Soup recipes have been around for thousands of years. Often, soup is prepared on a cold winter's day to provide a warm and nourishing meal. However, there are some soups that are designed to be served cold, which make great meals for hot summer nights. Many famous restaurant chains such as Red Lobster, Olive Garden, and T.G.I. Friday's, serve signature soup dishes that home cooks can duplicate. These recipes include simple dishes that can be served as appetizers and hearty soups that make good main dishes.

Flickr: laner65
Soup	Can be served as a first course or a main dish
Also known as	Stew
Restaurant portions	Typically served in cups or bowls
Types	Vegetable, meat-based, seafood
Temperature	Some soups can be served cold.

First Course Soup Recipes

Many restaurants serve soup as a first course prior to the main dish. The Olive Garden restaurant chain traditionally serves guests its famous breadsticks, along with their choice of salad or soup. One of the Olive Garden's soup recipes is Minestrone Soup, which includes vegetables and small pasta in a tomato-based broth.

At Red Lobster, guests can order the restaurant's Wild Mushroom Soup as an appetizer along with the chain's famous Cheddar Bay Biscuits. T.G.I. Friday's also offers a light appetizer soup called French Onion Soup, which makes a comforting dish on cold evenings.

Fans of the neighborhood restaurant chain Chili's can make their own version of the restaurant's Sweet Corn Soup. This dish features corn kernels, creamed corn, and potatoes in a creamy chicken broth.

Hearty Soup Recipes

While some soups are intended as appetizers, other recipes are heartier and make filling main courses. A few examples are the Olive Garden's Pasta e Fagioli and Zuppa Toscana. The Pasta e Fagioli is similar to an Italian chili and includes ground meat, beans, and spaghetti sauce, while the Zuppa Toscana soup is a bit richer, featuring Italian sausage, potatoes, and bacon.

Seafood lovers may enjoy preparing Lobster Bisque, which includes fresh lobster meat and chopped vegetables in a white wine broth. Red Lobster's Shrimp Gumbo is another hearty soup and it can be served over rice to make an entire meal.

As a classic hearty soup, chili is a popular favorite. Home cooks can make their own Chili to duplicate the recipe served at fast food restaurant Wendy's.

Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup Recipe