3 Quarters Today

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soup

Homemade Cheesy Potato Bacon Soup

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What is better than a hearty meal in the winter time, soup, but not any soup, but “Cheesy, Ham, Sausage, Potato BACON Soup”. Yes, I said Bacon, almost a whole lb of bacon goes into this hearty warm potato soup and I’m not apologetic.

We are kinda bacon addicts in our house and now that bacon is hip popular again we don’t have to hide from the health nazis anymore.Cheesy potato Soup

I don’t like the cold of winter, but I do love soup season. There is something comforting, snug and warm about the cold wind howling outside and sitting on the couch with your hands wrapped around a warm bowl that just creates memories of home.

Although I didn’t grown up making soup it has become my winter passion for the past several years.  I haven’t had a can of Campbells in my cupboard for year. But I always have individual zip twist containers of frozen soup in the freezer.

Every batch or potato soup is a little different. Sometimes it’s thick and creamy other times it is full of chunky potatoes, ham, carrots, peas and celery.

Last weekend I made a large stock pot  and we ate it all day long then had enough for Monday for our lunches.

This year I have made chicken and rice soup, venison stew, chicken noodle soup and of course chili.

Cheesy Potato Bacon Soup Recipe

Click Here for Recipe for potato bacon soup recipe
Click Here for Recipe for potato bacon soup recipe

More of My Homemade Soup Recipes

#6/62: Venison Stew Recipe

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My husband was a very successful deer hunter this past fall/winter and as a result we have venison in the freezer. I’ve never cooked venison before and was a little hesitant. Always heard venison tastes “gamey”. So I started off with venison stew, figured all the flavors and vegetables would cover any gamey taste. To my surprise it taste identical to beef stew!

Venison Stew recipe
Venison Stew

We are a big fan of  jerky and the dehydrator has been going pretty much non-stop. ( I love deer jerky, but that’s another post) With so much meat, and beef prices going through the roof, I thought venison would be better used to stretch our meat budget.

I’m pretty confident with soup and stews, so it was a natural transition. Was it a success? Would I be posting it here if it wasn’t? My daughter loved it so much she would eat two bowls at each sitting. Needless to say there was no left overs. Venison stew really tastes like beef stew.

Venison Stew recipe
Venison Stew recipe

The following recipe is a guideline. I’m a dash of this and a dash of that type of cook. Pour some of this in, a little of this, a little more, and…that looks good. So use your own judgement, get creative and feel free to substitute.

Venison Stew Recipe

  • 3-4 lbs venison (cubed into 1/2-1″ pieces)
  • 32 oz beef stock (homemade from shank leg bones)
  • 16 oz potato stock (water left over from boiling potatoes)
  • 20 oz can tomato sauce
  • Olive oil for browning
  • 1 large onion
  • 3 stalks celery
  • 1 frozen bag mixed soup vegetables
  • 3 potatoes peeled and cubed
  • 1 cup corn
  • 1 cup sliced carrots
  • 5 bay leaves
  • 3 TBSP dried parsley
  • 1 tsp seasoning salt
  • 1 TBSP black pepper

Directions

1. Cube the venison, season well with seasoning salt and pepper

2. Pour 2 TBSP olive oil in skillet, sear & brown venison, do not cook all the way through.

3. Place browned venison in large stock pot

4. Alternate placing venison, vegetables, and seasonings in stock pot.

5. Add liquids and stir thoroughly

6. Heat to boiling

7. Set to LOW and simmer for 3-4 hours and stir occasionally.

8. The venison stew can be cooked, or left on low for many more hours as the flavors continue to blend. In only improves with time.

In the past few years I have learned to love the taste of deer meat. In Eastern Nebraska corn fed whitetail tastes just like Angus beef. Western Nebraska mule deer fed on sage need a little different seasonings and preparation. So my mother-in-law bought me a wild game cookbook.

If you don’t have home grown venison harvested by your favorite hunter with a rifle, muzzle loader, or bow then you can order venison or other wild game online.

The Sporting Chef’s Better Venison CookbookReal Meat Venison Jerky Dog Treats (12 oz)Buffalo Bills 10oz 100% Farm Raised 7Gourmet Game Steaks – Avg 2 LB Case (all sizes are approximate)Venison Medallions – 3 pieces, 4 oz eaVenison Ground Meat – 1 lb

More Soup and Stew Recipes

Day 118/365: A Rainy Spring Day Calls For Homemade Soup

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Day 118: Homemade Soup
Day 118: Homemade Soup

Rainy spring days call for homemade soup. This time I got a little carried away, couldn’t have put anymore into this pot if I tried. I think there is two gallons of soup, but after eating our meal, sharing some with a friend, and putting a few ready to eat cups in the freezer there isn’t any left.

Most of the time I include a recipe, but there is no way I can include on on this batch. It was a clean out the freezer creation. Homemade chicken stock, a quart of stewed tomatoes, leftover chicken, turkey, and ham along with frozen carrots, corn, some canned potatoes a friend gave me, and a can of veg-all vegetables. Mix all together in one pot, add some of your favorite seasonings (pepper, basil, Italian, parsley, chilli powder etc..) and simmer for two hours. I added some couscous during the last thirty minutes for texture.

Day 51/365: Home Made Chicken Vegetable Soup

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Again it’s soup time. I would call this Chicken Noodle Soup, but my son said it didn’t have the right kind of noodles and had too many vegetables, so it’s homemade chicken vegetable soup instead. Regardless, David had two servings, so it must of been pretty good. What more can I say about soup that I haven’t already said.

Homemade soup is ideal for anyone on a budget and who wants to save money. I buy raw carrots, celery, and onions, chop and freeze for easy use and then use frozen corn (better yet free farm corn from my neighbor), or add beans. When I find chicken on sale I stock up and put it in the freezer. Easy and economical.

  • Chicken $1.99/lb (3 lb chicken = $3.01 divided by 2 for another meal)
  • Onions $1.79 divided by 4 batches
  • Carrots $1.49 divided by 4 batches
  • Celery 0.99 bunch divided by 4 batches
  • Frozen Corn $1.00/bag divided by 2 batches
  • Seasonings (buy once use multiple times) $4.00

The onions, carrots and celery you chop and freeze for future batches of soup and the seasonings you can also use for future recipes. In the end you can make a over a gallon of soup for less than $5.00 a pot and less than 0.35 per serving. That is saving my friends.

I used some frozen chicken broth I had saved in the freezer (that reminds me I need to make some more) and just went into my refrigerator for the ingredients.

Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup
Homemade Chicken Soup

Homemade Chicken Vegetable Soup Recipe

  • 10-12 cups chicken broth (I don’t measure, I just what I have to fill the pot)
  • 1-3 cups Additional water (if you need it, I didn’t this time)
  • 4 chopped cooked chicken breasts (prepared and waiting in my freezer)
  • 1 cup carrots
  • 1 cup corn
  • 1 cup celery
  • 2 TBSP dried ground parsley (Grind in your palm to release more flavor)
  • 1 tsp onion powder (or include real onion)
  • 1 tsp black pepper
  • 1 tsp poultry seasoning
  • 2 cups pasta (use whatever you have) Add last 15 minutes

Add all the ingredients together in the order listed above in a large pot, with the exception of the pasta. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer on low for an hour. Add pasta, increase heat to med low and simmer for an additional 15-20 minutes. Serve and enjoy.

Freeze leftovers for tasty meals later. My soup pot is rarely put away during the winter and my favorite freezer containers are the Ziplock Twist and Lock bowls. It is VERY important to have a secure lid when packing soup for lunch. I don’t want my soup spilling all over the car during my commute or in my lunchbox.

T-fal A92280 Specialty Nonstick Stockpot Stock Pot, 12-Quart, BlackZiploc Twist ‘N Loc , Medium Round, Containers & Lids, 2-Count (Pack of 2)The BrokeAss Gourmet CookbookFamily Feasts for $75 a Week: A Penny-wise Mom Shares Her Recipe for Cutting Hundreds from Your Monthly Food BillFreezer Meals: 39 Gluten Free Meals From Freezer To Crockpot Plus Shopping List To Save Time And Money-Cook On A Budget And Eliminate Gluten … Cooking, Freezer Crockpot Meals) (Volume 6)

 

More Homemade Soup Recipes

Day 45/365: Beef and Barley Soup

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Day 45: Beef & Barley Soup

It’s time for food again, specifically soup since it’s still winter. This is another version of my Beef & Barley Soup, each version varies slightly depending on what I have in the refrigerator as leftovers. I love soup, with a little planning it’s so easy, and simple. I keep chopped celery, onions,  carrots, pre-cooked hamburger  in the freezer along with frozen stock and it all goes in the pot together in less than 5 minutes.

The joy of homemade stock/broth. Stock is a bit heartier and gives homemade soup a hearty flavor, nice and rich. What I make is more like broth, but it accomplishes the same thing. You can buy chicken stock from the grocery store in boxes, cans, or even bullion cubes (only if your desperate on the cubes…) if you don’t have any prepared, but homemade is healthier, less salt, and I think tastier.

For those who haven’t saved or made their own stock it’s easy, really. I save chicken broth, potato water (from boiling potatoes for mashing), pork drippings, (just add some water to the juice at the bottom of pan), and lately even the drained water from corn. Okay, purist will say this isn’t stock, but broth, but I get wonderful results in the end, so who’s to say I’m wrong.

When I roast a whole chicken for supper I put the leftover carcass in a big pot, add water to the top, bring to a boil, then simmer for oh…an hour, maybe two. Sometimes I’ll throw in some celery or onions for added flavor, but it’s not necessary, especially since I’m putting all those ingredients in the soup. Then I pull out the bones and put the liquid and chicken meat bits in plastic containers (glad containers, ziplock, orange juice jugs, ice cream buckets, whatever I have) and store in the freezer.

Recently I had a couple pieces of leftover chicken that didn’t get eaten, a leg and thigh. I put them in a smaller pot and made 2 cups of stock. Easy, easy.

Now that I’ve covered stock/broth let’s get to the recipe, remember exact amounts are NOT crucial, soup is a magical food that is actually hard to mess up. More water can be added if the mixture is too thick.

Ingredients

  • 8 cups stock
  • 16 oz fine stewed tomatoes (I used my homemade with celery, onion, carrots)
  • 1 1/2 lbs cooked hamburger (I prepare 5 lbs ahead of time and put in 1 lb bags in freezer)
  • 1 cup green beans
  • 1 cup corn
  • 1 cup diced or sliced carrots
  • 2 TBSP dried parsley
  • 1 TBSP dried sweet basil
  • 1 tsp black pepper (to taste)
  • 1 tsp Lowrys Seasoning Salt (my daughter calls this “special salt”)
  • 1 cup barley (added the last hour)

Directions

Add all the ingredients except the barley, bring to a gentle boil, reduce heat and simmer for one hour. Then add barley. Simmer for an additional 45 minutes or until the barley is tender. Makes approximately 12 one cup servings. Eat, and freeze leftovers in single serving containers for later. If you have any.

When is it done? I tell my kids when you can smell it outside it’s done. My Marine son recently tested this method when he was home on leave. The aroma was driving him crazy inside, his sister came home and said “What smells so good? I could smell it from outside” Nathan declared. “Soups done!”

More Soup and Stew Recipes