This week we have had some very cold weather (down to -30 and with wind chill a ways below that). Soup is the perfect meal for cold weather. Homemade soup is also very frugal and nutritious. Pair it up with fresh bread, biscuits, rolls or corn bread and you have a wonderful meal.
Usually when I make soups I just look around and use what I have and don't follow a recipe. That is what my mom does and so I learned that from her. It is nice if you have some sort of broth to start with. I was given some home grown chicken (which can be a little tougher) so I boiled a lot of it down and now have many containers of chicken broth with a little meat in my freezer ready to make soups. After Thanksgiving I also boiled the turkey carcas and now have a lot of turkey broth in my freezer too. To the broth you can add all sorts of vegies, noodles, rice or barley or whatever you desire. It is fun to be creative and see how great your soup can be.
I thought I would share a couple of recipes as well. Don't feel like you have to follow a recipe exactly, just use it for a guideline.
No Fuss Potato Soup
6 cups cubed peeled potatoes
5 cups water
2 cups chopped onion
1/2 cup chopped celery
1/2 cups thinly sliced carrots
4 teaspoons chicken bouillon granules (or just use broth instead of the water)
2 teaspoons salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 can evaporated milk
3 Tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
Ham, cheese and snipped chives optional
Put together everything except the milk, parsley, cheese and chives in crock pot. Cover and cook on high for 7-8 hours. (or you can make this on your stove top a lot faster). Add milk and parsley and mix well. Cover and cook for another 1/2 hour, until heater through. Garnish with cheese and chives if desired.
Also my Mom's cornbread:
1 cup cornmeal
1 cup flour
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup sugar
3 teaspoons baking powder
2/3 cup milk
1 egg
1/3 cup oil
Mix dry ingrediants together. Then gently stir in wet ingrediants. Don't stir to much, some lumps are okay. Put in greased 8x8 pan. Bake at 400 degrees for around 20 minutes, check with toothpick to see when done.
For more frugal tips go visit Biblical womanhood.
What are your favorite soups?
