Cozy Soup Recipes

Photo courtesy Idaho Potato Commission

Steaming bowls of homemade soup are ideal comfort food for cozy weekends, whether you’re dishing up lunch, dinner, or an easy game day meal. Serve with crusty bread, a salad, or sandwich and make everyone happy. Plus, it’s easier than you think to make your own soup. Potatoes, a classic comfort food on their own, team up with other seasonal veggies, chicken, and cheese to pack extra comfort into these soup recipes I am sharing here from the Idaho Potato Commission. Whipping up a pot of soup on the weekend is also a great way to have meals on hand for the week ahead or freeze for later use. Plus, scroll down to find links to more recipes to keep you well stocked with ideas this soup season.

Smoky Idaho Fingerling Potato and Cheddar Chowder

Makes 6 Servings | Recipe by Faith Gorsky, An Edible Mosaic, courtesy of the Idaho Potato Commission

This velvety vegetable soup is packed with flavor! White cheddar is always a favorite pairing with potatoes, and here smoked paprika wakes up everything else. Potatoes serve double duty in this recipe; some are pureed to help thicken the soup and some are left whole for contrasting texture. Serve this chowder as a first course for dinner or along with a side salad and some crusty bread for lunch. –F.G.

2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 medium-large onion, diced
2 medium-large stalks celery, diced
½ medium red bell pepper, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
4 cups unsalted chicken or vegetable stock
1 bay leaf
1 pound Idaho fingerling potatoes, scrubbed and quartered or halved, depending on size
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
¾ teaspoon smoked sweet paprika
¼ teaspoon black pepper
1¼ cups cooked corn kernels (from about 2 large cobs, or thawed if using frozen)
6 ounces sharp white cheddar, shredded
2 tablespoons cornstarch
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

1. Add the butter to a 5-quart pot over medium-high heat; once melted, add the onion, celery, red bell pepper, and garlic, and cook until the vegetables start to soften, about 3 minutes, stirring occasionally.
2. Add the stock, bay leaf, and potatoes, and bring up to a boil. Cover the pot, turn the heat down to simmer, and cook until the potatoes are fork-tender, about 15 minutes.
3. Stir in the Dijon, smoked sweet paprika, and black pepper, and turn off the heat. Remove the bay leaf and discard it.
4. Carefully transfer 2 cups of soup to a blender and puree until smooth, and then pour it back into the pot.
5. Turn the heat on low and stir in the corn.
6. Toss the cheddar and cornstarch together in a bowl and stir the cheese into the soup a handful at a time until fully incorporated.
7. Stir in the parsley, taste, and add salt if desired, and serve.

Photo courtesy Idaho Potato Commission

Potato and Acorn Squash Soup

Makes 4 to 8 Servings | Recipe by Anita Schecter, Hungry Couple, courtesy of the Idaho Potato Commission

2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
3 cans (approx. 15 ounces each) low sodium chicken stock
3 Idaho baking potatoes, peeled and quartered
4 large acorn squash
1 large onion, peeled and quartered
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
1 cup milk

1. Melt the butter in a large soup pot and whisk in the flour. On medium low heat, slowly whisk in the chicken stock until all the lumps are gone.
2. If you’re using the squash as a bowl, Slice the top quarter of the top off and level out the bottom, being careful not to cut a hole. Scoop out the seeds and, using a sharp serrated knife, cut out most of the flesh, leaving enough along the sides to make the squash stable.
3. Add the flesh of the squash along with the potatoes and onion to the pot. Season with salt, pepper, cumin, and thyme. Bring to a boil, cover, reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer for 30 minutes.
4. Puree the cooked soup using a stick (immersion) blender or traditional blender. Stir in the milk and serve in the hollowed out squash bowls, if using, or other bowls.

Photo by Shauna Havey for Idaho Potato Commission

Autumn Medley Stew

Makes 8 Servings | Recipe by Shauna Havey (Recipe Photo Contest Winner) courtesy of the Idaho Potato Commission

2 cups water (or low sodium chicken broth)
3 skinless chicken half-breasts
1 yellow onion, cut into strips
2 cans (approx. 15 ounces each) stewed tomatoes
2 Idaho potatoes, raw, diced
2-3 medium carrots, sliced into coins
1 green pepper, coarsely chopped
4 cups cooked rice
½ teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon rosemary
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
4 cloves garlic, crushed

1. In a large soup kettle, simmer chicken breasts in 2 cups of water (or chicken broth). Add onion to chicken as it simmers. While it’s cooking, you can slice other vegetables. When chicken is cooked throughout, remove and set aside.
2. Add tomatoes, potatoes, carrots, peppers, and spices to onion and broth mixture. Continue to simmer.
3. Break chicken into chunks, de-bone and add to stew. Simmer 30 minutes, or until carrots and potatoes are done. Add rice and simmer 10 more minutes.

PHOTO TERRY BRENNAN, FOOD STYLING LARA MIKLASEVICS

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