My sister in law sent me a pin of this recipe that she made and loved recently and I couldn’t get it out of my mind, it looked like my kind of soup. Of course, I don’t usually have the ingredients I need to make recipes when I’m ready to make them – let’s just say that I’m a natural and determined improviser when I’m hungry or in the mood to cook.

This Beef and Tomato Vegetable Soup is the perfect example of using whatever ingredients you have on hand to make something delicious and good for you too.

Cooking with Swiss Chard

I have been swooning over all the pretty Swiss chard I’ve been seeing in the grocery store and decided to add it to this soup. Swiss chard reminds me of my grandpa, he introduced it to me from his garden – he grew a ton of it every summer. I love how versatile it is, I tend to treat it like I do spinach or kale by adding it to soups like this or simply sautéing it as a side dish.

To prepare swiss card, simply fold longways and cut away the leafy part away from the stem. From there you can roll up the large chard leaves and slice into ribbons. Chop the stems separately. (Check out this post for a visual graphic on how to prepare swiss chard!)

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Click here to pin this Italian Stuffing recipe!

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Click here to pin this Smoked Sausage and White Bean Soup with Spinach recipe!

Soup is one of my go-to foods when I feel that I need to reset and recharge my eating habits. It’s filling, it’s healthy (if you make it healthy, of course) and it’s usually really easy to pull together any day of the week.

One of my favorite soups to make is this Smoked Chicken Sausage and White Bean Soup with Spinach.

This soup is filled with staple ingredients that I almost always have in my pantry and fridge. Beans and basic veggies like carrots, celery and onions are really essential ingredients to almost all of my soups so I try to always have them on hand. I love using this chicken apple sausage and usually have a few packages in the freezer (it takes no time at all to defrost!).

It really does make for a perfect weeknight soup and leftovers are great for lunch the next day.

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This post was last published in November, 2015. It is still one of my favorite soups that can be made with lean ground beef and all the veggies in your fridge (specifically zucchini, green beans and carrots). Although we are still experiencing 90+ degree weather in Florida, I crave this light, yet hearty, soup all the time. It’s perfect for light lunches and dinners – it’s nice to make ahead so that you have something to quickly reheat when you are short on time.

Click here to PIN this Italian Vegetable Beef Soup recipe!

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Are you all turkey’ed out or what? I know I am. I had a few good leftover turkey recipes swirling in my head over the weekend (my daughter wanted me to make a turkey pasta salad, mmm), but honestly, I just didn’t get around to any creative leftover creations. We had a lot of turkey paninis and just straight up Thanksgiving plate reruns. It’s all good.

Moving on from turkey…I’m bringing up this Italian Vegetable Beef recipe from the archives. I originally posted this recipe back in December of 2009. Crazy how long ago that was! I remember I made this soup to take to my daughter’s preschool teacher who had just had surgery. When she got back to school, she told me her and her daughters loved the soup so much and wanted more. Yea, a compliment like that pretty much always makes my day. 🙂 Since then, I have made this soup quite a few times. It’s a great change from my typical chicken based soups, the lean beef (or bison) makes it a little extra hearty but still easy on the calories.

I’m sure most of you will agree that a bowl of good homemade soup is total comfort.  Soup has a way of warming up the body while nourishing it with so many health benefits at the same time.  I’m more of a broth base soup person, so I’m not really referring to the heavier creamy soups…not that those are bad, but they just don’t make me feel the same as a soup filled with lots of herbs and vegetables in broth.

Whenever I find that I have lots of vegetables in the veggie drawer that need to be used up, I usually make soup.  This particular day I had a nice variety of veggies….zucchini, squash, carrots and green beans. 

Add some dried herbs, lean ground beef and chicken broth and you’ve got Italian Vegetable Beef Soup.

Healthy Italian Vegetable Soup

1. In large stock pot, heat 2 tablespoons olive oil over medium heat and add zucchini, squash, carrots, garlic and onions. Cook for about 8 minutes until vegetables start to soften.
2. Add seasonings, tomatoes and chicken broth to pot. Bring to a boil, then reduce to simmer.
3. Add green beans and cooked ground beef.
4. Simmer soup for about 20 minutes.
5. Taste for salt and pepper. Serve with Parmesan cheese and cooked pasta if you like.

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 4 from 1 review

Italian Vegetable Beef Soup

• Author: Aggies Kitchen
• Prep Time: 10 minutes
• Cook Time: 30 minutes
• Total Time: 40 minutes
• Yield: 6 servings
• Category: Soup
• Method: Stovetop
• Cuisine: Italian

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Break out the vegetables for this light and savory Italian Vegetable Beef Soup recipe. It’s loaded with great vegetables like zucchini, squash and carrots. Healthy (and easy) comfort food!

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Ingredients

• 2 tb olive oil
• 2 zucchinis, quarter chopped
• 2 squash, quarter chopped
• 2–3 carrots, chopped
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1–2 cups green beans, cut in 1 inch pieces
• 1 tsp dried basil
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 1 tsp dried thyme
• good pinch of salt and pepper
• 1 32oz can of Italian diced tomatoes, with juices
• 6 cups chicken broth
• 1 – 1.25  lb lean ground beef or bison, cooked and crumbled
• Parmesan cheese, optional

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Instructions

1. In large stock pot, heat 2 tb olive oil and add zucchini, squash, carrots, garlic and onions. Cook for about 8 minutes until starting to soften. Add seasonings, tomatoes and chicken broth to pot. Bring to a boil, then reduce to simmer. Add green beans and cooked ground beef. Simmer soup for about 20 minutes. Taste for salt and pepper. Serve with Parmesan cheese and cooked pasta if you like.

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Notes

Note:  amounts of vegetables can be varied.  Use what you have on hand.

Healthy Soup Recipes

Soup is one of my go to meals when I’m trying to trim some pounds or just generally feel healthier. Some soups I tend to make often are  Slow Cooker Italian Sausage and Kale Soup with Sweet Potatoes, Slow Cooker Split Pea Soup, Italian Tomato and Lentil Soup and Healthy Chicken Tortilla Soup. I’m ready to try this Beef Taco Quinoa Soup and Fall Vegetable Quinoa Soup!

Follow Aggie’s Kitchen’s board Soup, Stew and Chili Recipes on Pinterest.

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Believe it or not, after a fun-filled, relaxing summer, we are gearing up for back-to-school life. In fact, today is my kids’ official first day of school. I know, it just doesn’t seem right to start this early, does it? I say this every year.

With the transition to back-to-school comes a new schedule and routine that we are all very familiar with – one that includes homework, after school activities and sports and alarm clocks. For me, it means getting on the ball with putting dinner on the table – a meal that is nutritious, will be eaten by everyone and comes together easily. Back-to-school means it’s time for the slow cooker to help out in the kitchen during the week. My family loves creamy soups made with milk and this Slow Cooker Creamy Chicken and Wild Rice Soup is one I make for them often. It’s filled with chicken, vegetables, whole grains and dairy that provides them with the fuel they need to jump back into their busy school life.

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A couple of weeks ago my entire family got hit with a funky cold that was going around. It was not fun at all and I’m thankful it’s behind us. All 3 of my kids were home missing school, and then my husband came home sick from work on Wednesday night, just as I was making this Chicken Gnocchi Soup for dinner, the timing couldn’t have been better I guess you could say.

My kids aren’t huge soup people (though from the amount of soups that I post here, I obviously am). Both my kids discovered their love of the Chicken Gnocchi Soup at Olive Garden not long ago during one of our soup, salad and breadstick fixes and I knew that it was a soup I was going to have to make for them at home. They love gnocchi and when I found some adorable mini gnocchi at the grocery store the other day I knew it was time to make some soup.

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Click here to pin this Slow Cooker Chicken and Farro Chili recipe.

My obsession with farro continues. I’ve been adding farro to salads for a while now, but the last couple of months I’ve been adding it to soup, and more recently this Slow Cooker Chicken and Farro Chili. Farro is an incredible addition to any soup or chili because of it’s hearty texture. This chili includes chicken but if you wanted to make it vegetarian it would be just as great with extra beans and vegetable broth.

If you are getting hit with the cold weather and snow that I’m seeing everywhere on the news and social media, then you more than likely have soup on the brain right now. There’s nothing better than pulling out your slow cooker to let it do the work all day especially with pantry staples like Bush’s Chili Beans. Our Florida weather isn’t what you would call soup weather right now, but I am a soup girl all year ’round!

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Apparently it’s soup week here in my kitchen! That’s not a bad thing, right? Today I’m sharing a Lightened Up Broccoli Cheese Soup that is heavy on the veggie and light on the cheese. A good balance.

I recently picked up way too much broccoli at the grocery store (those sales always make me think I need more than I actually do, I’m a sucker for sale pricing). We can only eat so much roasted broccoli no matter how much we love it. Since I’ve been craving soup I searched around and found one that worked for me on one of my favorite healthy blogs, Skinnytaste (Gina’s Skinnytaste Cookbook is one of my favorites!). What I loved about Gina’s Broccoli Cheese and Potato Soup recipe is that it wasn’t super heavy on cream or cheese, but was bulked up instead with vegetables that were eventually pureed so it got the creamy texture I was looking for. I made adjustments to the ingredients based on what I had on hand and the soup eaters in the family gave this one a big thumbs up.

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This Slow Cooker White Chicken Tortilla Soup recipe was originally created in partnership with Bush’s Beans.

My slow cooker has been working on overtime lately. Actually, my goal lately has been to use it as much as possible since let’s face it, it makes getting dinner ready (when you’re not home to get it ready) 3 million times easier. With basketball practice and gymnastics and after school activities that kids need to be picked up from, those precious dinner making hours are basically non-existent when you have school aged kids. Right now I am in search of all types of slow cooker recipes that my family will love – would you share some of your favorites with me?

This White Chicken Tortilla Soup is a slight twist off of one of my favorite soup recipes – chicken tortilla soup. I decided to change up a few key ingredients such as using white beans instead of black and switching to poblano peppers (love!) from bell peppers. I used Bush’s Great Northern Chili Beans for added flavor, I absolutely love adding these beans to soups and chilis. This soup was devoured for dinner (then lunch) for a few days. So filling, yet so good for you!

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One of the recipes that was shared with us during the Bush’s Beans Culinary Event was these delicious scallop tacos.  I will admit, I was not a huge scallop fan until I tried these.  I have ordered scallops a few times out at restaurants and I just wasn’t thrilled with the texture or taste.  I never say never when it comes to food, so I was excited to try them again.  Jeffrey Saad created this recipe for us and demonstrated how to perfectly sear the scallops during his presentation.  I learned how important it is that your seafood (or any meat that you are going to sear) is dry before putting it into the hot skillet.  This ensures that the scallop (or whatever you are searing) gets that crisp outer crust that searing is all about…if water is left on the scallop then the result is more of a steamed scallop…and that is not what you want when you are searing.  Make sense?

(touch your food…best way to when to know the scallops are done is when they bounce a bit after being poked.  If they are mushy then they still need more time.  Let them spring back at you a bit…and don’t overcook.  Keep in mind they will continue to cook for a bit after you take them off heat.)

I made these the weekend after I got home from my trip for my hubby and a couple of friends.  I think it’s safe to say they were a HIT.  They were pretty easy to put together once I got some of the prep work out of the way earlier in the day.  I shredded the cabbage, made the beans, the chipotle sour cream, the green chile chutney earlier that afternoon…which left just searing the scallops and toasting up the tortillas when it was time to eat.  I set it up as an assembly line on the kitchen counter and we all had fun putting our tacos together.  They were DELICIOUS.

(Team Scallop:  Kristen, Sandy, Cheryl and Laura cooking alongside Jeffrey Saad)

The green chile chutney was the star of the show in my opinion.  Wow, I’ve never tasted anything like it.  I didn’t have a jalapeno so I substituted a red onion to balance out the heat with more sweet.  It was amazing.  During the cooking event, I picked Jeffrey’s brain about pickling and chutneys so I was excited to try this out.  Once made it can be kept in the fridge for up to 3 weeks…it would make a great topping for just about anything…sandwiches, eggs, salads, rice….seriously anything.

If you watch Cooking Channel then you may have seen that Jeffrey has a fun new show coming out…United Tastes of America actually premieres today!  I’m excited to watch as he explores food on a whole other level!

BUSH’S® Seared Scallop Tacos with Black Beans and Green Chile Chutney

Ingredients:

For Scallop Tacos:

• 8 large sea scallops
• Salt and pepper
• 1 Tbsp  canola oil
• ½ cup  cabbage, shredded
• 6 each  corn or flour tortillas

For Black Beans:

• 1 clove  garlic, chopped
• 1 can (15 oz)  BUSH’S® Black Beans, drained and rinsed
• ½ cup  chicken broth
• 1 tsp  smoked paprika

For Green Chile Chutney:

• 6 each Anaheim green chile
• 1 tsp  cumin seed, toasted and ground
• 2 tsp  oregano, toasted and ground
• ¼ cup  apple cider vinegar
• ¼ cup  sugar
• ½ tsp  kosher salt
• 1 each  red onion, chopped  (original recipe uses jalapeno)

For Chipotle Chile Sour Cream:

• 1 can (7 oz) chipotle peppers in adobo sauce
• ½ cup sour cream
• ½ tsp kosher salt
• ¼ cup fresh lime juice

Directions:

1. To roast peppers:
   Blacken Anaheim chiles over an open flame (holding chiles with tongs) or broiler.  Place chiles in small bowl and cover with aluminum foil to allow skin to steam loose.  After 10 minutes, wipe off skin with fingers.  Seed and chop into ½" pieces.
2. For Scallops:
   Pat scallops dry and remove rubbery lip from side of each scallop.  Season with salt and pepper.
   Add oil to medium sauté pan over medium high heat.  Once oil is hot (you see a haze coming off the oil), add scallops to pan.  Sear until you have a nice golden crust.  Flip scallops over and continue cooking until you see the side of the scallop go from translucent to opaque.  Remove from pan and set aside.
3. For Black Beans:
   Add garlic to the same sauté pan.  Stir briefly just to soften then add beans, chicken broth and paprika.  Turn to low and cook 5 minutes.  Set aside to cool.
4. For Green Chile Chutney:
   In a medium size skillet (non-stick is ideal) over medium high heat add cumin and oregano.  Toast for 1 minute just until you can smell the cumin and oregano.  Immediately add vinegar, (don't breathe in as the vapor of the vinegar rises) sugar and salt.  Bring to a boil.  Add Anaheim chiles and red onion (or jalapeno) and simmer until a thick sauce consistency (about 8 minutes).  The chutney will thicken as it cools so stop cooking when the chutney is still saucy (easily flows from side to side as you tilt the pan).  Using a rubber spatula move chutney into a small bowl and let cool. The remaining chutney will last for three weeks in the refrigerator.
5. For Chipotle Chile Sour Cream:
   Puree chipotle peppers in adobo sauce in a blender or food processor.  In a medium bowl mix together 1 teaspoon of chipotle puree, sour cream and salt.  Squeeze in lime juice and mix well. (Tip: store rest of chipotle puree in small ziplocks in freezer. I portioned out 2 tablespoons into snack size baggies.)
6. Toast tortillas over an open flame (using tongs), in a non-stick pan or under the broiler and lay on plate.
7. Place three tablespoons of black beans across each tortilla.
8. Cut the scallops into rough ½" pieces and lay on tortilla.
9. Top with the chutney, cabbage and chipotle chile sour cream mixture and serve.

Created for BUSH’S® Beans by Jeffrey Saad, Chef, Culinary Entrepreneur and Host of “United Tastes of America” for the Cooking Channel.

Good luck with the new show Jeffrey!

All of these fantastic culinary event photos were taken by Faith Echtermeyer of St. Helena, CA.  Thank you so much Faith!

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