Autumn Minestrone Soup

I have new diet restrictions and luckily, everything in this soup, minus the garlic, I can eat, which means I can make this again. This soup was really good & I'd definitely make this one again.

Autumn Minestrone Soup (Pinterest) (6 servings):

2 med carrots, diced
1 med yellow onion, chopped
1 tbsp olive oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
6 c veggie broth
2 1/2 c 3/4-inch diced yukon gold potatoes (I used sweet potatoes)
2 1/2 c 3/4-inch diced butternut squash (or pre-cut)
1 med zucchini, ends trimmed, sliced into half-moons or quarters
1 (14.5 oz) can diced tomatoes (I used a can of diced chiles)
2 1/2 tsp finely minced fresh rosemary or oregano
2 1/2 tsp minced fresh thyme
2 bay leaves
Salt and pepper
2/3 c dry ditalini pasta, or other small pasta (optional)
2 c packed chopped kale (thick ribs removed)
1 (14.5 oz) can red or white kidney beans, drained & rinsed
Shredded parm, for serving (optional)

Heat oil in large pot over med-high. Add onions & carrots and saute 3 min, then add garlic and saute 1 min longer. Stir in veggie broth, potatoes, squash, zucchini, tomatoes, rosemary, thyme, bay leaves & season with salt & pepper to taste. Bring to boil & then stir in pasta, if using. Cover, reduce heat to med-low & simmer until veggies are nearly tender, about 15 min. Stir in kale and kidney beans and cook until kale is tender, about 5 min longer. Remove bay leaves, serve warm with parm.




Ready to be simmered...

Enjoy!...

One Pot White Chicken Lasagna Soup

I love this soup. This is another soup that I ran across when I was looking for soups that didn't contain any tomatoes. I had made a lasagna soup before but it contained tomatoes & that one was really good too. This made a lot of soup & I was concerned about freezing it since it contained heavy cream and half & half. And while it did separate a little once it did thaw, once I mixed it up, it was good to eat again. It's just a really filling soup, since it contains white beans and chicken and noodles, which I love. I can't say once bad thing about this soup. So go make it right now!!

Find the recipe here




Noodles added...

Ready to be served...

Ready to eat...enjoy!

One Pot Creamy White Bean & Ham, Tortellini Soup

I've developed an allergy to tomatoes & anything with tomatoes in it, including tomato sauce, tomato paste, ketchup, etc. So it's been a little interesting trying to find soups & meat sauces without anything containing tomatoes. I love soups but a lot of the thicker soups have some kind of tomato base to it. Usually I stay away from milk-based soups but since I can't eat tomatoes I've been going back to the milk-based soups, but just a little bit of them. I made this soup because it sounded interesting with the ham & beans-I figured it would be equally as filling. And I was right, plus it freezes well.

Find the recipe here




All cooked down...

Topped with cheese & ready to eat...Enjoy!...

Tortellini Soup

This soup was my own creation. My mom actually gave me the idea. I had a blood clot this past fall and she came into town to stay with me until I was able to get back on my feet again. She had mentioned that she had made tortellini soup before for herself in the past and she threw whatever she had on hand to make it a meal. So after she left, I decided to do the same. This soup has become a staple for me and I make it when I don't know what else to make. You can add whatever you want to it and it will always taste good. I haven't added meat yet but that's only because I haven't had any in my fridge when I've made the soup. I almost always add a lot of vegetables, almost like I'm making a vegetable soup. I add the tortellini towards the end, for however long it needs to cook. I'm not going to list a recipe since you can whatever you want but I'll list what I usually always add:

Carrots (usually the multicolored ones because it's always fun to add color to soups)
Celery
Zucchini or yellow squash if I have them in my fridge
Onions
Garlic
Ginger
Parm Rind
4-6 c chicken broth
Pkg of whatever size, shape or flavor of tortellini
Spinach leaves
Parmesan, to serve
Parsley, to serve




Enjoy!...

Pastina Soup with Easy Homemade Meatballs

I made this soup almost a year ago, way back in August, when I was diagnosed with GERD, which is a severe form of acid reflux. I had to go on a bland diet, which was not a lot of fun, but the alternative was painful so I stuck to the bland diet as best I could. Not eating the foods I liked was hard, since I like eating foods with a lot of flavor. This soup was really bland, so I decided to add some flavor by baking meatballs. Luckily the meatballs had enough flavor to make eating the soup bearable. And the peas added enough taste as well. I didn't do a whole lot of cooking during my time that I had to eat my bland diet-not a whole lot of experimenting, mainly because what I tried didn't agree with me. Which is why I didn't post a whole lot. Luckily I can eat almost anything now, thankfully! The only thing I can't eat yet are tomatoes or anything tomato-based so no spaghetti sauces or ketchup or anything red-sauced but if that's the only thing I have to stay away from, then that's okay with me! And I also tend to stay away from a lot of citrus and high salty foods as well, just to be on the safe side. I have book-marked the recipes I did try, so I'll post those now. Bear with me while I post a bunch in a row!

Pastina Soup (4 servings) (Food Network):

*Soup

1 tbsp EVOO
1 stalk celery, finely chopped
1 carrot, finely chopped
2 shallots, minced
3 sprigs thyme
Salt
1 2-inch parm cheese rind
1 qt chicken stock (I used broth)
1 3/4 c star-shaped pastina (I could only find a small shaped pasta, which worked just as well)
1 c frozen peas
1/2 c grated parm
1 tsp grated lemon zest, optional

For the meatball recipe, click here




Cooked meatballs...

Soup simmering with the meatballs added...

Enjoy!!

Lasagna Soup

I've been in the mood for soup a lot lately. I'd blame the weather but I live in Las Vegas now so that doesn't make sense lol. I've been eyeing this soup for a while now on Pinterest so I decided to finally make it. That and I had just bought a large Le Creuset stockpot specifically for soups so I could actually make a larger batch of soup and not worry about it not being able to fit in one of my pots. I was house sitting for my aunt the weekend I decided to make the soup, so I lugged everything over to her place to make it there and then ate it throughout the weekend. The recipe calls for ricotta, which I left out because my body cannot digest ricotta with good results. This was a simple recipe to make-there are a lot of ingredients, but don't let that fool you! I'd definitely make this again and try freezing half of it. I think I like this better than actual lasagna! I really like how you add the cheese as a topping so you can however much or less of it that you want. I didn't add the fennel seeds because I forgot to bring them and I couldn't find them at my aunt's. I sent a picture of this to my mom and she said it didn't look like soup since there wasn't much broth...I may have simmered it a little too long lol but it still had really good flavor. I wasn't paying attention when I bought the lasagna noodles. I bought precooked noodles so I had to guess how long to cook them in the boiling water-they seemed to turn out okay but I think that's why I simmered the soup a little longer than I was supposed to, to make sure the noodles were cooked enough.

Lasagna Soup (Pinterest) (5 servings):

2 tbsp EVOO, divided
1 lb lean ground beef
1 large yellow onion, diced
3-5 garlic cloves, to taste, minced (I of course added the 5, if not 6 cloves)
4 c chicken broth
1 (14.5 oz) can petite diced tomatoes
1 (14.5 oz) can crushed tomatoes
2 1/2 tbsp tomato paste
1 3/4 tsp dried basil
3/4 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp dried rosemary, crushed
1/2 tsp fennel seeds, crushed
1/2 tsp dried thyme
1 tsp granulated sugar
1 1/2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley, plus more for garnish
Salt and pepper, to taste
8 lasagna noodles, broken into bite-size pieces
1 1/4 c shredded mozzarella cheese
1/2 c finely shredded parmesan cheese
8 oz ricotta cheese

Heat 1 tbsp oil in large pot over med-high heat. Once hot, crumble beef into pot, season with salt and pepper to taste and cook, stirring occasionally, until browned. Drain off fat from beef and set aside. Heat remaining 1 tbsp oil in pot, add chopped onion and saute until it begins to soften, about 3 minutes. Add in garlic and saute 30 seconds longer. Add in chicken broth, diced tomatoes, crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, basil, oregano, rosemary, fennel seeds, thyme, sugar, parsley, the cooked ground beef and season with salt and pepper to taste. Bring just to boil, then reduce heat to med-low, cover and simmer 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, prepare lasagna noodles according to pkg directions, reserving 1 c pasta water before draining pasta. Add cooked pasta to soup along with 1/2 to 1 cup pasta water as desired. In a mixing bowl, using a fork, stir together mozzarella, parmesan and ricotta.

Ladle soup into bowls, dollop with a large scoop of the cheese mixture and sprinkle with chopped parsley. Enjoy!




Broken up lasagna noodles...






Noodles are softened and ready to eat...






Topped with cheese...Enjoy!...

Lemon Chicken Orzo Soup

I found this recipe on Pinterest yet again. I had been craving soup and every time I go to a Greek place around here, they have a lemon soup that I've been wanting to try and just haven't. So I decided to try my own and looked around until I found one that looked decent to try. This soup was really really good! I froze part of it and ended up finishing it up a couple weeks ago. So good! The rosemary sprig really gave it an extra oomph of flavor! I found some heirloom carrots-carrots of different colors so I used those in this soup. I also added some lemon zest to enhance the flavors a little more.

Lemon Chicken Orzo Soup:

2 tbsp olive oil, divided
1 lb boneless skinless chicken, cut into 1-inch chunks
Salt and pepper
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 onion, diced
3 carrots, diced
2 stalks celery, diced
1/2 tsp dried thyme
5 c chicken stock
2 bay leaves
3/4 c uncooked orzo pasta
1 sprig rosemary
Juice of 1 lemon (zest too if you'd like)
2 tbsp chopped parsley

Heat 1 tbsp oil in Dutch oven over medium. Season chicken with salt and pepper to taste. Add chicken to pot and cook until golden, about 2-3 minutes; set aside.

Add remaining oil to pot. Add garlic, onion, carrots and celery. Cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 3-4 minutes. Stir in thyme until fragrant, about 1 minute.

Whisk in chicken stock, bay leaves and 1 c water; bring to boil. Stir in orzo, rosemary and chicken; reduce heat and simmer until orzo is tender, about 10-12 minutes. Stir in lemon juice; season with salt and pepper to taste.




Ready to eat!...






Enjoy!...

Slow Cooker Creamy Chicken & Wild Rice Soup

I'm from MN and I've been living in Las Vegas for exactly two months today. Back home at Panera I could easily get chicken & wild rice soup-at the Paneras out here, that's not one of the soups. So I've been craving it. I have a couple bags of real wild rice that I've been wanting to play around with but I've never really made anything with it before. I found this recipe on Pinterest and it had a mixture of long grain rice and wild rice so I thought I'd try it out and if I liked it, I would find a soup that didn't have the long grain rice but only the wild rice. I did like this soup but I wasn't sure I liked the leftovers. It was really thick after sitting in the fridge so I had to add about 1/2 to 1 cup of chicken broth to water it down so I could eat it. If I made this again, I wouldn't add as much flour in the roux and hopefully it won't make the soup as thick. I made two substitutions in this recipe-it calls for Rice-a-Roni long grain & wild rice but I used Uncle Ben's. And I also used gluten-free all-purpose flour. The soup was good and it tasted similar to the Panera one so I'll probably make this again.

Slow Cooker Creamy Chicken & Wild Rice Soup:

4 1/2 c chicken broth
2 c water
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 pkg Rice-a-Roni long grain and wild rice
1/2 tsp salt, plus more to taste
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 c all-purpose flour
1/2 c butter
2 c half-and-half
1 c grated carrots
1 c diced celery

Combine broth, water, carrots, celery, chicken and rice (along with seasoning packet) in large slow cooker. Cook on low 6 hours or on high 4 hours. Take chicken out and shred with two forks and then add them back into the slow cooker.

In small bowl combine salt, pepper and flour. In med saucepan over med heat, melt butter. Stir in flour mixture by tbsp to form a roux. Whisk in cream, a little at a time, until fully incorporated and smooth. Stir cream mixture into slow cooker and then let cook on low 15 more minutes. Enjoy!




The roux...






Enjoy!...

Egg Drop Soup

I've always loved Egg Drop Soup and I usually make it with a packet of seasonings that I find in the grocery store. However, some stores don't carry those packets so I've also made it on my own and I think when I make it on my own, it tastes a lot better! Super easy to make and you can pick and choose what you want to add to it, and how many eggs you want to put in it.

Egg Drop Soup (1-2 servings)

2-4 c chicken broth (or any flavor of broth)
1-3 eggs, beaten
2-3 green onions, sliced
Soy sauce, to serve

Heat the chicken broth and green onions to boiling. Slowly add the beaten eggs, while whisking the soup vigorously to stir up the eggs. The eggs will cook as you whisk them into the broth. Take off heat and stir in the soy sauce to your taste. Enjoy!




Beaten eggs...






Eggs whisked into the broth...






Enjoy!...

Cheesesteak Soup

I found this recipe in the Food Network magazine and it sounded so good! I made it the other night and it wasn't bad. The soup base was kind of tasteless, which was disappointing but once the beef & croutons were added, it tasted much better. I also added some pepper to the soup base, which did help. I added some additional shredded cheese on top of the beef and it worked. The roll I had bought was rock-hard so I cubed 3 slices of bread for the croutons and it worked just fine. I think I'll make this again but maybe with only 2 servings this time.

Cheesesteak Soup (4 servings) (Food Network):

5 tbsp EVOO
1 small onion, chopped
1 carrot, chopped
1/4 tsp celery seeds
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1/3 c plus 2 tbsp flour
2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1/2 tsp hot sauce
6 c chicken broth
2 soft hoagie rolls, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
Salt and pepper
8 oz shredded cheddar cheese
8 oz shredded provolone cheese
1 lb shaved deli roast beef, chopped
1/4 c jarred sliced pepperoncini
2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley, plus more for topping

Preheat oven to 400. Heat 2 tbsp oil in Dutch oven over med-high heat. Add onion, carrot, celery seeds and garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, until onion softens, about 3 minutes. Add 1/3 c flour, Worcestershire sauce and hot sauce; cook, stirring occasionally, about 2 minutes. Add chicken broth and 2 c water and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to med-low and cook until veggies are tender, about 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, toss bread cubes with 1 tbsp olive oil on a baking sheet; season with salt and pepper. Bake until golden and crisp, about 7 minutes; set aside.

Puree soup with an immersion blender or in a blender until smooth. Return to pot and bring to a boil, then reduce heat to med-low and simmer 5 minutes. Toss cheddar, provolone and the remaining 2 tbsp flour in bowl; slowly whisk the cheese mixture into the soup until melted. Return to blender and puree until smooth. Pour back into the pot and bring to a low boil; remove from heat.

Heat remaining 2 tbsp olive oil in large skillet over med-high heat. Add beef and cook, stirring occasionally, until browned, about 3 minutes. Stir in pepperoncini and parsley and season with salt and pepper. Ladle soup into bowls; top with beef, croutons and more parsley and shredded cheese if you desire. Enjoy!




Veggies...






Flour added to the veggies...






Croutons...






Shredded cheese and flour...






Browned roast beef & pepperoncini...






Enjoy!...

Chicken Noodle Soup

OMG I made the BEST soup the other day on pure accident! I was just going to make some soup how I normally make it...some chicken broth, noodles & green onions. Until I saw 2 thawed out chicken breasts in the fridge. I don't normally add chicken to my soup because I love the noodles so much but I figured if I added the chicken, it wouldn't be enough of it to over power the soup. So while the noodles were cooking, I cooked the chicken up with a lot of garlic and ginger and added it to the soup during the last 5 min. There's definitely more noodles than chicken and with the garlic and ginger in the soup, the broth turned out amazing. I will definitely use this recipe over and over and over again! Again, I didn't really use exact measurements so I'll try to guess what I used.

Chicken Noodle Soup:

One pkg of Reames Homestyle Egg Noodles (picture below of what I used)
4-5 green onions, sliced
1 bay leaf
6-7 c chicken or veggie broth (I had to use a combo of both since I didn't have enough leftover chicken broth)
1 tbsp veggie or canola oil
2 chicken breasts, cut into 1-in pieces
4-5 garlic cloves, minced
2-3 tbsp minced fresh garlic
1 tsp black pepper
1 tsp dried thyme
1 tsp dried parsley

Bring broth, green onions and bay leaf to boil; add noodles and cook 15 min, stirring occasionally. While noodles are cooking, add oil to saute pan and cook chicken, garlic and ginger, until chicken is no longer pink, 5-7 min.

Once noodles are cooked to your desired consistency, add chicken mixture, along with pepper, thyme and parsley. Stir to combine and heat through, another 5 min. Remove bay leaf and ladle into soup bowls. Enjoy!




Noodles I used...






Enjoy!..

Smoked Chicken-Banana Pepper Soup

I found this recipe in the book from below. It's taken me a while to actually make it but tonight I decided to. And I made several substitutions. I couldn't find the prechopped celery, onion and bell pepper mix and I was out of celery so I just used one whole white onion and an orange bell pepper. I didn't saute the veggies in the bacon grease before because I didn't want them to turn into mush in the slow cooker. I did still add the bacon grease to the soup after the bacon cooked. I used 3 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut up into bite-size pieces instead of the smoked chicken. For more of a smoky flavor, right before I served the soup, I added about 1/2 tsp of smoked paprika and it worked for the smoky flavor. The recipe calls for 8 plum tomatoes to be put in with the soup to be cooked for the 6 hours but I didn't want the tomatoes to be mush so I added them during the last 10 min of cooking time. I also substituted a cup of quinoa instead of using the rice. And I only cooked the soup for 5 hours instead of the 6. I don't really like how the texture of chicken changes during the time in the slow cooker so I cooked it for less and it did taste a little better. I also added 2 more tbsp of the juice from the banana peppers. All in all, the soup tasted really good. It has a different flavored broth than most soups and I would definitely make it again.

Smoked Chicken-Banana Pepper Soup (8 servings):

4 bacon slices
1 (8 oz) container refrigerated prechopped celery, onion and bell pepper mix (here I used 1 white onion and 1 orange bell pepper)
6 c chicken broth
2 c sliced pickled banana peppers
2 tbsp juice from pickled banana peppers (I used 4 tbsp)
1 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
8 plum tomatoes, chopped
1 lb pulled smoked chicken
1 (14 oz) pkg boil-in-bag white rice (I used 1 c cooked quinoa)
Garnish: Fresh oregano

Cook bacon in large skillet over med-high 5-7 min or until crisp; remove bacon and drain on paper towels, reserving drippings in skillet. Coarsely crumble bacon.

Ad celery mixture to drippings in skillet; cook, stirring constantly, 5 min or until tender. Add chicken broth, stirring to loosen particles from bottom of skillet. Transfer broth mixture to slow cooker. Stir in bacon, peppers and next 7 ingredients (again I didn't stir in the tomatoes at this time). Cover and cook on low 5-6 hours. Stir in rice (and tomatoes if you wish) during last 10 min of cooking time. Cover and cook 10 min or until heated through. Garnish.




Ingredients added...






Tomatoes & Quinoa added...






Enjoy!...

Ham & Lentil Soup

Between my mom and I we made up this recipe. I've decided I wanted to start eating more fiber-based foods and last night I was in the mood for some soup. I stopped at a Whole Foods store on the way home to get some basil for another recipe and decided to try some lentils for the first time. I also picked up some veggies and ham and went home to experiment. It turned out pretty good. I'm not sure if i like the lentils but I'm willing to try it again..and I have leftovers so I'll eat the soup again. The broth itself turned out awesome with all the veggies I added. When I went to put the leftovers into another container, I noticed all the broth had evaporated. So when I reheat the soup, I'll add another 2 cups of broth and simmer it in it..maybe the lentils will soften up some more. The measurements listed below are just an estimate of what I used. For the carrots, onion & celery, I used a pre-cut pkg of the trio and only used half of the pkg.


Ham & Lentil Soup

1-2 tbsp butter
1 clove garlic, minced
1 1-in piece ginger, minced
1 c sliced yellow squash
1/4 c diced carrot
1/4 c diced celery
1/4 c diced onion
2 c ham, cut into cubes
4 c chicken broth
1 c dried brown lentils
1 bay leaf
1 tsp basil
1 tsp thyme

Melt butter in Dutch oven. Add veggies and cook until squash is tender but not translucent, about 3-4 min. Add broth and bring to boil. Once broth is boiling, add lentils, bay leaf, basil and thyme.

Simmer, uncovered, for 25-30 minutes or until lentils are cooked to your desired consistency.

Remove bay leaf and serve.


All the ingredients chopped up and ready to go...

Veggies...

Enjoy!

**On A Side Note: I remade this soup a couple weeks ago with much better results!I used up all my leftover veggies in the fridge; half of a bell pepper, zucchini, yellow squash, red onion, a bay leaf, garlic and ginger, along with cubed ham and the lentils. Instead of using chicken bouillon cubes, which was a huge mistake when I first made this soup, I used 6 cups of veggie (you can also use chicken) broth and the soup tasted so much better! It wasn't as salty and the broth didn't evaporate like it did when I first made it. I also added some oregano, thyme and basil to the soup after it was done. Although it did turn green in the fridge from all the spices, it tasted even better the next day. I will definitely be making this soup on a regular basis, especially since you can basically put in any veggie you desire. Yum!


All the veggies..






Broth added...






Enjoy!

Paula Deen's Hearty Vegetable Soup

My new favorite chef is Paula Deen and with me being on a soup kick, while looking through her cooking magazine I came across this veggie soup. And me being me, I of course made some mistakes! :) I forgot to pick up spinach so I just left that out. The recipe called for 1 can (15 oz.) great Northern beans, drained. I picked up a 16 oz. bag of dried Northern beans. Tastes the same but I added the entire bag, when I should have only added about half the bag. So after I made the soup, I had to take out half of the beans just to actually be able to taste the soup. After I did that, the soup tasted great!

Ingredients:

1 tbsp butter
1 cup thinly sliced carrots
1 small zucchini, sliced lengthwise and cut crosswise into thin slices
1/2 cup chopped onion (I used pearl onions)
2 cups tightly packed fresh baby spinach
2 (14.5 oz.) cans diced tomatoes with basil, garlic and oregano
2 cups chicken broth (or veggie broth)
1 (15 oz.) can great Northern beans, drained
1 cup frozen cut green beans, thawed
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
1/4 tsp salt

To pre-soak the beans, heat 4 cups water and beans. Bring to a rapid boil for 2 minutes. Remove from heat, place a lid on the pan and let cool for 1 hour. Drain.

In a Dutch oven, melt butter over medium heat. Add carrots, zucchini, and onion; cook; stirring occasionally, for 5-6 minutes or until veggies are tender. Add spinach, stirring until wilted.

Add diced tomatoes, broth, beans, green beans, pepper and salt. Bring to a boil; reduce heat, and simmer for 30 minutes.

Pre-soaking the Northern beans..




Raw veggies...




Diced tomatoes, chicken stock and Northern beans..




Veggies cooking in butter...




Everything added to begin simmering..




Less beans!




Enjoy!



**NOTE: I've made this soup again after the first time and instead used one can of Great Northern (or cannellini) beans and the serving size of beans to soup was just perfect!

Easy Noodle Soup

I love making chicken noodle soup, sans the chicken and this recipe is super easy, as long as you have green onions, carrots, chicken granules and noodles! Plus, you can easily add anything else you want to add to it. I like this combination the best. This is my go-to meal when I'm not feeling good, like tonight, or just for an easy dinner.

Ingredients:

6 cups water + 6 tsp chicken granules
Handful sliced carrots
4-5 green onions, sliced thinly
2 handfuls of frozen egg noodles

Heat water and veggies to boiling. Add noodles and cook 12 minutes.


Veggies and broth simmering...




The noodles I use...




Enjoy!

Spicy Hot Pot with Noodles

I found this recipe in the Everyday with Rachel Ray magazine. I've been meaning to make it and when I knew my mom was going to be in town this weekend, I decided to make it with her. It turned out fantastic and she ended up taking some home with her. It makes 4-6 servings.

Here are the ingredients:

2 tbsp Asian chili paste or chili-garlic paste. I used this:
3 tbsp veggie oil
One 2-in piece ginger, peeled and sliced into thin rounds
4 oz. bean sprouts (the recipe originally called for mushrooms but I do not like them so I substituted bean sprouts)
2 tbsp dark brown sugar
One 32-oz. container (4 cups) chicken or beef broth
3 tbsp soy sauce
1/2 small head napa cabbage, cut into 2-in pieces
8 oz. fresh egg fettuccine or linguine pasta
2 tbsp toasted sesame oil
3/4 lb boneless beef rib eye, thinly sliced against the grain
3/4 lb large raw shrimp, peeled and deveined
1/8 cup chopped cilantro

In heavy, medium saucepan, heat veggie oil over medium-high heat. Add ginger and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. (If you are using mushrooms, you would add them at this point and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft, 2-3 min.) Add the chili paste and brown sugar and cook, stirring often, for 30 seconds.
Add 1 cup water, the chicken broth and soy sauce. Stir in the cabbage and bring to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer for 25 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a pot of boiling, salted water, cook the pasta according to pkg directions. Drain and rinse under cold water, then toss with 1 tbsp sesame oil.

Stir in beef and shrimp into the soup and bring to a boil until the shrimp is cooked through.
Add the cilantro and remaining 1 tbsp toasted sesame oil. I also added the bean sprouts at this time.
Divide the noodles among 4-6 bowls and add the hot broth with the veggies, meat and shrimp.
Enjoy!

Side note: When I make this dish again, I'm only going to add 1 tbsp of the chili-paste. You can add more or less according to your taste. And I'm going to use a rice noodle instead of the linguine...the linguine seemed too heavy of a noodle for this dish.