Cabbage and Potato Soup

This has been one of my favorite soup recipes for most of my life, slightly modified to be gluten free since we recently found out my spouse has Celiac's. (I used to thicken it with a roux, instead of cooking down some of the potatoes first.) It is always one of the first things my mind goes to when the weather starts to cool in the fall.

If you aren't as fond of garlic as we are, you can reduce it as desired – I think the original recipe called for about ¼ as much.

Pressure Canned Ham and Butter Bean Soup

 I have recently ventured into the world of home canning.  I am already in love!  I made a huge batch of my Vegetable Beef Soup, substituting frozen vegetable for the canned vegetables so they wouldn't turn to mush in the canning process; and, of course, only heated it up rather than completely cooking it, allowing it to finish cooking during the processing.  Being able to just pop the lid off, stick it in the microwave for a minute and eat it is just amazing.  Totally worth the extra time in the cooking/prep phase.

For my next adventure, I decided to do something with butter beans, since I've been told by my doctor to eat more high-potassium foods thanks to one of my medications.  Some poking around online and recipe browsing, and the basis for this soup was born.  It's rich and hearty, without being overly complicated.  The 15 pints I made won't last long!  This is definitely going to be a regular addition to our menu.

I used speckled butter beans for this first batch; regular green butter beans (aka baby lima beans) should work just as well – and possibly be more visually appealing.  Some hot sauce, like Cholula, would be a great addition/substitution for the vinegar, but unfortunately I can't use it (allergies).  Celery or bell peppers, if you have some on hand, would likely also be good additions.

Slow Cooker Beef and Vegetable Soup

I have discovered a new passion in the kitchen - freezer to crockpot meals.  In coming weeks, expect to see a lot of posts with recipes for such foods; I have been discovering and modifying dozens and dozens of recipes to suit my tastes.

This, however, is a long-time favorite of mine.  I learned how to make the base recipe from an ex-boyfriend's boss, of all things, and then of course made it my own.  I absolutely adore it in the wintertime, and even often in the summer.  It's so easy – just throw it all in the slow cooker in the morning, and it's ready for dinner.  The secret ingredient that really sets it apart from similar recipes, I think, is the mustard.

All spice measurements (everything after the cloves of garlic) are rough estimates, don't worry about exact measuring.  It is designed for my large, 8 quart crockpot; it should be easy to cut in half for a smaller, standard-sized (4-5 qt.) slow cooker.

Jamaican Pumpkin and Chicken Soup

This is a hearty, rich soup with a hint of sweet and a pleasantly warming heat to it.  It is perfect as cold weather descends, and of course when pumpkins are readily available inexpensively as failed jack-o-lanterns.