Midwest Minestrone

This version of Minestrone makes me chuckle a little as it is such a Midwestern adaptation to traditional Minestrone. I love soups because they are so easy to modify and a classic Minestrone would have been exactly what this recipe represents, a gathering of scraps and leftover vegetables as well as any available pasta. Feel free to modify and let me know how it goes.

Midwest Minestrone

2 TBL butter
1 medium onion diced
3/4 c. cabbage sliced
1 leek diced
1/4 tsp. basil
1/4 tsp. oregano
1 turnip diced
1 potato diced
1 carrot diced
1 tomato diced
1 clove garlic chopped
1 tsp. chopped parsley
7 c. chicken stock
5 1/2 oz. tomato juice
2 1/2 oz. spaghetti
Pinch celery seed and thyme
Grated Parmesan cheese to taste

Heat butter in large sauce pan. When hot add onion, cabbage, leek, and season to taste. Add basil, oregano, and remaining spices. Cover and cook for 4 minutes over low heat. Add turnip, potato, and carrot, mix well. Continue cooking covered 3 to 4 minutes over medium heat.

Add tomato, garlic, parsley and pour in broth and tomato juice. Stir and bring to boil. Season soup well and cook uncovered for 5 minutes over low heat. Break spaghetti in thirds and add to soup. Season and continue cooking for 12 minutes over medium heat until pasta is cooked.

Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and serve.

Grandma's Turkey Noodle Soup

Classic comfort is Grandma's Turkey Noodle Soup. This is a great use of left over turkey or chicken especially if you have actually cooked the entire bird a day before.

Turkey or Chicken carcass
Water - enough to cover carcass
3-4 stalks celery with leaves chopped
1 medium onion chopped
1 small cans chicken boullion soup
1-2 TBL salt
1/4 tsp. ground black pepper
1 bay leaf
1/2 c. chopped parsley
1 1/2 c. sliced carrots
1 can cut green beans drained
4 c. egg noodles
1/4 c. butter
1.4 c. flour

In a large stock pot place carcass and cover with water. Add celery, onion, chicken boullion soup, slat, pepper, and bay leaf. Heat to boiling, reduce heat and let simmer 1 1/2 hours. Remove carcass, let cool. Add parsley, beans, and carrots to stock, let simmer 10 minutes. Remove meat from carcass and add to soup. Heat soup to boiling, add noodles, cook uncovered for 10 minutes. Melt butter in a small frying pan. Stir in flour. Cook over low heat until flour is browned. Stir flour mixture into soup. Return soup to boiling and stir. Reduce heat to simmer for 5 minutes.

Cream of Asparagus Soup

I'm a big fan of asparagus and even if you aren't give this a try. It's not far off in flavor or consistency of cream of broccoli soup and can be so warm and filling on a cold winter's day. As always this is great served with fresh bread or warm rolls.

Cream of Asparagus Soup

1 1/2 lbs asparagus, woody ends trimmed off
6 c. chicken broth unsalted
2 ribs celery chopped
1 medium onion chopped
3 TBL butter
3 TBL flour
1/2 c. heavy cream
salt and fresh ground white pepper to taste
1 dash cayenne
1 1/2 TBL fresh chopped parsley for garnish

Do ahead steps:
1/ cut tips off asparagus and simmer tips until tender. Drain, set aside.
2. In large sauce pan heat chicken stock, asparagus stalks, celery, and onion. Simmer covered 30 minutes. Allow to cool slightly and blend in blender, food processor, or with an immersion blender in pot until smooth.

Final steps:
Return stock mixture to pot. In small pan melt butter, whisk in flour and allow to bubble over moderate heat for 2-3 minutes. Slowly whisk in heavy cream, stirring until thickened. Add this mixture to blended stock mixture, stirring constantly. Add asparagus tips and heat soup until very hot but not boiling.

Season with salt, pepper, and cayenne. Garnish with parsley.

Don't Be a Dip

Another childhood favorite I fondly remember present at family gatherings, spinach dip served in a Hawaiian bread bowl. Yum, I can smell the garlicy, herby, creamy goodness and taste the sweet, fluff of the bread. There was just something about those little chewy bits of dehydrated veggies from the Knorr soup mix that made it special in an odd sort of way. I guess this is one way to get your kids to eat their veggies! Add enough mayo and sour cream to anything and even spinach becomes delectable to a 5 year old.

Spinach Dip

1 c. mayonnaise
1 c. sour cream
1/2 c. chopped onion
1 8oz. can water chestnuts (chopped)
1 pkg. Knorr dried vegetable soup mix
1 pkg. frozen chopped spinach (thawed and drained)

Combine all ingredients in a bowl. Tear out the center of a round Hawaiian or rye bread. Scoop dip into the center of the bowl and served with the remaining diced center of the bread.

This recipe works well with the Hellman's olive oil based mayo and greek yogurt in place of sour cream for a lighter option.

Put on Your Game Face

Here's another fun recipe from my Mom's blue gingham binder. Sounds like a win win no matter who you are rooting for in this year's Super Bowl. Either way you and your guests are sure to get in the spirit after a couple of these babies just be sure everyone has a sober DD to get them home! Go TEAM!

Grandma Tippy's Bourbon Slush

7 cups strong brewed tea
2 cups Bourbon (gin or vodka)
1 large can frozen lemonade (do not add water)
1 large can frozen orange juice (do not add water)
2 cups sugar

Combine all ingredients and freeze. Should take about a day to freeze. Then shave into glasses. Serve straight up or cut with 7up.

Potatoe Salad - Yes with an "e"

(From left to right circa 1979. Me, My Mom, Grandma Tippy, Great-Grandma Melba.)

Nothing better than potato"e" salad done right. My Mother recently shared with me many of the recipes she has held dear for many years in her blue gingham binder. These recipes are a collection of her favorites passed down from my Grandma Tippy, my Great-Grandma Melba, and various other aunts, PTA meetings, magazines, and newspaper clippings. I was startled at first when my inbox was suddenly full of time treasured, memory making, childhood favorites. My first thought was, "Oh my God Mom's gonna kick the bucket!" Then after politely prodding my Mother as to the intentions of passing on this treasure trove of knowledge and receiving a simple, "I just thought you'd like them", I thought I would share them and all of their simpleness, goodness (misspellings and all), and of course tastiness with the world.

Now potato"e" salad isn't just potato"e" salad in the world of a second generation rural immigrant German and Irish farming family like my Grandfather Ralph Cludy and my Grandmother Melba Cludy "nee Binder". Nope there's a lot of unspoken know-how that goes into preparing those spuds and getting it just right. Somehow these just don't translate on paper and are lost to the whispers of time. All I'm left with is my Mother's beautiful handwriting, a few ingredients, and my imagination.

Potatoe Salad

4-5 hard boiled eggs
potatoes (How many? Your guess is as good as mine.)
onion
celery seed
salt

Mayonnaise - Melba Cludy
2 eggs
1/2 cup sugar
1 TBL flour
1/2 cup vinegar
1/2 cup water
a little salt

Beat the eggs with a mixer until frothy. Mix together the sugar and flour. Use mixer and beat the whole thing. Bring to a boil and boil a little bit. Beat again. Thin with cream if needed.

Honest that's all I've got folks. I find it humorous in the world over developed and overly specific recipes that this is the ENTIRE potatoe salad recipe and no doubt would have been the best you've probably ever had. I'll give this a whirl someday and post the modern complicated directions below.