Hamburger Soup

This is a small tribute to my beautiful grandma who passed away on Saturday. Another one of her farm comfort foods. I love this soup because all the ingredients are always on hand. You can pretty much just throw in anything you want to, and it will still taste great.

Grandma Lill's Hamburger Soup

Recipe from Lillian Rydalch

1/4 c chopped onion

4 1/2 c water 

1 c diced carrot

1 c diced potato

1 c diced celery

1/2 Tbsp salt to taste

1/2 tsp pepper

1 beef bouillon cube

1 bay leaf

1 can kidney beans (drained and rinsed)

1 1/2 Tbsp chili powder

1 28 ounce large can tomatoes (un-drained)

handful macaroni noodles (1-2 cups to your liking)

Brown hamburger with the onion and drain.

Add all ingredients except tomatoes, noodles and beans; cover and bring to boil.

Turn down heat and simmer for 20 minutes.

Add tomatoes, noodles, and beans and simmer until noodles are tender. If you use a lot of noodles you may need to add more water. Salt and pepper to taste.
Serve with cheddar cheese on top if you'd like! Enjoy!

Slow Cooker Chili

I love chili, especially here in cold country! My kids love it too as long as some sort of chips accompany it, since that's our favorite way to eat chili around our house.  You can also serve it with some cornbread, cornbread muffins, or serve it over a baked potato too. (That's how I ate chili growing up since we had potatoes with almost every meal!)

Slow Cooker Chili

1 pound ground beef

1/4 cup onions, chopped (or 1 Tbsp onion flakes), optional

4 garlic cloves, minced

2 cans mild chili beans, keep juices

1 can dark kidney beans, rinsed and drained

1 (28 ounce) can diced tomatoes (or 2- 14.5 ounce cans)

2 Tbsp chili powder

1 tsp salt

1 Tbsp cumin

1/4 tsp pepper

1/4 cup water

Brown the beef with the onion and minced garlic. Drain any grease and put into a slow cooker. Add the rest of the ingredients into the slow cooker and stir to combine. Cook on low 6-8 hours, or high for 3 hours. You can also do this in a big pot the same way with browning the beef and then adding everything and simmering until everything is heated through.

Pasta e Fagioli

I've been making this for a few years now ever since my sister in law shared it with me. The nice thing is you can really change the quantities to suit you and your family just like I did when she gave it to me.  The best part is it will make your kitchen smell amazing! I served it tonight with this hearth bread (with some olive oil and seasons to dip), and sparkling cider for the kids. It felt like the perfect Italian dinner!

Pasta e Fagioli

Recipe adapted from Kelli Melin

Serves 5-6 (you can cut it in half easily)

1 Tbsp olive oil

1 Tbsp dried onion flakes or 1 green onion, finely chopped

2 carrots, finely chopped

2 celery stalks, finely chopped

3 large garlic cloves, minced

2 cans great Northern beans, drained well

1 cup chicken broth (I make it using chicken bouillon cube)

2 cans diced tomatoes with juices

1 1/2 tsp dried rosemary

1 Tbsp parsley

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper

2 cups dry small pasta shells, cooked al dente and drained

Cook the noodles if you haven't already. Heat up oil and saute onions, carrot, celery and garlic until soft, about 8 minutes. Add the beans, broth, tomatoes and juices, and rosemary. Bring to a boil. Reduce to simmer, stir in pasta, parsley and salt and pepper. Simmer covered about 5 minutes.

Spaghetti O's

 I'm not afraid to admit that I like easy quick meals every now and then (especially when my husband has been out of town for 5 days). My mother in law bought me some of these pasta noodles at the store when she was visiting for the holidays and told me I could use them to make home-made spaghetti-Os. If you didn't know already the Spaghetti-Os you buy in the can are packed with dairy, so that's why I had to share this idea! Tastes exactly like the canned stuff (but with way less preservatives and sodium and no milk) If your family eats 2 cans of tomato soup when you make it, then double the recipe using 2 cans and 2 cups noodles- simple as that. Yes, I know I could always make my own tomato soup, but sometimes I just don't have that kind of time. If you want to try making tomato soup from scratch there are a lot of recipes out there like this one that will do the trick...or you can use a can- nobody will judge you I promise! (especially me)

Spaghetti O's

Serves 2 adults or 4 kids

1 cup triple O rings pasta (like the one here)

1 can condensed tomato soup

1 can water or soy milk (I use water)

salt and pepper to taste

Bring a large pot of water to boil. Add the pasta and cook for about 5 minutes or until mostly cooked. Drain. Put the pasta back into the pot along with the condensed soup and water and bring to a boil over low-medium heat until heated through and the noodles are tender. Salt and pepper to taste and enjoy.

Walker Homestyle Stew

This is my favorite stew because it is super easy to make and better than any others that take more time and prep. Our family likes a nice thick stew (which is easier for our kids to eat) but you can always add 1 more cup of water if you want it more soupy. I use red potatoes with the skins, and usually serve it up with french bread rolls.

Mel's Mom's Homestyle Stew

Recipe from Mel @ My Kitchen Cafe

1 can minestrone soup

1 can tomato soup

1 can water

1 to 1 1/2 pounds stew meat

1 onion, chopped

3-4 carrots, thickly sliced

3-4 potatoes, cut into chunks

Salt and pepper to taste

Combine all in a crockpot. Cook on low for 8-10 hours or high 4-5 hours. Serves 4-6.

Grandma Lill's Chicken Noodle Soup

This is the best chicken noodle soup, and I am so loyal to it that I won't even make another. My grandma always made this for us when we would go up to visit her in Idaho, especially in the winter months. The key ingredient is the Mrs Weiss Kluski noodles, although you could use any homemade or egg noodles you have. One of the best parts about chicken noodle soup is that you can make it with leftover chicken, so obviously do that if you have any. I usually plan to make this soup the same week I pick up a rotissere chicken at Sams Club. :) I usually use about 2 cups of leftover chicken pieces, but we like ours really meaty. Still simmer for 35 minutes even if the chicken is cooked, just to get all the vegetables nice and tender. Also you can make this as thick or thin as you want to, but as a general rule use one chicken bouillon cube per cup of water. On an allergy note, check the ingredients on the bouillon because some contain dairy. I use the Tones brand and called their service department to make sure it was perfectly safe.

Grandma Lill's Chicken Noodle Soup

Recipe from Lillian Rydalch

8 cups water

about 2 cups leftover chicken, cut or torn into bitesize pieces

3 circular chopped carrots

3 stalks celery, chopped
onion or flakes

8 bouillon cubes

pinch of garlic salt

pinch of pepper

1 bay leaf

1 bag Kluski noodles

Combine all ingredients except for the noodles in a stockpot. Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer for about 35 minutes. Add noodles and simmer another 10-15 minutes (or use your noodle package instructions).