Looking for a WOW soup recipe - suitable to freeze

[jessicacoy]

I am hosting a soup exchange in a week (the 3rd year in a row I've done this) with a small group of fellow moms in my area. I am looking for a soup recipe with the following criteria:

(1) Must freeze and reheat well (as the soups that are exchanged are pre-frozen)

(2) Prefer that it NOT contain meat (but chicken stock, etc. is fine)

(3) Be a WOW soup....one that is a favorite of yours. I don't want to go out on a limb here!

What do you all have for me?

[Sheila in MD]

Stop and Smell the Rosemary (or Rebecca T's as it is know on this board!) Tortilla Soup does it for me....I am posting my version below but I have tweaked it from the original. It freezes great!

Tortilla Soup

1-2 teaspoons oil [if that!]
8 corn tortillas, chopped small
3-4 garlic cloves, minced
1 medium onion, chopped
1 can (28 oz) diced tomatoes, undrained
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 can crisp corn, drained (I like crisp canned better then frozen in this recipe)
2 tablespoons ground cumin
1 tablespoon chili powder
3 bay leaves
6 cups low sodium chicken stock [I usually end up using more as I let the soup really simmer until the tortillas disintegrate and it gets a bit thick.]
1 teaspoon salt (optional)
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
Fresh squeezed lime juice to taste

Garnish: Sour Cream, gated cheddar and fresh cilantro

Heat oil in large saucepan over medium heat. Add tortillas, garlic, cilantro, and onion. Saute 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in tomatoes. Bring to a boil and add cumin, chili powder, bay leaves, and chicken stock. Return to a boil. Reduce heat. Add salt and cayenne. Simmer 30 minutes. Remove bay leaves and stir in chicken. Reheat.

Serves 6 (1.5 cup servings)

Sheila’s Notes: The original recipe calls for the cilantro to be added to the soup but I think the heat of it while cooking destroys the cilantro taste so I add it to each serving. The original also called for shredded, cooked chicken but since I add the black beans and corn (not in the original recipe), I don’t bother with the chicken. I do use petite diced tomatoes rather then regular. Do put out bowls of cilantro, sour cream and cheese though! The tortillas pretty much melt into the soup although there will be little pieces of them that don’t. I also don’t add the cayenne as I am a spice wimp-I do add a shake of chipotle powder but to be honest, probably not enough to make a difference.

Stop and Smell the Rosemary

[doggerham]

I second the Tortilla Soup above. I make it as originally written, with the chicken, but I think I like some of the adaptations I see here.

I also agree about the cilantro -- it just gets kind of slimy and loses its flavor when you add it and let it cook.

Other suggestions:

Bree's Lentil Soup (on the BB)
Mulligatawny Soup (on the BB)
Hamburger Barley Soup (from the back of the Quaker Barley box)

[mkc]

Our favorites (both of which we've frozen) are

CL's Italian Sausage Soup (uses turkey Italian sausage)

BC's Lentil Sausage Soup (you can use turkey kielbasa)

Both should be on the BB.

Michelle

[LivingLight]

My favorite wow soup to make that doesn't contain meat and can be frozen is Barefoot Contessa's Roasted Tomato Basil soup: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/i...ipe/index.html

Cooking Light's Creamy Balsamic Tomato soup would be second, but it definitely has more of a sweet taste: http://find.myrecipes.com/recipes/re...ipe_id=1108229

The soup swap sounds like fun! Especially in light of the cold temperatures we are experiencing this week.

[jessicacoy]

Ooohhhh....thanks for all the ideas! I am on my way out right now, but just browsing it looks like a lot of great ideas. I saw several that I want to try even if I don't use them for the soup exchange!

[lantana]

This one is a favorite, CL's Instant Black Bean Soup. I use an immersion blender to blend part of the beans. I also use a veggie broth instead of chicken.

Alice

[Angelsfan]

We made this last night for about the millionth time. We love it and have frozen it with good results.

-Heather


Roasted Tomato Soup
Recipe courtesy Tyler Florence

2 1/2 pounds fresh tomatoes (mix of fresh heirlooms, cherry, vine and plum tomatoes)
6 cloves garlic, peeled
2 small yellow onions, sliced
Vine cherry tomatoes for garnish, optional
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 quart chicken stock
2 bay leaves
4 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup chopped fresh basil leaves, optional
3/4 cup heavy cream, optional

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.

Wash, core and cut the tomatoes into halves. Spread the tomatoes, garlic cloves and onions onto a baking tray. If using vine cherry tomatoes for garnish, add them as well, leaving them whole and on the vine. Drizzle with 1/2 cup of olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Roast for 20 to 30 minutes, or until caramelized.

Remove roasted tomatoes, garlic and onion from the oven and transfer to a large stock pot (set aside the roasted vine tomatoes for later). Add 3/4 of the chicken stock, bay leaves, and butter. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 15 to 20 minutes or until liquid has reduced by a third.

Wash and dry basil leaves, if using, and add to the pot. Use an immersion blender to puree the soup until smooth. Return soup to low heat, add cream and adjust consistency with remaining chicken stock, if necessary. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Garnish in bowl with 3 or 4 roasted vine cherry tomatoes and a splash of heavy cream.

[kidscooking]

Here are a few of my favorites that freeze well:

Crockpot Split Pea Soup

Chicken Tortilla Soup

Tomato Soup

[sunnyshine]

My family's favorite is Lasagna Soup.
I use Italian turkey sausage, leave out the mushrooms and add some Italian seasoning. When I freeze it, I put the basil in the soup but attach a ziploc baggie of cheese to put in the soup after I reheat it.


Lasagna Soup
Cuisine at Home #54

makes 8 cups

1# bulk Italian sausage
2 cups onions, chopped
1 cup carrots, diced
2 cups mushrooms, sliced
2 Tblsp. garlic, minced
4+ cups chicken broth
1 can (14 1/2oz.) Italian-style stewed tomatoes, chopped
1 can (10 3/4oz) tomato sauce
1 cup uncooked mafalda pasta
2 cups fresh spinach, chopped
1 cup provolone cheese or fresh mozzarella, diced
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, shredded
4 tsp. thinly sliced fresh basil

Prep all ingrediants.

Brown sausage in a large soup-pot over high heat.
Add onions and carrots; saute 3 minutes.
Stir in mushrooms and garlic; saute 3 minutes.

Add broth, stewed tomatoes, and tomato sauce, bring to a boil.
Drop in pasta and simmer until the pasta is done (+ - 10 minutes).
Stir in spinach and cook until wilted

Place 1/4 cup of the diced cheese into each soup bowl and pour soup on top. Garnish with Parmesan and basil shreds.

[doggerham]

I didn't pick up on the "no-meat" requirement, so I'll withdraw the hamburger barley soup. Although, you could just make a veggie barley soup with beef broth, and that would be very tasty, too.

There was a lemon_orzo soup posted a little while back that I made, which was very tasty. Not too sure how it would freeze -- would the orzo just get too mushy?

Onion soup would also work well for this swap.

[Linda in MO]

This is one of our favorites. I think it would probably still be good w/o the chicken. You could add another can of beans, if desired (maybe black beans). Anyway, if freezes great and I usually double the recipe now.

* Exported from MasterCook *

Tex Mex Chicken Taco Soup

Recipe By :I adapted from a recipe from Emeril's show
Serving Size : 0 Preparation Time :0:00
Categories : Soup

Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
2 large bone-in chicken breast halves -- skinned
1/2 cup diced onions
3/4 cup diced red bell pepper -- (3/4 to 1)
1 tablespoon minced garlic
Vegetable oil, olive oil, or Pam
1 package low-sodium taco seasoning mix (I use my
homemade mix minus the salt)
1 jar salsa or picante -- (8-ounce)
1 can kernel corn -- (14-ounce)
1 can hominy -- (14-ounce) drained
1 can ranch style beans -- (16-ounce) oil
skimmed from the top if needed
3 ounces tomato paste -- approx. (3 to 4)
5 cups chicken broth -- approx. (use
chicken broth that you cooked the chicken
in, if desired)
1 large lime
4 to 8 ounces low-fat cream cheese -- OR use 4 oz.
low-fat cream cheese and about 1/2 cup
low-fat sour cream
fresh cilantro -- to taste

In a large pot, cover chicken with cold water. If desired, add onion, celery, carrot, a few peppercorns, Better than Bouillon, etc. Bring to a simmer and simmer gently until chicken is just done (about 20 min?). Remove chicken to cool and then shred and set aside. Strain and reserve broth. Taste broth and add more bouillon if needed.

Saute onions, red bell peppers, and garlic in a small amount of oil.

Add taco seasoning mix and stir around.

Then add chicken, salsa, vegetables, beans, tomato paste, and chicken broth. Adjust liquid to your liking. Bring to a slow simmer and simmer for 20 minutes.

Squeeze in the lime juice.

Place cream cheese in a separate bowl. Using a measuring cup, take some of the hot liquid from the soup and pour over cream cheese to melt and then add back to the soup. Simmer on low for another 10 minutes.

Add fresh cilantro.

Serve with tortilla chips or cheese quesadillas and lime wedges, if desired.

NOTES : NOTES : This freezes beautifully. I make it in double batches now.

10/03--I made this last week and it was soooo good! My 8 yr. old absolutely LOVED it and said "Can we have this same meal tomorrow night?!" And when he had it the next night he said "I wish we could have this every night!" I froze the leftovers and when we had some yesterday, it tasted the exact same.

When I made it, I used 4 oz. light cream cheese and a scant 1/2 cup of light sour cream because I didn't want to open another block of cream cheese. That worked fine. It probably would have been fine w/o the sour cream but I wanted to get rid of it anyway. Obviously this recipe is very forgiving. I used my own homemade taco seasoning and next time will reduce or omit the amount of salt in my mix. I ended up having to add a little water to the soup so it wasn't too salty. I will repeat this one over and over!

Original recipe:
Tex Mex Chicken Taco Soup
Recipe courtesy Lauren Ogles

1/2 cup diced onions
1/2 cup diced green bell peppers
1 tablespoon minced garlic
Vegetable oil
1 pound chicken breasts, boiled and shredded
1 package taco seasoning mix
1 (8-ounce) jar salsa
1 (14-ounce) can kernel corn
1 (14-ounce) can hominy
1 (16-ounce) can ranch style beans
2 (4-ounce) cans tomato paste
2 (14-ounce) cans chicken broth
1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese

Saute onions, green bell peppers, and garlic in a small amount of vegetable oil. Add chicken, taco seasoning mix, salsa, vegetables, beans, tomato paste, and chicken broth. Adjust liquid to your liking. Bring to a slow simmer and simmer for 20 minutes. Place cream cheese in a separate bowl. Using a measuring cup, take some of the hot liquid from the soup and pour over cream cheese to melt and then add back to the soup. Simmer on low for another 10 minutes. Serve with tortilla chips and grated Monterey jack cheese.
Also, great on the second day over rice.

Episode#: EM1H22
Copyright © 2003 Television Food Network, G.P., All Rights Reserved

[sunnyshine]

I didn't pick up on the "no-meat" requirement

Me either but after reading your post I went to my box of barley to find the recipe so your typing wasn't all for nothing. I plan on trying it this week.

[sunnyshine]

To make up for my meat recipe I'm posting my non-meat recipe. This one has been floating around forever, the copycat version of Olive Garden's Minestrone:

Olive Garden's Minestrone
Minestrone Soup
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup minced white onions
1/2 cup chopped zucchini
1/2 cup frozen green beans
1/2 cup minced celery
4 cloves minced garlic
4 cups vegetable broth
2 (15 ounce) cans red kidney beans, drained
2 (15 ounce) cans small white beans, drained
1 (14 ounce) can diced tomatoes
1/2 cup carrots, julienned or shredded
2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley
1 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
3 cups hot water
4 cups fresh baby spinach
1/2 cup small shell pasta

Heat three tablespoons of olive oil over medium heat in a large soup pot. Saute onion, celery, garlic, green beans, and zucchini in the oil for 5 minutes or until onions begin to turn translucent.Add vegetable broth to pot, drained tomatoes, beans, carrot, hot water, and spices. Bringp to a boil, then reduce heat and allow to simmer for 20 minutes.Add spinach leaves and pasta and cook for an additional 20 minutes or until desired consistency.

[Dennis91]

CL's Red Onion Soup (10/03) is our favorite soup!

My husband's absolute fav soup in the world is French Onion Soup. As a veggie, I tried many recipes that didn't use the essential beef broth in a classic version, with bland results.

CL's Red Onion Soup is SOOOO good, and is now my husband's FAV soup. I have served it many times to fam and friends and EVERYONE asks for the recipe.

If possible, I swear the soup tastes better after freezing and reheating.

[Dennis91]

I forgot to mention that I have made the Tortilla Soup posted above in a veggie style which turned out great. I just swapped the chicken broth for veg broth, and added beans instead of chicken. Delicious!

[Vancouver Lori]

CL's Red Onion Soup (10/03) is our favorite soup!

My husband's absolute fav soup in the world is French Onion Soup. As a veggie, I tried many recipes that didn't use the essential beef broth in a classic version, with bland results.

CL's Red Onion Soup is SOOOO good, and is now my husband's FAV soup. I have served it many times to fam and friends and EVERYONE asks for the recipe.

If possible, I swear the soup tastes better after freezing and reheating.

Love Onion Soup ... Any chance you could post the recipe? I did a search and could not find anything even close. Of course, I am often "search impared"

[donleyk]

Here you go...

Red Onion Soup


Attempting to make a vegetarian French onion soup is a challenge because most versions rely on beef broth. Red wine, tomato paste, and fresh herbs flavor this soup. Don't be tempted to use sweet yellow onions - besides being too sweet, they're also watery.


2 teaspoons butter
Cooking spray
4 red onions, quartered and thinly sliced crosswise (about 2 1/2 pounds)
1 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 cup dry red wine
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 quart water
1 cup canned diced tomatoes, drained
1 teaspoon minced fresh rosemary
1/8 teaspoon dried thyme
4 parsley sprigs
2 bay leaves
1 tablespoon low-sodium soy sauce
6 (1/2-inch-thick) slices diagonally cut French bread baguette
3/4 cup (3 ounces) shredded Gruyère cheese
1/3 cup (1 1/2 ounces) grated Asiago cheese


Melt the butter in a large Dutch oven coated with cooking spray over medium heat. Add the onions, salt, and pepper; cover and cook over low heat 30 minutes or until onions are browned, stirring occasionally.

Increase heat to medium-high; stir in wine and tomato paste. Cook until wine almost evaporates (about 5 minutes). Add water, tomatoes, rosemary, thyme, parsley, and bay leaves; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 20 minutes. Stir in soy sauce; discard parsley and bay leaves.

Preheat broiler.

Ladle 1 1/3 cups soup into 6 ovenproof bowls. Place bowls on a baking sheet. Top each serving with 1 bread slice, and sprinkle each bread slice with 2 tablespoons Gruyère and about 1 tablespoon Asiago. Broil 3 minutes or until cheese melts.

Yield: 6 servings

CALORIES 264 (30% from fat); FAT 8.7g (sat 4.9g,mono 2.6g,poly 0.6g); IRON 1.4mg; CHOLESTEROL 26mg; CALCIUM 276mg; CARBOHYDRATE 30.6g; SODIUM 732mg; PROTEIN 10.8g; FIBER 5g

Cooking Light, OCTOBER 2003

[blazedog]

This is really excellent -- the combination of roasting the squash, the garam masala and maple syrup all make it a stand out in the world of squash soups -- Ina Garten's Butternut Squash soup is also quite tasty but more traditional with its use of apples and cider.


Roasted Butternut Squash Soup with Apples and Garam Masala
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Recipe By: Cooking Light
Serving Size: 8

Ingredients:

8 cups (1-inch) cubed peeled butternut squash (about 2 medium)
3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
2 tablespoons maple syrup
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 1/4 teaspoons garam masala
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Cooking spray
1/4 cup finely chopped shallots
4 cups chopped peeled Braeburn apple (about 1 pound)
1/4 cup sweet white wine
3 cups water
1 can (14-ounce) fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
2 tablespoons soy milk

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400°.
Combine squash, 2 tablespoons oil, syrup, salt, garam masala, and pepper in a large bowl. Arrange squash in a single layer on a jelly-roll pan coated with cooking spray. Bake at 400° for 45 minutes or until soft.

Heat remaining 1 tablespoon oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add shallots; sauté 2 minutes or until tender. Stir in apple; sauté 2 minutes or until tender. Stir in wine; cook 1 minute. Stir in squash, water, and broth. Bring to a simmer; cook 3 minutes. Place half of soup in a blender; process until smooth. Strain mixture through a sieve into a bowl; discard solids. Repeat procedure with remaining half of soup. Stir in soy milk.


Notes:

While traditional curry powders often use turmeric as a base, garam masala, a North Indian spice blend, starts with a mix of cardamom, coriander, and black pepper. If you can't find Braeburn apples, Cortland apples will do. Use two percent reduced-fat milk in place of soy milk, if you prefer.

Nutritional Information:

Yield: 8 servings (serving size: About 1 cup)

NUTRITION PER SERVING
CALORIES 203(25% from fat); FAT 5.6g (sat 0.8g,mono 3.8g,poly 0.7g); PROTEIN 3.4g; CHOLESTEROL 0.0mg; CALCIUM 130mg; SODIUM 327mg; FIBER 5.9g; IRON 2.1mg; CARBOHYDRATE 40g

[swedish cook]

Other suggestions:

Bree's Lentil Soup (on the BB)
Mulligatawny Soup (on the BB)
Hamburger Barley Soup (from the back of the Quaker Barley box)

Please doggerham, could you post the Mulligatawny Soup. All I found was a mention of the soup in 2006 but no recipe.

TIA

[melkel]

Hi,
this sounds like a great idea- how does the exchange work in terms of logistics?

thanks!

[jessicacoy]

Hi,
this sounds like a great idea- how does the exchange work in terms of logistics?

thanks!

Ours is a fairly informal exchange (it is with a group of stay at home moms) and I know there are others that are more of a production....with ours I just ask everyone to bring the same number of quarts of soup as there are participants. Then everyone gets to take one of each soup home with them (and have a well stocked freezer!) I usually get around 6 people, so it's do-able. I love getting all the different soups and there has always been one that I requested the recipe for and added to my cookbook!

[Laurielee]

I 2nd Blazedogs suggestion, that Butternut squash soup is a WOW 10+
and also Dennis91 red onion soup is delicious. Thanks for bringing that up, I had forgotten about it.

Laurie

[gobluem82]

I've been wanting to do a soup exchange for a while now, but I've held off because of the logistics. Maybe it's just me, but one quart doesn't seem like enough soup to feed a family of four, at least as a main dish. If you increase the quantity to 1 1/2 quarts, though, then not everyone has a large enough pot in their house to make enough soup to share. I am probably completely overthinking the situation. For those of you who have been doing soup exchanges, how has it been working out?