Beef & Rice Enchilada Soup

  I made this delicious soup last Winter, when everyone was coming over all the time to be with Papa.  I knew I needed a big, hearty meal that could fill a lot of tummies.

  I saw a Pin from Cinnamon Spice & Everything Nice that looked great!  I knew I was going to have to use it only as a jumping off point, because I needed it to GROW to feed a crowd, so I started changing and adding and here is what we ended up with:

TOTAL TEX MEX DELICIOUSNESS!!!!!!!!!!

{click title to print}

Ingredients

• 2 Tablespoons Butter
• 1 whole Small White Onion, Finely Chopped
• 1 whole Bell Pepper, Any Color, Diced
• 6 cloves Garlic, Pressed
• 1 pound Ground Beef, Cooked And Drained
• 1 can (11 Oz Size) Diced Tomatoes & Green Chilies, Undrained
• 1 can (14 Oz Size) Creamed Corn, Undrained
• 1 can (14 Oz. Size) Corn, Drained
• 1 can (16 Oz. Size) Chili Beans With Sauce
• 1 can (14.5 Oz Size) Petite Diced Tomatoes, Drained
• 8 ounces, fluid Packet Of Frontera Red Chile Enchilada Sauce
• 2 cups Cooked Brown Rice
• 1 teaspoon Cumin
• ½ teaspoons Oregano
• Pinch Of Chili Powder
• 1 cup Sour Cream
• 2 cups Shredded Colby-jack Cheese
• 2 cups Tortilla Chip Strips For Garnish
• Cilantro For Garnish

Preparation

Melt butter in a large skillet and saute onion, bell pepper and garlic for 2 minutes before adding beef, seasoning to taste, and cooking through. Drain and add to large slow cooker.

Add diced tomatoes and chilies, creamed corn, regular corn, chili beans with sauce, petite diced tomatoes and packet of Red Chili Enchilada Sauce.

Season with cumin, oregano, and a pinch of chili powder.

In a small sauce pan, cook brown rice according to package directions, subtracting 10 minutes from cook time. Add rice to slow cooker and let it continue to cook in there.

Cook ingredients on low for 5 hours. During the last 30 minutes, stir in sour cream and shredded cheese.

Serve with tortilla chip strips and a bit of cilantro.

Ole’!
~T

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Cheesy Vegetable Chowder

When its cold outside, and all I can see is white out of my window, there is nothing I love more than getting a pot of Soup on for supper.  When it’s cold outside, and all I see are brown, dead sticks outside my window, I still love soup, just not as much.  Haha!  🙂

Really though, I love how it makes the house smell, I love the sides you serve with soup, I love that I only have soup bowls, and a pot, to wash at the end of the day.

So, in order to maximize Soup Season, which at our house, starts in October and officially should end this week, I wanted to quick share one more, before we have to switch to more Spring-y foods!

My best friend called while I was menu planning and she says we have a Veggie Chowder we love and I think you should make it.  I agreed to try it, and it was WONDERFUL!

from Taste of Home Magazine 2013

{Click title to print}

Ingredients

• ½ cups Finely Chopped Carrots
• ½ cups Finely Chopped Celery
• ½ cups Finely Chopped Onion
• ¼ cups Chopped Red Pepper
• 8 Tablespoons Butter, Divided
• 4 cups Chicken Broth, Divided Use
• 3 cups Fresh Broccoli Florets
• 1 whole Potato, Peeled And Diced
• ¾ teaspoons Worcestershire Sauce
• ½ teaspoons Cayenne Pepper
• ½ cups Flour
• 1 teaspoon Garlic Powder
• 1 teaspoon Salt
• ½ teaspoons Fresh Cracked Pepper
• 12 ounces, fluid Evaporated Milk
• 4 cups Cheese, I Did A Mixture Of Colby Jack And Cheddar
• 4 slices Bacon, Cooked And Crumbled

Preparation

In a large soup pot over medium heat, saute the carrot, celery, onion and red pepper in half of the butter until vegetables are tender. Stir in 2 cups of chicken broth, broccoli, potato, Worcestershire and cayenne; bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer 10-15 minutes or until broccoli and potatoes are tender.

Meanwhile, in a large saucepan, melt remaining half of the butter over medium heat. Whisk in flour, garlic powder, salt and pepper until smooth. Gradually add in milk and remaining 2 cups chicken broth. Bring to a boil, cooking and stirring for 2 minutes or until thickened. Add cheese and stir until melted. Slowly add cheese sauce into vegetable mixture.

Cook and crumble bacon. Serve soup with bacon crumbles.

Enjoy!
~T

Praying for A Miracle & Slow Cooker BBQ Chicken Soup

  Do you remember Papa Don?  Dale’s father?  

You can go meet him here.  We took some family photos after he got sick, but before he started chemo.

  He is a very special part of our life and home, more now that he lives right next door to us, and shares our dinner table most nights.

  It’s been hard to watch him fight cancer this past year. He has lost so much weight, and the thing we miss most is the sparkle in his eye.  

  Praise the Lord, the cancer markers continue to fall from 8,000 down to 2,300, but we have hit a rough patch this last 2 months, and they are going back up again.

We were over to Nana & Great Gma’s for lunch yesterday, when Dale called.  He had gotten a phone call from his dads boss, saying he was not doing so good: dizzy, falling asleep, vomiting.

He has also been dealing with bouts of paralysis and loss of vision.  He can no longer drive truck, and is talking about quitting the office job now too, so he can rest.  The man hasn’t stopped working the whole time he has been on chemo.

After getting the phone call, we immediately planned to take Papa in for a check up, and to cancel his chemo treatment that afternoon.  Not when he was already so sick.

We were all playing outside, when Dale came over with some hard news from the Clinic about our Papa. The kids were playing nearby, but not so close they could hear our conversation, so I wasn’t sure they knew what was happening.  We talked very quietly, hugged each other and then he headed back to the Clinic to check on his dad.

Not long after that, I couldn’t find the kiddos….I thought I heard them “laughing” behind the fence.

When I walked around the corner, there they were, SOBBING, not laughing.  I grabbed a shot with my little camera phone so I could send it to Dale.

Destiny said they had decided to gather to pray for Papa, because they could tell something was wrong.  They just all burst into tears, because they were sad. Precious babies!

I hate to see them hurting, the utter heartbreak in their faces made me sob alongside them.  They understand so much more of the big picture then they are given credit for.  But thankfully, this opened the door for some wonderful discussion about how God sometimes heals our bodies here on Earth, and sometimes He heals us by taking us to Heaven and giving us a new body.  They know that part, but it’s still hard to understand sometimes.

After the kids went to bed, we had a big talk with Papa.  After much discussion, we have decided that we will not be continuing his Chemo at this time. The doctor is in complete agreement with us, as it is destroying his quality of life.

He sat in our home tonight in tears, I know this is so hard on him.  He couldn’t move from the chair, his entire left side was paralyzed for a good 10 minutes. This happens on and off now, sometimes an hour at a time.  We thought mini strokes, but it happens on either side of his body.  He goes in tomorrow to get some fluids drained so he can be more comfortable.

Guys, we are scared.  We are in uncharted territory for our family, going through something that you hear your PARENTS going through with your Grandparents, not your husband with his father.

The most difficult part of all, is that we truly don’t know the timeline of this journey for Papa.  So every day must count as if it is the last.

We don’t have all the answers, but we do know that we serve a Father who brings healing in various forms. We won’t stop praying for a miracle!

Thank you all for you continued love and support…..it means more than you know!   I will keep you posted.

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  Now, on to the soup I want to share today.  Dale and Papa Don thought this was too sweet, but the kids and I LOVED the sweet and savory element that the BBQ sauce brings to this unique soup!

Slow Cooker BBQ Chicken Soup

Adapted from a delicious recipe at Picky Palate

{click the title to print}

Ingredients

• 5 whole Chicken Breasts
• 1 whole Red Onion, Diced
• 5 cloves Garlic, Pressed
• 24 ounces, weight Frozen Corn (I Used Fresh That We Had Frozen Over The Summer, And It Was Amazing)
• 2 cans (14 Oz Each) Diced Tomatoes, Drained
• 1 cup BBQ Sauce (avoid Too Sweet Of One, Think Savory Spicy)
• 8 cups Chicken Broth
• 2 teaspoons Salt
• ¾ teaspoons Fresh Cracked Pepper
• 1 teaspoon Garlic Powder
• 1 bunch Cilantro, Snipped
• Fresh Mozzarella Cheese, Shredded

Preparation Instructions

In a large 6-7 Qt slow cooker, place uncooked chicken breasts, diced onion, pressed garlic, corn, drained tomatoes and BBQ sauce. Add 8 cups of chicken broth and seasonings.

Cook on low for 5 hours before removing chicken breasts and shredding them. Return to the slow cooker and stir everything well. Continue cooking 30 minutes up to 1 additional hour.

Serve with fresh shredded mozzarella cheese and snipped cilantro.

 Only a few more weeks left of “Soup Season”!

~T

Broccoli-Cauli Cheese Soup

 Today, I want to share a recipe for Broccoli Cauliflower Cheese Soup.  I have shared it one other time on the blog with no picture, due to a MAJOR flop of a soup called “Just Like Panera’s Broccoli Cheese Soup”.

Uhhhh, NO.  Not just like Panera’s. Boo.

Sooo, the following delicious Broccoli Cauliflower Cheese Soup recipe, just got thrown in at the bottom of the Artisan Soup Bowl recipe, with no photo to make up for the previously mentioned FLOP.  {I added a blurry quick indoor photo later, but it just doesn’t do this soup justice.}

Today, it gets its moment to shine on Weekend Potluck!

This recipe comes ALLL the way from Florida.  My dad’s wife Drea makes it, and we LOVE it!  Even Dale and Ty, my non-cheese eaters, ate two big bowls each.

Broccoli Cauliflower Cheese Soup

{click title for easy printable}

Ingredients

• 2 packages {12-24 Ounces} Frozen Broccoli
• 2 packages {12-24 Ounces} Frozen Cauliflower
• Generous Amounts Of Garlic Powder, And Fresh Pepper.
• Salt To Taste
• 12 ounces, weight Velveeta, Cubed
• 2 cans {10.75 Ounces Each} Cream Of Chicken Soup
• 1-½ cup Boiling Water
• 1 quart Half-and-half

Steam veggies according to directions on the package. You decide how many veggies you steam, I do 4, 12 ounce bags. Add seasonings to taste, be generous, it makes all the difference – garlic powder and pepper make it pop. Plus, salt to taste.

While your veggies steam, heat cheese on low, until melted in a large soup pot over medium heat. Once cheese is melted, add soups, boiling water and half-and-half. Carefully stir in steamed broccoli and cauliflower. Heat through – but make sure that you do not boil it or it will scorch.

Serve with Texas Toast or Grilled Cheese Sandwiches, YUM!

 T

Gun Smoke Chili

I know every family has their FAVORITE chili recipe.  After many years of looking when we were first married, this one is ours.  It has enough meat for Dale, beans and “juice” {broth} for the kids, and chunks of veggies for Momma.  

  This makes a BIG batch, so if your family is small, just cut everything in half.   Keep in mind, chili freezes with no trouble at all, so you might want to do the whole thing anyhow, and plan to tuck some away for later.  

 But WAIT! Don’t freeze those leftovers just yet, we have something else to make with leftover Chili tomorrow……. 🙂

{click title for easy printable}

Ingredients

• 2 pounds Ground Beef Or Venison
• 1 whole Green Pepper, Chopped
• 1 whole Red Pepper Chopped
• 1 whole Onion, Chopped
• 2 stalks {up To 4 Stalks} Of Celery, Chopped
• 6 cloves Garlic, Pressed
• ¼ cups Chili Powder {LESS If You Don’t Like Heat!}
• 1 Tablespoon Salt
• 1 teaspoon Cumin
• 1 can {10 Oz} Rotel (you Decide The Heat)
• 1 can (4 Oz.) Chopped Green Chilies
• 1 can 14 Oz Tomato Sauce
• 4 cups Beef Broth
• 2 cans {15 Oz Each} Kidney Beans, Drained
• 1 can Chili Beans In Sauce, Undrained
• 1 can {14 Oz} Zesty Chili Style Diced Tomatoes
• 2 dashes Worcestershire Sauce

In a large pot on your stove top, saute the ground beef, bell peppers, onions, celery and garlic. Drain. Add all other ingredients, slow cook all day, or at least an hour. Remove lid if chili seems to be getting to brothy, and continue simmering.  Serve with cornbread. 

Nana’s Perfect Cornbread recipe here.

Tomorrow, we’ll talk about what to do with the leftovers…….

Hugs, T

Savory Smashed Potato Soup

  Usually when I am hungry for Potato Soup, I want the loaded Baked Potato kind.  You know, sour cream, cream cheese, cheese, bacon and green onions??? Mmm!

  This time I was NOT wanting something so rich. So I called my BFF, Kasey, and she shared this amazing “restaurant quality” Potato Soup that they love.  It was AMAZING!

  My favorite part about this recipe, is that you actually keep out 1/4th of your cooked, cubed potatoes to make a quick mini batch of mashed potatoes.  You stir them into the soup as a thickening agent.  Did I already say AMAAAZING?!?!?!??!

{Click title to print recipe}

Ingredients

• 6 whole Baking Potatoes, Peeled And Cubed
• 1 stick Butter
• 4 whole Carrots, Peeled Then Thinly Sliced
• ½ whole Onion, finely chopped
• 3 cloves Garlic, Pressed
• 3 Tablespoons Flour
• 1 teaspoon Salt
• ½ teaspoons Fresh Cracked Pepper
• 1 T. Parsley
• 14 ounces, fluid Chicken Broth
• 1 pint Half-and-half
• Mashed Potato Fixin’s Of Your Choice: Salt, Pepper, Milk, Butter And Sour Cream

In a large family sized skillet, cover cubed, peeled potatoes in salted water and boil until just fork tender.
In a large soup pot, melt 1 stick butter. Add onions, garlic and carrots. Sautee until soft. Add flour, parsley, salt and pepper, and stir until well coated. Pour in 1 can chicken broth and bring to a rolling boil, then reduce heat to medium, stirring often until broth thickens. {this part can take 8-10 minutes}
Check your potatoes, a fork should JUST slide into the potato easily, we don’t want them to mushy. Drain potatoes carefully and remove 3/4 of the potatoes into your soup pot. Smash remaining 1/4 potatoes well, some lumps are ok, and add in all your favorite mashed potato fixins. I did milk, sour cream and salt and pepper. When your mashed potatoes are soft and fluffy, scrape them into your soup pot and carefully stir everything.
Add one pint half and half and warm. Do not boil again, or it will scorch. Salt and pepper again, to taste.
Enjoy this amazing soup!

Potatoes will continue to absorb the soupy liquid, so when reheating, be sure to add water or milk until it is soup consistency once again.

YUM!

~T

Mexican Dump Soup

As easy as the title sounds, just open up different cans and dump!  Tastes like you worked a lot harder than you did……

Recipe from Susie Albright
{click title for easy printable}

Ingredients

• ½ cups Diced Onion, Sauteed In Butter (or 2 Tablespoons Dried Minced Onion If You Need To Make This Really Fast!)
• 1 can (28 Oz. Can) Petite Diced Tomatoes
• 1 can (15 Oz. Can) Corn, Drained
• 2 cans (10 Oz. Can) Tomatoes And Green Chilies {mild}
• 1 can (14 Oz. Can) Cut Green Beans, Drained
• 1 can (15 Oz. Can) Black Beans, Rinsed And Drained
• 1 envelope (about 1 Oz. Packet) Taco Seasoning {use Half If You Don’t Like Your Soup A Little Spicy}
• 1 envelope (about 1 Oz. Packet) Ranch Dressing Seasoning
• 2 cans (5 Oz. Can) Chicken Chunks Or 2 Chicken Breasts, Boiled And Shredded
• 2 cans (14.5 Oz. Can) Of Broth, 1 Chicken & 1 Beef
• 1 can Water
• 1 Tablespoon Steak Sauce
• 1 dash Worcestershire Sauce
• Optional Garnishes: Sour Cream, Shredded Mozzarella Cheese, Tortilla Chips

In a large soup pot, sautee onion over medium heat in a Tablespoon butter, cook until softened. Dump all of the other ingredients (except garnishes) in the pot, draining and rinsing as directed above, simmer until ready to serve, about 30 minutes.
Tastes AMAZING with sour cream, mozzarella cheese and crushed chips!

  Ole!  ~T

Fried Corn Chowder & Crack Crescents

  I am always looking for new soup recipes to try.  This Corn Chowder uses fresh off the cob corn, or for us, freezer corn from the summer we helped put it up at Dale’s Grandparents farm.  I bet you could use any corn, just make sure you fry it up nice and golden brown, its key in the flavors of this hearty chowder!

Fried Corn Chowder

Adapted from a Tasty Kitchen recipe by Prana & Pie

{click title for an easy printable}

Ingredients

• 3 cups of corn {I used fresh frozen}
• 4 Tablespoons Butter
• 4 Tablespoons Olive Oil
• 1 Onion, Diced
• 3 Carrots, Peeled And Diced
• 2 Celery Stalk, Diced
• 4 cloves Garlic, Minced
• 1 tsp. Thyme
• 1/2 cup Flour
• ½ cup White Wine or Apple Juice
• 4 cups Vegetable Stock
• 2 cups Chicken Broth
• 2 cups Heavy Cream
• 3 Red Potatoes, Diced
• Pinch of Parsley
• Generous amounts of sea salt, cracked pepper and garlic powder
• 6 pieces of bacon, cooked and crumbled
• Shredded cheese for garnish

  Heat the butter and olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add corn and pan fry until nice and golden brown.  Then add the onion, carrots and celery and cook until the vegetables are soft, about 8 to 10 minutes. Add the garlic and thyme and cook for a minute longer. Add the flour and stir to coat everything well, cooking for about a minute, until the flour begins to brown. Add the apple juice and simmer a minute longer. Pour in the vegetable stock and chicken broth and bring to a boil. Add the potatoes, and cover, cooking for about 10 minutes, until the potatoes begin to break down. Simmer with the lid off, about 10 to 12 minutes longer.

With an immersion blender leaving the soup blended, but still chunky.  Ladle the soup into bowls and serve with shredded cheese and bacon crumbles.

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   So apparently these recipes called “Crack (something or other)” are a foodie trend referring to Cheddar, Bacon and Ranch…remember when I shared Cheddar Bacon Ranch Dip aka Crack Dip?  Mmmm!

  Well, this is the BREAD version.  It is MIGHTY tasty, and pairs perfectly with the above soup!   🙂

Crack Crescents

From the Rhodes Rolls site

{click title to print}

Ingredients

• 12 whole Rhodes Dinner Rolls {white Or Wheat}
• 2 T. butter, melted
• 2 teaspoons Hidden Valley Ranch Mix
• 1 cup Shredded Cheese
• 6 pieces Of Cooked And Crumbled Bacon

Set out 12 Rhodes Rolls to thaw and rise, cover with sprayed saran wrap.
3-5 hours later, or when rolls are doubled in size, combine 6 rolls and work into a 10 inch circle.
Do the same with the other 6.
Brush each circle with butter, then sprinkle with 1/2 cup of shredded cheese, bacon and 1 tsp of Ranch Dressing mix.
Using a pizza cutter, cut each circle into 8 wedges.
Roll in crescent shape and place on a sprayed cookie sheet, point side down.
Cover with sprayed saran wrap and let rise about 45 minutes, or until double in size.
Remove plastic wrap and bake for 15 minutes at 350*.

Enjoy!

~T

Turkey & Wild Rice Soup

Have you found ways to use up your Thanksgiving Turkey yet?  I had about 2 cups in my fridge, so I decided to make some Turkey & Wild Rice Soup tonight.  Avery proclaimed it to be the BEST SOUP EVAH.    {She has a cute accent!}  We all thought it was really flavorful and good. The original recipe for this soup, can be found in the December/January 2013 Taste of Home Magazine, page 85. 

{click title for easy printable}

Ingredients

• ¼ cups Butter
• 1-½ cup Finely Chopped Carrots
• 2 stalks Celery Finely Chopped
• 1 whole Medium Onion, Chopped
• ½ cups Flour
• 4 cups Chicken Broth
• 3 cups Cooked Wild Rice {1 Box Uncle Bens Is Perfect}
• 2 cups Half-and-half
• 2 cups Cubed Turkey
• 1 teaspoon Dried Parsley
• Salt And Pepper, to taste

Cook Wild Rice according to package directions. In a large pot on the stove, melt butter, then add carrots, celery, and onion. Cook until tender, then stir in flour. Whisk in broth, and bring to a boil. Stir until nice and thick, about 10 minutes. Add remaining ingredients and reduce heat, simmering until serving time to allow flavors to meld.

~T

Smoky Potato & White Cheddar Cheese Soup

   Butter sauteed Leeks give this soup incredible flavor, coupled with the smoky paprika and you have achieved Soup Heaven!!!

(adapted from a Pampered Chef recipe emailed to me)

Ingredients

• 2 whole Leeks, White And Light Green Parts Only
• 1 whole Onion, Roughly Chopped
• 5 whole Cloves Of Garlic, Pressed
• 2 Tablespoons Butter
• 2 teaspoons Smoky Paprika
• 3 pounds Yukon Gold Potatoes, Washed And Cubed
• 4 cups Chicken Broth
• 2 cans Great Northern Beans, Drained And Rinsed
• 2 cups Milk
• 8 ounces, weight Extra Sharp White Cheddar Cheese, Cubed
• Salt, Pepper And Garlic Powder, To Taste
• Chives, Smoked Paprika And Sour Cream For Garnish

1. Wash and cut leeks in half lengthwise and thinly slice crosswise.
2. In a large stock pot, melt butter and saute leeks, onion, and garlic until tender. Add cubed potatoes, cook 2 minutes more, stirring constantly. Add chicken broth and cover, cooking for about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Check to see if potatoes are fork tender. If so, proceed by adding drained beans and cooking a few minutes more.
3. Using your immersion blender, puree soup until few chunks remain.
4. Add milk and cheese cubes, stir and heat carefully through. You don’t want the soup to scorch or curdle, so keep your heat pretty low until soup is just simmering. Add salt, pepper and garlic powder to taste.
5. Serve soup piping hot. Garnish with sour cream, chives and paprika.

Would be great served with some crusty french bread!

I am SO excited it’s SOUP season!!!!  🙂

~T