Soup

Sunday, January 1, 2012
This is a great time of year for soup.

After eating the Christmas turkey, we love to use the bones to make soup.  And this is a meal that I get to delegate to someone else.  Twice a year Andrew is in charge of meals, and that’s after we’ve cooked our Thanksgiving and Christmas turkeys.  He makes the soup slightly differently every time we eat it, whether it's with potatoes or rice, or another grain, and with some combination of vegetables that he pulls together from what's in the fridge.  It’s always a treat for me to smell the aroma of turkey soup coming from the kitchen, and to know that someone else is making dinner!

But that’s not the only reason to eat soup at this time of year.  Over the holidays, we don’t want to spend a lot of time fussing with meals, and soups are usually quick to put together.  They’re warm on a cold winter day.  And, after a holiday of eating excess, they’re the simple kind of food that I crave.

I have two soup recipes to share today. I’ve been making the first one nearly as long as I’ve been married.  I cut it out of a newspaper years ago, and later found it in Bonnie Stern’s More HeartSmart Cooking.  Her HeartSmart books were among the first healthy cookbooks I bought, and I still use them all the time. 

The second soup is a more recent find, from the perfectly titled Whining and Dining cookbook for serving picky eaters.  It’s very simple, but so appealing with the alphabet pasta that you might make it even for the people who will eat anything.

Chicken Soup with Rice

1 Tbsp vegetable oil
1 onion, chopped
1 stalk celery, chopped
1 carrot, chopped
2 Tbsp all-purpose flour
2 cups homemade chicken stock or 10 ounces chicken broth plus water
2 cups milk
pinch dried sage
pinch dried thyme
pinch dried savory
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1 cup diced cooked chicken breast
1 cup cooked rice (I use brown rice or wild rice)
salt and pepper to taste

Heat oil in large saucepan.  Add onion, celery and carrot.  Cook on low heat for a few minutes until tender but not brown.

Sprinkle flour over vegetables and cook gently for 3 to 4 minutes.  Add chicken stock and milk.  Bring just to boil.

Add sage, thyme, savory and Worcestershire.  Reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes.

Add chicken and rice.  Cook for 10 minutes.  Taste and season with salt and pepper.  (The soup will thicken on standing.  Thin it with additional milk or water when reheating.)

Alphabet Soup

1 Tbsp olive oil
1 chopped onion
1 cup chopped carrot
1 cup chopped celery (about 2 stalks)
4 cups chicken or vegetable stock
½ cup alphabet shaped pasta

Heat oil in a large pot over medium heat.  Add onions, carrots and celery; sauté for 5 minutes or until softened.  Add chicken stock and bring to a boil.  Add pasta; simmer rapidly for about 8 minutes or until al dente.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.


38 comments:

Carol said...

Great way to start the year off, with two delicious soups. Especially the chicken with rice, nice flavors in there!
Happy New Year!

Julie said...

Happy New Year!! Soup is a perfect meal for New Year's Day and these look yummy!

Unknown said...

Happy New Year Beth!
Yum and double yum, how I would look forward to a bowl of your soup. I will be making soup this week , one of my favorite comfort foods anytime of year;-)

Valerie Gamine said...

Happy New Year, Beth!
Wow, both soups look scrumptious (especially now that it's snowing outside!) I love Worcestershire sauce, so the first one sounds extra tasty!!

Joyti said...

Yes, soup is delicious...especially this time of year. Both of your soup recipes look and sound delicious.

GratefulPrayerThankfulHeart said...

I have been hankering for more soup and think these recipes sound delicious!

Claudia said...

I must remember to make chicken soup with rice instead of pasta. This family needs a change! And the alphabet soup just brought me back to my youth - always a good thing. Love feeling like "six" once in a while. Just a comforting, welcoming post to ring in the New Year. Hope 2012 brings you many joys.

Kitchen Belleicious said...

oh this looks just simply delicious! I love comforting soup that is good for the soul!

Katerina said...

Both of them would be perfect for my cold Beth! I wish to you and your family a Very Happy and Prosperous New Year!

Belinda said...

Really, now, can anyone dare not fall in love with chicken soup with rice (it's a song!) or alphabet soup? Fantastic and in time for that cold spell coming.

Jeanne said...

Happy 2012, Beth! Soup is my favorite wintertime dinner. Both of these look so comforting, and it's been ages since I've had alphabet soup. I better fix that!

Fresh Local and Best said...

It's been unseasonably warm in the NE, so soups have been very slim this winter. The chicken soup looks wonderful, I like the addition of milk and rice. Happy New Year Beth!

Anonymous said...

Looks simple and delicious. Happy New Year!

Anonymous said...

Happy New Year Beth - I hope you and your family have a happy and healthy 2012. I've so enjoyed tagging along with your tales of travel and lovely dishes over the past year. I very much look forward to another!

Anonymous said...

Soup really is the perfect thing to eat after all the holiday excess. I made soup for dinner tonight!

Happy new year!

Cindy said...

Both soups look delicious. I love soup, can't wait to try them.
I made a pot of ham and bean soup today. I don't love beans so I put more veggies than beans in the soup. It was delicious!
Have a wonderful 2012!

Anonymous said...

Awesome soups, we are making quite a few during the winter season as well. Happy New Year!

Liz That Skinny Chick Can Bake said...

Both soups look delicious, Beth! And our weather has taken a nose dive so soup will be on our menu soon! Happy New Year!

Kitchen Simmer said...

Now this is what I call a comforting and healthy soup! I would love a bowl of this on a cold winter's night. :) Have a Happy New Year 2012!

Angie's Recipes said...

Both soups look wonderful! I like that chicken soup slightly more though.

grace said...

homemade alphabet soup--yippee! one of my favorite things to do is eat soup whilst watching it snow (even as i laugh at the people trudging around in it while i'm nice and warm...). :)

Sprigs of Rosemary said...

I adore soup of all kinds! I keep scraps of this and that in the freezer and pretty soon I'm able to make one great soup. SO comforting to eat, and fun to make. (I saved all the turkey bones, too!)

Jessica | Cajunlicious said...

This looks delicious and so comforting, I love using rice in soups.

Anonymous said...

I so love soup after a glut of big meals. All the very best for 2012.

Golden Eagle said...

It looks delicious! And since it's cold right now, soup sounds perfect . . .

lisa is cooking said...

Now I want to go shop for alphabet pasta! I also love wild rice, and it sounds so good in the chicken soup. Both soups look great, and this is a perfect time for soup. Happy New Year!

Elisabeth said...

Beth-both of the soups are so perfect, and delicious. I made a huge pot of chicken soup today, and that was my dinner for my WW diet plan.
Thanks for sharing both recipes, it's gonna be a welcome addition for me to make a different style!
Happy New Year!

Miriam said...

Love that alphabet soup, and so simple!! Miriam@Meatless Meals For Meat Eaters

Couscous & Consciousness said...

That's a couple of lovely looking soup recipes. My partner is the usual soup maker in house, so I must steer him in this direction.

Sue :-)

Joanne said...

I am all about the soup lately and I am LOVING these recipes! Both simple, delicious comfort food.

Lorraine said...

I do love soup this time of year too. They both look delicious. I especially like the alphabet soup. The letters look so darn cute:)

Happy New Year!

Velva said...

Soup this time of year is soulful and comforting. After all the over indulgences of the holidays, a bowl of soup is perfect.

Happy New Year beth! Looking forward to all of your posts n 2012.

Cheers.
Velva

Kitchen Riffs said...

I love soup! And I've got a bunch of turkey stock in the freezer that needs to be used. A couple of good recipes here. But what I really like are your photos - soup isn't the easiest thing to photograph. I particularly like the top & bottom pictures - you've deliberately added more solids than liquid, and I like the emphasis on the pretty colors and shapes.

Rita said...

My husband's favourite soup is chicken Rice, but have never made it with milk. Gotta try this for sure. January and soup go hand in hand.
Rita

Anonymous said...

I've never perused the grocery store aisles for alphabet pasta, but next time I'm going to look.

I've been eating more soup, especially with this cold weather we're finally getting.

julie said...

The best part about the turkey is the broth that comes from the bones! I have buckets of it in my freezer as we speak and I think it's about time to bring one out and whip up a little turkey soup. thanks for the inspiration Beth!

Anonymous said...

My kids would love the alphabet soup - and I'm sure it's so much better than the canned kind.

shaz said...

Ooh I love soup too. I'll even eat it when the weather is boiling hot (which my husband finds really weird). Love the sound of the second soup, but even more, I love the title of the cookbook!

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