Slow Cooker Broccoli Potato Cheese Soup

Holy smokes has it been cold in Las Vegas.  It always gets cold for a week or two, but it always
catches me off guard.  Every time.  My body just is not acclimated for the cold weather any more.  Even Bodie, our Australian Shepherd who is COVERED with thick fur, hates the cold.  He has been jumping up on the bed and snuggling my legs every single night.  We even had our first chance for snow this past week.  Yup, it's a bit chilly out there.

And whenever it gets cold like this, nothing sounds better to me than a big bowl of creamy soup.  This time, for some reason, broccoli just sounded so good.  But I wanted it a bit heartier than just broccoli and cheese.  Throw in some potato!  Mmmmmm.  Top it with bacon.  Because bacon makes everything taste better.  And we have an instant family favorite.  The Hubs was asking me to make it again even before he was done eating.  And that my friends, is awesome.

Slow Cooker Broccoli Potato Cheese Soup

Ingredients:

1/4 cup butter
1 yellow onion, chopped
1/4 cup flour
1 can evaporated milk
1 box (32 oz.) chicken broth
1 bag (16 oz.) frozen broccoli florets
1 1/2 cups frozen southern style hash browns
1/2 tsp. white pepper
1/4 tsp. kosher salt
12 oz. prepared cheese product, cubed
1 1/2 cups shredded extra sharp cheddar cheese
1 cup shredded parmesan cheese
Bacon bits for topping
Extra cheese for topping

Directions:

1. Spray slow cooker with cooking spray.

2. Melt butter in a large skillet.  Add onion and cook until tender.  Add flour and cook, stirring constantly, for 1 minute.  Slowly pour in milk, stirring constantly to prevent lumps.  Remove from heat.

3. Pour broccoli and potatoes into slow cooker.  Add broth, pepper, salt, and onion mixture and stir to combine.  Cover and cook on low for 4 hours.

4. Add cubed cheese to soup and stir until melted.  Add cheddar and parmesan cheeses.  Stir until melted.

5. Serve immediately with bacon bits and extra cheddar cheese.

Serves 8

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Fit Friday - Sweet Potato and Black Bean Chili

Being fit has different definitions for everyone.  For some people, it's about exercise.  For others, it's about eating right.  For some, it's a lifestyle choice.  That's where today's recipe comes in.  It's a Vegan recipe. But because of the sweet potatoes, beans, and quinoa, you still get a hearty chili that is very filling.  Because of the heat you get from the cumin and chili powder, it also reminds me a little of curry.  But it's still something that even the kids will love.

Sweet Potato and Black Bean Chili

Ingredients:

1 Tbs. olive oil

1 small onion, chopped
5 garlic cloves, minced

1 can (6 oz.) tomato paste

1/2 Tbs. chili powder
1/2 Tbs. cumin
1 tsp. oregano
2 cans black beans, drained and rinsed
1 large sweet potato, peeled and diced
1 box (32 oz.) vegetable broth
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. ground black pepper
1 cup uncooked quinoa
Cilantro and Avocado

Directions:

1. Heat olive oil in a large stock pot over medium high heat.  Add onions and cook until translucent.  Add garlic and cook for 2 more minutes.  Add tomato paste, chili powder, cumin, and oregano and cook for another 2 minutes, stirring constantly.

2. Add beans, broth, potatoes, salt, and pepper. Cook for about 5 minutes.  Add quinoa.  Cover, bring to a simmer and cook for 20-30 minutes, stirring occasionally, until potatoes are tender.

3. Serve with cilantro and avocado slices.

Serves 6

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• Chicken Enchiladas
• Roasted Chicken with Sweet Potatoes
• Slow Cooker Tacos Carnitas

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TBT - Mississippi Gulf Coast Gumbo

Seems like things are starting to get settled in here.  I hope things around here will soon be easier for you to find.  In the meantime, we are only a few days away from Mardi Gras 2014!  So I thought it would be fitting for this Throwback Thursday to visit my recipe for Mississippi Gulf Coast Gumbo.  Full of good old Southern flavor.  Perfect for a Mardi Gras celebration.  Grab the recipe here.

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• Fried Catfish
• Cornbread
• Shrimp Po'Boys (Gorton's Review)
• Pumpkin Pecan Pie

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Tomato Tortellini Soup

Tomato soup is a "hot" (HA HA HA, I kill myself sometimes - wipe eyes) item in our house.  Whenever I ask K1 what she wants for dinner, without fail, every time she says "Tomato Soup and Grilled Cheese Sandwiches."  Okay, I'm kind of burned out on plain tomato soup and grilled cheese sandwiches.  Time to mix it up!

Enter frozen cheese tortellini.  Adding it to this tomato soup base gives it a heartiness that is lacking in a plain tomato soup.  But it's still simple enough that little, picky eaters will enjoy it.  Did I mention that it's simple too?  Oh yes.  Quite simple.  It seriously only takes me 30 minutes to make it, from prep to serving.  I toss a sliced baguette in the oven, topped with some butter, a little garlic salt, and Parmesan cheese.  Bake it on 350 degrees for a few minutes, and you have an awesome little cheese toast to have with the soup.

Tomato Tortellini Soup

Ingredients:

2 Tbs. butter
1/2 medium onion, finely chopped
Salt and pepper
3 cloves garlic, minced
32 oz. chicken broth
1 jar (24 oz.) marinara sauce
1 can (14.5 oz.) Italian style diced tomatoes
1/2 cup chopped fresh basil
1 bag frozen cheese tortellini (16-19 oz.)

Directions:

1. Melt butter in a large stock pot.  Add onions, salt, and pepper.  Saute onions over medium heat until translucent and soft.  Add garlic and cook for another 2-4 minutes.

2. Add chicken broth, marinara sauce, and diced tomatoes.  Bring to a simmer and add basil.  Bring to a boil and add tortellini.  Cover with lid. Cook for 4-5 minutes or until tortellini is tender.

Serves 6

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Slow Cooker White Bean Chili

I think I've expressed my love for a nice big bowl of hot chili.  But there are times when beef chili just gets a little old.  I like to have a variety of meats in my diet.  So when I came across the idea of a chili with a poultry base, I knew I would fall in love with the end result.

But with poultry, I wanted to use a lighter bean - color and flavor.  And because I love the texture of ground meat in chili, there must be ground turkey.  And chicken for added umph.  But there is no tomato base in this.  So don't wonder where I went wrong in the ingredients.  I didn't!  This is a lighter version of chili that even the kids love.  And don't forget the Corn Bread!  It's perfect with any kind of chili.

Slow Cooker White Bean Chili

Ingredients:

1 Tbs. canola oil
1/2 onion, finely chopped
5 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 lb. ground turkey
1 can (4 oz.) diced green chilies
2 tsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. oregano
1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper
1 box chicken broth
2 chicken breasts, cooked and chopped
2 bay leaves
3 cans (15 oz. each) various white beans, drained
Shredded Mexican Cheese

Directions:

1. Heat oil in large skillet over medium heat.  Add onion to pan and cook until tender.  Add the garlic and ground turkey and cook until no longer pink.

2. Pour beans into slow cooker.  Add remaining ingredients.  Cook on LOW for 6-8 hours.

3. Add cheese when serving.

Serves 6

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Slow Cooker Loaded Baked Potato Soup

I went to Ricks College in Rexburg, Idaho, for the first part of my college education.  And we all know what Idaho is famous for - POTATOES!  But there is also something about Rexburg - it is friggin' cold in the winter.  When that first snow flies, wow.  And then you drop below freezing.  And the wind blows.  And no matter what you wear, you are chilled to the bone.










So something that became a staple in my diet was soup.  Because potatoes were in abundance and super cheap I made potato soup a lot.  Granted most of the time that potato soup came in a can.  But there were times when I would break out the crock pot and let a big pot of soup just stew all day while I was in classes or at church.

Here's the problem with most potato soups - they lack flavor.  Potatoes are bland.  Simple fact.  And super starchy.  So you have to dress it up a bit.  For me, it's a no brainer.  Loaded Baked Potato.  In a soup.  Sour cream, cheese, and bacon.  Sauteed onions and garlic.  And it just has this lovely, smokey flavor.  I love to serve it with nice warm, soft breadsticks and a side tossed salad.  Perfect meal for a cold, winter evening.

Slow Cooker Loaded Baked Potato Soup

Ingredients:

1 package (12 oz.) bacon
1 medium onion
3 cloves garlic
1 Tbs. celery flakes
1 (32 oz.) bag frozen Southern style hash browns
4 cups chicken broth
1 cup water
3 Tbs. flour
1 cup milk
1 tsp. salt
Salt and pepper to taste
Sour cream
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 package bacon, cooked and chopped

Directions:

1. Cook 1/2 of the bacon.  Drain grease but leave bacon bits in the bottom of the pan.  In the same pan, cook onion and garlic until onion is translucent.

2. Spray slow cooker with cooking spray.  Add hash browns, onion and garlic, celery flakes, and chicken broth.  Cook on LOW for 6-8 hours.

3. During last 30 minutes of cooking, make a slurry of milk and flour. Combine in a shaker and slowly pour into soup, stirring constantly.  Replace lid on slow cooker and allow soup to thicken. Add salt just before serving.

4. Serve with sour cream, cheese, and bacon.

Serves 8

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Slow Cooker Beef Stew

Fall is officially upon us, in fact the first snow has flown at my parents' house in Wyoming!  There is
something so wrong with that.  I remember when I was going to Ricks College (now BYU-Idaho) in Rexburg, Idaho, and when that first snow fell all I wanted was warm soup.  For me, that meant cracking open a can of soup.  One of my favorites was beef stew - it made me warm but also filled me up.

Since then, I've moved on to a little better quality of food than canned stew.  Enter the slow cooker, again!  Yay!  And this is another recipe where it's "dump all the ingredients in" and let it simmer and get that meat so nice and tender.  Ah-mazing.  And while you are looking at the ingredients, you will notice a can of diced tomatoes. Wait, Woah?  Tomatoes, in beef stew?!  Yup.  It gives the stew more depth, the tomatoes pretty much melt into the stew, and just adds to the broth.

Slow Cooker Beef Stew

Ingredients:

3 carrots, peeled and sliced
1 medium onion, chopped
5 medium red potatoes, scrubbed and cut into 1 inch cubes
1 bag frozen peas
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 tsp. salt
2 lbs. beef stew pieces
2 tsp. olive oil
1 tsp. thyme
1 tsp. parsley
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. ground allspice
1 can diced tomatoes
3 bay leaves
4 cups beef broth
1 Tbs. + 1 tsp. cornstarch
Salt and Pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Place carrots, onion, potatoes, peas, and garlic in the bottom of slow cooker.  Sprinkle with salt.  Add beef.

2. Pour olive oil over beef and add thyme, parsley, salt, and allspice.  Top with diced tomatoes and bay leaves.  Add beef broth.

3. Cook on LOW for 8 hours or on HIGH for 5 hours.

4. With 30 minutes remaining, ladle 1 cup of liquid out of crock pot and whisk in cornstarch until dissolved.  Pour slowly back into slow cooker and stir to combine.  Replace lid and let thicken for 30 more minutes.

Serves 8

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Three Bean Slow Cooker Chili

I love Fall.  Everything about it.  I love the leaves on the ground.  I love the sound of football on the television and possible tickets to a college football game.  I love getting my jeans and hoodies out of storage because it's starting to cool off (here is Vegas we start freezing as soon as the temps drop below 80!).  And I love the food that goes along with fall.  Chili is one of those.  To me, there is nothing better than hanging out with family while watching a Broncos game with a big pot of chili waiting for dinner.  

In my opinion, chili is best when it's made in the slow cooker.  It sits and simmers and stews for at least 4 hours.  All those amazing flavors and spices come together in one steamy pot.  And I like variety in my chili, so I use several types beans.  For this recipe, I use dark red and light red kidney beans and black beans.  I also like to use ground turkey instead of ground beef.  It makes a lighter, less fatty chili.  I also add a can of corn for another texture/flavor.  Food has amazing depth when you can combine textures and flavors.  I serve it with Cornbread or on top of Tuffies all season long.  If you have leftovers, it can be easily frozen and reheated.  Just pour cooled chili into a ziploc bag and place in the freezer, flat, and keep frozen for up to 2 months.

Slow Cooker Three Bean Chili

Ingredients:

1 Tbs. vegetable oil
1 small yellow onion, chopped
1 lb. ground turkey

1 can tomato soup

1 can chili ready diced tomatoes
1 can corn, drained
1 can diced green chilies
1 can dark kidney beans, drained
1 can light kidney beans, drained
1 can black beans, drained
1 Tbs. chili powder
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
1/2 Tbs. garlic powder
1/2 Tbs. ground cumin
1/4 tsp. ground black pepper
1/4 tsp. ground allspice
Salt to taste


Directions:


1. Heat the oil in a skillet over medium heat. Saute onion for a few minutes, then place turkey in the skillet, and cook until evenly brown.


2. Coat the inside of a slow cooker with cooking spray, and mix in turkey, tomato soup, chilies, corn, kidney beans, black beans and onion. Season with chili powder, cayenne pepper, garlic powder, cumin, black pepper, allspice and salt.


3. Cover, and cook 8 hours on Low or 4 hours on High.

Serves 10

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Slow Cooker Chicken Tortilla Soup (Dora Soup)

The first time I made Chicken Tortilla Soup, K1 was about 2.  And she was very into Dora the Explorer.  Which was also about the time that Bryan Regan came out with his theory of the Map Song (go look it up on YouTube - HILARIOUS!).  But I digress.  So when she asked what I was making, and she heard the word "Tortilla," she immediately recognized it as a word she heard on Dora and promptly renamed this "Dora Soup."  And to this day, it has stuck. So if you see me put this on my meal plan as "Dora Soup," you'll know what it is.

This is a very simple soup to make. Outside of boiling the chicken (follow me on Instagram for a tip on boiling chicken!), it's a dump soup - all you have to do is dump everything into the slow cooker.  It is that simple.  This is seriously one of my favorite soups because the prep time is so little. Now, one thing I should mention - when I buy the canned vegis, I make sure to buy low sodium tomatoes and no salt corn.  Sorry, leave that out for me.  I'd rather add my own spices than laden it with salt.  Then top it with some fresh cilantro and avocado - wowzers, it's so yummy!  

Slow Cooker Chicken Tortilla Soup

Ingredients:

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, boiled and shredded
1 (14.5 oz.) can diced tomatoes
1 (14.5 oz.) can red enchilada sauce
1 (15.25 oz.) can corn, drained
1 (4 oz.) can chopped green chilies
1 medium onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
3 cups chicken broth
1 tsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. chili powder
1 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. black pepper
1 bay leaf
2 Tbs. chopped cilantro


For Garnish:

Sliced Avocado
Grated Cheese
Sour Cream
Tortilla Strips

Directions:

1. In crock pot, combine shredded chicken, diced tomatoes, enchilada sauce, corn, onion, green chilies and garlic. Add water, chicken broth, cumin, chili powder, salt, black pepper and bay leaf. Stir in cilantro.

2. Cover and cook on LOW 6 to 8 hours or on HIGH 3 to 4 hours.

3. Remove and discard bay leaf.

4. Sprinkle tortilla strips, cheese, and sour cream over soup. Serve immediately.

Serves 8

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Clam Chowder

When I was a kid, my parents had a tradition of making our favorite meal for our birthday.  We weren't wealthy and so they couldn't afford to take each of us out to dinner.  But because this was tradition, because it was MY favorite meal, I didn't care that I wasn't going out to eat.  In fact, it kind of bummed me out when there were moving to Wyoming and it was over my birthday that I didn't get my home cooked meal.  Why?  Because my favorite meal was Clam Chowder.

The recipe was passed down from my Grandma Cook.  It's yet another of her great recipes that I've inherited and just love.  Anytime we would go to her house, she'd have it big pot of it waiting for us because she knew how much I loved it.  I still remember going to her house on Halloween to show her our loot and our costumes and walking in to find a bowl waiting just for me.  Now, she used actual celery in her recipe.  The Hubs and the Kiddos are not fans of celery, so I opted to add celery flakes to mine instead.  If you like celery though, you can add it instead - use about 2-3 stalks of minced celery.

Clam Chowder

Ingredients:

2 cans minced clams, drained with juices reserved
1/2 yellow onion, diced
4 medium red potatoes, scrubbed and diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tbs. celery flakes
3/4 cup butter, melted
3/4 cup flour
1 1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. sugar
Dash of pepper
1 pt. half and half
1 pt. milk

Directions:

1. Put onions, potatoes, garlic, and celery flakes in a medium saucepan.  Add reserved juices from cans of clams and enough water to cover the vegetables. Bring to a simmer over medium heat and cook vegetables until tender (about 15-20 minutes).

2. Melt butter in a large stockpot over medium heat.  Add flour and whisk constantly for 8 minutes to make a roux.  Add salt, sugar, and pepper. Once combined, gradually add half and half and milk, whisking constantly. Continue whisking until all lumps are gone.

3. Add vegetables and liquid to hot white sauce. Let barely come to a boil.

4. Add clams.  DO NOT LET BOIL or clams will become rubbery. Season to taste.

Serves 8

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Slow Cooker Tomato Soup

When I think of comfort food, Tomato Soup and grilled cheese sandwiches are one of the first things that come to mind.  I love warm soup going down my throat and warming my body.  I love gooey grilled cheese sandwiches (with a few strips of crispy bacon added for a little smokey flavor) to dip in the soup.  And as much as I love canned tomato soup, I love giving my family healthier versions even more.

This is a fantastic version, full of yummy goodness.  Tomatoes, carrots, garlic, onions.  Carrots?  Abso-freaking-lutely!  You let them cook all day in your slow cooker, and they give your soup a depth that canned doesn't. Add some half and half, a little bit of cheese, and it creates a fantastic, creamy tomato soup that you had to put hardly any effort into.

Slow Cooker Tomato Soup

Ingredients:

1 (14 oz.) can Italian style diced tomatoes
1 (14 oz.) can Fire Roasted diced tomatoes
4 carrots, peeled and diced
1 medium onion, diced
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 tsp. dried oregano
1 Tbs. dried basil
4 cups chicken broth
2 Bay leaves
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup flour
1 cup parmesan cheese
1 cup half and half, warmed
1 cup milk, warmed
2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper

Directions:

1. Add tomatoes, carrots, onions, garlic, oregano, basil, chicken broth, and bay leaves to slow cooker.  Cook on low for 7 hours.

2. Pour hot vegetables into a blender or food processor and puree until smooth.  Pour back into slow cooker and keep on warm.

3. Melt butter over low heat in a skillet and add flour. Make a roux by stirring constantly with a whisk for 8 minutes. Slowly whisk in 1 cup hot soup. Add another 3 cups and whisk until smooth. Add all back into the slow cooker and whisk until smooth.  Add the Parmesan cheese, warmed half and half, salt and pepper.  Stir.  Cover and heat for another 30 minutes or so until warmed through.

Serves 8

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