the big soup
Posted: March 1, 2014 Filed under: soups | Tags: artichoke, asparagus, bay leaf, carrots, celery, chicken breast, chicken broth, chickpeas, corn, cream, dill weed, green pepper, meat, mushrooms, okra, onion, parsley, pasta, pea pods, pinto beans, plum tomatoes, potato, rice, seasoned sausage, soup, thyme, vegetables, water, zucchini Leave a comment
Everything But The Kitchen Sink Soup
This “BIG SOUP” recipe is insanely flexible! It starts with a base of chicken broth and our familiar friends onion, celery, carrot and herbs. But then the party gets a little crazy – you add whatever fresh, canned or frozen veggies, pasta and or meats that you have loitering around the kitchen, making this soup “soup-er” flexible.
Some of the best cooks never follow a recipe to the “t” and this is surely one of their favorites!
Foodie Tips ~
♥ Note the variations on the original scan –
For more soup: Add additional vegetables and broth.
For two meals: Freeze the leftovers.
For creamed soup: Add ½ to 1 cup cream 5 minutes before serving. Do not boil the cream!
For pureed soup: Put all ingredients (no bones) into a blender and work your magic, until smooth.
♥ If you discover a version you really like, make record of the ratios so you can make it again on the next go.
♥ I was 10 when this recipe appeared in the 1976 edition of Apartment Life Magazine. How alarming it is to see the office phone hanging on the wall in the photo below! PS ~ I also love the bananas T-shirt!
i. base ingredients
2 cans | chicken broth
4 | chicken breasts
1 | large onion, chopped
1 | celery stalk, chopped
1 | carrot, chopped
2 sprigs | parsley
1 teaspoon | thyme (or dill weed)
1 | bay leaf
to “cover” | water
ii. “scavenge” for these accessory ingredients
1 small can | pinto beans, chickpeas and or plum tomatoes
1 medium can | corn
½ package | frozen okra, asparagus, artichokes and or pea pods
2 | potatoes, chopped
1 small | zucchini, chopped
1 | green pepper, chopped
¼ pound | mushrooms, sliced
¼ cup or more | pasta or rice
1 length | seasoned sausage
cubes | leftover meat
1 | kitchen sink (just checking if you’re paying attention!) :)
iii. what to do
1. In a medium/large pot over medium heat, add the first eight ingredients in step “i” above. Add water to cover.
2. While waiting for the soup to simmer, scavenge for your step “ii” ingredients above, whatever form they take.
3. Add fresh veggies and rice after the soup’s been simmering 15 minutes or canned, frozen ingredients and pasta after 20 minutes. Simmer soup for 30 minutes or until everything’s done.
Shazam!
Click To View –> An Original Scan Of The Big Soup Recipe
egg roll casserole
Posted: June 9, 2012 Filed under: casseroles and one-dish meals | Tags: bean sprouts, beef consomme, beef round, celery, cornstarch, egg rolls, pea pods, scallions, sherry, soy sauce, sugar, vegetable oil Leave a comment
Stop. Drop. And Egg Roll.
Before P.F. Chang’s, there was “King Wah”.
King Wah was the nicest Chinese food restaurant I had ever been to… until years later when my cousin Melissa married in San Francisco; after the ceremony we ate at a fancy Chinese food restaurant called the Empress of China, which was a beaut.
Flash back 1980s. King Wah was located in a white office building at the SE corner of Loop 410 and Wurbach road (1800 NE Loop 410) in my childhood home town of San Antonio.
Inside King Wah you’d find
white table cloths, fancily dressed wait staff and large round tables that the expanded family would gather around. Why, there must have been 10-12 of us feeding at a single table! While I only ate at King Wah with my Aunt Sister, Uncle Bill and the wolf pack (my cousins), it was one of the few times I can remember that felt more Thanksgiving than mere Chinese dining. King WOW!
Today I live precisely 270.42 miles from where King Wah was located. But thanks to this savory lip-smacking recipe featuring the egg roll, I can relive the mouth-watering memories growing up… and the taste of the exotic orient. I will be eating this again!
享受 (that’s chinese for “enjoy!”)
Let’s Roll!
i. ingredients
2 tablespoons | soy sauce
2 tablespoons | dry sherry
1 teaspoon | sugar
½ teaspoon | salt
1 pound | beef round, cut into thin 4 x 3/4-inch strips
¼ cup | vegetable oil
1 package | frozen chinese pea pods, partly thawed
2 cups | celery, thinly sliced
1 cup | scallions, finely chopped
16-ounce can | bean sprouts, drained and rinsed
16-ounce can | condensed beef consomme
2 tablespoons | cold water
2 tablespoons | cornstarch
2 5-ounce packages | frozen egg rolls
ii. what to do
0. Preheat oven to 250°F.
1. Combine soy sauce, sherry, sugar and salt. Add to beef strips and ross to coat with mixture. Let stand 15 minutes, turning occasionally.
2. Heat 2 tablespoons of the oil in a large skillet over moderate heat. Add Chinese pea pods and cook until pods have separated from one another and they’re tender crisp, about 2 minutes. Remove pea pods from skillet and reserve.
3. Add the remaining 2 tablespoons of the oil to the skillet. Add beef strips and cook, stirring occasionally, until the beef loses its pink color.
4. Add celery, scallions, bean sprouts and consomme. Reduce heat to low (about 225°F). Cook, covered, a few minutes until vegetables are almost tender.
5. Stir cold water slowly into the cornstarch and add to skillet mixture.
6. Blend well and heat, stirring constantly, until mixture is smooth and thickened. Pour into a greased 1½-quart shallow casserole.
7. Cut egg rolls in half lengthwise and place spoke-fashion on middle top of casserole. Arrange cooked pea pods at edges of casserole.
8. Place in a preheated 350°F oven for about 25 minutes, or until rolls are crisp on top. Serve with rice, if desired?
Foodie Tips ~
♥ While the egg roll flavor was not specified, because this recipe calls for beef round, I suggest a simple veggie egg roll to accompany the beef.
♥ What’s a “Chinese Pea Pod?” It’s also known as a Snow Pea or a Sugar Pea. Technically they’re different than edamamme (a sweet bean). You’re likely to find them frozen vs. fresh at your local grocery.
♥ “Serve with rice, if desired?” Of course it’s desired! Get outta my way ~ I’m hongry!
Betty's Cook Nook 