Snow Day Soup Day

What a difference a day makes! When I drove home from Atlanta yesterday, it was 50 degrees with the sun shining as I zipped up the highway. But the meteorologists said snow was coming. Most of the time when they say the word "snow," it is accompanied by words like "slight possibility" and "slim chance" and "if all the conditions are right." We don't get snow very often.

But this morning, those conditions were right and beautiful snow fell for hours. I imagine most of it will be gone tomorrow. By the weekend, it warms up and we'll only need to put on a sweater to go outside. So you can understand why snow is a cause for celebration for most of us. It lasts just long enough for a few pretty pictures. There might also be a little sledding and maybe a snowman if you have kids. And then it's gone.

Yes, they do clear the major roads, but here in the country, we just wait for it to melt. The cows, on the other hand, do not wait. Daddy-O headed out on the orange tractor this morning as the snow was beginning to accumulate and fed them. They were happy to see him this morning. Looks like we ended up with about 2 inches. That's a significant snow for us. Who knows how long before we will see another one.

When he got back in from chores, Daddy-O asked several times, "Is it time to make snow ice cream yet?" Not all snows will work for ice cream, but this one was perfect. So before lunch was ready, he brought in a huge bowl of clean snow and I stirred up the ice cream, the same way my mother did it when we were little.

There really are no hard and fast measurements here, but this is a good starting point. Today, we even made a second bowl using condensed milk and vanilla. (Skip the sugar here.) Yes, we had a snow ice cream tasting. But both of us like this old-fashioned version best. 

SNOW ICE CREAM

1 large can chilled* evaporated milk

about 1/3-1/2 cup sugar (or to taste)

about 1 tablespoon vanilla

my largest mixing bowl full of CLEAN snow

When snow is predicted, put the can of milk in the refrigerator so you'll be ready. Stir the sugar into the milk until the sugar dissolves completely. Take your time and make sure you don't feel any sugar granules. Stir in vanilla. Taste and adjust to suit you. Then spoon the snow into the milk mixture and stir. Keep adding snow until it "looks like ice cream." It will be soft, so eat it immediately. 

*The milk is chilled so it doesn't melt the snow.

Now while I was stirring up a bowl of snow and milk, I also had a pot of soup going right behind me. For once, we had our dessert (before it melted) before we had our lunch. An upside-down-day as the little granddaughters might say!

The soup is written for an Instant Pot, but you could easily do it in a slow cooker or on the stovetop, too. (You might need a little more water for stovetop cooking, since some liquid will evaporate.) It was a quick and easy soup. In the Instant Pot, using frozen corn and frozen chicken breasts, it took 45 minutes from beginning to end, Not exactly an "instant' but still a very quick way to make lunch. And once the ingredients were in the pot and the lid was closed, I didn't have to look at it, stir it or touch it in any fashion until it was done. THAT'S what makes the Instant Pot useful.

CHICKEN TACO SOUP (Instant Pot) 

        ...recipe from SlapDashMom.com (check her site for other good recipes)

1 small onion, chopped

1 (15-oz) can black beans, drained

1 (15-oz) can light red kidney beans, drained

1 (8-oz) can tomato sauce

10-oz bag frozen corn

2 (10-oz) cans Rotel tomatoes (I used Mild)

1 packet taco seasoning (I used mild, low-sodium)

1 teaspoon cumin

1 teaspoon chili powder

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (fresh or frozen)

1/2 cup water

Place all ingredients into pot. Put lid on, close and set vent to "seal." Use manual button and set to 8 minutes. Let   "natural release" for 10 minutes. Then release remaining pressure. Remove chicken and shred with two forks. Add shredded chicken back into soup. Serve. 

[If you are doing Weight Watchers, this soup is ZERO points 

on the new Freestyle plan,according to SlapDashMom.]

Last week I bought a bag of individually wrapped chicken breasts on sale and had popped them in the freezer. I used two of those small breasts for this soup. And I put them into the pot FROZEN. No other changes to the recipe. I'm sure it took longer to come to pressure, but that's the only difference. The cooking time remains teh same. From closing the lid to serving the soup took about 45 minutes. It took 25 minutes to come to pressure. Another time I'll try it with fresh chicken and see how much faster that time it.

Okay, I'm going back to watch this last round of snow falling this afternoon. It could be years before we see it again.