Cheeseburger Soup

Cheeseburger soup? Really? What's that?

My husband and I are addicted to Diners Drive-ins and Dives on Foodnetwork. Late last night we watched an episode where the diner made a cheeseburger soup. Husband says "You have to make that." And my wheels started turning. The recipe they gave was fairly vague and used a few ingredients not readily available. I was at the store this morning, and grabbed the few ingredients I didn't have on hand and started my experiment today during nap time.

Some how, some way - I made a (at least in my opinion) pretty good cheeseburger soup on my first try! It's super thick, very tasty, and simple. I wanted to make it a one-pot meal, with normal, everyday ingredients.

This is a good starter recipe for creative cooks. You could add so many different ingredients or cheeses. I think this is something I will make often, with different ingredients each time.

Cheeseburger Soup


Ingredients:
1 lb ground beef
1 medium onion diced
1 can diced tomatoes
2 cups beef stock
1 1/2 cups half and half
flour
1/3 cup cooked bacon pieces
8 oz shredded cheddar cheese
1 cup shredded lettuce
Salt and pepper to taste


Directions:
Brown beef in large pot. Drain all but 2 tbsp of grease. Add diced onion and cook until onions are soft. Sprinkle a few table spoons of flour on the meat/onion mixture and stir. Add the flour until all grease is absorbed.

Add half and half, stock and can of diced tomatoes – do not strain tomatoes. Add salt and pepper to taste. Bring to a boil, then turn heat to low and simmer for 10 minutes.

Add cheese, bacon and lettuce and stir until cheese is melted. Simmer for another 10 or so minutes.


Possible additions:
mustard, pepper cheese, bleu cheese, mushrooms, bbq sauce, etc

Sausage, Corn and Potato Chowder

Yummmmmy.... warm.... mmmmmmm

This is the second time I made this soup and won't be the last. This time I served it with Beer Cheese Bread

I didn't follow the recipe exactly, because I didn't feel like washing the food processor. So I tried to use my immersion blender. Not such a great idea. I got splattered with hot soup. I think next time I will just use a handheld potato masher to smash up some of the potatoes. My husband and I both liked the soup better with some bigger pieces of potato in there. However, the first time I made it, I didn't puree it at all so the broth was still too broth-y. I think to get the right consistency you really need to puree it somehow.

I couldn't really take a pretty picture of this, so this is what you get!



Sausage, Corn and Potato Chowder
From: Sing for Your Supper

1 tablespoon butter
1 cup diced onion
2 cups diced Yukon Gold potatoes
2 cups vegetable broth
2 cups fresh corn kernels from 2 ears (or frozen)
1/4 teaspoon white pepper or cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt
6-7 cranks of freshly ground black pepper
2 cups low-fat milk
1/4 cup sharp white cheddar cheese, shredded
3 tablespoons finely chopped fresh parsley
1 package fully cooked turkey sausage (about 1 pound – you can use more or less if you want)

In a deep pot over medium-high heat, melt butter. Saute onions for 5 minutes, or until lightly browned. Add potatoes and broth, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low; add corn kernels, cayenne, salt, and black pepper, and stir well. Cook until potatoes are tender, about 15 minutes. Add the milk, cheddar cheese, and parsley. Turn off heat and allow chowder to cool for 5-10 minutes.

Puree soup in two batches until smooth, and return to the pot over medium-low heat. Stir in cooked sausage and warm until thoroughly heated. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste.

French Onion Soup

Another PW success! I wanted a warm dinner without a lot of work and french onion soup came to mind. The worst part was crying while slicing onions. After that it was pretty easy. I did splurge and buy the Gruyere cheese and we were both happy about that. It really is a delicious cheese. I only bought a half a pound and had a lot leftover.



This recipe makes a TON of soup, so if you're just cooking for a few then you may want to halve it. I wish I would have because we threw a lot away.



French Onion Soup
from: The Pioneer Woman Cooks


Ingredients:
1 stick butter
4 whole large (or 6 medium) yellow onions, halved root to tip, and sliced thin
1 cup (generous) dry white wine
4 cups low sodium chicken broth
4 cups beef broth
2 cloves minced garlic
Worcestershire Sauce
Several thick slices of french bread
5 ounces, weight (to 7 Ounces) Gruyere cheese, grated


Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Melt butter in a heavy soup pot or Dutch oven over medium-low heat. Add onions and cook, covered, for 20 minutes. Place soup pot into the oven with the lid slightly ajar to ensure the onions will brown. Allow onions to cook in the oven for 1 hour, stirring at least once during the cooking process so onions won’t stick and burn.

Remove pot from oven and place back on stovetop over medium heat. Stir, scraping off all the brown, flavorful bits. Turn off heat and pour in wine. Turn heat back to medium. Cook wine for five minutes, allowing it to reduce. Add broths, Worcestershire Sauce and minced garlic and reduce heat to low. Simmer for 30 to 45 minutes.

Butter one side of the bread slices and broil over low heat, allowing bread to brown and become crispy. When soup is ready, ladle into bowl or ramekin. Place crispy bread on top, and then sprinkle generously with grated cheese. Broil until cheese is melted and bubbly.