One of our favorite things to make in the colder months is Stone Soup. I've always loved Marcia Brown's book, Stone Soup, & for years have been making real "stone soup"... first with with my little sister when she visited us (she's 15 years younger than me) and now with my toddler. Kids get such a kick out of reading the book and cooking along with it. (and you get labor for a fun meal!! :)
We pretty much use the ingredients from the book & then just add whatever vegetables we have around. ... It's all about using what's left in the fridge for us so we change the recipe up a lot depending upon what we have. (The recipe is for a large batch that will last you the week.) First we get out a big pot like they do in the book:
Then we add in 2 large cans of chicken broth. (This is the quickie way which we usually end up doing, but it's always a tad yummier when you do homemade broth.) Next comes "THE COOKING STONE." We just keep ours in the kitchen and it's literally just a big stone I found years ago. (We put it though the dishwasher & make sure it's clean of course before dumping it in to our food ;) This is usually the kids' favotite part so if you have more than 1 child, I'd suggest getting multiple stones so no one feels left out.
Then, get the pot to boiling & start with the salt & pepper just like in the book. Next come the sliced carrots & cabbage. (We never have cabbage around so I usually just cut up a little spinach or romaine or whatever we have so there's something to toss in on this page.) Then come the potatoes and beef ( which we usually substitute with pre-cooked chicken.)
Lately I've been adding yellow squash because it's in season (and so good!) and I always add in lots of fresh garlic. (Add in whatever veggies you can here!)
Next the book calls for barley and some milk. We never have barley either, so we use pre-cooked rice (add as much or as little as you like depending upon how thick you want it.) and then add in a 1/2 cup- cup of milk or so..
We've got some rosemary growing in the kitchen & lately I've been tossing a little of that in too... I almost always top with fresh chopped basil & some shredded parmesan cheese. mm mmm goodness!!!
Christian loves his "tiny bowl" and usually has 2-3 bowls at a time of his "special stone soup."
It's so great to see your kid chowing down on such a healthy meal asking for more carrots & yellow squash. He's so much more into the vegetables when they come in his "special soup" than when we serve them normally.
Like I've said before, I love having a weekly batch of soup around for lunches & meals... It's so nice not to have to think sometimes and to have a quick & easy meal ready... all you have to do is microwave it. Anyway, since I had this recipe post waiting, it was the perfect time to join Rhoda of Southern Hospitality's RECIPE PARTY!!! There are already so many great ones up there so go check it out here: http://southernhospitalityblog.com/recipe-exchange-pasta-allamatriciana/
Hope you enjoyed!!
xoxo,
lauren
ps- Christian just saw the pics on this post and asked for some "special stone soup" so you know what we're having for breakfast! ;)
Gallery walls can be perfect for thar forgotton hallway or stairway & often we have the artwork or photos just waiting around our house to be framed. (And prints are so cheap & easy to come by!) They have a huge impact on a space & can be really sentimental. My client loves seeing her brother's artwork first thing when she comes home every day. Do you have any artwork just waiting around to be hung?? 
