what a week!
thankfully yesterday we got a little bite in the air and some much needed rain. this called for a big pot of homemade soup to fill our home with warmth and comfort!
i looked to our bounty from our CSA box and what we had in the pantry and decided to make a fall veggie minestrone soup. i served it beside a batch of some warm herbed focaccia bread.
fall minestrone
ingredients
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 medium size onion
3 ribs of celery
2 small sweet peppers or 1 large
2 bulbs fennel
3 cloves of garlic
1 quart of vegetable stock
1 large can of diced tomatoes
1 small can of crushed tomatoes
1 can garbanzo beans
1 can of red kidney beans
salt and pepper
1 Tbsp of sweetener (can sugar or maple syrup works great)
1/3 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
1 cup elbow noodles
a handful of diced basil
directions
-dice your onion, fennel, celery, and peppers, salt and pepper
-in a large dutch oven, saute in olive oil on low for 15 minutes
-add diced garlic
-saute for 5 more minutes
-add the stock, tomatoes, beans, sweetener, and salt and pepper to taste
-cook at medium heat for 30 minutes or so and turn to simmer until you are ready to eat
-just before you are ready, add noodles , cheese, and basil
-enjoy!
soup
soup for your soul
throughout the years, we have posted a lot of soup recipes here on beauty everyday. i thought it would be nice to revisit a few to help bring some inspiration to the winter table.
enjoy!
sweet potato + persimmon soup
i quickly made this soup the other day as i was trying to create a meal from what we had in the house. i have been loving getting fresh ginger and turmeric from our local farms and using them in as many meals as i can! those two fresh and healing ingredients were my starting point for this light- comforting soup! enjoy!
ingredients
2 large sweet potatoes, peeled and diced
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
2 Tbsp coconut oil
1 onion, diced
2 ribs of celery, diced
1 cup red lentils
1 quart vegetable stock
2 cloves of garlic
2 small persimmons or 1 large persimmon, peeled
a 3 inch piece of fresh turmeric, remove skin if needed
a 3 inch piece of fresh ginger, remove skin if needed
1 can of coconut milk
salt to taste
directions
-pre-heat oven to 400 degrees
-in a roasting pan, combine diced sweet potatoes, 1 Tbsp coconut oil, cumin and salt
-roast for 20 minutes, turning potatoes mid way
-meanwhile, in a large soup pot; saute the onions and celery on medium to low heat in 1 Tbsp coconut oil
-add the lentils, stock, roasted sweet potatoes and simmer for 20 minutes
-when the lentils are cooked, pour the soup into a blender and add the rest of the ingredients
-blend until smooth
-return to soup pot until ready to heat
-serve with croutons atop, optional
croutons
-1 Tbsp coconut oil, diced stale bread, salt to taste
-bake at 350 until browned
photos and recipe by Kristen Bach
winter minestrone
this year the weather has been chilly and no signs of spring seem to be anywhere in sight. this past week we had our first flurries of the year, an ice storm, and tomorrow we have snow in the forecast. winter just doesn't want to let up!
with that being said, I am going to keep making soups to keep us warm through these cold days. this minestrone is a perfect soup to do just that.
winter minestrone
-in a large stock pan, saute 1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil, a pinch of salt, 1 large diced yellow onion, 3 cloves of diced garlic, 1 large or two small fennel bulbs, sliced and core removed. saute on med-low heat for 20 minutes
-add 5 cups of good quality vegetable stock, (homemade if you got it), 2 cups water, 1 can of white beans, 1 small can of fire roasted tomatoes (14.5 oz), salt to taste, a pinch of pepper, 1 Tbsp of maple syrup or another sweetener. if you have any rinds of parmesan cheese you can add them to the stock for flavor. let simmer for 1 hour to allow the flavors to develop.
-add a handful of sliced greens such as chard, kale, collards, turnip greens, or spinach and also add 1 Tbsp of finely diced fresh parsley.
-lastly, add 1 cup of orzo and allow the pasta to cook for 20 minutes or so. bon appetit!
photo and recipe by kristen bach
photo
winter squash + coconut soup
i make soups a couple of times a week throughout the winter months. i love packing a ton of vegetable, flavors, and nutrients into one pot and getting a good baguette to go alongside.
this week i roasted some winter squashes that i had been storing and used up some other vegetables we had on hand to make a delicious winter soup. i always try to have coconut milk on hand so i can add them to soups when they call for them. this soup can be made with carrots, sweet potatoes, winter squash or a combination of all three!
-pre-heat your oven to 350 degrees.
-cut two small or one large winter squash(s) in half and gut. apply a light coat of coconut oil to a baking sheet and put the squashes cut side down. roast in the oven until the squash is tender, 30-40 minutes should be good but depends on the variety of squash.
-in a large soup pan dice a yellow onion and green pepper, 3 inches of fresh ginger, 4 cloves of garlic, and saute in 1 Tbsp of coconut oil.
-when the vegetables are tender, add 4 cups of vegetable stock.
-dice 3 small sweet potatoes (or 2 large) and 3 carrots and add to soup pot. When the winter squash is done, spoon out the squash and add to the pot.
-cook on medium heat until all of the vegetables are tender.
-slowly add 1 can of full fat coconut milk. Remove from heat and let cool for a bit.
-in batches, blend soup until it is very smooth. Return to heat, stir in sea salt to taste.
-top with some sriracha sauce if you want to add some spice.
-enjoy!
rustic black eyed pea soup
many days i challenge myself to make a meal entirely from what i have in our kitchen. this was one of those meals and i will surely make it again. i think i have made variations of this soup many of times, it's not all that inventive. i do think what made it so wonderful this time was the homemade vegetable stock. the flavors were so much warmer! started this soup in the morning before work and let it cook in the crock pot all day long. we enjoyed this with some buttered bread from a local bakery....it was a perfect fall night supper. rustic black eyed pea soup -saute 2 Tbsp olive oil, 1 diced yellow onion, and 2 sweet peppers from the garden until tender -in the crock pot add 1 cup of dried black eyed peas, rinsed , 4 cups stock, and 2-3 cups water (add more as needed) add the sauted vegetables to the crock pot -add 2 handfuls of finely chopped kale or other greens to the soup photo and recipe by kristen bach
summer corn soup
photo and recipe by kristen bach
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potato leek & fennel soup.... vichyssoise
months ago, my husband and i were having dinner at the national and i ordered vichyssoise. i really loved the way it sounded, which may have been the reason why i ordered it. needless to say, i enjoyed the soup so much that i have not forgotten about it. vichyssoise is a potato soup that can be served either hot or cold. we had just gotten some fennel in our weekly vegetable box so i added some of that to bring out some more flavor. give it a try!
ingredients
8 medium sized russet potatoes
1 Tbsp olive oil or butter
5 small or 2 large leeks (white parts)
1 medium sized onion
1 bulb of fennel (bulb only)
1 quart of vegetable stock (or chicken stock)
1 cup heavy cream or whole milk
2 teaspoons salt (or more if needed) freshly ground pepper to taste
directions
-in a large saucepan or soup pot, sauté the olive oil or butter, onion, leeks, and fennel until tender, stirring often
-while sautéing, peel the potatoes
-add potatoes to the onions, leeks, and fennel
-add the stock
-bring to a boil and then simmer until potatoes are tender
-in small batches blend the soup in a high speed blender
-return to pot and whisk in the cream or milk and salt and pepper if the soup needs more liquid, add more broth or water
-chill the soup before serving over an ice bath or in the fridge or eat the soup warm
words and recipe by kristen bach
rebecca's healing soup with tofu
photo and recipe by rebecca wood
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