From the Kitchen ~ Soup

Domesticity - devoted to home duties and pleasures

Soup 1865, William Adolphe Bouguereau 1825-1905
Wiki Commons public domain

The winter weather these past several days has called for soup, which has probably been a menu item for a lot of folks across the country lately. From the looks of things, there's more winter weather ahead, and more soup to be had. Sharing a recipe with you today to warm up those winter days. It was originally a minestrone recipe that I adapted, but at times I use tortellini. It's delicious either way. So, depending on what you add, it's either....
 

Minestrone or Tortillini Soup

1 Tbsp. olive oil

1 Tbsp. margarine or butter

2 large carrots, thinly sliced

2 celery stalks, thinly sliced

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 zucchini, halved and sliced

4 cups vegetable juice (I used V8 lower sodium)

1 can cannillini beans, rinsed and drained

1 Tbsp dried basil

1.5 tsp dried parsley flakes

1 tsp dried oregano

½ tsp pepper

1 cup uncooked elbow macaroni (I use whole grain)

     or 20 oz package cheese tortellini

            (This time I used sweet Italian sausage tortellini. It was yummy!)

grated Parmesan cheese 

1.  In a large pan, sauté carrots and celery in oil and butter until tender. Add garlic and zucchini, cook 1 minute longer.

2.  Stir in vegetable juice, beans, and spices. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 20 minutes.

3.  Meanwhile, cook macaroni or tortellini according to package directions, then add to soup.

4.  Ladle into bowls and sprinkle with cheese.

Back in the Attic

We've spent the week continuing to clear out the attic. Made another trip to the dump yesterday and took a couple more loads to the thrift shop the past couple of days. Finding some fun things in the attic for our grandchildren to play with while they're here next week, like this kitchen combo and Mickey Mouse castle that our girls played with when they were little. Ahhh, sweet memories in the attic.

I haven't actually been in the attic for probably several years. My Beloved is bringing stuff down and we sort it out. He's been vacuuming up there, and I'm eager to go up and see how it looks. I think I'll hold off my curiosity awhile, though, and take a look later for the wow factor. :-)

Thrift shops. Some are nice, some are junky. We've taken things to a couple of them. One that we were in a couple days ago was junky, junky. I had a huge urge to straighten things up for them, but held off. I don't like thinking of our stuff just being tossed about, especially since I launder and clean things up before we go. Took the other loads to the first thrift store. They seem to show more respect for what they get. It was fun to see some of our things on the sales floor the last time we went. 

Going to stay out of the attic next week since the grandchildren will be here. I probably won't take the time to blog while they're here, either. I want to savor every moment with them.

 

Thought I'd share a soup recipe with you today. These cold days are good soup days. I call this recipe....

Loaded Potato Soup

2 boiled eggs, chopped

2 cups chicken broth

2 medium potatoes, cut into small pieces (about 3 cups)

1/2 cup chopped carrots

1/2 cup celery, sliced

1/4 cup onion, chopped

1 tsp dried parsley

1/2 tsp salt

1 1/2 cup milk

1 tbsp flour

2 cups cheese (I used Mozzarella, but choose your favorite)

In a large saucepan, combine chicken broth, potatoes, carrots, celery, onion, parsley and salt. Cover and simmer until vegetables are tender, about 15-20 min. 

Meanwhile, boil eggs until hard boiled.

Add milk to flour, blending well. Add to cooked vegetables and stir until thickened. 

Add chopped boiled eggs.

Add cheese and stir until melted.

Serves 3-4 large bowls.

Enjoy and keep warm!