Healthy Soups

Back in the winter of 2000, I spent five days driving more than 3,000 kilometres from northern California to Toronto. Along the way, I dropped in on some friends in Cleveland and, to this day, my best memory of that five-day trip is an enormous bowl of steaming mushroom and onion soup that I devoured with my friends.

This past week, I set out to make my own version of mushroom and onion soup. By adding a touch of den jang (the Korean version of miso) to traditional ingredients for mushroom and onion soup, I created a soup that is so delicious that I think I deserve a special award.

Winter is a great time for warm and hearty soups. This recipe calls for butternut squash, the hard squash that is readily available in the fall and winter, and looks like a large, smooth-skinned peanut.

Ingredients:

2 1/4 pounds (1 kg) tomatoes
1 cucumber
1 red pepper, seeded and chopped
2 garlic cloves, chopped
Juice of 1 lemon and 1 lime
2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
Sea salt and ground black pepper (optional)
1 ripe avocado
1/4 red onion

Directions:

Ingredients:

1 small to medium butternut squash, peeled, seeded, and chopped into bite-size chunks
2 medium leeks, washed and chopped into big slices
2 carrots, cut into thick chunks
1 medium to large parsnip, chopped into big chunks
1 yellow onion, quartered
6 cups of vegetable broth or organic chicken broth
3-6 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
Sea salt and ground black pepper (optional)

Ingredients:

3/4 cup of beet juice (~3-5 small to medium beets)
1 and 1/2 cups of celery juice (~6-8 ribs)
3/4 cup of carrot juice (~4-6 medium carrots)
1/2 cup of freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 small cloves of garlic
1 and 1/2 teaspoons of sea salt
Handful of fresh dill

Directions:

Ingredients:

1 bunch of asparagus stalks, chopped into bite-size pieces
1 carrot, peeled and diced
1 rib of celery, diced
1 yellow onion, chopped
4 cups of vegetable broth or organic chicken broth
1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil
Sea salt and ground black pepper (optional)

Ingredients:

2 red beets, peeled and diced
1 Yukon gold potato, chopped into bite-size cubes
1 carrot, peeled and diced
1 rib of celery, diced
1 cup of shredded green cabbage
4 cups of vegetable broth or organic chicken broth
1 cup of crushed tomatoes
Fresh dill (optional)
Sea salt and ground black pepper (optional)

Ingredients: 

8 cups frozen peas
5 cups vegetable or chicken broth
1 garlic clove, roughly chopped
2 tablespoons of organic butter
Sea salt and black pepper, to taste

Directions:

Over medium to high heat, cook garlic in butter for 2-3 minutes. Add peas and cook for an additional 1-2 minutes.

Add vegetable or chicken broth, bring to a boil, then reduce heat to allow ingredients to simmer for 5 minutes with the lid on.

Blend all ingredients in a food processor until smooth and return to pot. Add sea salt and black pepper, to taste.

If available, garnish with a sprig of fresh mint. Enjoy this healthy and simple pea soup recipe.

You can find other simple recipes in a great cookbook called Take Three: 200 Fabulous Fuss-Free Recipes Using Three Ingredients or Less.

Ingredients:

2 quarts vegetable broth
1 carrot, chopped
2 pounds Swiss Chard, chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1 zucchini, sliced
1 cup of brown rice, already cooked
Sea salt and black pepper, to taste

Directions:

Combine all ingredients except brown rice in a large pot and cook until carrots are tender. Transfer half of pot into a food processor or blender and puree until creamy. Return creamed mixture to pot, add brown rice, stir over heat until soup is one consistency. Serve and enjoy this hearty swiss chard soup.

Ingredients: 

2 large acorn or 1 butternut squash
1 large spanish or any yellow onion, roughly chopped
1 clove of garlic, finely chopped
3 cups of vegetable broth
Sea salt, to taste (optional)

Directions:

Cut squash into halves and place skin side down in a casserole dish. Cover with foil and bake at 375 degrees Farenheit, or until tender. After it cools enough for you to handle, scoop out the flesh.

In a fair sized pot, boil onions and garlic in vegetable broth until tender. Add the cooked squash and sea salt. Blend all ingredients with a hand held blender or in a conventional blender if you like a smooth, creamy soup.

Serves four.