The Great SOUP Challenge!

[VRBeauty]

Date: 10/23/2007 5:53:03 PM
Author: Sparkster
Your friend is gonna have to make and freeze a lot of different types of stock to make this work!

When I make soup, it's made in big pots so that we can freeze it. I find it difficult to just make enough for two serves. I mean, if I make minestrone for two, then this will only mean half an onion, one stick of celery, half a can of beans, quarter cabbage, etc. What do I do with the rest of everything unless I make soup again the next day with the left over ingredients.

Ditto. I have a sizeable collection of quart containers that I use primarily for my wintertime soups. My best friend has some of the same containers -- that way we can swap soups without having to worry about who ended up with whose container! But I don't think my freezer could hand more than a few days of this experiment!

Wish you friend the best for us, Indie. I'd love to hearabout the great soups she discovers in this quest, and how many days she's able to stick with it.

BTW the not-so great soup challenge... i.e. one soup per week... now that's something I might consider!

 

[Kay]

Date: 10/26/2007 2:56:08 AM
Author: MINIMS

Date: 10/23/2007 5:53:03 PM
Author: Sparkster
Your friend is gonna have to make and freeze a lot of different types of stock to make this work!

When I make soup, it''s made in big pots so that we can freeze it. I find it difficult to just make enough for two serves. I mean, if I make minestrone for two, then this will only mean half an onion, one stick of celery, half a can of beans, quarter cabbage, etc. What do I do with the rest of everything unless I make soup again the next day with the left over ingredients.

Ditto. I have a sizeable collection of quart containers that I use primarily for my wintertime soups. My best friend has some of the same containers -- that way we can swap soups without having to worry about who ended up with whose container! But I don''t think my freezer could hand more than a few days of this experiment!

Wish you friend the best for us, Indie. I''d love to hearabout the great soups she discovers in this quest, and how many days she''s able to stick with it.

BTW the not-so great soup challenge... i.e. one soup per week... now that''s something I might consider!

That''s just what I was thinking -- 1 soup a week sounds like a better challenge. When I make soup, I make enough for several servings at a time. Of course, even after dealing with the left-overs problem, I still would not want to eat soup everyday. Of course, DH would be amazed if I cooked anything once a day.

 

[Dogmom]

Rachael Ray made this the other day on her show and it looked really yummy!

Cacciatore Stoup With Turkey Sausage Meatballs

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil (EVOO)
2 portobello mushroom caps, wiped clean and chopped into bite-size pieces
2 cubanelle peppers (light green, mild Italian peppers), seeded and chopped into bite-size pieces
1 large red bell pepper, seeded and chopped into bite-size pieces
1 large onion, chopped into bite-size pieces
3 cloves garlic, grated, divided
1/2 to 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, depending on how much spice you like
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
3 slices white bread
1/2 cup milk
1 pound ground turkey breast
1 egg
1/2 to 3/4 cup (a couple of handfuls) grated Parmigiano Reggiano or Romano cheese
1/4 cup (about a handful) flat-leaf parsley, chopped
1 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes
2 cups chicken stock
Chopped fresh basil, for garnish
Shaved Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, for garnish
A loaf of crusty, whole grain bread
Yields: 4-6 servings

Preparation:
Place a Dutch oven or large soup pot over medium-high heat with 2 turns of the pan of EVOO, about 2 tablespoons. Add
mushrooms, peppers, onion and the two smashed garlic cloves, and cook until tender, 7-8 minutes. Season with red pepper flakes, salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste.

While vegetables cook, rip the bread into small pieces and soak them in the milk in a mixing bowl for about 5 minutes, until most of the milk has been absorbed.

Add the tomatoes and chicken stock to the soup pot with the veggies and turn up the heat to bring the stoup to a bubble.

While you''re waiting for the stoup to bubble, make the meatballs: Squeeze out the excess milk from the bread and discard it. To the mixing bowl with the soaked bread, add the ground turkey, egg, grated cheese, parsley, the remaining grated garlic clove, salt and freshly ground black pepper. Mix everything with your hands to combine.

Form the meat into 2-inch meatballs. Once the stoup is bubbling, drop in the meatballs then cover the pot and reduce the heat to a simmer. Cook until the meatballs are cooked through, 10-12 minutes.

To serve, ladle the stoup into shallow bowls and garnish with basil and shaved Parmigiano-Reggiano. Pass some crusty whole grain bread at the table for mopping up the leftovers.