Sick Soup

What you need:

1 (10oz)Can of Tomato Soup
1 (10oz)Can of Cream of Chicken
1 lb of Pastina/Orzo (Stars, Alphabet etc)
4 TBSP of Butter
1 tsp Italian Seasonings
6 cups of water

How you do it:

In a LARGE pot mix everything except your pastina
Bring to a boil then add your pastina
Pastina will cook fairly quick but let some of the water boil out.
The consistency you want is porridge like, thick and creamy
Feel free to add sliced carrots or cooked chicken


Why it's good:

Ok, I know the combination sounds bazaar but it really works. The name Sick Soup is because my dad made it for us whenever we were sick. The tomato soup is a good source of Vitamin C which is great for your immunity and chicken is a natural decongestant. The soup itself also offers plenty of calories to give you energy and electrolytes to keep you hydrated. It's gentle on your stomach so you don't have to only eat bland rice or crackers. It really is an amazing little potion. For less than $4 you could feed a whole house of sniffles. My dad topped my bowl with Parmesan Cheese and a slice of bread and butter.

Enjoy, Mangia Tutto and Get Well!

Cream Shrimp Soup

What you need:

2 Cups or a pint of Heavy Cream
1 cup water
1/2 lb raw de-veined but shell on shrimp
2 TBSP butter
1 1/2 TBSP flour
1 TBSP onion (estimate)

2 tsp Old Bay
1/4 tsp paprika
1/3 tsp salt
1/8 black pepper

How you do it:

In a medium size pot boil water, shrimp as is, and onion for 10 minutes on high
*While that's boiling get a bowl of cold water for shrimp
After 10 minutes strain through mesh screen into measuring pitcher
Put shrimp in the cold water
Then peel and cut them down to smaller pieces and set aside
The broth in the measuring glass will be between 1/2 cup and 3/4 of a cup

Pour 1/4 cup of just the broth back into the pot
Add butter and flour
On medium high heat cook flour mixture until thick and smooth
Then add the rest of the broth and remaining ingredients
Stir until well combined and thick, keep stirring!
Add shrimp and cream
Bring to a boil on high then simmer on medium heat
When the soup is done it will coat a spoon (about 5-8 minutes)

Why it's so good:

I love the simple shrimp taste of this soup. Since seafood stock or shrimp broth is hard to come by we had to make our own. It's creamy with just a small kick from the Old Bay Seasoning. If you want it spicier add some diced red peppers to the broth phase. You can also add more Old Bay or a little Cayenne Pepper to kick it up. I serve it with some Oyster Cracker or Saltines, but it is heaven with some toasted Italian Bread drizzled with Light Olive Oil.

Enjoy and Mangia Tutto!