Moroccan Chicken Soup

I had one last butternut squash in the kitchen waiting to be used and this soup had been calling my name for a while. The flavor is warm and inviting, perfect for a cold wintry day, and the soup is easy to put together and easy on the budget using widely available ingredients.  The recipe comes from one of my favorite everyday cookbooks, The Essential EatingWell Cookbook, which is full of healthy and mostly easy-to-prepare meals. Read more

Mexican Spiced Butternut Squash Soup with Beans and Corn

Michael isn’t a huge fan of butternut squash, but if you browse my archives you’ll see that I have quite a few butternut squash recipes. You might even think I am torturing my poor husband with all the butternut squash, but really I’m not. The sweetness of butternut squash just doesn’t appeal to him, so I try to find ways to spice it up and make it savory. Every once in a while another of my butternut squash soup experiments catches him by surprise and he’ll say he likes it and asks me to make it again. This soup is one those. Read more

The Daring Cooks Make Steamy Kitchen’s Pho Ga

The October 2009 Daring Cooks’ challenge was brought to us by Jaden of the blog Steamy Kitchen. The recipes are from her new cookbook, The Steamy Kitchen Cookbook.

I was excited to see that Jaden would be our host for the October Daring Cooks challenge, especially since I finally got to meet her at BlogHer Food, but when I scrolled down and saw we would be making pho (pronounced “fuh?”) I almost got week in the knees. I’ve eaten pho at Vietnamese restaurants but have never made it at home, and none of my family had ever tasted it. I couldn’t wait to give them a taste of this soup that won my heart long ago. Read more

Irish Beef Stew

Beef stew is one of my favorite comfort foods, both for the wonderful flavor and the ease of preparation. I saw this recipe at Epicurious a couple years ago and then saw Elise’s notes on how they used some red wine and Guinness Stout in place of some of the beef stock, an idea that definitely appealed to me. For my own touches, I added a pound of beef soup bones for extra flavor, used Yukon Gold potatoes instead of russet, and of course used fresh thyme from our garden. Though it’s not strictly traditional, this recipe has become a St. Patrick’s Day tradition for our family, a stew we look forward to every year. Read more

Spicy Red Lentil and Tomato Soup

Lentils are one of my favorite comfort foods, and when I need a little warmth and comfort I’m very likely to walk into the kitchen and make a pot of mujaddarah, my favorite lentils and rice. Lentils are a powerhouse of nutrients, including protein, iron, fiber, folate, and thiamine, plus they are inexpensive, making them a great pantry staple. I keep bags of dried brown and red lentils on hand to take care of my cravings and I’m always on the lookout for another delicious way to enjoy them.

I spotted the original recipe for this soup (they call it chili) in Wegman’s Menu Magazine, a seasonal publication by my favorite grocery store, and I made a large batch of the soup on a cold, wintry day with a few changes to suit our palates. We used olive oil instead of butter, skipped the cornstarch, and came up with our own list of garnishes we like on top. I enjoyed the aromas and snuck a nibble here and there while cooking, then I knew we had a winner when Michael said I could make this any time. We even got a thumbs up and request for a second helping from our six-year-old son. Read more

Carrot Ginger Soup and a Giveaway

While the boys played I whipped up this carrot ginger soup yesterday for dinner. Michael was late getting home, saw the pot sitting on the stove, peered in and looked very skeptical. He stuck a finger into the cold soup to taste it and still didn’t look convinced. After I warmed it up and swirled in the yogurt, he said it tasted great and polished off two bowls, as did our six-year-old. I really like how light it is. Use the freshest, juiciest carrots you can find because they will give the soup so much more flavor.

The recipe comes from Entertaining Simple by Matthew Mead. The book helps beginning hosts plan several basic types of parties (brunch, cocktail, summer barbecue, holiday open house, coffee house, etc.) and comes complete with menus, recipes, and serving and decorating suggestions. This ginger carrot soup recipe is part of the brunch party menu. A weekend brunch is one of my favorite types of parties to host because it is such a casual, relaxing time. Comfort foods rule the menu and it’s generally easy prep work.

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