Category Archives: Soup

Soup, Vegetable, Vegetarian

Thai Lemongrass and Chile Soup

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Thai Lemongrass and Chile Soup

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Ingredients:
Servings: 4
Units: US | Metric

4 cups vegetable broth
2 stalks lemongrass, peeled and cut into 4 inch piece
3 fresh kaffir lime leaves (optional) I used lime zest
1 teaspoon vegetable oil
2 teaspoons minced garlic
1 teaspoon peeled minced fresh ginger
2 teaspoons roasted chili paste
1 1/2 cups chopped oyster mushrooms or 1 1/2 cups white mushrooms (I used baby portabellas)
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
2 tablespoons fish sauce or 2 tablespoons soy sauce
3/4 cup finely chopped tomato
1 tablespoon minced fresh cilantro
2 -3 small hot green chili peppers, seeded and halved (optional)
rice noodles

**Also added shredded green cabbage, bamboo shoots and extra firm tofu


Directions:

1
In medium saucepan, heat vegetable broth to a simmer with lemongrass and lime leaves if desired.
2
In small skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat.
3
Add garlic and ginger, and cook, stirring often, about 30 seconds.
4
When broth has simmered for 5 minutes, remove lemongrass and lime leaves and discard.
5
Add cooked garlic and ginger to broth.
6
Return broth to a boil, and stir in chile paste and mushrooms.
7
Cook until mushrooms have wilted, about 30 seconds, then stir in lime juice and fish sauce.
8
Remove from heat, and ladle soup into small bowls along with your favorite rice noodles.
9
Top each bowl with chopped tomatoes, cilantro and a pinch of hot green chiles if you want it really really spicy.
10
Alternatively, tomatoes and chiles can be mixed together and placed in small serving bowl for people to help themselves (this way people can make it as spicy as they want).
11
For Vegetarian/Vegan omit the fish sauce and use the soy.

Ref: Food.com

Soup, Trader Joe's, Turkey

Chipotle Chili

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Ingredients

  • 1 (1.3 lb) package of ground turkey or beef (I used 2 pounds of ground turkey. I like it meaty…hehe)
  • 1 medium onion chopped
  • 1 Tbsp of olive oil
  • 1 tsp ground cumin
  • 1 (28 oz) can diced tomatoes
  • 1 (15 oz) can of black beans (I used two cans. I like black beans)
  • 3/4 cup refried black or pinto beans (or use whole can for thicker chili, I did)
  • 1/2 cup Chipotle salsa (I added more salsa since I had more meat than originally called for)
  • 1/4 cup of BBQ sauce (I used Sweet Baby Rays and closer to 1/2 cup)
  • sour cream (optional) (duh)
  • shredded cheese (optional) (double duh)

Directions
1. Heat olive oil in medium saucepan over medium heat. Cook onions 5 min. Add ground turkey and cook until brown, breaking it up as it cooks. Add ground cumin and cook 1 min longer.

2. Add remaining ingredients. Stir in refried beans until broken up and dissolved

Ohhh Sweet Baby Ray’s! (Again note ridiculous amount of recipes I need to try marked by green tags)

3. When chili comes to a boil, lower heat and simmer for 10 min

4. Garnish with cheese and sour cream

Ref: Trader Joe’s Cooking Companion

Delicious, delicious, DELICIOUS. Chili always makes me nervous because everyone has that distinct memory of “mom style” home cooking chili that can never be replicated. Well. This will be mine. Minus the mom thing for now since the only kids I have are 4 legged furballs. 😀 Now here’s what I tweaked. I sauteed the onions with some chopped garlic because its only right and I used two packages of ground turkey instead of one. I knew Mike would prefer more meat in his chili. I added an additional can of black beans because it looked like it needed it. And I also decided it needed corn and l magically had a bag in the freezer. I love corn. I up’d the amount of salsa and BBQ sauce because of the amount of meat I put in. I’m always weirded out when there’s not any seasonings really. Cumin? Just cumin? Really? YES really. I forced myself to stick to the recipe in that regard and didn’t add salt and pepper and what ever else on my spice rack and I’m so proud of myself because it really is that delicious without it. I topped it off with cheese and a dollop of sour cream when served and it was uh-maze-ing. If I was scuba diving, there would be a fin high in order. I’m just saying.

Beef, Soup, Trader Joe's, Vegetable

Beef Stew

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Ingredients:

  • 1.5 pounds of beef stew meat or beef chuck cut into cubes
  • 1/4 cup of flour
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 (14.5 oz) can diced tomatoes
  • 1 cup of beef broth
  • 1/4 cup red wine (yes!!!!!!)
  • 2 tsp steak sauce (I used A1 sauce)
  • 2 cloves of crushed garlic
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 3 sprigs of fresh thyme or 2 tsp of dried thyme
  • 1 pound small potatoes (I used small red potatoes)
  • 2 carrots (I used 4 because I love carrots in stews!)
  • 1 small onion cut into 1 inch chunks
  • 2 cups of green beans (I forgot them, oops, but I’m sure they would have been great! hehe)
  • 1/4 cup chopped parsley (Since my black thumb killed my parsley plant, I went without, LOL)

Directions:

    1. Heat oil in large pot over medium heat. Lightly salt meat and dredge in flour, shaking off excess (omit flour for gluten-free recipe). Sear meat in hot oil until browned, about 1 minute per side. Browning meat seals in juices, for more tender meat. Don’t overcrowd the pot or you’ll steam rather than brown the meat. Cook in 2-3 batches.

    I added TJ’s 21 seasoning Salute to the flour before dredging

    2. Return seared meat to pot. Add remaining ingredients (except green beans and parsley) and stir. When liquid is boiling, cover, reduce heat to low, and simmer for 2 hours. If you prefer to bake, place covered pot in oven for 1.5-2 hours, making sure to use an oven-proof pot.

    3. Add green beans during last 15 minutes of cooking to preserve crispness. For softer green beans, add during the last 30 minutes of cooking.

    4. Remove from heat and remove bay leaves and thyme sprigs. Sprinkle on fresh parsley right before serving.

    See all those green tags on my TJ cookbook? Eventually stopped marking pages because I want to make everything. haha

    Ref: Cooking with Trader Joe’s Cookbook Companion

    First recipe out of my Trader Joe’s cookbook companion and it was UH-MAZE-ING. Nice thick hearty stew full of flavor and hits the spot after a long day on a chilly night. Few things I tweaked because you all know how well I listen and follow directions… hehe. Dredging the beef through just flour seemed boring to me so I added the Trader Joe’s 21 seasoning Salute blend to the flour to coat the meat. The seasoning just smelled so good! I totally smoked out the kitchen searing the meat… Maybe I’ll get that kitchen remodel sooner than later with a new fan vent. 😀 It was worth it though in the end and nothing a few table fans couldn’t remedy. :) I was of course, super excited about the red wine ingredient. Not that I need an excuse to open a bottle of wine, but its just more fun. 😀 The only other thing I added was a a little cornstarch diluted in water at the end to thicken up the sauce. Probably about a teaspoon of cornstarch and 3 teaspoons of water. No idea where I got that combo, I just winged it. :) I taste tested it from there adding a little salt and pepper and 21 seasonings salute till I was happy with it. Didn’t need much, just a little bit

    I’m dedicated this year to taking pictures as I go so enjoy. Now that I Mike and I live together I’m finally publicly expressing my dislike for his ugly chili pepper dish set you see in the photos and I’m currently looking for new pretty ones. I’ll keep you posted. :)

    Soup, Vegetarian

    Lemongrass Coconut Soup

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    Ingredients

    • lemongrass
    • coconut milk
    • vegetable stock
    • basil
    • sriracha chili sauce
    • corn starch
    • snow peas
    • red bell peppers
    • baby corn
    • cauliflower
    • carrots
    • peas
    • sweet corn
    • green onions
    • celery
    • water chestnuts
    • olive oil
    • garlic
    • ginger
    • fish sauce
    • birds eye Thai chili’s
    • red Thai curry paste
    • lime juice

    (I don’t use measurements so you decide for yourselves): steep lemongrass (use more than you think you need – bundle it before you steep) in 2/3 coconut milk and 1/3 vegetable stock (go easy on the amount of salt you add if you’re using pre-packaged veggie stock)… bring to a boil, stir it frequently, and simmer. Add basil, sriracha, and corn starch (slurry it with water before you add it or you’ll get lumps). Broth should be opaque, and basil will float to the top.

    Saute your choice of vegetables (I used snow peas, red bells, baby corn, cauliflower, carrots, peas, sweet corn, green onions, celery, and water chestnuts) in olive oil, minced garlic and ginger (lots of both), fish sauce, sriracha, Thai chili’s (birds eye), a little red Thai curry, lime juice, and a little bit of coconut milk (the fatty part)…salt and pepper aren’t really necessary, there’s a lot of flavor in there! Don’t add veggies to the broth till just before you serve, and garnish with fresh chopped basil…enjoy :)

    Ref: Veronica Hart


    I’ve been pouty and sick with a stupid sinus cold this weekend which ultimately leaves me craving soup. A friend left her recipe for a fantastic lemongrass coconut soup. Gave me plenty of motivation to get my butt out of bed and to the grocery store. Um Veronica, your “I don’t use measurements” quite frankly scared the crap out of me, but I was dying to try this. What I found is I made more veggies than broth (oops) and I made it hot as hell. It had such a kick I’m pretty sure it kicked my cold right out of my system. And I may have botched the “slurry” instructions, haha. But bottom line I LOVED it and will play with ingredient ratios the next time, like more broth. lol I also didn’t use ANY salt or pepper, she was right, totally didn’t need it. For your reference I used 2 cups coconut milk to 1 cup of veggie broth and it made about 2 servings. Thanks Veronica! Amazing recipe!