Comfort Food Soups

[Chief Longwind Of The North]

I have always loved Campbell's Cream of Mushroom Soup, with just a half glass of milk added, and hot. My Dad liked to combine either a can of clam chowder, or cream of chicken soup to the mushroom soup. I liked the clam/mushroom soup combination best.

My favorite was the plain mushroom soup though. I'd take a spoonful and seperate the mushroom bits from the creamy soup by straining the soup between my cheek and teeth, and then, after the last spooful was consumed, I'd chew up all of the mushrooms. I still do that occasionally. It's just a treat from yester-year revisited.

Today, I did something to remind me of my Dad, wjo passed on so many years back. I took a can of mushroom soup, and added 1 cup of leftover turkey soup, made from the Thanksgiving Day's turkey carcass. Teh turkey soup came out very good this year. I didn't add rice, noodles, or barley to it, something I always do. That made it more versatile.

But I digress. Along with the turkey soup, I added a half cup of milk, and brought everything up to a gentle simmer. I gotta tell you, the whole was superior to the parts. This soup was creamy, with a good mushroom/turkey/dairy flavor that was gentle to the tongue, well ballanced, not to salty or sweet, and warmed me to my toes. People, this combo is a winner. If you like delicate, creamy flavors, then this soup, as I made it, is for you. If you're in the mood for something with more kick, add some coarse-grind black pepper, a touch of oregano, some sage or thyme, etc. In any case, you need to try this combination.

Seeeeeeeya; Goodweed of the North

 

[Barb L.]

I could go for a cup of that right now - our chill factor is 17 F -brrr. Sounds good - I also like crm. of mushroom mixed with a can of crm. of potato.

 

[Chief Longwind Of The North]

I could go for a cup of that right now - our chill factor is 17 F -brrr. Sounds good - I also like crm. of mushroom mixed with a can of crm. of potato.

Our temp is 8 F before wind-chill is factored in. It's a good day for soup.

Seeeeeya; Goodweed of the North (notice: in the North, it's cold)

 

[pdswife]

Not that cold here.. but it is snowing!!

I hate snow unless it's in the mountains... sigh.

Soup does sound good. Very good indeed!!!!

 

[*amy*]

Sounds like an interesting combo, GW. Must admit I'm not wild about the canned mushroom soup. Cook with it on occasion. If you want to try something a little different (& dare I say healthier, this time of year?)...

Oven-Roasted Mushroom Soup

Going w your turkey soup idea, if you have some turkey broth hanging around, you could sub it for the chicken broth. And, I won't tell if you add a little extra heavy cream.

 

[Chief Longwind Of The North]

Sounds like an interesting combo, GW. Must admit I'm not wild about the canned mushroom soup. Cook with it on occasion. If you want to try something a little different (& dare I say healthier, this time of year?)...

Oven-Roasted Mushroom Soup

It looks yummy, except for the white wine. But that's just me. I can't handle the taste of alcoholic beverages, not even wines, except maybe a bit of sherry cooked in with pork, or a bit of marsalla with chicken. But even then, it can be too strong for my taste.

As for the "Healthy" part, how is replacing starch with fat any healthier. Thats the only real difference (taste not figured into this comparison) between the two. The starch in the Campbell's is replaced with the fat from the cream. And I don't truly know which is worse for you.

Of course by either oven roasting or saute'ing the mushrooms in a good EVOO, the flavor is going to be better. And you do control the salt amount. So the soup is going to taste better, and can be tailored to your preferences.

But don't get me wrong, I'm certainly not saying canned soup is better than home-made. I love home-made soups. They have flavor that comercially prepared soups just can't match. In fact, most resaurants can't match the quality of a good, home-made soup, unless you are going to a restaurant with an extraordinary chef.

To sum it all up, I like the soup recipe. But I also really like the version with the Campbell's soup. If you tried it, you would find that it didn't taste much like Campbell's Mushroom soup. The home-made turkey soup takes care of that.

Seeeeeeeya; Goodweed of the North

 

[QSis]

That looks great, amy!

Copied and pasted!

Lee

 

[cheers2wine]

This is my favorite soup recipe. It's easy to make. The sausage gives the soup a rich flavor. Everyone always asks me for the recipe.

[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Zinfandel Minestrone
Serve with French bread[/FONT][FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]

1 pound hot Italian sausage
1 pound mild Italian sausage
1 chopped onion
3 carrots, chopped
1 zucchini, sliced
4 cloves garlic, chopped
3 quarts chicken broth
2 cans diced tomatoes
2 cans cannelloni beans, rinsed and drained
1 tablespoon dried basil
¼ cup Zinfandel
2 cups large shell-shaped pasta
Salt and pepper to taste
1 cup fresh grated parmesan cheese
[/FONT]

[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]1. Squeeze sausages from casings into a large pan. Cook until brown and crumbly, approximately 10 minutes. Discard fat.
2. Add carrots, onion, zucchini, and garlic. Cook for about 6 minutes until onions are soft.
3. Add chicken broth, tomatoes, beans, basil, and Zinfandel. Bring to a boil.
4. Add pasta. Reduce heat and simmer, covered, for about 10 minutes until pasta is tender.
5. Add salt and pepper. Serve into bowls and top with parmesan cheese.
[/FONT]​

[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]This will make 12 servings. [/FONT]

 

[bigjimbray]

It`s 31* here where I live an that is cold to me, I could`nt live up there in minnesota or michigan during the winter, I am from california and I don`t like it when it gets in the 30`s
let a lone the tempratures where you live. but I do love soups, which I could eat each day of the year. as for cream soups I like potato and leeks soup. for vegtable soups I
like Albondigas, mexican meatball soup. also like pozole.

 

[Michael in FtW]

I think I understand what Goodweed is talking about when he says "COMFORT FOOD" - it doesn't have anything to do with the "latest" health guidelines from some organization or another, nor does it have to do with the latest "Gourmet" recipe with exotic ingredients ... it has to do with something from a better day and time in our lives (usually when we were children) that brings back a flood of good memories and warm feelings ... and puts us back in touch with those who may no longer be around in our lives.

I make a pretty good cream of tomato soup from scratch ... but sometimes I make a can of Campbell's Tomato Soup with milk and a pat of butter, like Mom did, and crumble up 6-8 saltine crackers in it, like Dad did ... and I'm back remembering things from the 1960's ... throw in a grilled cheese sandwich ... WOW!

Mom also made a lot of scratch soups - that I make, too.

The fact is that soup, be it canned or scrach, can be the culinary DeLorean to transport us "Back to the Future" ... and no matter how short - I need those moments from time to time.

 

[bigjimbray]

I agree with you Michael 100%, there is a soup I have made since I was a kid that I make
every so often, it`s a chili vegetable soup. My youngest son jesse when he comes in the
house when I make that he all ways comments, that we are going to eat good today.

 

[larry_stewart]

As far as comfort food ( soups ) go, although I dont eat it anymore ( since im a vegetarian now) , I remember when i was much younger and still living at home, on a cold rainy sunday, My father would Make Manhattan clam chowder. He would put a few records on the record player ( louis armstrong, peter paul and mary ...yeah yeah, I know kinda old) and he would lay all the vegetables on the table, with 3 cutting boards. Me , my sister and brother would help him chop the vegetables while he opened the clams. I also remember the pot slowly simmering for hours, and id always sneak into the kitchen when no one was around to taste it before it was done.

Im not sure if it was the soup itself, or just the memories that it brings back that are the comfort aspect of it. But who cares :P

larry

 

[Chief Longwind Of The North]

You guys and gals have nailed it. Comfort soups should taste good. They don't have to be gourmet. And they do ellicet memmories from times when we didn't have quite so many complications in our lives, especially with those we loved. My Mother's chili is like that. She's gone, but lives on in my memories of her, her home made breads, her date-filled cookies every Christmas, etc. My Dad made boiled dinner, Van Camps pork and beans, cooked with Volwurths hot dogs in the same pan.

I could go on forever. But any of the foods that either of my parents, or grandparents used to make on a regular basis, are comfort foods for me, except my mother's grilled steaks. Man were they tough to chew.

Seeeeeya; Goodweed of the North

 

[GotGarlic]

As for the "Healthy" part, how is replacing starch with fat any healthier. Thats the only real difference (taste not figured into this comparison) between the two. The starch in the Campbell's is replaced with the fat from the cream. And I don't truly know which is worse for you.

There's only 2 tablespoons of cream in that recipe; the Campbell's cream of mushroom soup has almost twice the fat and sodium as the soup Amy posted.


- http://www.campbellwellness.com/product-list.asp?brandCatID=807&brandID=1&productID=2310&catID=294
- Oven-Roasted Mushroom Soup Recipe - thedailygreen.com

 

[Robo410]

comfort food soups for me are bean lentil or split pea made from ham bone. I also love clam and seafood chowder, and make a rela nice Italian sausage "chowder".

 

[Constance]

At our house, Campbell's Chicken and Noodle was always the comfort soup, except for one of my daughters, who preferred the Cream of Mushroom. A friend of mine mixes a can of the mushroom with a can of chicken noodle. I tried it, and it's darned tasty.
Needless to say, a toasted cheese sandwich always with any comfort soup for dipping...slurp!

 

[Andy M.]

When I was a tyke, mom made all our soups from scratch (Never had canned soup until my teen years).

She made the best vegetable soup with all the veggies neatly cut up into tiny cubes. Then there was her version of avgo lemono (sp?) soup (chicken broth thickened with egg and lemon). Nothing tasted better on a cold blustery day! And if you were sick, it was magic!

 

[kadesma]

Ahh, I always loved when my dad said lets have some soup and crackers..That meant we would be doing the cooking together..And, it also meant one of two things, either creamy tomato soup (Campbells) that dad would add some heavy cream and pats of butter too, or he would make his version of Oyster soup, cream, fresh oysters,Worchestershire, oh they both tasted so good...But, for a kid a bucket of pond water would have been just as good, cuz dad made it and you got to help.
kadesma

 

[ChefJune]

This is my favorite soup recipe. It's easy to make. The sausage gives the soup a rich flavor. Everyone always asks me for the recipe.

[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Zinfandel Minestrone
Serve with French bread[/FONT][FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]

1 pound hot Italian sausage
1 pound mild Italian sausage
1 chopped onion
3 carrots, chopped
1 zucchini, sliced
4 cloves garlic, chopped
3 quarts chicken broth
2 cans diced tomatoes
2 cans cannelloni beans, rinsed and drained
1 tablespoon dried basil
¼ cup Zinfandel
2 cups large shell-shaped pasta
Salt and pepper to taste
1 cup fresh grated parmesan cheese
[/FONT]

[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]1. Squeeze sausages from casings into a large pan. Cook until brown and crumbly, approximately 10 minutes. Discard fat.
2. Add carrots, onion, zucchini, and garlic. Cook for about 6 minutes until onions are soft.
3. Add chicken broth, tomatoes, beans, basil, and Zinfandel. Bring to a boil.
4. Add pasta. Reduce heat and simmer, covered, for about 10 minutes until pasta is tender.
5. Add salt and pepper. Serve into bowls and top with parmesan cheese.
[/FONT]​

[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]This will make 12 servings. [/FONT]

That sounds delicious, c2w!

My comfort soups are Chicken Soup with Matzo Balls and Split Pea. Neither comes from a can. I make a good Split Pea Soup, but nothing tops the memory of my mom's......

 

[larry_stewart]

I remember getting my grandmother's vegetable soup, when she was in the hospital, literally on her death bed. Sounds kinda morbid, but she was so happy passing the recipe to me so i could continue to make it. I also inherited the pot she made it in and one of the last things she said to me , was to make sure I put exactly 16 string beans in the soup. to this day, I count out 16 string beans , no more, no less, and always make it in the same pot. Because, her directions stated to fill pot up to 1 inch from the top, and if i used another pot, the measurements wouldnt be the same

larry