Alright, so today I’m gonna share my little adventure with making some hearty soups. I’m no chef, just a regular guy who likes to cook, and wanted something warm and filling as the weather got colder.
First Up: The Planning
So, I started by looking around online, just Googling “hale and hearty soup recipes,” like the title says. Saw a bunch of stuff, but I really wanted something that I could throw a bunch of veggies into, you know, kinda clean out the fridge type of deal. I wasn’t looking for anything fancy, just good ol’ comfort food.
The Veggie Scramble
Next, I raided my fridge. I had some carrots that were starting to look a little sad, a couple of celery stalks, an onion, and a lonely potato. Perfect! I also found a can of diced tomatoes in the pantry. Boom. Base ingredients secured.
Getting Started: Chicken Noodle Soup
I decided to make a classic chicken noodle soup first. Started by dicing up all the veggies – onion, carrots, celery – you know, the usual suspects. Then, I grabbed a big pot and heated up a little olive oil. Threw in the veggies and cooked them until they were nice and soft, maybe like 5-7 minutes.
Next, I added some chicken broth – about 8 cups. I had some leftover cooked chicken in the fridge, so I shredded that up and tossed it in the pot. Brought it all to a boil, then added the noodles. I used egg noodles ’cause that’s what I had, but any kind would work, really.
Let the noodles cook until they were tender, which was about 8 minutes. Added some salt and pepper to taste. And that was it! Super simple, but totally hit the spot.
Experimenting: Loaded Potato Soup
Okay, so next I wanted to try something a little different. I remembered seeing a recipe for loaded potato soup, and it sounded amazing. So, I peeled and chopped up about 4 potatoes, along with half an onion.
I melted some butter in the same pot and cooked the onion until it was soft. Then, I added the potatoes and about 4 cups of chicken broth. Brought it to a boil and let it simmer until the potatoes were super tender – like, falling apart tender. This took about 15-20 minutes.
Then came the fun part. I used an immersion blender to blend the soup until it was nice and smooth. If you don’t have an immersion blender, you can carefully transfer the soup to a regular blender, but be careful ’cause it’s hot!
After blending, I stirred in a cup of milk and a half cup of shredded cheddar cheese. Salt and pepper to taste, of course. Now, for the “loaded” part. I crumbled some cooked bacon on top and added a dollop of sour cream. Freaking delicious! Seriously, this soup is a game-changer.
Lessons Learned and What I’d Change
- Don’t be afraid to experiment: Soups are super forgiving. Throw in whatever veggies you have, and don’t worry too much about following a recipe exactly.
- Taste as you go: Seasoning is key! Add salt and pepper gradually, and taste as you go to make sure you get it just right.
- Fresh herbs make a big difference: If you have any fresh herbs like parsley or thyme, throw them in! They add a ton of flavor.
- Next time, I think I’ll try adding some garlic to the potato soup for extra flavor. And maybe some green onions on top, instead of just bacon and sour cream.
So, yeah, that’s my soup-making adventure! It was a lot of fun, and now I have a fridge full of delicious, hearty soup to keep me warm on these chilly evenings. Hope you guys enjoyed hearing about it! Go make some soup!
