Recipes - Soups, Stews, And Sauces

donutte

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Cheddar Ale Soup

This is how I make it. Not necessarily how any recipe does it; the one I took it from originally has been tweaked quite a bit. Amounts can be tweaked to taste or just preference. I also don't measure any of it, so guesstimating on the amounts. This recipe yields about 4-5 good-sized servings. 

Ingredients:

Carrots (I use about 1/2-3/4 cup of each)
Celery (1/2-3/4 cup of each)
Butter (2/3 stick - I know, I know)
Minced garlic (about half teaspoon, I use the stuff in the jar)
Onion flakes (I put three shakes in, so maybe 1/16 cup?)
Flour (1/3 cup)
Broth (12-16 oz)
Milk (12-16 oz)
Cheddar cheese (16 oz)
Chihuahua cheese (4-6 oz)
Beer (6-12 oz, depending on what you use)
Croutons (optional)
Cayenne pepper (optional)

Chop carrots and celery into small pieces, put to side. Have garlic, onion flakes, flour, milk and broth nearby so they can be grabbed quickly. Put the cheese into a bowl so it's ready to use.

Melt butter in a pot. Once it's all melted, put in the carrot, celery, onion flakes, and minced garlic. Let it simmer for a couple of minutes. Try not to over-cook, otherwise it'll burn or get mushy. Take a moment to enjoy the buttery garlicky goodness. Put in the flour, mix well until. Let it sit for another 30 seconds or so. Pour in the beer and mix well. Simmer for another minute or until bubbly, then pour in the broth and milk. Stir well so everything's mixed together, then simmer until bubbly (about 5-7 minutes). 

At this point, start putting the cheese in a handful at a time, stirring the whole time with a whisk. Suggestion - mix the Chihuahua cheese in with the cheddar, so it's less of a gooey mess on the whisk. Continue until all of the cheese is in the pot and melted, and immediately remove from heat. Do NOT let it start to boil.

Spoon the soup into a bowl, add croutons and cayenne as desired, and enjoy!
 
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AbbysMom

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Sausage and Lentil Soup



1 Tablespoon oil
2 carrots, diced
3 stalks celery, diced
1 large onion, chopped
6 cloves garlic, crushed
1 pound hot Italian sausage
8 cups chicken broth
2 28 oz cans diced tomatoes
2 cups dried lentils, washed according to package instructions
1 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon black pepper
3/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1/2 teaspoon oregano
1/2 teaspoon thyme
1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds

1. In a large saucepan, heat oil. Add carrot, celery, onion and garlic. Saute until tender.
2. Remove vegetables from the pan and add Italian sausage, removed from the casing, to the pan. Brown and drain off fat.
3. In a large stockpot, place chicken broth, the sauteed vegetables and the sausage meat. Add diced tomatoes without draining the juicewith the juice. Add lentils.
4. Season with salt, pepper, crushed red pepper flakes, oregano, thyme, and fennel .
5. Simmer until the lentils are tender, 30-45 minutes. Correct seasonings and top with cheese if desired.


*Notes - I use turkey sausage. I think this could also be made without sausage and would still be quite tasty. If you aren't a fan of spicy, cut the red pepper flakes to half a teaspoon. If you aren't a fan of garlic, cut that to two cloves. I normally put the onion, carrots, celery and garlic in the food processor and process until chunky.
 
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betsygee

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IMG_1629.JPG

Pumpkin Chili

This is from the Thug Kitchen cookbook but because Thug Kitchen's recipes are all profanity-faced :rolleyes2: I'll just put the family-friendly version of the recipe here. I made it for the first time last night and it was delicious!


INGREDIENTS
  1. 1 yellow onion
  2. 1 carrot
  3. 1 bell pepper
  4. 1 teaspoon olive oil
  5. 2 to 3 cloves garlic, minced
  6. 1 jalapeño, minced
  7. 2 teaspoons soy sauce or tamari
  8. 2 1/2 tablespoons mild chili powder
  9. 1 teaspoon ground cumin
  10. 1 can (14.5 ounces) low-salt diced tomatoes*
  11. 1 1/2 cups pureed pumpkin**
  12. 2 cups vegetable broth or water
  13. 3 cups cooked beans***
  14. 1 tablespoon lime juice
  15. Toppings: cilantro, chopped onion, jalapeños, avocado, tortilla strips
  1. *Fire-roasted tomatoes are delicious if you can find them.
  2. **You can buy canned pumpkin puree, or cut up a fresh pumpkin into chunks, steam it until it is tender, and puree it until you have 1 1/2 cups.
  3. ***Whatever beans you prefer in a chili are cool, but if you need direction, half black bean and half pinto make a solid combo. And yeah, you can use two 15-ounce cans.
DIRECTIONS
  1. Chop up the onion, carrot, and bell pepper into pieces no bigger than a bean.
  2. In a big soup pot, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the onion, carrot, and bell pepper and sauté them until they begin to brown, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic, jalapeño, soy sauce, and spices and cook that all together for another 30 seconds. Add the tomatoes, pumpkin, broth, and beans and stir that up so everything is mixed. Get those flavors mingling. Turn down the heat, cover, and let that simmer together for about 15 minutes. Stir it around every now and then.
  3. When it is done simmering, turn off the heat and stir in the lime juice. Serve right away with your favorite toppings.
 

GreyLady

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Thought I would share this recipe, we worked on getting it right for awhile and now it's something I find myself wanting to make all the time. It's perfect for the upcoming football season and fall weather. It is very spicy but could be made mildly spicy if you leave out the minced pepper. I recently wrote this up for my mom, who wanted a copy to make at home. If you make it, let me know :)

1 can bush's red beans in chili sauce
1 can bushs black beans in chili sauce
1 can bushs white beans in chili sauce
1 can chicken broth
1 can corn
2 cans rotel tomatoes and green chiles original
2 jars salsa verde (should be dark green color)
1 big white onion diced
1 big green serrano pepper (jalapeno acceptable replacement), minced
2 teaspoons minced garlic
1 tablespoon oregano
1 teaspoon cumin
2 chicken breasts defrosted and diced into small pieces (1/2 inch to an inch size)
+
1 bag tortilla chips
1 large bag Mexican shredded cheese

combine all ingredients up to chicken breasts together in crock pot at once. Corn is the only thing that needs to be drained. stir. cook 4 hours on high or 6-8 hours on low stirring occasionally.. it is important that onions are transparent, that's how we tell its ready when were making it in a hurry. When its done mix a bunch of Mexican shredded cheese into your bowl and eat with tortilla chips :) I like to crumble a bunch into mine and mix it all up :)
 

Furballsmom

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Woop Woop here comes football!!
Right after the Rockies do amazingly fantastically awesomely wonderfully...
LOL
I love recipes like this. I will def be making it, thank you for posting!
 

GreyLady

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You're welcome!! Glad to hear you will be making it, let me know how it turns out!

I am so exited for football. I think I love the food and getting together as much as the game. Hope your Rockies do well! I recently returned to MD after spending a year in Colorado Springs and it took me awhile to get used to all the purple being for the Rockies, not the Ravens, lol.
 

Furballsmom

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FINALLY, I have the game schedule and the weather just right (this was sort of like aligning the moons and stars, LOL), and so far, the house smells AMAZING!!!

It just fit into my four-quart, and I used up the very last of my home-grown onion - too fun, except for the part where I literally couldn't see the chopping board for my streaming eyes, these were some seriously POTENT onions LOL
 
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Furballsmom

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LOVED it - it was wonderful and a lot of fun (although I think we lost that game) so the food helped make up for it a little bit :)
 

doomsdave

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This is one of those dishes that's very filling, very good, and to be avoided if you're allergic to paprika.

Back in 2013, my late dear old dad had been diagnosed with mesothelioma, and I spent that Christmas holiday to hang out one last time, before he passed in early 2014.

While there, I cooked up some goulash, and his flagging appetite returned, and he wolfed his down, and licked the plate. Fattened my cook's ego, and nice to be a good son, to a good dad, one last time.


INGREDIENTS

5 pounds uncooked beef stew, cornfed, not grass-fed is best.
powdered paprika to taste, hot, mild, or both (1 - 2 tablespoons recommended)
1 big fat white or yellow onion, minced, or chopped fine
1 pound carrot, chopped up (big, fat, numchuck-style carrots best)
2-10 peeled and minced cloves of garlic
Salt to taste


PROCEDURE
Toss beef stew meat in a pot along with paprika, and a bit of salt (makes it give up juices) cast iron is best, and cook, low and slow, over low heat, till the meat starts get really tender. (The original neat meat pieces will start to unravel a bit.) About 1 - 2 hours. You want the fat and connective tissue to melt and meat to melt in your mouth (not in your hand
).

If used, add onion and garlic at this point. Once onion is done (transparent) remove from heat, and serve, preferably with something that has potato in it, like spaetzel, gnocchi, tater tots (oh yeah!), or plain baked or boiled potatoes, or any other tater dish you like.

And, beer, or a really hearty red wine, or sweet tea.


NOTES AND VARIATIONS

Grass fed beef is not high enough in fat content, and comes out too tough if cooked this way, but still works if you figure on about 1/3 the cooking time for the meat.

As hinted above, you can leave out the onion, garlic and carrot.

This is super duper filling. About a double handful, with the potatoes will fill you right up to the rim like a cup of Brim, unless you have a truly prodigious appetite.

If not sure how much paprika to use, err on the side of too little.

I usually make a whole bunch, then put in the freezer to thaw and heat when ready to eat. This is one of those dishes (in my opinion) that gets better the second time around.

Great for a (non-vegan) crowd.
 

Willowy

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I know someone who is married to a semi-first-generation (he was 3 when they came to the US) Hungarian, and her MIL taught her how to make real goulash. She says it's kind of difficult though. This one sounds easier! And yummy. I might give it a try, thanks!
 

doomsdave

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I know someone who is married to a semi-first-generation (he was 3 when they came to the US) Hungarian, and her MIL taught her how to make real goulash. She says it's kind of difficult though. This one sounds easier! And yummy. I might give it a try, thanks!
Maybe dig up the recipe? I'm curious to learn more. It might be worth the extra real or perceived trouble!

My recipe is easy, just also very time consuming. I remember, growing up, all the "Women's magazines" mom read had lots of recipes for "easy goulash" in them, usually with hamburger.

Mom had a jar of paprika she bought right after I was born, and almost never used. Then I discovered pepper . . . . .
 

Willowy

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I remember, growing up, all the "Women's magazines" mom read had lots of recipes for "easy goulash" in them, usually with hamburger.
Yep, macaroni and ground beef with ketchup and succotash. That's what I grew up calling goulash! Pretty sure a Hungarian would faint!

I'll see if I can get the recipe. I assume it's something like this though: Traditional Hungarian Goulash
Not terribly complicated but still takes some time to put together.
 

doomsdave

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Yep, macaroni and ground beef with ketchup and succotash. That's what I grew up calling goulash! Pretty sure a Hungarian would faint!

I'll see if I can get the recipe. I assume it's something like this though: Traditional Hungarian Goulash
Not terribly complicated but still takes some time to put together.
Thanks!

Mine is quite similar; I've found that less is more with this type of thing, but sometimes it's fun to overdo something a bit.
 

jcat

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My m-i-l is Hungarian, so goulash was one of the first things I started to make regularly after getting married. It's basically the same as doomsdave doomsdave 's, but I add tomato paste and hot water after browning the meat in order to get a thick gravy and usually put in lots of fresh peppers rather than carrots. For variation, I stir in some sour cream before serving.
 
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Winchester

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Love Hungarian goulash. I use a cup of red wine in the mix with some tomato paste and a mixture of sweet and smoked paprika (Penzey) to coat the meat prior to browning. I have turned to braising in the oven when I'm home and have time. I think the meat is more tender with braising.

Our quick goulash is made with ground beef and pasta. It's an old standby around here.
 
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