Soup is On

If you have been watching tv at all then you have seen that this week is going to be a cold one for all of us! So, I got to thinking that this would be the perfect week to celebrate SOUP. Many of us think soup has to take either all day to cook or you just open a can. Here are a few fun facts about soup:

• Americans sip over 10 Billion bowls of soup every year.

• The earliest evidence of making soup was in 6000 BC…Do you know what type? Hippopotamus! Yucko!

• 99% of all American homes have soup in them.

• Women are twice as likely to order soup at a restaurant than men.

• In December of 2010, a culinary time capsule was unearthed when Chinese archaeologists found a 2,400-year-old cauldron of soup – with its contents still liquid.

• In Nebraska, it is illegal for bar owners to sell beer unless they are brewing a pot of soup.

When dealing with canned soup I found this interesting fact: Many of Campbell’s traditional red-and-white label soups, for example, still supply more than 800 mg of sodium in a modest one-cup serving. That’s a third of a day’s sodium in a food that may only contain a twentieth of a day’s calories. wow!

So the answer for me is to make my own. It does not take all day and the results are phenomenal. Make you family a soup loving family this week!

Bacon Cheeseburger Soup

• 1 pound ground beef
• 1/2 pound sliced bacon
• 1 cup chopped onion
• 1/2 cup shredded carrots
• 1/2 cup diced celery
• 1 teaspoon dried basil
• olive oil
• 1 box prepared chicken broth (4 cups)
• 4 large potatoes, peeled and diced
• ¼ cup cornstarch
• 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
• 1½ cups milk
• ¼ cup sour cream
• salt and pepper to taste

In a large dutch oven, sauté the onion, celery and carrots till tender. Add the ground beef and bacon and cook through. Once the veggies and meats are cooked add in the potatoes, basil, salt and pepper, and chicken stock. Cover and simmer till potatoes are cooked through. In a large mason jar or bowl whisk together the milk, sour cream and cornstarch. Pour the milk in and stir till thickened. Sprinkle with the cheese and stir till cheese melted. Serve with a sprinkling of cheese and bacon bits.

Lasagna Soup

• 2 tsp. olive oil
• 1 pound Italian sausage or Italian turkey sausage, casings removed
• 3 c. chopped onions
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 T. spaghetti seasoning
• 2 T. tomato paste
• 1 can fire roasted tomatoes
• 6 c. chicken stock
• 1/2 pound fusilli pasta
• 8 oz. ricotta cheese
• 1/2 c. Parmesan cheese, grated
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• pinch of freshly ground pepper
• 2 c. mozzarella cheese, shredded

In a large dutch oven brown the Italian sausage with onion and garlic till cooked through. Add the diced tomatoes, chicken stock and spaghetti seasoning. Cover bring to a boil. Add in the pasta and just cook till the pasta is al dente. While the noodles are cooking in the broth, in a small bowl combine the parmesan cheese, ricotta, and mozzarella cheese. Stir well and set aside till serving. Once the pasta is cooked through it is time to serve. To serve place a 1/4 cup of the cheese mixture in the bottom of each soup bowl. Ladle the hot soup over the top and then sprinkle with parmesan cheese! Yummo!