Food, Glorious Food! Creamy Chicken and Wild Rice Soup

Lots of food making going at this house (not for Thanksgiving - my mother-in-law did all the cooking for that :) thanks Barb!). I have been doing lots of catering for the church lately and have quite the week ahead of me with the Christmas production. Last week I provided food for the Anthem song writing retreat and tried a new recipe on them. Glad they're willing to be guinea pigs without knowing it! The Creamy Chicken and Wild Rice Soup seemed to be a success.

4 c chicken broth
2 c water
2 cooked chicken breasts, shredded
1 (4.5 oz) package, wild rice with seasoning packet
1/2 c butter
1/2 t salt
1/2 t pepper
3/4 c flour
2 c milk
2 carrots, peeled, chopped, and steamed
1 can black beans, rinsed

In a large pot over medium heat, combine broth, water, and chicken. Bring to a boil then stir in rice, reserving seasoning packet. Cover and let simmer about 20-25 minutes or until rice is cooked.

Meanwhile, in a medium sauce pan over medium heat, melt butter. Stir in content of seasoning packet until mixture is bubbly. Reduce heat to low. Add salt and pepper, and gradually stir in flour to form a roux. Which in milk a little at a time until smooth. Cook until thickened (about 5 min).

Stir cream mixture into broth and rice. Add carrots and beans. Cook over medium heat until heated through, 10-15 min.

Update: Pumpkin Spice Lattes

Soooo, I've tried several more Pumpkin Spice Latte DIY recipes. Some have been pretty good, others not so good. However, I think I found one I'm quite pleased with for the time being. It's pretty simple, and very tasty!

1/2 c milk

1/4 t pumpkin pie spice

2 T Vanilla Simple Syrup (recipe below)

1/2 c strong coffee

While your coffee is brewing, put the milk, simple syrup and pumpkin pie spice in a microwave-safe dish. Heat in the microwave for a minute or two, then froth. I use my Pampered Chef "Measure, Mix & Pour" (which I've referenced before), but you can just mix with a whisk or fork until frothy too. 

Put about 1/2 cup of brewed coffee in your mug, and top with the frothed milk mixture. Add whipped cream to the top and sprinkle a bit of cinnamon on top if you like :) 

Vanilla Simple Syrup

1 c water

1 c sugar

2 t vanilla extract

In small pot, heat ingredients over medium heat, stirring constantly until the mixture comes to a boil. Allow syrup to cool. Store in refrigerator in airtight container.

Black Bean Soup

I can't believe it is already November! Apologies for my absence. We are working on our kitchen which has put a damper on my experimenting with new recipes. This week I did try a new recipe for Black Bean Soup after Bobby subtly requested it :)

1 onion, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 green pepper, diced
1 roasted red pepper, diced
1 1/2 c chicken broth
2 (15 oz) cans black beans
1/4 t salt
1 t cumin
1/2 t chili powder
1 t lemon juice
1 1/2 T cornstarch

In a pot, combine onion, garlic, peppers, and broth. Simmer for 10 minutes.
Add half of a can of beans, salt, cumin, and chili powder. Cook for 5 minutes.
Puree the mixture, then add the rest of the beans to the soup.
Combine the cornstarch with 1 1/2 T water. Add the lemon juice and cornstarch to the soup and cook until thickened.