Marsh Soup

We affectionately call this Marsh Soup because it originated with the Marsh family. Any way it is named, it is always easy and delicious. It is consistently a favorite with the guys: meaty, hearty, and perfect after a good snowball fight.

2 cans white beans, drained
2 cans kidney beans, drained
2 cans red beans, drained
1 quart bottled tomatoes with juice
1 pound ground beef
1/2 cup white rice, uncooked
1 large chopped onion
4 TBS taco seasoning mix
garnishments: Fritos, sour cream, cheddar cheese, green onions, etc.

Brown ground beef; drain excess fat and add onion. Cook until onion is translucent. Place beef and onion in a crock-pot with beans, tomatoes, rice, seasoning, and additional 1/2 cup water. Incorporate well. Cook on high for three hours. Serve with your favorite garnishes.

The rice in this recipe acts as the thickening agent. I have also used rice flour successfully. I like to replace the canned beans with leftover beans from other recipes: pinto, black, great northern, pink, anazai, kidney, whatever is on hand that week. It is a very forgiving recipe that adjusts to on-hand ingredients.

Cream of Spinach Soup

I was recently looking for a good spinach soup recipe and was unimpressed by what I found. I felt I could do better, and came up with this recipe:

1 medium onion, chopped

1 Tbsp chopped garlic

1 pound fresh spinach

3 cups chicken stock

1/4 cup butter

1/4 cup flour

3 cups half-and-half

(or cream or milk, depending on how rich you're feeling...)

In a pot, saute onions and garlic in olive oil until onions begin to soften. Add spinach (don't worry, it will cook down!), and about a cup of the chicken stock. Cover the pot with a lid and stir periodically, wilting the spinach. When spinach has cooked down, add the remaining chicken stock and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer until spinach is soft.

In a saucepan, melt the butter, and then whisk in the flour until smooth. Slowly mix in the half-and-half until smooth.

Pour the half-and-half mixture into the pot with the spinach mixture, and simmer until thickened, about 10 minutes. For a really smooth product, run an immersion blender through the soup before serving.

Guys, I don't mean to brag, but this stuff is pretty awesome. It even got the coveted Ellie endorsement. She very enthusiastically slurped up her "green soup."

Blendtec Recipes

I have had a request to post some of the smoothie recipes from our new blendtec recipe book. Here is the link for the entire book online! All of the smoothies we have tried have been excellent. I've also like a couple of their soup recipes. ENJOY!

Hearty Black Bean Soup

1 cup tomato salsa
2 (15 ½ oz) cans black beans, drained and rinsed
2 cups chicken broth
1 tsp lime juice
2 Tbsp chopped fresh cilantro
Sour cream, optional

Heat the salsa in a large saucepan for about 5 minutes. Add beans and broth. Bring the mixture to a boil, then lower the heat to a simmer and cover for 15 minutes.
Let the soup cool slightly, then ladle half of it into a food processor or blender and puree it. Return the pureed soup to the pot. Stir in the lime juice and chopped cilantro and heat the mixture through. Serve the soup warm, topped with sour cream. Serves 4.
This recipe is also very successful using dry beans. Simply sort, rinse and soak the beans overnight. Cook the beans until tender before adding the remaining ingredients.

Ham and Bean Soup

3 cups dry pinto beans
Ham bone
1 yellow onion, diced
1 bay leaf, dry
Salt and pepper to taste

Sort and rinse beans; soak them in a generous amount of water overnight. Next morning, rinse beans once more and add fresh hot water to cover several inches above the surface of the beans. This will be the broth, so add as much as desired. Add ham bone, onion, and bay leaf to the pan. Cover and cook on medium-high until beans are very tender—this could be anywhere from 2-8 hours, depending on how old the beans are. Remove from heat. Remove ham bone from the pan and slice any good meat on the bone to return to the soup. Add salt and pepper to taste. Remove bay leaf just before service. If a thicker soup is desired, puree with a stick blender.

Southwestern Pinto Beans

1 pound dry pinto beans
½ lb bacon, chopped
2 cups chopped onion
3 minced garlic cloves
¼ tsp pepper
1 quart tomatoes + juice
2-3 Tbsp chili powder
½ tsp oregano leaves
½ tsp salt
1/8 tsp ground cumin

Soak beans overnight. Drain and rinse. Cover with water and simmer for 3-4 hours or until tender. In large skillet, crisp bacon, onion, and garlic. Do not drain. Add bacon mixture, tomato sauce, and spices to beans. Stir well. Simmer, uncovered, for an additional 20-30 minutes

Tomato-Basil Parmesan Soup

What can I say about this recipe? It's absolutely delicious - real veggies, parmesan cheese, dairy all mixed together. Fantastically easy - mostly cooks all day in a crockpot. It's my new winter favorite! You've GOT to try it! (This recipe comes from "365 Days of Slow Cooking")

Ingredients:
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 T fresh oregano
1 T dried basil or 1/4 cup fresh basil
4 cups chicken broth
½ bay leaf
½ cup flour
1 cup Parmesan cheese
½ cup butter
2 cups half and half, warmed
1 tsp salt
¼ tsp black pepper

Directions:
Add tomatoes, celery, carrots, chicken broth, onions, oregano, basil (if using fresh oregano and basil, if using dried oregano and basil add it in the last hour of cooktime), and bay leaf to a large slow cooker. Cover and cook on LOW for 5-7 hours, until flavors are blended and vegetables are soft. About an hour before serving prepare a roux. Melt butter over low heat in a skillet and add flour. Stir constantly with a whisk for 5-7 minutes. Slowly stir in 1 cup hot soup. Add another 3 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. Cover and cook on LOW for another hour until ready to serve.

*Note - used the pregrated powdery parmesan the first time. Not bad, just kind of a grainy texture. Used the real stuff the second time - wow!
** I like to use my stick blender and puree the veggies before adding it to the roux. Just makes a velvety soup. Then Jeremiah will eat it. :)

White Chicken Chili with Lime

I saw Kim's post on her wonderful White Chicken Chili and wanted to add this Betty Crocker's white chili recipe. We do frequently because it is so good!

1 tbs vegetable oil

2 medium onions, chopped (1 cup)

2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

3 cups chicken broth

2 tbs chopped fresh cilantro or 1/2 tsp ground coriander

2 tbs lime juice (I usually use a lot more if I do not use fresh limes)

1 tsp ground cumin

1/2 tsp dried oregano

1/4 tsp red pepper sauce

1/4 tsp salt

1 11 oz can corn (the recipe calls for white but I have always used golden and it works fine)

1 can great northern beans

1 can butter beans

2 cups chopped cooked chicken breast

1. cook onions and garlic in oil.

2. Stir in remaining ingredients except chicken. Simmer uncovered 20 minutes. Stir in chicken.

3. Top with shredded cheese, tortilla chips, chopped green onions, diced tomatoes, chopped fresh cilantro, sliced avocado, or sour cream!

White Chicken Chili

2 cups great northern dry beans
1 quart chicken stock, or bouillon and water equivalent
1 can of cannery chicken or turkey, with broth
2 TB dried onion
2 cloves minced garlic
1 7 oz. can diced green chili
1-2 TB jalapeno (optional)
2 tsp ground cumin seed
1 tsp dried oregano
additional dairy ingredients below

Rinse and sort the dry beans. Soak beans overnight in a generous amount of water.
The next morning, drain and rinse the beans. Return them to the pot and cook them in the chicken stock on low heat until the beans are tender. Add more water as needed to prevent scorching; stir occasionally. (This will take about 2-4 hours, depending on the freshness of the beans.)
Break up canned chicken or turkey and add it with its liquid to the pot. Add all remaining ingredients and cook until the onions are tender.
Just before serving, remove from heat and add:
1 1/2 cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese
1/2 cup sour cream
Stir to incorporate and enjoy.

Terrific Options:
A faster edition will use canned great northern beans.
We also prefer to use the gorgeous, frozen chilies that Kali and Bobby have sent from New Mexico!
Be sure to grate your own cheese for this recipe; don't use prepared cheese that may contain cellulose (to prevent clumping).
This is a good way to use left-over, cooked poultry.
One chopped, sauteed onion is good for the dried onion.
The crock pot produces a soupier version and perfect for busy days.

Creamy Corn Soup with Chicken and Poblano Chile

This is from a cookbook by Rick Bayless called "Mexican Everyday". I needed more uses for our garden produce and this is a great one for fresh corn from the garden. The roasted chile pepper just seems perfect for New Mexico too.

Ingredients:

• 1 large poblano chile
• 1 Tbsp. vegetable or olive oil
• 1 small white onion, sliced 1/4 inch thick
• 2 cloves garlic, peeled
• 3 cups corn kernels cut from the cob (takes about 5 ears)
• 1 Tbsp. cornstarch
• 1 quart milk
• 2 boneless skinless chicken breats cut into 1/2 inch cubes
• salt
• about 1/4 cup chopped cilantro for garnish

Directions:

1. Roast the pepper over open flame or 4 inches below the broiler until blackened and blistered all over.
2. Heat oil in pan. Add onion and garlic and cook until golden. Put into blender or food processor.
3. Add corn, cornstarch, 1 1/2 cup milk to the blender too. Process to a smooth puree. (You can strain the puree through a mesh strainer for a smoother soup). Return puree to pan.
4. When chile is cool enough, peel off the blackened skin. Pull off stem and seed pods. Cut into 1/4 inch pieces. Add to the pan.
5. Add chicken to the puree and additional 2 1/2 cups milk. Simmer until chicken is cooked. Season with salt. Ladle into bowls and add the cilantro as a garnish. Serve!

A few variations the author suggests are replacing the chicken with ham; or zucchini or asparagus for a vegetarian meal. Or add shrimp, crab, bacon, etc.

Lemon Chicken Soup

The inspiration for this one came from watching Giada De Laurenttis on the Food Network Channel. She made a lemon chicken soup with carrots and parsley, but I had loftier ideas for lemon chicken soup, so I like to think of this one as a Jesse original. This recipe makes four generous portions.

• 6 cups chicken broth (preferably homemade)
• Juice of 4 lemons*
• 2 bay leaves
• 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 3 oz spaghetti, broken into 2 inch pieces
• 1/4 cup fresh basil, chopped
• 4 cups fresh baby spinach
• 1 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

In a large pot, add chicken broth, lemon juice, and bay leaves. On med/high heat, add whole chicken breasts and simmer 10-15 minutes, or until chicken is cooked through. Remove chicken from the pot and add the spaghetti. Using two forks, shred the chicken while the spaghetti cooks 4-5 minutes. Add the chicken back in when the pasta is tender. Stir in basil and spinach and cook just until spinach is wilted. Ladle into bowls and top with Parmesan cheese.

I don't usually poach chicken, but in the chicken stock and lemon juice, it becomes super moist and savory. This recipe is quick, easy, and healthy. Try it, love it, then tell me how brilliant I am. ;)

*I like LEMON chicken soup. If you're not that into the lemon flavor, I'd just go with a couple lemons.