Vegetarian Vegetable Soup

Hearty. Simple. Delicious. 

The weather is slowly turning colder and the hearty warmth of homemade soup is perfect way to chase away the Autumn chill. This simple recipe will fill your kitchen with the amazing smell you remember from childhood. Reach into the back of your cupboard and pull out that old soup kettle. It's time to make something wonderful.

This recipe makes a sizable quantity. The broth is divine and can be used in many wonderful ways. I recommend saving the extra broth and freezing. (Hint: Use extra broth from this recipe to replace the water next time you prepare rice. You'll end up with a savory, herb rice your guests will rave about.)

Ingredients for Stock:

16 cups (1gl) of Water*

2 medium White or Golden Potatoes, skinned and diced as small as possible

3 tablespoons of dried Parsley

3 tablespoons of Sea Salt

2 tablespoons of minced Garlic

2 teaspoons of Ground Black Pepper

2 teaspoons of dried Basil

2 teaspoons of dried Rosemary

1 teaspoon of dried Thyme

1 teaspoon of dried Cilantro

1 teaspoon of dried Chive

1 stick of real Butter or 1/2 cup of Extra Virgin Olive Oil

 

Vegetables & Noodles:

-You can use which ever vegetables appeal most to you. Below is a list of vegetables I really enjoy, but you can add or subtract as you desire. Try and keep the onions as they provide true weight to the broth and, alongside the potatoes, they provide the creamy texture loved in soups.

- This is a soup recipe and you have a lot of vegetables to chop. Please do not stress about the chopping size or uniformity of your veggie pieces. Big hearty bites appeal to the eye and they work better for lending their flavor to the overall taste of the soup.

4 large or 6 medium Onions, chopped into hearty chunks
8-10 Carrots chopped into 1'' pieces
6 Celery stalks, cut in half length-wise and chopped into 1/2'' pieces
6 Green Onions, chop into 1/2'' pieces all the way up into the greenery
 Other Delicious Add-Ins: 1 Parsnip, chopped into 1'' pieces and/or 1 Leek, chopped into 1'' pieces

1 package of Whole Wheat Egg Noodles or Whole Wheat Gluten Free Noodles.

Directions:

Start your stock before you do anything else.

Many of the soups we know today use dehydrated corn starch or potato starch to create the creaminess we love in soup. Under the Eden Tree we don't use artificial add-ins like these, because we know that nature provides enough of that coveted starch naturally in vegetables. We don't have to use a replacement. The two potatoes you are skinning and dicing very small will eventually boil down until they almost disappear. Nature's own soup thickener -wink- done the old-fashioned way.

Put your water into the kettle and heat it on a medium-high setting. Add the diced potatoes and every bit of the herbs and spices (and any extras that sound good to you). You want to bring the stock to a gentle boil before adding all the chopped veggies. Stir the soup from time to time to mingle all the delicious ingredients. The soup can gently boil away while you begin chopping your veggies.

Please don't add the veggies one at a time as you finish chopping them. Wait until all your veggies are chopped and ready to go, then put them all in at once. Reduce the heat to medium-low and bring it again to a gentle boil. Remember to stir the soup every few minutes to keep the veggies moving around and the flavors mingling. 

When you can easily stick a fork through one of the carrot pieces, you can add the whole bag of whole wheat noodles. Continue to boil the soup over a low heat setting until the noodles are fully cooked.

Serve and Enjoy!

This recipe is amazing when served with warm, fresh bread. And even more delicious the next day as leftovers!

This recipe is:
- Low-Fat
- Vegetarian/Vegan
- Gluten-Free