Posted on 12/30/2023 5:30:11 AM PST by Diana in Wisconsin
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Odds & ends this morning, not ‘soup’ related:
The Berkshire sow (due date yesterday) is about to farrow any minute ... literally. Her nest is built, milk coming in fast, & she is VERY uncomfortable. I am getting reports about every 10 minutes. Last litter of 2023 .... the Gloucestershire Old Spot sow is due Jan. 6 ... first litter of 2024. Time is marching on!
A near/dear relative (ok, it’s my mom) got a super nice jar of chamomile & lavender flower buds tea & a ceramic tea set for Christmas from a beloved granddaughter. So pretty!! She liked the tea and drank quite a bit in a short amount of time ... went through about a quarter of the loose tea. Did you know that both chamomile and lavender, taken in doses larger than a cup or two of tea, have the effect of “loosening the bowels”?? Neither did we, but we know now!!
Looking at chicken tractors ... I found one this morning I haven’t seen before and I really like it. Ignore the price, just look at the design. Since I will be converting the “man cave” shop (it even has a wood stove & a half bath!) into my “country girl” shop and taking most of dad’s tools with me*, I might try using this design as a ‘pattern’ for building one myself. You can buy the wheel lift separately ... the wheels & being able to move the tractor easily is the hard part.
I am looking at the ‘mini’ - I like the ‘classic’ better & if building, would maybe do this one because I like the looks of it better than the ‘mini’, which is for 4-5 hens and I don’t want more than that. The ‘classic’, for 8-10 chickens, would give 4-5 hens a lot of room and have ‘expansion’ room if I got ambitious with chickens (I have nearby relatives who would buy eggs). For sure we’ll have coyote & fox predators. The ramp pulls up so even if they dig in (raccoons dig, too), the chix should be safe above. I can also use my wire/metal zip-tied garden fencing for added protection - lay the panels on the ground (secured) around the tractor to prevent digging.
Headed for the grocery for soup & bread bowl ingredients! By the time I get back, there may be piglets!!
*You’re probably picking up that I’m moving ... we close on the new place Jan. 4 ... if all goes well (fingers crossed) and the place is ours after that date, I will fill you in on some details.
This is a Spicy Beef Soup recipe my daughter sent that she says works wonders for when you are sick. The link that it was at no longer works, so the recipe is no longer online, unfortunately.
However she did have the presence of mind to copy it and send it to me before that so I still have it. I use portabella mushrooms, although any exotic ones should work as well. Beef bone broth would be good to use as that is very healing.
SPICY BEEF NOODLE SOUP
Active: 35 min. Total: 1 hr. 40 min.
This sinus-clearing, immunity-boosting bowl of soup is inspired by Szechuan beef noodle soup
Because some of the ingredients to make the traditional version require a trip to an Asian market, we
approximated the flavors with easier-to-find items.
Ingredients:
2 Tbsp. canola oil, divided (I use olive oil)
2 b. boneless chuck roast, trimmed and cut into 1-in. pieces
1½ cups chopped white onion
⅓ cup minced garlic (15 cloves,
1 Tbsp. finely chopped peeled fresh ginger
3 plum tomatoes, chopped ¼ cup sambal oelek (ground fresh chile paste)
3 Tbsp. white miso
1½ tsp. ground coriander
1½ tsp. coarsely ground black pepper
8 cups unsalted beef stock
2 Tbsp. low-sodium soy sauce
1½ Tbsp. light brown sugar
8 oz. pre-sliced vitamin D-enhanced mushrooms (such as Monterey Mushrooms)
1 (8-oz.) pkg. pad Thai brown rice noodles
4 (4-oz.) baby bok choy, quartered lengthwise ½ cup sliced green onions ¼ cup cilantro sprigs
Directions:
1. Heat 1 teaspoon oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high. Add half of beef; cook, turning occasionally, until
browned on all sides, about 6 minutes. Transfer cooked beef to a plate. Repeat procedure with 1
teaspoon oil and remaining beef.
2. Heat remaining 4 teaspoons oil in Dutch oven over medium-high. Add onion, garlic, and ginger; cook,
stirring often, until onion is almost tender, about 6 minutes. Stir in tomatoes, sambal oelek. miso,
coriander, and pepper; cook, stirring constantly, 1 minute. Add stock, soy sauce, brown sugar, and
browned beef. Bring to a boil; partially cover, and reduce heat to medium-low to maintain a simmer. Cook
until beef is almost tender, about 45 minutes. Add mushrooms; cover and cook until beef is tender, about
30 minutes.
3. Cook noodles per package directions; drain and rinse with cold water. Drain well.
4. Add bok choy to soup; cover and cook until crisp-tender, about 4 minutes. Arrange about ½ cup noodles
and 2 bok choy quarters in each of 8 bowls. Ladle about 1½ cups soup into each bowl; sprinkle each
serving with 1 tablespoon green onions. Top with cilantro sprigs.
*This soup freezes well, except for the noodles and bok choy (both get really soggy when frozen). I always freeze
before adding either, and then reheat on the stovetop so I can add the bok choy and let it cook.
SERVES 8 (serving size: about 2 cups)
Calories 459; Fat 20g (sat 7g, unsat 11g);
Protein 31q: Carb 39g; Fiber 5g; Sugars 8g (added sugars 3g): Sodium 736mg; Calc 4% DV: Potassium 10% DV
Asking for a friend!!🤓
We like an occasional Campbell’s ch8cken noodle country style, maybe 4-5 times a year, but other than thatno bought soup, only home made.
One thing we been doing is saving pork and beef drippings for combination in chicken soup and beef soup- really adds a flavor punch to the soups. Nothing like,a,hot steaming bowl of soup on a cold day, along with home made bread. Our brother inlaw makes “glass bread” which is perfect soup bread- uses some old time grain flower- can’t remember name now- we ate like kings when they arrived for a month last fall- made fresh bread every day, couple of loaves as it would be gone quickly.
I start using it in April when I move seedlings out there that I’ve started indoors. On a sunny day, it’s easily 70-80 degrees in there, the way it is sited.
Then, I grow things out until they’re ready to go into the ground at the end of May.
I also grow salad greens in there in early spring and late fall. This season I harvested the last of my greens around Thanksgiving. Then I give it up for the year, mainly because it’s a PITA to shovel a walkway to there from the house and Winter is my BREAK TIME from the garden. ;) In the middle of summer, it’s 100+ degrees in there and unless I’m growing cactus, nothing much can survive that blast of heat.
Right now it is 34 degrees outside and sunny. It is currently (10am) 64 degrees in the greenhouse.
Check out any of Elliot Coleman’s books. He grows in large, moveable greenhouses in Maine - all winter!
Also Niki Jabbour writes some great books on gardening year-round in unheated greenhouses and cold frames.
My unheated greenhouse gives me a head start in the spring and lengthens my ability to still grow some things into the fall. And it’s my She Shed, LOL!
https://www.eliotbarbara.com/read-our-books/
Niki Jabbour: https://www.amazon.com/Year-Round-Vegetable-Gardener-Matter-Where/dp/1603425683
Thanks, Pete!
Ping Your People to My People! Soup’s on! :)
I got an extra large Harvest Right freeze dryer to process food from the garden rather than canning and freezing.
Just did apples, leeks, and onions. Next is potatoes.
It is amazing that the FD food tastes so good. Long shelf life, maintains most of the vitamins and nutrition, and really easy.
I have a one of those tiny cheap (i.e., Chinese) “greenhouses”; its footprint is about 2’ x 3’. I’ve had very good luck using a string of Christmas lights to keep it warm overnight. The bulbs have to be the traditional incandescent type; the modern LCDs or whatever they are don’t give off any heat. It’s very festive too!
Do you put the lights inside the greenhouse?
Yes. I weave them around and thru the shelves. One strand works perfectly for my li’l hunk o’ junk, and it’s on the porch just inches from an outlet. This may not be sufficient in the coldest regions, but it works pretty darn well out here in the Arizona desert where we regularly get freezing nights.
thx Diana. Your thread is hopping! And the adorable stirring-soup memes make me want to jump into cooking some kind of soup.
For the prepping-minded here, I think soups will be a great way to cook for and feed numerous people.
They will require some time chopping up things, but it can easily cook all day with minimum supervision. With vegetables, meat, carbohydrates added, you can have all your nutritional requirements in just one bowl. Soups can also be filling, which we might be needing if calories are at a premium. Soup and a piece of bread make a great meal.
You can also add any leftover vegetables or meat or starches from another meal, so nothing goes to waste. Not to mention that a big pot of soup can go a long way and is very easy to reheat for meals that require very little prep time.
My Dad was a gunners mate on a destroyer in WWII. Being a serb he could not stand the food. He made friends with the cook and begged bones and scraps that would’ve otherwise been tossed. He started making soups and the guys started lining up.
Here is a link to my favorite winter soup. Just made a big pot and put some small containers in the freezer. I changed the recipe up a bit. And before serving add some heavy cream.
Garlic soup.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GjfeTuyiygw
>Double batch in [brackets]<
Ingredients
To start:
2 [4] cups dried split peas, (≈1 [2] pound), sorted and rinsed
6½ [13] cups liquid (water or chicken broth, (or water plus 6½ [13] tsp bouillon)
1 [2] tsp garlic powder
⅓ [⅔] tsp dried thyme
⅓ [⅔] tsp crushed dried rosemary
1 [2] tsp salt
¼ [½] teaspoon pepper
Add half way through:
¾ [1½] cup chopped large onion, about ½ [1] large onion
¾ [1½] cup finely chopped celery, about 2 [4] medium stalks
1¼ [2½] cups carrots, cut into 1/4-inch slices, or julienned, about 3 [6] medium carrots
1 [2] lbs julienned ham)
Steps
1. Preparing split peas for cooking is easy! Just pick over the dried split peas and discard any grit or discolored peas. Place the split peas in a bowl, and cover them with water. After a minute or two, remove any skins or split peas that float to the top. Finally, rinse the split peas in a colander.
2. Add rinsed peas to [6½ [13] cups liquid (water, chicken broth or bouillon). Stir well.
3. Bring to a boil (High), reduce to gentle boil (On my stove ⅔ of the way between Low and Med Low) and cover for 3 hours, stirring occasionally
4. Use an immersion blender to coarsely break up the peas if needed.
5. Add all other ingredients.
6. Cover and simmer 5 to 7 hours, stirring occasionally
7. Stir well before serving
Expert Tips
• For peas that have been stored for years, soak overnight, drain and rinse before use.
• Used a heavy bottom pot to limit hotspots, stir occasionally throughout.
• Buy a spiral cut ham, half the work of julienning is already done!
• Serve a grainy cornbread (don’t forget the honey butter or drizzle of maple syrup) and a spinach salad with fresh grapefruit or mandarin segments with the soup. The tart freshness of the citrus contrasts nicely with the rich, thick soup.
• We like ours with a lot of black pepper on the top and a splash or two of Tabasco!
These recipes look delicious, perfect for a cold day.
I just made potato soup yesterday.. So easy and everyone loved it.
Saute chopped onions in butter/olive oil until tender. Set aside.
Peel, cut and boil (about 6) potatoes (as if you were making mashed potatoes) until potatoes are just tender.
Drain potatoes and add fresh water to pot to cover potatoes. Add about 1 cup milk/heavy cream. Pulse with immersion blender to desired consistency, leaving some chunks of potato. Add in saute’d onions.
Dice 1/2 large carton Velveeta cheese and add to soup, simmer on low until melted.(I freeze the other half of the Velveeta to make more soup on another day.)
Add more milk/water until soup is desired consistency, if needed.
Season to taste with salt/pepper/parsley, etc.
You can add bacon or ham bits. I did add in some shredded carrots (cooked to just tender in the microwave) while simmering.
This is my go-to winter easy-yet- filling quick soup.
This looks delicious. Going to give it a try!
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