms
2 8-ounce packages pepperoni
1 C. green olives, drained
1 C. black olives, drained
10-3/4-ounce can tomato soup
5 (14-1/2-ounce) cans Italian style tomatoes
Shredded mozzarella cheese, for garnish

Put water in large soup kettle; bring to a boil and reduce heat to a simmer. Add the crumbled Italian sausage, chicken base, garlic salt, pepper, basil, oregano, onions, celery, carrots and green pepper. Simmer until the vegetables are tender, about 30 minutes.

In a separate pan, cook rotini according to package directions and set aside.

To the sausage mixture, add the mushrooms, pepperoni, green and black olives, tomato soup and tomatoes. If it appears too thick, add more water. Simmer for an additional 30 minutes, adding the cooked pasta at the end of the cooking time. Serve topped with mozzarella cheese, if desired.

Yield: 10-12 servings

Jalapeno Cheese Soup

6 cups chicken broth
8 celery stalks
2 cups onion
3/4 teaspoons garlic salt
1/4 teaspoon white pepper
2 pounds Velveeta cheese
1 cup diced jalapeno peppers
sour cream
flour tortillas

Dice celery stalks, onions and jalapenos.

Cut Velveeta into cubes.

In a large saucepan place the chicken broth, celery, onions, garlic salt and white pepper. Cook over high heat for 10 minutes, or until the mixture reduces and thickens slightly.

In a blender or food processor place the broth and the cheese. Puree them together until the mixture is smooth.

Return the pureed mixture to the saucepan and simmer it for 5 minutes. Add the diced peppers and mix them in well.

Serve with a dollop of sour cream and warm flour tortillas.

Log Cabin Family Restaurant Italian Sausage Soup

1 1/4 lbs. ground Italian sausage, broken into pieces
1/2 C. diced onions
5 C. water
1 1/4 lbs. (about) prepared pizza sauce
3/4 lb. (about) canned diced tomatoes in juice
3/4 t. Italian seasoning
1/2 t. granulated garlic
3/4 lb. sliced button mushrooms
1 1/4 lbs. cheese-filled tortellini, cooked (see note on right)
Tomato juice or water to thin (optional)
3/4 C. shredded mozzarella cheese
1/3 to 1/2 C. shredded Parmesan cheese

In large soup pot, brown sausage with onions. When sausage is cooked through, drain off all excess oil. Add water, pizza sauce, diced tomatoes, Italian seasoning, garlic, mushrooms and tortellini. Simmer over medium heat about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. If soup is too thick, add tomato juice or water to thin.

Just before serving, place mozzarella cheese in bottom of bowl. Pour hot soup over top and garnish top with Parmesan. Makes about 1 gallon.

Cream and Chive Potato Soup

1 1/4 lbs. russet potatoes, peeled and diced into 1/2-inch squares
3/4 C. butter
3/4 C. flour
3/8 lb. onion (about 1 medium), chopped
2 T. vegetable oil
7 C. water
1 bay leaf
2 T. chopped chives
1 T. chicken base
1 t. seasoning salt
1/4 t. black pepper
1/2 t. garlic powder
2 C. milk
1/2 C. half-and-half cream
1 1/2 C. sour cream
Croutons for garnish if desired

Cook potatoes until tender. Set aside.

Prepare roux:
Melt margarine in small saucepan over medium heat. Gradually whisk in flour until well combined. Cook over medium heat, stirring often, about 3 to 5 minutes or until mixture turns an almond color and is very creamy. Set aside.

To make soup:
In large kettle, saute onion in oil until soft. Add water, bay leaf, chives, chicken base, seasoning salt, pepper and garlic powder. Bring to boil. Whisk in milk and half-and-half, then prepared roux; cook, stirring frequently, until thickened. Add sour cream and potatoes. Simmer until soup reaches 160°F. Remove from heat and serve with croutons if desired.

Makes about 2 1/2 quarts

Creamy Roasted Garlic and Potato Chowder

2 C. low-fat milk
1 1/2 C. water
3 bouillon cubes, chicken or garlic chicken flavored
1 C. diced potatoes
1/2 C. fresh or frozen whole kernel corn, thawed
1/4 C. light roasted garlic flavored cream cheese
1 1/4 C. instant mashed potato flakes
1/4 C. finely shredded cheddar cheese
1/4 C. sliced green onions
1/4 C. crumbled bacon bits

In a saucepan, bring milk, water, bouillon and potatoes to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 5 to 8 minutes or until potatoes are tender.

Stir in corn, cream cheese and instant potato flakes. Heat over low heat until warmed through. Ladle chowder into bowls. Top with cheddar cheese, green onions and bacon.

Servings: 4

Sugar Pumpkin Bisque

1 t. allspice
1 t. clove
1 t. Chinese 5-spice powder
1 t. curry
1 t. cumin
1 t. star anise powder
1/4 C. butter
2 C. molasses
1 vanilla bean, split and scraped
1/2 C. brown sugar
7 sugar pumpkins (1 lb. each)
Olive oil
1 Vidalia onion, peeled and julienned
Salt and pepper
2 qt. chicken broth (or water)
1 C. creme fraiche (or sour cream)

In a medium saucepan, toast the spices over medium heat until they are aromatic, 1-2 minutes. Add the butter, molasses, vanilla bean and brown sugar. Turn heat to low and simmer for about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat and cool. Discard vanilla bean.

While sugar mixture is simmering, cut tops off 6 pumpkins and remove the inner seeds. Reserve the seeds. Place pumpkins on greased baking sheet cut side up.

Peel the seventh pumpkin. Cut off the top and bottom. Cut in half, clean and remove seeds and reserve. Then dice meat, coat in olive oil, salt and pepper and roast in 350-degree oven until tender, 10-15 minutes. Cool and reserve for garnish.

Clean all of the seeds by rinsing under cold water. Toss with olive oil, salt and pepper. Roast in 350-degree oven until dry and toasted, 5-7 minutes. Cool and reserve for garnish.

Once the sugar mixture is cool, pour into the remaining 6 pumpkins. Bake in 350-degree oven for about 1 hour or until tender. When pumpkins are cool enough to handle, remove liquid into a container and reserve. Scrape all edible meat away from pumpkin skin and reserve. In a large stockpot, saute the onions in 2 T. olive oil until tender, 2-3 minutes. Add all the pumpkin meat, the reserved sugar liquid and just enough chicken broth or water to cover. Simmer for 1 hour.

In manageable portions, in a food processor or blender, puree the contents of the stockpot and the creme fraiche or sour cream. Season with salt and pepper.

Reheat soup gently, divide among 10 bowls and garnish with warmed diced pumpkin and toasted seeds.

Makes 10 servings

Cream of Cabbage Soup

1 medium head of cabbage, chopped fine
1 medium onion, chopped fine
1/3 C. finely chopped carrot
4 to 6 C. water
6 to 7 slices bacon, fried crisp, drained and crumbled
2 (10 oz.) cans cream of chicken soup
2 C. whole milk
About 1/2 C. instant potato flakes or 1 - 1/2 C. leftover mashed potatoes
Salt and pepper, to taste

Finely chop the cabbage, onion and carrot in a food processor.

Put mixture in a large saucepan and add water. Cover and cook until vegetables are tender. Do not drain.

Add crumbled bacon, cream of chicken soup and milk. Stir well and heat. Add potato flakes, salt and pepper. Cover and simmer until thickened.

Serves 10 - 12

Milwaukee Grill Cream of Mushroom Soup

1 cup (2 sticks) butter
1 cup flour
4 slices of bacon, chopped
1 large yellow onion, chopped
1/4 cup of good quality Chardonnay
8 ounces sliced fresh mushrooms (more if desired)
1/2 cup whipping cream
1/2 cup sour cream
8 cups water
2 tablespoons mushroom base

Prepare roux first: Melt butter in medium saucepan. Slowly add flour, whisking to combine. Simmer over low heat about 10 to 12 minutes to cook off starch. Remove from heat and set aside.

To hot stock pot, add bacon and cook until browned. Add onions and wine. Saute 10 minutes. Add mushrooms and saute 10 minutes. Add cream, sour cream, water and base. Bring to boil. Reduce heat and simmer 30 minutes.

Add roux in batches, whisking each in and cooking to thicken. Soup should heavily coat back of spoon. Makes 6 to 8 servings.

Creamy Spicy Cauliflower Soup

1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 medium onion, coarsely chopped
2 cloves garlic, or as much as you like, chopped
2 medium potatoes, unpeeled
1 head cauliflower Salt and pepper
4 ounces canned mild green chiles
1 fresh jalapeño pepper, or to taste
3 to 4 cups chicken broth or water
1 cup grated sharp Cheddar cheese (or cheese you like)

Heat oil in a wide, deep skillet or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add onion to the pan. Cook about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Add garlic, stir and continue to cook as you chop potatoes in 1-inch chunks and add them to the pan. (You can peel the potatoes if you like, but when they are blended, the skins virtually disappear into tiny specks that don’t impair the creaminess of the soup.)

Trim cauliflower into pieces about as big as the potatoes. When the potatoes have cooked 10 minutes, add the cauliflower, lots of salt and pepper and green chiles.

Trim the stem from the jalapeño, mince the pepper and add as much of it as you like.

Add chicken broth or enough water to make 6 cups of liquid. Bring to a boil, lower heat to simmer, cover and cook 15 minutes. Potatoes and cauliflower should be tender.

Remove from heat. Working in several batches, add soup to a large mixing bowl and blend until smooth. Return all blended soup to pan and heat to boiling, adding more liquid (water, broth, milk or cream) if you think it’s necessary.

When the soup is hot throughout, remove from heat and stir in the cheese. Alternatively, you can serve the soup with the cheese sprinkled on top. You might like to add more cheese.

Makes 4 to 6 servings.

Variation: For curried cauliflower soup, omit the cheese and add 2 teaspoons of curry powder while cooking the onion. Serve with a dab of chutney and sour cream, if preferred.

Kentucky Hot Brown Soup

1/4 cup butter or margarine
1/4 cup minced onion
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
1/4 teaspoon hot sauce
4 cups milk
1 cup (4 ounces) shredded sharp Cheddar cheese
1/2 cup chopped cooked ham
1/2 cup chopped cooked turkey
Toppings: crumbled bacon, chopped tomato, chopped fresh parsley

Melt butter in a Dutch oven over medium heat. Add onion; sauté until tender.

Add flour, garlic salt, and hot sauce; cook, stirring constantly, for 1 minute. Gradually stir in milk; cook until thickened and bubbly.

Reduce heat; stir in cheese until melted. Add ham and turkey; cook, stirring occasionally, until heated. (Do not boil.)

Serve with desired toppings.

Yield: 5 cups

Cream of Cauliflower Soup with Crispy Prosciutto and Parmesan

2 large cauliflowers (about 2 pounds each)
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
3 cups chopped leeks, white and light-green parts only (3 to 4 medium leeks)
8 cups chicken stock
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese, preferably Parmigiano-Reggiano, divided
½ cup creme fraiche
Salt, preferably kosher
1/4 pound prosciutto, thinly sliced
1 tablespoon olive oil
½ cup chopped flat-leaf parsley

Cut cauliflowers into florets to yield about 12 cups.

Melt butter in a large, heavy, deep-sided pot (with a lid) over medium-high heat.

Add leeks and saute, stirring until softened, 4 to 5 minutes. Add cauliflower florets, chicken stock and cayenne pepper. Bring to a simmer, stirring occasionally, then reduce heat to a gentle simmer and cover pot with a lid. Cook until vegetables are very tender, about 20 minutes.

Puree soup in the pan using a stick blender or transfer it in batches to a food processor or blender. Whisk in half of the cheese and all of the creme fraiche. Season soup with salt to taste, if needed.

Slice prosciutto into strips about 3 to 4 inches long and 1/4 inch wide. Heat olive oil in a medium skillet over medium heat.
When hot, add prosciutto and saute, stirring constantly, until crisp and browned, 4 to 5 minutes. Remove and drain on paper towels.

Ladle soup into 6 soup bowls, and garnish each serving with some prosciutto and parsley. Then sprinkle each with some of the remaining Parmesan cheese.

Makes 6 servings.

Cream of Mushroom with Brie Soup

1 bunch green onions, chopped
4 tablespoons shallots
1 1/2 cups fresh sliced mushrooms
1 tablespoon butter
6 tablespoons sherry
6 cups chicken broth
2 cups half-and-half
6 ounces brie cheese, rind removed
2 tablespoons cornstarch (more, or less, depending on how thick you want the soup)
2 tablespoons water to mix with cornstarch
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/3 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon salt

Saute onions, shallots and mushrooms in butter. Add sherry and chicken broth. Simmer for at least 10 minutes. Before adding the cheese, remove the rind. Add the cream and cheese.

Simmer the soup, whisking until the cheese melts and is smooth. Mix cornstarch with water and whisk into the soup to thicken. Bring to a soft rolling boil and remove from the heat. Add pepper, nutmeg and salt at this time.

Serve with French bread and salad for a heart-warming meal.

Crab Vichyssoise

1 Dungeness crab, cooked and cleaned
3 C. chicken stock
3 T. butter
4 leeks, white part only, thoroughly cleaned and sliced into thin rounds
1 small yellow onion, peeled and diced
2 lbs. (about 4 large) russet potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced
3 C. water
1 C. heavy cream
kosher salt
white pepper in a mill
lemon-scented olive oil
1 T. fresh lemon zest, minced or grated
1 T. fresh snipped chives or minced Italian parsley

Crack the crab shells and pick out the meat, being careful to leave the legs intact. Put the body meat in a bowl, set the leg meat on top, cover, and chill until ready to serve. Save the shells.

Pour the chicken broth or stock into a medium soup pot, add 3 cups of water and the crab shells. Bring to a boil over high heat, reduce the heat to low, and simmer for 20 minutes. Strain the liquid and discard the shells.

In a large heavy pot, melt the butter until it is foamy, add the leeks, and sauté over medium-low heat until they are wilted. Add the onion, and sauté until soft and fragrant, about 12 minutes. Add the potatoes, sauté 2 minutes, pour in the crab shell stock, bring to a boil, reduce the heat, and simmer until the potatoes are tender, about 15 to 20 minutes.

Using an immersion blender, thoroughly purée the soup. (Alternately, pass through a food mill or purée it in a blender). Strain through a sieve and refrigerate until thoroughly chilled, at least two hours.

Remove from the refrigerator, add the cream, taste, and season with salt and white pepper. Fold in the body meat of the crab and ladle into chilled soup plates. Set one or two crab legs on top of each serving of soup, and drizzle with a little of the olive oil. Sprinkle with lemon zest and chives, and serve immediately.

Serves 4 - 6

Seafood Treasure Basket Soup

2 cups chicken broth
2 ounces shrimp
2 ounces squid
2 ounces scallops
2 ounces sliced fish fillets
1/4 cup chopped tomato
1 teaspoon chicken-broth granules
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup chopped carrots
1/4 cup green peas
1 teaspoon sugar
1/8 cup chopped fresh ginger

Noodle basket:
2 cups vegetable oil (or enough to deep-fry noodle blocks)
4 packages (3 ounces each) Asian or ramen noodles
2 large lettuce leaves for garnish

In a stockpot, combine chicken broth, shrimp, squid, scallops and fish fillet pieces. Bring to boil over medium-high heat and cook 6 to 8 minutes. Add tomato, chicken-broth granules, salt, carrots, peas, sugar and ginger and cook for 6 to 8 minutes longer.

Keeping the broth in the stockpot, strain the seafood mixture into a medium frying pan and set aside. Return the broth to medium-high heat. Cook until broth is reduced, then keep warm.

Fry the seafood mixture over medium heat for 2 to 3 minutes, then keep warm.

Noodle basket: In a medium saucepan or deep fryer, heat oil over medium heat. Open 4 packages of Asian or ramen noodles, removing any flavor packets. Working carefully to keep the noodles in the block shape, immerse blocks one at a time in oil and fry until lightly browned and firm. Remove noodle blocks from oil and drain on paper towels. Create a noodle bowl by placing noodle blocks in a circle along the sides of a medium bowl.

Add the seafood mixture to the warm, reduced stock and stir to combine. Pour the mixture into the noodle bowl.

To serve, place lettuce leaves on a plate and place noodle bowl on top of lettuce.

Makes 4 servings.

Steamed Pierogi Soup

For the broth:

1 4 1/2-5-pound fresh young chicken, giblets removed
8 cups cold water
8 3-Inch pieces celery
1 small carrot, unpeeled, halved
1 small yellow onion, unpeeled, halved
3 medium-sized garlic cloves, halved
1 small bay leaf
About 2 teaspoons salt, or more to taste
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 tablespoon extra-lite olive oil
9 small yellow onions, peeled, halved, sliced thin (about 3 cups)
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
1/4 teaspoon salt

For the pierogi:
3 small Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled, cubed (about 1 1/2 cups)
3 ounces sharp Cheddar cheese, grated (about 1 1/2 cups)
32 wonton wrappers

Place chicken, water, celery, carrot, small onion, garlic and bay leaf in large stockpot, bring to a boil over high heat, cover, reduce heat to low, then simmer for 2 hours.

Remove chicken, save for another use. Remove and discard vegetables and bay leaf. Strain broth through sieve lined with cheesecloth. Add salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper; set aside.

Heat butter and oil in medium-sized skillet over low heat. Add sliced onion and cook slowly for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add sugar, thyme and 1/4 teaspoon salt and cook over low heat for another 30 minutes. Add to broth.

For the pierogi: Place potato cubes in small pot, cover with cold water and bring to a boil over high heat. Cover, reduce heat to low and cook for 15 minutes. Drain cooked potatoes, return to pot, mash and stir in grated cheese.

Fill each wonton wrapper with 1 teaspoon filling, fold according to package instructions. Keep prepared pierogi under damp dishtowel to keep from drying out while you work.

Fill bottom of broiler pan with 6 cups hot water, place on top of two stove burners, bring to a boil. Lightly spray top of broiler pan with nonstick spray. Arrange pierogi on pan so they are not touching. Place over hot water, cover with foil, reduce heat to low and steam 25 minutes. (Alternately, you can use a Chinese steamer, which worked fine, too.) Add to broth.

Note: Do not boil; simmer only. It’s best to add hot pierogies to broth and serve immediately.

Makes 8 servings of 1 cup broth and 4 pierogies each.

Chicken Corn Rivel Soup

3 - 4 lb. stewing chicken
2 T. salt
1/4 t. pepper
1 1/2 C. celery chopped
1 medium onion chopped
2 T. minced parsley
1 quart corn (fresh, frozen or canned)

In a large kettle, cover chicken with water. Add salt and pepper. Cook until tender. Remove meat from the chicken and cut up into small pieces. Set aside.

Heat the broth to boiling and add the vegetables. Cook for 15 minutes. Add rivels.

Rivels

1 C. flour
1 egg
1/4 C. milk

Combine flour and egg. Add milk. Mix rivels by cutting with two forks to make crumbs the size of cherry stones. Drop rivels into boiling broth while stirring to prevent rivels from sticking together.

Add the chicken back to the pot. Garnish with parsley or grated hard boiled egg.

Serves 8 - 10