Cookbook Club - Soups

Jenica declared this the month of soups.  It could be a recipe from any book or site.  Some of us made the familiar while others branched out.

It was a rushed meeting with me being late and others having to leave early but we were all able to try the 6 different varieties.  It was also kind of a noteworthy day for me as I found out I like beets but so far only in this one soup.

Megan made Thai Curry Butternut Squash soup which I still wanted days after the event.  It was the perfect combination of the rich and spicy.  The recipe can be found here and her alterations were as follows -

I used 2 TB coconut oil instead of 3.

When I added the coconut milk to simmer at the end, I also added 6ish kafir lime leaves and 6-8 small red Thai chili peppers

I really questioned if I would like the Roasted Beet and Potato Borscht when I heard what May was bringing but it was delicious.  I even had a second serving.

The recipe is found here and May substituted the shallots with two leeks and two carrots.  She also sauteed the beet greens with onions before adding the roasted vegetables and broth.  I also love that she added dill to the sour cream used when serving the soup. 

Emily made Red Lentil soup with Lemon and served it with rice, sour cream and sauteed spinach.  Again, amazing.  This was one that she has made before and loves for obvious reasons.  All of us made rich, hearty soups to commemorate the change of season.  Her recipe can be found here.

Jenica made a Sweet Potato soup with Swiss chard and lots of ginger.   It was a really tasty soup.

Anne went home after the last cookbook meeting and googled bacon apple pumpkin soup and came up with this baby.  I loved it.  Anne had some issues with the blender but it all came together in the end.  I think this is the recipe she used. 

I decided to make something that would stretch my knowledge a little bit.  I went through my cookbooks and found a Chicken Noodle soup recipe from the Barefoot Contessa.  I realize this is the soup that everyone has eaten numerous times but I actually made my own stock which was a first for me.

It took a few hours and the smell was divine.  I would do this again in a heartbeat if I had the time as the stock made such a huge difference in the flavor.

I was nervous with my soup going last as it was the familiar but Anne called it the dark horse.  It was a good version of a chicken noodle soup and I was really pleased that I had the leftovers.  I didn't change the recipe at all that can be found here.