Aspargus and Shrimp Stew

This delicious combination of fresh asparagus and shrimp will become a seasonal favorite. Optional frozen ingredients can save time, but will still deliver a satisfying flavor. Serve with a piece of artisan bread topped with Parmesan cheese, broiled and toasted in the oven. You won't be able to stop yourself from eating this one!

Ingredients:
6 small red potatoes, cubed
1 red pepper, diced
2 cans (14 ounces) vegetable broth
1 lemon, juice and zest
2 tablespoons flour
6 tablespoons water
2 cups corn, cut crisp from the cob or frozen from the freezer
1 pound asparagus, fresh and cut (1-inch pieces)
1 pound shrimp, fresh or frozen uncooked medium size, peeled and deveined
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper

Directions:
•In a large soup kettle, combine, potatoes, red pepper and vegetable broth. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 15 minutes or until vegetables are tender.

•In a small bowl, combine flour and water until smooth. Set aside.

•Stir in lemon juice and zest into vegetable mixture. Add corn and asparagus; cover and simmer for 8 minutes or until vegetables are tender. Add flour and water paste. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 3 minutes or until thickened. Reduce heat; add shrimp, cook 4-5 minutes until pink in color. Heat through but do not boil. Add salt and pepper. Yield: 6-8 servings.

Flower Garden Soup

This traditional vegetable soup is delightful to serve for family and/or guests. It contains chicken broth, herbs, onion, carrots, zucchini, celery and chicken. The carrots and zucchini are notched before cutting into 1/4" thick slices, creating the appearance of flowers in the soup; thus the name! It looks and tastes healthy, and is really simple to prepare as long as you have the patience to modify the two main vegetable ingredients.

It is a work of art and that's coming from a master gardener!

For this recipe click here!

Texas Turkey Soup

This soup is a nice change from the tomato base soups I have been eating. The turkey meat makes it more healthy according to the critics. I enjoyed the mix of vegetables, meat and pasta.

The recipe is easy to follow and the soup thickens up just right with the adding of cornstarch and water. There wasn't a single thing to modify on this recipe. It gets a "BIG TEXAS STAR"!

For the recipe click here!

Oodles of Noodles Soup

I enjoyed the chunks of chicken in this soup. There is lots and lots of noodles, just like the title of the soup. Almost too many noodles for the amount of broth as it is served for a meal.

It was fun to eat and would be a favorite of kids, in my opinion.

For the recipe click here!

Tomato Corn Chowder

I found the potatoes in this to be my favorite part. The recipe did not call for celery, but I had some in the refrigerator, so it got thrown in to the pot. It seemed to go well with the other vegetables and flavor of the soup.


The recipe uses the liquid from the canned corn and tomatoes for flavor, so it is simple to prepare. I liked the bacon bits on top to improve the flavor, and I might suggest mixing it into the soup just before serving to enhance the overall flavor even more.

For the recipe click here!

Hearty Ham and Cabbage Chowder

I made this in celebration of St. Patrick's Day and acknowledging the Irish. It was simple to make had a variety of vegetables. The ketchup and brown sugar resulted in a sweet flavor in the chowder. It was not one of my favorites and serve due to the very sweet flavor. I'll save this for the desserts!

For the recipe click here!

30 Minute Minestrone Soup

I found this recipe in the book because the ingredients just happen to be in the refrigerator at the time, except for the spinach and beef broth required to complete the task. I did have some basil leaves on hand, so I used these instead of the spinach, and cut into small pieces. I also had chicken broth in the cupboard, so this went into the soup rather than the beef broth. I found these to be easy substitutions and created a wonderful flavored soup. I used 10 basil leaves for the amount of spinach and equal amount of chicken broth as called for in the recipe. The broth of the soup had a sweet and savory taste.

I would do it again, the exact same way!

For the recipe click here!

Acorn Squash Soup

I used two acorn squash for this recipe. I found it to be just barley enough to make the three cups required for the soup mixture. Once I had put all the ingredients together, I chose NOT to put it in the blender and puree the contents, but rather used a potato masher to smooth out the contents of the soup. I really liked it this way. The curry and dill spices together was a nice change to standard squash soup recipes.

Do not, I mean, do not forget to put the crumbled bacon pieces on top of the soup before eating. This small touch of flavor and texture made the soup a winner!

For the recipe click here!

Quick Turkey Bean Soup

If you are a fan of beans this is the soup for you to eat. The recipe was easy to prepare and requires some chopping. It appears healthy and with the turkey meat, it has less fat per serving. I found it to have a unique flavor and be very colorful.

It took 15 minutes to prepare and 15 minutes to heat up before serving. I left out one of the cans of kidney beans because it seemed like allot of beans and added an extra two tablespoons of tomato paste for a thicker soup content and more red color. Also, next time I would cut back a tiny bit on the cayenne pepper to keep down the "heat" of the sauce.

For the recipe click here

Italian Vegetable Soup

This recipe was easy to prepare with the pasta boiling while slicing and dicing the other ingredients. I enjoyed the pasta mixed with the savory tomato flavor and the fresh cut and frozen vegetables. It has a strong spicy flavor to it.

I used bow tie pasta rathter than the shells recommended in the recipe. It was the pasta I happen to have in storage and on the shelf at the time. I'm sure any type of pasta will do.

For the recipe click here

Cream of Cauliflower Soup

I really enjoyed this cream and meatlesss style soup, however, made a few changes to the recipe. I prepared the soup with more cauliflower, up to 16 ounces instead of 10 ounces. Before serving I added 2Tbsp. of bacon bits and 2 Tbsp. of spicy Dijon mustard. These last two ingredients gave it the quality of taste that is of more interest to me - "the man around the house." I wanted extra cheese flavor and included an additional 1/2 cup of cheese and top dressed it with even more cheese for a "great looking soup."

For the recipe click here

Spicy Chicken Tortilla Soup

This soup was as good as any I've had in restaurants or cafes. I really enjoyed the broth, tomato sauce and tomato mixture with the other spicy ingredients. There was not enough meat and "kick" to the recipe so I tripled the white chicken chunks and doubled the chopped green chilies. Oh, and I added a couple more teaspoons of lime juice to the final product and before serving topped it with a few fresh cut cherry tomatoes.

The soup was so easy to make and really does come together in just 10 minutes. And yes, it does boil faster if you stand by and watch, but don't blink, it will be ready before you know it. It tastes even better with a little Spanish music playing in the background. "A mi me gusto mucho!"

Ingredients (Original recipe):
1 lg.onion, chopped
2 Tbsp. olive oil
1 can (4 ounces) chopped green chilies
1 garlic cloves, minced
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped
1 tsp. ground cumin
5 cups chicken broth
1 can (15 ounces) tomato sauce
1 can (14 1/2 ounces) diced tomatoes w/ garlic and onion, undrained
3 cans (5 ounces each) white chicken, drained
1/4 cup minced fresh cilantro
2 tsp. lime juice
Salt and pepper to taste
Crushed tortilla chips
Shredded Monterrey Jack or Cheddar Cheese

In a large saucepan, saute onion in oil; add the chilies, garlic, jalapeno and cumin. Stir in the broth, tomato sauce and tomatoes. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; stir in chicken. Simmer, uncovered for 10 minutes.

Add the cilantro, lime juice, salt and pepper. Top with crushed tortilla chips and cheese. Yield; 7 servings.

Pasta Meatball Soup

I have always been a connoisseur of a bowl of tomato soup and a grilled cheese sandwich. This recipe would be put at the top of my list for tomato flavor. Thank goodness for ready-to-bake Italian meatballs from Costco which is a main ingredient. It was easy to pull all the meat, diced carrots, frozen peas and pasta together, prepare quickly and serve hot. With a garlic/butter seasoned slice of baguette bread aside my bowl of soup, it was like taking a quick trip to Italy and back again. Ciao!

For the recipe click here

Chicken Noodle Soup

I'm sad to admit that this was my first attempt at chicken noodle soup. The recipe suggested using Debone chicken, that was not my "cup of tea." So, I boiled several chicken breasts with the quarts of water, later cubed these, and it worked out great. I was taken away with the flavor of this soup and it tasted "healthy" too. I shared it with several friends and they had the same positive reaction, Hmmmmm, so goooooooood! This soup couldn't be better if may say so myself.

For the recipe click here

Taco Soup

I was in the mood for something on the spicy or as the spanish say, the "picante" side of things. This soup appeared to satisfy my interest for the day. It also looks great in a bowl with all the trimmings. I added a dash of chili pepper to spice it up a notch and it hit the spot! Placing several white corn chips around the inside of the bowl was a perfect touch and made the soup great for dipping a few bites too!

For the recipe click here

Curried Chicken Rice Soup

I adore any type of recipe that includes curry powder. This comination of carrots, celery, onion, cubed chicken and rice sounded delicious to me. I was disappointed in the thickness of the soup and would have preferred it to be a bit more "soupy." I kept adding more and more chicken broth to make it more to my liking and expectation. Perhaps using 2% milk in the recipe, rather than evaporated milk, would do the trick next time.

For the recipe click here!