Meg's Tomato Soup

 2 (14 oz) cans diced tomato with juice

1 cup diced celery

1 cup diced carrots

1 cup diced onions

4 cups chicken broth

1/2 bay leaf

1 tsp dried oregano

1 Tbsp dried basil

1/2 cup butter

1/2 cup flour

1 cup parmesan cheese

2 cups half/half

1 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper

Crockpot tomatoes, celery, carrots, onions, chicken broth and bay leaf.  Cook on low for 5-7 hours.

Hour prior serving add: oregano, basil and prepare roux. 

Blend soup with immersion blender.

Roux: Melt butter over low heat in pan, add flour.  Stir 5-7 minutes.

Slowly stir 1 cup of hot soup from crockpot and then add another 3 cups of soup and stir.

Slowly add back to crockpot.

Stir in parmesan cheese, half/half, salt, pepper, cover and cook another hour.

Chicken and Vegetable Dumpling Soup

This is another new recipe that I recently tried and really liked. The kids picked through it, but I had a friend over for dinner that night and her kids really liked it. Definitely a variation of traditional chicken noodle soup - really great flavor.

*serves 6

Chicken and Broth:

4 cups chicken broth

4 cup water

2-3 chicken breasts (about 1 1/2 pounds)

Vegetables:

1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil

2 stalks celery, chopped

2 large carrots (7-8 baby carrots), sliced

1 onion, chopped

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

1 teaspoon dried thyme

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1/2 cup frozen peas

Dumplings:

1 cup flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt1/4 teaspoon dried thyme or sage

1/2 cup sour cream (I used light and it was fine)

1/2 cup milk

1 tablespoon vegetable or canola oil

In a large pot, boil the chicken broth, water and chicken breasts until the chicken is cooked through and tender (about 15 min). Remove the chicken from the pot, reserving the broth in the pot, and shred the chicken with two forks. Set the chicken aside and keep the broth warm on the stove.

While the chicken is boiling, in a large skillet, heat 1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil over medium heat. When the oil is hot, add the celery, carrots and onions. Saute for about 6-7 minutes until the vegetables are tender. Add the vegetables to the hot broth in the pot after the chicken has been removed. Add salt, thyme, and pepper to the vegetable/broth mixture and stir to combine. Heat the soup to a simmer.

In a small bowl, blend 1/2 cup cold water and 1/4 cup flour with a wire whisk until smooth. Whisking vigorously, slowly add the flour mixture into the hot vegetables and broth and whisk until well combined. Add 1/2 cup frozen peas and the reserved chicken and cook, stirring gently for one minute.

For the dumplings, in a medium bowl, stir together the dry ingredients. In a separate bowl, combine sour cream, mild and oil. Add the liquid ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir just until combined (don't overmix, it is ok if there are a few dry spots of flour here and there).

Heat the soup to boiling and drop teaspoonful amounts (the dumplings should be fairly small, they'll expand while cooking) of dumpling dough into the boiling soup, covering the entire surface of the soup (don't make more than one layer of dumplings). Reduce the heat to simmering, cover and let the dumplings cook for 15 minutes. Do not lift the lid of the pot while the dumplings cook.

When the dumplings have cooked fully, remove the lid and gently stir the dumplings to break them apart. Serve.

Chicken Soup with Fat Noodles

2-4 Chicken Breasts - Brown in frying pan with butter, salt, pepper

1/2 cup water - stir into pan with chicken for a few minutes; cut chicken in small pieces or chunks and put everything into a large cooking pot with:

8 C. of water

1/4 C. dried onions

1/4 C chicken bullion or chicken stock base (I use 6 bullion cubes and 1 can chicken broth)

2 TBSP dried parsley flakes

1-2 C sliced or cubed carrots

Noodles:

4 large eggs

1/2 teaspoon salt - put in mixer and add flour until very stiff

1-2 cups flour (1/3 to 1/2 cup flour for each egg) This should be a very stiff and sticky dough. So stiff that it is difficult to roll out.

On floured board: Roll out dough until about 1/8" thick in a rectangular shape (doesn't need to be perfect). Dust the surface with flour, then starting on the longest side, roll the dough up. Cut the roll into 1/4" to 1/2" thick slices. Unwind each noodle and place in a pile. Sprinkle a little flour over the noodles and coat the noodles by picking them up with your fingers and dropping them back on the counter a few times.

Bring the soup mixture to a full boil then drop the noodles into pot a few at a time until all of them are added in the soup. Cover and continue cooking until the noodles are cooked.

Season with salt and pepper to taste.

If you want, add 1-2 cups of frozen peas just before serving. (the peas cool the soup down just enough to eat and add another vegetable to the soup).

This is Sage's recipe and is yummy! I have made the homemade noodles and they are delicious but a lot of effort, so most of the time I just buy Reams noodles found in the frozen food section of the grocery store and add the entire package. I also like to add 3-4 ribs of diced celery to the soup as well. Leftovers tend to be very thick because the noodles absorb a lot of the broth in the fridge but I just add another can of chicken broth to thin before serving again.

White Chili Soup

 from the kitchen of: Crystal Loveland

1 lb chicken breast

1 Tbsp oil

1 1/2 tsp garlic powder

Cook together until chicken is done.

Add:

2 cans Great Northern beans

14 oz chicken broth

2 cans chop chilies

1 tsp salt

1 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp oregano

1/2 tsp pepper

1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 30 minutes.

Add:

1 cup whip cream (or half & half)

1 cup sour cream