Well thanks ya'll. I just dug up this thread when ysop was looking for senate bean soup recipe. Glad you and your family enjoyed it Judi. Smiles. I eat soup for breakfast and lunch generally until I'm done with the curernt batch that is unfrozen. I just finished my first gallon of lentil soup, so tonight I am going to brine the beans for this bean soup. I just started brining the beans in the past six months or so and can't believe the difference. The skins are so much more tender and it takes a lot less time to cook the whole soup. The outcome is that you can cook it till the beans are tender without having all the skins come off and floating around. I had just bought a ham to use mostly for soups and froze quart bags of meat and skins to use, but also have the big bone, soooo.. this time I'm making 4 lbs at a time so I can use the big bone. Ah... happy camper. Time to start some artisan bread to go with.

Here we only get the fried won-tons with Hot and Sour Soup. I fried some won-tons at home and they didn't come close to being as good as the Chinese Restaurant here. I wonder if restaurants get a better quality won-ton than we can get in the grocery stores. Here's the Won-ton soup recipe I've used. Ginger Won-ton Soup 4 oz lean ground pork 1/2 cup reduced fat ricotta cheese 1/2 tablespoon minced fresh cilantro 1/2 teaspoon black pepper 1/8 teaspoon Chinese 5-spice powder 20 Wonton wrappers 1 tsp oil 2/3 cup chopped red bell pepper 2 teaspoons grated fresh ginger 4 cans chicken broth (homemade stock is better) 4 tsp soy sauce 4 oz fresh sugar snap peas 1 or 2 cans baby corn on cob, rinsed and drained 4 green onions sliced. Cook pork over medium high heat until no longer pink, cool slightly; stir in ricotta, cilantro, black pepper and 5 spice powder. Please 1 teaspoon in center of each wonton. Fold and seal edges with water. Cook in boiling water until they come to the top. Remove and set aside. Heat oil in large saucepan. Add bell pepper and ginger, cook 1 minute. Add chicken broth and soy sauce. Bring to a boil and add peas, corn and wontons. Simmer5 minutes. Pour into soup bowls over wontons and sprinkle with onions. Serves 4

linda 6, my Hungarian Grandmother and my mom made the best beet soup. I don't have a recipe as everything was done from taste. I made it quite a few times, but haven't done so in a few years, so I am going by memory here! Cook 2-3 pork hocks in a soup pot filled with water and season with salt & pepper, bay leaves and some onion. Simmer slowly for about an hour or until pork hock meat is tender. Remove hocks and add sliced beets and potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks, season with salt & pepper and cook until vegies are tender. Make a batch of egg dumplings in another pot and add to the soup. Chop up the pork hock meat and add to the soup pot. Add a tablespoon or more of vinegar and sugar, temper about a cup of sour cream with the hot soup and add to the pot. If the soup is not thick enough for your taste, make a roux with flour and oil and add to the soup until a disired thickness.

Either one of these soups would seem to fit the bill. I've made them both the day before but only up to the part before adding the cream. ROASTED RED PEPPER SOUP (originally posted by chase) 4 Red Bell Peppers,roasted, seeded and peeled 2 TBSP Butter (or margarine) 1 Red onion,chopped 2 Garlic cloves,minced 4 cups Chicken broth 1 TBSP Lemon Juice Salt & Pepper to taste Saute onions and garlic in butter until soft. Add red peppers. Cook for 2 or 3 minutes. Add broth cover and simmer for 20 minutes. Add lemon juice. Process in food processor until smooth. Season with salt and pepper. Place back on stove until ready to serve. NOTE: To roast the peppers place whole peppers under the broiler or on a hot grill. Turn peppers until blackened on all sides. Place hot peppers in a plastic bag and tie shut. When the peppers have cooled completely remove from the bag. Remove all the skin and seeds. ROASTED GARLIC SOUP WITH PARMESAN CHEESE (from David at THS Cooking forum) 26 garlic cloves (unpeeled) 2 tablespoons olive oil 2 tablespoons (1/4 stick) butter 2 1/4 cups sliced onions 1 1/2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme 18 garlic cloves, peeled 3 1/2 cups chicken stock or canned low-salt chicken broth 1/2 cup whipping cream 1/2 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese (about 2 ounces) 4 lemon wedges Preheat oven to 350°F. Place 26 garlic cloves in small glass baking dish. Add 2 tablespoons olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper; toss to coat. Cover baking dish tightly with foil and bake until garlic is golden brown and tender, about 45 minutes. Cool. Squeeze garlic between fingertips to release cloves. Transfer cloves to small bowl. Melt butter in heavy large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add onions and thyme and cook until onions are translucent, about 6 minutes. Add roasted garlic and 18 raw garlic cloves and cook 3 minutes. Add chicken stock; cover and simmer until garlic is very tender, about 20 minutes. Working in batches, purée soup in blender until smooth. Return soup to saucepan; add cream and bring to simmer. Season with salt and pepper. (Can be prepared 1 day ahead. Cover and refrigerate. Rewarm over medium heat, stirring occasionally.) Divide grated cheese among 4 bowls and ladle soup over. Squeeze juice of 1 lemon wedge into each bowl and serve. Serves 4. Note from me: I usually just cut the tops off 2 or 3 (depending on size) whole bulbs of garlic instead of the 26 garlic cloves in the first step and use ½ tsp. dried thyme if fresh is not available. Dont leave out the lemon wedges. This salad has a lighter flavor than many spinach salads. LEMON SPINACH SALAD ½ lb. sliced mushrooms 1 lb. young spinach leaves, washed and stemmed 6 Tbs. olive oil 2 Tbs. lemon juice ¼ tsp. salt 1 Tbs. grated Parmesan cheese 1 clove garlic, slivered Finely grated rind of ½ lemon 1 hard cooked egg Freshly ground black pepper Wash mushrooms and combine with spinach. Chill. Mix oil, lemon juice, salt, cheese and garlic. Chop up egg and sprinkle over salad. Add lemon rind to salad and grind pepper on top. Pour dressing over salad right before serving and toss. Note: Best if dressing is made about an hour ahead of time and garlic pieces removed before pouring on salad. Crumbled bacon pieces can be added if desired. Sounds like a terrific way to bring in the New Year. Enjoy!