Mother Nature has finally decided to stop roller-coasting the weather and stick to one season–Winter. After weeks of 70-degree days followed by 30 degree days, she has picked freezing your tuchas off as the weather for the rest of the month, according to our weather teen and my handy dandy weather app. I don't need an app to tell me how cold it is. My chattering teeth will do the job.
I don't know what it is about this time of year that makes me want to wrap myself in a blanket, camp out next to the fireplace, and hibernate like a bear (no cracks about my resemblance). Maybe it's the fact that it's FREAKING COLD! I can handle the cold but not the dang wind. Talk about adding insult to injury, Mother Nature.
All I want to do is enjoy my couch potato-ness while watching television. If it weren't for family members who insist on eating food that requires utensils, I'd never leave my recliner. I can subsist on finger (translation: junk) foods that don't require any preparation. The only thing that stops me from doing this daily is the fact that my clothes are hugging me just a little too tightly. I blame it on my dryer. The dryer blames it on the refrigerator. I think it's a tie.
To celebrate the season, I thought I'd share a few recipes I've grown fond of over the years that are easy to make. I'm not the kind who likes to spend too much time in the kitchen unless I'm eating. Shocker, I know.
Nana's Potato Soup
Ingredients: Five or six (or more depending on your liking) potatoes, diced. One and a half cups of chopped onion. Two 14 ½ ounce cans of chicken broth or one 32- ounce box. If you don't want to use chicken broth you can use water or a combination. One and a half sticks of butter. One-third cup of all-purpose flour. Two and a half cups of milk (plus extra if it seems too thick). I use whole milk but it's a matter of preference. Salt and pepper to taste. The chicken broth can be low sodium and the butter unsalted if you prefer. I used the salted kind but that's me.
Directions: Sauté the onion in a half a stick of the butter in a large pot until tender. Add the liquid and potatoes to the pot. Bring to a boil then turn down and simmer until the potatoes are tender. In a saucepan, melt the remaining butter, whisk in the flour and cook over medium heat for a couple of minutes. Season with salt & pepper to taste. Cooking helps take away the flour taste. I suggest you do not skip this step. Whisk the milk into the flour mixture, stirring until it starts to thicken. Add to the pot of potatoes and onion, stirring slowly.
If it seems too thick, slowly add a little milk at a time until desired consistency is reached.
You can add any toppings you prefer for added good taste or eat as is with crackers.
Hamburger Soup
Ingredients: One pound (or more) of ground beef. One small, diced onion, diced. Three or four medium potatoes diced and pre-boiled. Two 15-ounce cans of diced tomatoes. Two eight-ounce cans of tomato sauce or one can undiluted tomato soup. Two cans of corn, drained. Two cans of any style green beans, drained.
Directions: Brown the ground beef and sauté the onions. Drain any grease then add the remaining ingredients and cook on medium-low heat until thoroughly heated. Salt and pepper to taste.
Any canned or frozen vegetables can be used to suit your taste. Amounts of tomatoes and sauce can also be adjusted to your liking.
Just writing all these soup recipes down has made me hungry. I think I'll make potato soup tonight since I like it and it's a favorite of one of our granddaughters. I'll do anything to get them to come over and hang with us oldsters and I'm not above using bribery. Ha! Ha!
Keep in mind my interest in the kitchen lies in eating. I'm a very simple cook; salt and pepper is as adventurous as I get.