Pumpkin Soup

By Krista Candella

1 small sugar pumpkin -- cut in half and clean out seeds and insides

4 cloves garlic peeled
2 carrots, coarsely chopped
2 onions, cut into wedges
4 Tblsp. olive oil
1 large potato, sliced
1 quart (32 oz.) chicken broth
1 cup half and half
1/4 tablespoons ground nutmeg
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
salt to taste
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Place pumpkin, carrots and onions in a baking dish or roasting pan. Put garlic cloves in pumpkin halves. Drizzle with oil. Bake in preheated oven for 1 hour, until soft but not blackened.
In a large pot over medium heat, bring chicken broth to a boil. Cook potato in simmering water until soft, about 20 minutes. Combine broth, potato, and roasted vegetables (scoop out pumpkin and garlic from pumpkin skin). Puree in a blender until smooth. I had to to do it in 3 parts because my blender is small. Return to pot over low heat, and stir in half and half, nutmeg, pepper and salt. Heat gently; serve.

Butternut Squash/Roasted Corn Chowder

By Jocelyn Denyer

Again, I forgot to get a picture but it was very yummy. 

1 sm onion, chopped
1 shallot, chopped
1 clove garlic, mince3d
1 carrot, chopped
1 celery rib, chopped
1 can chopped green chilies
1/2 chipotley pepper, minced
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 1/2 lb butternut squash OR sweet potatoes OR 3 cans (14 oz) pumpkin
1 lb frozen corn kernels
1/2 gallon vegetable or chicken stock
1/2 c heavy cream, opt
salt and pepper to taste
Cayenne to taste
Add chopped cooked chicken if you want
Sour Cream and crushed tortilla chips, opt

If using butternut squash, cut in half, scoop out the seeds and place in a baking dish, flesh side down.  Add about 1/2" of water and bake at 350 until tender, probably about 1/2 - 1 hour.  When cool enough to handle, scoop out the flesh and dischard the skin.  Cut into large chunks.
If using sweet potatoes, peel and cook in water until tender.  Cut into large chunks.
In large pot, saute onions, shallot and garlic in olive oil until they begin to soften.  Add rest of vegetables and half of the corn.  Cook for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Add squash/potato/pumpkin and cook some more.  Add stock and cook for about 1/2 hour.  Puree in batches in a food processor or blender and place back on the heat.  Add the rest of the corn and chopped chicken and season with salt, pepper and cayenne.  Continue heating until hot. Add cream if desired and heat til warm, not boiling.  Can garnish with sour cream and chips.

Pumpkin Black  Bean Soup

By Shirley Paoule

(Salena forgot to take a picture of the soup but it was really yummy!)

2 cans black beans, drained and rinsed
1 can (14.5 oz) diced tomatoes
1 can (16 oz) pumpkin puree
1/2 c red onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
4 Tbsp olive oil
4 c vegetable broth
1 Tbsp ground cumin
1 tsp each kosher salt, cinnamon, allspice
1/2 tsp pepper
3 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
Baked pumpkin seeds, for garnish

Place oil, red onion, garlic, and seasonings into a large pot.  Cook on med-low heat until red onion and garlic brown.  Puree the beans and tomatoes with half of the vegetable broth.  Add pureed ingredients, pumpkin and rest of broth to your pot.  Simmer uncoverd until thick, about 40 - 45 minutes.  Before serving, stir in balsamic vinegar.  Garnish with baked pumpkin seeds.

Clam Chowder

From Shirley Pauole

1 c diced potatoes
1 c chopped onion
1 c sliced celery
2 cans minced clams, not drained
3/4 c butter
3/4 c flour
1 qt half and half
1 1/2 tsp salt
dash pepper

Put vegetables in a large pot.  Pour liquid from clams over vegetables and add enough water to cover (I use bottled clam juice).  Simmer until tender.  In a large frying pan melt butter and add flour and cook until it bubbles. Add half and half and cook until thick.  Add to vegetables.  Add clams, salt, and pepper.  Heat thoroughly.  Serves 8 - 10.

White Chicken Chili

By Joni Page

1 Tab. Olive oil

1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into small cubes
¼ cup onion
1 can chicken broth
1 can (4 oz) chopped green chilies
1 can (19 oz) white kidney or pinto beans, undrained
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp ground cumin
1/ tsp oregano leaves
½ tsp cilantro leaves
¼ tsp ground red pepper
Heat oil in sauce pan over medium heat. Add onion and chicken and cook 4-5 minutes stirring until done.
Stir in broth, green chilies, and spices. Simmer 30 minutes.  Stir in beans and simmer 10 minutes longer.  Garnish with cheese, sour cream and tortilla strips if desired.  Makes 4 servings.
Quick and Easy Version:
I eliminate the olive oil and use packaged chicken strips and buy McCormick’s White Chicken Chili seasoning mix in a package.   I just throw everything in a crock pot and cook for 2-3 hours on high.

Chicken Noodle Soup

By Monica Thiriot

(Supposedly from the Lion house, but who really knows…)

4 Cups chicken stock (or 4 c. water with 4 tsp boullion)
2 C chopped carrots Heat and then add:
2 C chopped celery
¾ C chopped onion
2 cups Dry Egg noodles (4 c cooked noodles)
2 cans Cream of Chicken Soup
½ Cup milk
2 Cups cooked/chopped chicken

Simmer together chicken stock and veggies until veggies are tender. While Veggies are cooking, cook and drain noodles and set aside.  Mix together soup and milk. Add to veggies.  Add chicken.  Stir in noodles.
Add seasoning, Salt and pepper and more boullion if necessary for flavor.
ENJOY

Corn Chowder

By Roz Brown

2 large onions, chopped
5 pounds potatoes, peeled and cubed
4 cans cream-style corn
3 cans whole kernel corn
1 cup water*
4 cups milk*
1 can evaporated milk*
Tarragon to taste (instead of salt and pepper)
1 pack of bacon/or jar of bits

Sauté onion in bacon drippings if cooking bacon, or butter if not. Pour into pot once sautéed with potatoes and water. Cover and simmer until potatoes are tender. Stir in milk, corn and tarragon, stirring frequently. Add bacon to taste when eating. *I like my soup thin and added a lot more liquid. Keep to the recipe for thicker soup.

Tarragon fun facts: Tarragon is one of the four fines herbes of French cooking, and particularly suitable for chicken, fish and egg dishes. Tarragon is one of the main components of Béarnaise sauce. Fresh, lightly bruised sprigs of tarragon may be steeped in vinegar to impart their flavor.

Tarragon is used to flavor a popular carbonated soft drink in the countries of Armenia, Georgia and, by extension, Russia and Ukraine. The drink—named Tarhun (թարխուն, pronounced [tarˈxuːn]; Тархун), which is the Armenian, Persian and Russian word for tarragon—is made out of sugary tarragon concentrate and colored bright green.

Roz Tarragon fun fact: how I discovered it's use in potatoes and salads, I don't remember - just remember that it's a strong herb like curry so start small.

Italian Sausage Soup

By Salena Thomas

1 pound Italian sausage
1 clove garlic, minced
2 (14 ounce) cans beef broth
1 (14.5 ounce) can Italian-style stewed tomatoes
1 cup sliced carrots
1 (14.5 ounce) can great Northern beans, undrained
2 small zucchini, cubed
2 cups spinach - packed, rinsed and torn
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt

In a stockpot or Dutch oven, brown sausage with garlic. Stir in broth, tomatoes and carrots, and season with salt and pepper. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer 15 minutes.
Stir in beans with liquid and zucchini. Cover, and simmer another 15 minutes, or until zucchini is tender.
Remove from heat, and add spinach. Replace lid allowing the heat from the soup to cook the spinach leaves. Soup is ready to serve after 5 minutes.
I added about 7 oz of chesse tortellini. You can add your own type of pasta if you want. I would increase the broth by one more can to compensate for the noodles (which I did not do cause I didn't have any more broth).

Roasted Tomato Soup
By Jocelyn Denyer

6 lb plum tomatoes, quartered lengthwise
6 large garlic cloves, unpeeled
6 Tbsp shallot, finely chopped
1 tsp oregano
2 Tbsp butter
3 c chicken broth
1/2 c heavy cream
salt and pepper
lemon juice

Spread the tomatoes, skin side down, in one layer in 2 foil-lined jelly roll pans. Add the garlic to 1 of the pans and bake in a preheated 350 oven for 45 minutes to 1 hour, or until the tomatoes are very soft and their skin is dark brown. Let the tomatoes cool in the pans on racks.
In a heavy saucepan cook the shallot and oregano in the butter over moderately low heat, stirring until the shallot is translucent. Add the tomatoes, the garlic (skins discarded), and 1 1/2 cups of the broth. Simmer the mixture, covered, for 15 minutes.
In a blender puree the soup in batches until it is very smooth. Strain back into saucepan and whisk in the cream. More broth can be added if necessary to reach the desired consistency. Add lemon juice and salt and pepper to taste.

Bacon and Potato Chowder

From Salena Thomas

8 slices bacon cut in 1" pieces
2 cups cubed 1/2" potatoes
1 cup chopped onions
1 c sour cream
1 1/4 cup milk
1 can cream of chicken soup
8 oz frozen corn
1/4 tsp pepper
1/4 tsp thyme

Cook bacon over medium heat for 5 minutes. Add potatoes and onions. Continue cooking, stirring occasionally, until potatoes are tender (15 - 20 minutes). Add remaining ingredients. cook 10 - 12 min, stirring occasionally.