RECIPES: Pasta and bean soup ... Czechoslovakian cabbage soup ... Leek and potato soup

Pasta and Bean Soup

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 cup sliced yellow onion

½ cup sliced carrots

1 cup sliced celery

2½ cups canned low-sodium diced tomatoes (including juice)

1 cup sliced cabbage

2 ounces uncooked fusilli pasta (1 cup)

1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar

1 tablespoon prepared horseradish

2 cups fresh spinach, washed

1 cup rinsed and drained canned red beans

¼ pound lean smoked ham or bacon, cubed (about ¾ cup)

2 ounces shredded low-fat cheddar cheese (½ cup)

Salt and freshly ground pepper

Heat olive oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add onion, carrots and celery. Saute 2 to 3 minutes. Add tomatoes and 3 cups water. Bring to a boil, lower heat to medium, cover and cook 5 minutes. Add cabbage and pasta. Raise heat and boil, uncovered, 8 to 10 minutes. Stir vinegar into horseradish. Add to soup with spinach, beans and ham. Boil 1 to 2 minutes, until spinach is wilted. Add cheese and salt and pepper to taste.

Yield: Serves 2.

Approximate nutritional information per serving: 532 calories (22 percent from fat), 13.3 grams fat (3.4 grams saturated, 5.8 grams monounsaturated), 33 milligrams cholesterol, 34 grams protein, 73.1 grams carbohydrates, 16.8 grams fiber, 752 milligrams sodium.

Vegetable Beef Soup with Homemade Egg Noodles

FOR SOUP:

12 cups water

1 to 2 pounds beef roast or stew meat

2 ribs celery, coarsely chopped

1 onion, diced

1 small cabbage, chopped

3 carrots, thinly sliced

1 small rutabaga, cubed

1 cup medium pearled barley

1 28-ounce can whole tomatoes, with juice

1 quart tomato juice

Salt and freshly ground pepper

FOR NOODLES:

2 eggs 6 to 8 tablespoons flour

Salt

For soup: Cook meat in pot of water until tender. Remove and cut up into bite-size pieces if using roast. Set aside.

Cut up vegetables and place in water along with tomato juice, meat and pearled barley. Heat to boiling. Reduce heat and simmer for 1 to 2 hours.

For noodles: While soup is simmering, beat two eggs in a small bowl. Add flour and salt to taste. Mix with a fork until batter is a little stiff.

Once vegetables are cooked thoroughly, add egg and flour mixture to pot, 1 tablespoon at a time. When finished adding batter, cook for about 10 minutes or until noodles are firm.

Czechoslovakian Cabbage Soup

1 head green cabbage, coarsely chopped

1 quart sauerkraut

1 onion, diced

3 cloves garlic, diced

2 stalks celery, diced

6 carrots, coarsely chopped

2 28-ounce cans whole tomatoes

1- to 2-pound chuck or buffalo roast or stew meat (the meat is optional)

1 teaspoon lemon juice

1 tablespoon sugar

½ cup fresh parsley, chopped

1 teaspoon Tabasco sauce

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon pepper

1 teaspoon paprika

1 teaspoon thyme

2 bay leaves

9 cups water

Cook meat in water in soup pot until medium. Remove and cool. Put the rest of ingredients in water and bring to boil. Chop the meat into bite-size pieces and add to soup (optional). Cook for 2 hours and serve.

Leek and Potato Soup

2 medium-sized leeks, white parts only, washed and thinly sliced

1 large potato, peeled and sliced

1 cup milk

1 cup vegetable stock

Salt and white pepper

½ cup double cream

Fresh chives or parsley to garnish

Place the leeks, potatoes, milk, stock, salt and white pepper in a medium saucepan. Bring to simmering point over a medium-high heat. Once at a rolling simmer, reduce the heat, cover and continue to cook gently for 15 to 20 minutes or until the potato is very tender.

Remove from the heat and allow it to cool, stirring for a couple of minutes then either transfer to a blender or puree in the saucepan using a hand held immersion blender.

Once it’s smooth, return to the saucepan, stir in the cream, taste and add more salt and pepper if necessary then reheat gently without boiling. If desired, thin the soup down a little more by adding a little more cream or milk.

To serve - transfer to serving bowls and garnish with the snipped chives.

Yield: Serves 2.

Ukranian Borscht

1 pound soup meat (pork, beef chuck or a combination)

2 quarts (8 cups) water

1 medium-size onion, chopped

4 cloves garlic, chopped

1 bay leaf, optional

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon black pepper

28- to 30-ounce can peeled whole tomatoes, chopped

1 medium carrot

2 medium potatoes

½ small head of cabbage

1 or 2 beets

1 stalk celery

1 small red pepper

3 tablespoons vinegar

1 tablespoon sugar

1 cup cooked or canned navy (white) beans

1 small bunch parsley, chopped

Brown meat in its own fat or in a little oil; transfer to a slow-cooker or to a soup kettle. Add water.

Saute onion and garlic in a little oil; add along with salt, pepper and any desired herbs (such as chopped dill) to the slow-cooker.

Dice or shred the carrots, potatoes, cabbage, beets, celery and red pepper. Add to the pot. Add tomatoes. Add vinegar and sugar.

Cook until meat is tender, about four to six hours in slow-cooker or about three hours in covered pan on top of stove. Remove meat. (Meat can be reheated, cut up and served on a separate plate, at the same meal as the borscht. It is eaten with horseradish and mustard. Or you may cut up the meat and add it back to the soup.)

Add beans to borscht; heat through. Taste for seasoning. You may adjust the taste with more sugar or vinegar.

Add chopped parsley at end of cooking.

Serve the soup hot or cold, with a dollop of smetana (sour cream) and rye bread.

Cabbage Soup with Sausage

1 quart beef broth

1 cup beer

1 14½-ounce can diced tomatoes

1 bay leaf

1 small head cabbage, shredded

1 large baking potato

1 large onion, thinly sliced

1 large carrot, cut into 1-inch slices

8 ounces kielbasa, smoked turkey sausage, or sausage of your choice, cut in ½-inch dice

½ teaspoon thyme

¼ teaspoon caraway seed

½ teaspoon salt (optional)

¼ teaspoon freshly ground pepper

Heat the broth, beer, tomatoes with their juice and bay leaf to a boil in a Dutch oven over high heat. Add the cabbage, potato, onion, carrot, kielbasa, thyme and caraway.

Heat to a boil; reduce heat to medium. Partially cover the pot. Cook until the potato and carrot are tender, about 15 minutes. Add salt, if needed, and pepper.

Note: As you slice and dice each vegetable, add them to the hot broth mixture.

Yield: Serves 6.

Approximate nutritional information per serving: 242 calories, 39 percent of calories from fat, 11 grams fat, 4 grams saturated fat, 25 milligrams cholesterol, 27 grams carbohydrates, 11 grams protein, 1,048 milligrams sodium, 4 grams fiber.

Cream of Wild Rice Soup

1 large onion, chopped

1 large carrot, shredded

1 stalk celery, chopped

¼ cup butter

½ cup all-purpose flour

8 cups chicken broth

3 cups cooked wild rice

1 cup cubed cooked chicken

¼ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon pepper

1 cup evaporated milk

Chopped fresh chives, garnish

In a large saucepan, saute the onion, carrot and celery in butter until tender. Stir in flour until blended. Gradually add broth. Stir in the rice, chicken, salt and pepper

Bring to a boil over medium heat; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened. Stir in milk; cook 3 to 5 minutes longer. Garnish with chives.

Yield: Serves 10 (2½ quarts).

Tags: updates, accent, recipes, food