Slow Cooker Lentil and Ham Soup
I found this online when I was looking for a low-cal way to use
leftover ham. It makes a
delicious, hearty stew and it’s only 222 calories/serving.
1 cup dried lentils
1 cup chopped celery
1 cup chopped carrots
1 cup chopped onions
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 ½ cups diced cooked ham (I also threw in the bone)
½ tsp. dried basil (1 used abt. 2 tsp. fresh basil)
¼ tsp. dried thyme
½ tsp. dried oregano
1 bay leaf
¼ tsp. black pepper
32 oz. chicken broth
1 cup water (I used 2 cups)
8 tsp. tomato sauce (I used a can of diced tomatoes)
In a slow cooker, combine all ingredients and stir. Cover and cook on low for 11
hours. Discard the bay leaf before
serving.
Harvest
Cream Soup
From
Pampered Chef. It’s a simple,
yummy vegetarian soup. The ginger
adds a great, subtle flavor.
1 butternut squash (1 lb.)
2 large leeks (white and light green portions
only)
1 lb. baby carrots (about 3 cups)
1 Tbsp. oil
1 garlic clove, pressed
salt and pepper, to taste
2 cans (14 oz. each) chicken broth
1 can (12 oz) evaporated whole milk (I used
non-fat and you can’t tell the difference)
1 1-inch fresh gingerroot, grated
Preheat oven to 450°.
Peel squash and cut into 1” pieces. Cut leeks in half lengthwise, then into 2” pieces. Combine squash, leeks, carrots and oil
in large bowl. Press garlic into
mixing bowl with garlic press; toss to coat. Season with salt and pepper. Arrange vegetables in a single layer on a baking sheet. Bake 40-45 minutes or until vegetables
are tender and deep golden brown (I covered them with foil part way through
because the leeks were burning).
Combine half of the vegetables and 1 can of broth in blender or food
processor. Cover and blend until
smooth. Pour into a pot and repeat
with remaining vegetables and broth.
Add evaporated milk to pot.
Cook over medium heat 5-6 minutes or until heated through, stirring
occasionally. Grate
gingerroot. Gather in hand and
squeeze juice into a small bowl or press through a sieve and collect
juice. Stir juice into soup just
before serving. Season to taste
with salt and pepper. Swirl sour
cream into individual bowls, if desired.
6 servings (about 7.5 cups)
After-Thanksgiving
Turkey Soup
This
is from the Taste of Home. I made
it healthier by using skim milk instead of cream, reduced the butter to about 1
tsp. and replaced the long grain rice with brown rice. I also made it quicker by using chicken
broth and chopped turkey instead of the turkey carcass.
1 leftover turkey carcass (from a 12-14 lb.
turkey)
3 medium onions, chopped
2 large carrots, diced
2 celery ribs, diced
1 cup butter, cubed
1 cup flour
1 cup flour
2 cups half-and-half cream
1 cup uncooked long grain rice
2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. chicken bouillon granules
¾ tsp pepper
(I added 1-2 tsp. ground sage)
Place turkey carcass in a soup kettle or
Dutch oven and cover with water.
Bring to a boil. Reduce
heat; cover and simmer for 1 hour.
Remove carcass; cool. Set
aside 3 qt. broth. Remove turkey
from bones and cut into bite-size pieces; set aside. In a soup kettle or Dutch oven, sauté the onions, carrots
and celery in butter until tender.
Reduce heat; stir in flour and ground sage until blended. Gradually add 1 qt. of reserved broth. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2
minutes or until thickened. Add
cream, rice, salt, bouillon, pepper, remaining broth and reserved turkey. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 30-35
minutes or until rice is tender.
Yield: 16 servings.
Cheese
& Broccoli Soup
Steven
fell in love with this when he had it at the Reber’s house. It’s one of his favorite meals. If I’m trying to make it healthier, I
cut the butter to 2 Tbsp. and use skim milk instead of ½ & ½.
1 large bunch broccoli (abt. 3 heads)
2 carrots, diced or sliced thin
1 14-oz. cans chicken broth
¾ cube butter
½ cup diced white onion
¾ cup flour
1 ¼-1 ½ cups ½ & ½
½-1 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
2½ cups cheddar cheese, grated
salt & pepper to taste
Cut broccoli into bite-sized pieces. Place in pot with carrots. Pour chicken broth over broccoli and
carrots. Cook until tender, but
broccoli is still bright green Set
aside. In large sauce pan, melt
butter and add onions. Stir until
tender. Add flour. Gradually add ½ & ½ to butter
mixture. Stir until it thickens
like white gravy. Add grated
cheese and Worcestershire sauce to white sauce. Stir cheese in until melted. Add broccoli and chicken broth to white sauce. Let simmer on low for 8-10 minutes. Makes about 6 servings.
Beef
Stew
I
found this on the internet. It’s
delicious! We used good quality
meat (ribeye instead of stewmeat)—I think that really makes a difference.
2 pounds cubed beef stew meat (ribeye)
¼ cup flour
1 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. onion powder,
½ tsp. ground black pepper
3 Tbsp. vegetable oil
4 cubes beef bouillon (I used beef Better
Than Bouillon)
4 cups water
1 tsp. dried rosemary (or Pampered Chef
rosemary seasoning)
1 tsp. dried parsley
½ tsp. ground black pepper
6-8 red potatoes, quartered
4 carrots, cut into 1” pieces
4 stalks celery, cut into 1” pieces (we left
this out)
1 large onion, chopped
2 tsp. cornstarch
2 tsp. cold water
1 Tbsp. catsup
1 Tbsp. A1 sauce
1 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
In a gallon zip-loc bag, place meat, flour,
garlic powder, onion powder, and ½ tsp. pepper. Shake until meat is coated. In a large pan or dutch oven, heat vegetable oil. Cook meat until seared on all
sides. Dissolve bouillon (or
Better Than Bouillon) in water and pour into pot. Stir in rosemary, parsley and remaining pepper. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat,
cover and simmer 1 hour. Stir in
vegetables. Dissolve cornstarch in
2 tsp. water and stir into stew.
Add catsup, A1, and Worcestershire sauce. Cover and simmer 1 hour more. Add additional water, bouillon, vegetables and/or cornstarch
as needed/desired. Serves 10.
Slow Cooker Turkey &
White Bean Chili
I found this recipe on the
internet. The first time I made it, I used a rotisserie chicken instead
of the turkey and reduced the peppers to 1 (with no seeds or membranes).
It was still very mild for the kids.
1 Tbsp. vegetable oil
2 lbs. boneless turkey breast
2 onions, chopped
4 gloves garlic, minced
1 15-oz. can cannellini (white) beans, drained
1 29-oz. can white hominy, drained
3 14-oz. cans low-sodium chicken broth
3 15-oz. cans cannellini (white) beans, drained
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1 1/2 Tbsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. Cajun seasoning
3 serrano chile peppers
Heat
the vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium heat and pan-fry the turkey
breast until the meat is no longer pink, about 10 minutes per side.
Transfer the turkey breast into a bowl to cool; shred it with 2 forks.
Set the turkey meat aside. In the same skillet, cook the onions and
garlic over medium heat until the onion is translucent, about 5 minutes; scrape
the onions and garlic, along with any drippings into the bowl with the
turkey. Place 1 can of cannellini beans, the hominy and the chicken broth
into a slow cooker. With an immersion blender, blend the mixture until
smooth. (I put the beans, hominy and chicken broth in a blender and
blended until smooth, then poured it into the slow cooker). Transfer the
shredded turkey, onions, garlic, remaining 3 cans of beans, the cilantro,
cumin, and Cajun seasoning into the slow cooker and stir to combine. Cut
off the stems of the chiles. Split the chiles and scrape the seeds and
membrans from 2 of the chiles with a spoon. Mince all 3 chiles. For
milder flavor, seed and remove membranes from all the chiles. Mix the
chiles into the soup. Cover the cooker and cook on low for 4-6 hrs. or on
high for 2-3 hrs. Serves 8-10.
Potato Bacon
Soup
I combined two
recipes to create this yummy soup.
I love the dill and sage.
1 lb. bacon, cut into 1” pieces
1 onion, diced small
1 Tbsp. butter
3 Tbsp. flour
1 1/2 tsp. dill (or to taste)
1 1/2 tsp. rubbed sage (or to taste)
pepper to taste
2 cups milk
3 cups chicken broth (I like Better Than Bouillon)
3 medium potatoes, diced
3 carrots, sliced
salt, to taste if necessary
Fry bacon until crispy. Remove bacon from pan. Dump most of
grease. Cook onions in remaining
grease until tender. Add butter to
onions and melt. Add flour and all
seasonings. Stir. Add milk all at once. Stir. Add potatoes and carrots. Cook until bubbly and thickened. Add broth.
Cook, stirring occasionally until vegetables are tender. Serves 6.
Skeewiggan
This is from my Aunt Kelli.
It’s super simple and yummy!
It’s the dish that ended my year-long stint as a vegetarian! I’m the only in the family who likes
the cabbage.
2 lb. smoked sausage, cut in 1-2” pieces
6-8 potatoes, quartered
4 onions, cut in eighths
6-8 carrots, cut in 2” pieces
1 head of cabbage, cut in eighths
In a large pot, layer all ingredients (in the order listed),
seasoning with salt and pepper on each layer. Add 3 cups water.
Cook, covered, for 1 hour over medium heat.
Sebastian’s Carrot Soup
This is from our Czech exchange student. It was interesting trying to convert the measurements, but
it turned out delicious.
5 large carrots
3 Tbsp. butter
¼ cup semolina
6 cups water
1 bouillon cube (chicken)
1 inch fresh ginger, peeled & grated
parsley for garnish, chopped
Finely shred the carrots (I use the food processor blade,
not the shredder). Melt butter in
a pot. Add the carrots. Cook until tender. Add the semolina. Stir until well combined with
carrots. Add water and bouillon. Cook until thickened. If additional semolina is needed to
thicken the soup, sprinkle it slowly into the soup so it doesn’t clump. Serve with chopped parsley for garnish.
Herb Tomato Soup
This came from my Girl Scout outdoor cooking training class. It’s not something I would normally
make camping, but it’s great at home!
1 cup butter (I usually reduce this to about ¼ cup)
3-4 carrots, chopped
10 tomatoes, peeled and chopped (boil in water until the
skin splits to easily remove the peel)
3-4 potatoes, peeled and chopped
7 cups chicken stock
2 Tbsp. tomato paste
Salt and pepper to taste
1/3 tsp. tarragon
1/3 tsp. marjoram
2/3 tsp. fresh thyme
1 tsp. fresh rosemary
2 Tbsp. fresh basil
Melt butter in a large pot. Stir in potatoes, tomatoes and carrots. Cook for about 5 minutes, stirring
constantly. Add the stock and
tomato paste. Add the spices,
seasoning with salt and pepper to taste.
Simmer the soup, uncovered for 1 hr. or until vegetables are fork
tender. Stir occasionally to
prevent sticking. Serve hot or
cold.
Split Pea Soup with Sausage
This is from Brett’s mom.
I love the extra flavor from the sausage—so much better than ham. If you soak the peas, you can cut the
simmering time by about half.
2 ½ cups (1 bag) split green peas
3 qts water (sometimes I substitute part with broth)
2 tsp. salt
½ tsp. pepper
1 lb. bulk ground sausage
½ cup flour
1 lb. smoked sausage, sliced into ¼” slices
1 cup diced celery (my family doesn’t like celery so I leave
it out)
1 cup diced peeled potatoes
1 cup diced onion
Add water, salt and pepper to a large pot. Bring to a boil. Add peas and simmer. Meanwhile, form bulk sausage into marble-sized
balls. Roll balls in flour. Drop into soup with sliced smoked
sausage. Simmer for 2 hrs. Add celery, potatoes and onion. Cook additional 30-60 minutes or until
vegetables are tender and soup is thickened. Great served in bread bowls and even better the next day!
Chicken Soup with Homemade Noodles
This is combination of recipes from my sister’s neighbor, Laura Gorman,
and a friend from recipe club, Kathleen Hallsey. You can also substitute frozen egg noodles. It makes a huge pot so you can reduce
it.
Soup:
2-3 chicken breasts, cut into small pieces
1 onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
16 cup chicken broth (or 16 cups water and 6 Tablespoons
Better than Bouillon or equivalent
chicken bouillon)
6-8 large carrots, sliced
4 stalks celery, chopped fine
salt & pepper to taste
dill to taste (optional)
Noodles:
3 eggs
1 ½ tsp. salt
6 Tbsp. milk
3-3 ½ cups flour
To make the soup, cook chicken, onion and garlic in a large
pot. Add broth or bouillon equivalent.
Add carrots and celery. As
the soup comes to a boil, make the noodles (below). Add a few at a time to the simmering soup. The noodles will clump if you add too
many at once. Add spices to
taste. Cook until vegetables are
tender and noodles are done.
To make the noodles, beat eggs, salt and milk until foamy. Add flour. Knead with hands until not sticky. Add more flour if needed. Roll out thinly on floured surface. Use pizza cutter to slice noodles to
desired thickness. (I have a pasta maker that works great for this step).
Enchilada Soup
This is from my sister, Michelle.
It’s a copy cat recipe of Chili’s Enchilada soup.
1 Tbsp. vegetable oil
1 lb. chicken breast (about 3)
½ cup diced onion
1 clove garlic
4 cups chicken broth
1 cup masa harina
3 cups water, divided
1 cup enchilada sauce
16 oz. Velveeta
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. chili powder
½ tsp. cumin
Add oil to a large pot over medium heat. Add chicken breasts. Brown. Set aside. Add
onion and garlic to the pot. Sauté
over medium heat 2 minutes or until onions are translucent. Add chicken broth. In a medium bowl, whisk together 2 cups
water and masa until well blended.
Add masa to the pot. Add
remaining 1 cup water, enchilada sauce, cheese and spices to pot. Bring to a boil, stirring
constantly. Shred chicken and add
to the pot. Reduce heat and simmer
30-40 minutes or until thick.
Garnish with shredded cheddar, crumbled tortilla chips, avocado, pico de
gallo, etc. Serves 8.
