minestrone soup

The last time I was at my mom's, I wanted to make a big pot of something that could be parsed out to freeze half and enjoy the remaining half for a few days. Minestrone soup was the response from my mother when I asked her what this should be.

I consulted a book, Enlightened Soups, that my friend Marika sent over after my mom's cancer diagnosis. The soup I made was based very loosely on a recipe for "Winter Minestrone". The recipe's version had fennel, chard, and cannellini beans. I replaced these items with some others (specifically, carrots, spinach, and a mix of kidney and garbanzo beans) based on what sounded good to my mom.

The resulting soup came together relatively quickly and was healthy with the robust taste of the vegetable medley that comprised it. As we were eating, it struck us how strange it was to be consuming soup on Memorial Day weekend - further evidence that the weather this year has been cooler than normal. The soup provided the warmth we were seeking. We enjoyed it with hot sourdough bread and butter. Here's what I did:


Minestrone Soup
Makes a big pot of soup

2 Tbsp. olive oil
1 yellow onion, diced
4 ribs celery, diced
3 large carrots, diced
2 handfuls baby red potatoes, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
salt, pepper, and herbs (basil, oregano)
4 c. chicken or vegetable broth

2 c. water

28 oz. can crushed tomatoes
1 can kidney beans, rinsed and drained
1 can garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained
1 c. small pasta
2 handfuls spinach
2 tsp. red wine vinegar

Heat olive oil in a large soup pot over medium heat. Add onions, celery, and carrots. Cook 5 minutes. Add potatoes, garlic, salt, pepper, and herbs. Stir to combine. Cook 10 minutes. Add broth, water, tomatoes with juice, beans, and pasta. Turn heat to high and bring to boiling. Reduce heat and simmer until pasta and potatoes are tender, about 12-15 minutes.

Add spinach and vinegar. Season with salt and pepper. Serve hot with crusty bread.

garlicky cannellini bean soup

Tonight, I was in the mood for vegetables. My diet lately hasn't included quite enough of them. My birthday weekend included a lot of great food: manicotti with bechamel sauce, my mom's delicious mac & cheese (with bacon!), cheesecake... cheese, in fact, has been a staple ingredient in my diet. Which would be fine if this were just been a recent trend; however it's been going on for quite some time now. Given my upcoming trip to Italy where cheese are pasta are sure to be abundant, I've decided to give my diet a bit of a revamp over the next couple of weeks left leading up to it. My focus will be on vegetables.

It's been a chilly and damp couple of days in the Northwest, so I started thinking earlier today that I wanted to make some sort of vegetable soup. I originally had thoughts of minestrone, but found some more interesting things through my online browsing. The soup I ended up with is based loosely on the Christmas Lima Bean Stew recipe from 101cookbooks.com. I adjusted based on what I had on hand as well as for the fact that I started cooking at 8pm tonight after a long day of travel and didn't have cooked beans or the energy to make celery salt (though that does sound like something fun to try later). My version came together in 30 minutes.

The resulting soup was just what I was looking for: healthy, hot, and packed with veggies. The perfect culinary close to my weekend. Here's what I did:

Garlicky Cannellini Bean Soup with Veggies

Serves 4

4 Tbsp. olive oil

1/2 yellow onion, diced

about 6 stalks celery, washed and diced

3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced

1 tsp. caraway seeds, crushed

sea salt

14.5 oz. canned diced tomatoes

1 can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed

two handfuls of spinach leaves*

4 c. water

oily black olives, pitted and chopped

1 lemon, quartered

*If you've ever wondered if spinach freezes well, the answer is yes. I bought more than was humanly possible to eat a few weeks ago and rather than process it into pesto (my usual method of using up extra), I decided to try freezing it - two handfuls each went into 3 separate ziplock bags. No blanching, nothing tricky. I used the first bag in a frittata when my mom was in town a couple weeks ago with good results. Bag #2 went into my soup this evening.

Heat olive oil in a large soup pot over medium heat. Add onion and celery. Cook for 10 minutes, stirring frequently. Add garlic, caraway, and a couple pinches sea salt. Cook about 10 minutes longer, until the vegetables are soft and beginning to caramelize.

Add tomatoes and water. Bring to a simmer. Add beans and spinach. Cook a few minutes until the beans are heated and the spinach is beginning to wilt. Taste and season with more salt if needed. Serve in individual bowls topped with olives and a generous squeeze of lemon juice.

1 year ago: the best part of The French Laundry

2 years ago: meat & mushrooms

carrot apple ginger soup

Between the garden and the bunches arriving the past two weeks in the CSA box (which JR didn't touch when I was in Seattle - I've never really figured out how/what he eats when I'm not here to cook...), I found myself with a fridge suddenly overrun with carrots earlier this week. Overrun with carrots and not exactly sure what to do with them.

I had soup on my mind. It has been cold and rainy - the kind of weather that calls for something hot to be simmering on the stovetop. I love unabashedly autumn thick, burnt-orange colored soups: butternut squash, kabocha, pumpkin. It struck me that carrot soup would have a similar sapphire tone. I scanned the kitchen to determine what else to incorporate. Onion is a soup-staple from my perspective. The apples and ginger root on the counter sounded like they would combine for a good flavor profile, so into the pot they went. The soup was healthy, tasty, and came together relatively quickly. If I had more time, I might have roasted the carrots first to bring out their natural sweetness. I'll try that next time.

Carrots from the garden.

A note on organic carrots: when I was scanning carrot soup recipes online, I noticed that many call for peeling the carrots. If you are vegetarian and use organic carrots (especially from your own garden), I would actually advise against this. Organic dirt is one of the few non-animal sources of B12, a vitamin important for brain and nervous system function. The small amount of organic dirt in your carrot's skin may actually be beneficial.

Carrot, Apple, Ginger Soup

Serves 4

2 Tbsp. olive oil

1 red onion, chopped

8-10 medium organic carrots, chopped

3 medium apples, peeled & chopped

1 Tbsp. fresh ginger root, minced

4 c. vegetable broth

1 Tbsp. honey

1 generous pinch of sea salt

toasted walnuts & cream for garnish

In a dutch oven, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add onions and saute until soft. Add carrots, apples, and ginger. Cook, stirring occasionally, until carrots begin to soften. Add broth, honey, and salt. Simmer for 20 minutes, until carrots are fully cooked.

Use an immersion blender (or an upright blender, processing the soup in batches as needed) to puree the soup to a smooth consistency. Serve topped with toasted walnuts and cream.

One year ago: eggplant pizza

roasted garlic, kale, and cannellini soup

I left sunny San Francisco Friday morning for a weekend in SoCal filled with grey sky and drizzle. Drizzle that moved up the coast while we feted friends getting married (congrats, Gary & Jayme!). Drizzle that caused our short flight earlier today to be delayed by two hours and then kept us on the tarmac in the airplane for an hour waiting for SFO to clear us to land so that we could leave LA. Drizzle that met us here upon landing.

When we finally got home - cold and hungry - all I could think about was hot soup. So I set about making some.

I had kale on hand from the last CSA delivery - beautiful petite curly kale. I've been convinced since I made kale cannellini crostini earlier in the year that these greens and beans were made for each other. But what else to include? Should I keep it simple, or go to town? I started flipping through cookbooks for inspiration.

I found one in Fresh that caught my eye: roasted garlic, winter kale, and white bean soup. I've never thought to put roasted garlic in soup. Surely, that's a fantastic idea. The kale soup they had in mind included potatoes and heavy cream. That didn't fit the bill, but it didn't matter, as the roasted garlic idea was all I needed to put the rest into motion.

The resulting soup was hot, healthy, and flavorful. It reminded me how much I enjoy having something cooking on the stove when the weather is chilly. I will definitely make this again. I'm already looking forward to eating the leftovers tomorrow. Here's what I did:

Roasted Garlic, Kale & Cannellini Soup

Serves 3-4

1 large head of garlic

1 small red onion, finely chopped

1 Tbsp. fresh thyme, minced

3 c. vegetable stock (I used my favorite mushroom stock)

2 c. water

15 oz. can diced tomatoes

15 oz. can cannellini beans, well rinsed and drained

1 bunch kale, center ribs removed and roughly chopped

rustic bread

high quality extra virgin olive oil

Heat oven to 375 degrees. Make a small boat out of aluminum foil. Place garlic head in it and roast in oven until soft, about 30 minutes. Allow to cool, then remove skin from cloves. Chop.

Heat 2 Tbsp. olive oil in a soup pot over medium heat. Add onion. Stir and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Add half of the roasted garlic and all of the thyme. Stir and cook 1 minute.

Add stock, water, and tomatoes (with juice). Bring to a boil.

Reduce heat to medium. Partially cover pot and simmer for 30 minutes.

Stir in kale and beans. Cook 10 minutes uncovered. Season with salt and pepper.

Mix the other half of the roasted garlic with 3 Tbsp. olive oil and a generous pinch of sea salt. Spread on rustic bread and enjoy alongside (or dipped in) soup.

One year ago: black bean soup with avocado lime cream

minestrone soup

I woke up at 3am this morning. I lay in bed, knowing I should be sleeping, but unable to turn off my suddenly wide awake mind. So I started thinking about what to make for dinner. Yep, I'm totally serious. I thought through the contents in our fridge and pantry, I thought through what could be added via a trip to the grocery store. What to make, what to make...I finally landed on minestrone soup. Sometime after that, my mind thankfully surrendered itself to dreams again.

Before titling this post minestrone, I did a bit of research to make sure the name would be appropriate. Minestrone is Italian for the big soup. It turns out that there is no set recipe; rather, the content varies across Italy and by season. It can have meat, but doesn't have to (my version is vegetarian). It can contain rice or pasta, but it isn't required (I didn't include any). And it's the perfect way to use up the myriad of veggies in my fridge.

I love recipes like this one, that can be modified based on the ingredients you have on hand. If you don't have everything listed below, don't worry about it - omitting an ingredient or two will still yield a tasty meal. If you have other things in mind that might go well, throw them in, too. Have fun with it! Here's the version we ate for dinner tonight:

Minestrone Soup with Parmesan Toasts

Serves 6ish

2 Tbsp. olive oil

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 shallot, diced

1 onion, diced

2 c. potatoes, diced

1-2 c. carrots, diced

1-2 c. celery, diced

1 tsp. dried or 1/2 tsp. fresh basil, chopped

1 tsp. dried or 1/2 tsp. fresh oregano, chopped

1/2 tsp. dried or 1/4 tsp. fresh thyme, chopped

freshly ground black pepper

3 c. vegetable broth

1 c. water

1/2 c. red wine

1 can diced tomatoes (with juiced)

1 can cannellini beans, rinsed and drained

1 bunch baby dino kale, chopped (or substitute 1 bunch regular dino kale, center rip removed and chopped)

Heat olive oil in a large soup pot over medium-low heat. Add garlic. At this point, I started chopping my way through the vegetables in the order listed above, adding each to the pot as I was done chopping it, stirring occasionally. By the time you've added the last of the celery, the onion should be translucent, the other veggies are beginning to become tender, and the aroma of simmering veggies fills your house.

Add herbs and spices. Stir well to disperse through veggies. Cook an additional few minutes. Add broth, water, wine, and tomatoes. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer 40 minutes (or longer, if you have more time and patience). Add beans and kale. Cook an additional 20 minutes.

Serve hot, topped with parmesan toast if desired (recipe below).

Parmesan Toasts:

olive oil

1 small baguette, sliced into 1/4" rounds

1 clove garlic, halved

1/4 c. parmesan, finely grated

Heat oven to 375 degrees. brush baguette rounds with olive oil. Bake 5-7 minutes, until just beginning to turn golden. Once toasts have cooled enough to handle, rub with cut side of garlic. Sprinkle each toast with parmesan. Return to oven until parmesan begins to melt, 2-3 minutes.

One year ago: caramelized carrot risotto

vegetarian split pea soup

Growing up, my mom would periodically make a big pot of split pea soup. I never paid much attention to what went into it until my vegetarian years, when the fact that it was cooked with ham hocks caused me to avoid it.

When I was in Seattle in December, the pot of split pea soup my mom made tasted like a bowl of nostalgia in a very yummy way (I don't eat much meat, but am no longer vegetarian). The role of ham hocks while cooking is to depart a smoky flavor to the soup, which I'll agree is pretty tasty.

The only time I've made split pea soup before, it was a different twist from what I consider to be the traditional version my mom makes. And earlier this week, it was the traditional version that I was craving. There's little better than a big pot of soup when it's cold and rainy outside.

Challenge: I wanted a vegetarian version. Can it be as tasty as the ham hocks version? After the soup I made earlier this week, I believe the answer is yes. Here's what I did:

Vegetarian Split Pea Soup

Makes a big pot of soup

1 Tbsp. olive oil

1 yellow onion, diced

2 cloves garlic, minced

3 carrots, diced

3 celery stalks, diced

desired spices*

2 c. dried split peas, rinsed and sorted

8 c. water or vegetable stock**

fried leeks (optional, but highly recommended)

*I used 1 tsp. dried lemon thyme, 1/2 tsp. dried marjoram, 1/2 tsp. smoked paprika, 1/2 tsp. white pepper.

**I used 1/2 cube of Rapunzel Vegan Vegetable Bouillon with Sea Salt dissolved in hot water as my base.

Heat olive oil in a large soup pot over medium heat. Add onions and garlic. Stir and cook until mix becomes fragrant, 2-3 minutes. Add carrots and celery. Continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until veggies are tender, 8-10 minutes. Add spices, stirring to distribute, and continue to cook for 2 minutes.

Add water or veggie stock and split peas. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 45 minutes, or until split peas are cooked to desired tenderness. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper.

To make fried leeks, rinse leek well and slice white part into 1/4" rounds. Place in a small bowl and sprinkle with 1 tsp. arrowroot powder. Mix to coat. Heat 1" vegetable oil in the bottom of a pot over medium heat. Once oil is hot, add leeks in a single layer (you may need to do it in a couple of batches). Fry, stirring occasionally, until leeks are golden brown. Remove and allow to drain on paper towels.

Serve soup topped with fried leeks. You won't miss the ham hocks, I promise!

One year ago: Aztec squash soup

vegetarian french onion soup

I have only eaten french onion soup twice in my life. The first time was in an irish pub in Boston a couple of years ago when we were there for JR's marathon. The second time was a few weeks ago in Seattle with my friend Jill at Cafe Presse, a small french restaurant on Capitol Hill. The first wasn't spectacular (hence the long stretch until the next). The Cafe Presse french onion soup was amazing. Maybe it was partly the lovely day we were having (our girls' day out included mimosas, manicures, and lots of conversation and catching up). But the soup was good. Really good.

I've been wanting to make it since. I received the most beautiful cobalt blue little pots from my mother for Christmas. Perfect for individual servings of french onion soup.

The following recipe was adapted from William Sonoma's A Taste of the World. I halved the original recipe and made it vegetarian by replacing the beef broth with Pacific Natural Organic Mushroom Broth. As it was simmering, the whole house filled with a mushroomy smell that made me a little nervous for the resulting flavor of the soup. But it turned out sooooo delicious. Melt in your mouth oniony-bready-cheesey (and not at all mushroomy). If you like french onion soup (or if you think you might), this is a must try!

Vegetarian French Onion Soup

Serves 2

1 Tbsp. butter

1 Tbsp. olive oil

1 large yellow onion, thinly sliced

pinch of brown sugar

salt & freshly ground black pepper

1 c. red wine

4 c. mushroom stock

1 bay leaf

2 thick slices coarse country bread, sliced 1 1/2" thick

1 c. shredded Gruyere

Heat oil and butter in a large heavy pot over medium-low heat. Add onion and sugar. Season with salt and pepper. Cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until onions are meltingly soft, golden, and lightly caramelized, 25-30 minutes.

Add wine. Raise heat to high. Cook until the liquid is reduced by half, 8-10 minutes. Add stock and bay leaf. Reduce heat to medium-low. Simmer uncovered until soup is dark and fully flavored, about 45 minutes. If the liquid is evaporating too quickly and tastes too strong, add a little water, cover, and continue.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Arrange bread on a baking sheet. Toast, turning once, until golden, 3-5 minutes per side.

Remove bay leaf from soup. Ladle into oven-proof individual serving dishes. Place on a cookie sheet. Place toast on top of soup in each bowl, then sprinkle with cheese. Bake until the cheese melts and is browned around the edges, 10-15 minutes. Enjoy!

This is a pic of my croque madame and the french onion soup that Jill and I shared at Cafe Presse.

Yes, it was so tasty and beautiful I took a picture of it!

One year ago: african pineapple peanut stew

veggie bean soup

It's been awhile, but as of today, I'm officially back in my kitch. I have spent the past few weeks in the Pacific Northwest with my family.* I did do some cooking while there, but rather than exploring new recipes I stuck primarily to familiar dishes (a sampling: butternut squash mac & cheese, miso soup, roasted garlic mashed potatoes).

*My mother was diagnosed with advanced ovarian cancer in early November. The initial surgery went very well. Next comes chemotherapy. The future is uncertain, but we're taking things one day at a time. Thank you to everyone who has been keeping us in your thoughts.

Today, as I was scanning the pantry in preparation for a trip to the grocery store, I spotted a bag of mixed beans that I bought at a market in Sonoma several months ago. I decided it was time to put those beans to use in a hearty fall soup. Here's what I did:

Veggie Bean Soup

Serves 6ish

olive oil

1 onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

3 stalks celery, chopped

3 carrots, chopped

1 bay leaf

1/2 tsp. dried thyme

1/2 tsp. dried oregano

28 oz. can diced tomatoes

2 c. dried beans**

4 c. water or veggie stock

1 bunch chard or kale, destemmed and chopped

**Any dried beans will do; I used a mix that contained kidney, navy, pinto, white beans, lentils, and some others that I'm not sure I can correctly identify! Check out the bulk foods section of your local grocery store for inspiration.

Dried beans quick soak:*** Add 2 cups dried beans to 6 cups water in a large pot. Bring to a boil. Cover and remove from heat. Allow beans to soak for 1 hour. Drain and rinse.

***For those like me, who tend not to think in advance far enough to allow time for beans to soak overnight.

Heat oil in a large soup pot over medium heat. Add onions and garlic. Cook, stirring occasionally, until onions begin to soften (about 3 minutes). Add celery and carrot. Continue to cook, stirring occasionally, for about 5 minutes. Add spices and mix to combine.

Add tomatoes (with juice), beans, and water or stock. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer until beans and veggies are tender (1 1/2 to 2 hours), stirring occasionally. Add more water as needed to reach desired consistency.

Add chard and cover to allow to steam for a few minutes. Remove cover and mix kale into soup. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

We ate our soup together with freshly baked corn bread. It's good to be back in the kitch!

black bean vegetable chili

While in my cooking frenzy after having returned from vacation last weekend, I decided I needed to have a pot of something cooking on Sunday. After a scan through the pantry, I chose black beans. There were also some random vegetables leftover from the prior week's CSA delivery that were still good, but a little past their prime. What better way to mask that than in chili? Here's what I did:

Black Bean Vegetable Chili

Serves 4-6

16 oz. bag black beans

1 yellow onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

4 pattypan squash (or 2 normal squash), chopped

2 bell or 4 gypsy peppers, deseeded and chopped

1 Tbsp. cumin

3 Tbsp. chili powder (I used chili pasilla)

14.5 oz. canned diced tomatoes

1-1/2 c. corn kernels, cooked*

*I used 3 fresh ears of corn from the CSA box. To cook, husk then place in microwave safe dish with 2 Tbsp. water. Cover with lid and microwave 5 minutes. Wait until cooled, then slice kernels from cobb.

Soak beans overnight. Rinse well. Add beans and 6 cups water to a large pot, cover, and simmer 1-2 hours, until beans are tender. Cook onions and garlic in olive oil until translucent. Add squash and pepper. Cook until crisp tender. Add spices and mix well. Remove from heat.

Once beans are tender, add squash mixture, tomatoes, and corn. Continue to cook for 30 minutes uncovered, stirring occasionally, and adding more spices to taste.

Serve with warm cornbread topped with grated cheese and chopped tomatoes, if desired.

cole's first miso

I was reminded of how great miso is while dining out in Seattle last week. I decided that I needed to learn how to make it. In doing so, I learned that by a measure of tastiness to difficulty of preparation, miso scores very high. In other words, once you have the right ingredients on hand, it's super simple (and fast!) to make. Since most of the ingredients are dried, it's easy to keep everything you need to make it on hand.

My first miso was our main course a couple of nights ago for dinner. I made it for the second time for lunch today. Start to finish can literally be less than 10 minutes (including clean up!) depending on what you decide to include in your version. Here's what I did in mine:

Cole's First Miso

Serves 2

3 oz. soba noodles

1 tsp. dasha powder

3 Tbsp. miso paste (I used white miso)

3 oz. firm tofu, cut into small cubes

a handful of mushrooms, stems removed and sliced

2 Tbsp. dried wakame

2 green onions, thinly sliced

1 tsp. toasted sesame oil

Cook soba noodles according to package directions. Drain and rinse with cold water. Set aside. Saute mushrooms in olive oil and set aside.

Bring 4 cups of water to boil in a soup pot. Add dashi. Reduce heat to simmer. Ladle about a cup of the hot water out into a bowl. Whisk miso paste into water and return to pot. Taste broth and repeat with more miso if a stronger flavor is desired. Add wakame and mushrooms and continue to cook for 3-4 minutes, until wakame is fully reconstituted.

Divide the soba noodles and tofu into two large bowls. Ladle soup over noodles and tofu. Top with green onions and a drizzling of sesame oil. 

My lunchtime version today omitted the soba noodles and I added in a handful of spinach at the same time as the wakame. I think I could eat this every single day!

tortilla soup

In the middle of winter, there is little better than a hot bowl of soup. (Ok, so it's March now, not exactly the middle of winter anymore, but it feels like it with all of this rain!)

I had my first bowl of tortilla soup about 4 years ago on a work trip to Arizona. I kicked myself for having waited so long before trying it. Now I'm kicking myself that tonight is the first time I've made it myself. It was so easy! And delicious! Here's what I did:

Tortilla Soup

Serves 4

olive oil

1 large yellow onion, chopped

1 tsp. cumin

1/4 tsp. fresh oregano, chopped

1/4 c. cilantro, chopped

3 c. vegetable broth

14 oz. diced tomatoes

1 Tbsp. chipotle peppers in adobo

1 c. tortilla chips, crushed

1 Tbsp. lime juice

1 small avocado

Cook the onion in olive oil over medium heat until soft. Add cumin, oregano, and cilantro. Stir and cook 1 minute. Add broth, tomatoes, and chipotle; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat and simmer 15 minutes.

Chop avocado. Add to a small bowl with lime juice. Mix to combine. Set aside.

Add tortilla chips. Mix and stir about 1 minute to allow the chips to soften. Use an immersion blender to bring soup to desired consistency. (If you don't have an immersion blender, you can do this step with an upright in batches.)

Ladle the soup into bowls and top with the lime marinated avocados. Enjoy!

split pea soup

It's winter. It's raining. It's time for some split pea soup. As so often is the case, 101 cookbooks had exactly what I was looking for. I followed the recipe exactly and so am not even going to bother reposting! You can find the original post here. It was fantastic - JR and I both went back for seconds!

spicy bok choy soup

The following recipe was made using the homemade veggie stock that I posted on Wednesday. My stock this time included leeks (in place of onion), carrots, celery, kale stems, and spinach.

Once you've got the stock on hand (either homemade or store bought), this is a simple and flavorful recipe. Enjoy!

Spicy Bok Choy Soup

Serves 4

olive oil

1 yellow onion, chopped

8 oz. firm tofu, minced

5 c. veggie stock

1 Tbsp. tamari

1 tsp. chili paste

bok choy, chopped, with ribs separated from leaves

handful of rice noodles (optional)

toasted sesame oil

Heat olive oil in a heavy pot over medium heat. Add onion and tofu. Cook, stirring frequently for 10-15 minutes, until mixture begins to brown. Add vegetable stock, tamari, chili paste, and bok choy ribs. Simmer for 5 minutes. Add bok choy leaves and rice noodles. Simmer an additional 5 minutes, or until noodles are soft. Ladle into bowls, finishing with a drizzle of toasted sesame oil.

homemade veggie stock

I just returned from a fantastic talk by Joel Salatin (Polyface, Inc.) at Stanford (thanks, Steph for the invitation!). I'm even more inspired now to start my container garden this spring. More on the talk and my city farming plans will follow soon!

Yes, I've even started making my own veggie stock.

I can almost see you rolling your eyes at your screen. Why? Two primary reasons: 

1. It's not that hard.

2. It's a good way to use scraps or leftover vegetables from the 2 CSA's that we're currently receiving weekly produce from. That amounts to a lot of veggies! This way I don't ever have the sad task of throwing any of them away.

Homemade vegetable stock is beautifully imprecise. There are no hard prescribed quantities. If you have more or less of a particular vegetable, that's ok - add what you have to the pot. In fact, you can throw in pretty much any veggie you want. It tastes a little different each time. Your home will smell wonderful as it cooks. It's a world different from what you'll buy in the store.

That's not to say that I don't buy stock from the grocery store. I do. No one has time to make it from scratch every time, right? But I promise that if you find the time to do so (even just once), you will not be disappointed!

Here's the basic recipe:

Basic Vegetable Stock

makes about 8 cups

2 Tbsp. olive oil

1 large onion, chopped

5ish ribs of celery, chopped

3ish carrots, chopped (no need to peel)

4ish cloves of garlic, sliced

1 bay leaf*

1 tsp. whole pepper corns

1 tsp. salt

10 c. water

1/4 c. tamari

Heat the olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Start chopping the veggies in the order listed above, adding them to the pot as you go, stirring occasionally. Once all of the veggies are in the pot, add the spices and water. Cover and increase heat until it starts to boil. Reduce heat and allow to simmer for 1 hour.

Add tamari. Let broth simmer uncovered for 3o minutes so flavors can continue to meld. Strain the veggies out. You'll be left with a super tasty stock that can be used immediately, kept in the fridge for about a week, or frozen (in an ice tray is a convenient way to do it if you don't want it to turn into a single frozen block).

  

You can literally throw in (just about) any veggie. If you enjoy the flavor of it whole, chances are you'll like it in the stock as well. Here are some not listed above that I've tried: leeks, spinach, kale, kale stems, potatoes, turnips, cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, bok choy. You can also add fresh herbs: parsley, rosemary, thyme, and so on.

I find myself making stock this way about once every other week, then keeping it in the fridge and using it throughout the week. If you have leftover stock, consider using it in place of water for cooking grains (rice, couscous, quinoa). 

Experiment and enjoy!

*Don't make the same mistake I did when first looking for a bay leaf about a year ago. You won't find it in the produce section of the grocery store, but rather with the spices. Yes, I actually had to ask a fellow shopper and then try to hide my embarrassment! I used to avoid recipes that called for bay leaves because I thought that meant they were too difficult. Ah, what a difference this past year has made!

aztec squash soup

Can you believe that the first time a full butternut squash entered my kitchen was only a couple of months ago? (I say "full", because they've been here in pieces before - most commonly in the filling of store bought ravioli.) I had no idea how easy it is to roast a butternut squash. But I've learned! It's one of the many things California has taught me, I guess you could say.

Today's featured recipe is Aztec Squash Soup, which I made last night (we'll be enjoying the leftovers tonight). Because the squash takes some time to roast, I did that part the night before, storing the squash in the fridge until it's use last night. I hope you like the soup as much as we do!

Aztec Squash Soup

makes a big pot of soup

olive oil

1 (1-1.5 pound) butternut squash

1 large yellow onion, chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced

5 celery stalks, chopped

6 cups vegetable broth

1 tsp. cumin

1 can black beans, rinsed well

1 cup frozen corn kernels

1 red bell pepper, chopped

1/4 cilantro, chopped

avocado (optional, but recommended!)

Preheat oven to 400F. Halve the butternut squash lengthwise and scoop out the seeds. Rub olive oil on the cut sides. Place the squash halves, cut side down, on the baking dish (be sure to use a dish, not a baking sheet - I made this mistake the first time I roasted a squash and ended up with squash juice all over the oven). Roast squash until tender, 60-75 minutes. Once cool enough to handle, scoop squash out into a medium bowl.

Heat olive oil in a heavy large pot over medium heat. Add onion and garlic, sauteing until golden (about 10 minutes). Mix in celery and 1 cup broth. Cover and allow to simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add squash, 5 cups broth, and cumin. Cover and simmer 20 minutes to blend flavors.

Using an immersion blender, puree squash soup until smooth (if you don't have an immersion blender, you can do this in batches in an upright blender). In pot, thin soup to desired consistency with additional vegetable broth. Mix in black beans, corn, red pepper, and cilantro. Cover and simmer 10 minutes.

Season to taste with salt and pepper. I served our soup with sliced avocado and a handful of blue corn chips. This is one of those dishes that tastes even better the second (or third) day when the flavors have had more time to meld.

some spice on sunday

My first attempt at kale and potato soup was made a few weeks ago. While good, it wasn't wow. But the flavor combination definitely had potential. I made a note to revisit the idea when I had the basic ingredients on hand again. Fast forward to today. I spent some time online this morning and found a number of recipes for Caldo Verde - Portuguese Kale Soup. I decided to try a twist on this tradition, replacing the chourizo with chourizo-like spices: paprika, mexican oregano, and ground chili. I also added pinto beans for protein. It went like this:

Spicy Kale & Potato Soup

Serves 4

olive oil

1 small yellow onion, chopped

3 cloves garlic, crushed

1/2 tsp. ground chili

1/4 tsp. cumin

1/4 tsp. mexican oregano

1/4 tsp. paprika

1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes

4 medium potatoes, peeled & diced

4 c. veggie stock or water

1/2 bunch curly kale, stems removed and cut into fine julienne

15 oz. pinto beans, rinsed

I started by making a light veggie stock: the stems trimmed from the kale, 2 cloves of sliced garlic, a few mixed pepper corns, and about 6 cups of water. Bring this to a boil, then allow to simmer for about an hour. If lacking the time or patience for this, use water instead.

Cook the onion over medium heat in a large pot until translucent. Add the garlic and spices, stir well, and cook for another 2 minutes. Add potatoes and stock (or water) and bring to a boil. Cover, lower heat, and simmer until the potatoes are done (about 20 minutes), stirring occasionally.

At this point, the goal is to mash up the potatoes. You can do this by hand, either using a masher or by pressing the potatoes with the back of a spoon against the side of the pot. I used my immersion blender, blending until the soup was almost smooth.

Add the kale. Cover and simmer, stirring occasionally until the kale is cooked (about 5 minutes). Add pinto beans. Season with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. Let the soup sit so the flavors can meld together (the longer it sits, the more the flavors will blend). When nearly ready to serve, taste again and adjust seasoning if necessary. At this point, I added a dash of Joe's Cosmic Good Stuff Chile (JR's fathers special blend of crazy hot chiles, dried and ground), reheated the soup, and served it hot with rustic bread.

The verdict? I'd say it beats the recipe I tried a few weeks ago, though there still seems to be something missing that I can't quite put my finger on. Maybe more spice? I'm going to mix some more of Joe's Cosmic Chile in and let the flavors meld overnight. I'll report back tomorrow.