How, you may ask, can soup actually be sneaky? Well, I am an “add too” fan so stay tuned and I will share with you some really neat ways to make wonderful homemade soup to warm your little heart on a cold winter day.
- Potato Leek Soup
Start with 2 cans of potato soup. I use Campbell’s Cream of Potato. Add 2 1/2 soup cans of 2% milk. Add the extra 1/2 can to create more liquid. Bake 2 red potatoes in the microwave. Clean and finely chop all of the white part of a big leek. Chop your potatoes finely leaving on the skin. Put 1 Tbls. of butter or marg. in a medium saucepan and saute the leek and chopped potato. Put all ingredients in the pan and cook at a low simmer until all combined and hot. I like to add salt, pepper, a bit of garlic salt and a little dried parsley. If this seems too thick, add just a bit of vegetable broth. Remember, homemade soup is soup that you made at home!
2. Vegetable Soup
Start with 2 cans of any kind of vegetable soup you like. I like Progresso. If you buy the kind that does not take extra water, add 1/2 cup of vegetable broth. Now, get creative. Chop fresh vegetables and microwave until al dente, use froxen peas and carrots, add a bit of corn to all of this, add any other veg. you like. Final sneaky trick-add a couple of hands full of cooked pasta and you have Minestrone.
3. Tomato Bisque-Same formula-Start with 2 cans of soup and add an extra 1/2 can of liquid. (I always add milk even if the can calls for water.) Add a can of drained chopped or finely diced canned tomatoes. This may sound icky, but I like Bisque of Tomato slightly sweet so I add a packet of Sweet and Lo. (Family secret.)
4. Make your own “Chicken” Noodle Soup-I am a vegetarian so all of my recipes are either vegetarian or pescaterian, so I start this with 4 cups of vegetable broth. Cook 2 QUORN ‘chicken’ breasts in the microwave and chop one finely and put the other in your food processer and almost puree. Add this to the broth. Next just use your own taste buds. I add some sauted green onion, and the usual salt, pepper, garlic salt and dried parsley. Finally add any pasta you like. My grandson likes the little stars so I buy them at Trader Joes. He also likes spirals. I like flat cut noodles. What do you like?
It is very easy to make any of these soups your won or to devise other sneaky ways to make canned soups seem like homemade-which they are, right? Last but not least-add some warm French bread with butter. I have tried garlic bread with these soups, but just the regular warm slice French bread is the best. Mmmmmm!
PS-QUORN is the #1 selling vegetarian product in England. You can usually find in most stores with the other veg. products in the freezer. They make all sorts of products. I like them and I also really like Morning Star Farms.