50 Simple Soups for the Slow Cooker (7 page)

Serves 4 to 6

Many years ago, my mother and father gave me a
Junior League of San Francisco cookbook
for Christmas. There I found a simple recipe for delicious potato and
parsley
soup. Tarragon, dill, or even a combination of herbs would work just as well as, or in addition to, the parsley. Be sure to use organic potatoes since you will be leaving the skins on.

In a large sauté pan, melt the butter over medium heat and sauté the onion for about 10 minutes, or until lightly browned.

Transfer the onion to a 7-quart slow cooker and add the potatoes (without the water). Cover and cook on LOW for about 4 hours, or until the potatoes are quite tender.

Add the water and sour cream and add the salt to taste. Using a garlic press, mince the garlic into the soup. Using a handheld immersion blender, puree some of the soup until the desired texture is reached. I like to leave lots of potato chunks for a rustic appeal.

Cover and cook for 20 to 30 minutes longer, just long enough to heat through. Just before serving, stir in the parsley and add the pepper to taste.

Ladle the soup into bowls and garnish with tapenade.

Serves 4 to 6

Many years ago when I was a student, a little restaurant called
Beggar’s Banquet
opened a few blocks away from my home. I loved it for no other reason than they made great soups, unlike any I had ever tasted at my mother’s table. They were sort of French-style, all creamy and full of fresh vegetable flavor. Several years later, someone who knew the owners told me they were simply giving the previous day’s vegetables a whirl in the blender with a dash of cream. So simple, yet so warming and delicious.

In a large sauté pan, melt the ghee over medium heat and sauté the onion for about 10 minutes, or until lightly browned.

Transfer the onion to a 7-quart slow cooker and add the potato and water. Cover and cook on LOW for about 6 hours, or until the potato is quite tender. Add the broccoli during the last 30 minutes of cooking.

Using a handheld immersion blender, puree the ingredients to the desired texture. Stir in the cheese and add the salt to taste.

Ladle the soup into bowls and garnish each with cream.

Serves 4 to 6

If you want to coax extra flavor out of any soup based upon potatoes, onions, or other root vegetables, first cook the potatoes and onions in the slow cooker without the water for a couple of hours to allow for some browning and to give the flavors a chance to develop. After a couple of hours, you can add the liquid and continue to finish cooking the soup. If you are pressed for time, you can add the water when you add the potatoes.

In a large sauté pan, heat the vegetable oil over medium heat and sauté the onion for about 10 minutes, or until lightly browned. Add the garlic and cook for 2 minutes longer.

Transfer the mixture to a 7-quart slow cooker and add the potatoes (without the water). Cover and cook on LOW for about
6 hours, or until the potatoes are quite tender.

Add the water, and using a handheld immersion blender, puree the mixture until smooth. Add the nutmeg and salt and pepper to taste. Add the asparagus and cook for 15 to 30 minutes longer, until the asparagus spears are just tender.

Ladle the soup into bowls. Serve hot, sprinkled with 1 to 2 tablespoons cheddar cheese.

Serves 4 to 6

This recipe was inspired by a soup served at a winery in Toro, Spain. Serve with a crusty loaf of French bread and perhaps a hearty red Tinta de Toro (the local name for the Tempranillo grape) from Toro.

In a large sauté pan, heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil over medium heat and sauté the onion for about 10 minutes, or until lightly browned.

Transfer the onion to a 7-quart slow cooker and add the potatoes, bay leaf, and thyme. Cover and cook on LOW (without the water) for about 4 hours, or until the potatoes are tender.

Add the water and, using a fork or potato masher, smash the potatoes. If you prefer a smooth texture, you can use an immersion blender to puree them.

Stir in the olives and add the salt to taste. Continue cooking for 30 to 40 minutes longer, until the soup is once again hot.

To serve, divide the cheese into bowls, drizzle the remaining olive oil over it, then ladle in the soup and stir.

Serves 4 to 6

Also known as “pasta fazool,” this is another rustic Italian favorite, and like minestrone and ribollita, its contents may vary from season to season, region to region, and cook to cook. Perhaps the main difference between pasta e fagioli (which means “pasta and beans”) and the other classic Italian soups is the addition of pasta. While ditalini or small elbow macaroni are traditional, there are many other interesting types of pasta that would also work well.
Borlotti (cranberry) beans
are also traditional, but I’ve made this soup using pinquitos, white beans, and a 10-bean mixture, all with good results. Use as many Parmesan cheese
rinds
as you’d like.

In a sauté pan, heat the olive oil over medium heat and sauté the onion for about 10 minutes, or until lightly browned. Add the garlic and cook for 2 minutes longer.

Transfer the mixture to a 7-quart slow cooker and add the beans, water, carrots, celery, Parmesan rinds, and tomato sauce. Cover and cook on LOW for about 6 hours, or until the beans are tender.

About 1 hour before serving, stir in the ditalini and add the salt to taste. Cook for about 1 hour, or until the ditalini is cooked al dente.

Ladle your soup into bowls and serve each with a dusting of Parmesan cheese and a sprinkle of parsley.

Note:
A typical Italian finish for a soup is to drizzle fruity olive oil over the top of each serving at the table. You could do that instead of or in addition to the parsley and Parmesan.

Serves 4 to 6

This soup contains all the delicious flavors commonly found in the summer dishes of southern France and Italy:
basil
,
eggplant
, garlic, tomatoes, and
zucchini
. The vegetables give it a hearty base, and the pistou—a classic finish for Provençal dishes (akin to Italian pesto)—gives a burst of flavor that gets swirled in just before serving. Best recommendation of all? Make this soup with vegetables straight from your summer garden.

In a large sauté pan, heat the olive oil over medium heat and sauté the onion for about 10 minutes, or until lightly browned.

Transfer the onion to a 7-quart slow cooker and add the eggplant, Parmesan rind, and water. Cover and cook on LOW for about 4 hours, or until the eggplant is quite tender.

Add the zucchini, bell pepper, tomatoes, olives, thyme, and basil and cook for 1 hour longer, or until the vegetables are soft.

Remove the Parmesan rind and the sprigs of thyme and basil from the soup, then add the salt and pepper to taste.

To make the pistou, place the basil, Parmesan cheese, and garlic in the work bowl of a food processor and let it run until the basil and garlic are finely chopped. Turn off the machine and scrape down the sides of the bowl, then turn the machine back on, and drizzle the olive oil slowly through the feed tube, letting it run until smooth. Add the salt to taste.

Ladle the soup into bowls. To serve, drizzle some of the pistou over the top of each bowl and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.

Serves 4 to 6

Practically every person I know ate
Campbell’s Tomato Soup
with grilled cheese sandwiches when they were a kid. Even Oprah. You might think of this recipe as cream of tomato soup gone uptown. It is simple and delicious, especially when made with tomatoes straight from your garden. For a little more kick, add some chile flakes.

Place the tomatoes, onion, and garlic in a 7-quart slow cooker. Cover and cook on LOW for 3 to 4 hours, until the tomatoes are soft and falling apart.

Using a handheld immersion blender, puree the mixture until the desired texture is achieved. Stir in the cream and add the salt to taste. If needed, you can add some water, but this will most likely not be necessary. Add the chile flakes to taste.

Ladle the soup into bowls and garnish each bowl with the basil.