We recently made some new soups in anticipation of soup day. The first one is a cream base zucchini soup and the second is a cowboy stew. Both were from the Lion House Soups and Stews cookbook.
Oatmeal Zucchini Soup
5 TBSPS butter, divided
1 TBSP minced or chopped onion
1 pinch thyme, dried
1 1/4 lbs. small zucchini, chopped but not peeled plus 1 more zucchini for garnish if desired
1/2 cup quick-cooking oats
1 TBSP Worcestershire sauce
2 cups heavy cream
2 cups milk
2 cups water
salt to taste
Saute onion in 4 TBSP butter until soft, add thyme and zucchini and saute for a few minutes more. Add oats and cook a couple of minutes-stirring constantly. Add Worcestershire sauce, cream, milk, and water, stirring constantly until well mixed. Cover and cook 15 minutes on low heat or until zucchini is tender. Season to taste. Saute sliced zucchini in remaining 1 tbsp butter and add to soup. (We cooked the sliced zucchini in the microwave with water instead of the butter, drained off the water, and then added it to the soup.) Makes 6-8 servings.
Cowboy Stew
1 1/2 lbs. ground beef
3/4 cup chopped onion or one medium/large onion chopped
1 tsp. salt (we used 1/2 tsp.)
1/4 tsp. pepper
1 (10 3/4 ounce) can condensed tomato soup
1 (10 3/4 ounce) can condensed cream of mushroom soup
1 (10 3/4 ounce) soup can of water
4 potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch chunks
4 carrots, peeled and cut into 1/8 inch slices (we did 1/4 inch slices of baby carrots)
3 stalks celery, chopped or diced
Brown ground beef and onion together, drain if necessary. Add salt and pepper along with soups and water. Simmer for about five minutes. Arrange potatoes, carrots, and celery in a 9 x 13 pan and pour soup/meat mixture over the veggies. Bake for 1 1/2 to 2 hours at 350 degrees F or until vegetables are tender or dump everything into a slow cooker after making the meat soup mixture and cook on low 4-5 hours in slow cooker. Makes about 6 servings. Serve with some kind of bread and/or salad.
