Food & Party

I would love it if I came home from work and found a hot, fragrant, hearty soup waiting for me. How can I make that happen -- without the use of magic or takeout? With the Crock-Pot, of course! Slow cookers to the rescue. You just throw in the ingredients at the beginning of the day (or maybe the night before), leave for work, and then ta-da! Dinner for everyone.

We've compiled a list of 20 soup recipes written just for the slow cooker. And guess what we found out? There's a Crock-Pot recipe for just about every soup out there. So enjoy a whole season of cozy Crock-Pot soups.

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Beef Stew

Black Bean Soup

Chicken Soup for the Slow Cooker

Curried Coconut Curry Soup

Hot and Sour Soup

Leek and Potato Soup

Lentil Stew

Loaded Baked Potato Soup

Matzo Ball Soup

Minestrone

Mulligatawny Soup

Navy Bean Soup

Pho (Vietnamese beef and noodle soup)

Posole 

Pumpkin Soup

Split Pea Soup

Sweet Potato and Lentil Soup

Tomato Soup

Tortilla Chicken Soup 

Italian Wedding Soup via Food.com

Ingredients:

• 16 1/2 ounces meatballs
• 6 cups chicken broth
• 1 cup cooked chicken, chopped
• 1/2 cup carrot, diced
• 1/2 cup celery, diced
• 2 ounces frozen chopped spinach, defrosted
• Garlic salt, to taste
• Pepper, to taste
• 1/4 cup romano cheese
• 1/4 cup acini di pepe pasta (small pasta)

Directions:

1. Pop the meatballs in the microwave for 1 minute on defrost so you can quarter them.

2. Combine rest of ingredients except pasta in Crock-Pot and cook all day on low.

3. Add the pasta during the last hour of cooking.

By the way, here's a few tips on making those soups extra tasty.

Do you have a favorite Crock-Pot soup recipe?

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Image via Collin Harvey/Flickr