Would you beef up a can of soup?

When I have soup I like to squeeze a lime in the soup and add chopped jalapenos and chopped onions and this Mexican hot sauce to it. It makes a very good flavor to the soup!

I never let canned food stand on it's own merit. They are intentionally under-seasoned to appease the masses, and, well...it's canned food. I try to do my soups from scratch. It doesn't take that much longer. Besides you'll have enough for a couple of days. Of course, life gets busy, time is a commodity, so it's time for a shortcut. I like to keep a few cans of a good vegetable soup around the house (chicken stock based). It makes a great base for a lot of different kinds of soups. That way you can add any kind of protein you like, or leave it vegetarian. You can also use leftovers in it. I use that trick too. It's a great way to stretch your food dollar. The best thing is you can get creative. Add some seafood, tomato paste, celery, onion & old bay seasoning to get a nice Manhattan seafood chowder knock off. Add burger meat, tomato paste, diced tomatoes, chili powder, and cumin (maybe some jalapenos) to create chili soup. It's only limited to your imagination.

I often take a can of soup and add left overs to it, in fact that is what I am going to do tonight, then I'll make grilled cheese sandwiches and serve this together as a meal. I have always used a can of soup in many casseroles or to pour over beef or chicken to roast or cook in the slow cooker.