This poor man has been living without his smoked meats, processed foods, bar-b-que and bacon for quite a while now!
Awwwwwww.... Now let's all get over it!
Good foods can be so good! He will be the first to tell you that he is not going without. He feels satisfied and full. He loves the flavors.
It seems that what we learn in childhood really stay with us for a very very long time.
Now that the weather is cold, and we are eating more soups than salads... I thought it would be time to add a few soup recipes...
Vegetable Soup Base
I use this for lots of soups! Basically, I turn on the slow cooker in the morning and away we go..
2 cup chopped celery
2 cup chopped carrots
2 cup chopped onion
2 cup chopped bell pepper
2-3 garlic cloves, chopped or minced
1 cup chopped parsley
1 Tbsp freshly ground pepper
4 cups water
Add all ingredients to a slow cooker set to the "low" setting. Leave it alone all day. If you would like to reduce the water content, concentrating the flavors, cook for the last hour with the lid partially off of the cooker.
Now, I know that some will use this as a stock, and pour all of the veggies out, and I do this too, but sometimes I just whizz it in the blender when everything has cooked down so that it is a thicker soupier soup.
When I am ready to put this to good use, I use these recipes.
Potato Soup
3 lbs potatoes, cubed
1/2 cup of chopped onion
1 cup vegetable soup base
2 cups milk
1/2 cup chopped ham
5 Tbsp butter
5 Tbsp all purpose flour
This part is easy...Place the potatoes, onion and ham in a pot, cover with boiling water and boil until the potatoes are soft. Drain.
In a seperate saucepan, melt the butter and add the flour gradually, stirring constantly until it is thick. This will take about a minute. Stir in the milk and vegetable soup base slowly, whisking constantly so no lumps form. Continue to stir as the milk mixture cooks in and thickens. This will take about 5 minutes.
Whew! That was the hard part. Add this new mixture to your pot of potatoes, ham and onions. Heat it up and serve it!
Yummmy.
Notice that this one is not particularly "healthy", but there is no added sodium. The ham and dairy add plenty of sodium. This is a comfort food item that I serve with a fresh salad.
I am adding chopped kale to the next batch. Yummmmmmm...
Vegetable Beef and Wild Rice Soup
This one is my youngest daughters favorite!
1 lb roast meat, cubed (we make them small)
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup chopped bell pepper
1 clove garlic, chopped
1 cup carrots, chopped
1 cup celery, chopped
2 lbs chopped potatoes
1/3 cup chopped parsley
1 tsp thyme
1 cup Vegetable Soup Base
1 cup wild rice
Turn your slow cooker on to the "high" setting.
Spray a saute pan with oil and saute the meat quickly. Just lightly browned on the outside.
Add the meat to the slow cooker. Get yourself a drink or something. Come back in ten minutes and add the onion, pepper, garlic, carrots, celery, potatoes, parsley and thyme.
Cover with hot water. You do not need a lot of water.
Turn the slow cooker down to low. Leave it alone for 4 hours.
Add your vegetable soup base and rice.
Leave it alone for another hour.
Serve and enjoy. This is a super yummy vegetable beef soup. You do not have to add the rice, but my daughter love love loves the wild rice added to hers. If I have them, I add chopped crimini mushrooms also. This adds a meatier flavor.
Chicken Vegetable Soup
This one is easy also. I buy the powdered chicken stock with no sodium.
1 lb chicken, cubed
1/2 cup onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, chopped or minced
1/2 cup bell pepper, chopped
1/2 tsp thyme
1 cup carrots, chopped
3/4 cup celery
1/4 cup parsley, chopped
1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 tsp powdered chicken flavoring
1 cup frozen peas
1 cup Vegetable soup base
2 cups boiling water
Noodles or rice
Turn on your slow cooker to the "low" setting.
Spray oil in a saute pan and brown the chicken quickly.
Add chicken, onion, garlic, pepper, thyme, carrots, celery and parsley to the pot. Add boiling water and leave it alone for four hours.
After four hours, add the vegetable soup base, the chicken powder, and the peas and turn the slow cooker to "high". Add the noodles or rice and cook until done. (About 30 minutes)
Taaa daaaa
Most of the flavor comes from the onion, bell pepper, garlic, celery and black pepper. I do not add salt to my recipes. If they need a bit more of something, I add a little more of one of the above ingredients.
Most of my recipes are simple. Most of them are super easy because I am busy. A lot of my recipes involve the slow cooker because it saves me from "babysitting" my kitchen.
I do not add salt to most of our recipes at all. Occasionally, I will place a sea salt shaker on the table, but usually, salt is not missed. Somehow the flavors created by cooking things together slowly seem to help even him stay away from salt.
Any recipes with milk, cheese or meat will contain more cholesterol and sodium than you may realize. If you are on a strict diet, you will want to do your own calculations to monitor your health. We do not eat meat every day and when we do, it tends to be in smaller quantities. Since he is on such a strict recommendation for both sodium and cholesterol, we have greatly reduced meats and dairy products to help him stay within his guidelines.
There have been some "free" meals. I can put all vegetables on a pizza, but with the crust and the cheese, it is still fairly high in sodium. I haven't really found a way to create a pizza that he likes without those numbers being rather high.
My children love pizza made with eggplant instead of crust, so that will help them, but he is not a fan.
Sigh.
One recipe at a time, we are finding ways for him to feel satisfied. That is a big key for him. If he does not feel satisfied, the bacon cravings return.
His doctor has recommended no cured or processed meats. She says the nitrates and nitrites are very bad for the heart.
I hope you are able to find something in his recipes to enjoy.
* Just so you know... if you like a little less flavor, you can make any of these with less onion, garlic and pepper... :)
Just in case you are feeling generous.....
...or want to support this blog...
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