Super Delicious Soups

John and I have been enjoying soups this month. Although they aren’t on my “easiest to cook” list, some we have found are delicious. We’ve tried about one a day and narrowed the best down to a select few. I love a couple of websites known for very good Paleo approved recipes: Elanaspantry.com and MyHeartBeets.com.

Old favorites continues to be the Paleo Tomato Basil Soup (very easy and totally delicious).

This month we have tried Thai Vegetable Soup, Mushroom Soup, Broccoli Soup, Cauliflower Soup, Chicken Noodle Soup among many. Our three favorites are:

Chicken Pot Pie Soup (Paleo)

This was created by the fabulous little gal, Ashley Thomas, at myheartbeets.com/chicken-pot-pie-paleo/

I would give her recipes a 5 Star rating. She is the one who created Naan Bread which I call Manna Bread because it seems like manna from heaven.

I am going to go ahead and give you this recipe in case you don’t have the time to run through clicks like I never do. Her website will be a good one to mark and save as she posts great things. And, yes, I changed a couple of things: less Chicken and I used Japanese Sweet Potatoes instead of regular Potatoes. I have to say John and I absolutely loved it. If only we had had a pie crust we would have thought we were eating an authentic Chicken Pot Pie. It made enough for us to have again today for lunch. I may consider doubling the recipe next time as it was a bit time consuming cutting up the vegetables. It likely would not take much more time to cut up double.  And I may try it next time using my shortcuts of dried onion flakes and garlic (although I know it wouldn’t be quite as delicious.)

Ingredients

• 2 Cups cooked Chicken (Her recipe called for 3 Cups and I think I will try that next time.)
• 2 TBLS Butter of Ghee  (I used KerryGold Butter)
• 1 Onion diced
• 5 small Cloves Garlic, minced (This seemed like so much, but was perfect.)
• 1 pound peeled Japanese Sweet Potatoes, roughly chopped (She used regular potatoes.) Please note: I used not just any Sweet Potato, but rather Japanese as these taste even better than a white potato.
• 1 pound Japanese Sweet Potato diced
• 2 Cups Chicken Broth
• 1 Can Full-Fat Canned Coconut Milk (She used 1 Cup)
• 3 chopped Carrots
• 2 diced Celery ribs
• (I omitted 1 cup frozen peas)
• 1 tsp. Sea Salt
• 1/2 tsp. Cayenne Pepper  (I used 1/8)
• 1/2 tsp. Black Pepper
• 1 TBLS chopped fresh Sage  This may have been a first for me to use FRESH sage and thyme versus the dried kind of spice.
• 2 TBLS chopped fresh Thyme
• 2 tsp. chopped fresh Rosemary (I used the dried that I had on hand. I can only imagine how good the fresh might have been as the Rosemary gave a very delectable flavor to  the soup.)

How to Make

1. Dice Onions and mince the Garlic.
2. Saute for 5 minutes in the melted Butter or Ghee.
3. Chop one pound of the Potatoes and add this and the Chicken Broth to the pan. Bring to a boil and cover with lid, reduce heat to low. Cook 10 minutes.
4. Using a slotted spoon, scoop potatoes into a blender. Add the coconut milk and puree. Set aside.
5. Dice Carrots and the other pound of Potatoes.
6. Add these to the pan, bring to boil, cover and reduce heat to low.
7. Cook about 10 minutes or until the potatoes and carrots are fork tender.
8. Add Celery, Spices, Cooked Chicken and Pureed Potatoes to the pan and mix well.
9. Cook medium low for 5 minutes.

Note: there was something about the length of time she suggests for each set of cooking the soup that made the vegetables just perfectly oooked and slightly crisp.

Benefits of Soup

This is a quote from http://rendezvoustucson.com/top-6-benefits-of-eating-soup/

“Soup is delicious.

Soup can be a comfort food as it is delicious. It is easy to make. With only a few ingredients, one can make a bowl of hearty soup for a cold evening.

Soup is good for the health.  I want to learn how to make Bone Broth, which is highly nutritious. Elanaspantry.com has a very good Bone Broth recipe on it as well as an article on the Instant Pot, which I am hearing more and more good things about.

Perhaps the easiest way to add vegetables to your daily meals is to make and eat soup. You can make several bowls of soup filled with fruits and veggies each day and you’ll be filled. Eating vegetables is part of a healthy diet so veggie soups are highly recommended.

Soup can help you lose weight.

Soups are slimming. Of course, that is if you strictly follow a weight-loss plan and exercise more. A bowl of soup packs minimal calorie but is very nutritious.

Soup makes you feel full.

Soup fills you up because it stretches the stomach. You easily feel full so it’s ideal to eat soup at the beginning of every meal.

Soup is affordable to make.

Making soup won’t require a lot of money. Go the grocery or market; buy some vegetables and fruits, broth or water, and you can easily make a batch enough to feed the entire family. For a small cost, you can make a lot of people feel full and healthy.

Soup can make you feel better.

Ever wondered by chicken soup is always given to the sick? It is because soup is great for people who are sick. It is easily digested and is filled with health benefits.”

Watch for Favorite Soup 2 and 3 coming Soon

Have you tried the Carrot Soup I posted earlier? We are making this one for the third time for dinner tonight.