Stretch Your Budget With Soups from '4 Grandmas 4U'

Mother would call, “Come for dinner” and that meant the noon meal or we may have heard “Soups On”.

In the days of our mothers, soup made a great noon meal -- a big bowl of soup, hearty home made bread and probably fresh pie.

Soups were a wholesome meal of vegetables and meat. Some soups were made for medicinal purposes and some used the garden vegetables. Meat frequently came from soup bones, fresh or canned. This provided the family a full meal deal; heart-warming and wholesome.

We have some of our favourites -- easy, cheap and hearty.

Chicken Noodle Soup - a necessary medicinal
Use leftover chicken pieces or chicken breast. Cover meat with water, parsley root and 1 star aniseed. Boil until done, approximately 1 hour. Cut chicken breasts into serving pieces. Add soup base mix and water to taste, bring to a boil. Find homemade-like egg noodles and boil separately. Drain and rinse. Add to soup. Bring to almost boil. Add parsley greens, salt and pepper to taste.
Find the family, especially the sick.
Marlene Froese

Green Bean Soup
1 smoked ham bone (with meat). Farmer Sausage can also be used
Cover meat with water and boil. Add water to keep covered.
Add: 2 cups green beans
1 potatoe - diced
1 small onion - diced
salt and pepper to taste
spray of summer savory
Cook until vegetables are done. Remove savory and ham bone when done.
Donna Driedger


Vegetable Chowder
2 cups diced potatoe
2 cups cut cauliflower
1 cup chopped onion
3 cups water
1 Oxo beef or vegetable cube
2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp oregano
1 - 28 oz can tomatoes

Sauce
3 tbsp margarine
1/4 cup flour
1/2 tsp dry mustard
2 cups milk
salt and pepper
1 tbsp parsley
1/4 tsp basil

Boil vegetables until tender but still slightly firm. Add sauce to soup and heat until hot but do not boil. (It may curdle if boiled because of milk).
Hedie Harder

Beef Borscht

Beef soup bone with some meat, or stewing beef cut into small pieces
1 small head of cabbage - shredded
1 chopped onion
2 medium carrots- chopped
1 green pepper - chopped
5 medium potatoes - chopped
19 oz canned tomatoes - chopped
10 oz can tomato soup
Parsley roots or dried parsley
2 bay leaves
Dill to taste

Cover beef soup bones with cold salted water. Add chopped onion and bring to boil and simmer until the meat is cooked. The broth may be strained and the meat added to the soup.
Add vegetables and continue to simmer until cooked. Add tomatoes and tomato soup and spices.
Salt and pepper to taste. Simmer soup.

Serve with fresh brown bread, biscuits, or rollkuchen (fried dough) Enjoy!
Elva Epp

Hungarian Hamburger

1/2 pound ground beef, extra lean
1 onion, small, chopped
1 green bell pepper, chopped
1 clove garlic, large, minced
4 cups hot water
2 cubes beef bouillon
24 ounces tomatoe juice
1 carrot, small, diced
1 cup potatoes, diced
1 cup celery, diced
1 cup cabbage, shredded
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1 bay leaf
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
1/4 tsp basil, dried
1 tbsp paprika
3/4 cup pasta, uncooked, small size
1/2 cup sour cream

in a large saucepot, brown hamburger with onion and bell pepper. Add garlic and cook 2 minutes longer. Add water, tomatoe juice and all remaining ingredients (except pasta and sour cream) and cook until vegetables are tender, but not mushy, approximately 30 minutes. Add pasta during the last 5 to 10 minutes.
Yield: 8 servings
Marlene Froese

Most soups freeze well, so make a bigger pot and use at a later time.