Soups We Love

I ALWAYS double, if not triple, my soup recipes.  It never hurts to put it in the freezer and reheat it when you’re in the mood for soup.  I use parve consomme in almost all of my soups instead of chicken stock.  Use what you have.

Israeli Couscous Soup

• 2 T olive oil
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 carrots, diced
• 14.5 oz can petite diced tomatoes
• 6 cloves garlic, minced
• 6 cups chicken stock
• 1 cup Israeli couscous
• 3 mint springs, chopped
• 5 springs cilantro, chopped
• 1/4 t ground cumin
• salt and pepper

Heat olive oil in a soup pot and add the onions and carrots and cook on medium-low heat for 10 minutes or until softened.  Add the canned tomatoes, garlic, chicken stock (I use water and the powdered consomme), mint, cilantro and cumin.  Add salt and pepper to taste.  Bring the soup to bowl for 10 minutes.  Add the couscous before serving and simmer gently until couscous is tender.  If it’s too think, add more chicken stock.

TIP: This is a great soup to serve with either meat or dairy.  The consomme I use is parve.  The original recipe calls for a dash of cayenne pepper but it’s a little too much heat for my kids.  In our house, there are always two kinds of hot sauce (Tabasco for him and Chrystal for me) on the table if you like a little heat.  If you freeze this soup, add more stock and a tablespoon or two of Tomato Paste when you reheat it.  Also a good recipe to double.

Split Pea

• 8 cups water
• 2 carrots
• 2 stalks celery
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1 onion
• 1 16 0z bag dried split peas
• salt and pepper to taste

Simmer all the ingredients in a soup pot until soft.  Use either a blender or hand blender to puree.

TIP: If the soup doesn’t seem thick enough to you, add a large handful of oatmeal and let simmer another few minutes until it thickens up.  This was my grandmother’s trick.  It’s good for almost any soup.

Vegetable Soup

• 2 sweet potatoes
• 2 white potatoes
• 4 stalks celery
• 4 carrots
• 3 onions
• 1/2 a butternut squash, peeled and cubed
• 6 bulbs garlic
• 2 pouches of Manischewitz Vegetable Soup Mix
• parsnips and turnips (optional)
• beef bones (optional)
• water

If using beef bones, place in the bottom of a very large soup pot with a little bit of olive oil and brown.  Process everything from the potatoes to the garlic in a food processor until shredded, not pulverized.  Add vegetables to soup pot and add enough water to cover the vegetables.  Bring to a boil and turn down to simmer.  Add soup mix pouches and simmer for several hours.  Add salt and pepper to taste and at least a handful of oatmeal.  This soup is delicious on the first day but even better on the second.  Freezes beautifully!

Hot and Sour Soup

• 4 T soy sauce
• 2 T mirin (can be found in the Asian section of any grocery store)
• 1 t sesame oil
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1 T sugar
• 4 T rice vinegar
• 1/2 t Vietnamese chile paste (I use Sambal Oelek; also available in any grocery store)
• ginger powder (you can use fresh)
• 8 cups chicken broth
• 1 bag fresh spinach, chopped
• 2 green onions, sliced
• sliced mushrooms
• cilantro (optional)

Combine all ingredients in a soup pot and simmer for about 30 minutes.   This soup is great on its own, over rice or over Chinese-style noodles.

Cream of Mushroom Soup

• 2 cups fresh mushrooms – cleaned and chopped (I used baby bella and white button)
• 4 cloves minced garlic
• 2 tbsp butter
• 1 t dried thyme
• 1 – 2 bay leaf
• 1 t Worcestershire sauce
• 1 cup chicken broth (or water and consommé)
• 1 T whole wheat flour dissolved in 1 T water (becomes a paste)
• 6 oz Greek yogurt, plain
• 1/2 cup milk
• several dashes of nutmeg and garlic salt

Melt butter in soup pot and saute garlic for several minutes.  Add thyme, chopped mushrooms, bay leaf and Worcestershire sauce.  Cook until all the water is cooked out of the mushrooms.  Turn up the heat and add chicken broth and bring up to a boil.  Once it boils, turn down to a simmer and add in the flour/water paste until it thickens.  Add in milk and Greek yogurt and simmer for five minutes.  Add nutmeg, garlic salt and eat!