Now if only the weather would cooperate....

I love making soup in the fall and winter. I also use the heck out of my crockpot this time of year, so I was very glad when I saw the Souptacular-Crockpotalooza going on at Boomama's blog today. Now, I just need the weather to get cooler so I can start cooking. Somehow, temps in the 70s don't make me want to start simmering soup!

Here are two of my favorite recipes...

Lentil and Sausage Soup
1 14oz cans chicken broth
1.5 cups water
1 cup lentils, rinsed and drained
1 cup sliced celery
1 cup sliced carrot
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/4 tsp dried thyme
1/8 tsp cayenne
2 cloves garlic, minced or crushed
6 oz cooked smoked sausage links, sliced

In a large saucepan, combine broth, water, lentils, celery, carrot, onion, dried thyme, cayenne, and garlic. Bring to a boil, reduce heat. Simmer, covered, for 20-25 minutes or until lentils and veggies are tender. Stir in sausage. Heat through and serve. I double this for our family of five. Oh, and this is also a frugal recipe. Lentils are super cheap!

*My kids don't like chunks of carrots, onion, or celery in their soup, but I love the flavor, SO, I put a whole onion in while cooking, and whole carrots and stalks of celery. I use my tongs to remove them before I serve. It's a win-win--flavor without the chunky veggies.


Pulled-Pork Sandwiches (Crockpot)
1 cup ketchup
1/4 cup brown sugar
4-5 cloves garlic, chopped
3/4 tsp dried sage
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp pepper
3-5 lb boneless pork shoulder
hamburger buns or hoagie rolls
barbeque sauce (Sweet Baby Ray's is our favorite!!!)
coleslaw (optional)

In the crock-pot, mix ketchup, brown sugar, garlic, sage, oregano, salt and pepper. Trim fat from pork and cut in half. Add meat to crock-pot and turn to coat all sides with ketchup mixture. Cover and cook on low until very, very tender. About 8 hours on low; 6 hours on high. Transfer pork to a large bowl. Using two forks, pull meat apart until shredded. Pour juices from crock-pot over pork to moisten. Spoon onto buns or rolls. Add barbeque sauce and/or coleslaw if you're from the South. So delicious.

There are so many side dishes that go well with this. Sometimes I make baked beans, or potato salad, or asian coleslaw, or corn-on-the-cob, and sometimes we just have chips and a green salad.

Click here for more great recipe ideas!