A Week Of Soup

When I look outside I see this...

And what does that make me want to eat? Soup, and lots of it! This week's menu featured three meals of the warm stuff, and I thought I would share them with you.

Monday

Soup from the freezer! On the left is Broccoli Cheddar (my mom's recipe), and on the right is what we call Nonna Soup. Basically, it's an incredibly delicious tomato barley soup made by D's Nonna (Italian for Grandmother). We have a pending lesson from her on how to make this soup, but we always have a supply of it from her in the freezer, because she knows we love it!

Wednesday

Bean Soup! D's mom's recipe, also incredibly simple. Made with the beans I froze last year, potatoes, and dried basil. So good, especially with homemade rosemary focaccia, which is exactly what we had with it. 

And finally, Friday

Curried Parsnip soup, found here. This was the first time we made this recipe, and it was amazing! It didn't make very much though, so next time I will double the recipe so that we have some the next day for leftovers. 

Broccoli Cheddar Soup

1/2 cup butter (or olive oil)

3 medium carrots, diced 

1 medium onion, diced

3 stalks celery, diced

1/2 cup flour

2 tbsp. organic cornstarch

4 cups low sodium vegetable broth (homemade is best)

4 cups milk (cow, goat, soy, almond, you choose)

1/8 tsp. baking soda

1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

1/2 tsp. salt

1 cup lightly steamed broccoli

Melt butter in large soup pot. Add carrot, onion, and celery, and saute until soft. Add flour and cornstarch, mix well, then add stock and milk slowly. Cook, stirring constantly, until smooth and thick. Add baking soda and cheese, stir until blended. Season with salt and pepper. Keep it warm (not boiling) on the stove, letting the flavors come together for about 10 minutes. Add the broccoli at the end of cooking time, and heat through. 

What are your favorite winter meals?

Brenna