Chicken Stew

Wanted a thicker soup instead of a brothy one. This fit the bill. Served with buttermilk biscuits.

• 500 g boneless skinless chicken thighs, diced 1" 
  
  
  
• 2 T olive oil
• 2 carrots, diced
• 1 small onion, chopped 
• 2 ribs celery, diced
• 5 T flour
• 1/2 t dried rosemary
• 1/2 t dried thyme
• 1/4 t ground sage
• 1.5 c diced potatoes
• 1.5 c diced sweet potato
• 1/4 c white wine
• 4 c chicken broth
• 1 c green beans (or frozen peas)

1. In Dutch oven, brown chicken in 1 T oil. (Next time try in batches.) Does not have to be cooked through. Transfer to bowl.
2. Add remaining 1 T oil. Saute onions, carrot and celery until onions are softened (3 min).
3. Stir in 3 T flour and seasoning. Cook over medium heat 2 min.
4. Add potatoes, sweet potato, wine, broth and chicken. Bring to boil.
5. Cover and simmer 30 min.
6. Remove lid and add green beans. Cook for 10 min. Thicken with cornstarch slurry (or flour slurry if you might freeze leftovers). 2 T flour + 1 c broth/water - ensure no lumps

Meatball Soups

Chicken Meatball White Soup

XBD did not like it but the rest of us were fine with it.

Beef Meatball Tomato Soup

11/27/23 forgot the flour step. Prefer a non-tomato based soup but this was fine for a change.

• 
  small pasta
• 1 can diced tomatoes
  
• 1 yellow onion, diced
• 2 stalks celery
• 1 carrot, chopped
• 1 T flour
• 4-6 c chicken/beef broth
• kale, chopped
• beef meatballs (homemade or store bought)
• parmesan

1. Bake the meatballs at 200C/400F (or save them to boil in soup at later step).
2. Saute onion, celery and carrot in olive oil in large stockpot/dutch oven. ~3 min until onions are translucent. Season with salt and pepper.
3. Whisk in 1 T flour until lightly browned ~1min.
4. Gradually stir in chicken stock and tomatoes. Bring to boil, reduce heat and simmer covered about 10 min. Optional: keep on low until 15 min before time to eat.
5. Stir in pasta and undercook.
6. Stir in kale, ~1-2 min.
7. Serve immediately, topped with grated parmesan

White Bean and Kale Meatball Soup *****

• Meatballs
  
  
  
• 500 g pork-beef mix ground meat
• 1 egg
• 1/2 c bread crumbs
• 2 T grated cheese
• 2 t Italian herbs: oregano, basil, thyme/rosemary
• salt and pepper
• 2 T olive oil
• 1 shallot, diced
• 3 carrots, diced
• 2 ribs celery, diced
• 1.4 liters/48 oz/6 c chicken/vegetarian stock
• 1 can cannellini beans, rinsed
• 2 c kale
• salt and herbs
• Serve with: grated parmesan, bread

1. Roll meatball mixture into 1" balls. Using dutch oven, cook in 2 batches in olive oil, until browned. Shake pot to keep round shape. Remove to plate.
2. Cook shallot, carrots and celery for 10 min, stirring often, until vegetables start to soften.
3. Add the broth, herbs, beans and meatballs. Bring to boil. Cover and simmer for 15 min.
4. Add kale and cook for 10 min. 

Cheater Chicken Noodle Soup

I had a sick family so needed to make a quick lunch of chicken noodle soup. Everyone liked it. Cheater because I bought a roasted chicken at the grocery store. I based this on a recipe I found online but can't find it anymore. This is from memory.
1/16/25 used Italian chicken pieces from jumbo, chicken bouillon cubes, half a small yellow onion, sage, bay leaves, parsley, dash of fish sauce. Cooked egg noodles separately to be able to freeze leftovers.

• chicken, roasted
• 4 c vegetable broth (or more)
• egg noodles
• celery (optional)
• carrots, cubed
• salt
• pepper
• garlic (instead of onion)
• thyme
• 1 T butter

1. Saute minced garlic in butter.
2. Add carrots (and celery). 
3. Add broth and bring to boil. Season with salt, pepper and thyme.
4. Add chicken pieces.
5. Add egg noodles to cook through (OR cook separately so that the soup sans noodles can be frozen and used later).
6. Simmer for 20 min.
7. Serve with bread.

Butternut Squash Soup

First time cooking with butternut squash, and it was pretty easy.

• 1 butternut squash
• 0-4 carrots, chopped
• 3 cl garlic
• sliced/grated/chopped ginger
• 1 pasta sauce jar chicken stock (or favorite stock)
• 1/2 t cayenne
• 1 t cumin
• 1/2 t oregano
• ground pepper
• salt
• optional: 1/2 block of cream cheese

1. Optional, but recommended: Pre-roast the squash. Either bake whole at 375 for 1 hour or cut in half and bake cut side down for 30-45 min. Take out and cool slightly before spooning out squash. OTHERWISE, peel and chop squash.
2. Heat oil in pan. Add garlic and ginger, stirring for 30 seconds. Add spices: cayenne, cumin, oregano. Add carrots and stir for a minute.
3. [If squash is uncooked, add it in here. Otherwise wait til after carrots are softer.]
4. Pour in chicken stock and bring to simmer. Cover until carrots are soft.
5. [If squash was roasted in oven, add it in now.] Cook until squash is heated through and soft. Add additional water/stock if needed
6. Season with pepper and salt.
7. Turn off heat. Let cool slightly. Add cream cheese.
8. Blend in batches. Transfer to serving bowl.
9. Serve with sliced sourdough bread.

Variations

10/19/14: 1 squash, cut in half, baked 35 minutes. Scooped from one half, peeled other half and cut. Plus 2 carrots and 1 sweet potato. Ginger, garlic, garam masala, cumin, hot curry powder. Added 4 c stock and last 5 minutes 1 can coconut milk.

Slow Cooker Whole Chicken

This was my first time cooking a whole chicken. Worked out surprisingly well - very easy to put together. Spiced it in the morning, put it in the fridge, then put it in the slow cooker before leaving in the afternoon. Most chickens will fit well in a 6 qt slow cooker, but I have a 4.5 qt size one so got a on-the-smaller side chicken and it worked out well.

• 1 whole chicken, small enough to fit in your slow cooker (~4 lb)
• 4-5 carrots, chopped in half or thirds
• optional: celery sticks, cut in thirds
• 1 onion, roughly chopped

• 2 t paprika
• 1 t salt
• 1 t thyme
• 1/2 t garlic powder
• 1/4 t cayenne
• 1/4 t pepper

1. Combine rub spices in bowl.
2. Put onions, carrots and celery on bottom of slow cooker.
3. Remove giblets from chicken. Rub spice mixture all over chicken, and optionally inside and under the breast skin.
4. Place chicken on top of veggies and cover. Cook on HIGH for 4-5 hours, or until meat is falling off the bone.
5. Serve hot (with rice and greens).
6. Use carcass to make chicken stock.

Chicken Stock

• 1 rib celery
• 1 carrot
• 1 bay leaf
• parsley
• thyme
• onion
• salt

1. Pick meat off bone and store as leftovers. Leave in bones, onion and juices.
2. Roughly chop celery, carrot and onion. Add to crockpot along with spices.
3. Fill with water up to 1/2" from top.
4. Cook on low overnight (or 8-10 hours).
5. Run through sieve to separate bone and other bits from the stock. Refrigerate or freeze.
6. Use in split pea soup, hedgehog meatballs, wonton soup, risotto, etc.

Tomato Basil Soup with Cheese Dumplings

Made this for dinner and had leftovers for 2 lunches. Originally served with lettuce wraps*. Leftovers heated up with leftover meatballs and ate with toast. The cheese dumplings make this soup much more filling than it would be alone. There end up being quite a few dumplings - I could see cutting that part in half, or just doubling the soup and it all being fine. Soup = ***, Dumplings = ****

• 4 cl garlic, diced
• pinch red pepper flakes
• 1 T olive oil
• 1 can crushed tomatoes (28 oz)
• 3 c broth
• 1/2 c fresh basil, chopped
• 1/2 t salt
• 1 c ricotta
• 1 c parmesan
• 2 eggs
• 1 1/3 c flour (or less when in Canada)
• 1 t salt
• 1/2 t freshly ground pepper

1. Heat the oil in a large pot. Saute the garlic and red pepper flakes, about 1 min, until fragrant.
2. Add in the whole can of tomatoes, broth, basil, 1/2 t salt and some pepper. Stir and bring to boil. Reduce heat.
3. Simmer for 7-8 minutes.
4. In a medium bowl, mix the cheeses, eggs, flour, salt and pepper. Stir just until dough forms.
5. When soup is done simmering, roll dough into small balls (~48) and drop into simmering soup. Cook for about 2-5 minutes until cooked through (depending on size...better to go smaller than what I did in the picture). Note: keep at a simmer only as boiling might make the dumplings fall apart.

Potato Soup II

Made this slow cooker potato soup and it turned out very tasty. It's very similar to the potato soup I made several years ago on the stove (well all potato soups are similar) but I think this one is better. Can't be sure as it wasn't a side by side taste test. I used yellow potatoes. This filled up the whole pot and made 3 jars of leftovers after dinner (one of which went into the freezer).
12/19/12 update: had the freezer one today. Texture was very strange - would not recommend freezing this after all. Just refrigerate. 

• less than 3 lbs potatoes
• 5 cups broth
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 6 cloves garlic, minced
• black pepper
• 1/4 t cayenne
• 1 pkg cream cheese (8 oz)

1. Peel potatoes and cut into large chunks (~1" cubes).
2. Put all ingredients in slow cooker, EXCEPT for cream cheese.
3. Cook on high for 4.5 hours. The potatoes should be fork tender.
4. Puree half of the soup, along with cubed cream cheese.
5. Optional: Garnish with chopped scallions, shredded cheese, bacon, etc.

Related

Potato Soup I - stove top

Split Pea Soup II

This one is from the Whole Foods website. It differs from version I in that it has fresh parsley and pork hocks, whereas the other has cloves and brown sugar. The tastes are decidedly different, though in a blind taste test Ma couldn't tell the difference! Need to see how the leftovers taste before I judge which one is better. This filled up my 4 qt slow cooker - don't go any smaller without adjusting the recipe. 
9/6/13 Finally return of cooler weather allowed me to use the slow cooker again. Made this tonight for dinner, excluding onions and salt. Used a mix of 2 kinds of green dahl. Increased garlic to 5 cloves and also added cumin and curry powder. Used no-salt chicken broth. Cooked on high for 5 hours - meat was not falling off bone like last time, but was cooked through. Served with baguettes.
Nov 2015 - Made this again with a giant smoked ham hock and only 4 c of beef broth, no onion, plus added cumin and curry powder. Was the best one according to MM.

• 2 1/4 c dried green dahl, rinsed (16 oz)
• 2 pork hocks (the small kind)
• 2 carrots, chopped (~1 c)
• 1/2 onion, chopped (less than 1 c)
• 2 ribs celery, chopped (incl leaves if there are any)
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 bay leaf
• handful chopped fresh parsley (1/4 c)
• 6 c chicken broth

1. Layer ingredients in slow cooker in the order given. Do not stir.
2. Cook on low for 8-10 hours (or high 4-5 hours), until meat falls off bone (or until peas are very soft).
3. Take out bay leaf and hocks. Pull of meat from bones and add back to pot.
4. Optional: add salt and pepper.

Variations

• Substitute 2 cups meat for the pork hocks, such as sauteed chicken sausage, ham, diced smoked turkey
• Add a small diced potato.
• Add rosemary.

Related Recipes

Split Pea Soup I - vegetarian, with cloves, curry powder, cumin and brown sugar

Split Pea Soup I

Started cooking at 9:30 pm and had it for lunch the next day. It looked a bit watery at first, but after pureeing part of it and letting it sit for a while it looked thicker. There is a nice hint of cloves - delicious! Made in 4 quart slow cooker - could probably double to have more for leftovers. Also used the east indian curry powder from House of Spice. Based on original recipe.

• 1 c dried split peas
• 5 c water
• 2 T Better than Bouillon
• 3 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1/2 sweet onion, chopped
• 2 carrots, chopped
• 2 stalks celery (with a few leaves) - split
• 3 whole cloves
• 1/2 t salt
• 1/4 t pepper
• l/2 t cumin
• l/2 t curry powder
• 1 bay leaf
• optional: 1 T brown sugar

1. Rinse dahl and add to slow cooker.
2. Cut off 3" of celery and poke the 3 cloves into it. Chop the rest of the celery.
3. Add remaining ingredients, except brown sugar, to crockpot.
4. Cook on low for 12-15 hours.
5. Let cool slightly. Puree all or part of soup.
6. Add in brown sugar.
7. Enjoy!

Related Recipes

Split Pea Soup II - with meat and parsley

Green Lentil Carrot Soup

I put too much chicken stock so this came out too salty. The bagel chips were a big help in toning down the flavor. Enjoyable, easy to throw together, but nothing fancy.

• 6 organic carrots, diced
• 1 can green lentils
• 5 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 small onion, chopped
• oil or butter
• crushed red pepper
• soup stock
• pepper
• 1 t cumin
• thyme, big pinch

1. Saute the onions for 3 minutes.
2. Add the garlic. Saute for another 2 minutes. Sprinkle with crushed red pepper.
3. Add the carrots. Saute for 5 minutes.
4. Add soup stock, spices and lentils. Let simmer.
5. Blend half the soup.
6. Serve immediately with grated mozzarella and baked bagel chips.

Notes

Bagel Chips - slice bagel into thin pieces. Place on baking sheet and cook for 2 minutes on highest rack at 400F. Flip pieces and cook for 1 minute more.

Carrot Whatever Soup

Had to use up some carrots and heat up the house, so made this soup tonight as an appetizer. The base is cubed carrots with stock, and then throw in whatever you want. It's based on all the related carrot soup recipes (linked below). Easy and delicious!

• remainder of a bag of carrots
• 1 large sweet potato
• oil
• 1 heaping tablespoon minced garlic
• red pepper flakes
• water
• chicken bouillon
• 1 knub fresh ginger, grated
• 1/2 t cumin powder

1. Peel and cut carrots into chunks. Same for the sweet potato.
2. In a large pot, heat oil over medium heat. Saute the garlic for several minutes.
3. Dump in the carrots and sweet potato. Stir.
4. Add enough water to cover the carrots. Bring the heat up to high. Add in bouillon to taste. 
5. Once it boils, reduce the heat to a simmer. Let cook until carrots are tender (10-20 min).
6. Add in the ginger and cumin. Let sit for 5 minutes.
7. Reserve some of the chunky bits in your serving bowl. Blend the remainder in batches.

Variations

• Add potatoes, squash, pumpkin (with the carrots).
• Add Thai red curry paste (with the ginger).
• Add onions (before the garlic).
• Add milk or yogurt for a dairy version.

Related

• Carrot and Potato Soup with Cumin and Ginger
• Creamy Sweet Potato and Carrot Soup
• Sweet Potato and Vegetable Soup
• Spicy Carrot Soup

Carrot and Potato Soup with Cumin and Ginger

This is a very easy soup to make and quite tasty. Served with caramelized onion focaccia bread. Delicious! Inspired from original.
2/28/20 Made half the recipe without onions and it was delicious. 

• 3 T oil
• 2 onions, diced
• 6 cloves garlic, chopped
• 3 t fresh ginger, grated
• 3 large* carrots, diced
• 4 large potatoes, diced
• 2 t cumin seeds
• 6 cups stock
• salt + pepper

1. Heat oil in a large soup pot on med. Saute onion, garlic and ginger for 3 minutes or until just soft.
2. Add carrots, potatoes and cumin seeds. Cover, reduce heat to low, cook for 5-7 min.
3. Add stock. Cover and simmer for 15 minutes or until vegetables are just tender.
4. Cool slightly. Reserve 2-3 cups of solids. Puree the remainder until smooth.
5. Season with salt and black pepper.

Variations

• Serve with cumin toast, sour cream, coriander.
• Add chili powder to the soup for a little kick.

Notes

• by "large" carrot, I mean the massively large carrots that are standard in Taipei. Each carrot is probably the equivalent of 2-3 large carrots back in the US. Roughly equal amounts of carrot and potato would do - or even 40-60 either way.

Creamy Tomato Soup

This is a delicious creamy soup without any cream! How is it done? The secret is in the bread slices. It adds the texture without the dairy. This also means you can leave this soup to boil, or reheat to boiling, without worrying about spoiling the soup (as if you had used milk). It's also recommended to use canned whole tomatoes, instead of crushed or fresh, to maximize on flavor. Very easy to put together. I made a very large batch for a party of 7 and had enough leftovers for at least 4 more servings. Based on the original.

• 6 T oil, split
• 1.5 c onion, chopped
• 6 cloves garlic, minced or chopped
• 3 cans of whole tomatoes packed in juice (28 oz cans)
• 1.5 T brown sugar
• 4 large slices of bread, crusts removed and cut into 1" pieces
• 3 c stock or water
• pepper

1. Heat 3 T oil in soup pot over med heat.
2. Add the onion and garlic.
3. Cook, stirring frequently, until the onion is translucent (3-5 min).
4. Stir in teh tomatoes and their juice. Use a potato masher to break apart the tomatoes. Remove any skin still remaining. Pieces should be no larger than 2 inches.
5. Stir in the sugar and bread pieces. Bring soup to a boil.
6. Reduce the heat to med and cook, stirring occasionally, until the bread is saturated and starts to break down. About 5 min.
7. Turn off heat. Transfer to blender in 3 batches, adding 1 T oil per batch. Blend until smooth and creamy - about 2 min. Transfer to a large bowl.
8. Rinse out pot and return soup to the pot.
9. Stir in 3 c of stock or water or until soup is desired thickness.
10. Return soup to boil and season to taste with pepper.

Variations

• Serve with grated parmesan, chopped basil and grilled cheese sandwiches.
• Add a bay leaf with the garlic and onion. Remove it before blending.
• Garnish with parsley or croutons.

Creamy Sweet Potato-Carrot Soup

I used the Carrot Soup recipe as a basis but then used the ingredients I had on hand and the spice combination I wanted to try. I ended up with a delicious soup that was reminiscent of pumpkin pie. I probably put in a bit too much cloves and cinnamon. But it was still delicious.

• 1 massive sweet potato, peeled and diced
• 2 massive carrots, peeled and diced
  
• 1 small potato, peeled and diced
  
• 1/2 onion, chopped
• 3-5 cloves garlic, minced
• 6 cups water
• bouillon cubes
• cinnamon, cloves
• ground cumin
• black pepper
• crushed red pepper
• 4 T crushed red pepper
• 1-2 c milk
  

1. Melt the butter in a stock pot.
2. Add the onions and fry until translucent, about 3-5 minutes.
3. Add the garlic and spices. I used about 2 t cumin, healthy dash of crushed red pepper, several shakes of strong cinnamon, and a couple dashes of cloves. Stir for 1-2 minutes.
   
4. Add the potatoes and carrots. Stir.
5. Pour in water and bouillon cubes. I used chicken stock.
6. Bring to boil. Lower to simmer, until potatoes are cooked, about 20-30 minutes.
7. Turn off heat. Reserve 2 cups of solids. Puree the rest.
8. Add milk to make desired consistency. (Soup may be reheated, but do not boil.)
   
9. Grate black pepper on top.
   

Sweet Potato and Vegetable Soup

Now that winter weather is upon us, it's time to put my 14 qt massive soup pot into use. The first soup of the season comes from Vegetarian Classics by Jeanne Lemlin. Limited by both ingredients I can find in Taipei and the ones that I like, I made some minor changes. I served this at a potluck dinner party and everyone enjoyed it. Flavor improved by the next day - the sweetness of the potatoes seemed to come through more.

• 1/4 c olive oil
• 1 onion, (finely) diced
• 5 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 (28 oz) can whole tomatoes, diced (or ready-cut diced)
• 6 cups soup stock
• 1 massive sweet potato (or 2 large), preferably dark orange, cut into 1/2" cubes
• 1 (15 oz) can Fagioli beans (or small white beans, navy/Greath Northern), rinsed well and drained
• 2 c diced fresh or frozen green beans
• (1 t salt, if stock isn't salty enough)
• freshly ground pepper, generous seasoning
• a few pinches of cayenne pepper (if you like it strong, otherwise just a few dashes)
• 1 T minced fresh basil
• 1 large carrot, diced

1. Heat the oil in a large stockpot over medium heat. Add the onions and garlic and saute until tender and golden, about 5-10 min.
2. Mix in the tomatoes and stock. Bring to a boil.
   
3. Stir in remaining ingredients. Return to a boil, lower to a lively simmer, and cook until sweet potatoes are tender, about 20-30 min.
4. Serve at once or reheat when needed.

Variations
Add 4 c frozen corn instead of/in addition to the carrot.

Notes

• The orange sweet potatoes, white beans, green beans, yellow corn, red tomatoes produce a colorful soup. Switching it to brown Fagioli beans and dark orange carrots mutes the colors a bit but it still looks quite nice.
• Flavor improves with time. The potatoes seemed sweeter the next day.
  
• Freezes well - just remember that liquids expand in the freezer, so leave a little extra room in your container.
  

Thai Chicken Noodle Soup

I didn't have any chicken broth so made this with water. It was definitely missing that extra kick in the broth, that only so much salt and pepper could make up for. The spiciness from the chillies was nice as well as the lime flavor. I would use less noodles next time - maybe only half a package. Adapted from original recipe.

2 T oil
1/2 large onion, chopped
3-5 garlic cloves, minced
3 spicy peppers, chopped* (depending on how spicy you want it)
salt and pepper
1 very large carrot, shredded
1/2 very large carrot, chopped

9 cups chicken broth (depending on amount of noodles) or water and extra seasoning

1.5 c raw, cubed chicken
1/2-3/4 pkg wheat spaghetti noodles, broken (or as much as you like)
1 lime, juice and zest

1 T fresh chopped basil

Heat soup pot with oil over medium heat. Saute onions, garlic and chilies. Season with salt and pepper. Cook for 2 minutes.
Add carrot and broth. Cover and bring to a simmer.
Add chicken. Simmer for 5 minutes.
Add noodles. Simmer until cooked (about 15 minutes).
Add lime juice and basil.
Move to serving bowl and garnish with lime zest and basil leaves.

Notes

• Be careful when chopping the peppers. Do not get the hotness on your fingertips, and whatever you do, don't rub your eyes if you do.

Review
***1/2 The lime and peppers added great flavor, but this really needs chicken stock or more spices in the water addition. Next time I'd use less noodles. This is an easy one pot meal.

Spicy Carrot Soup

You can make this soup ahead of time, since the last step is to reheat it after blending. You can vary the level of ginger and spiciness to your taste as well.
10/11/12 Made this for dinner, adding in some crushed red pepper flakes with the onions. Used 5.5 c chopped carrot, which was one full bag. Left out the scallions and black pepper. Served 2 with grilled cheese sandwiches and a salad. Delicious! Leftover soup fit in 2 mason jars.

• olive oil
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 6 large carrots, cubed 1/2" pieces or smaller
• 4-6 c soup stock + water (I use chicken stock, obviously not vegetarian)
• 1 t Thai red curry paste
• 1 T freshly grated ginger
• optional: scallions, fresh black pepper

1. Heat the oil in a large stock pot. Saute the onions until translucent (5-10 min).
2. Add the carrots. Cover, 10 minutes.
3. Uncover and add enough stock and water to cover the carrots. Bring to boil, then simmer for 15-20 minutes or until carrots are tender.
4. Add paste and ginger. Stir. Remove from heat and let rest 15 minutes.
5. Reserve one cup of carrots. Blend the rest in batches.
6. Reheat the soup. Add more stock if it's too thick. Add more paste to taste.
7. Serve in bowls with garnish.

Chicken Noodle Soup

I hate celery, so this recipe leaves it out. If I were to do this again, I'd even leave the chicken out. For me, it's mostly about the noodles, the soup and the carrots. I don't remember what I did, or how long it was for - this is my best guess from memory.

• 1 medium onion
• oil/butter
  
• 2-3 large carrots
• chicken stock
• water
• egg noodles
  
• chicken, cooked and diced
  

1. Saute the onions. 5 min
   
2. Add the carrots. 5 min
   
3. Add the stock. 20 min
   
4. Add the noodles. 10 min
   
5. Add the chicken. 5 min
   
6. Garnish with scallions or freshly ground pepper.
   

Potato Soup

Serves 5-8 as an appetizer.This makes a creamy, chunky potato soup.

• 1/2 large onion, diced
  
• 4 cloves garlic, chopped
• butter
• 4-5 russet potatoes, cubed (bite sized)
• 1 t salt
  
• black pepper
• crushed red pepper
• 4-5 c milk
• 4 oz cream cheese (half a block), cubed, room temp
  
• optional garnish: shredded cheese, chives, scallions, black pepper

1. Melt butter in stock pan.
2. Add onion and garlic. 5 min
3. Add potatoes and spices. 3 min
4. Add milk. Simmer 25-30 min or until potatoes are tender.
5. Partially blend mixture. Continue heating until thickened. Add cream cheese to further thicken.
6. Transfer to serving bowl and garnish.

Variations

• Use chicken stock instead of milk.
• Use cheddar or another type of cheese instead of cream cheese.
• Add Dijon mustard with the milk.
  

Carrot Soup

This recipe uses pretty basic ingredients and is easy to make. I used some chicken stock that came from P's mom - P says it's the most amazing stuff. It's a paste in a jar. The soup came out quite well. I'll have to use it again to try some chicken noodle soup. R, S, M and MM were big fans.

• 2 extremely large carrots, or 5-8 medium ones, sliced/chopped
  
• 2 large potatoes or 6-8 small ones (washed skin or peeled), cubed
  
• 1 medium onion or half a large onion, chopped
  
• 2-4 T butter
• 3-6 cloves garlic
• 4-6 cups water
• chicken stock paste/cubes
• 1 c milk
• optional: black pepper, salt, ginger, grated cheese, fresh basil
  

1. Melt butter in stock pan. Saute onions for 5 minutes.
2. Add carrots, potatoes and garlic. Cook for 3 minutes.
3. Add water and stock. Bring to boil and simmer for 20-30 minutes, until carrots and potatoes are tender.
4. Reserve 1 cup solids.
5. Blend remainder in batches.
6. Return to pot and add milk and reserved solids. Heat if necessary but don't boil.
7. Sprinkle with freshly grated black pepper (and/or other toppings).

Variations

• If you like a chunkier soup, reserve more than one cup of vegetables.
• If you like a thicker soup, reserve less and/or use less water.
• If you like a thinner soup, use more water/milk.