Soups & Chilis | Teresa's Family Kitchen

There’s nothing like a bowl of creamy broccoli soup! Made this last night as a quick addition to my dinner, and is was pretty good if I do say so myself. I’ve tweaked this recipe a little to my liking by adding more milk then chicken stock, and it added a lot of creamy goodness! You can whip is up in a snap, and have it on your dinner table in under an hour. I used frozen broccoli florets in my recipe, but you may use fresh broccoli too. Here is how you can make this delicious creamy broccoli soup…

Ingredients You’ll Need

1 pound of broccoli, fresh or frozen

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 tablespoon butter

2 garlic cloves

1 small onion

1-2 tablespoons of flour

2 cups milk, any type

1/4 cup half and half

2 cups chicken stock, low sodium is what I used

salt and pepper to taste

nutmeg, just a dash

parmesan cheese for topping

bread sticks, sesame crackers, croutons, or whatever you like to dip into your soup.

In a large pot add your olive oil, butter, garlic, and onion. Let them soften a couple of minutes. Next add flour, this makes your soup thicken, stir well. Then add your chicken stock, milk, half and half, nutmeg, and of course broccoli. Let your soup cook on medium heat until broccoli is soft enough to puree in your blender. Mine took 30 minutes since my broccoli was frozen. Next puree your soup in batches in a blender, and add back to your initial pot. Taste your soup, this is where you add salt, pepper, and parmesan cheese. You may serve your soup in a bread bowl, yum, or have some crackers or croutons on the side. This recipe can serve 4-6 people depending how much you fill your bowls! Enjoy!

It’s a cold day here in New York, so I decided to make something to warm the heart and the stomach! This hearty pinto bean chicken soup is my take on soup meets chili. You can eat this by itself, or how I like it with a side a tortilla chips and a dollop of sour cream. It’s a recipe that can be made ahead of time, and be reheated when ready to use. You may store it in batches when you need a quick lunch or supper too!

Here’s what you’ll need to make this heart warming meal…

2-tablespoons olive oil

1 small onion

2 cloves of garlic chopped

3 carrots

2-3 small potatoes of your liking

1-15 ounce can of pinto beans. You can substitute for cannellini

1 cup chopped cooked chicken

2 cups low sodium chicken stock, I used organic free range

1/2 cup water

2 bay leaves

2 tablespoons parmesan cheese

salt and pepper to taste

garlic powder

3 tablespoons cilantro chopped, or as much as you like

sour cream, low fat, non fat, or FULL Fat!

Tortilla chips

( some people add in celery, since I’m not a big fan I didn’t add any in)

In a large pot, heat up your olive oil. Add in onion and garlic and saute for a couple of minutes until softened. Then add your potatoes, and carrots. Stir well and add your chicken stock and half a cup of water. Season with salt, pepper, garlic powder, parmesan, and add bay leaves. Let simmer until your potatoes and carrots seem to soften a bit. Add your drained pinto beans and cooked chicken to the pot, stir occasionally. Let the soup cook on low for 30-40 minutes. Since your chicken is already cooked and the beans are right out of the can, they just need to be warmed through. Check for salt. The chicken stock I use is always low sodium, so you may need a touch more salt. Add your cilantro just before serving as a garnish on top of each bowl. Break out the tortilla chips, and sour cream and you’ve got a really good one pot meal! Enjoy!