10 Minutes till Dinner: Minestrone Soup

One of the things that I love about THRIVE freeze dried foods is how easy it makes my life. The veggies, are all washed pealed and chopped for me. It really helps me get dinner on the table fast. Over the next few days I am going to post some of my favorite recipes that can be made in part a head of time I am calling this series 10 minutes till dinner.  These are dishes that on a busy night you can get on the table fast.

For this recipe I usually make place all of the ingredients in a glass canning jar or zip lock bag. I make up a few at a time and then attach cooking instructions. Then when I need a super quick meal. I make it up. Fast easy and nutritious. One thing that I have found to be very helpful is to use a canning funnel to fill the jars.  If you are a canner you probably already have one if not you can find them of the canning section of any store.  The funnel fits perfectly inside the jar so you don't spill anything.

Minestrone Soup:
1/4 cup all veggies - corn, celery, onions, green beans, peas, carrots and green peppers.
4 T. tomato powder
1/2 t. Italian spices
1 teaspoon parsley
1 can beef broth
1 T. beef bouillon
6 cups water
1/2 cup pasta

Place everything in a soup pot. Bring to a boil. Lower heat to simmer. Cook 10 minutes, or until pasta is cooked.

Minestrone Soup in a Jar
Place the following ingredients in a canning jar
1/4 cup of the following dry vegetables: corn, celery, onions, green beans, peas, carrots and green peppers.
4 T. tomato powder
1/2 t. Italian spices
1 teaspoon parsley
1 T. beef bouillon
1/2 cup pasta

Add label to jar:

To cook add contents of jar and 6 cups water. Bring to a boil. Lower heat to simmer. Cook 10 minutes, or until pasta is cooked.

Labels and Instructions can be found here 

The labels I use are ones I found at http://itsacraftylife.blogspot.com/2010/12/ready-to-go.html
 They can be customized on your computer to say what ever you want.  I use them for everything.

Fire Roasted Tomato Soup

1 Tablespoon freeze dried onion rehydrate in 1½ tablespoons water

6 cloves garlic, minced (or use 1/4 tsp dried minced for each clove)

Olive oil

½ cup tomato powder

1 cup Water

32 oz bottle fire roasted (or sun-dried) tomatoes  (Costco has them reasonably priced in larger quantities, or roast your own during the summer and freeze for later use)

8 cups water

 8 tsp chicken bouillon

2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

2 cups milk or cream (more if you like a thinner soup)

In a large soup kettle sauté onion in olive oil until almost translucent. Add garlic and continue to sauté a few minutes more. Add water, tomato powder, tomatoes bouillon. Bring to a boil, cover and reduce heat to simmer for 30 minutes. Using a stick blender puree.  Season with salt and pepper. Add milk. Serve.

Tomato Powder

Recently I have had a few questions about tomato powder and how to use it.  Here is what I do.

For tomato sauce: For 1 cup of tomato sauce add ½ cup tomato powder and 1 cup water. Mix together.

For tomato paste:  ½ cup tomato powder to ½ cup water

Form tomato juice: 1/2 cup tomato powder to 5 cups water. 

Remember that there is no salt in the tomato powder but in most prepared tomato products there is a lot, so make sure to taste and adjust your recipe accordingly.

I think the recipe on the can is ridiculous.  It calls for a tiny amount of tomato powder and a ton of other tomato products.   Don't waste your time on it. But do try these ideas:

·  Sprinkle this over hot pasta with butter for a quick sauce.

·  Add it to foccacia and sprinkle some on top.

·  Add it to homemade salad dressings.

·  Mix it with mayonnaise for a great tomato mayo dip.

·  Thicken sauces, stews and gumbos with it.*this is my favorite I hate opening a can of tomato paste to just use a tablespoon to thicken a soup. 

-add to baked products such as bread or tortillas.