Sunday's Soup/Rustic Potato Soup

I have really neglected the blog of late. Everything's fine, just life. I have been sewing, and I have been cooking, just not posting. 

The soup recipe that I'm sharing today is a favorite of mine during the cold winter months. Although, I don't make it that often as it does contain butter and cream. But, it's one that makes my husband smile, so from time to time, I figure, a little butter and a little cream is not going to be the end of the world ;)

Rustic Potato Soup

I call this a rustic soup as the skin is left on the potatoes, and it's not your typical creamy, potato soup. 

This soup came about because I had leftover small boiled potatoes. I'm sure the soup will be just fine, and taste just as good if you begin with raw potatoes. But, you will need to adjust the liquid as the raw potatoes may absorb more of the broth than the pre-boiled potatoes.   

I began with 1 pound of small golden potatoes that were previously boiled, and then sliced. Small red potatoes would work just as well. 

Heat the oil and the butter in a large pot over medium heat. Add the chopped onion. The butter will turn the onion a beautiful golden yellow. Saute the onion until tender. 

Add 1 cup of sliced small portobella mushrooms and cook until tender. They will turn a lovely dark brown. Add 2 cloves of minced garlic, and saute for about a minute just to release the flavor, but not burn the garlic. 

Add the sliced potatoes and allow them to saute in the onion and mushroom mixture until they just start to turn a little brown. This will only take a few minutes. To be honest, you could actually stop here and just enjoy the potatoes as they are :) But don't!!! I think you'll love the soup! 

Add 2 chopped carrots, 2 chopped stalks of celery, 1/2 cup wild rice, and 6 cups of vegetable broth. Stir in 1 teaspoon of rosemary, thyme, and sage, along with 2 bay leaves. Bring the soup mixture to a boil, reduce heat to simmer, and allow the soup to cook until the wild rice is tender, about 45 minutes. 

Once the wild rice is tender, add 1/2 cup of cream. The rice and the potatoes will thicken the soup, so adjust the consistency at this point by adding in more vegetable broth. Two more cups may be needed. Heat the soup over a low flame, and do not allow the soup to come to a boil once the cream has been added. Before serving, remove the bay leaves. 

Rustic Potato Soup
downloadable recipe

ingredients;
1 pound boiled small red or golden potatoes sliced
1 large yellow onion chopped
1 cup sliced small portobella mushrooms
2 cloves garlic minced 
2 large carrots chopped
2 stalks celery chopped
1/2 cup wild rice 
1 teaspoon dried sage
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 teaspoon dried rosemary
2 bay leaves
1 tablespoon olive oil
4 tablespoons butter
6-8 cups vegetable broth
1/2 cup cream
salt and black pepper to taste

directions;

Heat olive oil and butter in a large pot over medium heat. Add onions and saute until tender. Add sliced mushrooms and cook until tender. Add minced garlic and saute for another minute to release garlic flavor, but not burn. 
Add sliced potatoes, and stir well into onion and mushroom mixture. Allow the potatoes to slightly brown. Add chopped carrots, celery, wild rice, and vegetable broth. Stir in sage, thyme, rosemary and bay leaves. Bring soup to a boil, reduce heat and cook on low heat until wild rice is tender, about 45 minutes. Stir in the cream, and adjust the thickness of the soup by adding more vegetable broth. Both the potatoes and the rice will absorb the liquid and make the soup rather thick. Up to 2 cups more of the vegetable broth may be needed to thin the consistency of the soup. 
Add salt and black pepper to taste. Simmer the soup on a low heat until heated through. Once the cream has been added, do not allow the soup to come to a boil. Before serving, remove bay leaves.

Ladle into soup dishes, and enjoy!

This is a hearty soup, perfect for winter. Serve with a nice slice of hearty bread.

This is a soul warming soup, at least for me. I hope that you'll enjoy it as much as I do.

Rhonda 

Sunday's Soup/Winter Root Vegetable Soup with Kale

Happy Sunday Everyone!!!

Thank you for all the wonderful comments that were left on my Grateful post. A couple of you had me laughing so hard with the idea of the antics of my girlfriend and I sounding like an episode of I Love Lucy!!! Like I said, we've been friends for 35 years, and have done some pretty crazy things. Yes, we could be our own comedy show ;) Thanks for the laughs, I really needed that. Nothing like a good laugh to cleanse the soul :) 

Have you ever heard of the Moosewood Cookbook? It's a funky, vegetarian cookbook that I absolutely love. In fact, the same friend from the Grateful post gave it to me over 30 years ago. My copy is now a very well worn book, loose pages and a taped together spine. 

One of the things that I especially enjoy, other than the recipes, are the cute little drawings that accompany each recipe. When I began putting the soup recipes together, my goal was to eventually publish a cookbook/soup book. I'm now working on the book(finally), and rather than photographs, I'm doing drawings that are similar to what you might find in the Moosewood Cookbook. 

I'm currently going through my recipes and testing/tweaking them just to make sure that when they are published, and tried, it will taste just like what I make. 

Back in 2013, I published a recipe for a Creamy Winter Root Vegetable Soup.   I love a good cream soup, but when I began to test the recipe, I decided to make it into a vegan version, and that's what I am going to share with you today. 

The ingredients are basically the same, potatoes, carrots, parsnips, onions, garlic and fresh basil.

No butter was used in this recipe, just olive oil. The onions were sauteed until tender in the olive oil, and then the vegetables were added, along with the vegetable broth.

Another change with this recipe is the addition of chopped kale, green pigeon peas (for protein), and dried rosemary. 

If you have never used green pigeon peas before, they are a lovely little pea that has a bit of substance to it, not at all mushy.

This is not a creamed version of the soup, just a nice hearty winter vegetable soup.

Winter Root Vegetable Soup with Kale

printable recipe

Ingredients;

3 tablespoons of olive oil
4 parsnips sliced, about 3 pounds in total
4 Irish potatoes, chopped
4 carrots sliced
1 large yellow onion chopped
4 cloves of garlic minced
4 tablespoons of chopped fresh basil
2 cups finely chopped kale
1 14 oz. can Green Pigeon Peas drained and rinsed
2 bay leaves
1 teaspoon dried rosemary 
10-12 cups of vegetable broth 
salt and black pepper to taste

Heat olive oil in a large, heavy soup pot. Add chopped onion and saute until tender. Add carrots, parsnips, potatoes, bay leaves, and garlic along with 8 cups of vegetable broth. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer until vegetables are tender, 20-30 minutes. Add chopped fresh basil, chopped kale, pigeon peas, and rosemary. Adjust liquid. Depending upon the size of your vegetables, you may need to add up to 4 more cups of broth. If more broth has been added, bring to a boil once again, then reduce to simmer and cook for another 10 minutes, giving the herbs and kale time to flavor the soup.

Serve with warm crusty bread, or my favorite, a pan of fresh made cornbread. 

The recipe yields 8 hearty servings. 

If you give it a try, hope you enjoy it!
Rhonda

Sunday's Soup

This is such a glorious time of year! The farmer's markets are absolutely alive with color. I walk in, and I'm like a kid in a candy store, I want it all!!!

On a recent trip, I was tempted by the rich purple colors, purple onions, purple cabbage, purple potatoes and purple cauliflower. So pretty!

My mind immediately went to soup. The temperatures have been a bit cool, so all the more I'm wanting a good bowl of soup.

What I decided to do was quarter the potatoes and break apart the cauliflower and then roast it. I love roasted potatoes and cauliflower.

I chose the smallest head of purple cabbage and then chopped it, but not too finely.

Here's my recipe;

Purple People Pleaser Soup

1 small head purple cabbage chopped
 About a pound of small purple potatoes, quartered
1 purple onion chopped
1 head purple cauliflower broken into florets
2 cloves of garlic finely chopped
3 tablespoons olive oil
salt
black pepper
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 tablespoon Herbs de Provence
6 cups water/chicken or vegetable broth
1 cup cream or half and half

Heat oven to 425 degrees. Quarter potatoes and break apart cauliflower. Combine in large bowl. Salt and pepper to taste and sprinkle with garlic powder and 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Stir well to coat. Place in oven and roast until fork tender and browned, about 30 to 45 minutes.
Pour remaining tablespoon of olive oil in pan and saute chopped onion. Once tender, add chopped garlic and continue to saute for approximately 1 minute.
Transfer onion/garlic mixture to a large soup pot. Add chopped cabbage, 6 cups of water or broth and Herbs de Provence. Add roasted potatoes and cauliflower. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to a simmer and cook until cabbage is tender, approximately 10 minutes. Add 1 cup of cream or half and half, simmer for another 10 minutes, being careful not to allow the soup to boil.  
Dish up and enjoy!

If you don't have Herbs de Provence, use a combination of basil and oregano. After all, cooking is all about doing a little experimentation :)

The soup was so good and the purple colors were so pleasing to the eyes. Nourishing for the body and soul.
Enjoy!!
Rhonda