Making Soup in Your Crockpot

Some winters tend to be colder than other winters. On these cold winter nights, there is nothing that warms you from the inside out like soup does.

There really is a taste difference between homemade soup and canned soup. For those who are gone during the day but want homemade soup, my answer is to use your crockpot. I often get it all ready the night before. I place everything in the crockpot, then put it in the refrigerator. In the morning I plug it in and when I get home at 5:00 p.m. it's ready to eat.

Crockpot

I happen to love corn chowder. It's very easy to make and I enjoy it with a warm slice of bread.

I start with cans of corn I buy at the dollar store. You'll need two of the sixteen ounce cans. Drain the liquid and pour the corn right into the crockpot. Add in two cups of chicken broth. I buy store brand as it's usually less expensive than name brands. If you have water from boiling the chicken, season the chicken water with a bit of salt and then use two cups of the strained chicken broth. Chop up two potatoes and one onion and add those in as well. If you use salt and pepper, add them in according to your tastes. I will sometimes add in about one half teaspoon of each. You'll cook this on low between seven and eight hours. After the seven or eight hours, remove the cover and add in two cups of milk and one quarter cup of butter. Stir, cover and cook an additional forty-five minutes on low. The milk you use will help determine the thickness of the soup. I use non-fat milk which makes my soup thin. If you use half and half, your soup will be thicker.

If you like chicken in your soup, cut up already cooked chicken and add the chicken in during that last forty-five minutes of cooking.

Speaking of chicken, my daughter loves chicken noodle soup. This is a very simple recipe to make. You throw everything in the crockpot, cover in water and cook. It doesn't get much easier than that.

You'll start with three to four cups of cut up chicken. This can be white meat or dark. My family prefers the white meat. Many people I know prefer the flavor of the dark meat. I buy skinless boneless chicken breasts so cutting them up is a breeze. Add in about three cups of vegetables. I often use baby carrots as we often have those in the house. Then I add in celery as I like the flavor celery gives soup. I usually remove the celery before serving as I don't enjoy eating the celery, I just enjoy the flavor. I also add in cut up potatoes and onion. As you add in the vegetables, cut them into a size that can easily be removed if you don't wish to serve the vegetable in the bowl of soup.

Your final ingredient is four cups of liquid. Most recipes call for water as the liquid. I actually prefer using chicken broth. The liquid gets poured over all of the other ingredients.

Cook on low about eight hours. An hour before serving, boil your noodles. Don't make them too soft as you'll be adding them to the crockpot for an hour. Drain the noodles and add to the crockpot. Cook for about an hour more on low.

These are two very easy soup recipes to create in your crockpot. I hope you enjoy them.

Making Soup in Your Crockpot

Audrey's mom always entertained when she was growing up. Audrey learned to prepare for large groups and has often entertained 15-30 people in her home at a time. You can find more great recipes at http://www.recipe-barn.com

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