soups

night-shade free beef stock

Posted on Feb 22, 2013

  My sister-in-law Lucy always makes this huge, gor­geous prime rib for Christ­mas Eve din­ner. It’s about the only time of the year that I eat this dish, so I look for­ward to it, espe­cially the nose-numbing blast I get … more →




turkey stock and soup

Posted on Nov 20, 2011

We have a post Thanks­giv­ing tra­di­tion that wouldn’t be the same with­out Turkey Soup. It started with my mother-in-law, Anka, and I’m happy to carry the tra­di­tion for­ward. As much a tra­di­tion as Thanks­giv­ing itself, the day after offers a … more →




traditional beef chili

Posted on Nov 6, 2011

This is my go-to chili; won­der­ful for a crowd along with all the top­pers: ched­dar cheese, sour cream, diced red onions and of course, Fritos. I learned a great trick from my friends Jeff and San­dra who make a sim­i­lar … more →




white bean chicken chili

Posted on Nov 2, 2011

Every year, when I was a kid, my par­ents hosted a soup party. They found dozens and dozens of soup cups at a restau­rant sup­ply store and my mom would make a tra­di­tional chicken noo­dle, hearty Veg­etable Soup and a … more →




butternut squash soup

Posted on Sep 30, 2011

I know fall is here when I find but­ter­nut squash at my local stores. I always mar­vel at how sim­ple this recipe is. Every once in a while, I try to mon­key around with it by adding green apple, or … more →




chicken chili

Posted on Mar 1, 2011

Using thighs makes this chili rich and hearty. With a small side salad and a piece of Pamela’s lus­cious corn­bread, you have an amaz­ing meal that only gets bet­ter the next day. This recipe was inspired by the bril­liant Lucinda … more →




curried zucchini soup

Posted on Jan 19, 2011

This is a great soup when it’s cool out­side or for a light spring sup­per as well. Lemon adds a sur­pris­ing fresh­ness. Prep time: 10 min­utes Total time: 30 min­utes Yield: 4–6 serv­ings (about 5 cups) Spe­cial tool: immer­sion blender … more →




lentil soup

Posted on Jan 11, 2011

I adapted this from the Sil­ver Palate Cook­book by Julee Rosso & Sheila Lukins — fan­tas­tic cook­book. You can serve this as a light meal on its own or with a salad. To make it more sub­stan­tial, add sev­eral slices … more →




split pea soup

Posted on Nov 28, 2010

I make this every Thanks­giv­ing from the left­over ham bone. I cook for quite a crowd — two turkeys and two hams because we love lots of left­overs! This is way to make your hol­i­day ham really stretch, and makes … more →




homemade chicken stock

Posted on Nov 14, 2010

A few nights ago we had a won­der­ful rotis­serie chicken din­ner with our old­est friends, Dan and Deb­bie, and their three dar­ling girls. With Thanks­giv­ing around the cor­ner, I was eying their chicken car­casses. When they told me they were … more →




speedy black bean soup

Posted on Nov 2, 2010

This is so easy, it almost doesn’t count as cook­ing… This would be won­der­ful with Heather’s Salad as a side. Prep time: 5 min­utes Total time: 10 min­utes Yield: Serves 6 4 15-oz. cans organic black beans 1 c. water 1 … more →




vegetable soup

Posted on Oct 21, 2010

This is the tasti­est fat free soup! In fact, I hate even lead­ing off with that, because “fat-free” is often times flavor-free. Not the case here. This is one of those recipes where you just throw all the ingre­di­ents into … more →




hungarian goulash

Posted on Sep 20, 2010

My hus­band is 100% Hun­gar­ian and guy­las leves, as they say in Hun­gary, is a hearty stew wor­thy of a long sim­mer to be eaten on a fall or win­ter day. I think every Hun­gar­ian fam­ily has their own recipe, … more →




mushroom soup

Posted on Sep 20, 2010

Nour­ish­ing and easy to make — only a hand­ful of ingre­di­ents. Prep time: 15 min­utes Total time: 40 min­utes Yield:  Serves 4–6; about 2 qts. 1 tsp. olive oil 1 medium onion, finely chopped 1 3/4 — 2 lb. mush­rooms, brushed … more →




chicken tortilla soup

Posted on Sep 15, 2010

This is my hus­bands favorite meal and a great way to eat up left over cooked chicken. If you don’t have any left­over, just roast two bone-in breasts at 375 degrees for 35 min­utes. Prep time: 15 min­utes Total time: … more →




chicken and rice soup

Posted on Sep 15, 2010

This is a sta­ple — hearty and fresh. And it freezes beau­ti­fully. Use left­overs from Roasted Chicken. Prep time: 25 min­utes Total time: 1 hour Yield: 8–10 serv­ings 2 bone-in chicken breasts 3 T olive oil, divided 2 large car­rots, … more →