Everyday Luncheons/Quick Soups
A stock pot is a convenience, but not a necessity, and for a small family is usually impracticable. A very good soup stock can be quickly made from beef extract, water, and vegetables, for which directions are given below.
The following recipes will be found simple, convenient, and satisfactory.
Slice a large onion into a deep granite-ware pan. Add a thick slice of turnip, cut fine, a large carrot, sliced, three stalks of celery, including the green tops, three dozen pepper corns, six cloves, a stick of cinnamon, three bay-leaves, and sprigs of parsley, sage, thyme, and summer savory. Fill the pan with cold water, bring to the boiling point, and simmer slowly until the vegetables are cooked to pieces — probably about an hour and a half. Strain through coarse muslin, and measure the liquor. For each quart of liquor, use one even teaspoonful of beef extract. Dissolve the extract in a little of the liquor, and add to the rest. Boil up once and serve.
This method does away with all waste of meat, fuel, and time. This stock will keep some time in a refrigerator, and stock made from left-over meats and vegetables may be added to it at any time if both are at the boiling point.
The beef extract may be cooked with the vegetables if desired. This stock may also be used for aspic jelly by using a sufficient amount of gelatine.
Cook one cupful of barley slowly until soft. Drain, and add to beef stock made as above. Serve very hot.
Add one cupful of minced cooked carrots to six cupfuls of stock.
Take one cupful of sweet corn which has been boiled on the cob, or one cupful of canned corn, and press through a sieve. Add the pulp to six cupfuls of stock.
Add one cupful of cooked sago to six cupfuls of stock.
To six cupfuls of stock add one cupful of cooked spaghetti cut into half-inch pieces.
Add one cupful of cooked rice to six cupfuls of stock. Season with curry powder.
Rub tomatoes, either fresh or canned, through a sieve that will keep back the seeds. Add a cupful of pulp to six cupfuls of stock, boil up once and serve.
Use one cupful of cooked peas, either fresh or canned. Add to six cupfuls of stock. The peas may be rubbed through a sieve if the pulp only is preferred.
One cupful of celery, cut fine, is cooked until tender in six cupfuls of stock. The roots, tops, and tough, unsightly parts of celery may be used for this soup.
One half cupful of cold boiled rice and one half cupful of tomato pulp, added to six cupfuls of stock.
One cupful of minced onion boiled until tender. Drain, and add to six cupfuls of boiling stock.
One cupful of vermicelli broken into small bits is cooked slowly until tender in two quarts of stock.
One cupful of lentils, boiled slowly until tender, in two quarts of stock.
One cupful of cold, cooked macaroni, cut fine, added to six cupfuls of stock. Add a tablespoonful of grated Parmesan cheese before serving.
Add one cupful of cooked kidney beans, or black beans, to six cupfuls of stock. The beans may be rubbed through a sieve, if desired.
One cupful of cold, cooked lima beans, added to six cupfuls of stock. The beans may be rubbed through a sieve if desired.
One cupful of turnip, cut very fine, and boiled until tender in two quarts of stock.
Add one cupful of cooked beets, cut fine, to six cupfuls of stock.
Soak one cupful of split peas over night. Boil until tender, and drain. Add a sliced onion, a carrot, cut very fine, and half of a turnip, sliced. Brown the vegetables in a little butter. Cover with beef stock, boil up once, rub through a sieve, and re-heat. A ham bone or a little piece of salt pork may be cooked with the soup.
The water in which chickens are boiled should be saved for soup. The bones of cooked chicken, simmered with vegetables in water, make a very good soup foundation. The chicken juice, which comes in cans, is valuable in an emergency. Following the rules given above, chicken juice may be used in place of beef stock to make barley, sago, spaghetti, rice, vermicelli, pea, noodle, celery, tapioca, and tomato soups. Thick chicken soup is made by adding the yolk of one egg, well beaten, to each quart of soup, and stirring constantly. Minced chicken giblets are an addition to any chicken soup.
The clam juice, which comes in cans, is also valuable. Follow the rules given above. The clam juice may be used with barley, rice, vermicelli, sago, spaghetti, macaroni, noodles, and tomato. These soups may be thickened if desired.
Soak half a cupful of tapioca over night, boil until tender in the water in which it was soaked, and add to two quarts of beef stock or chicken stock.
Put two cupfuls of lima beans in salted boiling water sufficient to cover. Add one small onion, cut fine, a small clove, and a slice of carrot. Add a sprig of parsley and a teaspoonful of butter. When soft, drain, and save the liquid. Remove the vegetables and herbs. Rub through a sieve, mix, and re-heat. Skim, season, add another teaspoonful of butter, and serve with dice of fried or toasted bread.
Put one half cupful of grated cheese into a saucepan with six cupfuls of milk. Simmer gently for ten minutes. When the cheese is dissolved, season with salt and pepper, a tablespoonful of butter, and a pinch of sugar. Add half or three quarters of a cupful of cold, cooked macaroni, cut fine. Beat three eggs thoroughly in a bowl, mix with a little of the soup, and add by degrees to the remainder, stirring constantly. Do not let the soup boil after adding the macaroni and eggs. Serve with dice of toasted bread.
Two cupfuls of canned tomatoes brought to the boiling point. Take from the fire and rub through a sieve. Add two cupfuls of stock. Mix a teaspoonful of corn starch with half a cupful of cold water. Add to the soup and bring to the boil. Stir until the soup is thick. Season with salt, Worcestershire, and mushroom catsup.
Put into a saucepan one tablespoonful of butter, a pinch of salt, and a sprinkle of red and black pepper. When the butter froths, add two tablespoonfuls of flour, and stir until thoroughly blended. Add three cupfuls of cold milk, and stir constantly until the mixture is as thick as cream sauce. Add two cupfuls of stewed and strained tomato which has been pressed through a sieve. Add a pinch of sugar and half a teaspoonful of baking soda. Bring to the boil, stirring constantly, and serve at once. An onion cooked with the tomatoes is a pleasant addition to the soup.
Boil a quart can of tomatoes with two cupfuls of cold water. Blend together one tablespoonful of butter and two of flour, mix with half a cupful of cold water, add to the soup, and stir constantly until it thickens. Add a grated onion, season with salt and pepper, simmer slowly for twenty minutes. Strain through a sieve, re-heat, add a teaspoonful of baking soda and two cupfuls of milk. Boil one minute and serve.
Slice a large onion, and fry brown in a little butter. Add a can of tomatoes and two cupfuls of boiling water. Boil fifteen minutes. Rub through a colander, add a cupful of cold, boiled rice, and thicken with one tablespoonful of butter and two tablespoonfuls of flour blended and mixed with a little of the soup before pouring into the remainder.
Peel and slice enough onions to make a cupful, cut fine a carrot and two stalks of celery. Fry brown in butter, being careful not to burn. When brown, add six cupfuls of water in which a chicken has been boiled, and from half a cupful to a cupful of cooked chicken, cut fine. Cover the saucepan, and simmer forty minutes. Beat the yolk of an egg thoroughly in a bowl, season with salt and pepper and mix with a little of the soup. Add this mixture carefully to the remainder and heat thoroughly but do not boil. Serve with dice of toasted bread.
Simmer a ham bone for an hour in six cupfuls of water in which a chicken has been boiled. In a separate saucepan, boil together one cupful of carrots cut into dice, a dozen small onions peeled and sliced, one cupful of turnips cut into dice, two tablespoonfuls of cabbage, cut fine, and two tablespoonfuls of rice. Cook slowly in water to cover. When the vegetables are tender, remove the ham bone from the chicken stock, and add the vegetables. Half a cupful of cooked chicken, cut fine, is usually added to this soup. Boil up once, season to taste and serve very hot.
Take half a pound of cold, cooked liver and grind it in a meat chopper, or chop very fine. Fry one large onion, sliced, in two tablespoonfuls of butter, and add the liver. Add one cupful of dried and sifted bread crumbs. Season with salt and pepper and add six cupfuls of stock. Boil fifteen or twenty minutes, press through a colander, and thicken with the yolk of an egg.
Fry a cupful of sliced onion in a little butter. Add two heaping tablespoonfuls of flour, two cupfuls of boiling milk and two cupfuls of boiling stock. Season with salt, pepper, and minced parsley. Simmer half an hour, and thicken with the yolk of an egg. A tablespoonful of grated Parmesan cheese, may be added if desired.
Use the tomato paste which comes in cans and can be found in any Italian grocery. Mix three tablespoonfuls of the paste with four cupfuls of boiling water. Simmer twenty minutes and serve.
Boil four cupfuls of milk with a teaspoonful of sugar and half a teaspoonful of salt. Thicken with the well-beaten yolks of four eggs, season to taste and serve. This soup is very nourishing.
Boil a quart can of tomatoes with two cupfuls of hot water. Add one tablespoonful of sugar, one tablespoonful of salt, four cloves and four pepper corns. Chop a medium sized onion fine and fry brown with one tablespoonful of minced parsley in two tablespoonfuls of butter. Add one tablespoonful of corn starch, mix thoroughly, and add to the boiling tomatoes. Simmer fifteen minutes and strain through a colander.
Two cans of tomatoes, two teaspoonfuls of grated onion, one teaspoonful of thyme, one teaspoonful of sweet marjoram, one tablespoonful of celery seed, and one half cupful of pearl tapioca which has been soaked over night in water to cover. Boil until the tapioca is clear, and press through a fine sieve. Fill pint Mason jars with the boiling hot mixture as in canning tomatoes. It will keep indefinitely. Prepare for the table by heating a sufficient quantity, and dilute with boiling water or milk. Minced vegetables may be added at pleasure to vary the flavor of the soup. A tablespoonful of butter should be added.
Rub one cupful of cold, cooked spinach through a sieve, put into a saucepan with one tablespoonful of butter and one tablespoonful of flour. Add half a teaspoonful of sugar, and pepper and salt to taste. When thoroughly hot add four cupfuls of stock. Serve with dice of toasted bread.
One heaping tablespoonful of butter and two heaping tablespoonfuls of sifted flour, rubbed to a cream. Melt in a saucepan over the stove, and add slowly a quart of milk, stirring constantly. When it thickens, add salt, pepper, a sprinkle of celery salt, and one cupful of minced clams with their liquor. Let boil up once and serve with crackers. The minced clams which come in small cans are very good in this soup.
Have ready one cupful of celery cut fine, boil until tender, and rub through a sieve. Reduce the water in which the celery was boiled to half a cupful, by rapid boiling, and set aside. Put into a saucepan one tablespoonful of butter, season with salt and pepper, and when the butter is hissing hot, stir into it two tablespoonfuls of flour. Stir until the mixture leaves the sides of the pan. Add three cupfuls of cold milk, and stir constantly until it boils. When the mixture is as thick as a very thin cream sauce, add the celery pulp and the half cup of liquid. Mix thoroughly, boil up once, and serve.
Use one cupful of cold, boiled rice and proceed as above. Season with celery salt or curry powder.
Use one cupful of cooked squash, rub through a sieve and follow directions given for cream of celery.
Use one cupful of cooked peas, either fresh or canned, and follow directions given for cream of celery.
Use one cupful of cooked asparagus, rub through a sieve, and follow directions given for cream of celery.
Use one cupful of stewed cucumber, pressed through a sieve, and follow the directions given for cream of celery.
Use one cupful of cooked spinach, rub through a sieve, and follow directions given for cream of celery.
Three quarters of a cupful of salted peanuts, chopped very fine. Fill the cup with cold milk and set aside, then follow directions given for cream of celery.
Three quarters of a cup of cold, mashed potatoes. Fill the cup with cold milk and set aside, then follow directions given for cream of celery. Season with salt, pepper, and grated onion.
One cupful of cooked corn, either fresh or canned, rubbed through a coarse sieve. Follow directions given for cream of celery. This soup may be made suitable for a formal occasion by adding a tablespoonful of unsweetened whipped cream to each plate. A few kernels of freshly popped corn may also be added to each serving of the soup.
One cupful of cooked lima beans rubbed through a sieve. Follow directions given for cream of celery.
One cupful of cooked cauliflower chopped very fine. Follow directions given for cream of celery. This soup may be seasoned with grated Parmesan cheese.
One cupful of cooked beets chopped very fine, taking care to save the juice. Follow directions given for cream of celery.
One cupful of cooked salsify chopped very fine. Follow directions given for cream of celery.
Use one small can of shrimps cut very fine. Follow directions given for cream of celery.
Slice the onions and boil till tender, changing the water twice during the boiling. When done, drain, rub through a coarse sieve, and measure a cupful of the pulp. Cover with cold milk to prevent discoloration, and follow directions given for cream of celery.
Tough and unsightly leaves of lettuce are used for this soup. Boil until tender and rub through a coarse sieve. Use three quarters of a cupful of the pulp and follow directions given for cream of celery.
One cupful of cold, cooked string beans, chopped very fine. Follow directions given for cream of celery.
Three quarters of a cupful of canned salmon freed from fat, skin, and bone, and flaked very fine with a silver fork. Follow directions given for cream of celery.
One half cupful of cooked carrots cut very fine. Follow directions given for cream of celery.
One cupful of finely shredded crab meat. Follow directions given for cream of celery.
One cupful of parboiled oysters finely minced. Follow directions given for cream of celery.
Half a cupful of dried and sifted bread crumbs. Cover with cold milk and let stand until the crumbs are soft. Follow directions given for cream of celery, and use any preferred seasoning.
One cupful of boiled lobster, shredded very fine. Follow directions given for cream of celery.
Slice a large onion into one pint of water and boil until tender. Remove the onion, and add two cupfuls of milk and a pinch of soda. Pour this liquid upon one tablespoonful of butter and one of flour prepared according to directions previously given. When it thickens, add half a cupful of grated cheese and one well-beaten egg. Season with salt and pepper and serve very hot. Do not boil after adding the egg.
Use six cupfuls of water in which a chicken has been boiled. Add one cupful of corn pulp and half a cupful of cold chicken cut very fine. Season with salt, red pepper, and celery salt. Simmer half an hour, then add a tablespoonful of butter and half a cupful of milk. Bring to the boil and serve. This soup may be thickened with an egg yolk if desired.
Two carrots, one potato and one turnip, peeled and cut fine. Boil until tender in four cupfuls of water. Drain, rub through a sieve, and return the pulp to the water. Add one tablespoonful of chopped onion, a tablespoonful of butter, and a cupful of milk. Season with salt, pepper, and celery salt. Boil five minutes. Blend one tablespoonful of flour with a little cold milk, pour into the soup, and stir until it thickens. Serve with dice of toasted bread.
Two slices each of carrot and onion cooked five minutes in a tablespoonful of butter. Add three cupfuls of water, a blade of mace, and cook fifteen minutes. Strain through a colander. Melt two spoonfuls of butter, blend two tablespoonfuls of flour with it, and add the seasoned stock gradually. Season with salt, pepper, and celery salt. Add two cupfuls of milk and four tablespoonfuls of grated cheese. Boil two minutes and serve.
Cut two carrots and a small onion into slices, and boil until tender in salted water. When done, drain, and add to six cupfuls of boiling stock, free from grease. Beat together the yolks of four eggs and four tablespoonfuls of cream. Take the soup from the fire, season with salt and pepper, stir in the egg and serve.
Cut two large onions and three cucumbers fine. Cook until tender in boiling water, drain, press through a sieve, and follow directions given for cream of celery. Season with salt, pepper, and celery salt, and serve with dice of toasted bread.
One half cupful of cold boiled rice and one half cupful of cooked chicken, finely minced. Cook until brown, and put into a tablespoonful of butter. Add two tablespoonfuls of flour, and when thoroughly mixed, add six cupfuls of the water in which the chicken was boiled. Season with salt, pepper, and celery salt, and add a little butter or cream just before serving.
One cupful of peas and one cupful of tomatoes, either fresh or canned, cooked with a small onion until tender in two cupfuls of water. Rub through a colander. Add a teaspoonful of sugar, a teaspoonful of minced parsley, and three teaspoonfuls of beef extract. Thicken with one tablespoonful of butter and one of flour, blended and mixed with a little of the soup. Boil until it thickens and serve with dice of toasted bread.
Cut into shreds and dice, two carrots, two turnips, three stalks of celery, and two onions. Boil until tender, drain and cool. Add to six cupfuls of boiling stock. Simmer five minutes and serve.
Cut a large onion fine, add an equal quantity of shredded cabbage, and fry in butter with a tablespoonful of minced parsley. Add one tablespoonful of flour when the vegetables are tender, and mix thoroughly. Add to six cupfuls of boiling stock, and simmer ten minutes. Add a teaspoonful of lemon-juice and serve.
To one cupful of stewed and strained tomatoes add half a cupful of cooked macaroni cut fine, and four cupfuls of boiling stock. Season with salt, pepper, celery salt, and grated onion.
Prepare as above, using half a cupful of cooked noodles, cut fine, in place of the macaroni.
Slice two onions, and fry brown in a tablespoonful of butter. Add two tablespoonfuls of flour, three cupfuls of milk, and half a cupful of cold, mashed potato. Season with salt, pepper, and celery salt, and stir until thick. Strain through a sieve, re-heat, and serve with dice of toasted bread.
Make a stock of the bones and trimmings of mutton or lamb roasts and chops. Either cooked or uncooked meat may be used. Simmer until the meat is in rags. Strain and set aside until cool. When cold, take the cake of fat from the surface, and use the stock in combination with barley, sago, spaghetti, rice, vermicelli, peas, noodles, celery, tapioca, tomato, onion, or lentils. These soups may be thickened with butter and flour, or with the yolk of eggs.
Make a stock, using the bones and trimmings of turkey, either cooked or uncooked, and omitting the stuffing. Strain the liquor and use with vegetables or grains as suggested above. The soup may be thickened if desired.
Fry one cupful of cold, cooked cabbage in a tablespoonful of butter. Add a tablespoonful of flour, salt, pepper, and four cupfuls of stock. Boil until it thickens. Strain through a sieve, re-heat, season with salt, pepper, and onion juice, and serve.
One cupful of cold, cooked black beans, reheated in four cupfuls of stock. Boil until the beans are very soft, rub through a sieve, re-heat, season with salt, pepper, and lemon-juice. Add a hard-boiled egg cut fine, and a teaspoonful of sherry.
Use the root, tops and outer stalks of a head of celery. Chop fine, and boil until tender in two cupfuls of chicken broth. Blend two tablespoonfuls of butter with two tablespoonfuls of flour, season with salt and pepper. Add two cupfuls of milk, stir constantly until it thickens, then add the chicken broth and celery. Boil up once, strain, re-heat, and serve.
One cupful of onions, carrots, and turnips finely minced together. The mixture should be half onion, and half carrot and turnip — a quarter cupful of each. Fry brown in butter. Add four cupfuls of stock, a sour apple cut fine, and season with salt, pepper, and minced parsley. Cook until the apple is done, then add half a cupful of cold boiled rice and a dash of curry powder.
Use one half cupful of parboiled oysters finely minced, and one half cupful of cooked celery, cut very fine. Follow directions given for cream of celery.
One tablespoonful of butter, two tablespoonfuls of flour and two cupfuls of cold milk cooked together until thick. Season with salt and pepper. Add one cupful of chicken stock and one cupful of stewed and strained tomato. Season with grated onion and celery salt. Add a bit of baking soda if the soup curdles, and serve very hot, with dice of toasted bread.
To one quart of boiling stock add a grated onion, half a teaspoonful of celery seed, and salt and pepper to taste. Boil five minutes. Add a half cupful of cold boiled rice, bring to the boil once more, take from the fire, add the yolks of two eggs well beaten, and serve at once.
One half cupful of cold mashed potatoes, one half cupful of cold mashed turnips. Add a teaspoonful of butter, a cupful of hot water, and a teaspoonful of grated onion. Stir until smooth. Add four cupfuls of boiling milk and serve at once.
Rub through a sieve enough apple sauce to make a cupful. Mix a teaspoonful of corn starch with a little cold water, and pour into three cupfuls of boiling water. When thick and transparent, add the apple sauce. Season with salt and cinnamon, and serve either hot or cold.
Dissolve two teaspoonfuls of arrowroot in a little cold water, and add to two cupfuls of strawberry juice. Boil until it thickens, sweeten to taste and cool. Serve very cold in sherbet cups.
Thicken orange juice with arrowroot and serve very cold in sherbet cups, with a bit of candied orange peel on top of each glass.
Make a strong, hot lemonade, thicken with arrowroot and serve very cold with a bit of candied peel or preserved ginger in each glass.
Boil prunes and raisins very slowly until tender, using half of each. Sweeten, and save the juice. Boil sago until clear, mix with the fruit and juice and serve very cold.
Two thirds red raspberry juice and one third currant juice, sweetened, thickened with arrowroot and cooled. Candied orange peel or blanched and shredded almonds may be added.
Thicken pineapple juice with arrowroot, sweeten to taste, and serve cold.
Thicken grape juice with arrowroot, sweeten to taste, and serve either hot or cold.
Drain the juice from a can of red cherries, thicken with arrowroot and serve cold.
By following the above recipes, fruit soups may be made of practically any juicy fruits except melons. Blackberries, black raspberries, gooseberries, plums, and blueberries are used either separately or in combination. Juice from canned fruit may be used in this way as well as the juice of the fresh fruit, but in almost all cases it is necessary to heat the fruit in order to extract the juice.
The fruit soups may be combined with fresh fruit and cracked ice, and are very appetizing for a hot day.
Clear soups of beef or chicken stock can be made richer by the use of gelatine. The vegetables, however, must be strained out. A heaping teaspoonful of granulated gelatine to three cupfuls of stock is about the right proportion. Put the gelatine into cold water, dissolve by gentle heat, and add to the boiling soup. Stir until thoroughly mixed, take from the fire, and pour into cups to cool. A cold soup of beef or chicken stock, partially jellied, is a valuable food in summer.
In spite of the number and variety of the recipes given above, the subject of soups has been scarcely touched upon. Cookery is said to be an art to which scientific principles may be applied, but there is more art than science in the preparation of a good soup.
A skilful soup-maker knows at a glance just what materials will make a savory compound. The bone of yesterday's steak, half of a tomato, a chicken wing, a hard-boiled egg, and a sprig of parsley can be made to produce much.
It is said that at the stock yards in Chicago nothing is wasted but the squeal of the pig, and likewise, in the kitchen of the skilful housekeeper, little is thrown away except potato peelings.
Nearly all soups are highly nutritious and easily digestible, and in this way, as in no other, every ounce of food material is made to yield its last, and in many cases its highest value.