Beef Barley Soup

In honor of what I hope is the last snow storm of the season, I served up steaming bowls of this hearty soup for dinner tonight. I threw it together this morning before logging into work - a little chopping, a little sauteing, and the prep was done in fewer than 20 minutes.

The beef practically fell apart, the veggies were tender without being overcooked, and the barley had a nice bite to it. Thankfully it was delicious, since it looks like we'll be eating it for the rest of the week for lunch!

Happy day before Spring!

Ingredients:

• 3 lbs. beef stew meat, cut to uniform size
• 1/2 C flour
• Salt and pepper
• 2 T canola oil, divided
• 4 carrots, finely diced
• 1 large white onion, finely diced
• 4 cloves garlic, finely minced
• 1 T Worcestershire sauce
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 28 oz. can petite diced tomatoes
• 1 Quart beef stock
• 3/4 C pearled barley

Method:

1. Heat 1 T of oil in large saute pan over medium heat.
2. Combine flour, salt and pepper in gallon sized Ziploc bag. Add half of the beef and shake to coat evenly.
3. Remove beef from bag, shaking off excess flour. Add to saute pan and brown on each side. When done, remove beef from pan and add to slow cooker.
4. Repeat process with remaining oil and beef.
5. Add about 1/2 C of the stock to the hot saute pan and deglaze, scraping up browned bits from bottom of the pan. Add stock from saute pan to crock pot, along with the remaining stock.
6. Add all remaining ingredients to crock pot, except barley. Stir well.
7. Cook on low for 9 hours.
8. Add barley, increase to high, and cook for another hour.

Chicken Noodle Soup

We eat a lot of chicken, and it's fun (and sometimes a little frustrating) to find new ways to prepare it. Who knew that Nov. 12 was Chicken Soup for the Soul Day?! Not me...but I had a package of chicken and everything I needed to make soup.

I love chicken noodle soup but haven't had much success with it in the past - no matter what I did, it just didn't seem to have much flavor. In an effort to make a soup that didn't just taste like chicken broth, I made two additions this time that made all the difference - lemon zest and a jalapeno. Delicious!

Ingredients:

• 3 carrots, finely diced
• 2 stalks celery, finely diced
• 1 medium onion, finely diced
• 1 jalapeno, seeds and ribs removed, finely diced
• 1 T canola oil
• 1 tsp. dried dill
• freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• zest of one lemon
• 1 lb. chicken, cooked, cooled, and diced
• 2 quarts low sodium chicken stock
• 1/2 bag egg noodles

Method:

1. Heat oil in stock pot over medium heat.
2. Saute carrots, celery, onion, and jalapeno until softened, about 10 minutes.
3. Stir in dill, zest, and pepper. Add chicken.
4. Add stock and bring to boil. Add noodles and cook according to package directions, about 7 - 9 minutes.

Roasted Tomato Soup

I was fortunate to have a very culinary-themed Lawson Christmas, receiving a pasta maker and meat grinder for our Kitchen Aid mixer (more on those soon) as well as an immersion blender. All are long-coveted tools and I love having them to learn and experiment with.

This past weekend was blustery on Plum Island, perfect for this roasted tomato soup and grilled ham and cheese sandwiches.

Up next: roasted butternut squash soup.

Up soon enough: fruity umbrella drinks.  One can dream...

Roasted Tomato Soup
Ingredients:

• 2 1/2 pounds fresh tomatoes
• 6 cloves garlic, peeled
• 2 small yellow onions, sliced
• 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 quart chicken stock
• 2 bay leaves
• 4 tablespoons butter
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh basil leaves
• 1/4 cup heavy cream

Method:

1. Wash, core and cut the tomatoes into halves. Spread the tomatoes, garlic cloves and onions onto a baking tray.Drizzle with 1/2 cup of olive oil and season with salt and pepper.
2. Roast for 20 to 30 minutes, or until caramelized.
3. Remove roasted tomatoes, garlic and onion from the oven. Remove skins from tomato halves, then transfer roasted veggies to a large stock pot. Add 3/4 of the chicken stock, bay leaves, and butter. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 15 to 20 minutes or until liquid has reduced by a third.
4. Wash and dry basil leaves and add to the pot. Use an immersion blender to puree the soup until smooth. Return soup to low heat, add cream and adjust consistency with remaining chicken stock, if necessary. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper.

Mmm mmm, good!

One of my favorite meals is Campbell's tomato soup with a grilled cheese sandwich. Creamy soup with lots of black pepper and a melty, crunchy sandwich perfect for dunking.  Mmm mmm, good for sure!

But my favorite soup to make from scratch is Hunter's Minestrone.

I am not a recipe purist and rarely follow a recipe to the letter. This soup sounded so good, though, that I made it (almost) exactly as the chef did. Here are my edits and notes:

• Veggies - I cannot figure out how to finely chop veggies in my food processor, and end up with either huge chunks or puree - neither of which I want in this soup. So I chop them by hand. Somewhat time consuming but definitely worth it.
• Herbs - You. Must. Use. Fresh. Herbs. No, I've not tried this recipe with dried, but the fresh are sooo good, I can't imagine not using them. This can add an expense to the soup, but you can always dry or freeze any leftover herbs for future use.
• Sausage - I have always used the loose sausage the recipe calls for and it really flavors the soup well. I shopped yesterday while I was hungry, and they were giving away samples of cooked chiorizo. Of course they were on sale AND there was a coupon, so I got them. They taste good, but the flavor doesn't go through the soup like when I use the loose...go with that.
• Bread - I serve bread for dipping, but don't do the cheesey crouton (a la french onion soup) that the recipe calls for.  Hmmm....but a melty, crunchy grilled cheese for dunking might be good!  Next time!

Enjoy!