Sunday Soup #116: Chicken Cordon Bleu Soup

Chicken cordon bleu is many people's guilty pleasure (including mine)! Its cheesy, creamy, crispy, savory goodness is something I crave, but I rarely get it because who has the time to slice and flatten and layer and roll and bread and fry and repeat ad nauseum? And, nobody should be made to eat frozen cordon bleu! If you feel the same way then it is time to rejoice because I have found a soup recipe for you!! Frequent collaborator Lisa and I made this soup that definitely scratched the cordon bleu itch, for sure...

This recipe came from: https://carlsbadcravings.com/chicken-cordon-bleu-soup/

*Pic 1 - https://carlsbadcravings.com/chicken-cordon-bleu-soup/

Variations from the Recipe as Written: We doubled the recipe. We used regular chicken stock rather than low-sodium. And, we used a yummy smelling veggie seasoning (from Costo) on the croutons rather than garlic powder and salt. 

General Thoughts: The prep for this recipe was a moderate amount or, as Lisa preferred to call it, "easy+". :-) There were a lot of different ingredients to gather and measure out. The onions, carrots, and celery needed to be chopped, of course, but we probably could have been smarter and just bought the pre-chopped mirapoix mix at the market. The potatoes needed to be peeled and cubed, as well as cubing the ham, but Lisa had some of the rotisserie chicken from Costco on hand, so that only needed a little bit more chopping to create bite-sized pieces. Finally, the recipe said making croutons was optional (do not skip this!), and we chose to cube the bread and make our own rather than buying bagged croutons at the store, so that took a little more work. Soups that take a lot of prep can sometimes fall into the "too much work" category if the taste falls short, but that was not the case with this one...

*Pics 2 & 3 - Pictures from when I made it

The soup turned out not to be as thick as I expected, which initially led me to worry. I thought that the amount of cheese, the cream, and the added flour and cornstarch would result in a thicker, chowder-like consistency, but this one turned out kind of brothy. However, I thought the consistency was perfect, more like a brothy, chunky bisque rather than a gloppy, cheesy goo. This was another soup that presented a variety of different textures in every bite, which I loved: firm veggies, chewy meat, stringy cheese, croutons that were crunchy on the outside and soft on the inside. Each bite was enjoyable!

And, it tasted great... It really (no exaggeration) tasted like chicken cordon bleu! The chicken and ham flavors shined through, while swiss cheese gave it a bit of tang. The dijon mustard flavor was tasty but very subtle, and I found myself wanting a little more of it. If I had one criticism of this soup it would be that it was just a touch bland for me (I like strong flavors!), but that was easily fixed with some ground black pepper and a few drops of Tapatio (hot sauce).

Finally, I'd be remiss if I didn't add a special note about the croutons... These made the dish! The soup was very solid before, but adding croutons to my bowl, mimicking the fried breadcrumb coating on the outside of a traditional cordon bleu, took it to the next level. Do yourself a favor, DEFINITELY make the croutons and enjoy!!

Potential Improvements? This one was terrific, but I think it could be even better! The only thing it was missing for me was just just a touch more spice/salt and a little bit of a vinegary, mustard bite. When I make this one again, I think I am going to double (or even triple) the dijon mustard in the pot, which should really help all the flavors "pop" a bit better.

Polling the Fam: For me, this was the second nearly perfect soup in as many weeks, and I'd love to put it in my regular rotation! Becky thought it was "super solid" and that the croutons made it "off the hook". Jayson said this one was probably in his top-3 soups ever, and he went back for more, even though he was already full. Lisa loved it, thought it could use more dijon mustard, and said she'd rather have this over traditional chicken cordon bleu. Hunter said it was 5-out-of-5 for him. Andrew agreed with Hunter and said it was "really good." And, Fox said, "It was okay." *eye roll emoji*

Verdict: Loved it! (5 stars)

Sunday Soup #115: Watermelon Gazpacho

Yep, you read that right... WATERMELON! Just when you thought everyone's favorite summer fruit couldn't get any better, I found a recipe to turn it into a soup!!

It has been kind of hot here the last few weeks and, despite my long-held (scientifically supported!) belief that eating warm soup helps your body better regulate its temperature, sometimes a cold soup just sounds more refreshing. Enter gazpacho... This cold soup made of raw, blended vegetables originated in Spain and is, today, eaten widely in Spain, Portugal, and other locales, particularly during hot summers. Many gazpachos are tomato-based, but recipes for modern variations sometimes include more exotic and exciting ingredients.

I made a VERY delicious Green Gazpacho (https://soupersleuth.blogspot.com/2018/07/sunday-soup-64-green-gazpacho.html) as part of this project a couple summers ago, and I encourage you to try that one, too. But, was this one equally tasty?

This recipe came from: https://www.simplyrecipes.com/recipes/watermelon_gazpacho/

*Pic 1 - https://www.simplyrecipes.com/recipes/watermelon_gazpacho/

Variations from the Recipe as Written: The jalapeños I used were fresh from friend Lisa's garden, but they weren't very spicy, so I used one jalapeño and one serrano. That's it!

General Thoughts: As you would expect from a soup that is 90% fruit and vegetables, there was some light prep on this one... Almost everything needed to be chopped; however, because it all went into the blender, a rough chop was fine. Only a few ingredients (i.e., onion, bell pepper, cucumber, and hot pepper) needed a smaller dice because they were also added to the bowl after the majority of the soup was puréed, and the garnishes (i.e., avocado and cilantro) needed to be prepped, but it was all pretty low intensity overall.  I cheated a little (ssshhhhh!) and got the fresh watermelon pre-cut at my local market to save even more time.

*Pics 2 & 3 - Pictures from when I made it

I won't beat around the bush here, this one was great! The texture was interesting and not-at-all unpleasant. It was not as smooth as the Green Gazpacho, which benefitted from the creaminess provided by the avocado, but this soup was blended to have a little more of a "pulpy juice" mouthfeel. The chunks of vegetables were delightfully crisp and provided a nice texture variation that I enjoyed.

I expected this one to be quite sweet, which made me a little wary. It was on the sweeter side (as a result of the tomatoes and - duh! - watermelon), but the red wine vinegar cut the sweetness very nicely (the recipe starts with 1/4-cup of vinegar but says you can add up to 1/2-cup if needed - I used 1/2-cup total). It was also not as watermelon-forward as I expected; I could definitely taste it, which was important, but it was not overwhelming. All of the ingredients blended together (pun definitely intended!) to produce a cool, refreshing, flavorful, delicious soup that would be perfect as a summer soup course, a BBQ side dish, or a light-fare selection at a garden party. We ate it as a side with a build-your-own-nachos bar, and it was a terrific compliment.

Potential Improvements? I really can't think of any improvements... Practically perfect for me as-is!

Polling the Fam: I won't be coy here... It was terrific, and it will definitely be a summertime go-to for me in the future! Lisa was the only other person to try this one, but she also thought it was great. We both ate it leftover for lunch the day after, as well, and it was equally good!

Verdict: Loved it! (5 stars)

Sunday Soup #114: Lisa's Ham and Bean Soup

Ham and Bean Soup is a classic! Many people associate it with happy childhood memories, cool nights in, filling their bellies with hearty goodness, and sharing a meal they enjoy with loved ones. So, deviating from a tried-and-true recipe can be a little risky, but there is something to be said for knowing what you like. But, I do it all the time with these posts, don't I? I tell you about a recipe but then never miss an opportunity to talk about how I'd change or improve it next time. *shrug* Food, like art, is subjective, and you might not always like the end result, but you can always trust that the artist had enough faith in their creation to put it in front of you. As such, it is always appreciated! This week, my frequent collaborator, Lisa, decided to modify an existing recipe fairly significantly and fill it with extra goodness to please our group... Let's see how it went!

This recipe came from: My friend, Lisa. It started as an Instant Pot Ham and Bean Soup recipe from Hurst's HamBeens Brand (https://hurstbeans.com/recipes/instant-pot-ham-and-bean-soup), but she didn't use the Instant Pot, and she made enough changes and additions to it that I think it can rightly be called hers. So, in the tradition of the other original recipes I've made in the past, I got permission to print her recipe here for you, in its entirety!

RECIPE:

1 20 oz package HamBeens 15 Bean Soup (*reserve the seasoning packet)

8 cups water

4 tsp Better Than Bullion (Chicken Flavor) (*you can substitute 8 cups of chicken broth for the water and Better The Bullion, if preferred)

1 cup onion, chopped

1 smoked ham shank

1 lb smoked beef sausage, sliced

1 tbsp olive oil

14.5 oz can diced tomatoes

1 tsp chili powder

Juice of 1 lemon

3 cloves garlic

3 carrots, diced

1 cup celery (approx. 2 stalks), diced

1 bay leaf

1. Soak the beans overnight.

2. Place the soaked beans in a pot with the broth or water/bullion, onion, and smoked ham shank, and bring it to a boil. Then, reduce the heat and simmer for 90-120 minutes.

3. While the beans/ham are cooking, slice the smoked sausage and brown in olive oil. Set aside.

4. Remove the ham shank from the pot, cut the meat from the bone, and cube the meat into bite-sized pieces before adding it back to the pot.

5. Add the browned sausage slices, diced tomatoes, chili powder, lemon juice, garlic, carrots, celery, and bay leaf to the pot. Cover and cook for another 30 minutes at a heat sufficient to maintain a simmer.

6. Add the contents of the seasoning packet from the bag of beans to the pot two minutes before the soup finishes cooking.

7. Remove from heat and serve immediately. Enjoy!

General Thoughts: The prep on this one wasn't terrible, but it did take some doing... In a flip of our usual arrangement, Lisa handled the lion's share of the cooking on this one while I got to play the sous chef role. She soaked the beans overnight but, if you don't have time for that, there are several methods available to "power soak" dried beans to achieve a similar effect in a little over an hour (https://www.thekitchn.com/how-to-quicksoak-dried-beans-cooking-lessons-from-the-kitchn-198610). In addition to prepping the beans, there is a bit of chopping, dicing, slicing, sautéeing, etc. to be done, as well as 2+ hours of cook time, so make sure you get started early enough before dinnertime. :-) Thankfully, the work is ultimately worth it!

*Pics 1 & 2 - Pictures from when Lisa made it

As you would expect, the soup was hearty and delivered on ham and bean soup's "traditional" role as comfort food. It was delightfully brothy (which I loved!), but each bite was also chock-full of chunky goodness. The vegetables were perfectly tender and the ham practically fell apart in my mouth! However, the pre-cooked sausage stayed a little spongy (consistent with kielbasa), which wasn't unexpected, but it felt a little "off" to me, side-by-side as it was with the more tender pieces of pork.

The wonderful smoked meat flavors suffused this soup, which created a pleasant and consistent taste profile, overall. The savoriness of the ham and sausage also greatly supported the soup's flavor, likely making it salty enough to please those who don't often cook with added salt. But, adding a little more salt (maybe 1 tbsp) and some cracked pepper (to taste) to the pot with all the veggies would definitely have opened up the flavor of this recipe even more.

Potential Improvements? As mentioned, seasoning the soup a little better (salt, pepper, and maybe even a couple dashes of thyme and oregano) would help this one. Also, using a different cut of pork (e.g., a smoked pork or picnic shoulder rather than a ham shank) and swapping out the sausage for more pork (i.e., using an extra pound of smoked pork instead of the smoked sausage) would help some of the (minor) texture issues that popped up for me.

Polling the Fam: Overall, I thought this one was really good, and I would definitely eat it again, especially if we seasoned it a bit better. Becky thought it was okay but not super flavorful. Jayson really liked it and thought it was excellent. (Chef) Lisa thought it was pretty solid and that the veggies and smoked sausage were solid additions. Andrew said it was really great, with a good balance of meat and beans. Hunter thought it was decent and opined that "no sausage and more ham" would have made it better. And, the ever-effusive Fox said it was, "Okay."

Verdict: Liked it. (4 stars)