Slow Cooked, Meatless Taco Soup

Prep time: 15  minutes          Cook time: 6 hours          Total time: 6.25 hours

About:

Happy Autumn, everyone! It is finally getting chilly here in Alabama, and I’ve been having a craving for taco soup, so here we are! I love everything about taco soup; it tastes like tacos and it’s a soup. What could be better? I used a slow cooker to prepare this soup, which, in my opinion, enhances the taste. It also makes this a “set it and forget it” type of soup, which is even better for lazy Sundays like today. You can cook the soup on high for 4 hours to speed things up, or you could prepare it in a stock pot to do it even faster. Whichever way you choose, I hope you like this meatless taco soup.

Ingredients:

1 packet of taco seasoning mix

1 packet of dry ranch mix

1 cup dry black beans

1 cup dry pinto beans

1 (14.5 oz) can corn

2 (14.5 oz) cans diced tomatoes

1 cup chopped carrots

1 large onion, chopped

4 cloves garlic, finely chopped

3  1/2 cups vegetable broth

1/4 teaspoon hot sauce

1  3/4 tablespoon cumin

1/2 tablespoon white pepper

1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric

1/2 tablespoon onion powder

1/2 tablespoon garlic powder

Salt and pepper to taste

Preparation:

1. Chop the onion, garlic, and carrots.
2. After chopping the onion, garlic, and carrots comes the really fun part; just dump everything into a slow cooker, including the seasonings (don’t drain the corn or tomatoes).
3. Cook the soup on medium heat in your slow cooker for approximately 6 hours, stirring every hour or so.
4. Once 6 hours have passed and the beans are tender, you are ready to serve! I personally like mine with tortilla chips, cheese, chives, and sour cream. Get creative and eat well!
5. 

Chick Pea and Red Lentil Stew

About:

I don’t know what’s wrong with me. I live in the heart of the southern United States where the heat index has been 109 degrees Fahrenheit over the last couple of weeks, with the occasional 105 degrees. What have I been eating? Soups and stews. Hot soups and stews. This is a great slow-cooker recipe to use on cold (or blistering hot) days. This recipe is an easy throw it in the pot and forget it kind of recipe. I used rice leftover from the night before, so the rice that is called for is already cooked. If you haven’t already cooked the rice, this will add to the prep time a little bit. Every ingredient in this recipe is good for you, (unless you have an allergy, then it’s not very good for you) so you can feel healthy as you eat it!

Prep Time: 15 minutes       Cook Time: 5 hours       Total Time: 5 hours 15 minutes

Ingredients:

1 cup chick peas (dry)

1/2 cup red lentils (dry)

3/4 cups brown rice, cooked

4 cups vegetable stock or broth

1 1/2 cup water

2 cans diced tomatoes

3-4 bay leaves

3 large garlic cloves, chopped

1/2 large onion

1/4 cup celery, chopped

1/4 cup carrots, chopped

1 yellow squash, diced

1/2 cup frozen green peas

1/2 teaspoon white pepper

1 teaspoon black pepper

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon paprika

1/2 teaspoon sage

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

3/4 teaspoon cumin

1 tablespoon soy sauce

1 tablespoon tomato paste

Pinches of rosemary

Preparation:

1. If you haven’t already, cook the brown rice and chop the garlic, onion, carrots, celery, and squash.

2. Once the rice has cooked and your vegetables are chopped, throw everything into a slow cooker. Turn the heat on the slow cooker between medium and high and let it cook for about 5 hours, stirring every hour or so.

3. Serve and enjoy!

Lentil Soup

About this recipe: This lentil soup is healthy and easy to make. All you really have to do is stick all of the ingredients in a pot and let it do its own thing (keeping an eye on it, of course). This recipe would also work well in a slow-cooker on medium-low heat for about 3-4 hours.

Prep Time: 10 minutes         Cook Time: 45 minutes         Total Time: 55 minutes

Ingredients:

1 cup lentils

5 cups vegetable stock or broth

2 cans diced tomatoes

1 cup celery, chopped

1 cup carrots, chopped

1 medium yellow squash, chopped

1/2 large sweet onion

2-3 garlic cloves, finely chopped

2/3 cup frozen green peas

1/3 cup frozen corn

3 bay leaves

1  1/2 teaspoon black pepper

1/2 teaspoon salt

1  1/2 teaspoon paprika

1/2 teaspoon oregano

1/4 teaspoon white pepper

1/2 teaspoon cumin

A couple dashes of dry mustard

A couple pinches of dry rosemary

Preparation:

1. In a large stew or stock pot, add all of the ingredients: lentils, diced tomatoes (not drained), vegetable broth/stock, celery, carrots, squash, onion, garlic, peas, corn, bay leaves, salt, black and white pepper, paprika, oregano, cumin, dry mustard and rosemary. Bring the soup to a boil.

2. After the soup has been boiling gently for about 7 minutes, reduce the heat to a simmer and cover.

3. Let the soup simmer for about 45 minutes, stirring every 15 minutes or so.

4. Once the soup has thickened, it is ready. Discard the bay leaves and serve.

Beer Potato Soup

Hi guys! It’s almost summer and in the southern US where I live, it’s been over 90 degrees every day for the past week. What food did I get a craving for? Beer Potato Soup. It may not be most people’s choice for hot, humid days, but I can’t get enough of this stuff, so I decided to share it with you all.

Prep Time: 15 minutes          Cook Time: 65 minutes          Total Time: 80 minutes

Ingredients:

4 or 5 large potatoes, diced

1 can/bottle of your favorite beer

1 medium yellow onion, chopped

1 cup celery, chopped

2 large radishes, chopped

2 large garlic cloves, finely chopped

1  3/4 cup vegetable broth/stock

1/2 cup milk

3 tablespoons flour

5 tablespoons butter or margarine

1 1/2 teaspoon of salt

Pepper to taste (I use a lot)

Cajun seasoning to taste

1/4 teaspoon white pepper

A couple pinches of dry rosemary

Grated or shredded cheese to taste

Preparation:

1. Melt 2 tablespoons butter or margarine in a large stock or stew pot. The other 3 tablespoons of butter/margarine are used in a later step.

2. Add the chopped onion, garlic, celery, and radishes. Saute on medium high heat until the the vegetables are soft, about 5 minutes.

3. Add the diced potatoes, your favorite beer, vegetable broth/stock, salt, pepper, Cajun seasoning, white pepper, and rosemary. Bring this to a boil.

4. Once everything begins to boil, reduce the heat to a simmer and let it sit for 45 minutes. Stir every 15 minutes or so.

5. When the 45 minutes is about up, melt 3 tablespoons of butter or margarine into a small or medium saucepan. Add the flour and milk. Whisk this mixture frequently until it is smooth and looks like this:

6. Once the butter/margarine, milk, and flour reach the desire consistency, remove it from heat.

7. Use a ladle to spoon the potato soup mixture into a blender. Do this carefully as the soup is likely to be very hot. Blend the soup until it is smooth and chunks are barely visible. Once blended, return the soup to the stew or stock pot.

8. Add the butter/margarine, milk, and floor mixture to the potato soup.

9. Stir the butter/margarine, milk, and flour mixture into the soup until it is no longer distinguishable.

10. Add grated or shredded cheese and let the potato soup cook for an additional 10 minutes to let the cheese melt and for the flavors to blend. Stir frequently. Use more seasonings if necessary.

11. Serve and enjoy.

Split Pea Soup

Prep Time: 10 minutes         Cook Time: 70 minutes         Total Time: 80 minutes

Ingredients:

1  1/2 cup green split peas (dry)              2 radishes

One large onion                                               1 cup chopped carrots

2 tablespoons butter                                    1 cup chopped celery

2 garlic cloves (chopped fine)                   2 tablespoons dried leaf marjoram

1/2 teaspoon white pepper                       1  1/2 – 2 cups vegetable stock

2-3 cups water                                                  Cajun seasoning to taste

Salt and pepper to taste

4  Morning Star vegetarian bacon strips (optional)

Preparation:

1. Melt the butter in a large stew or stock pot.

2. Once the butter has melted, add the chopped onion, carrots, celery, garlic, and radishes. If you want to add the vegetarian bacon strips, cut them into fine pieces and add them with the vegetables. (You can also do them in the microwave according to the instructions on the package).

3. Let the vegetables saute over low to medium heat for roughly 7 minutes, or until the onion is translucent.

4. Add the marjoram and stir it into the vegetable mix. Let this saute for another couple of minutes.

5. Add the split green peas and pour in the vegetable stock and water. You can use all vegetable stock or all water. You can even make your own special vegetable stock / water combination. Do whatever suits your taste.

6. Add the white pepper, Cajun seasoning, and salt and pepper to taste.

7. Bring everything to a boil.

8. After everything has boiled for a little bit, reduce the heat to medium-low. Partially cover the pot. Let everything cook for an hour. Hint: Set a timer for fifteen minutes four times. Each time the timer goes off, stir the soup. If it looks too soupy after a couple of times stirring, add some flour to thicken things up. If it’s too thick, add some water.

9. Once the soup has been simmering for an hour and the peas are falling apart nicely, puree 5 cups of the soup in a blender (I sometimes puree all of it if I’m in the mood). To do this, use a ladle to transfer the soup into a blender. It will be hot, so be careful. Hint: I use the dice / chop setting on my blender. 

10. Once the soup looks nice and smooth, transfer it back to the pot. Heat it back up to the desired temperature. Serve and enjoy!