Mushroom Chowder

Yesterday, my long time gal-pal from State College, PA days, Cathy, sent me a picture of a recipe she made from my book "Singingirl Cooks!"  She told me she was going to be entering it in a contest at her church.  I'll be anxious to know how far up or down the list of entries it placed!  In the meantime, she said it was delicious, and it is.  With fall kind of around the corner for you up-north friends and family, this chowder has terrific flavor and tastes like you were laboring over it all day, even though it comes together in no time. Try it and tell me how you liked it!  Thanks, Cathy, for choosing something from the book for a contest and for sending me this picture to use today.

MUSHROOM CHOWDER

1 lb. fresh mushrooms, sliced

1 cup diced potatoes (2 large) 

1 cup finely chopped celery (2 large stalks)

1 cup diced carrots (2 or 3)

1 clove of garlic, chopped fine

1 tsp. dried thyme

Freshly ground pepper

4 Tbs. melted butter

1 big handful of fresh parsley, chopped

1 pkg. of dry onion soup mix (such as Lipton)

1/4 cup cooking sherry

1/4 cup of flour stirred into 1/2 cup of water

2 cans of chicken broth (or you can use stock)

1/2 cup milk

1/2 cup half & half

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

In a large soup pot, saute the mushrooms, potatoes, celery, carrots, garlic, thyme and pepper in butter until soft over medium heat, ten minutes or so.  Add the onion soup mix and parsley, stir to combine, then pour in the chicken broth and sherry. Stir, then cover and simmer on low for another 15 to 20 minutes. Meanwhile, stir the flour into the water until smooth and add to the pot.  Add the milk and half  & half to the soup over very low heat, along with the Parmesan cheese and continue heating on low, do not boil, until nicely warmed and looking absolutely gorgeous. Serve immediately.   Reheat any leftovers over low heat.

Note~ I don't add salt to this recipe because there is quite a bit in the dry onion soup mix. Add extra to taste after you've put the whole thing together.

P.S. This recipe and more than a hundred pages of other great recipes, stories and beautiful food pictures can be found in my book "Singingirl Cooks!" If you don't own a copy and would like to, please let me know. Thanks!

Vegetable, Beef and Barley Soup

It's cold again in south Florida. Where is the warm and mild weather I ask? I can't exactly be thinking picnics in the park and ice cream desserts. I'm stuck in a soup rut!!!  So here comes another addition to my list of soup recipes, hearty and delicious vegetable beef and barley soup. Since I didn't use a soup bone and used vegetable broth rather than beef broth, you could exchange the beef in this recipe for chicken very easily, I would guess, and have a great outcome.

VEGETABLE, BEEF AND BARLEY SOUP

1 lb. beef for stew, substitute 1 lb. of chicken breast if you prefer

1 Tbs. oil

4 carrots, sliced

2 stalks of celery, chopped, use the celery leaves

1 onion, chopped

1 clove of garlic, chopped

1 handful of fresh parsley, chopped

1 14 oz. can diced tomatoes, including liquid

3 cups of vegetable broth

1 cup water

1 pkg. frozen mini corn on the cob

1 tsp. oregano

1 tsp. thyme

salt and pepper to taste

1 bay leaf

1/2 cup barley

Cut the already cubed stew meat into smaller, bite sized pieces. Heat the oil in a soup pot and brown the beef (or chicken).  Add the rest of the already chopped up ingredients except the barley. I used my food processor for the onion, garlic and parsley, and then gave the celery a bit of a coarser chop.  I don't like too many big pieces of onion hanging around in the soup.... Check the seasoning, cover and simmer on low for a good long while, two hours even. Add the barley and continue cooking until everything is nice and soft and smelling delicious, probably another hour or more if using regular barley (not the quick cooking kind.) When you're ready to serve, remove the bay leaf first. Then ladle the soup into a bowl. Add one ear of corn to each bowl and attach one of those cute little corn-on-the-cob holders so you can easily pick up the corn and munch away.

The next day, you can thin this out with some more broth or tomato juice.  Now go make this! Baby, it's cold outside!!!

I bought Glory brand seasoned cooking base, the roasted vegetable flavor. It's so much better than bouillon and less expensive than cans of broth. There's even a brand out there called Better Than Bouillon. These cooking bases are in the 4 to 5 dollar range, but refrigerated they last a long, long time and come in handy for kicking up the flavor of your soups and sauces, vegetables, etc.

I just had to include a shot of Ms. Peggy the Pug, who always seems to be under my feet, or under the food, looking for something, anything to drop down.  Not this time Peggy!!!