Notes about Recipes in this book

• "About 30 minutes" chickpea and pasta soup with rosemary

  • Rutabaga on January 04, 2017

    For some reason my five-year-old turned his nose up at this soup, blaming the orzo pasta for his dislike. On the other hand, the baby loved it. Overall, I think it's a very comforting, simple soup with a nice depth of flavor from the rosemary. Since I used orzo, however, I should have probably only used about half a cup. With a whole cup, the soup turned into something of a pasta stew (not that there's anything wrong with that).

• "Cool nights" chili with chicken, corn, and chipotles

  • averythingcooks on December 02, 2025

    There is nothing new/ground breaking here but we enjoyed this topped with grated cheese + a mix of pickled onions & jalapenos. I used home canned "rotel style" tomatoes, added red, orange & yellow sweet peppers with the onions and replaced the kidney beans with black beans. It is easy to manage the heat re: the amount of chipotle peppers + choice of chili powder and a 1/2 recipe gave us 2 generous dinner bowls, lunch for 2 today and at least one more serving for the freezer. If I came here again I would definitely start with less broth.

• "Melt in your mouth" beef and barley soup

  • averythingcooks on November 30, 2025

    This is a perfect, snowy day soup...tasty, filling & comforting :)

• Carrot soup scented with sesame and chives

  • Rutabaga on May 06, 2014

    Very easy to make, and it ca be done ahead of time, too. I left out the celery (as I often do), but next time I think it would be better to include it and give a bit of freshness to the soup. I left off the croutons as I did not have bread on hand. The sesame oil is what really sets the soup apart from just an ordinary pureed carrot soup.

• Cauliflower soup with crispy prosciutto and Parmesan

  • Rutabaga on December 01, 2014

    This is a nice creamy soup that doesn't use much actual cream, just a half cup of creme fraiche. As with other recipes in this book, I'd say it easily serves more than 6, probably at least 8. The flavor is homey and comforting, but a little lemon juice would add a little brightness to the mix.

• Heavenly asparagus soup with tarragon cream

  • Rutabaga on April 13, 2016

    This soup is creamy without being overly rich; the dominant flavor is really the asparagus. The tarragon creme fraiche is a nice touch. Mint or lemon zest would be good alternatives if you don't have or don't like tarragon.

• Made-from-scratch roasted vegetable stock

  • averythingcooks on October 11, 2025

    This is a great follow up to a fridge clean out / reorganization and the pot currently simmering on the stove smells great :) I'll find lots of uses for this stuff.

• Paella soup

  • Prim on February 09, 2014

    Excellent flavour. I increased saffron and used dry red wine that I had on hand.

• Red, yellow, and orange pepper salad with tequila-lime dressing

  • Rutabaga on September 12, 2018

    This salad had a nice blend of flavors and good crunch. I added about a teaspoon of sugar to the dressing, because my lime juice was quite sour. This balanced the sourness nicely without making it taste sweet.

  • averythingcooks on July 06, 2025

    I used a mix of leaf lettuce & spinach from the garden + iceberg for crunch. I love the idea of marinating the peppers in the dressing 1st (I also added sliced red onion at this stage) and I do agree with Rutabaga re: needing a little sweet in the dressing...I used a shot of agave syrup. Since we don't drink the tequila on our bar, it is nice to have recipes like this that use it to good effect.

• Spring new potato and garlic soup

  • Rutabaga on March 30, 2014

    This soup is easy and delicious, but man - it's not for those watching their calories! The Boursin and half-and-half make sure of that. I recommend serving small portions alongside a salad with lots of textures and flavors and some crusty bread.

• Tomato, dill, and white cheddar soup

  • Rutabaga on November 30, 2014

    The addition of dill makes for a pleasing twist on classic tomato soup. One thing I have found with this and other Sunday Soup recipes, however, is that the number of servings are rather dramatically underestimated. This recipe claims to make six servings, but it could easily feed 8 to 10 people, or more if they are small servings.

• White bean soup with chorizo and kale

  • Rutabaga on March 30, 2014

    First, this soup makes more servings than the recipe indicates. It indicates six servings, but the reality is more like 8 to 10. I doubled the recipe and put more than half of it in the freezer. I still have a gallon jar of it in there right now. But it is delicious, creamy, hearty, a real meal unto itself, and it does freeze well. You can leave out the salt pork, and if you prefer, you could also freeze a batch without the kale if you prefer to add the kale right before serving.

• White cheddar creams with crispy bacon

  • Rutabaga on February 25, 2016

    This soup is very cheesy, although the texture is still a little thin. I've substituted whole milk for the half and half, which does make it slightly thinner, but also makes the dish a little lighter. The flavor is excellent for cheddar lovers, and the bacon and green onions provide the needed contrasting flavors and textures.