Soups for the cool weather soul…
Posted by: JoyI live in the northwest. We’re in the low 20′s at night right now & in the mid 50′s during the day if we’re lucky. I find this type of weather PERFECT for a steaming hot, soothing bowl of soup! Add in some home made bread or rolls and you’ve got a filling and often, inexpensive meal.
Some of the favorite soups at our home include: Clam Chowder, Cream of Potato, Taco Soup, Country Mushroom, Chicken with Home Made Noodles, Vegetable Beef, Beef Stew, Chili and several others.
Taco Soup is easy, filling, healthy and inexpensive!
My Version of Taco Soup:
Brown 1 lb of hamburger & drain off the fat. Add a chopped onion & brown more until onion is tender. Add 1-2 cans of diced tomatoes, 1-2 cans of kidney beans, 1 can of black beans, 1 Tablespoon of chili powder, 1/2 tsp garlic powder or garlic salt, OR instead of both of those use a packet of taco seasoning. Mix together and add 2 Cups of frozen corn (I suppose you could use canned, but we grow & freeze our own so I’ve never tried that). Add more liquid if needed - a cup or two of water - and I like to add beef boullion - about 1 tablespoon. Simmer all until heated through. This works great in a crockpot simmering all day. Yum! Serve with shredded cheese, crushed tortilla chips, and sour cream.
Some of the best and least expensive soups are made from being creative with whatever is on hand. I have a ziplock bag in the freezer that I put all leftover veggies into after dinner. (I know many of you do this as well) When my bag is full enough, I add them to a vegetable soup!
Something new I’ve found is that I can use a can of evaporated milk in place of the cream in many cream soups. The flavor is similar and the texture is the same to me. It’s worth giving a try on a small batch of soup to see if this would save you a trip to the or the extra cost of cream.
Try designating one night of the week as soup night. It gives your budget a break and allows all sorts of creativity if you are so inclined!
Enjoy!
- Tags: frugal recipes, soup recipes
November 12th, 2008 at 11:12 pm
That taco soup sounds delicious!