I basically had all the ingredients on hand and just picked up a cooked bbq chicken from the grocery store.

Chicken soup is one of the easiest dishes to make. It does not take much time and tastes so much better than a can. If you usually eat the store brands then you will really notice the flavor difference. The other day we were in a warehouse chain and tried a few samples of canned soup. Needless to say they have almost no flavor and because they are canned you can't be sure what you are really getting.

Last night I made a quick and easy chicken soup....real comfort food. Sometimes you just don't know what to eat or what to cook, and I don't know anybody who doesn't enjoy a nice warm and delicious soup on a cool evening.

Ingredients:

• 4 carrots sliced thin
• 2 celery stalks sliced thin
• 1 medium onion diced
• 2 32 ounces chicken broth
• 1 chicken bullion cube
• 2 cups of water
• 8 ounces egg noodles
• salt & pepper to taste, 2 bay leafs & parsley

Number of Servings: 5

Method:

First I added a little olive oil to coat the pan then I added the carrots & celery & onion to cook for 3-5 minutes. Then the broth & water & bullion cube & bay leafs cooking for maybe 15 minutes. I then cut the chicken off the bone into small pieces adding that to the soup & then the noodles. Cooking maybe 9-10 minutes : salt & pepper & parsley and you're done.

You can have a hearty bread on the side or a salad or a sandwich....and enjoy

We had a craving for some comfort food and did not have any chicken around so we thought sausage would be a great substitute.

So the other day I was watching Americas Test Kitchen which happens to be one of my favorite cooking show. This time they made chicken dumpling soup and it looked wonderful. The dumplings where large and airy and doubled in size as they cooked. The whole meal looked quite nice and warming. So I had an urge to try this recipe out, or at least I had an urge to try to make those light and “poofy” dumplings!

But as there was no chicken on hand, I decided to make a variation of this soup with sausage instead, and it was very successful. The soup had a perfect consistency and good flavor and the dumplings were just as light, large and airy as I had hoped! 

	Method: Sautee the sausage in a pot until browned. Remove from pan and pour rendered fat in a small bowl.
	Put oil and butter in pan and sautee the carrots, celery and onion. Once the onion is translucent, mix in flour to make a roux. Cook for a few minutes, then pour in the sherry. Scrape the pan to get any bits of the pan. Pour in the broth and half-and-half and add the sausage. Let come to a simmer and let cook for about 20-30 minutes.
	Prepare the dumplings: Mix flour, baking powder and salt. Heat the milk, sausage fat and butter up in a pot or in microwave. Pour the warm mixture over the flour and stir together.
	Now back to the soup. Taste the soup and add salt and pepper if needed. Add the frozen peas and the balsamic vinegar and put on low heat. Now spoon the dumpling mixture on top of the soup (about a full rounded tablespoon per dumpling). Place all the dumplings “on top” of the soup and cover with a lid. Let the dumplings “steam” like this for about 6-8 minutes. Add some fresh parsley and serve.

This recipe is perfect for the fall and provides plenty of flavor. The yellow butternut squash is a real gem which is perfect to use for soup. To help the flavors along and make everything a bit more interesting we have added a can of coconut milk which gives a lovely background hint, along with some curry and the zest and juice from an orange. The result is a very delicious soup which isn't overpowering, yet full of flavor.

8 servings

Ingredients:

4 tbsp butter
2 onions, chopped
3 carrots, peeled and chopped
3 celery stalks, chopped
3 bay leaves
1 tsp oregano
1 tbsp curry
½ tbsp cumin
1 tsp paprika
1 butternut squash, peeled and cut into chunks
4 cloves of garlic, peeled and smashed
1 cup white wine
1 can of coconut milk (14 oz) – light or regular
4 cups of water + 3 bouillon cubes (or just use stock)
the zest and juice of ½ orange
salt and pepper

Method:

Sautee the onions, carrots and celery in the butter for about 15 minutes unit soft. Add the bay leaves and the spices, sauté for a couple of minutes, add the squash, the garlic and the white wine. Let come to a simmer, then add the coconut milk and the water and bouillon cubes (or the stock). Cook until the squash is soft, about 15 minutes. Blend the soup. Bring back to the pot, add the orange juice and zest and taste with salt and pepper.

This classic soup is a sure favorite and will please guests and family alike. It doesn't require any complicated ingredients, it's easy to vary and it's affordable to make !

Sometimes you create something that turns out just perfect. Today was such a day. I have had plenty of carrot soups flavored with ginger and orange and while I have always liked that concepts, often those soups are unbalanced. Too much ginger, too much orange zest or too “grainy” due to not cooking long enough. But today I decided to try my best to create a perfect carrot soup. And I did succeed!

• 1 tablespoon of butter
• 5 carrots, peeled and chopped
• ½ onion, chopped
• 1 celery stalk, chopped finely
• 1 potato, chopped
• ½ teaspoon of dried thyme
• 1 tsp of fresh, chopped ginger
• 2 cloves of garlic, chopped finely
• 2 cups of water
• 1 vegetable bullion cube
• ¼ cup of milk (or half-and-half if you have some on hand)
• ½ tsp of orange zest
• juice of half an orange
• salt and peper

One-pot cooking is great for easy cleanup and splitting leftovers. This is a very basic, yet very flavorful method for creating all sorts of soups or stews. With just a few basic vegetables around you can add any spices to create an inexpensive meal for a family.

We have used kielbasa in many dishes, with eggs, roasted on the grill, or with sauerkraut and beer.

Method

In a large 8 - 12 quart stock pot on medium sautee the diced up kielbasa with 1 tablespoon of butter or olive oil. Once the kielbasa has been browned add the onions with a little salt, deglace with a white wine, or vermouth and cook for 10 minutes to gently caramelize the onions.

Sprinkle with 2 tablespoons of flour to create a roux.

Add the carrots, cook for a few minutes then add the small dice potatoes.

Then add 5 - 6 cups of chicken stock.

In the last 5 minutes of cooking we added the chopped kale.

Cook for 20 minutes and serve.

Throughout the cooking process we taste and add salt and pepper as we go. We also added cayenne pepper (1 teaspoon) and paprika (1 tablespoon). These spices are optional.