I mentioned last week that I had received, out of the blue, an advance copy of a cookbook titled
50 Simple Soups for the Slow Cooker by Lynn Alley.  


I was a little surprised until I saw the note inside from the publishing house.  I contacted Andrews McMeel to see if there was a catch…I mean, it is not everyday that I get random gifts in the mail!

The response was that I was to just enjoy it.  I immediately began flipping through, devouring page after delicious page.  I have never had a cookbook with so many things in it that I actually planned on making.  You know how it is…you see a few things here or there that sound good and that you may even try. But this one was a keeper!

I asked if it was permissible to go ahead and review this cookbook since it has not yet been released and they were happy to oblige me. I am a soup lover…no matter the season.

Spiced Apple Pie Soup
The original recipe calls for using whole spices and grinding them yourself.  I do this, often, but for the purposes of making this quick and easy I used pre-ground spices.

1 stick cinnamon (I used 2 tsp. of Saigon cinnamon)
6 whole cloves (I used 1/2 tsp ground cloves)
6 allspice berries (I used 1/2 tsp ground)
1/2 stick unsalted butter
5 large Granny Smith apples (I used organic and I left the peel on for flavor),cored, quartered and sliced
5 C water
2/3 C raisins (I added these after the fact because I wanted to puree my soup and one part of my family do not like raisins)
1 TB freshly squeezed lemon juice
3 to 4 TB of honey (recipe says optional but I used 2 TB and 2 TB of brown sugar)
1/2 C Greek yogurt or sour cream
**Optional garnishes: chopped walnuts, shredded sharp cheddar, raisins, crumbled graham crackers

Grind the whole spices, if desired and set aside.
Place the butter and apples into a large crock pot.  Cover and cook on low for 2 to 3 hours, until the apples are soft and the juice is nice and browned.  Mash any large pieces of apple, then add the water, spices and raisins (if desired) and continue cooking for 2 hours longer.

Just before serving, stir in the lemon juice and honey.  I also dipped my immersion blender in there a few times at this point because I wanted a completely smooth consistency.  This is optional, of course.

To serve, ladle the soup into small bowls and drizzle with the yogurt.

I put out a selection of toppings.  Truthfully, my favorite was the sharp cheddar!

This soup is very good.  I don’t have a better way to put it.  Hot, lightly spiced and comforting.  You could even sip it out of a mug and would be a great item to bring to a fall bonfire with a platter of toppings.  My kids loved it so that was the real test for me!

This cookbook is my new go-to soup resource.  Not only for the beautiful pictures but the simple, no-nonsense approach Ms. Alley demonstrates.  I highly recommend this cookbook, and I can say that now that I have made 2 recipes from it in one weekend.  My kids have each picked out our next 2 we will try.  Another favorite is the Potato Blue Cheese soup.  Oh my…so rich and creamy!

You can get this on Amazon and Lynn also has a blog at The Yoga Journal: The Conscious Cook

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