Loaded Potato Soup

My husband and I wanted to visit some friends of ours who recently had a baby. I know meeting up with friends that have a family is harder than it is for just the two of us... and add a baby into the mix and it becomes even harder still. So I thought we could save them some trouble and bring dinner and hang out at their house! I wanted to try this potato soup recipe I found, and thought it would be perfect for these cold winter days we have been having recently. I was right! The soup was delicious and everyone enjoyed it!

Modified from mamalovesfood.com

Ingredients:
- 5lbs Russet Potatoes, washed but NOT peeled. Diced into 1/2 inch(ish) cubes
- 1 large yellow onion, diced
- 10 cloves of garlic (you can use whole, crushed, or minced)
- 8 cups chicken stock
- 8 oz cream cheese (I used 8oz lowfat)
- 1 TBS seasoned salt or all-purpose seasoning
(I didn't have either seasoned salt or all-purpose seasoning, so I made my own mixture of: marjoram + paprika + dried parsley + chili + cumin + salt, all to taste but about a table spoon of each spice and a good amount of salt)

Garnishes:
- Crumbled bacon
- Shredded cheddar cheese
- Clive

Directions:
- Add potatoes, onion, garlic, seasoning and chicken stock to slow cooker.
- Cook on high for 6 hours or low for 10 hours.
- Remove and puree the garlic cloves (if you used whole cloves) and cream cheese along with 1/2 to 1/3rd of the soup, and then reintroduce to the remainder in the crock pot.
- Add any additional seasonings to taste. Stir every 10-15 minutes until soup is well blended.
- Top with your choice of garnishes & serve!

Yields about 10-12 servings.



Cooking in the Crockpot and almost ready to eat soon! (made our home smell delicious all night!)

I wasn't able to take a picture of out soup in their bowls, we all ate them so fast! But here is a picture (with some left over toppings) of the soup in it's "left overs container" :) There wasn't really that much left after 4 adults and a child got through with it! YUMMM!

Japanese Noodle Soup

Udon noodles are a lovely fat white Japanese rice noodle. I’m still not sure how they can be all soft and fresh looking but come in packs that don’t need refrigerating. Noodle magic? They are brilliant to have on hand for a quick meal. Just add in some some soy sauce lemon and baby spinach for a deeply satisfying nutritious dinner!

Japanese noodle soup with spinach
serves 2

Ingredients:
1 chicken breast, finely sliced into ribbons
1 can of broth (vegetable or chicken)
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 packet udon noodles (7oz or 200g)
1 packet baby spinach leaves or 1 small bunch english spinach
lemon juice

Directions:
(Do directions 1. and 2. simultaneously)
1. Boil water. Cook noodles according to package directions. Drain.
2. Bring 1 can of broth to the boil in a medium saucepan. Add chicken and simmer for 1-2 minutes or until cooked. Scoop out chicken with a slotted spoon and divide between 2 bowls.



Return broth to the heat and add noodles.
Add soy and spinach. Stir to break up the noodles and let the spinach wilt. You might need to add the spinach in batches. Don’t worry it will fit in as it wilts.


Add 1 tablespoon lemon juice, stir and taste. Keep adding lemon until it tastes fresh and zesty. Pour soup over the chicken and serve hot.

Serve with fried rice and create an Asian Inspired meal!

Quick and Easy Chicken Noodle Soup

I am catching a cold, and so chicken noodle soup is what's for dinner! I don't have time to make my own broth... nor do I have the left over chicken bones to make the broth... so here is a simple recipe to get that homemade chicken noodle soup in a pinch :)


Ingredients:

1 tablespoon butter
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup chopped celery
4 (14.5 ounce) cans chicken broth
1 (14.5 ounce) can vegetable broth
1/2 pound chopped already cooked chicken breast
1 1/2 cups egg already cooked noodles
1 cup sliced carrots
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
salt and pepper to taste


The gangs all here!!!

Directions:


This recipe uses some pots... a pot for noodles, a pot for the chicken, a pot for the soup! Thank goodness husband does the dishes when I cook! ;)
1. In a large pot over medium heat, melt butter. Cook onion, carrots, and celery in butter until just tender, 5 minutes. Pour in chicken and vegetable broths and stir in chicken, noodles, basil, oregano, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer 20 minutes before serving.





Serves about 6 servings. It is GREAT as a left over meal! The flavors really mature and another plus? You cooked it once to eat it multiple times! yay!