Whidbey Island got hit by a good windstorm Friday night, and being as we live on the rural end of this long island, and not in a town, power didn’t come on till till Monday morning. But the thing is…I see these storms as practice for prepping. You see what works and what doesn’t. The storm aftermath for trees on our homestead was better than we were expecting, so hopefully it means our aggressive forest thinning the past 4 years+ is paying off.
We still had plenty to keep us occupied though. We lost I think 7 trees, plus had a few break half way down (the owls will like the new snags to sit on).
But none hit buildings or the chicken coops. So there was that.
Though one of the fences took a good one on it. That was a heavy branch, and it took 2 of us to get it off.
After cleaning up the property, and piling it up for the next fire, it was time for a warming meal. You can do a lot with canned goods, and serve many at once, with minimal fuel needed. This recipe while we made it in our kitchen (our stove is propane fueled), it can easily be heated up outside on a camping stove, a grill or even over a fire. Just heat and eat! Soup not only fuels you, but warms you up quickly. It’s a dual purpose meal.
It’s all cans (besides the chicken broth, though you could use a can of it). To watch sodium levels you can buy reduced or no salt added version (tomatoes, soup, corn, beans) and rinse the beans well. It’s not a salty soup by any means made that way. I did this soup as a rift of the Taco Soup, that uses green enchilada sauce and taco seasoning (but which makes it far too salty for me).
The soup was enjoyed by even the kids, so I call this one a successful recipe.
Prepper Pantry Power Outage Soup
Ingredients:
- 14.5 ounce can tomatoes (used peeled/crushed)
- 1 can sweet corn, drained
- 1 can pinto beans, rinsed and drained
- 1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
- 12.5 ounce can chicken breast (do not drain, break chicken up into small pieces)
- 1 can cream of chicken soup, preferably lower sodium
- 1 can green chiles, diced
- 2 cups chicken broth, preferably lower sodium
Optional:
- Fresh avocado, diced
- Cheese (we used a wheel of queso fresco, crumbled)
- Tortilla chips, crumbled
- Sour cream
Directions:
Add everything to a large saucepan, heat till bubbling.
Serve topped with optional toppings, if you have them on hand (it’s a great way to empty the refrigerator of perishable items like cheese and sour cream)
Serves 5 to 6.
~Sarah