Southern Cooking: Soups and cornbread

By Andy Bedwell

What could be better than a warm, comforting, creamy soup on a cold day?

Ranch Bean Soup

1 to 1 ½ pounds

ground beef

1 onion

2 cans Ranch Beans

3 cans Campbell’s

Minestrone Soup

1 16 ounce can

diced tomatoes

1 can Rotel tomatoes

Brown ground beef and onion together. Dump all of the ingredients in a crockpot or stove pot. Cook for three hours on stove on low or five to six hours on low in Crockpot. Get it hot in crockpot and turn down to low.

Andy’s Note: I garnish with shredded cheese sometimes. This is delicious and great for football parties. Thank you, Milly Yother, for sharing this wonderful recipe!

Pepper Jack Cheese

Potato Soup

7-8 potatoes peeled

and cubed

2 cans of chicken broth

1 can of cream of

onion soup

1 can of cream of

celery soup

8 ounces pepper jack cheese (make sure that

you grate the cheese)

8 ounces sour cream

Boil potatoes in chicken broth (do not add water). When potatoes are tender, mash them with a potato masher (not electric mixer) Add broth, soups, sour cream and grated pepper jack cheese and stir until cheese melt.

Andy’s Note: Thank you, Doris Collier, for sharing this delicious soup recipe!

Mexican Cornbread

2 cups self-rising cornmeal

2 eggs

½ cup Parmesan cheese

Pimento, medium jar, drained and mashed

1 ¼ cup milk

1 medium onion, chopped

1 small can cream style corn

2 jalapeno peppers,

chopped with the seeds

¾ cup Crisco oil