Jennifer Lambert

A Sacred Balance

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Vegetable Soup

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Productive Homeschooling - Printables and Tools for every homeschool

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Aaron’s mom had this famous busy day soup.

I first had it the weekend I met his parents.

Our kids beg for it – even in summer!

Sometimes, I deviate from the original recipe, but it’s really perfect the way it is.

Directions:

Sometimes, I saute fresh veggies like mirepoix or mushrooms in butter and make my own cream sauces as a base.

Check out our veggie-packed cream soup recipe.

But I’ve found great canned cream soups that are healthier and organic so I just buy those now.

I usually use ground beef, the cheapest I can find.

Then I literally dump everything in and simmer for about 30 minutes. You could use a slow cooker too.

This soup is just perfect for a busy day. You can fix it and forget it and throw it together last minute.

I really like Lima beans, so I usually add those also. You can do just peas and carrots or the medley. It’s up to you!

I sometimes use barley, but I don’t really like it.

I’ve done little noodles before too, but you don’t want those left in the broth or they get soggy for leftovers.

We like to serve it with toast.

Print

Vegetable Soup

Course Soup

Ingredients

  • 1 lb ground meat
  • 1 pack dry onion soup mix
  • 48 oz V8
  • 1 can cream of celery
  • 1 can cream of mushroom
  • 1 bag frozen mixed vegetables
  • 1 cup cooked barley
  • 2 peeled and diced potatoes
  • 1 can kidney beans
  • salt, pepper, garlic to taste

Instructions

  1. Brown the meat and drain the fat.

  2. Boil and drain the barley.

  3. Peel and dice the potatoes.

  4. Combine all ingredients and simmer for about 30 minutes.

  5. Serve with toast!

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Dill Chicken Soup

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The kids love this creamy dill chicken orzo soup in springtime – or anytime!

It’s a great way to use chicken leftovers.
Or, I roast some seasoned chicken breasts in the oven while I prep everything else.
I seasoned these with paprika, garlic, lemon, salt, and pepper. I drizzled olive oil to make sure they didn’t stick to the pan.
Roast Chicken Breasts
A super easy way to shred cooked chicken is to use the paddle attachment on the stand mixer.
paddle stand mixer
Give it a whirl until it’s the desired shredded consistency.
shredded chicken
I sliced a leek, chopped some celery and carrots. Close enough to the holy trinity of cooking: mire poix.
mire poix
I sauté those up in a little butter and bacon grease.
vegetables
You need a good chicken stock. We usually have some homemade chicken stock in the freezer. But we like Kitchen Basics too.
chicken stock
I dump in the frozen stock and put a lid on it. It melts in a just few minutes.
melt frozen stock
I prefer fresh dill, but we used dried this time.
dill and orzo
I throw a handful of sea salt in a pot to boil the orzo al dente.
salted water
When the water has big bubbles, I dump in about a cup of orzo.
1 cup orzo
I drain the orzo and spritz on some olive oil so it doesn’t get all sticky.
drain orzo
The stock is melted, so I blend the vegetables with my stick blender.
stick blender
The soup is hot, so be careful with the blender.
blend soup
It’s all pretty now.
blended soup
I add in the orzo and shredded chicken. I sprinkle in about 1 T of dill.
about 1 T dill
It smells amazing.
dill chicken soup

Print

Dill Chicken Soup

The kids love this creamy dill chicken orzo soup in springtime - or anytime!
Course Soup
Cuisine Soup
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 35 minutes
Servings 4

Ingredients

  • 1 T olive oil or bacon grease
  • 4-6 chicken breasts or thighs boneless, skinless
  • 1 leek sliced
  • 1-2 stalks celery chopped
  • 1-2 carrots chopped
  • 6 c chicken stock
  • 1 c orzo cooked to al dente
  • 1/4 c fresh dill or 1 T dry dill
  • 1-2 T lemon juice

Instructions

  1. Season and roast chicken breasts in oven at 350* until cooked through, about 30-40 minutes. Or use leftover rotisserie chicken.
  2. Cook leek, celery, and carrot, in oil or grease, stirring often, until soft, 5-8 minutes.
  3. Set water and salt to boil. Cook orzo according to instructions. Drain. Drizzle with oil so it doesn't stick together.
  4. Add broth to vegetables and bring to boil.
  5. Shred chicken with stand mixer or forks.
  6. Blend vegetables and broth with stick blender.
  7. Add chicken, orzo, and dill to soup and warm.
  8. Season with lemon, salt, and pepper.

Dill Chicken Orzo Soup

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Ham and Bean Soup

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On dismal cold winter days, I just want soup.

My husband used to love a certain canned variety of ham and bean soup.

This is a much healthier, more natural version of that soup.

Warm comfort food – filling and cozy on blustery days.

Warm Comfort Food - Ham and Bean Soup

We put our holiday ham bone in the freezer with just this soup idea in mind. A frugal way to use the flavor and hammy tidbits rather than wasting.

Ham and Beans

When we’re in a pinch or hurry, this is my favorite stock to use. We often keep quarts of homemade stock in the freezer.

And I am absolutely in love with this soup starter seasoning. I seriously put it in everything. I can’t vouch for the chemical-free-ness of this product in the States, but it is a pantry staple in Europe!

Stock and Soup Seasoning

All good soups being with mirepoix, no?

Mirepoix

All ingredients in the slow cooker. (I need a bigger slow cooker!) It smells heavenly after simmering for a few hours.

Ham and Bean Soup

This ham and bean soup was a HUGE hit for dinner with the whole family!

Ham and Bean Soup for Dinner

Ham and Bean Soup Recipe

*If I were making this for myself or a special event, I would add chopped red pepper and peeled, cubed sweet potatoes. I think that would be mighty fine. My husband and kids aren’t big fans of peppers and sweet potatoes.

What’s your favorite warm soup for cold days?

Print

Ham and Bean Soup

Course Soup
Cuisine Soup

Ingredients

  • 1 Ham bone or chopped ham or smoked pork shank (we froze ours after a holiday meal). You could even use smoked sausage – or a beef or turkey product. I love versatility!
  • 1 bag of mixed beans
  • 1 large carrot, chopped
  • 1 small onion, chopped
  • 2 celery stalks, chopped
  • 1-2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 box chicken stock
  • 1 Tablespoon soup seasoning optional
  • salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

  1. Soak beans overnight or according to package instructions. Combine with hambone in slow cooker. Arrange veggies, stock, and seasoning around hambone. Cook on low for 6-8 hours. Adjust seasoning. Serve with cornbread and salad.

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Cream of Vegetable Soup

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My girls love cream of veggie soup and regularly request it.

It’s a great healthy lunch that takes only 30 minutes or so to prepare. Or you could make it in a slow cooker.

I just prefer to use a big stock pot.

Cream of vegetable soup is a simple, frugal, and quick lunch.

Broccoli Soup - Broccoli soup is a simple, frugal, and quick lunch.

First, I chop up a whole head of broccoli and several celery stalks.

Broccoli and celery

Alex peels carrots.

skinning carrots

Alex chops carrots. I snag a few for the soup before he eats them all. chopping carrots

I chop potatoes and onion.

chopped potatoes and carrots

Alex informs me that he doesn’t like onions.

chopped onion

We keep homemade chicken and beef stock on hand in quart zippy bags in the freezer. This recipe uses two bags.

chicken stock

I throw all the veggies in the pot with the frozen broth and it steams as it melts, then simmers a bit and softens the veggies. I also dash in a 1/2 cup of white wine.

After the broth melts, I add salt and pepper and garlic powder and stir.

steaming soup

I scoop out some of the larger chunks of broccoli stalk and throw them out since they clog the blender.

broccoli stalk

This Cuisinart Smart Stick is a handy dandy tool and is my kitchen friend.

You could also pour hot soup in a big blender  – or Blendtec or Vitamix.

Cuisinart Smart Stick

Of course, Tori wants to get in on some of that action.

Blending soup

Alex is a bit nervous to push the button.

Blending soup - maybe

You can leave it a little chunky or blend it ultra-smooth. I also add a drizzle of cream to make it creamy.

Blended soup

And of course, shred some lovely cheese.

shredded cheese

We like it with chopped ham and lots of cheese and fresh rolls or wheat bread.

Broccoli Cheddar Soup

Except Alex makes himself a ham and cheese sandwich instead.

Ham Cheddar Sandwich

This soup is really versatile. You can use whatever vegetables you have on hand. It’s a great way to use up leftovers or that head of cauliflower you find in the back of the bottom shelf of the fridge. The soup melds together beautifully, so even if you don’t like broccoli or spinach or onions, you won’t really know they’re in there.

 

Print

Cream of Vegetable Soup

Course Soup
Cuisine Soup
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Total Time 40 minutes
Servings 8

Ingredients

  • 1 head broccoli roughly chopped, including stems
  • 2-3 stalks celery roughly chopped
  • 2-4 carrots peeled and roughly chopped
  • 1 medium onion peeled and chopped
  • 4 medium potatoes peeled and roughly chopped
  • 1 cup spinach, kale, assorted greens
  • 1 T minced garlic
  • 2 quarts chicken stock
  • 1/2 cup sherry or white wine
  • pinch salt, pepper
  • a drizzle of cream optional
  • chopped ham or bacon optional
  • shredded cheese optional

Instructions

  1. Combine ingredients in a stock pot. Simmer for 30-45 minutes or until carrots are softened. Blend to desired consistency. Adjust seasoning to taste. Serve whenever. Freezes beautifully.


 

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