Smoked Sausage, Potato soup

I saw a couple recipes for potato and sausage soup while wandering online. I thought Kielbasa would be yummy like this. And so today cuz its cold and raining out all day, I decided to make this. This is not the original recipe tho. As always I tweak things to make them mine. But it goes together fast and the only real cooking is the potatoes to get soft. So if your looking for a fast meal, this works good with a nice crusty bread with butter.

My bf said its really good. I asked him if its good enough to make again and he said yes. When that happens, then I post it here for all of you.......why? Cuz hes picky so if he likes it I know many others will too. Enjoy.

Smoked Sausage, Potato soup- Makes 2-3 servings.

1c. diced onions
1tb. butter
2tb. flour
5-6 small or med. potatoes, peeled and diced
1qt. chicken broth ( I used my own that I can)
1 bay leaf
1/2 tsp. dried thyme
S and P to taste
8oz. smoked sausage, diced or sliced ( I used Kielbasa)
1/3 of a bag of frozen spinach
1/2 tsp cajun spice
1/4 tsp. ground garlic
1c. half and half
Parmesan cheese

1. In a large sauce pot over moderate heat, saute onions in butter until very soft (about 10-15 minutes), stirring frequently. Add flour and cook for 3 more minutes.

2. Add potatoes, broth, bay leaf, thyme, and black pepper. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to a simmer and cook until the potatoes are very soft (about 30 minutes).

3. Add sausage. Continue simmering for 5 more minutes. Stir in spinach, Cajun spice, and garlic. Add half and half and heat thru. Serve with Parmesan sprinkled on top.

Navy Bean Soup

Yesterday I decided to make some soup......thought about what I had in the house tho. I love chicken soup but my bf isn't crazy about chicken. I was going to make my sausage minestrone but we just had sausage the night before. And so I remembered I had several bags of beans in the pantry and a couple of ham bones I need to use up. And this is what I ended up making.

I'm not real crazy about beans. And Ive never had bean soup in my life. In fact if you had asked me if I wanted this , I would have said no. But my tastes are beginning to change and I'm finding if there's enough flavor added, I like beans. And so this is my first bean soup......and I do believe there will be others now. I added more herbs than this called for and more garlic too. I'm not sure about why the carrot is in there except perhaps for color. But as I tasted this when it was cooking I was thinking some chard, spinach or some sort of greens would be excellent in this with the ham. And next time I think I'll use smoked sausage since ham is the common go to thing for this type of soup. 

Navy Bean Soup  8 servings

1 pound navy beans, picked over, rinsed and drained
10 sprigs parsley
2 sprigs each of fresh thyme and rosemary
1 bay leaf
2 large smoked ham hocks, about 1 1/2 pounds or a lg. ham bone with some meat on it
1 medium onion, coarsely chopped
2 large cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
8 cups of cold water
1 medium carrot, coarsely chopped
1/2 tsp. cayenne
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Place the beans in a large saucepan and cover with cold water by about 2 inches. Bring to a boil and lower the heat to a simmer. Cook for 5 minutes; remove from the heat, cover, and let sit for one hour. Drain and reserve. Tie the parsley, thyme, rosemary and bay leaf together with kitchen twine.

In a large soup pot or Dutch oven combine the beans, herb bundle, hocks or ham bone, onions, garlic, some salt and pepper, cayenne and carrot with the water. Bring to a boil, cover, and adjust the heat so the soup cooks at a gentle simmer. Cook until the beans and hock are completely tender, about 1-1/2 hours.

Turn off the heat and remove the hocks. Cool slightly. Remove the meat from the hocks, discarding the bones, fat, and skin. Cut the meat into small cubes. Remove the herb bundle and discard.

Puree about 3 cups of the beans with a some of the liquid in a blender. (For a smoother soup puree all the beans.) Stir the puree and diced meat into the soup. Heat the soup and adjust the seasoning as needed with salt and pepper.

Pour into heated bowls, place a small pat of butter on top of each soup, and serve.

*** I was going to add some Lil Smokies sausages to this but I guess I used them up and didn't remember. However some smoked sausage of any kind would be awesome added to this and next time I make it Ill do that. The ham bone I had didn't have much meat on it but did have lots of flavor. I had some ham meat frozen from that bone so I chopped a few slices up and added that to the pot.

I also used an immersion blender to make this soup. I didn't make it a fine puree but it was mostly pureed. I liked it like that, my bf wanted more beans. So next time Ill do that. I added extra herbs to this recipe because I wanted a lot of flavor and doing that didn't hurt it at all.  

Free Chicken Stock

Ok , well not free but almost. You see now that I'm in my new home, I'm trying to start stocking up and doing better with what I have around here. I read somewhere of a woman who saved all her veggie peelings and such and froze them for when she wanted to make stock.

At first I thought I don't have much of that anyway. But then I thought well she probably didn't either but saved it up by freezing them till she needed it. Duh.....so simple and yet I forget.

And then I read somewhere about another who uses those deli cooked chickens from the grocery store and then takes the leftovers and bones and cooks them down for stock too. BIG DUH~!!! Why didn't I ever think of that?  When I'm done with a roasted chicken, my own or store bought, I would clean off any chicken to make for salad and toss the rest. How wasteful.

But growing up I thought of chicken soup as something homemade with a whole chicken and just never thought beyond that. But now I do. So here is my version of chicken stock that I make now with the leftovers. Then I cool it and strain it. When I freeze it , I put it in smaller containers to use for my every day cooking or to even add more stock to a soup I might make. As Martha says, Its a good thing. And as I say........why the heck didn't I think of this sooner?

Almost Free Chicken Stock

*Saved veggies in a bag in the freezer. I just save up big quart size bags there and toss one or two in. I mostly save onion, celery and carrots but you could save other veggies too and just perhaps separate them in a different bag for a different kind of soup. Onion, celery and carrot is the basis for many things so its a good one to keep.

*Leftover roasted chicken bones, and any leftover meat if your not going to eat it, plus any good juices. It all helps add flavor and I have found roasted chicken makes some amazing stock. Seems to intensify the flavor depending on how much you use.

*Salt and pepper, a couple garlic cloves, fresh parsley.......and if you use fresh parsley alot save the stems in that frozen veggie bag too. I wouldn't add much salt tho because this is stock to be used elsewhere.

*If you don't have much onion saved and frozen, toss a small one in the pot too. BTW onion skins give nice color to stock also so feel free to put some of those in also.

Now toss it all in a pot and cover with water. Bring to a boil and lower heat to a simmer. Let cook for a couple hrs gently on the back of the stove. Add more water if its cooked down too much. When everything looks really soft and very cooked, turn it off. Let cool and then strain. Freeze in whatever size containers you think you might want. Some small perhaps for stock for rice and such and maybe larger for when you make soups and other kinds of meals where you need more than a cup.

Cold Curried Banana Soup

I rarely eat cold soups but there was one I used to make for the restaurant I worked at. I never had a soup like this before and I fell madly in love with it. I ate this every single day we had it on the menu. And for a long time I was the only one in the place that knew how to make it. I left and came back to that job a couple yrs later. Someone mentioned it and the chef wanted to put it on the menu again but no one knew how...............hehehe except me. You see I would wander around that kitchen and make sure to write down the recipes for everything there that we made, that I just loved. Dont skip the mango chutney.....you will be sorry you did.

And so here's the recipe:

Curried Banana Soup

Oil
1 lg. onion, peeled and sliced
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
3 c. chicken stock
I 1/2 tsp. curry powder
4 bananas, peeled
Sour cream or creme fraiche
Mango Chutney
Toasted sliced almonds

Drizzle a bit of oil in a stock pot. Saute onions and garlic. Add all ingredients except last 3. Those will be your toppings. Cook 10 minutes , then puree the soup. Chill.

When ready to serve top cold soup with a dollop of sour cream, mango chutney and sprinkle on a few toasted almonds.

*The garlic is optional but not the onion. You want to saute them till soft.

Sausage Minestrone Soup

I wasn't sure what to make for dinner today. It was supposed to rain but it never did. They do say tomorrow, but who knows. CA. weather is weird. I'm reading a book about cooking thru a year in Tuscany and came across a general recipe for the minestrone the woman made. It got me thinking about it. So I searched online for some recipes because I know that you can add just about anything to this. But most add cabbage and I hate cabbage in soup, so does my bf.

So after reading a bit and trying to figure out what I would like in a Minestrone I came up with this. Originally I was going to make tiny bite sized meatballs. But when I opened the freezer to take out some beef, I found a package of Vino and Fromaggio Sausage that I put in there. I just loveeeeeeeeee this sausage and no longer buy regular Italian sweet sausage. I use this instead. Now I realize not everyone can get this so feel free to use whatever Italian sausages you can find around your area.

I will say this is a rich, luscious soup and one I will definitely make again.

Sausage Minestrone 4-6 servings

Olive oil ( I use extra virgin)
4 Italian sausage ( I use Vino &Fromaggio from our local store)
4 stalks celery sliced thin or a nice small celery heart chopped up with leaves too
3 carrots, peeled and sliced maybe 1/4in. thick
1 sm. red onion , chopped
3 cloves garlic, chopped fine
32 oz. chicken stock
1 can beef broth plus one can water
1 can 15oz. chopped tomatoes
1 can 15oz. white cannellini beans (or small white beans)
About 4oz fresh string beans, cut in about 1 in. pieces
About 4oz. frozen spinach
s & p
A handful of chopped fresh parsley
A small piece of cheese rind (I always have romano here so I used that.......parmesan would be excellent too)
1/2 c. small pasta
Crusty bread, sliced
Provolone cheese sliced

Take sausage from casings and break up in about 1/4c. olive oil. While that's browning chop veggies....add the celery and carrots and cook about 5min. Then add onion and garlic and saute 5 more min. or till onion is getting soft.

Add both stocks, and tomatoes. Drain and rinse beans, then put in pot. Cut up string beans and add. Toss in Spinach and chopped parsley. Add a bit of S & P. Bring to a boil then lower to a simmer. Add cheese rind. Cook till beans are falling apart and thickening the soup. About a half hr. before you think the beans will be done, add pasta and cook till tender. Serve with a nice piece of crusty Italian bread in a bowl, topped with provolone cheese. Pour soup over all and serve.

***You can also speed up the process by mashing the beans a bit before you put them in the pot.

Rosehips

I bought a pound of dried rosehips from an herb supplier. Ive had them in tea and like them so I thought Id like to have some on hand here. I have roses growing all the time on my property and have never done a thing with the hips. So since its winter and Im thinking of spring I thought Id like to gather a few recipes I would like to try using rosehips. Hopefully some of these will inspire you to use them too.

Rose Hips-

The rose hip and rose haw, is the pomaceous fruit of the rose plant, that typically is red-to-orange, but might be dark purple-to-black in some species. Contrary to the fairly common myth, rosehips are not poisonous.

Rose hips of some species, especially Rosa canina (Dog Rose) and R. majalis, have been used as a source of Vitamin C. Rose hips are commonly used as an herbal tea, often blended with hibiscus and as an oil. They can also be used to make jam, jelly, marmalade and wine. Rose hip soup, "nyponsoppa," is especially popular in Sweden. Rhodomel, a type of mead, is made with rose hips.

Some species of rose are sometimes referred to as rose hip, including Rosa canina (dog rose), R. rubiginosa, and R. moschata (Musk-rose)

Kodiak Rose Hip Tea

Rose hips give a fruity hint of floral flavor to lightly spiced hot tea. If you are so inclined, spike it with a bit of Grand Marnier for a delicious hot toddy.

* 1 tea bag
* 1 Tablespoon dried rose hips
* 3 to 4 whole cloves
* Sugar or honey to taste
* 1 cup boiling water

Preparation:
Steep tea bag, rose hips, and cloves in boiling water for five minutes. Remove hips and cloves. Reheat if desired. Sweeten to taste with sugar or honey. Yield: 1 serving

Drying Rose Hips and Rose Hips Puree

4 cups of rose hips

Preparation:
Just after a frost is the best time to gather rose hips. Snap off the tails as you pick,or later when you reach home. Spread the hips out on a clean surface and allow to dry partially. When the skins begin to feel dried and shriveled, split the hips and take out the large seeds -- all of them. If you let the hips dry too much, it will be difficult to remove the seeds. If not dry enough, the inside pulp will be sticky and cling to the seeds. After the seeds are removed, allow the hips to dry completely before storing or they will not keep well. Store in small, sealed plastic bags. These will keep indefinitely in the freezer or for several months in the refrigerator. They are packed with vitamin C and are good to munch on anytime you need extra energy...or a moderately sweet nutlike "candy."

Making Puree:
Use soft ripe rose hips (the riper they are, the sweeter they are). It takes about 4 cups of rose hips to make 2 cups of puree. Remove stalks and blossom ends. Rinse berries in cold water. Put them into a pan and add enough water to almost cover. Bring to a boil and simmer 10 to 15 minutes. Press through a sieve or strainer. All that does not go through the sieve is placed in the pan again. Add a little water, enough to almost cover, if you want a thicker puree, add slightly less. This time heat but do not boil so vigorously. This will dissolve a little more of the fruit so that it will go through the sieve. Press again and then repeat the process one more time. By now, most of the fruit should have gone through the sieve leaving only seeds and skin to discard.

Drying Puree or making "leather":
Line a cookie sheet, 12 by 17 inches, with plastic wrap. This size cookie sheet holds approximately 2 cups of puree. Spread puree or fruit leather evenly over the plastic but do not push it completely to the sides. Leave a bit of plastic showing for easy removal. Place on a card table or picnic table in the hot sun to dry. If the plastic is bigger than the cookie sheet and extends up the sides, anchor it with clothes pins so it will not flop down and cover the edges of the leather. Puree should dry in the sun six to eight hours.

Rose Hip Apple Sauce

* Apples
* Rose hip juice

Preparation:
Cook apples for making sauce in rose hip juice, or cook rose hips and apples together and puree them using a sieve or other straining device to remove the seeds. Proceed with standard applesauce recipe.

Rose Hip Crumble Pie

* Pastry for single-crust 9-lnch pie
* 1 cup dried rose hips
* 1/4 cup milk
* 1-1/2 cups sifted flour
* 2 teaspoons baking powder
* Dash of salt
* 1/2 cup shortening
* 1-3/4 cups brown sugar
* 2 egg yolks, beaten
* 2 egg whites
* Pecan halves (optional)

Preparation:
Prepare pastry and line a pie pan. Soften rose hips in milk.
Sift together flour, baking powder, and salt. Cream in shortening and brown sugar, mixing well. This makes a crumbly mixture - reserve 1 cup for topping. To the remainder add the egg yolks, milk and rose hips. Beat the egg whites until peaks hold form. Fold into the berry mixture. Spoon into pie pan and sprinkle with the crumbly topping. Garnish with pecan halves, too, if you wish.

Bake at 350 degrees F. (175 degrees C.) for 35 to 45 minutes or until pie appears well done. Yield: 6 to 8 servings

Rosehip Jelly

* 4 quarts ripe rose hips
* 2 quarts water
* 1 package pectin crystals
* 5 cups sugar
* 1/2 cup lemon juice

Preparation:
Simmer rose hips in water until soft. Crush to mash, and strain through a jelly bag. Should make about 4 cups of rose hip juice.

Add to juice, lemon juice and pectin crystals and stir until mixture comes to a hard boil. Stir sugar in at once. Bring to a full rolling boil and boil for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Remove jelly from heat and skim off foam with metal spoon. Pour jelly into hot sterilized jars. Yield: about 5 cups

Rose Hip Nut Bread

* Juice of 1 orange plus water to make 1 cup
* 1/2 cup chopped raisins
* 3/4 cup seeded and chopped wild rose hips
* 2 Tablespoons melted butter
* 1 teaspoon vanilla
* 1 egg, beaten
* 1-1/2 cups flour
* 1 cup sugar
* 1 teaspoon baking powder
* 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
* 1/4 teaspoon salt
* 1/2 cup nuts or sunflower seeds

Preparation:
In a large bowl, mix the orange juice, raisins, rose hips, butter, vanilla, and egg. Sift together and then add the dry ingredients. Mix until well blended but do not overmix or bread will be dry and heavy. Gently stir in nuts or sunflower seeds. Spoon batter into a well-greased 5 x 8-inch loaf pan and bake at 350 degrees F. ( 175 degrees C.) for one hour. Yield: 1 loaf

Rose Hip Soup

* 1 quart rose hip juice or puree (fresh or canned)
* 2 to 4 Tablespoons honey
* 1 to 3 Tablespoons lemon juice or homemade cider vinegar, optional (Omit if using canned juice or puree.)
* 1 Tablespoon potato starch, cornstarch, or tapioca granules
* 6 (about) Tablespoons sour cream or yogurt, optional

Preparation:
Heat the rose hips juice or puree, honey, and lemon juice or vinegar. Adjust amounts of honey and lemon juice or vinegar to give a lively sweet tart flavor.

Mix the starch or tapioca in enough cold water to moisten it, and stir it in. Cook till the soup thickens slightly and clears. Float a spoon of sour cream or yogurt in each bowl of soup when it is served. Yield: 5 to 6 medium bowls

Variations
Using Dried Rose Hips:
Soak l/2 cup dried rose hips in a quart of water for a few minutes, then cook till soft. Mash with a fork and strain, reserving liquid. Add another cup of water to the pulp. heat to a boil, then strain. Combine the juice from both strainings and use for making the soup.

Rose Hip Pudding:
Add honey to taste, and increase starch or tapioca to 5-6 tablespoons. After it has thickened pour the pudding into individual dishes or into a serving dish to cool. The flavor is brisk and very fruity.

Rose Hip Syrup

* 4 cups rose hips
* 2 cups water
* 1 cup sugar

Preparation:
Wash rose hips thoroughly. Remove stems and flower remnants. Boil hips and water for 20 minutes in a covered saucepan. Strain through a jelly bag. Return clear juice to kettle. Add sugar. stir well and boil five minutes. Refrigerate until used.

Turkey Soup With Cheddar Dumplings

Today I made stock with the turkey carcass from my Thanksgiving dinner. I cleaned it of most of the meat and wrapped it that nite. Then I froze it. Its cold here now and the weatherman says its going to get much colder. In fact it may even snow. Im in sunny No. Ca. thats rare. So I decided to make the stock and warm up the house. I had this recipe below on hand and decided it was time to try it. I made a few changes to the recipe that Ill put in in parentheses wherever I did that.


Turkey Soup With Cheddar Dumplings

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon olive oil
4 carrots, cut in half lengthwise and thinly sliced
1 medium onion, diced
3 3/4 cups turkey stock
2 cups water
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/3 cup yellow cornmeal
1 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
4 ounces shredded sharp cheddar cheese
3/4 cup frozen corn, thawed
1 large egg
1/3 cup milk
12 ounces chopped cooked turkey
chopped parsley for garnish if desired

Directions:

(I took about 8c. stock that I made today with one lg. onion and 3 garlic cloves, some salt and pepper and put it in another pot. I added some of the turkey meat from that too. To the soup pot I also added 2 stalks celery, a pinch of thyme and then followed the recipe. I didnt add the onion in the recipe since I made the stock with one.)


In a large saucepan, heat oil over medium-high. Add carrots and onion - cook for 4 minutes. Pour in stock and water - bring to a simmer, cover and cook until vegetables are just tender, 8 to 10 minutes.


In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cornmeal, baking powder and salt. Stir in cheese and corn. Mix in egg and milk - stir until the dough comes together.
Lightly flour your hands and form the dough into small balls - set on a plate.
(The recipe never said what size balls to make but from the picture I saw I figured they would expand a bit... so I made them about 2 in. across. They do expand some and next time I will make them much smaller, maybe an in. across. I put two in each of our bowls and we were stuffed.)

Add the turkey to soup and season to taste with salt and pepper. Bring to a gentle boil and add dumplings. Cover and cook until dumplings are cooked through, 5 to 6 minutes.



These are pretty tasty, a bit like having cornbread with your soup and very filling which really surprised me. While the recipe doesn't call for Parmesan cheese on it , we put some on. We love cheese and this really added more flavor. I think next time tho I will add a bit more cheddar to the recipe. I didn't really taste it in there. Next time maybe 1 c. I also didn't have any frozen corn on hand so I just opened a can of it and used part. My bf loved the soup tho. Once I made the stock the rest was easy.

SPINACH, CHICKEN AND TORTELLINI SOUP

This is one of those quick but delicious soups. I like to make this when Im in a hurry and dont have much time to make a quick dinner. This with a nice loaf of crusty bread with butter and its a meal. You can substitute small ravioli in this too. I use whatever I have on hand. If this soup has to sit for awhile, I would cook the pasta separate and add it when I serve the soup. Otherwise the pasta absorbs alot of the broth and it becomes very thick.

SPINACH, CHICKEN AND TORTELLINI SOUP Serves 4-6 main dish servings

2 lg. cloves garlic, minced

1 lg. onion, sliced

1c. sliced celery

1tb. oil

4c. chicken broth

2 whole chicken breasts, (bones ok and will add more flavor, you debone and shred it later)

1 pkg. (10oz.) frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained

1/2tsp. oregano

24 frozen mini cheese ravioli OR tortellini

1/2 tsp. salt - pepper to taste

In lg. pot saute garlic, onion and celery in the oil till golden. Add broth,and chicken breasts then cover and poach till breasts are done. Remove and let cool. Add spinach and oregano and cook over med heat about 5min. Add 1c. more of water and ravioli to the pot. Cover and cook till ravioli are done. While cooking ravioli, shred cooled chicken. Add to pot with s & p. Serve hot with grated Romano cheese on top and with a nice crusty loaf of sourdough or Italian bread. YUM!

BEEF AND BARLEY SOUP

BEEF AND BARLEY SOUP Makes 8 servings

1 1/2 lbs. top round, cut into 1/2 in. cubes ( I also use stew meat)
2 qt. water
1 can (35 oz.) tomatoes, undrained
3 beef bouillon cubes ( I use a can of condensed beef broth for a fresher taste)
1/2 tsp. fresh ground pepper
1/2 tsp. leaf thyme, crumbled
1/4 tsp. leaf marjoram, crumbled
5 carrots, peeled and sliced 1/2 in. thick
5 stalks celery, slice 1/2 in. thick
1 onion, coarsely chopped
1 garlic clove, chopped
1/2 lb. sliced mushrooms, opt.
1/2 c. pearl barley

Brown beef in a lg. pot in batches. Really brown it good and let the juices caramelize. This will add lots more flavor to the soup. Add the water to the beef and bring to boiling. Lower heat and simmer for 20 min., or till the meat is almost tender.

Stir in tomatoes with their liquid, breaking up the chunks. I squeeze mine in my hand so they crumble into pieces. Add the bouillon (or beef broth) , pepper, garlic, thyme, and marjoram. Simmer for 1hr. Add the carrots, celery, onion, and mushrooms (if your using). Add barley and cook till veggies are tender and barley is no longer hard and chewy.

I serve this with a grating of fresh Parmesan cheese on top and nice crusty bread and butter.

Split Pea Soup

I know not everyone likes Pea Soup. I never did as a kid. My mom would make Campbell's pea soup for lunch and it would make me gag and she would get mad cuz I wouldn't eat it. So I never thought Id grow up and end up liking it. But when you make things yourself you can add lots of flavor to make it better so this is my version. I use a pressure cooker for it. I splurged a couple years ago and bought an electric one since I had no clue how to use one. Some of you have grown up with moms or grandmoms using a stove top one, I never did. And Ive heard horror stories of them blowing up so I wanted no part of that. I figure an electronic one has alot more safeguards built in them so that's what I did. Of course one new toy leads to more and since I didn't have a clue what to do with this new thing I ended up buying some cookbooks about it. A few good ones I believe are important to use as a reference for whatever you want to make.


SPLIT PEA SOUP serves 8

2 c. (1lb.) dried green or yellow split peas, picked over
2 tb. olive oil
1 lg. onion, chopped
2 cloves, garlic , minced
1 lg. potato, peeled and diced
2 carrots, peeled and thinly sliced
2 stalks celery, thinly sliced
1 ham bone or 1 ham steak, trimmed of fat and diced
2 tsp. marjoram
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
8 c. water
S & P to taste

Rinse peas under water in a colander and pick thru. Sometimes there are small stones and such missed when processed. Heat olive oil in a pressure cooker over med. heat. (Mine has a browning function button for this) Add onion and garlic and saute till soft. Add potato, carrots, celery, ham bone and ham, marjoram, salt and pepper.


Cook for 2 min. Add the split peas and water. Stir well. (I save my ham bones from other dinners in the freezer and make sure they are really meaty, this is what makes this soup good. I add extra ham if the ham bone looks pretty bare).For this soup here I added the ham bone and whatever leftover frozen ham I had from it.....probably about a pound.



Cover and bring to high pressure over high heat. (I leave the browning feature on till the water gets hot, then switch over to pressure cooker). Lower the heat to stabilize the pressure. (At this point I make sure its all locked down and the proper pressure level is set and the timer is set too, then hit start)

Cook for about 30-45min. ( I let mine go to 45min, we like the meat falling apart). Let pressure drop till cool enough to handle and uncover pot. Taste and add more S & P if needed. Stir well to incorporate all the ingredients as they tend to settle to the bottom.



This soup gets really thick the next day. I often freeze it in 1 serving containers to eat for lunches and such. I add extra water to thin it when I reheat it.

THANKSGIVING SOUPS

We have a soup before our Thanksgiving day dinner each yr. The one I usually make is called Curried Corn Soup. Many yrs ago when my children were small , a bunch of my friends and I got together to from a daytime ladies gourmet group. Once a month we would create a menu and cook it for the others. We got to try out many new recipes we might not have tried otherwise. One of my friends made this soup and it was sooooooooooo yummy! I never would have put these ingredients together and yet they blend beautifully. I love the fact that its easy to make too using canned corn. If you love creamed corn this soup is for you. It is the only time of year I make it and my kids always look for it.









CURRIED CORN SOUP Makes 8c.

2 tb. butter
2 tb. chopped shallots or green onions
2 cans (1lb. each) creamed corn
1 can (1 lb.) whole corn, drained
2 c. half and half 1/2 tsp. fresh chopped rosemary
1 tsp. curry powder

Saute shallots. Add rest of ingredients. Stir while heating thru. Watch heat , it can scorch.

I have used 4 (1lb.) cans or creamed corn too and regular milk and its still very good. I now have found I can use fat free half and half in this type of soup and it tastes just as good without the fat.

Last year I decided to try a new recipe. At first my family said "what no corn soup?" and were disappointed till they tasted this. Now they are asking are you making Crab Bisque this year? They are tough critics so I figure its really good. And this is also another one of those easy soups to make.









CRAB BISQUE Serves 8

2 tb. butter
1 tsp. onion, finely chopped ( I have found I just grate a bit)
1 tb. parsley finely chopped
1 1/2c. crab meat, chopped
2 tb. flour
2 c. chicken broth
2 c. light cream
1 pinch of cayenne pepper
Salt

In saucepan melt the butter. Add the onion and cook slowly till golden. Add the crabmeat and parsley and cook over low heat stirring constantly. (about 4min.) Add the flour, stir to blend and cook for 3min. more. Stir in the chicken broth and simmer gently for 20 min. Keep pan partially covered. Add the cream and cayenne pepper. Heat and add salt to taste.


We can get Dungeness crabs around here so if I find a sale on them I will buy a big one, clean it the day before and put the meat in the freezer till I make the soup. Ive also used the lg. king crab legs too when they are on sale. If you want to stretch it tho you could add some shrimp too.

Perfect day for Clam Chowder

Fall is on its way ...today its chilly and raining. Its the first day in months I'm wearing long pants and a sweater! And I love it! Its been way too hot this summer. So last nite I made some Clam Chowder and I'm having some for lunch as I type this too. So I thought I'd post it on here today for those who have never made it. This is my version from a recipe I found many yrs ago in a cookbook I have.

I know there's pros and cons of clam chowder all over......some like with bacon some don't. We do and I don't like alot of potatoes too. I hate going to restaurants and that's about all that's in that so called chowder. I want to taste the clams! So here's my version and last nite for the first time I added celery because I realized I always liked the ones that have it when I eat out.

SEANYMPH'S CLAM CHOWDER Makes about 8 servings
3 slices bacon
1 lg. onion, chopped (1c.)
5-6 tb. flour
1 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
4c. milk or 1 qt. fat free half and half
4 cans (about 6 1/2-7oz. each) minced clams
2 bottles clam juice
4 med. size potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/2in. dice
2 stalks celery, diced
2tb. chopped parsley
1/2tsp. thyme

Cook bacon in lg. heavy pot about 8qt. size, till crisp. Remove with slotted spoon; drain on paper towels, crumble and reserve. (I cut mine up first when I do this, its quicker).

Add onion and celery to bacon fat in pan; saute till tender, about 3min. Stir in flour, salt and pepper, and thyme; cook 1min.




Whisk in milk or half and half ( I love it better with half and half but I don't always have it on hand here) until smooth. Cook, stirring constantly till thickened and bubbly: lower heat to simmer.




Drain liquid from clams into a med. size pan; reserve clams. Add bottled clam juice and potatoes. Simmer till potatoes are tender, about 15 min.



Add potatoes and their cooking liquid to the milk mixture; heat just till bubbly. Add clams; heat 1 min. more . Sprinkle with parsley and bacon.



***If you wish to substitute fresh clams for canned, buy the large chowder clams (you will need about a qt.) Have them shucked and reserve the liquor. Strain and measure the liquor (you will need 1 1/2c.) If the measure is short, add bottled clam juice. Follow the recipe as for canned clams.

Since I rarely can find clams around here I use canned. Its quicker too and I can keep them on hand for days like this when I want to make it and its icky out. If you can get fresh tho go for it, I would.