It’s starting to finally cool down. For me, that means SOUP weather!

I am looking forward to a yummy winter.

Roasted Broccoli Cheddar Soup
This final recipe is a culmination of years catering lunches and teaching cooking students; a few tweaks each time I prepared it for someone. It is a winner.
Gather:
2-3 Tablespoons olive oil
2 large crowns of broccoli, trimmed to florets
1/4 cup butter
1 medium onion, chopped (approx. 1 cup)
4 medium carrots, chopped (approx. 1 cup)
2 stalks celery, chopped (approx. ½ cup)
1/4 cup flour
1 teaspoon Kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg, fresh grated
1/2 teaspoon fresh cracked pepper
2 cups low sodium chicken stock
2 cups half-and-half
¼ cup finely grated parmesan
8 ounces grated sharp cheddar
To Make:
Place broccoli in roasting pan and roast in oven at 350 for 20 minutes. This is an extra step, but the added flavor is soooo worth it.

While broccoli is roasting, place half and half in a small saucepan and warm over low heat. In a large saucepan, melt butter under medium to medium high heat and sauté onions, celery, and carrots.

Add in flour and cook for 3-5 minutes making a blonde roux. Add seasonings and whisk in chicken stock.  Bring to boil, reduce to a simmer, and simmer on low.  When the broccoli is done, add it in, and simmer for an additional 20 minutes.

Using either an immersion blender or ladling into a regular blender, puree the soup. Return the soup to the saucepan and add in warmed half and half and cheeses.  From this point, do not allow to boil.  Gently simmer soup for about 20 minutes, allowing the flavors to combine and cheeses to melt. Ladle into bowls, find your favorite bread, crouton, or crackers and dive in to some cheesy comfort. Trust me, my phone does not do justice to the yumminess.

Beef & Vegetable Soup like my Dad made it
Gather:
1/2 pound ground beef
1/3 large onion, diced
1 celery stalk, diced
1 carrot, peeled and diced
1 red bell pepper, chopped
3 cloves garlic, diced
1 large red potato, large dice
14 ounce can whole tomatoes
3 Tablespoons tomato paste
2 Tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
2 teaspoons dried herbs de Provence
1 teaspoon Kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon cracked black pepper
1 bay leaf
3 cups beef broth
To Make:
In a large soup pot, over medium-high heat, brown the meat with onion, celery, carrot, pepper, and garlic. Remove from heat, drain, and discard the grease.
Return to heat add tomato paste, Worcestershire, and herbs. Cook over medium-high heat until dry. Stir in broth, add potato, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low/medium-low and simmer for 15-20 minutes, until potatoes are softened.

A’s Potato Soup
This is an original S’more Mom recipe, and one of my all time winter favorites!
Serves 4
Gather:
2 Tablespoons olive oil
2 Tablespoons butter
1 celery stock, fine dice
3 baked Yukon gold potatoes
1 clove garlic
3 sprigs fresh thyme
1 1/2 cups thick cubed black forest ham
1/2 medium sweet onion
1 shallot
2-4 cups chicken stock
2/3 – 1 cup cream, half-and-half, or whole milk
1/4 cup sour cream
2 Tablespoons chives, finely chopped
To Make:
Bake potatoes at 400 degrees for 30 minutes. Sauté ham, onion, celery, shallot, garlic, and thyme with olive oil and butter over medium-high heat until veggies are translucent and ham slightly browns. While cooking, bake potatoes an additional 15 minutes, and allow to cool slightly. Peel and dice, set aside. Add salt and pepper to taste. Deglaze with a small amount of chicken stock, just enough to scrape brown bits. Sprinkle veggie mixture with flour, and cook several minutes. Add enough chicken stock to cover veggies, dairy, potatoes, and chives. Simmer an additional 10 minutes, but do not boil.

Chicken Enchilada Soup
Serves 6-8
Gather:
3 Tablespoons butter
1 sweet bell pepper, diced
1 medium onion, diced
1 rib celery, chopped
2 carrots, peeled & chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
Salt and pepper
4 cups chicken stock or low sodium chicken broth
28 oz can whole peeled tomatoes
1 lime, juiced
1 Tablespoon chili powder
1 Tablespoon garlic powder
1 Tablespoon cumin
2 teaspoons Mexican oregano
2 teaspoons salt
¼ – ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
8 corn tortillas, cut into think (1/4”) strips, divided
2 cups diced cooked chicken
½ teaspoon baking powder
4 oz cream cheese
4 oz American cheese or queso blanco (good melting cheese)
1 to 1 ½ cups half and half (can substitute cream, Mexican crema, or sour cream)
4 oz can green chilies
*can substitute 2-3 Tablespoons of non-msg taco seasoning for chili powder, garlic powder, cayenne, cumin and salt.
**the baking soda keeps the dairy from curdling when added to the tomatoes and lime juice in the soup base
To Make:
Melt butter over medium heat and sweat pepper, onion, celery, and carrots until softened. Stir in seasonings, stock, tomatoes and 4 tortillas.

Bring to a boil, reduce and simmer 15 minutes. Puree and return to pot.

While soup simmers, bake remaining tortilla strips at 375 degrees until crispy.

Add baking soda, and when bubbling calms, add cheeses, chilies, half and half, and chicken. Simmer over low heat 30 minutes longer, stirring occasionally to prevent scalding.

Garnish with: crispy tortilla strips, sour cream, pico de gallo, avocado, cilantro, grated cheddar

Minestone Soup Base
Gather:
1 Tablespoon EVOO
1 onion, diced
2 carrots, diced
2 celery sticks, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
4 cups beef broth
28 ounce petite diced tomatoes
1 bay leaf
1 sprig rosemary, minced
salt and pepper to taste
any vegetables you want to add, diced
1 can Italian beans, rinsed & drained
To Make:
Sauté onion, carrots, celery, and garlic until translucent. Add it broth, tomatoes, vegetables, herbs, and seasoning. Bring to boil, reduce to simmer. Simmer at least 20 minutes, checking for tenderness.

Toss It Together Southwest Chicken Soup
This soup can be easily assembled with pantry and freezer ingredients

Tomato Parmesan Soup

Williams-Sonoma French Onion Soup

Try these other recipes from my Souper Pinterest board and let me know your thoughts!