Almost-Famous Broccoli-Cheddar Soup

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Fall is almost here and I am so ready for it.  This summer flew by! I hardly ever make soup in the summertime so I've been waiting to make this for a few months now.  Have you ever been to Panera Bread?  It's a bakery-cafe chain that is soooo yummy!  If you haven't been you must try it!  They're Cinnamon Crunch bagels are to die for.  So is their broccoli cheddar soup!  I was skeptical that Food Network was able to copy it but it tasted just like it.  I didn't serve with sourdough bread bowls but Panera does that and it makes it even better.  I made a bit of a mistake with this and blindly followed directions :)  I should have checked the tenderness of the broccoli before blending it.  It wasn't quite soft enough so the soup didn't taste as smooth as it should have.  I was in a hurry ok?!  So make sure the broccoli is very soft before starting the blending process!

ALMOST-FAMOUS BROCCOLI-CHEDDAR SOUP

(Food Network Magazine)

Serves 4-6

Ingredients:

6 TB unsalted butter

1 small onion, chopped

1/4 C all-purpose flour

2 C half and half

3 C low-sodium chicken broth

2 bay leaves

1/4 tsp freshly grated nutmeg

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

4 C broccoli florets (about 1 head)

1 large carrot, diced

2 1/2 C (about 8 oz total) grated sharp white AND yellow cheddar cheese, plus more for garnish

Directions:

Melt butter in a large Dutch oven or pot over medium heat.  Add the onion and cook until tender, about 5 minutes.  Whisk in the flour and cook until golden, 3 or 4 minutes, then gradually whisk in the half-and-half until smooth.  Add the chicken broth, bay leaves, and nutmeg, then season with salt and pepper and bring to a simmer.  Reduce the heat to medium-low and cook, uncovered, until thickened, about 20 minutes.

Add the broccoli and carrot to the broth mixture and simmer until tender, about 20 minutes.  (Check it!)  Discard the bay leaves.  Puree soup in batches in a blender until smooth; you'll still have flecks of carrot and broccoli.  Return to the pot.  (Our puree soup in the pot with an immersion blender.)

Add the cheese to the soup and whisk over medium heat until melted.  Add up to 3/4 C of water if the soup is too thick.  Remember to taste test for seasoning!  Ladle into bowls and garnish with cheese. 

Tip: If you blend the soup in a blender you must follow these instructions.  If not, you will have hot soup all over yourself and your kitchen!  Pour only enough soup to fill the blender halfway.  Leave the lid off or the smaller opening that is within the main lid.  Cover with a kitchen towel and hold the towel on with your hand loosely.  Blend.  This allows steam to escape so you won't have a soup explosion :)

Slow Cooker Chicken Tortilla Soup

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I've had this recipe forever and finally made it a couple of weeks ago. Why oh why did I let that recipe sit there for so long? It is soooo good! I've tried many tortilla soup recipes and haven't found one yet that I loved, until now. This is fast prep and easy to make. The best thing was that my kids liked it! They are the pickiest kids when it comes to soups, casseroles, chili or anything that has lots of "stuff" in it. Most of the time my kids like all of the ingredients individually but when it's all mixed up they are scared to try it. When they saw their bowl of soup topped with tortilla chips, cheese, sour cream and cilantro they were all for it! All of 3 of my kids love cilantro. When they smell it or see me chopping it up they come running for their own little stem of it to munch on. It just warms my heart since I'm in love with cilantro too! I'm training them well aren't I? At least I'm trying to anyway. I used rotisserie chicken because it is easy, flavorful and moist and I didn't have to cook it. I didn't have frozen corn that day so I just used canned but added it in the last 30 minutes. Oh, and I did not make my own tortilla strips. Who has time for that? I just grabbed some tortilla chips from the pantry and crunched them up over the top. The directions are here, though, if you decide to venture that far.

SLOW COOKER CHICKEN TORTILLA SOUP
(www.allrecipes.com)

Ingredients

1 pound shredded, cooked chicken
1 (15 ounce) can whole peeled tomatoes, mashed
1 (10 ounce) can enchilada sauce
1 medium onion, chopped
1 (4 ounce) can chopped green chile peppers
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups water
1 (14.5 ounce) can chicken broth
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 bay leaf
1 (10 ounce) package frozen corn
1 tablespoon chopped cilantro
7 corn tortillas
vegetable oil

Directions

1.Place chicken, tomatoes, enchilada sauce, onion, green chiles, and garlic into a slow cooker. Pour in water and chicken broth, and season with cumin, chili powder, salt, pepper, and bay leaf. Stir in corn and cilantro. Cover, and cook on Low setting for 6 to 8 hours or on High setting for 3 to 4 hours.
2.Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
3.Lightly brush both sides of tortillas with oil. Cut tortillas into strips, then spread on a baking sheet.
4.Bake in preheated oven until crisp, about 10 to 15 minutes. To serve, sprinkle tortilla strips over soup.

Tortellini Soup

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This amazing soup is in my top 3 favorite soups and my entire family loves it! I usually grate most of the zucchini and leave just a few chunks to hide it from my kids. They have no idea! So here you go friends, enjoy!

TORTELLINI SOUP

1 lb. Italian sausage (mild)
2 cloves of garlic (minced)
1 small onion, diced
5 C chicken broth approx. (I use about 1 1/2 of the 32 oz cartons) Use more if it is too thick.
1/2 c. apple cider
1 can chopped, stewed tomatoes (16 oz.)
1 can tomato sauce (8 oz.)
1 cup sliced carrots
1 tsp dried basil leaves
1 tsp dried oregano
2 medium zucchini, grated or sliced
1 8-10 oz package cheese tortellini (I like the frozen kind-and put it in frozen)
2 Tbsp. fresh parsley
Salt to taste
Parmesan cheese (for garnish-to taste)

Brown sausage, garlic and onion in large soup pot. Add remaining ingredients, except zucchini, tortellini and parsley. Simmer 30 minutes. Stir in last three ingredients, simmer another 30 minutes. Add more broth if too thick and salt if needed. Serve with fresh grated parmesan.

White Chili with Roasted Garlic and Chilies

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This recipe is adapted from a recipe I recently found in Food Network magazine. It is amazing! This picture is from Food Network's website but mine looked the same. This is our whole family's new favorite chili/soup recipe.

WHITE CHILI WITH ROASTED GARLIC


Ingredients:

(For the roasted garlic)
12 cloves garlic, unpeeled
1 TB extra virgin olive oil

(For the chili)
7 whole shallots, chopped finely
2 TB extra virgin olive oil
3 Anaheim chili peppers (look up online if unsure)
3 cloves garlic, minced
3 TB all purpose flour
8 Cups low sodium chicken broth, divided
4 C shredded rotisserie chicken
1 TB chili powder (I used a little less for the kids sake)
½ tsp cayenne pepper (I omitted for kid’s sake)
1- 15 oz can navy beans, undrained
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
10 oz box frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
¾ tsp smoked paprika
1/3 C heavy cream
2 C grated Monterey jack cheese, for garnish

1. Make roasted garlic. Preheat oven to 350. Make a foil packet for the garlic and olive oil. Place packet in oven and roast for around 40 minutes. Set aside and let cool.
2. Make roasted chilies. Preheat broiler. Place the 3 chili peppers on a foil lined broiler pan (or cookie sheet). Broil until charred on all sides turning every few minutes. Should take around 10 minutes total but go longer if they aren’t charred yet. When they’re done transfer to a bowl, cover with plastic wrap and let cool. Peel the peppers with your fingers. Then stem, seed, and chop. Set aside.
3. Cook the shallots in olive oil over med-low heat in a large stock pot until caramelized, about 15 minutes. Add more olive oil if it looks to dry and starts to stick too much. Add the minced garlic to the shallots and cook until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Add the flour and cook, stirring, about 2-3 minutes. Increase the heat to high and add 1 C chicken broth; simmer 2 minutes and scrape up any browned bits from the pan. Add the roasted chilies, 6 cups broth, the chicken, chili powder, cayenne, beans, and S&P. Return to simmer.
4. Meanwhile, squeeze the soft pulp from the roasted garlic into a blender or food processor. Add the remaining 1 C broth and process until smooth. Add to the chili and simmer until thickened, about 30 minutes. During the last 5 minutes add spinach, smoked paprika, and heavy cream. Add more S&P if needed. Garnish individual bowls with cheese.

THIS TAKES ABOUT 2 HOURS TOTAL BUT IS TOTALLY WORTH IT!!!