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Tag: vegetable soup

Creamy Broccoli And Potato Soup with a Light Roux

One of my ladies shared this delicious broccoli soup recipe (thanks Kathleen). It’s nice and light, and since were heading into a season of heavy foods, I wanted to share this with you.

While you do make a light roux, it’s just enough flour to thicken the soup. Most of the body of the soup comes from the potatoes. As with most soups its fairly forgiving so feel free to experiment with the proportions of potatoes to broccoli, add cheese, or use a milk substitute.

Ingredients:

  • 1 ¾ lbs broccoli
  • 3 onions (1 ½ lbs)
  • salt to taste
  • 1 Tbs. olive oil
  • 2 ½ Tbs. butter
  • 3 russet potatoes (approx. 1 lb)
  • 1 stalk celery
  • 3 cups water
  • 4 cups vegetable broth
  • juice of ½ lemon
  • 1 ½ Tbs. flour
  • 2 cups hot milk
  • 2 Tbs. Dijon mustard
  • generous pinch of cayenne

Directions:

  1. Trim the broccoli, peel the stems and chop them coarsely, and break the heads into small florets. You should have about 6 cups of broccoli pieces.
  2. Coarsely chop the onions.
  3. Heat the olive oil and 1 tablespoon of butter in a large non stick pan, and sauté the onions until golden.
  4. Peel and dice the potatoes and chop the celery. Place them in a soup pot with the water and vegetable broth, and about ½ teaspoon of salt. Bring to a boil, lower the heat and simmer for 10 minutes. Add the broccoli pieces and the sautéed onions and simmer another 8-10 minutes, until everything is tender. If you like, you can reserve a cup or two of the broccoli florets to steam separately and use as a garnish, or to stir into the soup at the end for greater texture.
  5. When the vegetables are tender, stir in the lemon juice, and then puree the soup in batches in a blender (I use an immersion blender). Don’t over process: the texture should be somewhat rough.
  6. Melt the remaining 1½ tablespoons of butter in a heavy-bottomed skillet and stir in the flour. Cook this roux for a few minutes, stirring, until it has a pale-gold color. Whisk in the hot milk, bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer, stirring or whisking until it thickens. Whisk in the mustard and the cayenne, and mix the white sauce into the soup.
  7. Bring the soup back to a simmer, taste, and correct the seasoning with more salt, mustard, or cayenne if needed.

Spicy Veggie Soup

Anybody else recovering from an overindulgent holiday? This month I am making a concerted effort to include more veggies and less sugar in my diet.

Are you looking for healthy meal ideas? Try this veggie soup courtesy of my buddy Laura. This soup is so creamy and delicious I couldn’t believe it was dairy free and vegan. Keep reading for the secret ingredient…

 

soup

 

Ingredients:

  • 2 Tbsp of olive oil
  • 3 large carrots
  • 4 large ribs of celery (plus the inside ribs, with all leaves attached)
  • 1 large onion
  • 1 large head of broccoli, including stalk
  • 3 cloves of garlic
  • 1 small box (8 oz) of mushrooms
  • 1 small jalapeno
  • 2 cups potato stock*
  • 1 tsp thyme

Method:

  1. Roughly chop all your veggies (you will be blending them later).
  2. Saute in olive oil in a stock pot over med-high heat for a few minutes until they are slightly browned.
  3. Add potato stock and bring to a boil. Cook until veggies are soft, an hour or so.
  4. Turn off heat and let sit for a half hour.
  5. Transfer to blender and blend (NEVER BLEND HOT LIQUIDS) and pour back into soup pot.
  6. Add thyme, reheat soup and serve.

*potato stock is the leftover salted water from boiled potatoes. This gives the soup a creamy texture. You may also use chicken or veggie stock.

 

Anne McCranie is a Portland Oregon based personal trainer and Licensed Massage Therapist. She offers this recipe to pique your interest in healthy foods. Please see your medical professional for specific dietary advice.