Chicken Noodle Soup: Everyone's Favorite!

The cold weather seems to not be leaving any time soon! Lucky for me, I have been able to try some new soup recipes! In the past week, I choose to create a poll on Twitter to see what type of soup everyone would be interested in. The verdict was chicken noodle soup! I was so happy about the results because chicken noodle is my absolute favorite! Yum! I choose to create my own recipe for my chicken noodle soup. The soup incorporated the classics like onions, garlic, big chucks of carrots, celery. In order to make my soup unique, I always put in mushrooms to give it more flavor and honestly I find everything is better with mushrooms! I just purchased a dutch oven this past month. I have realized soups taste a lot better when prepared in a dutch oven and I cant seem to understand the reason. All I know for sure it that I will only prepare my soups in a dutch oven!

When preparing my soup, I wondered is chicken noodle a soup enjoyed across the world? Does each culture have their own spin that is unique to foods popular in their cultures? I had to go check it out! I went on my favorite site for recipes which is Food Network and found nothing that sounded good. It seems weird but I love to utilize YouTube to find recipe ideas! I can see exactly how people make their own soups unique and people will often give tips and recommendations! YouTube allows me the opportunity to expand my own knowledge on the different options when making soups! After a little searching, I was able to find a Korean Chicken Noodle Soup recipe. In Korea, chicken noodle soup is called “Dak-kalguksu!” I am always interested in expanding my knowledge when it comes to tasty soups to enjoy! This was a cultural spin on the classic soup! I decided to try the soup and it realized it took forever compare to when I made my own soup! I made the soup this past Monday, and I will probably never make it again because it was so time consuming! The experience was fun and it did taste really good once it was complete! If you have a whole day to yourself, I would recommend going ahead and trying this new spin on a classic chicken noodle soup!

I have attached the link to the Korean Chicken Noodle Soup, if any of you dare to make this recipe sometime! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Ceg1QN56p0

Be Heart Healthy!

We are always told: We are what we eat! I remember when I was younger my parents always tried to make me eat vegetables….gross! I mean what kid likes to eat vegetables. The only way I would eat vegetables would be in soups my mom would prepare! I think I was about eight the first time I ate the soup. The soup consisted of three different style beans and an bunch of vegetables. This style of soup is very heart healthy while tasting great!

February is Heart Healthy month, so why not enjoy it with a great soup! Eating heart healthy meals is very important in my family. After my grandfather pasted away from having a heart attack, I have become more aware of what foods I put in my diet.  The foods we consume can greatly impact the health of our heart. I have created a delicious three bean soup that I would often enjoy when I was younger.

The soup is simple and quick. Here is the recipe I used in my soup prepared this week!

Quick Tip: I have noticed soups turn out the best if you can cook it in a Dutch Oven! Try it out!

Three Bean Soup Recipe:

1 Medium Onion, chopped

1 Tablespoon Olive Oil

4 Medium Carrots

3 Cups of Fresh Spinach (chopped)

3 Cups of Vegetable Broth

3 Cups of Water

2 Tablespoons of basil

1 Teaspoon dried oregano

2 Garlic Cloves, chopped

1 Can of Northern Beans (rinsed & drained)

1 Can of Garbanzo Beans (rinsed & drained)

1 Can of Red Beans

-In Dutch Oven, sauté onions and garlic in oil. Then add the rest of the ingredients, and simmer, until vegetables are tender.

**Add Salt & Pepper to Taste

Enjoy!!

Love a Classic!

Cold weather means soup for dinner! In the winter months, I cook soup because it’s the best meal to warm me up after being outside. A classic favorite during the winter months is tomato soup paired with a warm grilled cheese sandwich. Just thinking about it makes my hungry!

I am going take a twist on this traditional favorite. I went ahead and recreated a recipe found on the Food Network called Easy Tomato Soup & Grilled Cheese Croutons . This recipe was delicious, and incorporated the grilled cheese as croutons to place on top of the soup. 

It was the perfect meal for after coming in from the outside. In the recipe it asked for Gruyere cheese, I am not a huge fan of Gruyere cheese so I swapped it with Gouda and it tasted wonderful!

I hopes everyone ventures in and creates this new spin on an old classic.

Enjoy!

Abbey

Photo Credit: Food Network Site