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Spring Cleaning Soup

Time to forage: gather from your so-called crisper drawer any vegetable too wilted or ugly to be presented in it’s natural state.  Aim to eat the rainbow - but not all at once.  Remember kindergarten painting?  Those primary colors look great on their own, but mix them all together and you get a big brown blotch.  It’s the same with vegetables.  Soups work best when limited to a single color family and/or variety.  For example, a green soup made of zucchini and spinach.  Or a cruciferous soup, made of broccoli and cauliflower.  Or an orange root soup, made from sweet potato and carrots, jazzed up with a little ginger (fresh is best, but dried will do in a pinch).  If you need to mix things up, go crazy with spices (added during cooking) and herbs (upon serving).  In soup and art, creativity within boundaries can yield the best result. 
Course Soup
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes
Total Time 30 minutes
Servings 6 serves
Author Kate Buckley

Equipment

  • immersion blender

Ingredients

  • 1 large onion, chopped You could substitute a leek, handful of shallots, or a combination of all three. 
  • 4 cups vegetables, including trimmed stems and tender leaves, chopped I used two flowering heads of broccoli and mouldering half-head of cauliflower, and a handful of spinach.
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced If you don’t have garlic, substitute shallots.  
  • 6 cups stock - chicken or vegetable In a true pinch, you could use water, but be sure to add an additional cup of chopped aromatic veg - celery and carrot - to your 1 cup of onion. 
  • ⅓ cup savoury yeast flakes OPTIONAL: the perfect addition to cauliflower or broccoli, for a cheezy soup that’s decadent, comforting, and a great source of vitamin B.

Instructions

  • Heat the fat/oil of your choice over a medium-high flame (I used olive oil).  Sauté your onion and/or aromatic vegetables gently, until tender and the onion becomes translucent without browning. 
  • Add your minced garlic, lower the heat to medium, and sauté for 30 seconds or until fragrant.  Stir continuously - you don’t want the garlic to change color.  Season with a large pinch of sea salt.
  • Add your chopped veg, season again with sea salt (another generous pinch, or two) and sauté for 2-3 minutes.  Again, don’t let the vegetables brown.
  • Add your liquid, turn the flame up to high, and bring to the boil.  Once it’s boiling, reduce the heat to low and simmer with the lid on for 15 minutes.  Test your veg: when it is fork-tender and breaks apart with little or no resistance, you are ready to blend.
  • Grab your immersion blender and start whizzing.  I don’t like leaving any chunks.  If you’re pureeing your soup in a conventional blender or food processor, please wait until it’s completely cool, blend in small batches, and use tea towel to cover the top and seams of your device.  You don’t want to be mopping soup off your celling (I speak from experience).
  • If you need more liquid, throw in a little extra stock or a bit of water.  Or leave it thick, for a hearty potage. 
  • If you’re adding nutritional yeast, now is the time.  Whizz it in using the blender (you don’t want powdery pockets).
  • Taste and adjust your seasoning. Tuck in.