Sunday's Soup/True Vegetarian Vegan Chili

I've told this story before, so forgive me if you've heard it ;)

A number of years ago, I made a pot of traditional chili, with meat. Now I love a spicy dish, but if it's too hot for me, no one in my household will be able to eat it. This chili was REALLY hot, even for me! For the life of me, I don't know how I convinced myself that the spiciness of the dish was a matter of mind over matter. If I acted like it was fine, no one else would notice. I don't know, maybe the overly hot chili had given me a momentary lapse in saneness ;)

So, when dinner time rolled around, I served up the chili. I sat down and began to eat it as though there wasn't a pepper in it. After a few minutes, my exchange student, who was from the Canary Islands, and did not like spicy food, said, "I'm sorry Rhonda, but this is just too hot!" My husband then chimed in and said that he thought it was just him and then asked if I thought it was hot. I admitted that it was extremely hot, but I thought they wouldn't notice. He said, "Not notice!!! How can you not notice when your mouth is on fire???" I have yet to live that story down :)

I do love a bowl of chili, but, since I no longer eat meat, I want a truly vegetarian bowl, no fake meat, just vegetables. The recipe I'm sharing today has a couple of secret ingredients.

For this chili, you'll begin with a large chopped onion sauteed in oil, along with 1 tablespoon of minced ginger. The smell will be heavenly.

Add 2 cloves of minced garlic, and 2 chopped bell peppers. I used an orange and a yellow pepper, but green will do just fine.

Now, this is where it begins to turn into chili...
Add 3 teaspoons of good chili powder, 2 teaspoons of cumin, and 2 teaspoons of paprika. Allow to saute on low for about 5 minutes. 

At this point, add 2, 28 oz. cans of diced tomatoes(I like fire-roasted tomatoes), and 3, 14.5 oz cans of your favorite beans, drained and rinsed. I used garbanzo beans, pinto beans, and small northern beans. Besides the ginger, the other little secret ingredient is a chipotle pepper in adobo sauce which you will add at this point. 

Allow the mixture to simmer for at least 30 minutes. 

I like to make a pot of bulgar, which is cracked wheat to serve with my chili. Serve up a bowl of the chili and then add a mound of bulgar on top. Delicious! You could also make a pot of your favorite rice rather than the bulgar. I just really love bulgar :)

True Vegetarian Chili With a Twist

ingredients;
1 large onion chipped
1 tablespoon fresh ginger minced
2 bell peppers chopped
2 cloves garlic minced
2 28 oz. cans diced tomatoes
3 14.5 oz. cans of beans, pinto, garbanzo, and small northern beans drained and rinsed
3 teaspoons chili powder
2 teaspoons cumin
2 teaspoons paprika
1 chipotle pepper in adobo sauce
2 tablespoons of the adobo sauce
3 tablespoons olive oil
salt and black pepper to taste 

directions;
Place oil in a large soup pot. Add onion and ginger. Saute over medium heat until onion is translucent. Add garlic and bell peppers. Saute another 5 minutes until peppers are tender. Add chili powder, cumin, and paprika. Stir well to combine. Saute for about 2 minutes to begin to release flavors.

Add dice tomatoes, the 3 cans of rinsed beans, the chipotle pepper, and the adobo sauce. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer on a low fire for 30 minutes, or longer. Add salt and black pepper to taste.

To serve, ladle into bowls. A mound of cooked bulgar, or cooked rice of your choice makes a nice accompaniment. 

____________________________________________________

As always, if you give the recipe a try, I hope you enjoy it. Don't leave out the fresh ginger! It really adds a lovely flavor. As for the adobo sauce, it can be a bit spicy, so put in a tablespoon of the sauce, and give it a try before you add the second.

Enjoy!
Rhonda

Sunday's Soup/Brussel Sprout Soup for the I Hate Brussel Sprouts Crowd!

I can't believe that it was actually 6 years ago that I initially posted THIS recipe for Cream of Brussel Sprout Soup. The recipe has now been revised as I am working on a cookbook and I want to be sure that all of the recipes are exactly as I want them to be. So when you make them, they will taste just the same as when I made them. I hope that's a good thing ;)

To make the soup, you'll begin with chopped onions, celery and a honey crisp apple, all sauteed together.

Brussel sprouts and cannellini beans are added along with vegetable broth.

The beans will add protein, and will also thicken the soup nicely. Once the brussel sprouts are tender, the soup will be pureed.  

While the soup is cooking, make the candied pecans. They add a wonderful crunch as well as a fabulous taste to the soup.

Once the pecans have caramelized, place them on a piece of wax paper. Working quickly, separate the pecans and then roughly chop with a sharp knife.

To serve, ladle the soup into bowls and top with the candied pecans. Even the most dead set against brussel sprouts person will not believe they are actually eating brussel sprouts!

Brussel Sprout Soup for the 
I Hate Brussel Sprouts Crowd 

ingredients;
8 cups quartered brussel sprouts
1 large onion chopped
3 cloves garlic minced
1 honey crisp apple seeded and chopped
3 stalks celery chopped
1 25 oz. can Cannellini Beans drained and rinsed
8 cups vegetable broth
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
salt and black pepper to taste

directions;
Place quartered brussel sprouts in cold water. Add 1/4 cup of course sea salt and mix well. Allow the brussel sprouts to sit in the salt water for a couple of hours to overnight. Drain and rinse well under cold water. Set aside

Add olive oil to a large, heavy soup pot. Add onion, apple, and celery. Saute over medium heat until onion is translucent, about 5 minutes. Add minced garlic and saute another minute to release flavor, but not burn. Add brussel sprouts along with the cannellini beans. Pour in 8 cups of vegetable broth. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for approximately 30 minutes, or until brussel sprouts are tender. 
Use a hand held mixer, or place the vegetable mixture in a blender, and blend until smooth. 
Add nutmeg, salt and pepper to taste. 

Candied Pecan Topping

ingredients;
1 cup pecans
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup sugar

directions;
Place pecans, water and sugar in a medium sized pot. Constantly stirring, bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce heat to medium and continue stirring until liquid has been absorbed. This goes very quickly, so do not leave unattended.
Spoon pecans out onto a sheet of waxed paper and separate quickly. Allow to cool and then chop roughly with a sharp knife.

To serve, ladle soup into bowls and top with the chopped pecans. No one will believe they are eating brussel sprouts!

The soup can be frozen, so for those of you who are thinking about Thanksgiving, make the soup now and you'll have 1 less task on Thanksgiving day!

Enjoy!

Rhonda

Sunday's Soup/Italian White Bean and Vegetable Soup

It's always interesting, at least to me, how a memory can be triggered. In my early twenties, I was working, going to school, paying rent, making a car payment, and there were times when my money just wouldn't stretch any further. So, a bag of beans and a bag of rice were on the menu. Not very exciting, but, I never went hungry. You would think that after weeks of eating beans and rice, I would not want to go anywhere near a bag of beans. But, rather than a difficult memory, a bag of beans represents comfort and warmth :) 

The soup recipe I'm sharing today is a very far cry from a dish of beans and rice. Actually, there's no rice in the soup. Instead, it's filled with fabulous fall vegetables, carrots, zucchini, purple top turnips, potatoes, and a bag of large white beans.

There is a little surprise ingredient, and that's an onion that is studded with 8 cloves. The onion is cooked along with the beans and vegetables, and then discarded once the soup is ready. This is something that my grandmother would do, and it really adds a wonderful richness to the soup. 

This soup is a great dump and go recipe. Just chop up all of the vegetables, throw them in a big pot with the white beans. It's also a great soup to make in a crockpot. 

Below you can see the clove studded onion cooking along with the vegetables. I wish there was smell-o-vision!!! 

The soup is perfect for a cool fall evening. It will freeze well, so eat half and save the rest for another meal. 

Italian White Bean and Vegetable Soup

ingredients;
1 1 lb. bag of dried large white beans
2 lbs. zucchini
2 purple top turnips
1 lb. carrots
3 stalks celery
1 large onion
1 medium onion studded with 8 cloves
3 bay leaves
1 25 oz. can diced tomatoes
1 tablespoon dried basil
2 teaspoons dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon hot red pepper flakes (optional)
12 cups vegetable broth
salt and black pepper to taste

directions;
Rinse beans and soak overnight. 
Drain and rinse beans. Place in a large pot with vegetable broth. Bring to a boil. Chop all vegetables except the onion studded with cloves. Place all vegetables in soup pot. Add tomatoes(do not drain), studded onion, basil, oregano, bay leaves, red pepper flakes, and salt and black pepper. Return to a boil and then reduce heat to simmer and cook for 3 hours, or until beans are tender. Before serving, remove clove studded onion and the bay leaves. 

Serve with crusty garlic bread and enjoy!

If you would like to cook the soup in a crockpot:
Place all ingredients in crockpot. Cook on low for 8 hours. 

Hope you enjoy the soup...and the beans as much as I do!
 Rhonda

Sunday's Soup...On Wednesday! Get Healthy One Step at a Time

For years, I had a membership to a gym, and I always found it interesting that come the first week of January, it would suddenly be packed with people. And then sure enough, by the end of January, the crowds once again thinned, and within a few more weeks, everything was back to normal. 

I ultimately gave up my gym membership as I much prefer to just be outside. I love walking out my front door and having my gym laid out in front of me. Nothing better than a vigorous morning walk :) My niece feels the same way. Rather than a formal gym membership, she bikes to work everyday...even in the winter!!! And remember, that's Chicago winter :/ We both enjoy incorporating exercise into our daily routine. More often than not, I grab a bag and walk to the grocery store. And then there's Gracie, my built in exercise motivator ;) I do attend yoga classes, but that's as formal as it gets for me.

So yes, this is the time of year that many make a resolution to lose weight, eat healthy, exercise more and so on. I think that a part of the problem though is that rather than setting healthy, easy to attain goals, so many try to do too much too fast. Shows like the Biggest Loser where people drop lots and lots of weight in a short amount of time are just not realistic. 

I wanted to post this recipe today because, number 1, it's SOOOO easy to make. And number 2, since it's so easy, it's something that you can quickly whip up, have on hand. A nice easy step toward a little more of a healthier lifestyle.

Over the holidays, our niece and her husband invited us to come for dinner. Her husband is a marvelous cook. If he invites, I'm there!!! And what's so very nice is that he always makes an entirely vegetarian meal for me. 

On this visit, he had made a broccoli soup. It was so very good, and I was surprised by how simple it was to make.

Begin with 6 crowns of broccoli, about 3 pounds. Place them in a large pot. Add water for boiling along with about 2 tablespoons of sea salt. Chop 6 green onions and add to the broccoli.

  
Boil the broccoli until tender, 10-15 minutes.

Remove the broccoli from the pot, and reserve the water. Place broccoli in a blender. It's quite a bit of broccoli, so you will need to do it in batches. Blend until pureed.

Add the reserved salted water to the broccoli until soup is desired consistency. And that's it!!! How much easier does it get??? Broccoli, green onions, water, and salt. And it's delicious!

I added crumbles of feta cheese to my soup for a little protein, and lots of black pepper. I LOVE pepper :)

Broccoli is packed full of vitamins. It's especially great at this time of year when colds are lurking around every corner. And with this soup, you are getting mega doses of all those wonderful vitamins that love to attack colds. Kinda like creating your own little war in your belly ;)  The title of this soup is going to be War of the Worlds Broccoli Soup. On Sunday, I'll have another fun recipe for you and I'll have the link up then for a printable recipe of the War of The Worlds Broccoli Soup. 

But don't wait until Sunday to make the soup. Make it now!!! 

Actually, anytime will be fine :) But if you like broccoli, I think you'll love the soup. Oh, and it freezes well too. So make plenty and then store in small containers for an easy lunch.

Enjoy!

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/Roasted Cauliflower with Arugula

Whew!, it's been a while since I last checked in. In my last post, I shared that my dog Gracie had a ruptured blood vessel in her ear. Well, it resulted in surgery last Thursday. She is better, as better as one can be with a cone around their head ;) But, the cone is needed as she wouldn't have an ear at this point. The cone keeps her from scratching at her ear, but I can't keep her from shaking. UGH!!! I never realized that the dog shakes her body as much as she does. 

In the meantime, I came down with a cold and have been a running temperature. Oh well, it's my yearly cold, so hopefully I'm getting it over with and will have a super fun winter, full of winter sports! As I type, I'm drinking a cup of tea with a little whiskey, actually Grand Marnier(my favorite). I'm telling myself that the orange flavor of the liqueur is vitamin C ;) Regardless, the warmth of the tea mingled with the liqueur is very soothing to my throat, so...good enough for me!!! 

I did manage to make a wonderful soup this week. I wanted something simple, and I wanted a little extra warmth as I've been so cold, so I decided to do a little roasting. If you haven't roasted vegetables, by all means, give it a try. Roasting gives the vegetables a slightly smokey taste and I think, enhances the flavor.

I wanted a big batch, so I used 2 heads of cauliflower. The recipe will be for a smaller version using just 1 head of cauliflower.

Begin by breaking the cauliflower into small florets. Slice a purple onion and garlic cloves. Line a baking sheet with foil. I laid out my cauliflower first, and then topped it with the sliced purple onion and slivered garlic. I then sprinkled olive oil over all of the vegetables and added salt and black pepper. My absolute favorite salt is pink salt. I purchase it in a large grinder and use it for almost everything.

Heat the oven to 425 degrees. Place the vegetable mixture in the preheated oven and roast for approximately 45 minutes, or until the cauliflower is tender. The bottom of the cauliflower will be nice and brown, and the edges of the onion will be crinkled and brown. 

I then put my vegetable mixture in my pot. Added vegetable broth, and pureed the mixture with a handheld mixing wand. If you don't have a handheld wand, puree the mixture in a blender. I like to say that there's almost always another way to do just about anything ;)

Once the vegetables were pureed, I added the chopped arugula. Love the spicy taste of arugula. I then added thyme and oregano, and adjusted the salt and black pepper. Brought the mixture to a boil and then reduced to simmer for about 10 minutes to give the arugula time to flavor the soup. 

As is, the soup is the perfect vegan soup.

If you would like, and you don't follow a vegan diet, top the soup with a little shredded parmesan cheese and chopped green onions.

If I may say so myself, the soup is delicious!

Roasted Cauliflower Soup with Arugula

ingredients;
printable recipe

1 large head of cauliflower broken into small florets
1 medium purple onion sliced
2 cloves of garlic slivered
2-3 tablespoons olive oil sprinkled over vegetables
4 cups arugula before chopped
2 teaspoons dried thyme  
1 teaspoon dried oregano
6-8 cups vegetable broth for desired consistency of soup 
Salt and Black Pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil.
Break cauliflower into small florets and place on foil lined backing sheet. Top with sliced purple onion and slivered garlic. Sprinkle olive oil over vegetables. Top with salt and black pepper. 
Roast in preheated oven 45 minutes or until vegetables are tender.
Once tender, place roasted vegetables in a large soup pot. Add vegetable broth. Begin with 6 cups and add more if needed for desired consistency. Using a handheld mixing wand(or blender), puree the soup mixture.
Once the soup has been pureed, add the chopped arugula, thyme, and oregano. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat to simmer for approximately 10 minutes to allow the arugula to flavor the soup. Adjust salt and black pepper to taste.

Soup may be topped with grated parmesan cheese and chopped green onions. Serve and enjoy! 

I have SO enjoyed this soup. It will freeze well and be great for an easy dinner in the future, or a fabulous, warm lunch. Or, you can be like me and double the recipe and share...or maybe not ;)

Rhonda

Sunday's Soup/Hearty Curried Lentil and Garbanzo Bean Vegetable Soup

 YOU MUST MAKE THIS SOUP!

That is, if you like lentils and curry :)

A friend stopped by after having a difficult day. I asked, "would you like a bowl of soup?" The reply, "did you make it?" "Yes."
"Then I would LOVE a bowl of soup!" Such a nice compliment :)

If I say so myself, this is a fantastic soup.

Begin with a large chopped onion. Saute in a little oil until translucent. Add 3 ribs of chopped celery, and saute until tender. Add 3 chopped cloves of garlic and saute for just another minute to bring out the flavor but not burn the garlic. 

Meanwhile...
*cook 1 cup of dried lentils in 4 cups of vegetable broth until tender. About 20 minutes.  
*cook wild rice.

Once lentils are tender, add 2 cups of sliced carrots to the pot.
  

Then,
2 cups of chopped kale.
1 14 oz. can of garbanzo beans drained and rinsed.
1 cup of cooked wild rice.
4 teaspoons curry powder
2 teaspoons thyme
1 teaspoon dried oregano
Salt and black pepper to taste

Add 4 additional cups of vegetable broth. Bring to a boil and then reduce to simmer until carrots and kale are tender.
  

Before serving, add juice of 1/2 lemon.

Ladle into bowls and top with fresh crumbled feta cheese. If you opt for a vegan version, then omit the cheese.

The soup is fantastic for leftover lunches. The recipe will make 8 hearty servings. The aroma will warm your soul :)

Hearty Curried Lentil and Garbanzo Bean Vegetable Soup

printable version

ingredients

2 tablespoons olive oil 
1 large onion chopped
3 ribs celery chopped
3 cloves garlic finely chopped
1 cup dried lentils
8 cups vegetable broth
2 cups sliced carrots
2 cups chopped kale
1 14 oz. can garbanzo beans drained and rinsed
1 cup cooked wild rice
4 teaspoons curry powder
2 teaspoons dried thyme
1 teaspoon dried oregano
salt and black pepper to taste
Juice  1/2 lemon
Crumbled feta cheese to top

Begin by rinsing dried lentils. Place in a large post and add 4 cups of vegetable broth. Bring to a boil and cook until lentils are tender, about 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, heat olive oil and saute onion until translucent. Add chopped celery and cook until tender. Add chopped garlic and saute another minute just bring out the flavor without burning.

Once lentils are tender, add chopped carrots, chopped kale, sauteed onion mixture, rinsed and drained garbanzo beans, cooked wild rice, curry powder, thyme, oregano, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat and cook until vegetables are tender. 

Before serving, add fresh squeezed lemon juice. 

Ladle into bowls, and if you would like, top with crumbled feta cheese. Then savor the aroma and flavor!


This soup was a HUGE hit in my house. Hope you enjoy it too if you give it a try :)
Rhonda

Sunday's Soup/Creamy Carrot and Cilantro Soup

Whether it's spring, summer, fall, or winter, I love to eat soup, and my refrigerator just isn't quite right if I don't have a soup that I can grab and warm up for my lunch.  

I tell lots of stories about my grandmother, but one of many sweet memories is the big pot of gumbo she would make up when we would visit. OMG!!!, was it ever good, filled with fresh okra! There was no air conditioning in her house. I didn't care, I would sit at her dining room table with my legs stuck to the seat of the chair(because it was so hot, I would be wearing shorts and the back of my legs would stick to the leather seat), and enjoy every bite :) 

This is the time of year when all the wonderful vegetables are coming to market, and I am like a kid in a candy store...well a vegetable candy store! The carrots, onions, multiple colors of bell peppers just make my heart sing and send me straight to the kitchen :)
   

The soup that I am sharing today has a bit of  a twist to it. You can tweak it if you're a little afraid of the spice. 

First, I began with these wonderful boiler onions. They are typically used in dishes like stews, or with other boiled vegetables, as they are small and mild. If you can't find boiler onions, a nice white onion will work just fine.

I then came across a beautiful orange bell pepper and my favorite, a habanero pepper. Both were seeded and chopped. Like I said, if you are a little afraid of the heat from the pepper, you can just omit it. While habaneros are hot, they also have a sweet taste. You could also use just half, or even a quarter.    

The peppers and onions were added to 4 heaping cups of sliced carrots, 3 cloves of garlic, a tablespoon of chopped ginger, dried cilantro and ground coriander. The final little surprise ingredient is 1 chopped Granny Smith apple. The apple is both sweet and tart and the mixture of the flavors works beautifully with the habanero to reduce a little of the spice and yet allow for the flavor.

   

Once the vegetables are tender, the soup is pureed and a cup of coconut milk is added to the mixture resulting in a creamy, spicy, sweet soup. 

To enhance the flavor a little further, I added a dollop of fresh made cilantro pesto. If you are vegan, just eliminate the pesto, or make the pesto without the Parmesan cheese.

You can find the recipe for the Cilantro Pesto HERE. The recipe for the soup is below and you'll see that I have added a printable tab to the recipe.

Creamy Carrot and Cilantro Soup
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:

4 cups sliced carrots
1 orange bell pepper seeded and chopped
1 habenero pepper seeded and chopped
1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger
3 cloves garlic chopped
1 medium white onion chopped
1 Granny Smith apple skin removed and chopped
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 heaping teaspoon dried cilantro
salt and black pepper to taste
1 cup coconut milk
4 cups vegetable stock

Directions:

Bring all ingredients except the coconut milk to a boil. Reduce heat and cook until vegetables are tender, approximately 20-30 minutes. 

Using a blender, or hand held blender, puree the soup until creamy. Add coconut milk. If the soup is a little too thick, add additional vegetable stock. Simmer the soup on a low flame until coconut milk and any additional stock has warmed. 

Serve the soup with a dollop of cilantro pesto.

Enjoy!   

Sunday's Soup/ Twisted Green Bean Soup

My grandmother loved turnips. I did not, but I did love creamed potatoes. One day, she called us in for lunch. I sat down at the table and saw a beautiful bowl of what I thought to be creamed potatoes and proceeded to help myself to a nice big helping. Once everyone was served, I grabbed my fork, shoveled on a great big bite of what I thought was potatoes, and to my shock and dismay, it was creamed turnips. Uck!!! Well, taste buds mature, and I can't say that I love creamed turnips. but I do like the flavor they add when combined with other vegetables.

Another dish that my grandmother liked to make was a combination of turnips and green beans. I was recently thinking about her, and oddly enough I remembered the green bean and turnip combination. As I thought, I began to think that this might make a great bowl of soup. Guess what!, it does!!! With the addition of the sharp taste of the turnip, I decided to call the soup, Twisted Green Bean Soup.

Since fresh green beans have yet to make their way to the market, I used a bag of frozen beans. I knew that the true test would be my husband as he loves green beans, so either he was going to love it or hate it. Thankfully, he loved it :)

I began with a chopped white onion, and 4 stalks of chopped celery which I sauteed in a tablespoon of olive oil until tender.

I then added 2 finely diced cloves of garlic, the green beans, and 1 diced turnip.  

To thicken the soup and add a little extra protein, I added a 14.5 oz can of drained and rinsed navy beans.

I love the combined flavor of turnips and carrots, so I added 1 large sliced carrot. And if you look closely, you'll see that I also added a cup of chopped parsley. For added flavor I added 2 bay leaves. And finally, 8 cups of vegetable broth.

The mixture was then brought to a boil. The heat was then reduced to a simmer and allowed to cook for about 30 minutes.

Once the vegetables were tender, I pureed all but 1/4 of the soup. One more 14.5 oz can of drained and rinsed navy beans were added to to the soup mixture. 

The soup was allowed to simmer for another 30 minutes and then enjoyed!

Twisted Green Bean Soup

Yield: 6 large bowls

Ingredients

1 2 lb. bag frozen green beans

1 purple turnip peeled and diced

1 large carrot chopped

1 cup finely chopped parsley

2 cloves garlic chopped

1 white onion diced

4 stalks celery diced

2 bay leaves

2 14.5 oz cans navy beans drained and rinsed

8 cups vegetable broth

1 tablespoon olive oil

Salt and black pepper to taste

Directions

Heat oil in large pot. Add onion and celery and sauté until tender. Add garlic, green beans, turnip, 1 can of navy beans, parsley, carrot, bay leaves and vegetable broth. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat to simmer. Simmer for 30 minutes. Remove bay leaves and puree all but ¼ of the soup in a blender. Return to pot and add the second can of navy beans. Reheat the soup and allow to simmer for another 30 minutes to completely combine flavors. Serve and enjoy! 

The soup will freeze well for lunches.

If you give it a try, I hope you enjoy it as much as we did. 

Sunday's Salad/Mediterranean Summer Salad

I haven't posted a recipe in quite a while, but this one, at least in my opinion :), is well worth the wait. I originally made the salad during the winter, but for lack of a better name, I'm calling it a Mediterranean Summer Salad. It's light, and yet hearty enough for a main entree when you would like a lighter meal. For those of you who are vegan, it's perfect as it's full of protein.

Easy, easy to put together, just begin with mixed greens, about 3 cups. I like to tear them up a bit before I add the rest of the ingredients.

Top with 1/2 cup of cooked and cooled quinoa.

Next, 4 large, or 6 small radishes thinly sliced.

Chop 1/2 of a fennel bulb. The spicy aspect of the radishes mixes perfectly with the slightly sweet taste of the fennel.

Now add 1/4 cup of toasted and cooled chopped walnuts. If you are in a hurry, delete the toasting, but if you have time, the toasting of the walnuts adds a nice flavor. 

Chop 1 small avocado.
 

Toss the salad and set aside.

The dressing is so, so good. By all means, don't skip this step!
You'll need;
1/3 cup tahini (sesame seed paste)
1/3 cup of good olive oil
1 clove of garlic smashed and finely chopped
juice of 3 fresh lemons
Sea salt and black pepper to taste
Mix well. 

Dish up the salad, be sure to dig to the bottom as the good bits always fall to the bottom of the bowl. Drizzle the salad dressing over, dig in and enjoy! A warning, the dressing is so good that you'll want to eat it right out of the bowl!!!

The salad will make 2 large entree servings, or 4 side servings. Just increase ingredients for a larger crowd.
 

Mediterranean Summer Salad

Yield: 2 Entrée servings, or 4 side servings

Ingredients:

3 cups of mixed greens

¼ cup cooked and cooled quinoa

4 large, or 6 small sliced radishes

½ bulb fennel chopped

¼ cup chopped and toasted walnuts

1 small avocado chopped

Salad Dressing

1/3 cup tahini (sesame seed paste)

1/3 cup olive oil

1 clove garlic smashed and finely chopped

Juice of 3 lemons

Sea Salt and Black Pepper to taste

Directions

Mix all salad ingredients.

Stir to combine salad dressing ingredients.

To serve, drizzle salad dressing over salad and enjoy!