Butternut Squash Soup

Erin makes this soup every Fall and I love it so much! I look forward to it every year. She taught me how to make it last night and I wanted to share this yummy goodness with you.


2 medium-sized Butternut squash
milk/half-and-half/cream (it depends on how healthy you want to be)
small onion (or onion powder...I didn't have one last night)
salt
pepper
cumin
coriander 
cardamom

Chop squash into medium-large pieces and steam for about 30 minutes. Remove from pot and peel off the skin. (Note: you could peel it before, but this way is much easier even if your working with boiling hot squash. Or if you're smart,  you'll let it cool off first...but we were in a hurry.) Cut the squash into smaller pieces and return to pot and boil until squash is tender. (A chopped onion can be added sometime during this boiling process...)

Drain the water from the pot and set aside. Place everything else into the blender and puree. Return it to the pot. Use milk, and the water set aside from before, to thin out the soup to your desired consistency. 

Season with salt, pepper, cumin, coriander, cardamom or whatever you have. The squash is very flavorful so it's easy to play around with different spices. 

Serve with cranberry sauce and/or cream.

Loaded Baked Potato Soup

I've been in a soup mood lately and have been trying out various soup recipes on my family. This one was my own creation and it ended up very tasty.

4-5 Potatoes

2 cans chicken broth

3 tbsp butter

3 tbsp flour

1 1/2 cups of milk

2 green onions, chopped

bacon, cooked and chopped

sour cream

shredded cheese

seasoned salt

black pepper

Boil potatoes in chicken broth. Once the potatoes are tender, drain and save the broth for later. Mash potatoes.

Melt butter in separate sauce pan. Add in flour and stir until combined. Pour in milk and let it boil and simmer until thickened. Stir into mashed potatoes. Slowly add broth to desired consistency. Mix in cheese, seasoned salt and black pepper.

Serve with bacon, sour cream, green onions, and more cheese on top!

French Onion Soup

I made this soup this week when it was cold and rainy. It was warm and delicious. I got this recipe from my mom....so like most recipes from her, it is very vague and is meant to be improvised.

Ingredients

2 tsp butter

Onions, sliced

4 cans beef broth*

black pepper, a lot

salt

cayenne

French bread

mozzarella cheese

Saute onions in butter. Once the onions turn translucent (or, if you have the patience, when the onions caramelize), add the beef broth. Season the soup to your liking. I like lots of black pepper in mine, but it's whatever you like.

Serve with mozzarella sprinkled in the soup and toasted French bread.

*Note: Beef bouillon cubes can be substituted for the broth, but it does change the flavor of the soup. I notice a difference so I prefer the broth, but it's your choice. Try both and figure out if it matters to you.

Tomato Soup

As I sit here and eat my leftover Hearty Tomato Soup, I feel the need to share the recipe with you.
Its kind of tangy, but a fun twist on the basic condensed version. Its from the Betty Crocker's Cookbook.

2 TBSP butter or margarine
1 medium onion, finely chopped (1/2 c)
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
1/2 tsp paprika
1 1/2 tsp chopped fresh or 1/2 tsp dried basil leaves
2 packages (3 oz each) cream cheese, softened
1 1/4 c milk
2 cans (10 3/4 oz each) condensed tomato soup
2 cans (14 1/2 oz each) whole tomatoes, undrained

1. Melt butter in 3-qt saucepan over medium heat. Cook onion and garlic in butter about 2 minutes, stirring occasionally, until onion is tender; remove from heat.
2. Stir in paprika, basil, and cream cheese. Gradually stir in milk and soup. Beat with hand beater or wire whisk until cheese is melted and soup is smooth.
3. Stir in tomatoes, breaking up tomatoes with a fork or snipping with kitchen scissors. Heat over medium heat, stirring frequently, until hot.

We served ours with french bread. Mmm!

Brattens Clam Chowder

My mother in law made a recipe book of the recipes she uses the most.
On Sunday I made this Bratten's Clam Chowder---it was SO good (though probably not so good for you)!

2 cans minced clams (drained-reserve juice)
2 cups diced potatoes
1 cup diced celery
1 cup diced onion
3/4 cup butter
3/4 cup flour
1 quart half and half (add milk if too thick)
1 1/2 t salt (pepper to taste)
1/2 t sugar

Pour juice off clams over vegetables. Add enough water to cover and cook until potatoes are tender. (About 15-20 min).

In a separate pot melt butter, and flour and cook while stirring for 1 minute. Add half and half and cook until smooth. Add salt, pepper, and sugar. Add undrained vegetables and drained clams and warm thoroughly.

Egg Drop Soup

I found this recipe in one of my cookbooks (Taste of Home: Simple and Delicious Cookbook). It's great with fried rice and is super easy to make. Now I just wonder where you get those good egg noodle chip things. Do you know what I'm talking about? Chinese restaurants usually offer them with the soup.

3 cups chicken broth

1 tablespoon cornstarch

2 tablespoons cold water

1 egg, lightly beaten

1 green onion, sliced

In a large saucepan, bring broth to boil over medium heat.

In a separate bowl, combine cornstarch and water until smooth; gradually stir into broth. Bring to boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened.

Reduce heat. Drizzle beaten egg into hot broth, stirring constantly. Remove from the heat; stir in onion.

Yields 4 servings.

Creamy White Chili

This was a winner at our ward chili cook off (thankfully, she gave me the recipe!). It's a family favorite now. It's slightly spicy, so you can cut back on the spices if you like. However, we love it just the way it is!

The Beginning

It all started when Bonnie asked me for two recipes. These were the two that I gave her. The potato soup is really good. I plan on making some Friday actually. It's great for leftovers (and I'm not really a leftovers kind of person, but I'm trying to get over that). The banana bread is my Grandma Lemon's recipe. I love it! Especially when it's fresh from the oven and slathered with lots of butter.

Potato Soup

Ingredients*
4-6 medium-sized potatoes (I like red potatoes best, but you can use whatever you have)
1/2 bell pepper, chopped
1/4 onion, chopped
1 cup cubed cured ham or beef kielbasa(we tend to use beef kielbasa)**
2 cups chicken broth
1 tbsp flour
3/4 cup half-and-half

Boil potatoes. Drain 3/4 of the water and use the remaining water as part of the stock. Add chicken broth and keep over medium-low heat.

In a separate pan, sauté onions, bell peppers and ham. Stir in flour until it evenly coats the sauté mixture. Add to this to chicken broth and potatoes and pour in half and half. Add black pepper, seasoning salt, and cayenne pepper to taste.

* Proportions depend on how much you like onions, bell peppers, etc. Feel free to adjust to your own family preferences.

** Mike tells me that it's not really beef kielbasa, but just in case you're confused I have a package of Hillshire Farm beef smoked sausage sitting in my fridge waiting to be used.
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Grandma's Banana Bread

Ingredients
1/2 cup of shortening (or butter)
2 eggs
2 cups flour
3/4 tsp salt
1 cup mashed bananas (about 2-3 bananas)
3/4 cup white sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 cup buttermilk (buttermilk = 1 tsp vinegar + 1 cup milk)

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
Add flour, baking soda, and salt. In a separate bowl, cream shortening, sugar, and eggs until smooth. Add bananas and then flour mixture. Slowly stir in buttermilk until combined.
Bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour.

**Makes 2-3 loafs of banana bread