Soups/Salads

Here, you can scroll through a list of the recipes I have previously posted.  If you want to leave a comment or question, a link to the original post can be found on the Recipes Page.

 

Corn and Potato Chowder

 

Ingredients

1 yellow onion (diced)
3 cloves garlic (minced)
2 tbs butter
1 1/2 tbs flour
1/2 cup fat free milk
1/2 cup evaporated milk (or 3 tbs cream cheese)
2 cups vegetable stock
2-3 Russet potatoes (cubed)
1/2 cup frozen corn
1/2 green bell pepper (diced)
1 carrot (chopped)
1 celery stalk w/ leaves (chopped)
1 tbs creole seasoning (I use Tony Chachere)
Fresh cracked pepper
2 bay leaves

How to make Corn and Potato Chowder

This is super easy and even more delicious!

In a large dutch oven, heat butter and add onions and garlic to sweat.  After about 3 minutes, add the flour a bit at a time and slowly stir.  Do not let the flour turn brown.  Then, add a bit of the vegetable stock and stir continuously.  Add more vegetable stock at the mixture thickens until all of the stock is added.  Stir, and make sure there are not lumps.  Add about 6 cups of water and the creole seasoning.

Bring this to a boil.  Add the bay leaves, potatoes, carrots, and celery.  Simmer for about 10 minutes or until almost tender.  Add the bell pepper, corn, milk, and evaporated milk or cream cheese.  Bring to a simmer and add black pepper.

Serve with cheese or cilantro and sliced green onions.  Enjoy!

Green Chili and Corn Bisque

Ingredients

1/2 cup frozen corn
1 yellow onion
3 cloves of garlic
2 tbs butter
4 cups veggie stock
1/2 cup half and half
3 green chilies
1 5 oz can of roasted green chilies
3 tbs cilantro
2 green onions
1 russet potato
salt and pepper to taste

How to make Green Chili and Corn Bisque

This is a very spicy recipe, so to reduce the heat, simply take the seeds out of the peppers.

Melt the butter in a large dutch oven.  Add the onions, chopped peppers, and potato.  Saute for about 5 minutes.  Add the garlic and saute for about 5 minutes more.

Add the veggie stock and the can of green chilies.  Cook until all of the vegetables are soft.  If the liquid does not cover the ingredients, add a bit of water.  Then, add some of the cilantro (about half) and cool the mixture a bit.

In a blender or a food processor, puree the mixture until smooth.  Put it back on the stove and add the corn and the half and half.  Bring the soup back to boiling and serve garnished with the rest of the cilantro and the green onion.  I also like to top it with some tortilla chips.

Greek Spinach Soup

 

Ingredients

2 tbs butter or olive oil
1 medium white onion
3 cloves of garlic
3 cups of spinach (stems removed)
1 lemon
1 cup orzo pasta
2 cups veggie stock
1 can of diced tomatoes
1 stalk of celery
1 green or red bell pepper
1/2 tbs vegetarian worchestire sauce
1 tsp lemon pepper
Salt and pepper to taste

How to make Greek Spinach Soup

This is a really light and refreshing soup that is delicious in the summer time.

Heat butter in a large dutch over over medium heat.  Add the diced onion and saute for about 5 minutes.  Add the garlic and saute 3 minutes more.  Add the stock and tomatoes and bring to a boil.

Than add the orzo pasta and reduce to a simmer.  When pasta is about 1/3 done (about 5 minutes), add the vegetables.

Add lemon juice just before serving and serve garnished with lemon zest.  Enjoy!

Heirloom Cherry Tomato and Spinach Salad

 

Ingredients

For the Salad:

6 Heirloom cheery tomatoes
2 1/2 cups loosely packed spinach
1 1/2 tbs dried cranberries
1/2 tbs unsalted sunflower seeds
a few shavings a good, aged English cheddar

For the Dressing:
1 tbs apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup truffle oil (or olive oil)
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp  fresh cracked pepper

How to make Heirloom Cherry Tomato and Spinach Salad

This salad is so delicious and so simple.  I do not choose to include too many ingredients because I really love to let the heirloom cherry tomatoes sing.  If you cannot find heirlooms, regular cherry tomatoes are fine too.

Slice the cherry tomatoes into halves or quarters (depending on the size) and combine in a bowl with the washed and dried spinach, seeds, cranberries, and cheese.

For the dressing, combine all dressing ingredients except for the oil in a separate bowl.  Then, slowly whisk in the oil.

Pour the dressing over the salad and serve.

Hot and Sour Soup

 

Ingredients

4-5 cups vegetable stock
4 cups water
2-4 tbs good soy sauce (to taste)
1 small diced yellow onion
2-3 cloves of garlic
1 tbs sesame or vegetable oil
1 carrot
1 celery stalk
1/2 cup rice  (I like brown rice)
1/2 14 oz. can of bamboo shoots
1 14 oz. can cut baby corn
2 stalks of bok choy
2 tsp powdered ginger (or 2 slices of fresh)
2 green onions
1-3 tsp Sriracha
1 1/2 tbs jarred lemon grass
1/2 medium lime

How to make Hot and Sour Soup

Heat oil in a large pan on medium high heat

Add yellow onion.  Saute for about 1-2 minutes and add chopped garlic and ginger.  Saute about 3 minutes until garlic is fragrant and not burned.

Add vegetable stock, water, soy sauce, lemon grass, Sriracha, lime juice, and about 1/2 of green onions.  Simmer on medium-low for about 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, in a medium pot, cook rice until mostly tender.  *Here is where the optional extra cup of vegetable stock comes in.  I think it gives the rice more flavor.  I also like to add a dash of soy sauce and Sriracha.

When rice is about 3/4 cooked, add chopped carrot and celery to the stock.  Simmer until carrots are cooked.  Add rice, bamboo shoots, bok choy and baby carrots to the stock.  Simmer until warm and bok choy is tender.

Serve garnished with the rest of the green onions.

**Many different vegetables can be added to the recipe depending on your taste.

Italian Vegan Vegetable Soup

 

Ingredients

1 tbs olive oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 medium yellow onion, diced
1 14 oz can Italian style diced tomatoes
1 head broccoli
1/4 bunch kale
1/4 cup barley
2 stalks celery, chopped
1 carrot, chopped
1 tsp dried, crushed rosemary
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp dried thyme
2 tsp dried basil
S & P

How to make Italian Vegan Vegetable Soup

This was created while I was craving pizza, but was on a very strict vegan, liver healthy diet (i.e. no bread or cheese and only liver healthy veggies).

In a dutch oven, heat oil over medium heat.  Add garlic and onion and sweat for about 5 minutes. 

Add carrots and celery and some salt and pepper.  Saute for about 3 minutes.  Add tomatoes and about 4 cups of water.  Bring to a boil, add barley and herbs, and then reduce to a simmer.

After about 15-20 minutes, add the broccoli and kale.  Heat until cooked through.

Season with salt and pepper and serve!

It's super easy, but really delicious!

Kale and Barley Soup

 

Ingredients

2 tbs butter
1 white onion
1 shallot
3 cloves garlic
1/2 tbs curry powder
1 14.5 oz can of diced tomatoes
3 cups vegetable stock
2 cups water
3/4-1 cup pearl barley
3 bay leaves
1 tbs vegetarian worcestershire sauce
2 carrots
1 stalk celery
3 leaves of chopped kale
1 green bell pepper
2 tsp celery salt
1 tsp garlic salt
1 tsp dried Italian seasonings
pepper to taste

How to make Kale and Barley Soup

This is a healthy and rich recipe that can be modified for any vegetable tastes.  I often add cannellini beans for some extra protein.

In a large dutch oven, heat butter over medium heat.  Add diced onion and shallots and saute for about 4 minutes.  Then add the garlic and curry powder and saute for a few minutes more.  Then add the tomatoes in juice, vegetable stock, water, worcestershire sauce, Italian seasonings, bay leaves, celery salt, garlic salt, and pepper and bring to a boil.  Add the barley and reduce to a simmer.  The barley takes a while to cook, so I wait a while to add my vegetables so they don't get soggy.

After about 20 minutes, add the carrot and celery.  Cook until barley is nearly tender.  Then add the bell pepper and kale and cook until all ingredients are thoroughly cooked.

Enjoy!

Mint and Pea Soup with Crispy Shallots Recipe

 

Ingredients

Crispy Shallots:

1 large Shallot
1/2 tbs vegetable oil

Soup:

1 small white onion
2 cloves of garlic
1 carrot
2 celery stalks
1 tbs vegetable oil
3 cups vegetable stock
about 3 cups water
1 1/2 lbs frozen peas
2/3 cups unpacked fresh mint
1/3 block light cream cheese
1 pinch cayenne pepper
Fresh cracked pepper
Salt
Parmesan cheese for serving

How to make Mint and Pea Soup with Crispy Shallots

This might sound like an odd combination, but it's classic and delicious!  If served warm, the mint flavor will be less intense.  For a more intense mint flavor, serve chilled.

For the crispy shallots:
In a pan (I used the dutch oven I was going to use for the soup), heat oil over medium to medium-high heat.  Chop and separate the sections of the shallots.  Fry in the oil for about 3-4 minutes or until brown but not burnt.  Be careful because this transition can happen quickly.  Set aside and lightly salt.

For the soup:
In the same dutch oven (make sure there are no bits of shallot left), add a bit more oil to set heat to medium.  Add the chopped onions, carrots, garlic, celery, cayenne, and some salt and pepper.  Saute for about 7 minutes.  Then, add the stock and peas.  Add enough water to ensure that all of the ingredients are covered.

Bring to a boil and then reduce to a simmer for about 10 minutes or until all vegetables are very tender.  Do not worry about over cooking the vegetables because they are going to be pureed.  When vegetables are very soft, add the cream cheese and heat through until dissolved.

Add the mint and stir for about 1 minute.

Then, in a blender or with an immersion blender, puree the soup until smooth.  If desire, pass through a sieve for an extra smooth soup.

Garnish with the crispy shallots, fresh cracked pepper, Parmesan cheese, and a mint sprig.  Enjoy!

Quick Mexican Style Soup

 

Ingredients

1 tbs oil
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 shallot, diced
1 pinch cumin
1 pinch dried Mexican oregano
1/2 cup dry orzo
6 cups vegetable stock
1 carrot, chopped
3-4 stalks of celery with leave, chopped
1/4 bunch cilantro, roughly chopped
1 pinch cayenne pepper (optional)
2 green onions, chopped
S&P

 

How to make Quick Mexican Style Soup

This is a very quick soup that is easy and hearty!

In a large pot, heat oil over medium heat.  Add garlic, shallot, cumin, carrots, and celery.  Saute for about 5 minutes until very fragrant. 

Add stock and bring to a boil.  Add the oregano, cayenne, 1/2 of the cilantro, and the orzo.  Reduce to a simmer and cook for about 8 minutes until orzo and vegetables are al dente.

Top with the rest of the cilantro and green onions and garnish with lime zest, sharp cheese, sour cream, and/or avocado.

Simple Potato Leek Soup

 

Ingredients

2 cups vegetable stock
2 cups water
1 cup milk
2 tbs butter or margarine
3 cloves of garlic
1 small yellow onion
2 cleaned leeks (white parts only)
4 potatoes
1 celery stalk
1 bay leaf
5 shakes of McCormick's garlic and onion seasoning (or other favorite seasoning)
2 green onions
salt and pepper to taste

How to make Simple Potato Leek Soup

This is a delicious and super simple recipe for a healthier version of potato leek soup.

Melt butter in a dutch oven on medium heat.  Add chopped onions and simmer for about 4 minutes.  Then add the garlic and chopped leeks.  Simmer for about 4 more minutes.

Add the vegetable stock, water, bay leaf, seasoning, and potatoes.  Cook on medium low heat until potatoes are tender.  About half way through this, add the celery stalk and one green onion, chopped.

Remove soup from the heat and let it cool down a bit.  Remove the bay leaf.  Then, blend mixture in a food processor or blender until smooth.  Be sure not to over blend the mixture, as potatoes can get a bit gummy.

Place soup back on heat and add the milk.  Let soup warm up.  Serve with chopped green onions and a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese.

Strawberry Arugula Salad

 

Ingredients

2 large strawberries, sliced
2 cups arugula
6 spinach leaves
3-6 grape tomatoes, halved
1 celery stalk, chopped
2 florets cauliflower, chopped
1/4 cup shaved/shredded Parmesan cheese
1 tbs dried currants (optional)

How to make Strawberry Arugula Salad

This salad is a wonderful balance of sweet, salty, tart, and peppery. It is perfect along side any meal, but I usually serve it with an Italian style dish.

Combine all ingredients in a large bowl.  Top with an Italian vinegarette or use one of my standard dressing recipes:

Dressing:
1/4 cup lemon juice
1 tbs white wine vinegar
1/4 cup truffle oil (or olive oil)
1/2-1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1/4 tsp white sugar
1/4 tsp garlic powder

or

For the Dressing:
1 tbs apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup truffle oil (or olive oil)
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp  fresh cracked pepper

Enjoy!

Taco Salad

 

Ingredients

Salad:
4 leaves of green leaf lettuce
1/2 cup frozen corn (thawed)
5 black olives, sliced
1/4 cup of fresh slice tomato
a few pinches of fresh cilantro
1/2 of a green onion3 slices of jalepeno

Dressing:
Juice of one small lime
1 1/2 tbs of olive oil
1 tsp white wine vinegar
pinch of ground cumin
1/4 tsp garlic salt
1/2 tsp fresh black pepper
Dash of hot sauce

How to make Taco Salad

This is a really easy and delicious salad that is perfect with a heavier, possibly Mexican inspired dish.

Chop all salad ingredients to desired size.  Combine in bowl and top with fresh cilantro.  The jalepeno is optional, but I think it adds a nice kick.  Also, to give the salad a bit more flavor, I like to cook the frozen corn in salt, pepper, hot sauce, and cumin.  It gets the flavors into the dish in a subtle and nice way.

For the dressing:  Juice the lime and whisk in the olive oil a little at a time.  Then add the other ingredients and stir.  Pour over salad right before serving.

Vegetable Broth with Ginger

 

Ingredients

Vegetables from "Roasted Root Vegetables Recipe"
4 stalks of celery
1 roma tomato, quartered
3 thin slices of ginger (optional)
1 tsp powdered ginger
8-10 cups of water
salt and pepper

How to make Vegetable Broth with Ginger

This recipe was developed from my roasted root vegetable recipe during a liver cleanse that I was on.  The broth is rich and hearty, and will fill you up with with healthy nutrients.

In a large pot, place all of the roughly chopped vegetables and cover with water.  You want about an inch of water above the veggies.

Add any salt and pepper and herbs that you might be using (bay leaf, thyme, etc.).

Bring to a boil and then reduce to a simmer.  Cover and cook for about 2 hours or until very flavorful.

Strain mixture through a fine mesh strainer and either discard solids or puree them with some of the broth and some seasonings.  (I tried this, and I found the broth to be remarkably bland and off putting, even after adding quite a bit of seasoning: soy sauce, peanuts, cabbage, green, cilantro).

Either drink the broth as a clarified soup, or save it for vegetable stock purposes.

Tip: You can freeze the broth in an ice cube tray and then put into a plastic bag for convenient sized use later.

Vegetable Miso Soup

Ingredients

1 quart vegetable stock
2 tbs sesame oil
1 clove minced garlic
1 block of firm tofu
6 oz frozen Asian stir fry vegetable mix
5 tbs yellow vegetarian miso paste
1 tbs soy sauce
3 green onions
1/2 cup cilantro

How to make Vegetable Miso Soup

This super simple recipe only takes about 10 minutes to make and will feed everyone in your kitchen!

In a large pot, heat oil over medium heat and saute garlic for about 3 minutes.  Add vegetable stock and about 14 oz of water, soy sauce, and bring to a simmer.  Add the frozen vegetables and tofu and cook for about 4 minutes.  Be sure that the mixture does not boil.

Add in the miso paste and heat for about 2 minutes.  Serve topped with green onions and cilantro.

Vegetable Puree

 

Ingredients

1 medium onion
1 shallot
6-8 cloves of garlic
4 carrots
2-3 stalks of celery
2 small potatoes or 1 large potato
1 inch cube of fresh ginger (optional)
1/2 cup cabbage
3/4 tbs vegetable/olive oil
1/2 tsp celery salt
3 green onions
6 cups vegetable stock
S&P

How to make Vegetable Puree

This puree is so lovely and warming, no one will believe it is so easy to make.  I love purees because you don't have to worry about chopping as uniformly or cooking each vegetable perfectly.  Instead, you can just throw everything in a pot and let it boil away!

In a large dutch oven, heat oil over medium heat.  Add diced potatoes, carrots, celery, garlic, onions, shallot, ginger, salt and pepper.  Sweat for about 6-8 minutes until vegetables begin to color a bit.  Be sure not to burn the garlic.

Slowly pour in the stock, scraping the bottom of the pan with a spoon to pull up the yummy bits.

Bring to a boil and add in the cabbage, 3/4 of the green onions, and celery salt.  Reduce to a simmer and cook until all of the vegetables are very soft.

Puree with an immersion blender or a food processor in batches until smooth.  Taste and season with more salt and pepper accordingly.

Top bowls with remaining green onions and fresh cracked pepper.  Enjoy!

This is also a great soup for leftovers because nothing gets soggy or discolored.  I usually make it in such large batched because of that!

Vegetarian Chik'n Noodle Soup Recipe

 

Ingredients

1 and 1/2 tbs olive oil (divided)
1 yellow onion (chopped)
3 cloves of garlic (minced)
6-8 cups of vegetable stock
3 stalks of celery w/ leaves (chopped)
2 carrots (chopped)
1-2 cups uncooked egg noodles
1 bay leaf
1 tsp marjoram
about 4 pieces of vegetarian chik'n strips
S & P

How to make Vegetarian Chik'n Noodle Soup

This soup was created when I was very ill and just wanted a big bowl of comfort.

In a large dutch oven, sweat the onions and garlic in 1 tbs oil for about 3 minutes or until fragrant.  Then, add the stock, marjoram, and bay leaf and bring to a boil.  Then add the carrot, celery, and noodles.  Reduce to medium heat.

Meanwhile, in a skillet, heat the remaining 1/2 tbs oil and add the chik'n strips.  Cook on both sides until lightly browned.  Cut into little pieces.

When the noodles and vegetable are cooked, add the chik'n and serve.

Walnut Summer Salad Recipe

 

Ingredients

Salad:
3 cups baby spinach
1/4 cup chopped walnuts
1/4 cup alfalfa sprouts
1/2 diced roma tomato
1 hard boiled egg quartered
2 tbs dried cranberries
1 sliced green onion

Dressing:
1/4 cup lemon juice
1 tbs white wine vinegar
1/4 cup truffle oil (or olive oil)
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1/4 tsp white sugar
1/4 tsp garlic powder

How to make Walnut Summer Salad

This refreshing salad serves about 2 people

Combine salad ingredients in a large bowl if sharing or divide into two bowls.  I like to season the eggs with salt and pepper before putting them into the salad.

In a separate bowl (I use a measuring cup), combine all dressing ingredients except for the oil.  Then, slowly whisk in the oil.

Drizzle over salad and serve immediately.