Tuesday, January 22, 2013

Best Winter Soup

This recipe I found on the blog Healthy Living.  Today it is in my stockpot.




 The Healthy Librarian's "Enlightened" Riff on Alton Brown's Best Winter Vegetable Soup

Cooking time:  about 2+ hours
Makes 6 1/2+ quarts of soup 
This recipe is an "enlightened and enriched" riff off of Alton Brown's soup.
Ingredients:
8 ounces of cremini mushrooms, sliced
1 large onion, chopped
2 large carrots, chopped
2 celery ribs, chopped
4 cloves of garlic, chopped
1 teaspoon of fresh rosemary, chopped
2 teaspoons of fresh sage, chopped
28 ounces of whole tomatoes in tomato puree or juice (next time, I'm using chopped tomatoes)
2 ½ quarts of low-sodium vegetable broth
3 tablespoons of low-sodium soy sauce  (Alton says the soy adds Umami)
2” X 2” skinny square of parmesan rind  (TOTALLY OPTIONAL!!) It stayed intact and we discarded it after cooking.
1 pound, 2 ounces of pre-cut butternut squash cubes (the size of TJ's pre-packaged cut-up squash)
10 ounces of chopped curly kale, stems removed
2 cans (15 ounce ea.) no-salt Great Northern beans---DO NOT DRAIN!
2 tablespoons of red wine vinegar. (Alton says the vinegar cuts the acidity of the tomatoes)
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Directions:
Use a large 8 quart soup pot.  Heat on high and sear and brown the mushrooms, until tender.  Only add a little water or broth if they start to stick.  Remove them from the pot, to add back in later.

Lower heat and sweat onions, carrots, and celery over low heat for 30 minutes, at least.  I like to cover the pot, and stir occasionally, checking to see if they are getting too dry, and need a little water to deglaze the pan. They’ll be very soft.


Add in garlic, rosemary, and sage


Add the tomatoes in their juice, and mix with a wooden spoon to break up the tomatoes.  Cook for about  5 minutes, to blend everything together.   (Note: next time I'm using chopped tomatoes)


Increase the heat, and add the vegetable broth to the pot.  Mix in soy sauce and drop in the parmesan rind. Heat just until boiling.


Lower heat to a simmer and add the squash and kale.   Cover and simmer for at least 30 minutes.


Now, add the mushrooms back in, and the 2 undrained cans of Great Northern beans to help thicken the soup with their starch.  Mix well.  Then add the 2 TSP of red wine vinegar to cut the acidity from the tomatoes.


Heat through.


Alton says this is the best soup he has ever made.


Options:  Consider adding some orzo or another whole grain small-sized pasta into the soup.
Serve with a salad and crusty grainy bread.
Bon Appetit!

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