Favorites: Soups

 We make soup about once a week in the cooler months.  We have some delicious recipes.  It was really difficult to come up with a top five.  One problem is that Ken's top five and my top five are completely different.  So, I present a combination of his and mine.

l.  Halloween Soup:  I have been making Halloween soup on Halloween every year for years and years.  It is our tradition.  It is a hamburger/ vegetable soup and is delicious.

Hungry Hintons: Halloween Soup

2. Autumn Chicken Stew:  This is a fairly recent addition to our soup repertoire- maybe four years ago.  We both love this one.  I make a double batch and share half with someone in need.

Hungry Hintons: Autumn Chicken Stew

3. Vegetable Chowder:  This is Ken's all-time favorite soup. This was one of the first recipes I posted on this blog.  It is labor intensive, but now he is retired, he helps make it from start to finish.  

Hungry Hintons: Vegetable Chowder

4, Zupa Toscano:  This is Ken's other favorite soup.  Luckily, it is easier to make than Vegetable Chowder.  He is always so happy when I make this.  Our local Harmon's grocery store makes the best sausage.  It is the key ingredient.

Hungry Hintons: Zuppa Toscana, (Copycat Olive Garden recipe)

5.  Oh, which one do I post for 5?  This is hard.  I think I'll go with Bean with Bacon Soup.  I love this soup, but actually I make bean with ham because I like it better.  

Hungry Hintons: Bean with Bacon Soup

So, there you have it.  Five OF our favorite soups.

Halloween Soup

It's amazing how a smell can evoke memories and emotions.  I made this Halloween Soup yesterday, and the smell of it cooking brought back those wonderful days of costumes and excitement and fun.  Our traditions for years and years is to eat this healthy soup before trick or treating.  I made it early this year, but believe me, there will be plenty to eat the leftovers on Halloween.  Soup is always best leftover anyway.  I purposely made it yesterday, cooled it in the fridge overnight to be ready to eat after church today.  Something about cooling it down and reheating it makes the flavors blend.  It was so delicious.

Halloween Soup

1 lb. lean ground beef, browned

Seasoning Salt and/ or Montreal Steak Seasoning

1 onion, diced

3 carrots, diced

3 stalks celery with leaves, diced

1 zucchini, sliced

1/2 small head cabbage, chopped

1 can diced tomatoes

1 quart water, boiling with 

4-6 tsp. better than boullion in it.  

1 tsp. or so each of basil, thyme, Mrs. Dash 

Dash or Dashes of Tabasco sauce (makes it so much better!)

2 T. sugar

1 bay leaf, opt.  

Other veggies as desired: yellow squash, canned green beans, corn

Pearl Barley, 1/3 -1/2 cup

Brown the beef in a skillet with steak seasoning and season salt.  Put in a crock pot..  Boil the water in the microwave and add the boullion and stir and add to the soup.  Add the other ingredients except the zucchini, squash, beans, corn, cabbage, and barley. 

 Cook on high for several hours, then add the rest of  the veggies.  Cook for another couple of hours, then add the barley.  Cook until the barley is just done.  

Garden Vegetable Soup - Literally

I know this doesn't look glorious or amazing, but looks can be deceiving. 

This little jar of veggies is my lifesaver. I love this stuff...and so does my family. Each fall we take the potatoes, carrots and onions from our garden and spend a day cleaning, preparing and canning as much of this veggie soup as we can.

Then I have 3 different soup recipes that my family loves where I use this as the base (No peeling, chopping or dicing. Just open and pour). One of them is: http://hungryhintons.blogspot.com/2011/02/wisconsin-cheese-and-potato-soup.html (I just saute everything from the jar and then add 3 or 4 diced medium potatoes when it calls for potatoes). It makes for a simple, quick and NUTRITIOUS meal. The other two I like to use it for are Cheeseburger Soup and our family's traditional Halloween Soup (Hamburger/Veggie soup...a requirement before trick or treating and all those sweets!).

I know winter is over and summer is on it's way...so why a soup recipe? So you can plan ahead as you plant those gardens. Put in plenty of potatoes, carrots and onions. You will be glad you did!

Canned Vegetable Soup

Wash, prepare (we peel carrots and potatoes) and dice/slice the following vegetables and add to a 1 quart Mason jar in the following order and quantities:

1 T Barley

1 Boullion Cube

1 Handful of:

    Celery

    Carrots

    Potatoes

1/2 Handful of Onions

1 t. salt

If there is more room in the jar fill the space with carrots and/or potatoes. Fill to the rim with water.

Pressure can 55 minutes at 13 lbs pressure.

Happy planting!

What's For Dinner? October

Love Autumn.  Love the Autumn food.  I can't wait for October when it seems okay to make stew again,  Halloween Soup and, oh, the desserts:   my most delicious caramel apple crisp, Pumpkin Pie Cake, and Ginger Snaps that Don't.  Here's my menu plan for the month:

  Beef Stew - I love this yummy stew that combines tomato with cream of mushroom

Mama's Meatloaf

Philly Cheesesteak Sandwiches

Chicken Stuffing Casserole in Crockpot/ Cranberry Sauce

Breakfast Burritos/ Fruit

Ono Burgers/ Oven Fries

Crockpot Beef Stroganoff

Corn Chowder in bread bowls

Patty's Borstch/ Rolls

Nectar of the Gods/ Ham Sammies

Halloween Soup (our Halloween night tradition)/ Pumpkin Bread

Recipes to try:

Chicken Thigh Pasta

Treats:
Most Delicious Caramel Apple Crisp

Ginger Snaps That Don't

Chocolate Chip Cookie Brownie Surprise Cakes

What's For Dinner?

Half the battle in cooking is the planning.  I like to plan dinners a month in advance.  Because there are just two of us, we have lots of leftover nights, but here's what I've planned for dinners in October:

1. Meatloaf, Loaded Baked Potatoes

2. Thai Coconut Curry over Rice

3. Kristen's Enchilada Soup

4. Sauteed Vegetable Tuscan Orzo - if you haven't tried this, you should.  It is yummy.  Add some garlic and/ or garlic salt.

5. Philly Cheesesteak Sandwiches

6.  Halloween Soup with pumpkin bread - our traditional Halloween night dinner

7. Kay's Conglomerate Burgers

8. Crockpot French Dip Sandwiches

New Recipes to try (I'll post them if they're good)

9. Southwestern Stuffed Green Peppers

10.  Honey Mustard Chicken

11. Pasta Factory Angel Hair Alfredo with Seasoned Chicken Breast, garlic mushrooms, and Italian Vegetables

12. Potato Bacon Soup

13.  Spaghetti Carbonara

14. Cheesy Chicken and Rice

Meals if needed:

15. Creamed Tuna over buttered Toast, peas

16. Cherry Pancakes/ Bacon

17. Beef Spread Sandwiches

Desserts and Treats:

Goldies

Pumpkin Pie Cake

Nathan's Apple Crumble

Cheddar Bacon Dip

What's For Dinner? October

Here's what's cookin' at our house in the month of October:




BLT Salad with Cheese and Almonds

Chicken Pot Pie

Salisbury Steaks/ Mashed Potatoes/ Veggie

Lemon Grilled Salmon
Zuppa Tuscano/ Crusty Bread  Wahoo!  Soup season is here!

Chicken Stuffing Casserole in Crockpot

Verde Chicken Mexican Lasagna (A new recipe)
Chicken Divan

Chicken and Rice Casserole (I'm trying a new recipe.  I'll post it if it's good)
Ham, Swiss, and Brocolli Roll-ups in Basil Cream Sauce (I love this dish!)

Crockpot Beef Stroganoff

Bean with Bacon Soup/ Grilled Cheese Sandwiches

Shells and Cheese
Loaded Baked Potato Pizza/ Green Salad
Halloween Soup/ Pumpkin Bread

Pantry Pick of the Month: Prego Fresh Mushroom Pasta Sauce/ Chicken Mozzarella Pasta (Recipe will be posted during this month)


Snickers Cake
Caramel Apple Crisp

Cinnamon Rolls
Ginger Snaps that Don't

What's For Dinner?- March

Here's what's cookin' for dinner in March:
Breakfast burritos/ fruit
Thai Chicken Noodles

German pancakes with Fiesta Fruit Topping

Creamed tuna on toast/ Peas

Tacos
Chicken stir fry

Calico Beans

Cranberry Chicken and Rice
Bahn mi Sandwiches

Skillet Beef Stew over Noodles

Kristen's enchilada soup
 Veggie Tuscan orzo

Chicken Gnocchi Soup

Hawaiian Haystacks over Brown Rice
Shonna's chili
Halloween soup with kidney beans/ Whole Wheat Muffins

Blonde Brownies with Maple Sauce
Blueberry Bread Pudding
Apple Pie (Ken's Birthday pie) ala mode with Warm Caramel Sauce

Pantry Pick of the Month:  Sun Dried Tomatoes/ Spinach and Sun Dried Tomato Dip

Pumpkin Bread

This is our family's Halloween tradition.  We make it every year to serve on Halloween before Trick or Treating with our nutritious Halloween Soup.  A couple of years ago, I tried another recipe that was supposed to be Copycat Kneader's Pumpkin Bread, but I think I like this one I've made forever better.  I usually triple the batch because then it uses 1 large can of pumpkin.  A triple batch makes 2 large and 5 small loaves (a nice Halloween gift to share.)

Pumpkin Bread
1 1/2 cup sugar (4 1/2 cups if you're tripling)
2 eggs (6 eggs if you're tripling)
1 teaspoon cinnamon (1 Tablespoon if you're tripling)
1/2 teaspoon salt (1 1/2 teaspoon if you're tripling)
1 teaspoon soda (1 Tablespoon if you're tripling)
1 2/3 cup flour ( 5 cups if you're tripling)
1/2 cup oil (1 1/2 cup oil if you're tripling)
1 cup pumpkin (1 large can pumpkin if you're tripling)
1/2 teaspoon baking powder (1 1/2 teaspoon if you're tripling)
1/3 cup water (1 cup if you're tripling)

In your mixer, mix together the sugar and eggs.  Turn off the mixer and add all of the dry ingredients, then mix together.  Add the pumpkin and water and blend until well mixed.  You can add chocolate chips, raisins, or nuts if you'd like.  Pour into a greased loaf pan.

Bake at 350 for 45-55 minutes (depending on size of the loaves)  Test by sticking a skewer or pick into the center.  Remove from pans and cool on wire rack.  This bread freezes well.