Category Archives: SOUP, STEW, AND CHOWDER RECIPES

TORTILLA SOUP

If you have ever ordered tortilla soup in a Mexican restaurant, then you are probably not going to take even a cursory look at this recipe. For if you are like me (hopefully not, one of me is enough) you have tried a restaurant tortilla soup and found it at best – passable. This soup recipe however, given to me years ago by my daughter Paula, easily qualifies as one of the best soups I have ever had the very great pleasure to consume. It has all the elements I love – a fabulous broth and additives which I get to choose to add to the broth. And really, what’s not to love about cubed, perfectly cooked chicken, creamy avocado chunks, shredded cheese, and flour tortilla strips. I have yet to serve this soup to anyone who doesn’t think it is amazing. In fact, I often get requests for this soup when I am hosting an event. So do yourself a favor, forget what you have tasted before that called itself Tortilla Soup, and give this recipe a try. Your family and friends will love you for it. OK, they probably already love you, but if not, or you are kinda-sorta sitting on their virtual “love fence”, fixing this soup can only help elevate your position. It might even help you clear that fence without any slivers or bruises.

  • 1 T. butter
  • 1 T. vegetable oil
  • 1 large boneless, skinless chicken breast, cubed
  • 2 medium onions, chopped
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 8 c. chicken broth or stock
  • 2 (15-oz.) cans tomato sauce
  • 1 ½ tsp. dried basil (dried basil is really better than fresh for this recipe)
  • ½ tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
  • ¼ tsp. kosher salt
  • freshly ground black pepper
  • 12 flour tortillas, baked on a griddle, cooled and cut into strips
  • 1 c. grated Monterey Jack cheese
  • 1 c. shredded mozzarella cheese
  • 2 avocados, diced
  • 6 green onions, finely minced

Place the butter and oil in a large covered soup pot. Cook chicken just until done. Remove to a small bowl. Add onions and garlic and cook until garlic just starting to turn brown. Add chicken broth, tomato sauce, dried basil, crushed red pepper flakes, salt, and pepper. Cover and simmer for 20 minutes. Meanwhile, place the tortilla strips, cheeses, avocados, and green onions in their own bowls.  When ready to serve, fill soup bowls half full of soup and let your family or guests choose their own extras (chicken, tortilla strips, Jack cheese, mozzarella, avocado, and green onions).

MUSHROOM ONION SOUP

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I used to work in the International district of Seattle during the 70s. I loved it! Our customers were wonderful, the business owners were our buddies, and the restaurant food and grocery selections were unparalleled in the region. My fellow employees taught me a lot about Asian cooking too. (We actually had a full kitchen in our break room, complete with a 4 burner stove, refrigerator and microwave.) Most days I would either bring a leftover from home, or build something on the spot. But sometimes, a group of us would head off to one of the local eateries. Of course we had fabulous Asian restaurants from which to choose, but we also had an incredible hole-in-the-wall Creole restaurant across the alley from us and a short lived sandwich and soup place in the great hall of the old Union Station. (Union Station is a former train station constructed between 1910 and 1911 to serve the Union Pacific Railroad and the Milwaukee Road. It now serves as the headquarters of Sound Transit and its grand hall is rented out to the public for weddings and other events.) But back to that soup and sandwich place. One of the soups they offered was an onion soup with mushrooms. It was the best soup I had ever tasted. I begged and pleaded for that recipe, but they never would share it with me, even when they were closing! How rude, don’t you think? Anyway, I played around with the ingredients and finally determined that the subtle background flavor that made my taste buds sing was caraway. So give this recipe a try, but please, do not leave out the caraway. Your taste buds will thank you!

  • ¼ c. butter
  • 2 T. extra virgin olive oil
  • 8 onions, sliced
  • 1 lb. mushrooms, quartered
  • 1 tsp. sugar
  • 2 T. flour
  • ½ c. hearty red wine (I use “Gallo Hearty Burgundy”)
  • 6 c. beef broth (I use 6 teaspoons of  Superior Touch brand “Better Than Bouillon” – beef base and 6 cups of water)
  • 2 T. chopped fresh parsley
  • ½ tsp. caraway seeds (not optional)
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1 T. paprika
  • ½ tsp. dried marjoram
  • ½ tsp. dried thyme
  • lightly toasted baguette slices
  • Swiss or Gruyère cheese, grated
  • Parmesan cheese, grated

Melt butter in a large covered soup pot. Add olive oil and sliced onions. Cook onions for about 45 minutes or until they are caramel colored and very, very soft. Add mushrooms and sugar; cook for 10 minutes. Stir in flour and let cook for about 5 minutes over low heat, stirring often. Add wine, beef broth, parsley, caraway, bay leaf, paprika, marjoram, and thyme. Cover and simmer for at least an hour. Meanwhile, place a combination of   cheeses on baguette slices. Just before ready to serve, pop the bread and cheese in a 450 degree oven and bake until cheese is melted. Ladle soup into oven proof soup bowls and place a couple baguette slices on top. Sprinkle with more cheese and place in hot oven or under broiler until cheese is melted and starting to brown. Serve immediately.

 

 

 

 

CRAB BISQUE – also reverently referred to as Heaven in a Bowl!

I absolutely love serving a first course soup at dinner parties. I have a large selection of flat bottomed coffee cups (short, squat, straight sided, with the bottom and top sharing the same circumference) that I picked up at our local Goodwill. After the appetizers and beverages have been served, and my guests have had sufficient time to tell me how wonderful the appetizers tasted (always allow time between courses for unsolicited compliments), I hand out small cups of a rich soup like this bisque before the main course is served. The servings are small because my first course soups tend to be very rich, and a tiny amount goes a long way. In fact, I try to serve fairly small portions of every dish that I serve. I have always felt that a person’s taste buds (like mine for example – that can legitimately be classified as overworked) get tired after a few bites of any flavor, regardless of how fabulous. So rather than too much quantity of any one food, I prefer to offer a greater assortment of small dishes, with lots of different and interesting flavors and flavor combinations represented. And yes, I know that it takes more time and effort to prepare the food for a dinner party using my criteria, but happy taste buds dancing around your dining room is worth the effort.

  • 2 T. butter (don’t even think about using margarine)
  • 1 large shallot, thinly sliced
  • ¼ c. loosely packed basil chiffonade* (rolled into the shape of a cigarette and very thinly sliced)
  • 2 ½ T. flour
  • 2 c. vegetable stock
  • 8-oz. can tomato sauce
  • 1 c. heavy cream
  • 1/8 tsp. white pepper
  • 1/3 lb. fresh or canned crab (do not use that fake crab stuff in MY Crab Bisque recipe – or else!)

Melt butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add shallots and sauté for 2 or 3 minutes, or until soft. Add basil and continue sautéing for 1 minute more. Whisk in flour and cook until mixture is bubbly, 1 to 2 minutes. Gradually add veggie stock and tomato sauce. Bring to a boil. Add heavy cream and bring back to just under a boil. Reduce heat to simmer, add white pepper and crab, reserving a tiny amount to add as a garnish, and continue cooking 3 or 4 minutes. Serve immediately garnished with reserved crab.

*rolled into the shape of a cigarette and very thinly sliced