We had some cool and very rainy weather this past week so I though it was a good opportunity to make some vegetable soup. It’s yet another version of the vegetable soup we enjoy making and eating. With a soup like this, you can use whatever vegetables you have in your refrigerator or pantry.
It’s hard to go wrong with soup, but there are four things that you need. The base can be anything from plain water to stock or broth, either homemade or packaged, or a cream or roux-based stock. The ingredients can range from fresh vegetables to dried beans, peas or other legumes, to meats, fish or vegetable protein like miso or tofu. Seasonings are what bring out the flavor of the other ingredients and add a subtle flavor undertone. Finally, time and temperature are important. Usually a low simmer over a long period – an hour or two – brings out the flavors best, but with some ingredients it’s best to know when to add them so they don’t get overdone.
Almost ten vegetable soup
I say “almost” because it didn’t occur to me to add potatoes until after the soup was done. You can peel a couple potatoes (any variety) and add them about twenty minutes before serving.
Ingredients
- 4 cups vegetable stock (homemade or packaged – I like Whole Foods 365 low sodium vegetable stock best, or Fresh Thyme)
- 2 cups water plus one vegetable stock cube (Knorr’s)
- 1 medium onion, diced 2mm
- 2 medium carrots, peeled and diced 5mm
- 2 stalks celery, diced 5 mm
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1 15-ounce can whole kernel corn
- 1 15-ounce can Great Northern beans (you can substitute another variety, such as canellini or kidney beans)
- 1 small head broccoli, cut into 5-10mm pieces (cut larger florets in half or quarters; include some stem pieces too)
- 1 15-ounce can diced tomatoes
- 4 ounces baby leaf spinach
- Those potatoes that I forgot about!
- 3 whole allspice
- 2 bay leaves
- Salt, pepper and canola oil
Method
Heat about 2 tablespoons of canola oil over medium heat in a ten-quart Dutch oven or stock pot (enough to cover the bottom of the pot). Add the onions and a half teaspoon of salt and stir for a couple minutes until the onions start to turn translucent but before they start to caramelize. Add the carrots and celery, stir to combine and cook for about five minutes. Make a space in the bottom of the pan and add the garlic, cooking only about 45 seconds to a minute to release the aroma.
Add the corn, beans, allspice, bay leaves, a half teaspoon of pepper and another half teaspoon of salt, the stock, water and stock cube. Raise the heat to medium-high until the soup starts to simmer, then reduce heat to medium-low. Cover and simmer for about a half hour.
Add the broccoli, canned tomatoes (and potatoes) and cook for another twenty minutes (until the broccoli and potatoes are tender). The spinach can be added with about ten minutes to go.
Remove the allspice and bay leaves. Taste for seasoning and add salt if needed. Serve in warmed bowls with crisp crackers or freshly-made cornbread.