BY ANN CIPPERLY
With Christmas over and the decorations tucked away, the cold days of January settle into a quiet, cozy time of resting from the rush of the holidays. After so much rich food for weeks, plan on comforting soup meals for your family. Whether it is creamy, thick or chunky, soup can be a meal in itself or served with salad or sandwiches.
Emily Mullis makes a homemade chicken noodle soup that her grandchildren enjoy. She boils a large chicken with celery, carrots, garlic and onions for a flavorful stock. It is then drained and chopped chicken and noodles are added to the stock for a delicious soup.
Whole chickens are less expensive than buying one that is cut up. While a whole chicken is easy to cook for making rich stock for soups, casseroles and other dishes, it takes longer to cook than chicken breasts.
Deborah Williams prepares a chicken and rice soup with chicken breasts. She simmers onion and celery with the chicken and adds a diced carrot to cook with the rice. The cooked chicken breasts are chopped and added to the soup.
If you are short on time, you can make chicken soup using a rotisserie chicken and a 32-ounce container of stock or broth. You can enhance the flavor by adding a chopped onion and celery along with noodles, rice or vegetables.
Some older soup recipes may call for beef or chicken bouillon cubes dissolved in water. The bouillon can be substituted with containers of broth or stock since there are plenty of choices now. Broths are also available fat free or low sodium.
Hearty vegetable soup is also a classic comfort food. There are many versions using a variety of vegetables, chicken, beef, turkey, sausage, seafood or meatless. A tasty soup can be a good way for children to enjoy vegetables.
Among the recipes for vegetable soup is Marion Sankey’s mother’s recipe for Country Vegetable Soup. It can be prepared with beef bones or ground beef. A former educator for 40 years and National Teacher of the Year, Marion Sankey of Opelika is the founder of the Dream Day Foundation, which produces the annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration.
Becky Brown’s Easy Weeknight Vegetable Soup goes together quickly with ground beef, gumbo vegetables and macaroni. It makes a hearty soup to serve on a chilly night.
Cynnie James’ recipe includes tomatoes, green beans, cabbage, butter beans and corn for a variety of nutritious vegetables. It is easy to cut her recipe in half, if desired.
Look over the other vegetable soup recipes that feature a variety of vegetables that will suit your family. In soups with ground beef, I will sometimes substitute lean ground turkey to reduce fat. Cornmeal muffins are a popular accompaniment to vegetable soups.
Chowders are hearty soups with potatoes, such as the Hamburger Chowder. Other tasty soups include Patricia Fox’s Shrimp Bisque. It is better made a day ahead and is a special treat.
When I was growing up in Opelika, my mother’s beef soup on cold winter days was always popular. It is a simple soup prepared by boiling stew beef and onions for a couple of hours, and then adding chopped potatoes and canned tomatoes to simmer two hours longer. Don’s favorite soup growing up was his mother’s split pea soup with ham. This soup is also easy to prepare by boiling a ham bone a couple of hours for broth, and then adding split green peas and garlic to cook until the peas are tender.
The first time I tried split pea soup was at Don’s parents’ home in Manhattan for lunch on a winter day, as blistering wind whipped through the streets of New York. The soup was filling and comforting.
Now that the Christmas decorations are tucked away, plan on serving a casual meal this week with soup and savor a quiet time of resting with your family from the rush of the holidays.
Chicken Noodle Soup
Emily Mullis
4 lb. whole chicken
3 celery stalks, chopped
3 carrots, chopped
3 cloves garlic, sliced
1 onion, chopped
2 Tbsp. salt or to taste
½ tsp. pepper
½ tsp. parsley
2-3 bay leaves
8 oz. pkg. egg noodles
Cook chicken with first eight ingredients for about two hours. Remove chicken to cool. Strain broth and discard celery, carrot and onion mixture. Chill stock, then skim off fat.
Remove meat from chicken, and cut into bite-sized pieces. Combine stock and chicken. Bring to a boil and add noodles. Simmer until noodles are tender.
Black-Eyed Pea Soup
Lyndal Curry
2 cups dried peas
1 onion, chopped
1 bell pepper, chopped
1 celery stalk, chopped
2 Tbsp. bacon grease
2 Tbsp. butter
½ cup whipping cream
1 can Rotel (or other spicy canned, chopped tomatoes)
6 cups savory chicken broth (use chicken soup base, Tone’s)
Soak peas per pkg. directions then cook peas.
When done, sauté vegetables in butter and bacon drippings until onions are clear. Stir in Rotel to taste; add chicken broth and peas. Heat. Remove from heat and add whipping cream.
Season to taste with Tony’s seasonings as needed.
I have added ham/bacon/prosciutto for flavoring.
Also, if you want it thicker, blend a cup or two with the immersion blender and return it to the soup.
Easy Weeknight Vegetable Soup
Becky Brown
1 lb. ground beef
1 chopped onion
2 cans diced tomatoes
1 can water
12 oz. can tomato juice or V8
2 beef bouillon cubes
Salt and pepper
1 package frozen vegetables (I use the gumbo mix with okra)
Macaroni noodles
Brown ground beef and onions. Drain excess fat. Add all other ingredients and simmer about one hour.
Corn Chowder
From the former Village Cookery
Sissy Eason
6 Tbsp. butter
½ lb. Kielbasa sausage, no substitute
1 onion, chopped
4 stalks celery, diced
1 lb. red new potatoes, unpeeled
2 12 oz. cans of corn
4 cups half and half
4 Tbsp. flour
Salt and pepper to taste
½ cup parsley, chopped
Melt 2 Tbsp. butter in Dutch oven. Dice sausage. Add sausage, onion and celery and sauté until the vegetables are tender. Dice unpeeled new potatoes. Add potatoes and the juice from the canned corn. If there is not enough juice to cover potatoes, add water. Cover pot; simmer 10 minutes.
Add corn and stir; simmer 10 minutes more. Add half and half; simmer almost to boiling point.
Prepare a roux by melting the remaining 4 Tbsp. butter in a small pan. Add flour to butter and stir until mixture is smooth. Whisk the roux into chowder and cook over medium high heat until chowder has thickened.
Add salt and pepper to taste. Sprinkle each serving with freshly chopped parsley. Serves eight.
Mom C’ Split Pea and Ham Soup
1 ham bone
1 onion, chopped
1 pkg. dried split peas
4 or 5 garlic cloves
Salt and pepper to taste
Small ham pieces
Boil ham bone and onion for two hours. Add split peas, which have been rinsed, and garlic. Cook for one and a half to two hours longer. Add ham pieces.
Tutt’s Vegetable Soup
Tutt Barrett
2 pkg. McKenzie’s frozen mixed vegetables
1 can tomato paste
2 cans beef bouillon or beef broth
3 cans water
1 can whole tomatoes
2 lb. ground meat, browned and drained
5 beef bouillon cubes
3 1/2 Tbsp. sugar
Salt, pepper and red pepper to taste
Mix all ingredients together and simmer for about an hour.
Mama’s Country Vegetable Soup
Marion Sankey
1 small pkg. beef neckbones or ground beef (see directions)
2 (14 oz.) cans stewed or diced tomatoes
2 pkg. frozen chopped okra
2 (14 oz.) cans whole kernel corn
1 (14 oz.) can green beans
8 oz. can tomato sauce
3 cups diced onions
6 oz. can tomato paste
Salt and pepper to taste
1 Tbsp. sugar, if desired
In large soup pot, cover bone with water and boil until meat falls off bones, or if using ground beef, brown and drain. Add remaining ingredients except salt, pepper and sugar. Bring to boil and cook at medium-high one hour.
Add tomato paste to thicken. Add salt, pepper to taste and sugar. Simmer at least three to five hours. Serves 18 to 20.
Note: Two bags of frozen mixed vegetables can be substituted for can vegetables.
Chicken and Rice Soup
Deborah Williams
3 or 4 chicken breasts, skinned
2 quarts water
1 medium onion, chopped
2 stalks celery, thinly sliced
1½ tsp. salt
½ tsp. pepper
1 bay leaf
¾ cup uncooked long grain rice
1 carrot, diced
Combine first seven ingredients. Bring to a boil, cover, reduce heat and simmer 45 minutes. Remove chicken, reserving broth. Discard bay leaf. Set chicken aside to cool.
Add rice and carrot to broth and bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 20 minutes or until rice is tender. Bone chicken and cut into bitesize pieces.
Add chicken to broth and heat thoroughly. Makes nine cups.
Broccoli-Mushroom Soup
Lue Rowsey
1 lb. fresh broccoli
8 oz. fresh mushrooms
8 oz. butter
1 cup sifted flour
1 qt. chicken stock
1 qt. fat free half and half
1 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. white pepper
1/4 tsp. tarragon leaves, crushed
Clean and cut broccoli into 1/2 inch pieces. Steam in 1/2 cup water until tender. Set aside.
Wash and slice mushrooms. Melt butter in saucepan over medium heat. Add flour to make a roux. Cook two to four minutes. Add chicken stock, stirring with a wire whisk and bring to a boil. Turn heat to low. Add broccoli, mushrooms, half and half and spices. Heat, but do not boil. Stir frequently as it thickens. Serves eight.
French Onion Soup
James Gilbert
3 or 4 medium to large onions
1/2 stick butter
2-10 oz. cans Campbell’s’ double strength beef broth
1 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
2 cups water
French bread
Freshly grated Parmesan cheese or mozzarella
Slice and sauté onions in butter until soft for about 15 minutes. Transfer to a pot and add broth, Worcestershire and two cups water. Simmer about 20 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste. Serve with French bread and freshly grated Parmesan cheese or mozzarella cheese.
Shrimp Bisque
Patricia Fox
4 Tbsp. unsalted butter
1 onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 lb. raw shrimp, shelled and deveined
4 Roma tomatoes, chopped
4 cups seafood or chicken stock
1/2 cup fine breadcrumbs
1/2 cup or more heavy cream
2 Tbsp. dry sherry
Salt to taste
Pinch of cayenne pepper
3 Tbsp. finely chopped fresh parsley
Melt butter in skillet; add onion and garlic. Sauté until slightly softened. Add tomatoes and stock; cook until tomatoes are softened, about five minutes.
Set aside half of shrimp. Add remaining shrimp to broth with breadcrumbs. Cook over medium heat until shrimp turn pink, about three minutes. Remove from heat. Puree soup mixture in processor or blender until smooth.
Return mixture to pan; add cream, sherry, salt and pepper.
Slice reserved shrimp into one-inch pieces. Just before serving; add shrimp and cook until pink. Garnish with parsley. Makes six to eight servings. Better prepared a day or two ahead.
Vegetable Soup
Cut recipe in half for a smaller pot of soup.
Cynnie James
3 lbs. ground sirloin
3 medium-large sweet onions, chopped
Vegetable oil
10 cans (original) stewed tomatoes
3 Tbsp. ground thyme
Salt and seasoned pepper
6 whole bay leaves
3 Tbsp. filé seasoning
Large bag frozen cut green beans
½ small cabbage (sliced thin)
Large bag frozen tiny butter beans
Large bag frozen shoe-peg corn
Handful of angel hair thin noodles
Brown meat and onions in small bit of vegetable oil in a large heavy pot.
Place tomatoes (two cans at a time) in blender, and lightly blend. Add blended tomatoes and two or three blenders (or more) full of water to beef.
While bringing to a boil, add seasonings and mix thoroughly. Boil mixture on medium for about 30 minutes.
Then add green beans and cabbage and cook for another 30 minutes. Add butter beans and cook another 30 minutes. Lastly, add corn and cook until soup is the desired consistency.
Five minutes before soup is done, add noodles.
Be sure to stir the soup regularly in order to prevent it sticking to the pot and burning. Remove bay leaves before serving.
Taco Soup with Salsa
Laurel Dudley
1½ pound ground chuck
1 large onion, diced
1 clove garlic, minced
2 cans diced tomatoes
1 can pinto beans
1 can black beans
16 oz. jar salsa
1 can corn
1 can chicken broth
1 pkg. taco seasoning mix
In a Dutch oven, cook beef, onion and garlic over medium-high heat until browned, stirring until meat crumbles. Drain well. Stir in remaining ingredients. (Drain and rinse the beans, and drain the corn.) Bring to boil. Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, for 30 minutes. Serve with corn chips.
Sally’s Hamburger Cheese Chowder
½ lb. ground sirloin
¾ cup chopped onion
4 Tbsp. butter
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp. dried basil
1 tsp. dried parsley
3 cups chicken stock
4 cups peeled potatoes, diced
¼ cup flour
1½ cups evaporated milk
2 cups cubed Velveeta cheese
¼ tsp. salt
¼ tsp. pepper
1 can Rotel
In a stockpot brown sirloin; drain and set aside. In same stockpot, sauté onion in butter until tender. Add chicken stock, sirloin and potatoes. Bring to a boil; reduce heat and cover, simmer for 15 minutes or until potatoes are tender.
Add flour and cook, stirring three to five minutes. Gradually add evaporated milk, stirring constantly. Boil and cook two minutes. Reduce heat to low; add cubed cheese, salt, pepper and Rotel. Stir until cheese melts.
Slow Cooker Tomato Basil Parmesan Soup
Carol Pridgen
2 (14 oz) cans diced tomatoes, with juice
1 cup finely diced celery
1 cup finely diced carrots
1 cup finely diced onions
1 tsp. dried oregano or 1 tbsp. fresh oregano
1 tbsp. dried basil or 1/4 cup fresh basil
4 cups chicken broth
½ bay leaf
½ cup all-purpose flour
1 cup Parmesan cheese
½ cup butter
2 cups half and half, warmed (or skim milk if you’re trying to cut some calories)
1 tsp. salt
¼ tsp. black pepper
Add tomatoes, celery, carrots, chicken broth, onions, oregano, basil and bay leaf to a large slow cooker.
Cover and cook on low for five to seven hours or until flavors are blended and vegetables are soft.
About 30 minutes before serving prepare a roux. Melt butter over low heat in a skillet and add flour. Stir constantly with a whisk for five to seven minutes. Slowly stir in one cup hot soup. Add another three cups and stir until smooth. Add all back into the slow cooker.
Stir and add the Parmesan cheese, warmed half and half, salt and pepper. Add additional basil and oregano if needed (the slow cooker does a number on spices and they get bland over time, so don’t be afraid to always season to taste at the end).
Cover and cook on low for another 30 minutes or so until ready to serve. Makes about two quarts (about eight servings).
Allison’s Chicken and Broccoli Soup
1 Tbsp. olive oil or canola oil
1 medium onion, chopped
1/8 cup all-purpose flour
4 cups low sodium chicken broth
1 large head fresh broccoli, or frozen
2 cups cooked chicken and shredded
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 can of evaporated milk
1 tsp. curry powder
1 tsp. lemon juice
Cooked rice
Shredded cheddar cheese
Over medium heat, pour in oil and sauté onion until soft. Add in flour and allow to cook for one to two minutes. Add in, slowly, broth and broccoli.
Allow broccoli to cook for about 10 minutes and then add in the remaining ingredients except rice and cheese. Simmer for 15 to 20 minutes.
Serve over cooked rice and sprinkle with shredded sharp cheddar cheese. Note: The soup is also good served without the rice and cheese.
