Well, we have made through the year!!! The weather finally feels like winter and soup season. As you can see, food is a major reason why I love this time of year.

Soups are a great way to get all your food groups in one bowl. What defines a soup…a liquid food  especially with meat, fish, or vegetable stock as a base and often containing pieces of vegetables. I love them because they are warm, tasty, and usually easy to put together. Soup derives from the Latin word ‘suppa’ which refers to bread soaked in broth. Wow, have we come a long way from just broth and bread. There are now so many kinds and ways to eat soup. You can eat it hot or cold, with only veggies, with cream, thick, runny, to make you feel better, and to bring comfort. We eat it with salads, sandwiches and all on its own. Some people like it with cheese, crackers, Fritos, tortilla strips, grilled cheese, and croutons. There are so many ways to enjoy soup!!

I would to share some of my favorite recipes with you!

French Onion Soup
3 tbsp Butter
3 Sweet Onions
1 tbsp sugar
¼ cup Dry White Wine
4 cups Beef Stock
2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1 ½ tsp Minced Garlic
2 Bay Leaves
4 Sprigs Thyme
¼ tsp Salt
¼ tsp Pepper
Stale Baguette, cut into slices
8 oz Gruyere Cheese
Turn your Instant Pot to the SAUTE function. Add the butter to the pot and allow it to melt. Then, add the onions. Stir onions in the pot for about 10-15 minutes until they start too whither and brown. You can add extra butter if you think it’s necessary. Once the onions have started to brown, add 1 tbsp sugar and stir for another 5 minutes until the onions caramelize. Once onions have caramelized, add ¼ cup of dry wine continue sautéing until the wine cooks down. Once the wine is gone from the pot, add beef broth, Worcestershire sauce, garlic, bay leaves, thyme, salt, and pepper. Turn the pot to HIGH and pressure cook for 15 minutes. Allow for 10-minute Natural Pressure Release, then perform a quick release. Spoon the soup into oven safe bowl. Place enough bread slices to cover the top of the soup, then sprinkle with cheese. Turn oven to a High Broil and cook until cheese starts to boil.

Creamy Tomato Basil Soup
3-14.5 oz cans of diced fire-roasted
2 cups of chicken broth
6 cloves of garlic
1 yellow onion, diced
¾ tsp salt
½ tsp pepper
1 tsp sugar
1 cup heavy cream
Croutons for dipping
½ cup parmesan cheese for topping
Add tomatoes, chicken broth, onions, garlic, salt, pepper, and sugar to the slow cooker and cook on high for 4 hours. After 4 hours, add in the chopped basil leaves. Using either an immersion blender or stand blender, blend soup until smooth. After blended, add cream. Stir to combine and cook for 30 minutes. Top with parmesan and croutons and enjoy!

Ministries
Food Ministry