I love soup too. I have some favorites posted on my recipe blog, but my all time favorite is Smoky Tortilla Soup with Shrimp.

Smoky Tortilla Soup with Shrimp

2 T olive oil
1 c finely diced onion
1 c finely diced carrot
1/2 c finely chopped celery
3 clove garlic, minced
1/4 t oregano
1/2 t cumin
7 c broth or water
2 15 oz. cans pinto beans, drained and rinsed
1/3 c canned crushed tomatoes with added puree
2 t minced canned chipotle chiles

1 lb uncooked small shrimp
1/4 c minced fresh cilantro

Lime wedges
Avocado wedges

Heat oil in heavy large pot over medium heat. Add onion, carrot, celery, garlic, cumin, and oregano. Saute until vegetables are crisp-tender, about 10 minutes. Add broth, pinto beans, crushed tomatoes and chipotle chilies; bring to simmer. Reduce heat, cover and simmer 30 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Add shrimp and cook until opaque in center, stirring occasionally, about 3 minutes. Stir in chopped fresh cilantro. Serve soup, garnishing with avocado. Pass lime wedges and tortilla chips separately.

I will look forward to seeing what people post!

Here is a link that might be useful: Soups on my blog

How about this?

dcarch

Here is a link that might be useful: Divorce soup

don't know if this has been posted here before, but it's a favorite of mine. I sometimes use canned Anaheim green chiles if I don't have fresh peppers on hand.

African Chicken Peanut Soup

2 med. onions, chopped
2 lg. red and-or green peppers, chopped
2 tbsp. oil
4 to 5 garlic cloves, minced
1 (28 oz.) can tomatoes, coarsely chopped
8 c. chicken stock
1/2 tsp. pepper
1/2 tsp. crushed red hot peppers
1/2 c. cooked rice (I use brown)
1 1/2 c. cooked chicken, chopped
2/3 c. peanut butter
Fresh cilantro for garnish

In large pot, saute onions, peppers and garlic in oil until onions are just beginning to brown.
Add all other ingredients EXCEPT rice, chicken and peanut butter. Simmer, uncovered, over low heat for about 1 hour.
Add rice and chicken and simmer 5-10 min to blend flavors. Add peanut butter and mix until it is completely dissolved and smooth. Heat to simmer, remove from heat, sprinkle with cilantro and serve. Can have toasted peanuts for garnish, as well.
Serves 8 to 10.

Great thread, msrose! Soup is cheap and helps me to lose weight. I have enough of $25 steak for dinner and $12 stinky, spoiled trout for dinner. Here's my favorite soup recipe - LEEK, SHRIMP, AND TOMATO SOUP

Nuke 6 to 7 frozen tomatoes from the garden (or 1 large can of whole tomatoes)

Throw away the outer tough leaves of leeks. Keep the whitish stem, and the inner leaves. Wash in a large sink of water, since there's dirt inside each leaf.

Chop leeks small, mince once clove of garlic. Fry this in 2 tablespoon olive oil until fragrant. Pour 1 cup of water, cover, and simmer 15 minutes until leeks is tender.

Diced 5 to 6 zucchini, some mushroom (optional), put in the pot, simmer until veges are tender (10 minutes).

Rinse frozen "cooked medium shrimp" repeatedly in water for 3 times (to wash off the sulfites which may cause rash). Put this in the pot last for 2 to 3 minutes.

Blend in the pre-cooked tomatoes (from microwave) and 1 can of chicken broth.

Anyone have a good bean soup recipe? The only good bean soup I make is lentil - but I don't know how to make good soup out of other beans. Thank you in advance.

My favorite bean soup.....
1 pound dried baby lima beans...now don'
t say you hate lima beans....these baby dried ones are really different!
something "hammy"....either a left over ham bone or half a pound of smoked pork hock, or 1/4 pound of a ham slice...or even deli ham is you have nothing else
1 small onion, chopped
1 small carrot, grated
1 bay leaf
I qt box of chicken broth
salt and pepper

Pour boiling water over the beans to cover....allow to sit until water cools, drain and rinse.
Put the beans, the ham, onions, carrot and bay leaf into your soup pot. Add the broth and enough water to cover all by 2 inches (ignore all the old wives tales about not adding salt to beans until they are cooked) add enough water to cover all by about 3 inches.
Simmer about 2 hours until the beans are somewhat falling apart and some are whole.
Salt to taste ( won't need much because of the ham and broth) and add a generous amount of pepper to each bowl.
Serves 6 with corn bread for dinner.

Not sure if I have a favorite - probably New England Clam Chowder, but I never make that. Yesterday I made minestrone, and here is the recipe I used:

Minestrone Soup

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 cup minced white onion (about 1/2 small onion)
1/3 cup minced celery (about 1 stalk)
2 chopped zucchinis, chopped
2 teaspoons minced garlic (about 2-3 cloves)
2 cups water or vegetable broth
2 tsp vegetable soup base (if broth is not used - dissolve in the 2 cups water)
1 (14 ounce) can diced tomatoes (or whole tomatoes pur�ed in can)
1/4 cup carrots, shredded
2-4 tablespoons minced fresh parsley
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
1 to 1 1/2 cups water or vegetable soup base
1 to 1-1/2 tsp vegetable soup base (dissolved in the water, if broth not used)
2/3 cup small shell pasta (orzo, or similar)
1-3/4 cups cooked red kidney beans, drained*
1-3/4 cups cooked small white beans or great northern beans, drained*
2 cups fresh baby spinach (optional)
2 tbsp tomato paste or 1 tbsp tomato powder
salt, to taste, if soup base is not used

Directions:

Heat the olive oil over medium heat in a large soup pot.

Saut� onion and celery in the oil for 4-5 minutes or until onions begin to turn translucent. Add the zucchini and garlic and saute a couple of minutes more.

Add vegetable broth to pot, plus tomatoes, carrot, and spices. Bring soup to a boil, then reduce heat and allow to simmer for 20 minutes.

Add additional 1 cup hot water/vegetable broth (more, if needed), pasta, beans, spinach leaves (if desired), and tomato paste, and cook for an additional 20 minutes or until desired consistency. Less water will be needed if the spinach is used. Add salt to taste, if you are not using soup base. I use Better Than Bouillon brand vegetable soup base or one that I get from a restaurant supply store. Use more parsley if you are not adding spinach.
*Note: I use 7/8 cup of each dried bean to yield the amount needed and cook the beans earlier in the day or the day before in plain water with a couple of bay leaves. I simmer them in the same pan. Alternatively, canned beans can be used (14 oz can each), drained and rinsed.

Another favorite is Posole:

Lars' Posole

I recommend that you soak more hominy than you need, and you can freeze the leftover for later use. It is best to use hominy that is in pieces rather than whole kernals.

Ingredients

3/4 cup dried white hominy corn (maiz trillado blanco) - about 2-1/2 to 3 cups when soaked - rinsed canned hominy can be substituted
2 tbsp canola oil
2 tbsp olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
6-7 cloves garlic, minced, or finely chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1 green bell pepper (or 2 Anaheim chilies), chopped
4 serrano peppers, finely chopped, some seeds removed
1 tbsp cumin
2 tbsp chili powder (I use Ancho)
1 10 oz can of Rotel tomatoes (or tomatoes with chilies)
4-5 bouillon cubes (vegetable flavor)
2 cups water (or reserved liquid from soaking)
Cilantro, for garnish
Grated cheddar cheese (optional)

Directions

To quick soak the hominy, place it in a pan and cover with triple depth of water. Bring to a boil, cover, and remove from heat. Allow to soak for about 2-3 hours, and then drain the water. You may need to check periodically to make sure there is enough water covering the hominy. Save the soaking water if you want to use it as a thickener for this or another dish.

While the hominy is soaking (or almost ready), you can begin the rest of the process, starting with chopping all the vegetables. The pieces should be fairly small, but not minced, except for the garlic and serrano peppers.

Heat the oils in a large saucepan (Mine is 4" deep) and add the chopped onion, peppers, and garlic. Saute for a few minutes, or until the onion becomes a bit translucent - it does not need to cook thoroughly, and you do not want to make the vegetables too soft. Turn off the heat, and stir in the cumin and chili powder. Add the canned tomatoes, bouillon cubes, water, and drained hominy. Bring to a boil, and cook covered for about 20 minutes.

Serve in individual soup bowls with chopped cilantro, stirred in at the last minute. You can also add grated cheese if desired. Some people add lime juice, but I prefer to leave it out.

It is traditional to serve this with shredded cabbage and fresh lime juice, but I did not know this when I made up this recipe. Mine is vegetarian, but it is usually made with pork in Mexico.

Lars

Thanks for all the yummy recipes so far. I can't wait to get started trying some of them.

publickman - I grew up on canned hominy, but I don't think I've every seen dried hominy. Is it hard to find?