Chili

My family falls into the "no bean" chili category and after years of tinkering with recipes, I've landed on a couple that please the soup connoisseurs in my home.  So, when I was going through Grandma's recipe box and found chili...I hesitated.  It has (gasp!) beans, green pepper and celery.  My family gave me the green light to try it anyway.  This chili is good, really good.  As it simmered all day, multiple bowls were consumed throughout the course of watching multiple football games.  Put a check mark in the W column for this one.  (Feel free to bring up the heat to your taste as it is mild). 

CHILI

2 lbs. hamburger

1 onion, chopped

1 green pepper, chopped

1 tsp salt

2 tsp paprika

2 tsp chili powder

1 1/2 cup celery, chopped

1 can tomato paste

1-28 oz can of crushed tomatoes

1 quart V8 tomato juice

1 can red kidney beans

1 can pinto beans

Brown hamburger until slight pink. Add onion and green pepper, finish browning hamburger. Drain.  Return to stockpot, add salt, paprika, chili powder and tomato paste.  Mix well.  Add celery, crushed tomatoes and tomato juice.  

Simmer at least one hour; add beans and heat through. 

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Cowboy Beans

These beans were at nearly every backyard barbeque, picnic or outdoor celebration I can recall from my childhood.  A hearty, down-home side item rich with flavor.  

COWBOY BEANS

1 can pork & beans

1 can baby lima beans

1 can kidney beans

1/2 lb bacon, diced

1 lb hamburger

1/2 onion, diced

1/2 cup ketchup

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/2 tsp salt

2 T vinegar

Saute the hamburger, bacon and onion, drain.  Drain the liquid from the lima beans and kidney beans.  Mix all ingredients together.  Bake in 350 degree oven for 30 minutes covered and an additional 30 minutes uncovered or put in slow cooker on low for several hours. 

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Turkey & Rice Soup

There's nothing like homemade soup on a blustery winter day.  Grandma would save her turkey carcass from Thanksgiving and then whip up a lovely turkey and rice soup at a later time.  The challenge:  there was no recipe.  I consulted family members and pieced together our memories of the soup into my own concoction.  When I sat down to prepare this post, I realized I had done the same thing.  No official recipe, scribbled notes.    The good news was my memory was fresh. 

The broth was silky, the soup flavor amazing. Although I know I varied a few things, I think it would have earned a Grandma thumbs up. 

TURKEY & RICE SOUP

1 turkey carcass

2 quarts chicken broth

1 quart water 

1 tsp dried thyme leaves

1 bay leaf 

 1 onion, cut into medium dice

Carrots to taste, 2-3 large carrots, peeled and cut into rounds or half rounds

2 celery stalks, diced

2 cups cooked rice (I used jasmine, it's what was on hand) 

1 tsp parsley

1 tsp basil

Salt and pepper to taste 

Place the carcass in a large stock pot and cover with the broth and water.   Add thyme and bay leaf. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer for approx. 1 hour. The meat will begin to fall off the bone. 

Strain broth through a colander into a large bowl or another stock pot.  Reserve the broth. Remove the remaining meat form the carcass and chop.  Return the broth to stock pot, add the chopped turkey, onion, carrots, celery, rice, parsley and basil.  Simmer on medium until vegetables are soft.  If using minute rice, add at this point until cooked.  If using pre-cooked rice, add once the vegetables are soft. 

Serve and watch the snow fall. 

Vegetable Cheese Soup

This recipe conjures up so many memories around one simple ingredient:  Velveeta.  

My grandfather loved Velveeta.  This oblong pasteurized cheese product had a home in my grandmother's refridgerator for years.  A couple of slices and some saltines = a snack.  The memory of this cheese (well, cheese-ish log) is inextricably linked to its storage container.  A specially-made-just-for-Velveeta rectangle created by Tupperware.  Let's be honest, if you've ever owned Velveeta you know that if one little bit is exposed to fresh air for too long it turns into a hard-as-rocks piece of plastic commonly found in injection molding facilities.  Then again, credit where credit is due:  It is easy to cook with and provides an ooey-gooey cheese base for the chef's recipe.

Are you gathering I am not a fan?  This item does have one little place in my heart - outside of the truly fond memories of my grandma and grandpa - it's presence announces the beginning of football season.  Once a year, this little hunk of should be melted down to form the electric orange base of a spicy queso dip and then scooped up with a chip or two.  Let the games begin! And that's it. 

Confession #1:  I could not bring myself to use one pound of it in the soup.  A real cheese roux was substituted that I modified/created from a different recipe.  

Confession #2:  No frozen vegetables were used. 

Confession #3:  As I watched my fresh veggies lightly boil in the chicken bouillon base, I just knew the soup would be silky and amazing if it were smooth.  Yes, I took my immersion blender to them.  

The end result was really quite delicious.  

VEGETABLE CHEESE SOUP - ORIGINAL GRANDMA RECIPE

1 quart water

2 tsp chicken bouillon

2 cup diced potatoes

1 cup chopped onion 

1 cup diced celery

1 - 20 oz package of frozen broccoli, cauliflower and carrot mix

1 pound Velveeta

Combine water, bouillon, potatoes, onion and celery.  Cook until partly done.  Add frozen vegetable mix and cook another 10 minutes or until well done.  Cut Velveeta into cubes and add, stir until melted.  Can be easily doubled. 

VEGETABLE CHEESE SOUP - MODIFIED RECIPE

I quart water

2 tsp Better Than Bouillon Chicken Base

2 cup diced potatoes

1 cup chopped onion

~ 20 oz of chopped fresh broccoli, carrots and cauliflower  

2 T butter

2 T flour

1 1/2 cup milk

2 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese 

1 T Siracha

Combine water, bouillon and all vegetables (potato, celery, onion, broccoli, cauliflower, carrots) and cook until done.  Once tender, blend with immersion blender.  One can also remove and blend in batches in traditional blender.  Return to stockpot and simmer. 

Prepare the cheese roux.  In saucepan melt butter and then add the flour.  Cook/whisk for a couple of minutes, then gently and slowly whisk in the milk -- whisking constantly to avoid any lumps. When smooth and begins to slightly bubble, slowly add the cheese, whisking after each addition. Stir in the Siracha.  Remove from heat and add to the stockpot of blended vegetables.

Simmer and serve. 

Printable Version. 

Oktoberfest: Beer Cheese Soup & Beer Bread

We love this soup.  It is a departure from The Grands' recipes but it was a wonderful addition to our beer-themed dinner.  I highly suggest the beer is the first liquid added after the kielbasa, onions and garlic have been simmering.  The smell is heavenly.  Do not rush the simmering process, at least one hour is needed for this soup to truly have all of the flavors come together.  Thank you, Emeril.  

Beer bread.  Incredibly simple, incredibly delicious.  One son said the bread (slathered with butter and drizzled with honey) is a top three recipe thus far of Jana Vee & Marjorie.  

Your choice of beer will impact both recipes - experiment with what you like best. In sticking with the theme, Leinenkugels Oktoberfest was used for both of recipes. 

Cheers! 

BEER CHEESE SOUP  (Courtesy of Emeril Lagasse's Potluck cookbook) Modifications in (italics)

1/2 lb kielbasa sausage, finely chopped

3 T olive oil

2 cups chopped yellow onion (1 onion chopped) 

1 tsp salt  ( 1/2 tsp) 

1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper

2 bay leaves

3 T minced garlic (~ 3-4 cloves) 

1/2 cup flour

6 cups chicken stock

2 cups lager beer, preferably amber

1 1/2 tsp chopped fresh thyme (1/2 tsp dried)

3 cups grated Cheddar cheese - 12 oz.  

Cook kielbasa in the olive oil in a large heavy soup pot over high heat until golden brown, 5 - 6 minutes.  Add the onions, salt, black pepper, and bay leaves and cook, stirring, until the onions are slightly caramelized, 12-15 minutes.  Add the garlic and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 1 minute.  Sprinkle the flour over the onions and cook, stirring constantly, for 2 minutes.  Gradually whisk in the stock and the beer.  Add the thyme and bring to a boil.  Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer uncovered, stirring occasionally, for 1 hour. 

Add the cheese, a little at a time, stirring until nearly melted after each addition.  Remove from the heat, taste and adjust seasoning if necessary.  Ladle into soup bowls. 

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BEER BREAD

3 cups self-rising flour

1/2 cup sugar

12 oz. beer

2 T melted butter

In bowl, combine the flour, sugar and beer.  Mix well - but do not over mix.  It will be sticky.  Pour into buttered loaf pan and bake at 375 for 55 minutes.  During last few minutes, brush with the butter and return to oven.

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