You’re home from work and everyone’s hungry. Here’s what you can make in a jiff with ingredients you probably already have in your fridge and pantry.
Delicious Meals You Can Make in Minutes
Tag: #TasteofHome
Cowboy Soup Recipe: Hearty & Customizable Comfort Food
Anyone who has lived in a cowboy town knows that the Wild West is still very much alive. Rodeos, cattle drives, coal-powered railroad rides and mining tours are all still a part of daily life for those who live in picturesque mountain towns. In addition to Wild West vibes, the cowboy appetite is also quite real. After a long day of working outdoors, there’s nothing more comforting than hearty cowboy recipes, especially a big bowl of cowboy soup.
The beauty of this one-pot cowboy soup recipe is that it’s completely customizable. Mix and match ingredients from the pantry and refrigerator, use other types of ground meat or change up the spices and vegetables to your personal preferences. This soup is traditionally made with pinto beans, but even those aren’t off-limits when it comes to making it your own. Black beans, cannellini beans, great northern beans or kidney beans all taste great in cowboy soup.
What is cowboy soup?
Cowboy soup is a simple yet flavorful soup that’s packed with filling ingredients like ground beef, tomatoes, green chiles, pinto beans and other vegetables. It’s a one-pot meal that comes together in about 30 minutes.
Some say cowboy soup is similar to a hearty chili. While it does have a comparable spice profile thanks to the combination of tomatoes, chili powder and ground cumin, cowboy soup is not typically as spicy as most chili recipes. It also contains extra ingredients that make the soup more filling, like chunks of potatoes, sweet corn and canned mixed vegetables.
Ingredients for Cowboy Soup
- Ground beef: You can use fresh or frozen ground beef for this recipe. It’s best to defrost ground beef in the fridge overnight, but if you forgot, you can cook ground beef from frozen. Just make sure to flip the frozen brick over frequently and scrape off the outer layers as they brown.
- Onion and garlic: These aromatic vegetables season the ground beef and add the first layer of flavor to this hearty cowboy soup.
- Beef broth: Use low-sodium or homemade beef broth if you want to keep the salt content low. Alternatively, you can use chicken broth or vegetable broth.
- Ranch-style beans: These canned pinto beans are seasoned with tomato sauce, spices and a splash of vinegar to give them a tangy finish. They’re available at most grocery stores, but regular pinto beans also work. (You can make homemade ranch-style beans if you prefer to cook from scratch.)
- Tomatoes and green chiles: The combination of drained diced tomatoes and undrained diced tomatoes with green chiles gives the soup a bold flavor, a stew-like consistency and the perfect hint of heat.
- Veggies: You can use any type of vegetable in this soup. We like peeled and chopped potatoes, frozen corn and a can of mixed vegetables, but feel free to experiment.
- Seasonings: Chili powder adds a hint of spice, while ground cumin boosts the smoky vibes. A little bit of salt and pepper rounds it all out.
- Jalapeno pepper: Garnish the soup with thinly sliced jalapeno peppers for some spice.
Taste of Home
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Easy Ham Soup Ideas for Leftover Holiday Ingredients
These ham soup recipes will help you make the most of a holiday ham. Here’s how to transform those leftovers into ham and potato soup. You can also make creamy ham chowder. Another option is a brothy soup packed with vegetables.
A whole smoked ham is a beloved celebration food. Does your family serve a big Easter ham? Or do they make a holiday ham instead of turkey for Thanksgiving? There’s no wrong way to enjoy this smoky, savory main. You could also add a sweet touch to the holiday spread with Christmas ham recipes. Ham is such a large cut of meat that there are always leftovers. That’s when ham soup recipes become useful.
You can combine leftover ham with hearty vegetables like potatoes. Alternatively, pack your soup with beans to create a filling dish. This dish will be up to the task of feeding a crowd. Ham soups tend to be hearty. They’re perfect for chilly nights. However, they taste great anytime you want to use up leftover ham from a holiday feast.
When it’s time to serve ham soup, prepare some soft dinner rolls. You can also make buttery cornbread to serve on the side. The slight sweetness pairs beautifully with any ham soup.
Taste of Home
Find more recipes like this on my companion blog, “Good Food, Good Meat, Good God, Let’s Eat!”
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Easy Christmas Appetizers for a Festive Holiday Party
These easy Christmas appetizers are the perfect way to kick off your holiday party. This collection includes our best recipes for festive dips, skewers, bites and more.
Need Christmas party food ideas in a pinch? Kick off your festivities with these easy and impressive Christmas appetizers that will wow any crowd. Whether it’s Christmas Eve snacks or one-bite holiday snacks for an impromptu get-together, we’ve got you covered.
We’ll offer all the classic options for Christmas appetizers and party foods, from elegant bite-sized nibbles to crowd-pleasing dips and savory pastries. If you’re looking for more holiday inspiration, check out these ideas for Christmas dinner and easy Christmas desserts, plus the Taste of Home team’s complete Christmas dinner planning guide.
Taste of Home
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Best Fudge Recipes for Every Occasion
Fudge comes in all shapes, colors and textures, but our 30 best fudge recipes have earned high marks (and rave reviews) for their best-in-class flavors. When the holidays roll around, be sure you’re stocked with these festive favorites.
Fudge is one of those indulgent recipes that’s surprisingly easy to make. There’s a reason you’ll find it at bake sales, tucked into gift tins or on holiday dessert tables alongside barks and brittles. A traditional fudge is made with sugar, milk (or cream), butter and chocolate, but easy recipes rely on shortcuts like canned condensed milk. No matter how it’s made, fudge becomes more than just a quick treat when the texture is right—creamy, firm and smooth enough to slice. It’s so good, you can’t just have one bite!
This collection of easy homemade fudge recipes includes technique-driven fudges alongside no-bake fudge recipes made with just two ingredients and a microwave. We included options that layer in flavor and texture with warm spices, toasted nuts and marshmallows. You’ll also find a Mackinac-style version inspired by classic candy counters. There are plenty of flavors to satisfy every sweet tooth, from raspberry to peanut butter, marshmallow, peppermint and butterscotch.
Whether it’s prepared as an easy Christmas dessert or packaged with creative wrapping ideas for homemade gifts, these recipes are timeless favorites for whenever your fudge cravings strike.
Book Reviews by the Reluctant Retiree 