Soup is one of my favorite foods of all time and definitely one of my top comfort foods. You can make it out of anything and everything and it's the ultimate budget food. When else can you throw some veggies and stock together and have it be a meal for days AND have it taste good? I also love how you can just add some rice, pasta, or barley and it just knocks it out of the park. One of my favorite memories is of mother making soup all the time in the winter and then not being able to eat it for an hour because it was like eating lava fresh from Dante's Peak, always a funny joke with her. There's nothing like a good bowl of soup to warm you from the inside out!
Now I feel like there are three types of soup people:
-Enough broth to drown a small animal
-Even amounts of broth and contents
-Lunch lady soup that can be classified as a casserole
I am somewhere in the middle of casserole and yin and yang. I like a lot of filler, but enough broth to keep it moving. I have many favorites, but here are a few that are on the top of my list to eat and cook any time of year, but it's always better in the winter.
Beef Stew with Dumplings
-2 large carrots
-2 large onions (I like a lot of onions)
-2 stalks of celery
-6 cups of beef broth (add water if you'd like to dilute it as needed)
-1 pound of stew beef
-Salt and pepper to taste
Dumplings
-2 cups Bisquick mix
-2/3 cup milk (or you could use the broth from your stew)
-1 Tsp each of salt, onion powder, and garlic powder
-1/2 Tsp pepper
1. Heat a couple tablespoons of olive oil and butter in a large heavy bottomed pot(dutch oven is perfect) on medium high heat.
2. Season your stew beef with lots of salt and pepper and lightly coat with flour.
3. Drop the beef into the pot to sear. Don't move the meat yet- it will tell you when it wants to move when it naturally pulls away from the bottom. Brown all sides of the meat and remove from the heat- set aside for later.
4. Peel and prep your veggies into whatever shape and thickness you'd like.
5. Lower the heat to medium and in the same pot with a little more olive oil, saute your veggies until slightly soft.
6. Toss your stew beef back into the pot with the vegetables and cook for a few minutes all together.
7. Pour the liquid into the party. Make sure you get all those little brown bits on the bottom- those nuggets of flavor gold.
8. At this point put the lid on partially and let it come to a boil. Once it comes to a boil, give a good mix and drop the heat to a medium low to simmer away for a couple hours so that the meat can really break down and become nice and tender.
9. While waiting for the stew to cook, now would be the ideal time to add a starch if you fancy, par-cook whatever you'd like and then throw it in the soup 10-15 minutes before it's complete. It will continue to cook in the stew absorbing the flavors and the remaining starch will thicken it slightly.
10. 20 minutes before the stew is complete crank the heat back up to a medium high to bring to a boil.
11. Mix your dumpling ingredients together and once the soup is back to a boil, drop the dumpling mixture on top of the soup. Cook uncovered for 10 minutes then put the cover back on and cook for a final 10 minutes.
-When the time is up for the dumplings you are good to go. Dish up and dig in!
Chicken and Orzo
-2 large carrots
-2 large onions (Again... I like a lot of onions)
-2 stalks of celery
-2 pre-cooked rotisserie chickens (Makes it so much easier, but if you'd like to cook your own chicken, go on with your bad self!)
-6 cups of chicken broth
-Salt and pepper to taste
-1/2 cup orzo pasta
1. Break out those chickens and get to pickin'! Pull all the meat off that you can- watch for cartilage, bones, and fat! I discard the skin as well, it's only good when it's crunchy, am I right? Set the meat aside for later.
2. Prep and chop the carrots, onions, and celery.
3. In a large heavy bottomed pot (again, can't go wrong with that dutch oven) on medium high heat, warm up a couple tablespoons of oil oil and butter.
4. Drop your veggies into the oil with salt and pepper, cook until softened.
5. Once your veggies are done to your liking, throw the chicken into the pot with the veggies so they can get to know each other and so it can warm through.
6. Once they have had a little party, dump your broth in and and any water you'd like to make it looser and a little more diluted.
7. Partially cover the pot and let the soup come to a boil. Make sure to stir the soup, it can stick to the bottom.
8. Let the soup simmer on a medium low-medium heat for about 45 minutes stirring every now and then.
9. While waiting for the soup to finish cooking, you can either pour your orzo directly into the soup or par-cook it and then dump it into the soup. If you want to cook the pasta all the way in the soup, just remember this will thicken the soup a lot, just add more broth or water as needed. Also be sure to keep stirring the soup! I sound like Henry Hill yelling at his brother to make sure he stirs the sauce... except I'm not being chased by a helicopter and trying to hide cocaine. No one's going to jail KAREN.
-Once the pasta is cooked through, you're done! This soup I usually make to be on the thicker side and it's just velvety and delicious- nothing better! I like to serve this with some toasted slices of good ciabatta bread slathered in olive oil, salt, and pepper.
French Onion Soup
-2 large sweet onions (Have I mentioned I like a lot of onions?)
-4 cups beef broth
-1 Tbs mustard powder
-Salt and pepper to taste
-Pinch of Thyme
-2 cloves of garlic
-1 Tbs butter
-A few slices of good Italian bread...or sourdough... sourdough would be really good! (1-2 slices per serving depending on what your vessel can take)
-Gruyere cheese (a little more than 1/4 of a cup per serving)
1. Start by slicing the onions in "half moon" shapes pretty thinly. Or you can chop or dice them- whatever you like.
2. In a large skillet on medium low heat, melt the butter and throw the onions in to get all caramelized and scrumptious. Salt and pepper to taste and stir often. What you're looking for is to get your onions a deep brown color and very soft in texture.
3. At the same time, in a medium stock pot add your broth and let simmer. You want this to be hot at all times so that everything is the same temperature when you throw it in the oven.
4. When the onions start to soften, season again with salt and pepper if needed, add your mustard powder, thyme, and finely diced garlic. Give a good stir and continue cooking.
*A tip to help your onions caramelize faster, spoon some of your warm broth in to deglaze the pan. This will give the onions flavor and break them down a bit more.
5. When your onions have caramelized, pour them into your broth to cook together. Let that boil for 20-ish minutes.
6. Set your oven to a low broil setting.
7. Hold on- don't get rid of that onion pan just yet! Butter up some sliced bread and sear it off in the pan so it's brown and buttery and oniony... oh dear God.
8. When your soup is done to your liking, grab an oven proof dish and fill that baby up with the soup- not all the way though, leave some room for your bread!
9. Place the cup onto a sheet tray, top with the bread, and pile on that gruyere.
10. Stick it under the broiler to get all bubbly and melted and amazing. Make sure you keep an eye on it, don't want it to burn!
-To eat this one you might need an oven mit but other than that, dig in! If you want to boil it forever go right ahead, it will get thicker and more flavorful. YUMMO. This will make 3-4 servings depending on the size of your cup, enjoy!
If any of these don't make you want to put on your comfy pants and pop in The Big Chill then I don't know what will! Hope you enjoy these favorites as much as I do : )
-Meaghan
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