My mother received this delicious soup recipe from her friend, Sally, when I was a very small child. We lived in the same neighborhood and Sally’s children and my siblings and I were all playmates. This recipe has been a family standard for all those years (I won’t tell you how many). It is mild, but flavorful and kid friendly!
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Assembly Directions:
Brown the ground beef and onion together in a large soup pot (if you have purchased very lean beef, you should not need to drain any fat off). Cook until the hamburger is well browned. Add tomatoes, broth, salt, bay leaf, parsley flakes, thyme, peppercorns, celery and carrots, plus 3 1/2 cups of water. Bring the soup to a boil over medium high heat, and then simmer for 45 minutes to 2 hours.

Freezing Directions:
Cool soup thoroughly. Divide into suitable size freezer containers. If you are using a rigid freezer container, make sure to leave room at the top for expansion. Freeze vegetables in a separate container. Freeze cooked rice or pasta in a separate container. You can place the three containers into one larger container to keep all ingredients together. Label, seal, and freeze.

Serving Directions:
Thaw soup mixture and noodles or rice. Place soup in a soup pot on medium-low heat, or in a crock-pot on low. Simmer until heated thoroughly. About 15 minutes before serving add the frozen vegetables. Five minutes before serving add the cooked rice or pasta.

Comments:
*When serving to children be very sure to remove the peppercorns from the soup. If they bite into one you will be sorry!! I still like using the peppercorns because the flavor is imparted without the visual problem of little black flecks in the soup.

This soup smells fabulous! It is great served with croutons, crunchy breadsticks or cornbread. I love this soup just as it is, but my hubby and one or two of my children would sprinkle shredded cheddar or Parmesan cheese over the top.

Nutritional Info:
Analysis done with cooked rice.
Per Serving: 470 Calories; 20g Fat (38.5% calories from fat); 35g Protein; 37g Carbohydrate; 5g Dietary Fiber; 78mg Cholesterol; 2363mg Sodium.
Exchanges: 1 Grain (Starch); 4 Lean Meat; 3 Vegetable; 2 Fat.

I could not choke down that “slimy green stuff” when I was a kid. Not too many kids like anything green, let alone a whole bowl full of the pureed kind! I had not touched split peas for a long time until I tried this recipe. I even got my kids to eat it – one still howled. For me, the trick was to use yellow dried peas instead of the green variety, and to only puree part of the mixture. Of course you may use green peas and you can puree all of the vegetables and liquids if you like that texture. If you want to make this recipe even when you don’t have a left over ham bone, ham hocks can be purchased at most supermarkets and used instead.
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Assembly Directions:
Melt butter over medium-low heat in a large soup pot or Dutch oven. Cook onion, celery and carrots until the onion is soft. Add the water, bouillon cubes, dried peas, potatoes, and ham bone. Bring to a boil and then lower the heat and simmer for one hour. Remove and discard the bay leaf. Remove ham bone and any chunks of meat that may have fallen off it. Puree about 1/3 of the soup in a blender or food processor. Stir the pureed portion into the rest of the soup. Pick the meat off the ham bone and return it to the soup and heat through.

Freezing Directions:
Allow soup to cool thoroughly. Divide into suitable freezer containers, remembering to leave 1/2” of space at the top for expansion, or put in freezer bags. Seal and freeze.

Serving Directions:
Thaw soup. Place in a soup pot or saucepan over low heat until warmed, or reheat in the microwave.

Nutritional Info:
Per Serving: 397 Calories; 12g Fat (26.8% calories from fat); 22g Protein; 53g Carbohydrate; 19g Dietary Fiber; 39mg Cholesterol; 811mg Sodium.
Exchanges: 3 Grain (Starch); 1-1/2 Lean Meat; 1 Vegetable; 2 Fat.

My husband is not as fond of this as my children and I are, but this is such an easy entree that I’ll reserve this for lunches and other meals when he’s not around. It freezes and thaws beautifully, much to my surprise!
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Assembly Directions:
Heat 4 cups of the water to simmering and add the bouillon to it. Stir until it dissolves, then set aside.

With a meat mallet or rolling pin, gently pound the thick portion of each chicken breast to make the whole breast an even thickness. Heat the oil in a heavy-bottomed large pot set over medium heat. Brown the chicken breasts in the oil for 3-4 minutes per side until cooked through and lightly browned. You don’t want to over-brown the chicken or it will be tough. You just want to make sure the meat is no longer pink in the center. Remove the chicken from the pot to cool.

Add the onions to the pot and sauté until they are translucent and beginning to brown a little. Add the garlic and chicken bouillon/water to the pot. Gradually mix two cups of water into the masa harina with a whisk until all the water is incorporated and there are no lumps. Add the masa mixture to the pot. Add the remaining water to the pot and bring it to a boil, stirring occasionally.

While the mixture is heating, cube the cheese. When the mixture boils, add the cheese, reduce the heat to simmer, and stir occasionally until the cheese is melted and well blended into the soup. Use two forks or your fingers to shred the chicken. Add it to the pot and heat through. To eat the soup immediately, continue to heat until the soup is as thick as you desire. To freeze, follow directions below.

Freezing Directions:
If you are planning to freeze the soup, remove it from heat as soon as the cheese is melted. Stir in the chicken and allow the soup to cool. It will thicken as it cools. Stir the soup occasionally as it cools. Freeze in labeled bags or containers.

Serving Directions:
Thaw and heat in a microwave, or over very low heat on a stove. Serve with corn chips.

Comments:
*Note: Masa harina, a flour made from corn and lime, is either found with the other flours or in the Hispanic foods section of larger supermarkets. Don’t try to substitute with regular flour or cornmeal!

ALSO: Shredded pork or beef could be substituted for the chicken.

Nutritional Info:
Per Serving: 592 Calories; 37g Fat (53.3% calories from fat); 40g Protein; 32g Carbohydrate; 2g Dietary Fiber; 142mg Cholesterol; 2886mg Sodium.
Exchanges: 1 Grain (Starch); 5-1/2 Lean Meat; 1/2 Vegetable; 5 Fat; 1 Other Carbohydrates.