We’re only two weeks away from the first day of spring (March 20), but the past few weeks have made it feel like we’re stuck in the ice ages. Luckily, we’ve got some warmer temps coming our way for the next few days, but that can only do so much for us while there’s still snow on the ground.
So until we can properly wear some flip flops without our toes turning colors, we’re going to need some help warming up by way of soup, because you can never have enough soup.
In the meantime, somebody find that groundhog. We’ve got a few choice words for that overgrown rat.
Lentil and Vegetable Soup
from Elizabeth Finch
The Ingredients:
- 2 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
- 2 medium carrots, diced
- 2-3 stalks of celery, diced
- 1 medium yellow onion, diced
- 2 garlic cloves, finely diced
- 1/2 pound mushrooms, chopped
- 2 cups dried lentils, rinsed
- 5 cups chicken or vegetable broth
- 1 15 oz. can diced tomatoes, with their juice
- 1 tbsp. white or red wine vinegar
- Pinch red pepper flakes
- 3 big handfuls baby spinach, thinly sliced
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- Ground black pepper
- 1 tsp. chopped dried thyme
The Process:
In a large pot, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add carrots, celery, onion and garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, until onions are translucent. Add the mushrooms and continue to cook until the mushrooms have released most of their liquid, about four or five minutes.
Add the lentils, broth, tomatoes with their juice, vinegar and pepper flakes. Cover and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer until lentils are tender, about 30 minutes.
Add the spinach, salt and pepper, and stir well. Simmer for just another minute or two more, remove from heat and stir in the thyme. Serves 6.
Note: You can use any variety of lentils in this soup. I usually buy the small, dark green ones because I like the flavor. You could also add chicken, sausage or any other favorite meat to this soup to add more protein.
Latin American Gazpacho with Avocado Corn Salsa
from Steve Shuler
The Ingredients:
- 2 ears of corn
- Olive oil
- 1 avocado, still firm
- 1 bunch of cilantro
- 2 jalapeño peppers, stemmed and seeded
- 2 limes
- 8 Roma tomatoes, stems removed
- 1 small cucumber, stem removed, roughly chopped
- 2 bell peppers, stemmed and seeded, roughly chopped
- Salt
The Process:
Remove the husks from the corn and coat the ears in olive oil. On a grill or grill pan over medium heat, grill the corn on all sides until brown and black marks start to show, about 10 minutes. Set the ears aside and let cool.
In a food processor or blender, add tomatoes, cucumber and bell peppers. Add 1 jalapeño, stemmed and seeded. Add half the cilantro, stems and leaves. Add juice of 1.5 limes. Add salt to taste. Seal blender or food processor and pulse until all vegetables are chopped. Set on low and slowly add ¼ cup of olive oil. Blend until incorporated but still chunky. Taste and adjust salt accordingly. Set in fridge to chill for one hour.
After corn has cooled, cut corn from the ears and place in a bowl. Add ¼ cup of cilantro leaves only, finely chopped. Add 1 jalapeño, stemmed and seeded, finely chopped. Remove avocado from its peel and dice, adding to the salsa mixture. Squeeze juice from ½ lime over the salsa and add salt to taste. Stir gently to combine, seal and place in the fridge.
To serve, pour gazpacho into a bowl and top with a generous portion of the salsa. Makes about 6 cups
Note: If you want to prepare the classic gazpacho recipe, remove the jalapeños, cilantro and lime juice. Add 4 cloves of garlic, ¼ cup of red wine vinegar and ¼ cup of basil leaves, firmly packed. Serve garnished with additional thinly sliced basil leaves.
Creamy Butternut Squash and Coconut Soup
from Elizabeth Finch – original recipe here
The Ingredients:
- 1 large butternut squash, peeled and cut into 1-inch cubes
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 3 tbsp coconut oil
- 1 cup unsweetened coconut milk
- 4 cups vegetable broth (chicken broth would be fine too, if it’s not a concern that your soup is vegan)
- 1 tsp ground ginger
- 1 tsp curry powder
- Sea salt & black pepper to taste
The Process:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place peeled and cubed butternut squash on a baking sheet, and drizzle with two tablespoons of the coconut oil. Roast the butternut squash in the oven for about 30 minutes, stirring about every 10 minutes to ensure even roasting.
While your butternut squash is roasting, heat one tablespoon of the coconut oil over medium heat in a large dutch oven. Sauté the onion in the coconut oil until it’s soft and fragrant, about four or five minutes.
Add the roasted butternut squash to the dutch oven with the onion. Add the remaining ingredients to the pot, and using an immersion blender, blend until the soup is smooth and creamy, blending up all the chunks of squash and onions.
Adjust seasonings to taste. Garnish with a dollop of coconut butter, if desired (but highly recommended!).
Bonus!
Still not warm enough? Try out this farm-to-market-to-table egg drop soup recipe that Kevin Shalin dug up.
