A new tradition

I have declared the week before Thanksgiving, Soup Week. It started with my co-workers sausage chili on Monday following that was Chicken noodle soup Tuesday. Break on Wednesday. And easy sausage corn chowder Thursday! And someone was going to do Chicken tortilla Friday and then life happened. So no soup Friday. But below is the recipe of my version of an easy sausage corn chowder. Note Im not the best cook, but I try!

This was recipe was recommended to me by a dear friend, who by the way is an excellent baker!! The recipe is from Taste of Home.

Below is their version

Ingredients
2 packages (7 ounces each) pork or turkey breakfast sausage
2 cans (10-3/4 ounces each) condensed cream of chicken soup, undiluted
2-1/2 cups milk
2 cups fresh corn
2/3 cup sliced green onions
1/2 teaspoon hot pepper sauce
1 cup (4 ounces) shredded Swiss cheese

Directions
Crumble sausage into a large saucepan; brown over medium heat. Drain. Add the soup, milk, corn, green onions and hot pepper sauce. Cook until corn is tender. Reduce heat to low; add cheese and heat until melted. Yield: 6-8 serving (2 quarts).

And now my version. Note I doubled the recipe and also cooked mine in a crock pot. And I added mozzarella cheese instead of Swiss. I don't recommend going to the store after working a 12 hour shift then running 3 miles. By the time I got home it was past twelve!! And the sausage still had to be cooked. Lets just say I had one rough morning!!

Anyway back to the soup, after cooking an hour in the crock pot, I felt it didn't have enough umph! Yes the pepper sauce gave it a kick. But I wanted more. So I added a container of bacon bits. And that my friends made all the difference!! The soup turned out to be a hit!! No one was more shocked then I was!!



To end Soup Week I planned on doing taco soup for a get together for my daughters bday. Not only is this soup quick and easy, its healthy and its a crowd favorite!

I'm not the one to measure so I just do whatever I feel.

ingredients:
1 lb. ground beef
2 cans of dark kidney beans
2 cans of light kidney beans
2 cans of corn
packet of taco seasoning
2 cans of diced tomatoes
can of tomato sauce
can of tomato paste
fritos (garnish)
grated cheddar cheese (garnish)
sour cream (garnish)

directions
In a stockpot pour your cooked meat and cans including your sauce and paste. Stir in taco seasoning. Let it cook on low for about an hour. Or if your in a crunch cook it til your beans and corn are soft. I usually double the recipe. And there are times where I wont even put the paste and sauce in there. You can add as mush as you like or as little. Really it's whatever you prefer.

Here is another version of taco soup my husband raved about. My mother-in-law made it for tailgating. I hear it was a hit!!

Ingredients
2 pounds ground beef
2 cups diced onions
2 (15 1/2-ounce) cans pinto beans
1 (15 1/2-ounce) can pink kidney beans
1 (15 1/4-ounce) can whole kernel corn, drained
1 (14 1/2-ounce) can Mexican-style stewed tomatoes
1 (14 1/2-ounce) can diced tomatoes
1 (14 1/2-ounce) can tomatoes with chiles
2 (4 1/2-ounce) cans diced green chiles
1 (4.6-ounce) can black olives, drained and sliced, optional
1/2 cup green olives, sliced, optional
1 (1 1/4-ounce) package taco seasoning mix
1 (1-ounce) package ranch salad dressing mix
Corn chips, for serving
Sour cream, for garnish
Grated cheese, for garnish
Chopped green onions, for garnish
Pickled jalapenos, for garnish
Directions
Brown the ground beef and onions in a large skillet; drain the excess fat, then transfer the browned beef and onions to a large slow cooker or a stockpot. Add the beans, corn, tomatoes, green chiles, black olives, green olives, taco seasoning, and ranch dressing mix, and cook in a slow cooker on low for 6 to 8 hours or simmer over low heat for about 1 hour in a pot on the stove. To serve, place a few corn chips in each bowl and ladle soup over them. Top with sour cream, cheese, green onions and jalapenos.