chicken lime soup

I tried a similar recipe a little while back from Rachael Ray. It was a little too spicy for me and especially for my kids. I love all the ingredients so I made some changes. Here it is.

See what you think.

• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
• 3 skinless, boneless chicken breasts, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
• 6 cups chicken broth
• 1 can diced tomatoes
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
• Juice of 2 limes
• Salt and pepper
• 1 hass avocado, thinly sliced lengthwise
• Crushed tortilla chips

1. In a large saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Stir in the onion and garlic, lower the heat to medium and cook until the onion begins to brown, about 7 minutes. Increase the heat to high, push the vegetables to the side of the pan, add the chicken and cook, stirring, until golden, about 5 minutes. Stir in the chicken broth and tomatoes. Lower the heat and simmer for 15 minutes, skimming any foam. Stir in the cilantro and lime juice; season with salt and pepper.
2. Place 2 avocado slices in each soup bowl and pour in the soup. Top with the tortilla chips and a little more cilantro.

Broccoli Soup

This is a simple soup that is really yummy. Takes about 25 min to make. The only thing is, I like it chunky like the picture but my kids won't go near it if there are big chunks of broccoli. So if you are making it for kids maybe you will want to puree it before serving it to them:)

Broccoli Soup


2 heads of broccoli, chopped
1 1/2 cups water
2 tsp. chicken bouillon base
2 potatoes, peeled and chopped into small cubes
1/2 small onion, diced
3 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons flour
2 cups milk
2 cups cream
1 cup cheese plus more for garnish
Salt and Pepper to taste before serving

Combine water, chicken base, potatoes and broccoli in medium sauce pan over medium heat. Bring to a boil and cover to steam veggies until tender. In med to large soup pot, saute the onions until almost tender on med-high heat. Add butter. When butter is melted, add flour. Mix constantly until a paste has formed and it HASN'T turned brown it should be light tan. Add milk and cream all at once stirring constantly. Bring to boil. It may take a little while so be patient. You don't want to burn the milk so keep stirring and don't put on high heat. Once it starts to boil, stir for about 3 min and then add everything that is in the broccoli pot to the soup pot. Add cheese and stir until heated through and cheese is melted.

Taco Soup

I was introduced to this recipe in my college cooking class. I have made some slight changes but overall the idea is the same. This is one of those meals that doesn't sound too appetizing until you smell the aromas it spreads through your home. Then after one bit you are hooked and pretty soon you are going for seconds. We don't use spoons to eat this. We use tortilla chips. Garnish with some sour cream and cheese and it's a pleasing meal.

Taco Soup


1 pound ground beef or turkey
1/2 onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced


2 cans Mexican style stewed tomatoes (or regular. sometimes I can't find the Mexican style)
2 cans dark red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 Tablespoon chili powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp. paprika
1 tsp. cumin
1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes
2 tsp corn starch
1 can corn, drained
cheese and sour cream for garnish

Saute onion in large pot for 5 min on med heat. Add meat and garlic. Cook until meat is browned. In separate bowl, mix all other ingredients together. I usually put tomatoes first so I can crush them into smaller pieces. Mix well so that corn starch is incorporated. Add mixture to pot of meat. Once it's boiling, simmer on low-med heat for 20 min. Serve with tortilla chips.

Chicken Tortilla Soup

Chicken Tortilla Soup

2 tablespoons oil4 carrots, peeled and chopped
4 celery stalks, chopped
1/2 onion, diced
1 clove garlic, minced
Salt and Pepper to taste
4 cans reduced sodium chicken broth
2 cans diced tomatoes w/ chilies
1 package taco seasonings (you can buy this or use the seasonings I use for Taco soup)
3 large flour tortillas, cut into small pieces
2 chicken breasts
1 cup milk
8-12 oz of shredded monterey jack cheese
Corn tortilla chips for garnish and to use for eating
Fresh avocado slices for garnish  
Fresh Cilantro for garnish


Bring chicken broth to boil in large pot. Once at a boil add raw chicken. Cook 20-30 min until chicken is cooked through. While that's cooking heat oil in large saucepan. Add carrots, celery, onion and garlic. Saute until tender. Add salt and pepper. Once chicken is cooked through, remove chicken from broth and set aside. Add vegetables to broth. Add tomatoes and taco seasonings to broth. Cut chicken into bite sized pieces and add to broth. Cut tortillas and add to broth. Let simmer on med-low for 20min. COVERED. Add milk and cheese. Simmer additional 10 min. Serve with chips for dipping and avocado and cilantro on top.

Roasted Tomato and Basil Soup

I have really been craving tomato soup lately. The canned stuff just really doesn't do it for me. My sister introduced this recipe to me. YUM!

Roasted Tomato and Basil Soup

3 pounds ripe plum tomatoes, cut in half lengthwise
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons good olive oil
1 tablespoon kosher salt
1 1/2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
2 cups chopped yellow onions (2 onions)
6 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1 (28-ounce) canned plum tomatoes, with their juice
4 cups fresh basil leaves, packed
1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
1 quart chicken stock or water

Directions
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Toss together the tomatoes, 1/4 cup olive oil, salt, and pepper. Spread the tomatoes in 1 layer on a baking sheet and roast for 45 minutes.
In an 8-quart stockpot over medium heat, saute the onions and garlic with 2 tablespoons of olive oil, the butter, and red pepper flakes for 10 minutes, until the onions start to brown. Add the canned tomatoes, basil, thyme, and chicken stock. Add the oven-roasted tomatoes, including the liquid on the baking sheet. Bring to a boil and simmer uncovered for 40 minutes. Pass through a food mill fitted with the coarsest blade. Taste for seasonings. Serve hot or cold.

I used a blender instead of a food mill and it worked fine.

Recipe from: Barefoot Contessa

Baked Potato Soup

For those nights you want a warm comforting meal. See below for diet and faster versions:)

Baked Potato Soup

5 cups baked potato insides
3 Tablespoons Olive Oil
1 medium onion
2 cups chicken stock1 1/2 cup half n half
1/2 cup sour cream
4 cups milk
1/4- 1/2 cup cheddar cheese (depending on how much you want)
8 strips cooked bacon, chopped
salt and pepper to taste
Chives for garnish

Heat olive oil in soup pot on med heat. Add onions and cook until soft. Add baked potato insides and chicken stock. You can keep the skins to make potato skins or discard them. I usually cut my potatoes in half and then squeeze out the insides so they are already bit sized going into the soup. Bring to a simmer. Stir in half and half, sour cream and milk. Try not to boil, if it gets too hot the milk products may burn. Season with salt and pepper. I like my soup a little thicker so I take out a portion of the soup and blend it in a blender when added back to the pot it makes the overall soup a little thicker. Just a tip. Add Cheese and bacon but reserve a little for garnish. Heat through. When ready to serve you can top with more cheese, bacon, chives and a little dollop of sour cream.


For diet version (pictured above)
Use: fat free sour cream, fat free milk, low sodium chicken stock and turkey bacon.

For Faster cooking time:
You can bake your potatoes in the microwave. Takes about 7 min. for one potato. Just poke holes in the potatoes. You can also buy already cooked bacon that just needs heated in the microwave.

Vegetable Soup

I LOVE soup. I could eat soup every night for dinner.  My hubby not so much. It takes a lot for him to get excited about soup for dinner if ever. This soup is very satisfying. It fills you up and warms you up. It is similar to the minestrone soup at Olive Garden. That was the inspiration. I do have another minestrone soup recipe on my blog but it's much different. It made enough for two nights of food which I was totally fine with. It took about an hour to make. If you chop all your veggies ahead of time it will really cut down the prep time if your afternoons are busy.

Vegetable Soup


3 tablespoons olive oil
1 small white onion, finely chopped
1 cup zucchini, chopped (about 2 zucchini)
1 cup (half package) frozen Italian cut green beans
4 cloves garlic, minced
32 oz vegetable broth
2 cans white beans,drained
2 cans diced tomatoes
2 carrots shredded
2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped
1 1/2 tsp dried oregano
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp basil (I used fresh because I had some on hand. You can use dried)
1/4 tsp dried thyme
3 cups water
3 cups fresh baby spinach
1 cup small shell pasta
Pepper to taste


Heat olive oil over medium heat in a large soup pot. Saute onion, garlic, green beans, and zucchini in the oil for 5 minutes or until onions begin to turn translucent. Add vegetable broth to pot, plus drained tomatoes, beans, carrots, hot water, and spices. Bring soup to a boil, then reduce heat and allow to simmer for 20 minutes. Add spinach leaves and pasta and cook for an additional 20 minutes or until desired consistency. 

Chicken Noodle Soup

I could eat this soup everyday. It's especially great with homemade rolls (check out the recipe from my blog). You can adjust the ingredients to make more or less depending on how many you are cooking for but I like to make a LOT so I can eat it for days.

8 cans Swanson's less sodium chicken broth
1 bag small carrots (you can chop about 6 carrots if you prefer)
6 stalks of celery, chopped
1 cup cauliflower puree
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1/2 onion, chopped
12 oz. Country Pasta (home style egg pasta) you can get it at most grocery stores
salt and pepper to taste

Use a large pot to cook this soup. Boil the chicken in the broth for about 20 min or until no longer pink. Remove chicken and place on a cutting board. Put celery, carrots, onion and cauliflower puree in boiling broth. Cover and let simmer (about 10 min) while you shred chicken with 2 forks. Check the carrots they should not be too soft. It will take a good 15-20 min to cook your noodles especially depending on the size noodle you choose. You will want to add the noodles before your carrots get too soft. Add the chicken back to the soup a few minutes before the noodles are done. Salt and pepper to taste. DONE

My Minestrone

This minestrone is SUCH a comfort food. It's a great meal to make on a budget in or in a hurry. It's even better the next day. I will be substituting the sausage for lean ground turkey until my better half gets out if his strict diet phase.

1 pound Italian sausage

2 1/2 cups sliced celery

1 cup chopped onion

6 cups chopped zucchini

2 cans (28 ounces) diced tomatoes, undrained

1 1/2 cups chopped green pepper

1 1/2 tsp. Italian seasonings

1 1/2 tsp. salt (I use Morton's Light Salt)

1 tsp. dried  oregano

1 tsp. sugar (I use sugar substitute)

1 tsp. dried basil (or fresh if you have it:)

1/4 tsp garlic powder

Cook the sausage in a large saucepan over med. heat until no longer pink. Remove with a slotted spoon onto paper towels to drain. Saute the celery and onion in the drippings for 5 min. Add sausage and remaining ingredients; bring to boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 20-30 min. or until desired tenderness.