Coconut Milk Soups

NT COCONUT CHICKEN SOUP

Serves 4

1 quart chicken stock (page 124) - of course you can sub veggie stock
1 1/2 cups whole coconut milk
or 7 ounces creamed coconut (page 160)
1/4 teaspoon dried chile flakes
1 teaspoon freshly grated ginger
juice of 1 lemon
sea salt or fish sauce (page 157)
several green onions, very finely chopped (optional)
1 tablespoon finely chopped cilantro (optional)

This simple but flavorful soup is a good way to begin a rich meal
like Thanksgiving dinner; served in a mug, it is a powerful and
comforting remedy for colds and sore throat.

Bring the stock to a boil, skim any foam that rises to the top and
add coconut milk or creamed coconut, lemon juice, chile flakes and
ginger. Simmer for about 15 minutes. Season to taste with salt or fish
sauce. Ladle into soup bowls or mugs and garnish with onions and
cilantro.

Variation: Coconut Turkey or Duck Soup
Use turkey or duck stock (page 125) instead of chicken stock


Tomato, Coconut, Corn Soup

1 can whole coconut milk (I like it thicker....so I use 2 cans)
4 cups chicken stock
28oz can fire-roasted chopped tomatoes
10oz bag frozen corn
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp dried thyme
Sea Salt & Black pepper to taste

Place all ingredients in a large pot over medium heat, bring to a simmer, and cook 10 minutes. This freezes GREAT.

Cream of Mushroom Soup

Ingredients:
2 tbsp. butter
8 oz. mushrooms, minced (use your fav...I love cremini)
1/4 c. onions
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tbsp. parsley
Pinch of nutmeg
Pinch of cayenne pepper
1 tbsp. whole wheat flour or GF thickener
2 c. chicken stock
1 c. milk, yogurt or cream (raw grass-fed of course)

Heat butter in 2 quart saucepan. Add mushrooms, onions, garlic, parsley, nutmeg and pepper. Sauté until mushrooms soften and lose their liquid. Sprinkle flour over mixture and continue cooking for several minutes.

Add stock gradually, stirring constantly. Bring to boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 15 minutes. Puree mixture in blender or food processor, then return to the saucepan. Stir in milk and heat through.

I'm not sure how big a can of soup is, so you'd need to cut this recipe, or freeze the excess for later.

I make this in LARGE batches and freeze in pint jars...which equal a can of soup.

Coconut Lamb Curry

Ingredients:
2 lbs Ground Lamb
2 cups chickpeas, soaked and cooked according to NT (or canned)
2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
2 tbs curry powder
2 sweet potatoes, peeled and diced
1/2 Cauliflower, diced
1 medium onion, chopped
1 can coconut milk
1 cup chicken stock
2 tsp. hot sauce, optional
1 14 oz. can diced tomatoes with the juice
1 cup peas, frozen

Brown the ground lamb and onions together in a skillet with a little oil until the onions are soft.Add the curry powder and cook for one minute. Scrape into the crock pot. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Add potatoes, cauliflower, coconut milk, stock, hot sauce, tomatoes, and stir to combine. Cover and cook on low 6-8 hours. About 1/2 an hour before serving, stir in frozen peas. Serve over cooked rice.

Chicken Pot Pie w/Herbed Pie Crust

From the Grass-fed Gourmet
This is my ALL time favorite pot pie recipe! I can't be beat and the filling freezes great so this can easily be cooked in bulk. A wonderful nourishing meal to bring to those who are sick or families with new babies.

Herbed Pie Crust

1 1/2 cups whole wheat pastry flour (soft white wheat)
3/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp fresh ground pepper
1 tsp thyme
1/2 tsp dried oregano
8 Tbs butter or lard
6-8 Tbs ice water

Combine flour, salt, pepper, and dried herbs in a medium bowl, Use a pastry blender or fork to cut the butter/lard into the flour mixture until it is crumbly. Add the ice water gradually, mixing quickly with a fork until the dough is just moist enough to hold together. BE CAREFUL not to add too much water. You may not need the full 6 Tbs. Shape the dough into a ball. Then place on a floured surface and roll out to a rectangle at least 9x13 inches. (This makes a pot pie with only a top crust..no soggy bottoms. But I am sure you could shape different for a regular round pan and put it on top and bottom).

Chicken Pot Pie Filling....

6 Tbs unsalted butter
3 small stalks of celery, chopped
3 carrots, finely chopped
1 large onion, sliced into thin wedges (I add my bulk cooked....crockpot carmalized onions)
1/2 tsp Celtic Sea Salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper.
3/4 cup fresh or thawed whole corn kernels
1/2 cup fresh or frozen peas
3 cups cooked chicken or turkey, shredded
1/2 cup flour (I use WW)
2 cups chicken or turkey broth
1 cup whole milk
1/2 cup half-and-half (I never have this in the house so I use heavy cream)
1 tsp dried thyme or 1 Tbs fresh
2 Tbs dry sherry

(most of the time I add in whatever leftover veggies I have in the frig...usually carrots, green beans & broccoli. I usually add in some frozen peas and corn too)

Preheat over to 400 F

Melt 2 Tbs of the butter in a large, non-reactive saucepan, then sauté the celery, carrots & onions over medium-high heat until they are crisp-tender, approx 4-5 min. Remove to a large bowl, and keep warm (I throw a kitchen towel over the top). Add the salt, pepper, corn, peas, and shredded chicken to the vegetables and stir gently until well combined.

Melt the remaining 4 Tbs of butter in saucepan. Turn off the heat and add the flour, and stir quickly (making a roux) The mixture will be pasty. Over medium heat, stir in the broth, milk, half-and-half, and thyme. Bring the liquid to a boil, stirring occasionally; lower the heat and simmer, stirring often, until the sauce is thick and rich. Stir in the sherry (sometimes I use sherry and sometimes I use whatever yummy red wine I have open).

Pour the sauce over the meat and vegetables, and mix gently. Season to taste with additional salt & pepper. Pour the entire contents of the bowl into a 9 x 13 inch baking pan, and top with the herbed pie crust. Fold down and crimp overlapping edges so that the pie crust fits inside the pan. Pierce the top several times with a sharp knife, and bake for 35-45 minutes, or until the top is golden brown and filling is bubbling.

Serves 6.

Why is Chicken Soup or Stock so important!!

Why is Chicken Soup SOOOOO important!

These are notes from NT.....well worth repeating!

Why is chicken soup superior to all the things we have, even more relaxing than "Tylenol?" It is because chicken soup has a natural ingredient which feeds, repairs and calms the mucous lining in the small intestine. This inner lining is the beginning or ending of the nervous system. It is easily pulled away from the intestine through too many laxatives, too many food additives. . . and parasites.

Chicken soup. . . heals the nerves, improves digestion, reduces allergies, relaxes and gives strength. Hanna Kroeger Ageless Remedies from Mother’s Kitchen

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The essential premise of stock is a good one: letting nothing go to waste. This means, first, finding a way to eat animals that, while edible, have not been raised strictly to be eaten. Once, not so long ago, much of the meat served on all but the tables of the rich came from animals that had already led useful lives as beasts of burden or wool producers, or careerists who had sent eggs and milk to the table before arriving there themselves.

Furthermore, in those days, because of the vexing problems of spoilage, animals were slaughtered locally, sometimes even at home, supplying ample trimmings and bones (not to mention offal). A cuisine based on stock begins with such butcher’s leavings— bones, especially, but also cuts of meat too tough to eat. Butchers then had whole carcasses to contend with, not cartons of selected parts. To keep the profitable cuts moving they had to shift all the rest, too, for such price as they could get. John Thorne Outlaw Cook

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Broth isn't much: a chicken back, some parsley sprigs, a carrot, a celery stalk and time, of course, to bring the flavors out. And after hours of simmering, its life begins, for broth is not a finished food—it is just the start of culinary magic. And it is the crux of all cooking. With it, the sauce is a snap and the soup is practically made.

The words "broth" and "stock" are used interchangeably in many cookbooks, and for good reason, because the differences between the two are hair-splittingly small. In general usage "broth" is a home-cooking term, while "stock" is the province of professional kitchens. Broth is made from spits and spots of leftovers, and its nature changes according to what's on hand.
Stock follows a prescribed formula. It is made on a regular basis and forms the groundwork for all of the sauces, soups and simmerings that are the mainstays of a classic kitchen. There is yet another distinction. The meaty element of stock is predominantly bone, while broth is typically made with meat. This difference changes the finished products in two significant ways. The large proportion of bone gives stock a more gelatinous texture and greater clarity. Broths tend to be thinner and cloudier.

Essential to all broths is starting with cold water. As the ingredients warm in the water, their fibers open slowly, releasing their juices to add flavor. Off flavors can result if the broth is not skimmed. The broth must be kept at a bare simmer throughout the cooking process to ensure clarity. Andrew Schloss The Washington Post

Chicken Stock w/Immune Boosting Herbs

I save all the bones and skins from my whole cooked chicken. I save them in a couple of ziplocks in the freezer. When I have enough I throw it in my biggest pot, add whatever veggies I have in my freezer scraps bag plus lots of carrots, onion and garlic skins, celery, etc. Add water and vinegar, soak for 1hour, bring to a boil, and skim the scum.

Here's where I get a little crazy. I add several sections of dried astragalus, dandelion, burdock and echinacea root along with handsful of rosemary, thyme, oregano, parsley, nettle, and several bay leaves. This I bring to a rolling boil, give a good stir and pop the lid on. Drop to lowest setting and simmer for around 24 hours.

Cool, remove fat cap, put in glass ball jars leaving LOTS of headroom if you want store in the freezer. I find that we go thru a lot of stock each week so I just store in a 1/2 gal ball jar in the frig. If I have excess at the end of the week then I reboil, cool and freeze accordingly.

This makes the most delicious and immune boosting stock you can imagine. This way of making stock was taught to me by herbalist Susun weed. There is an article about it on her website.

NOTE: Many people find they get a better gelatin if you take it off the stove at 12 hours, pop in the frig over night and simmer again the second day for 12 hours. I have done this and it does work but that is a lot more work.