Category: Quick and Easy Recipes

Italian Sausage Soup: A Hearty & Wholesome Soup You’ll Love

Italian Sausage Soup

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I’m a big fan of soups.

I like my soups hearty with a bit of meat, a bit of veggies and a bit of starch.

This soup has it all. 

Sausage, potatoes, beans, onions, spinach…mmmm good!

The best part about this soup? It’s totally a one pot meal!

The second best part about this soup? It includes BACON!

Sold? I thought you would be. 😉

Italian Sausage Soup

Source: Tablespoon.com**(see note)

Ingredients:

  • 2 slices bacon
  • 2 large russet potatoes cut into chunky cubes (about a 1/2 inch size cube)
  • 1/2 lb Italian Sausage, casing removed (my sausage was Chicken Italian Sausage. It had mozzarella in it, which might have made my soup just a tad bit more awesome)
  • 1 large onion, chopped
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 teaspoon Italian Seasoning
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon pepper
  • 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes***
  • 1 carton low sodium chicken broth (32 oz)
  • 4 cups spinach
  • 1 can cannelloni beans (15-19 oz) washed and drained
  • 1 cup half and half (I didn’t have half and half. So I did half a cup heavy cream and half a cup of milk. Worked fine)

Directions:

  1. In a large deep pot, cook your bacon until crisp. Remove from pan and don’t eat it! Seriously…don’t. Crumble it and set it aside.
  2. Crumble sausage and cook until browned in the same pot. Remove from pan and set aside. (you might want to drain your sausage. I didn’t, and as you can tell from the picture above, the soup had a bit of grease in it. Which is not a huge deal, but next time I’ll be sure to drain and pat down the sausage after cooking)
  3. Now throw your onions, potatoes, garlic, Italian seasoning, salt, pepper and red pepper flakes into the same pot. Pour the chicken broth on top and bring to a boil.
  4. After bringing the pot to a boil, take the temperature down to a simmer and cook for about 10 minutes.
  5. Add crumbled bacon, sausage, spinach and beans to the pot and cook for 10 more minutes or until potatoes are cooked through (took me about 15 minutes)
  6. Just before serving, add half and half and cook just until heated through.

**Note: the original recipe asks for a lot more liquid than my version and also subs in kale for spinach. I like my version better, but feel free to check out the original as well!
***The kids weren’t HUGE fans of this soup. I eyeballed the red pepper flakes and might have put a bit more than 1/4 teaspoon in. It was a bit hot. It was fine for me and my husband, but if you have kiddos eating it, you might want to cut back or just put the red pepper flakes on your individual bowl instead of in the community pot.

This soup was so yummy and comforting and even better the next day!

Check out all the frugal recipes here on Family Friendly Frugality.

Free eCookbook! 38 Best Soup Recipes and Hearty Stews Available for Download!

Do you love a hot soup or hearty stew in the winter? I sure do! Here’s a free eCookbook for you! 38 Best Soup Recipes and Hearty Stews eCookbook is available for download today!

This 60 page eCookbook includes the following:

  • Chicken Soup Recipes
  • Easy Vegetable Soup Recipes
  • Slow Cooker Soup Recipes
  • Other Easy Soup Recipes
  • Hearty Stew Recipes
Enjoy this FREE eCookbook!

 

FREE E-Book for Soup & Stew Lovers!

Here is a great FREE ebook for soup lovers!

I can practically taste it, the change in season is fast approaching. Fall is right around the corner and I couldn’t be more delighted; it’s my favorite time of year! With fall comes slightly cooler weather, apple and pumpkin picking and amazing fall recipes. What are some common dishes you’ll see throughout fall and winter? Soups and Stews!

With this very thing in mind we put together our latest eCookbook, 38 Best Soup Recipes and Hearty Stews. It’s chock full of easy soup recipes and simple stews, from savory – to sweet and savory. There’s something for everyone, like classic chicken soup recipes, vegetable soups, easy to prepare slow cooker soups and super filling stews. You’ll also find some unique and fun new soup recipes too, like this Apple Squash Soup and Amish Church Soup. Super tasty! With our 38 Best Soup Recipes and Hearty Stews eCookbook you’ll have plenty of options to get you through to the next change of season. Click Here to grab your free online copy!

Yum!

Soups and stews are seriously fall and winter staples around here. I can’t wait to start stocking my freezer with some new recipes!

Enjoy!

Slow Cooker Eat-Those-Vegetables Soup

Mmmm, this here is FALL food!

I love soup. I don’t love veggies as much as I should though. Throw some veggies in a soup though? I’ll eat practically any variety. Something about veggies in soup just makes me feel good and wholesome. Not sure what it is.

This slow cooker Vegetable Soup is ridiculously easy and VERY tasty. It’s also incredibly versatile. I hesitate to even suggest ingredients, because really…any veggies will do.

I do brown my veggies for a bit in a pot with some olive oil, but it’s not totally necessary. I just love the flavor it adds to the finished soup.

Ingredients:

  • Veggies of your choice (I used 1/2 eggplant, 1 zucchini, 1 squash, 1 onion & 2 carrots); cut them all the same size. I like them on the smaller side.
  • 6 cups beef broth (or you can sub vegetable stock, but I like the flavor of the beef)
  • 1 28 oz can of diced tomatoes
  • 3 fresh bay leaves
  • 1 teaspoon italian seasoning
  • Salt & Pepper to taste
  • Olive oil for browning (drizzle)

Directions: 

  1. Once your veggies are all chopped up, you’ll want to heat some olive oil in a pot on the stove. Brown your veggies in batches and salt and pepper each batch. You aren’t looking for them to be fully cooked, just get a nice brown color on them.
  2. Throw the veggies into the slow cooker.
  3. Pour your beef broth into the pot you browned the veggies in and scrape the bottom to get all the yummy goodness into the broth.
  4. Meanwhile, dump your diced tomatoes into your slow cooker on top of your veggies.
  5. Pour the broth on top of the veggies.
  6. Add the bay leaves and italian seasoning.
  7. Cook on high for 4 hours or on low for 6-8 hours. Taste the broth about an hour before you intend to serve it and salt and pepper as needed.
Enjoy!

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I’ll be linking this recipe up to the Slow Cooker Squad’s Monday Linky!

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Fun & Frugal Bean & Pasta Soup

So I have definitely been on a new recipe kick lately. I am trying to eat healthier and lose weight and to be honest…I’ve never tried to lose weight AND clip coupons at the same time. Losing weight for me has always resulted in higher grocery bills. Not because healthy food is more expensive, it’s really not. Mainly because to keep things interesting and to stay on track, I have to have a wider, more interesting selection of food available to me.

This generally results in higher grocery bills, which in the past I just chalked up to getting healthier. Well, this time around…I wanted to do it right.

I don’t want to raise our grocery budget to accommodate losing weight.

That makes it seem like weight loss and health are short term goals and eventually we’ll go back to where we were. We’re not going to do that. So in addition to making our new menu lifestyle changes, we also have to make a new budget lifestyle changes. This means changing the way I shop (a little) and changing the way I cook (a lot).

Everyone has those fall back recipes that they make when ideas escape them and they just want dinner to be as quick and painless as possible. Unfortunately for me, my go to recipes don’t exactly fit into my new lifestyle. So I need to find new go to recipes. The stakes are high for these test recipes though. Rather then JUST being healthy or JUST being frugal…they have to be both…and so much more.

  • Healthy
  • Tasty
  • Frugal
  • Kid Friendly
  • Adult Friendly
  • NOT Diet Food

This next recipe fills all of the above criteria and more. My picky picky son even ate most of this soup! If that’s not a testimonial for this yummy soup…I’m not sure what else is? So without further ado…

Fun & Frugal Bean & Pasta Soup

adapted from Taste Of Home Comfort Food Diet Cookbook

Ingredients:

  • 1 cup small pasta (we used macaroni, but if you can find alphabet pasta…I’d totally use that if your kids will be eating with you!)
  • 2 celery ribs thinly sliced
  • 2 carrots peeled and sliced thin
  • 1 medium onion diced
  • 1 garlic clove minced
  • 1 tbspn olive oil
  • 2 cups water
  • 1 can (14 1/2 ounces) diced tomatoes (undrained)
  • 1 1/2 cup low sodium chicken broth
  • 1 tspn dried basil
  • 1/2 tspn dried rosemary
  • 1/4 tspn salt
  • 1/8 tspn pepper
  • 1 can (15 oz) cannellini beans rinsed and drained
  • 2 cups fresh spinach (I used one  cup because I wanted the kids to eat it!)
  • 1/4 cup shredded Parmesan (I actually left this out because I forgot…you totally don’t need it)
  1. Cook the pasta according to the package directions. Drain and set aside.

  2. Meanwhile add olive oil to a deep pan or pot. Add celery, carrots, onion and garlic and sautee until nice and soft.

  3. Add water, chicken broth, tomatoes, basil, rosemary, salt and pepper and bring to a boil. Turn down the heat and let simmer, covered, for about 10 minutes. Meanwhile, chop spinach

  4. Add beans & spinach and let simmer about 5 minutes longer.

  5. Add pasta* just before serving. Top with parm if desired.

*If you aren’t going to eat this all in one sitting…it’s up to you if you add all the pasta to the soup right away or if you store it separately and add pasta as you heat it up. I poured all the pasta in because I don’t mind my pasta being mushy. You might not feel the same!

Enjoy!

Nutrition Info: 1 1/2 cups= 218 calories/ 5 g fat/ 35 g carbs/ 7 g fiber /9 g protein 5 Points Plus on Weight Watchers

I wish I had gotten pics of the kids eating this. Lizzie ate it so fast that we thought maybe she spilled her soup. Noah LOVED the broth and the macaroni. He still shied away from the veggies, but I’m convinced some nutrition leached into the broth during cooking!


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Turkey Soup Recipe

What exactly is your plan for the bones of your leftover turkey? I know what I always do… make turkey soup! My version is super easy, fast and frugal!

Turkey Soup

1 picked over turkey
Veggies…whatever you like (we use carrots, onions, potatoes, okra…seriously whatever you like)
1/2 cup rice
salt
pepper
leftover turkey

Put turkey in a really big pot and cover with water. Bring to a boil and then lower down to a simmer for about 2 hours. Push the turkey down as it starts to tenderize (is that the right word for it?) and break down.

When the turkey is pretty much just floating bones, drain the stock into a colendar. Throw out all the bones (you can keep the meat if any meat is leftover) and put the stock back on the stove.

Season with salt and pepper and add all the veggies and turkey in. Simmer until the veggies are nice and soft. Add rice about 15 minutes before you intend to eat.

Enjoy!

Super easy, super frugal!

What do you do with your leftover turkey?

My name is Heather and I am a frugal mommy saving money! Want to learn a bit more about Family Friendly Frugality? First subscribe to FREE daily emails. Next, learn more about our frugal blog by reading our about me post or read the popular series Our Story. Or jump in head first and learn how to reduce the family grocery budget, play the drugstore game, or catch up on the hottest frugality finds!

Comforting Potato Soup!

So yesterday I was checking out one of my favorite frugal recipe blogs $5 Dinners.

I came across this super simple recipe for Potato Soup and had to try it. I’ve made potato soup in the past and it was a total failure. This is amazing. I highly encourage you to try it! Super cheap, easy and quick.

I changed things up just a tad, so here’s my version.

Adapted from Connie’s Potato Soup For 10
Connie from Smockity Frocks on $5 Dinners

Ingredients:

  • 10 potatoes
  • 1 lb sausage (I used Jimmy Dean Sage)
  • 1 can cream of chicken soup
  • 1 onion (diced)
  • 1 cup cheddar
  • 2 cups cooked broccoli (frozen or fresh, just make sure it’s steamed to be pretty soft)
Directions:
  1. Peel and cut potatoes into small cubes
  2. Put potatoes into a pot and cover with water (just a bit over the potatoes)
  3. Set to boil 
  4. Meanwhile, brown onion and sausage seperately
  5. When potatoes are soft…DO NOT DRAIN. Add sausage, onions, cheese, cream of mushroom soup and broccoli
  6. Let simmer until you are ready to eat! It will naturally thicken
Let me tell you, this is even better the next day. I meant to take a picture of my bowl, but I couldn’t stop eating it long enough!
Perfect for a chilly fall day and to get rid of those potatoes sitting on your counter! My husband ate an enormous bowl and my daughter even ate it! My kids are NOT soup eaters (I might have told her it was cheese soup LOL)

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