If most people knew how easy it is to make cream of mushroom soup at home they would be doing it! Here is a fast and easy recipe that will have you quitting the canned soup version. Make sure your mushrooms are fresh and spotless and you will be off to a great start. Remember to always keep mushrooms cold. They like to be held at 35° or so for best results.

Cream of Mushroom Soup

24 oz mushrooms chopped, mix and match 8 oz packages if you like

2 Tablespoons olive oil

1/2 medium yellow onion

1 clove garlic minced

3 Tablespoons butter or oil

4 Tablespoons flour

32 fl oz chicken stock

1/4 to 1/2  cup half and half

1 teaspoon Spike seasoning salt

ground white pepper to taste (appx 1/4 tsp)

salt to taste ( appx 1/4 tsp)

1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme leaves

Mince onion and garlic. Saute in the olive oil, or butter for 3 minutes on medium heat stirring often.

Add chopped mushrooms and cook  20-25 minutes on med low heat, or until most liquid is cooked off.  Stir occasionally.

While mushrooms are cooking melt butter in a small sauce pan on low heat and add flour to make a roux.  Cook for 5 minutes on low heat stirring often, but slowly.  Set aside.

When most of the liquid is cooked out of the mushroom/onion mixture add the chicken stock, white pepper, salt,spike, roux.  Cook on medium high heat stirring often until thickened.

Add the half and halfand stir until it returns to a simmer. Stir in fresh thyme, and blend with an immersion blender then serve.  A table top blender can be used, but be careful with this hot soup and blend in two batches. May be garnished with chopped chives for color.

Serves four.

Note: For a lower salt soup use salt free chicken stock and add less salt.

You can use button, crimini, maitake, and shitake mushrooms in this soup. I like 1-2 thirds of it to be button mushrooms, and the rest Maitake.

For a richer thicker soup us heavy cream instead of half and half, and increase roux to 4 tablespoons butter and 5 tablespoons flour.

This is one of my favorite soup creations. It is great as a Vegan soup, but is easily converted to a Vegetarian soup or meat lovers soup. It’s made from easy to find ingredients and is quite simple. You can serve it as a meal or just a nice bowl of soup as a starter. If you are lucky enough to have a large Italian Basil plant or two you will love this soup as a way to highlight your lovely basil.

1/2 cup diced yellow onion

1 clove fresh garlic minced, or 1 teaspoon granulated garlic

1 14.5 oz can of kidney beans

1 15.5 oz can of diced tomatoes

1 5.5 oz can of V-8 vegetable juice

1 vegetable or chicken cube,(bullion)

4 cups water

1 teaspoon dried oregano

2 teaspoons basil

1/2 teaspoon dried thyme

1/2 cup of small shell pasta, uncooked

2 cups fresh broccoli florets

1 cup fresh spinach

1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley

Optional,1 teaspoon hot red pepper flakes

In a 4-5 quart pot add enough of the water to cover the bottom about a quarter inch and heat to simmering. Add onion and garlic and cook on medium low for 5 minutes stirring occasionally. Add canned tomatoes, beans,red pepper flakes, rest of the water, V-8, bullion cube, and dried herbs. Cook at a simmer for 20 minutes covered stirring twice. Remove cover, turn heat up to a boil, and add pasta, stirring every 30 seconds for three minutes to keep the pasta from sticking to the bottom. Cook for 8 minutes uncovered keeping it at a slow boil. Stir in broccoli and cook for 3 minutes simmering. Stir in spinach and cook for 3 minutes. Stir in parsley and serve.
Serves 4-8 depending on if serving as a main dish,(4) or if serving as a soup (8).

Note: This is a thick soup, but you can add an additional cup water if you want it thinner.
Green beans can be substituted for broccoli. Cheese tortalini can be added about 10 minutes before serving for a nice vegetarian main dish, but you will probably want to add an extra cup of stock or water.

nutrition analysis by
www.greennapkinnutrition.com

Tired of eating Top Ramen but want a good healthy noodle soup without the chemistry set thrown in? Buy the plain Chinese noodles and cook in chicken broth with your favorite vegetables like I do. The simple ingredients are easy to find and cook.

 
Noodles, about 1/2 cup dry
2 cups broth
1/2 cup frozen peas
1/2 carrot cut in thin strips with special carrot peeler or grate them
1 Tablespoon green onion slices
a few drops of hot sesame oil

Cook the noodles for about 5 minutes or until close to done then add peas and carrots. Cook for about 3 minutes then add green onions and hot oil.
Note: I used frozen green beans as well as peas and carrots but added them 2 minutes before the peas and carrots.

Butternut Squash Soup

2 1/2 cups butternut squash cut in 1 inch cubes

3 cups water

1 teaspoon chicken base or vegetable bullion cube

1 cup diced button mushrooms

2 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon olive oil

2 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon flour

1 teaspoon Spike seasoning salt

1 teaspoon ground white pepper

In a 6 quart pot bring water, chicken base, Spike and squash to a boil and reduce to a simmer. In a saute pan cook mushrooms in oil on medium low heat until most of the moisture is cooked out of the mushrooms. Add flour and reduce heat to low. Cook for 5 minutes stirring every 15 seconds or so. Set aside until squash is cooked soft. When squash is cooked soft puree with an immersion blender or cool for about 15 minutes and puree in a blender. Return the squash to the stove and whisk in the mushroom mixture. Cook on medium heat until soup thickens a bit. This takes about 7-10 minutes. Add pepper, and more salt if needed. Serves four.

Note: 2 tablespoons minced shallots can be added to the mushrooms while sauteing.