Yeast Free Living

Archive for the ‘Soup’ Category

It took me quite a while to catch on to how tasty creamy soups were.   I have spent the majority of my life eating chicken noodle soup because I was always to scared to try other types of soup.  I have however become a lot more soup adventurous in more recent years.  Cream of mushroom, clam chowder, chicken tortilla and cream of broccoli soup have become some of my favorites.  My oldest daughter also enjoys creamy types of soup so I decided to try my hand at making cream of broccoli soup. 

This yeast free cream of broccoli soup recipe was adapted from a recipe for Best Cream of Broccoli Soup by Jessie A. on All Recipes.  The soup came out great but I skipped the puree step in the original recipe and my soup came out a lot more chunky then I would have liked.  Even with this mishap I still think that the soup tasted great and I believe this recipe is a winner provided I follow the directions next time. It was easy to make this soup candida diet friendly.  I used a yeast free unsweetened chicken broth  and unsweetened hemp milk to pull it all together. 
   
Yeast Free Cream of Broccoli Soup Ingredients
1 onion finely chopped
1 celery stalk finely chopped 
2 tablespoons clarified butter
1 1/2 cup yeast free unsweetened chicken broth
16 ounces frozen broccoli florets 
1 tablespoon yeast free gluten free flour
1 cup yeast free unsweetened milk substitute
Sea salt and ground black pepper to taste

Yeast Free Cream of Broccoli Soup Directions
In large saucepan heat 1 tablespoon of the clarified butter
Saute onions and celery until soft
Add chicken broth and broccoli florets
Cover and simmer on low heat for 15 to 20 minutes
Carefully pour the soup into the blender and puree until smooth
Pour into a clean pot
In a medium saucepan heat remaining tablespoon of clarified butter on medium heat
Stir in flour and then add milk substitute
Stir until thick and bubbly  
Add milk mixture to the soup and stir
Season with sea salt and ground black pepper to taste

I wanted to try something a little different since we frequently eat just plain old chicken noodle soup.  I thought it may be cool to try a meatball soup.  I discovered a Turkey Meatball Soup recipe on Recipezaar and made the appropriate substitutions to make it candida diet friendly.  This candida diet recipe is really easy to put together and very tasty.  I used turkey for the meatballs because my youngest daughter has an allergy to beef, but I am sure that any ground meat would be okay. 

Yeast Free Turkey Meatball Soup Ingredients
Meatballs
1 egg
1/4 cup onion, grated
2 tablespoons fresh parsley, minced
1/4 teaspoon sea salt 
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 lb ground turkey meat

Soup
4 cups unsweetened chicken broth
4 cups water
2 green onions, sliced
1 carrot, sliced
1 celery rib, sliced
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper 
1/4 teaspoon thyme  
1 cup brown rice or brown rice pasta  

Yeast Free Turkey Meatball Soup Directions
To make the meatballs, combine the egg, onion, sea salt and black pepper in a bowl
Mix in the turkey, shape by 1 tablespoon into balls.  Bake on a greased baking sheet in a 400 degree F oven cooked all the way through about 15 minutes
Meanwhile, in a large saucepan, bring the broth and water to a boil
Add the green onions, carrot, celery, black pepper and thyme
Reduce the heat, cover and simmer for 10 minutes
Add the rice or pasta and meatballs
Simmer, covered, until the pasta or rice is al dente

Recipe adapted from Turkey Meatball Soupby Irmgard at Recipezaar

I used to frequent Houlihan’s when I worked outside of my home.  I am not really sure why but this is just where my co-workers I ended up when we were looking for something other than fast food to eat for lunch.  I would usually order soup and salad and their potato soup was a staple offering.  Houlihan’s potato soup is very good, although not very candida diet friendly being topped with cheddar cheese and bacon.  I have been thinking about this soup a lot lately and wondered if I could create a yeast free version of it.  Fortunately, I did not have to look any further that my refrigerator for inspiration.  On the back of my Bob’s Red Mill Potato Flour package there was a recipe for Basic Potato Soup.  This recipe had very few ingredients so it was extremely easy to adapt for the candida diet.  Actually, there was only one ingredient that was not yeast free, the milk.  I also substituted olive oil for the butter. 

I used unsweetened soy milk in this recipe and was happy with the consistency of the soup.  I actually had to make two versions because my children are allergic to soy.  I used unsweetened rice milk in their version.  This turned out okay, definitely not as good as with the soy milk, but not bad if this is what you must do.  The big difference between the two was the consistency and sweetness.  The rice milk version was less creamy and was even a little sweet.  Just a word of caution that rice milk is very high in carbohydrates, so this may not be ideal to add to a dish that is already so carbohydrate heavy.  There are other milk alternatives out there that are okay for the candida diet so some experimentation may be in order.  I have heard good things about both hemp and almond milk and both appear to be yeast free.   

This soup comes out very creamy and tastes really good as is, but I do realize that some people may like chunks of potato in their potato soup.   If this is the case simply bake 2 potatoes via microwave or traditional oven, cut them up in small pieces and add them to the soup.  Please note that this will add a significant number of carbohydrates to the soup, so please take that into consideration.  Each potato is typically at least 26 grams of carbohydrates.  Adding 2 potatoes will bring the carbohydrate count of this soup to approximately 30.25 grams of carbohydrates per serving.  I have enjoyed this potato soup both ways and I hope that you do too.   

Yeast Free Potato Soup Ingredients – Makes 4 Servings (Approximately 17.25 grams carbohydrates per serving)
2 Tablespoons Olive Oil 0 carbohydrates
1/4 Cup Chopped Onions (I use yellow onions) 2 grams carbohydrates
1/4 Cup Potato Flour (I use Bob’s Red Mill Potato Flour, Gluten-Free, 24 oz (1 lb 8 oz) 680 g by ClubNatural) 36 grams carbohydrates
Sea Salt to Taste (I use 1/2 teaspoon) 0 grams carbohydrates
Ground Black Pepper to Taste (I use 1/8 teaspoon) 0 grams carbohydrates
1 Cup Chopped Scallions 7 grams carbohydrates
4 Cups Unsweetened Soy Milk (I use Trader Joe’s Soy essential) 24 grams carbohydrates

Yeast Free Potato Soup Directions 
In large saucepan heat olive oil on low
Add onions and saute until they are tender
Add soy milk and stir
Sprinkle Potato Flour in slowly while continuing to stir
Add sea salt, pepper and scallions
Soup will begin to thicken
Stop cooking when the soup has reached desired consistency
Add chunks of potato if desired

Recipe adapted from the back of Bob’s Red Mill Potato Flour Package

 I am huge soup fan and indulge it whenever I can.  It is such a comfort food and always makes me feel warm and cozy.  This is especially the case today as it has been snowing here in New Jersey for atleast 10 hours.  I used to indulge in the the canned varieties but nowadays I know better.  Canned soups are filled with all kinds of additives which are not allowed on the candida diet.  Autolyzed yeast extract, monsodium glutamate (MSG) and citric acid are 3 of these additives that are extremely common. 

At first I was a little intimidated making my own soup but then I found some good chicken broths/stocks that were okay for the candida diet and have been experimenting ever since.  I have found that soup is something that is very easy to adapt to the candida diet.  Although I have made soup before and there are other soup recipes on this site this is my first time making it in the crockpot.  It was very easy and I plan on doing it more often.  I hope that you enjoy the recipe.    

Crockpot Chicken and Vegetable Soup Ingredients
1/2 Pound of Boneless Skinless Chicken Breast 
4 cups (32 oz) Unsweetened Chicken Broth/Stock
4 cups water  
3 stalks celery sliced 
3 carrots sliced
1 zucchini chopped
1 medium onion chopped  
2 cloves garlic chopped
Sea salt and pepper to Taste

Crockpot Chicken and Vegetable Soup Directions
Combine all ingredients in Crockpot. 
Cook on low for 5 – 7 hours. 
When done use a fork to shred the chicken (Should fall apart very easily)

I was lucky enough to come across a great recipe for another canned classic today.  I am sure that many of you are familiar with many of Campbell’s great Cream of recipes.  These recipes focus around Campbell’s Cream of chicken, mushroom or celery soup.  I have always enjoyed making these but since one of the main ingredients is in a can and consequently has many preservatives and things that are not candida diet or allergy friendly I had blocked these recipes from my mind.  Today I was luck enough to come across a recipe for Homemade Condensed Cream of Chicken Soup by Tammy on Tammy’s Recipes.  I chose this recipe to adapt because it did not have a ton of ingredients as many others I found on the Internet did. I made appropriate candida diet substitutions and the result was nothing short of a miracle.  I stood in awe as I looked at the final product.  I had created yeast free, allergy free cream of chicken soup in about 10 minutes in my kitchen.  I will be making a chicken and rice bake with the soup tonight.  I am so excited and I froze the leftovers easy use later! 

It is really cold here in New Jersey and we are expecting our first big snow storm of the season.   I am actually looking forward to it.  I promised my seven year old daughter that we would go sledding and attempt to make a snowman.  We always get too cold to finish the snowman.  Hopefully things will go better tomorrow.   The impending snowstorm got me thinking about what we would eat to warm up after our time in the snow.  With my childrens’ recent diagnosis of multiple food allergies and my trying to tackle candida overgrowth issues warming up with a bowl of canned soup and hot chocolate is no longer an option.  For this reason I experimented with making my own chicken noodle soup this week. 

I have been using Trader Joe’s Organic Free Range Chicken Broth for my brown rice pilaf and egg drop soup but I decided to take a stab at creating a Yeast Free Chicken Noodle Soup.  It came out delicious!  I hope that you enjoy it as much as I do.  It is sure to warm you up on a cold day. 

Easy Chicken Noodle Soup – Candida Diet Recipe
Trader Joe’s Organic Free Range Chicken Broth (32 0z)
32 0z water  
2 Boneless Skinless Chicken Breast
1 cup Trader Joe’s Organic Brown Rice Fusilli
2 stalks of celery
2 cups baby carrots
1/2 yellow onion chopped
Sea Salt to Taste
Black Pepper to Taste

Easy Chicken Noodle Soup – Candida Diet Recipe
Bake 2 Chicken Breast at 350 degrees until chicken is cooked thoroughly
Chopped Cooked Chicken in tiny pieces
Chop Celery and Onions
Combine Chicken Broth, Water, Celery, Onions and Carrots and Chicken into large sauce Pan
Cook on Medium Heat for about 30 minutes until vegetables are tender
Add Rice Pasta
Cook until pasta is Al Dente about 6 minutes

Enjoy!

This creamy spinach soup will be sure to warm you up on a cold day.  You will delight in the fact that it is all yeast free.  This quick and easy recipe will certainly be one of your favorites! 

Creamy Spinach Soup Ingredients
1 large carrot
1/2 medium onion
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons brown rice flour
1 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 teaspoon dry mustard
14 1/2 ounces unsweetened chicken broth
10 ounces frozen chopped spinach
2 1/2 cups soy milk (I use unsweetened rice milk because of my children’s allergy to soy)
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice  

Creamy Spinach Soup Directions
Slice carrot, onion
In medium saucepan heat olive oil on low heat
Add brown rice flour, salt and dry mustard
Cook 2 minutes stirring constantly
Stir in chicken broth
Bring to boil over medium heat stirring constantly
Add spinach, carrot and onion
Reduce heat to low and simmer about 10 minutes or until vegetables are tender
Stir in milk and cook 3 additional minutes
Add lemon juice

Yeast Free Indian Pea Soup Ingredients
2 tsp vegetable oil
2 potatoes diced
1 large onion chopped
2 garlic cloves chopped
1 tsp garam masala
1 tsp ground cumin
3 3/4 cups vegetable stock
1 red chili pepper chopped
4 ounces frozen sweet peas
1 Tbs unsweetened plain yogurt
sea salt
ground black pepper

Yeast Free Indian Pea Soup Directions
In a large pan heat vegetable oil
Add potatoes, onion and garlic
Saute for about 5 minutes
Add spices and cook for 1 additional minute
Stir in the vegetable stock and chili pepper
Bring to boil
Reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes until potatoes are soft
Add frozen peas
Stir in the yogurt
Add sea salt and black pepper to taste

I really enjoy experimenting with Indian dishes.  The aroma of turmeric, garam masala and cumin are very appealing to me.  I usually enjoy my Indian food at a local Indian restaurant but occasionally I will attempt to make an authentic Indian dish all by myself.  The first Indian dish I mastered was chicken tikka masala.  My chicken tikka masala is adored by my family, even my mother who hates trying new foods. 

This Yeast Free Dal Soup is the first authentic Indian Soup that I have ever attempted.  The ingredients were pretty common and I just happened to have all the spices and such in the cabinet so I decided to go for it and I am so glad I did.  This soup is a great blend of tastes and textures.  The  coconut milk makes it a bit sweet which I didn’t know if I would like at first but it seems to mesh nicely with the Indian spices.  This soup can be eaten alone but is typically served over rice. 

Dal Soup Ingredients
2 tablespoons clarified butter
2 garlic cloves chopped
1 onion choppped
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1 teaspoon garam masala
1/4 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
26  ounces chopped tomatoes drained (I use 1 container Pomi chopped tomatoes)
1 cup red lentils
2 tsp lemon juice
2 1/2 cups unsweetened vegetable stock (I use the Trader Joe’s variety)
1 1/4 cup unsweetened coconut milk (Iuse Trader Joe’s light Cocunut milk)
sea salt to taste
black ground pepper to taste

Dal Soup Directions
Melt the clarified butter in large pan
Saute the garlic and onion for 2 minutes
Mix the spices in and cook for 1 additional minute
Stir in the tomatoes, red lentils, lemon juice, vegetable stock and coconut milk
Bring to boil
Reduce heat and simmer for about 30 minutes or until lentils and tender

My favorite type of take-out food is undoubtedly Chinese food.  Unfortunately, there are very few things if any at all I can still enjoy at the Chinese food restaurant, as it is not exactly a candida diet friendly place if you know what I mean.  My favorite dish is chicken chow mein and while most varieties that I get do not contain soft wheat noodles as authentic chow mein does, the crispy noodles that I add to the chow mein are made with wheat and a few other ingredients that are prohibited on the candida diet.  Additionally, I am not sure how they actually prepare the chow mein and therefore cannot ensure that it is made with all yeast free ingredients, so I just stay away from it.  I also used to like getting soup with my chow mein, usually wonton soup but I have more recently been introduced to egg drop soup and I really like it. 

Egg drop soup seems to be big among low carbohydrate dieters and for this reason it is also a really great choice for the candida diet.  The following recipe contains only three ingredients.  I was fortunate enough to find this in one of my candida diet cookbooks.  It is so easy to prepare and it really does taste just as good as the type you would get at your local Chinese food restaurant, but by making it yourself you will ensure that it is indeed yeast free.  I am looking forward to finding and/or creating other yeast free versions of my favorite Chinese foods for the candida diet. 

Yeast Free Egg Drop Soup Ingredients
4 cups unsweetened chicken broth
2 eggs
2 scallions sliced

Yeast Free Egg Drop Soup Directions
In a medium saucepan heat chicken broth over a medium heat
Add scallions and allow to cook approximately 2 – 3 minutes
While soup is cooking beat eggs in a liquid measuring cup
When the soup is near boiling begin to stir while dripping the eggs into the soup
Eggs will begin to form noodle like strands
Continue to cook until eggs are firm

Recipe from Candida Albican Yeast-Free Cookbook, The: How Good Nutrition Can Help Fight the Epidemic of Yeast-Related Diseases by Pat Connolly (Page 66)