Welcome to My Kitchen

Rainy days call for a kettle of soup simmering on the stove or in a slow-cooker to bring a savory aroma to your kitchen. Lise Ott shared her recipe for Black Bean and Corn Soup, a vegetarian, gluten free soup, ideal for a meatless Monday meal, a perfectly seasoned, hearty meal. Serve with dinner rolls or corn chips. Adding a dollop of sour cream and a sprinkle of cheddar cheese elevates this recipe to company fare.

This is a good recipe to add to your list of pantry recipes because all the ingredients may be kept on pantry shelves or in your freezer, making it easy to prepare a meal before going out for the day.

Black Bean and Corn Soup

1 quart stewed tomatoes

1 can (15 ounces) diced tomatoes

1 can (15 ounces) Mexican style tomatoes

2 pints (about 4 cups) frozen corn kernels

4 cans (15 ounces each) black beans, rinsed and drained

2 Tbsp chili powder

1 tsp ground cumin

1 medium red onion chopped

1 Tsp salt

Combine all ingredients in a slow-cooker crock and simmer 8 hours, or combine all ingredients in a large kettle, bring to a boil then reduce heat and simmer about 3 hours. Yield: about 1 gallon soup.

Note: if you like more cumin flavor, sauté onion briefly in a tablespoon of olive or vegetable oil, then add cumin and continue cooking and stirring one minute to bring out the flavor. Add this to mixture in crock or kettle.

Nancy Floether shared her recipe for Chocolate Coffee Toffee Oatmeal Cookies. She found the recipe in the Spokesman newspaper a number of years ago. The recipe is attributed to Paula Marchesi of Lenharsville, PA, winner in the Ultimate Oatmeal Cookie Contest sponsored by Quaker Oats and Blue Bonnet. The unique ingredient is crushed sugar cones.

Chocolate Coffee Toffee Oatmeal Cookies

1/4 cup boiling water

1/2 to 1 tsp instant coffee crystals

1 1/3 cups firmly packed brown sugar

1 cup Blue Bonnet margarine

1 egg

1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

3 cups quick cooking Quaker Oats

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

3/4 tsp salt

1/2 tsp baking soda

1 package milk chocolate toffee bits (about 1 1/2 cups)

1 1/2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

1 cup coarsely crumbled sugar cones

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.

Dissolve instant coffee in the boiling water, cool to room temperature.

In a large mixing bowl, beat sugar and margarine until very creamy. Add egg; beat well. Beat in coffee mixture and vanilla.

In a separate bowl combine oats, flour, salt and baking soda.

Gradually add oat mixture to creamed mixture, beating well after each addition. Stir in toffee bits, chocolate chips and sugar crumbs.

Drop dough by heaping measuring tablespoonfuls, 2 inches apart onto prepared baking sheets. Bake 12 to 14 minutes, just until golden brown. Cool 1 minute on cookie sheet, then remove to wire racks to completely cool. Yield: about 5 dozen cookies.

A note on the recipe says you may use old fashioned or regular oat, but add an additional 2 tablespoons of all-purpose flour.

Nancy’s note about the recipe: she bakes the cookies for the shortest amount of time to get the desired soft, chewy texture.

Merleen Smith shared the recipe for the Cheesy Ham Chowder she brought to a recent soup potluck lunch. She got the recipe from her daughter, Randi Miller. This savory, creamy soup takes less than an hour to prepare.

Cheesy Ham Chowder

10 strips bacon, diced

1 large onion, diced

1 cup peeled, diced carrots

3 Tbsp all-purpose flour

3 cups milk (Merleen uses half and half)

1 1/2 cups water

2 1/2 cups peeled potatoes, cut in small chunks

1 cup corn kernels, canned or frozen

2 tsp chicken bouillon granules

Ground black pepper to taste

12 ounces grated cheddar cheese

2 cups diced cooked ham

Cook bacon over medium heat, drain cooked bacon on paper towels. Sauté onion and carrots in bacon drippings, stir in flour, gradually add milk and water, stirring constantly.

Add potatoes, corn, bouillon and pepper. Simmer uncovered 20 minutes until potatoes are tender. Add cheese and ham. When cheese is melted, stir in bacon and serve. Yield: about 2 1/2 quarts soup.

Note: I measured 2 tablespoons of the bacon drippings into a soup kettle and sautéed the onion and carrots there.

Merleen noted her daughter purchases cooked, diced ham and grated cheese to sped up preparation.

I was recently given a collection of recipe books by a person down sizing possessions. One of those books, Treasured Recipes, Community-World Missions Group, Cle Elum Community Church, 1994 Edition, contains a recipe for Homemade “Cream” Soup Mix submitted by Maxine Sondericker. This handy recipe can be used in many recipes calling for canned soups, as a cost saving and healthier option.

Homemade “Cream” Soup Mix

2 cups powdered milk

3/4 cup corn starch

1/4 cup instant chicken bouillon

2 Tbsp dried onion flakes

1 tsp crushed basil

1 tsp dried basil leaves

1/2 tsp ground black pepper

Combine all ingredients. Store in airtight container until ready to use. To use, combine 1/3 cup mixture with 1 1/4 cups cold water to substitute for 1 can of condensed soup. Yield: about 9 cans.

Share your favorite recipes for fall meals, Thanksgiving celebrations and tailgate spreads with your fellow readers by sending them to: Welcome to My Kitchen, c/o The Odessa Record, P.O. Box 458, Odessa, WA 99159, email therecord@odessaoffice.com, or drop them in the Welcome to My Kitchen mail tin in The Odessa Record Office. Rake fallen leaves into flower beds and garden spaces to act as mulch and protection from winter temperatures. They will break down over winter adding nutrients to the soil.