Vanessa's requests

Vanessa had asked for these two recipes a long time ago--sorry it took me so long to get a round to it.

Tortellini Soup
10 cups water
6-7 chicken bouillon cubes
90z. tortellini, uncooked (I like to use more just because my kids predominately eat the tortellini.)
1lb. baby spinach
1 cup instant rice, uncooked
2 tsp. dry tarragon leaves
1 red bell pepper, cut up

Optional ingredients
1/2lb mushrooms
2 chicken breasts, cut up uncooked
grated Parmesan cheese

Bring broth to a boil then add tortellini for 6 minutes. Add the rest of the ingredients, bring back to a boil, then simmer, covered, for 5 minutes. Garnish with grated Parmesan when serving.

Beef and Broccoli

1lbs. Flank steak, sliced
4 Tbsp. soy sauce
1 Tbsp. cornstarch
1 Tbsp. sprite, 7-up or mitsuya cider
1 tsp. sugar
1 cup sliced onions
4 to 5 Tbsp. cooking oil
1/2 tsp. salt
1 bunch broccoli

Optional ingredients

Bamboo shoots
Water chestnuts
Mushrooms

Cut beef on an angle. Marinate with soy sauce, cornstarch, sprite and sugar (Alan and I like to double the marinade.) Set aside. Cut broccoli. Pour 2 tablespoons oil in a hot skillet. Add salt. (If bamboo shoots, water chestnuts and mushrooms are used, they should be cooked about one minute before the broccoli.) Add broccoli. Stir constantly-not over 3 minutes. Remove from the skillet and spread out on a plate. In the same skillet, add the remaining 2 tablespoons of oil and onion. Stir in the beef mixture and turn constantly until the beef is almost cooked ( about 3 minutes). Add broccoli and mix thoroughly. For crispness, do not overcook. Serve immediately. Serve over rice.

Pumpkin Soup

The idea for this recipe came from a couple of things: a recipe that my sister in law, Kristy gave me for pumpkin soup got me thinking, and I had a pumpkin that I used for halloween decorating that I wanted to try and use! Jared was very skeptical about me making soup out of a pumpkin, but he loved the finished product!

Cut your pumpkin in half and clean out the seeds, then place each half face down on a cookie sheet. Bake at about 375 for about 45 minutes or until you can poke a fork through the outside. Let it cool for a minute and then scrape the pumpkin out of the shell. I suppose if you wanted a really smooth soup, you could food process it, but I like my soup a little chunky, so i just mashed it with a potato masher. And all of these measurements are approximate since all pumpkins are different sizes!

32 oz chicken broth (1 box)
1 1/2 - 2 cups milk (I used 2 % b/c that's what I had, but you could use whole, or even light cream if you wanted to)
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp salt (or more, according to taste)
1 1/2 - 2 tsp chili powder

So, put your pumpkin in a large saucepan / pot. Add your chicken broth and milk and mix until it is a consistency that you like. Bring it to a boil. Add all of your spices and the sugar. Lower your heat and simmer for about 30 minutes.
Garnish with Cilantro, cheese, sour cream and extra chili powder. yum!

* if you don't have a pumpkin, you could always just used canned. I think this recipe would work best with about 30 oz of canned pumpkin.

Chicken Tortilla Soup (White Chicken Chili?)

This is a recipe that I had at Anne's house a couple of years back. It is absolutely delicious and I try to enjoy it often.

She didn't ask me to post this one, but since I'm doing the posting, I'm making the rules! :)

2 cans great Northern Beans
3 cans chicken broth (4 cups-ish)
1lg can green enchilada sauce
4 c. cooked cubed chicken
1 bag frozen white corn
1/2 c. cilantro

Bring to a boil (except cilantro) turn down and simmer 20 minutes. Add cilantro and serve w/ (fresh) salsa (and chips if so desired) (i desire chips) (a lot).

Taco Soup

Taco Soup

(anne's recipe)

Brown 1/2 lb. ground beef
add
1 28-oz can crushed tomatoes
1 15-oz can corn
1 15-oz can kidney beans
1/2 package taco seasoning

Bring to a boil. Cover and simmer 30 minutes. Serve with cheese over crushed tortilla chips

Chicken and Wild Rice Soup

This is a recipe from Jared's mom, Rosemary. It is one of our favorite soups.
3 cups cooked wild rice
1 large onion, finely diced
2 carrots, finely diced
2 ribs celery, finely diced
1 cup cooked chicken, diced
1/2 cup butter
1 cup flour
8 cups chicken broth
1 cup light cream, or half and half (sometimes I use whole milk if I don't have either of these).
In a 4-5 quart pot, saute the veggies in the butter until they are slightly soft. Add the flour, a little bit at a time, stirring and cooking until all of it is combined. Don't brown it. Slowly add the chicken broth, stirring until the flour-butter-veggie mixture is well blended. Add cooked rice and chicken. Add cream and cook soup until heated, but don't boil. Salt and pepper it to taste.

Greek Egg and Lemon Soup

When I first saw the title I wasn't so sure, but I first tried it on a day when the fridge pickins were very slim but I happily had all these ingredients. It turned out to be delicious and I've made it for family dinners on both sides already. Enjoy!

5 3/4 c. chicken broth
2/3 c. white or brown rice
1/3 c. lemon juice
4 tsp. chicken bouillon
3 eggs

In a large saucepan, combine broth, bouillon, and rice. Cover and cook until rice is tender (about 20 minutes depending on which rice you use). Beat eggs well; beat in lemon juice. Slowly beat into broth. Heat over low heat until mixture becomes creamy and hot, stirring occasionally. Do not boil! Garnish with lemon slices or parsley.