Tortellini Chicken Soup with Black Beans

Here’s another slow cooker soup I threw together yesterday.  I had most of the ingredients in the pantry, so it was something pretty quick and easy to put together.  This was one of those soups that you can just toss in a can of this or a cup of that if you have something you want to use up.

Tortellini Chicken Soup with Black Beans

Ingredients

1 can black beans

I can Rotel (I used Aldi brand.)

1 Can Mexicorn (I used Aldi brand.)

1 can diced tomatoes

1 onion, chopped or diced

1 small green pepper, chopped or diced

1 small red pepper, chopped or diced

2 32oz. chicken broth or stock

1 Ranch packet

3 Tbsp. garlic, minced

2 Tbsp. garlic salt (I added this about ½ hour before serving.  Add as much or as little as you like.)

1-2 Cups chicken breast, diced or shredded (I used 2 chicken breasts.)

1 bag frozen tortellini
Parmesan Cheese to sprinkle on top, if desired

Add all ingredients to the slow cooker except the tortellini.  Add the frozen tortellini to the soup about 30 minutes before serving.  In this final step, you basically just cook the soup until the tortellini is heated through.  Top each bowl with Parmesan cheese, if desired.  Enjoy!

I love simple recipes.  I really love simple slow cooker recipes.   

Slow Cooker Split Pea Soup

For some time now I’ve wanted to try making Split Pea soup.  Yes, I know it’s not the typical thing to make nor do most people enjoy it, but I do.  So there! J  I ended up back in my Make It Fast, CookIt Slow cookbooks.  If you don’t know it already, I absolutely LOVE Stephanie O’Dea’s books, blog, and recipes.  They are a must-have for those who use their slow cooker often.  I pretty much followed her exact recipe with the exception of the bacon.  I used one of the bags of bacon pieces found in the salad dressing aisle.  It was much quicker for me on the morning I was making the soup. This was one of the EASIEST slow cooker recipes ever.

Slow Cooker Split Pea Soup

 The Ingredients

16 oz. package of dried split peas

1 onion, diced

1 potato, peeled and diced

1 cup diced carrot

4 cups vegetable broth

1 cup water (next time I would add 1 additional cup 5-10 minutes before serving.  It got quite thick!)

1 pkg. Real Bacon Bits (despite my link here, I used Kroger brand.)

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

The Directions.

Add everything to the slow cooker.  Stir to mix well.

Cover and cook on low 8-10 hours or high for 4-6.

Use a potato masher to mash and mix the soup to get a combined, thick consistency.  This is when I would add an additional cup up water and blend together.  (If you have an immersible hand blender you can also use that to make your soup a bit more creamy and to have an even consistency.)

Serve.

Next time I will definitely double this recipe.  Other than it being quite thick, it was delicious and even the little squirt couldn't get enough of it.  It would be great with some fresh baked rolls or bread.

Adapted recipe from here.

Quinoa & Black Beans

Now that life is back to normal and we’re all back home, I’m back to cooking.  We made a ham in the slow cooker this weekend, and Joe picked his favorite quinoa dish to go along with it.  This recipe was recommended to me by a friend a few months ago.  It’s delicious and super easy.  We used it as a side dish (with lots of leftovers) but it could also stand alone.  I make it without the cayenne pepper, and depending on whether or not I have cilantro on hand, I might leave that out, too…so have no fear if you have to change the recipe a bit.  If you’re afraid try quinoa, or not sure what to do with it, this is a great dish to make for a first-timer!

Quinoa and Black Beans

Ingredients:

1 teaspoon vegetable oil 1 onion, chopped 3 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped 3/4 cup uncooked quinoa 1 1/2 cups vegetable broth 1 teaspoon ground cumin

1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper, optional salt and pepper to taste 1 cup frozen corn kernels OR 1 can corn 2 (15 ounce) cans black beans, rinsed and drained 1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro, optional 1-2 cooked chicken breasts, diced or shredded, optional

Directions:

1.	Heat the oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Stir in the onion and garlic, and sauté until lightly browned.
2.	Mix quinoa into the saucepan and cover with vegetable broth. Season with cumin, cayenne pepper, salt, and pepper. Bring the mixture to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 20 minutes.
3.	Stir frozen corn into the saucepan, and continue to simmer about 5 minutes until heated through. Mix in the black beans and cilantro.  Fold in the chicken slowly until incorporated. Serve. UPDATE 11/23/15 So I made a few changes this time around and I think it came out even better than before. -I cooked the chicken breasts by boiling them in water.  Cook thoroughly.  When just about done, I poured out 1/3-1/2 of the water and replaced with chicken broth and 1 tbsp salt.  I continued to boil for 5-10 minutes. -I put the chicken in the food processor to get it finely shredded.  Just be careful that you don't pulverize the chicken, turning it to mush.  It should be small, shredded-like pieces. I think this was much better than dicing the chicken.  The flavors all blended together better and it was delicious! -I left out the cayenne and cilantro. -I also used 1 can of corn instead of frozen. Instead of cilantro another option could be to top with green onions finely chopped. I haven't tried that yet though. Original recipe found here.

Taco Soup

This week our Crock Pot Tuesday consisted of Taco Soup, an all-time favorite in our household.  Sam’s even old enough to love the beans, meat, and corn that are a part of this delicious soup.  The only thing I do differently from the original recipe is that I add 2 quarts of chicken broth or stock to make it more soup-y.  The original recipe has more of a chili consistency, but we like a good hearty soup, so I tried the change and we’ve never gone back!  You can't really mess up this recipe. Enjoy!

Taco Soup

1 lb browned and drained ground beef

1 medium onion, chopped

2 cans of kidney beans

2 cans of pinto beans

2 cans of corn with their juices

1  28oz. can of diced tomatoes with the juices

1  14oz. can tomatoes and chiles (Rotel), with the juices

1 packet taco seasoning

1 packet ranch dressing mix

1-2  32oz. cartons Chicken Stock (optional, this makes it more soup-like rather than chili-like; I always add this.)

Shredded cheese and sour cream for topping (optional)

The Directions:

Use at least 6-quart slow cooker.  Put the meat and onion into the slow cooker.  Drain and rinse the beans, and add to the cooker.  Add the corn and tomatoes.  Stir in contents of the seasoning packets.  Cover and cook on low for 8 hours or on high for 4 hours.  I think the longer you cook soup, the better, so if you have the time, opt for cooking on low.  Ladle into bowls.

        Add a handful of cheddar cheese and a dollop of sour cream to each bowl before eating.  Other topping possibilities:  soda crackers, corn chips, Sriracha

Adapted from this recipe.