Spicy Cauliflower Soup

A snow storm has graced our lives today. Yipee. I dislike winter, and I have little patience for it this year especially. I would love nothing better than to disappear to Mexico and never look back! (Keep dreaming!!)

But I digress. Failing running away south of the border, I needed a way to stay warm today. And this soup fits the bill in a plethagora of ways. Flavorful, filling and hearty, this spicy soup made my day warmer and brighter. And it was super easy, take it from me :)

1 box (900 ml) chicken broth

1/2 onion chopped

2 tsp oilve oil

1/2 tsp garlic, jarred minced

3 large carrots chopped

4 medium potatoes chopped (I leave the peels on)

1/2 cauliflower, chopped

1 tsp garlic, jarred minced

1/4 tsp ground chili pepper

1 tsp cumin

1/2 tsp dill

1/4 tsp coriander

dash hot sauce (if you want)

salt and pepper

1/2-3/4 cups milk

**You can adjust the heat of the soup by how much spice you put in. Flavor according to taste**

Sautee onion and garlic in the oil for 2 minutes. Add to the broth in a large pot with the carrots, potatoes, additional garlic and the spices. Cook on medium low heat for 40-50 minutes or until veggies are soft. Add the milk and stir. Pulse in a food processor in small batched until smooth and transfer back to stove and heat on low a few more minutes. Serve

***You can add more milk if too thick***

Hearty Cream of Potato Soup thats a breeze to make!

Well, the warm weather has left finally, though I was enjoying the unseasonable +26C (79 F) temperatures for the beginning of October. Anytime I can suntan that late, I'm a happy camper.

But now the cool is here, and with it the fresh summer produce is ending and the hearty fall fare is starting. Such as this wonderful soup, which isn't hard to make from scratch, and tastes awesome. And it'll keep you warm on those fall nights (unless you have plenty of dogs and a cat like me to keep your feet toasty :)

2 really large or 4 medium potatoes, peeled and cubed

1 medium onion, chopped

2 medium carrots, chopped

1 3/4 cups chicken broth

3 tbsp butter or margarine

3 tbsp all purpose flour

2 1/2 cups milk (you can use which ever kind you want)

1 tsp garlic (jarred kind) use more if you want

1 tsp dill, pinch salt and pepper (to taste)

Toss potatoes, onion and carrots, garlic and dill to the broth in a stockpot. Bring to boil over medium heat. Reduce heat to low, cover stock pot and simmer 18-20 minutes or so. Mix occasionally, and watch for the consistency, you want some of the potatoes to sort of dissolve a little, making it very thick.

Add butter or marg to a small sauce pan, melt over medium heat and add flour till smooth. Gradually stir in milk. Bring to a gentle boil and simmer 2 minutes. Stir into potato stock. Add salt and pepper, or more dill and garlic if you want. Cook over lowish heat for 5-10 minutes, more if you used skim milk, because it will be thinner and need to thicken.

Enjoy your homeade soup!