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Tis the Season for Soup

Tis the season for frigid temperatures and family gatherings. If you’ve hosted meals for friends and family during the holiday season, then you know nothing feeds the masses like homemade soup. Not only is soup affordable, nutritious and tasty, it’s also very simple to make. What’s more, nearly all soup recipes can be prepared in advance, so you aren’t left chained to the stove in the kitchen while the rest of family is partying in the living room. The following are some of my family’s favorite winter soups: SIMPLE RAVIOLI SOUP Ingredients: 1 pound Italian sausage 1/2 cup diced onion … Continue reading →

Recipes for Soup Season

Whenever the temperature dips below 40 degrees for more than five consecutive days, I declare it “soup season.” Unfortunately, this year, soup season started a bit earlier than I would have liked. I enjoy warm weather, but I can tolerate chilly temps when I have a large bowl of hot soup to slurp down each night. The following soup recipes are some of my all-time favorites: CLASSIC TORTELLINI SOUP Ingredients: 1 pound sweet or hot Italian sausage, casings removed 1 small onion, chopped 1 cup chopped celery 1 cup, finely diced carrot 1 teaspoon garlic salt 1 teaspoon black pepper … Continue reading →

Simple Summer Soups

Soups during the dog days of summer? It doesn’t seem practical, right? On the contrary, chilled soups are a delicious way to cool off during the sweltering summer months. In addition, with all of the fresh produce being offered at local farmer’s markets and in your own backyard, the following recipes should come in very handy: SUMMER MINESTRONE Ingredients: 4 tablespoons olive oil, divided 1 medium onion, chopped 1 medium carrots, peeled and chopped 2 celery stalks, chopped Salt and pepper 1 tablespoon dried basil 4 large garlic cloves, minced 1 medium sized zucchini, diced 1 medium yellow summer squash, … Continue reading →

International Soup Recipes

Despite the fact that temperatures were in the 80s during our recent trip to Hawaii, I couldn’t help but indulge in some of my favorite soup recipes. I am very fortunate to have an extended family of wonderful cooks, who love to feed visiting foodies. The Chicken Jook and Sausage and Bean Soup can be made in slow cookers, making preparation and clean up a breeze. Meanwhile, the Roast Pork Kim Chee Soup is bursting with flavor and is just as fast and easy to make as the Chicken Jook and Sausage and Bean Soup. All three are ideal for … Continue reading →

Comfort Food: Homemade Soup and Croutons

A lazy Sunday afternoon is the perfect time to make a large pot of steaming hot soup. Not only will it help warm you up on cold winter’s day, but also if you plan ahead you can make enough to take to work the next day. This recipe for Classic Tuscan White Bean Soup will fill your kitchen with irresistible aromas, as will the homemade croutons, which give off an enticing scent of warm garlic: CLASSIC TUSCAN WHITE BEAN SOUP Ingredients: 2 cups dried cannellini or other white beans, rinsed, soaked overnight and drained 6 cups water 1 teaspoon salt … Continue reading →

Super Soups

The day after Thanksgiving should be named Leftover Turkey Day rather than Black Friday since most Americans typically partake in round two (or three or four) with the holiday bird. In a previous blog I listed recipes that are ideal for leftover turkey. However, if you’re planning to stick with traditional turkey sandwiches, then why not whip up a steaming hot pot of fresh soup to go with them? The following soup recipes pair perfectly with turkey sandwiches on the day after Thanksgiving: WILD RICE SOUP Ingredients: 1 stick butter 1 finely chopped onion 1 cup chopped celery 1/2 cup … Continue reading →

Vegetable Soup With Ground Beef- Quick and Easy!

Living in California, one tends to assume we have beautiful, sunny weather 365 days a year. It’s true, we do tend to stay in the 70’s most of the time; but this winter has been especially cool. I have particularly enjoyed curling up on the couch with the fireplace going, while eating something warm and comforting. Nothing warms my bones like a nice bowl of steamy soup. On occasion I like a big hearty bowl of meaty soup, but other days the familiar vegetable or chicken noodle soups will do the trick. Today I am sharing a recipe for vegetable … Continue reading →

Tomato Basil Soup

If you like tomato soup at all, you will probably love tomato soup with fresh basil. The Tomato Basil Soup recipe that I’m listing here is just that; this recipe is, of course, tomato-y, creamy, full of basil and soooo tasty. And it’s simple to make if you don’t mind using your blender to puree the tomatoes and basil together. Here’s what you’ll need to gather and do to make this delicious Tomato Basil Soup: Ingredients: 4 cups tomatoes (8 – 10 fresh tomatoes), peeled, cored, chopped; or 4 cups canned whole tomatoes, crushed 12 fresh Basil leaves, washed 1 … Continue reading →

White Bean Soup With Sausage—Just Right for Snowy Days

For all you lucky folks who live where the ground is white and snowmen abound, this is a soup that’s just right for you. Alas, those of us living without snow, where the temperatures are in the 80’s in mid-January and the closest thing to snow is a cup of flavored shaved ice, well—we’ll just have to make this deliciously comforting soup and pretend it’s snowing outside. This soup combines so many delicious flavors—sausage, white beans, kale. It’s colorful and pleasing to your eyes, which makes it extra pleasing to your stomach as well. Enjoy. For this recipe you’ll need: … Continue reading →

Favorite Recipes

Sometimes it is hard to keep track of all of the great recipes that are our there. Today, I thought I would make it a little easier by linking up some of the favorite Families.com recipes that we have posted over the years. It is a good selection of different kinds of food, from soup to desert, although I have to say that I am partial to the desert. Enjoy! *** The Serious Chocolate Lover’s Chocolate Cake Have you ever seen the gigantic chocolate cake that Costco sells? It is a 5 layer chocolate cake, with chocolatey whipped frosting and … Continue reading →