Stinkerpants

My Three Favorite Soups

December 13, 2009 in Cooking

While every season has delicious recipes, I have to admit: my favorite time of year (recipe-wise, at least) is Winter.  Why?  Because of soup, which is best when it is cold as heck outside.

This time last year I shared my favorite Carrot Soup recipe. It’s still one of my staples, soup-wise, but I’ve added a couple more to my Fall/Winter arsenal. And because they bring me so much joy, I’m going to share the recipes with you, right here, right now: Potato Corn Leek Soup, Carrot Soup and Curried Cauliflower Soup.  I’m about to devour a bowl of Potato Leek Soup as we speak, actually.

Those of you with CSA boxes will be happy with these recipes, too, because they utilize delicious in-season veggies like cauliflower and leeks, that you might not know what to do with.

Potato Corn Leek Soup

My current favorite is the Potato Leek Soup.  This recipe was served at my friend Karen’s birthday a couple of years ago, and I’ve loved it ever since.  The original recipe is from Cooking Light.

image from here

Ingredients

• 2  tablespoons  butter
• 1  tablespoon  olive oil
• 1 1/2  cups  coarsely chopped leek (about 1 large)
• 1/2  cup  finely chopped celery
• 1/2  cup  finely chopped red bell pepper
• 2  cups  whole milk*
• 3  tablespoons  all-purpose flour
• 3  cups  fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
• 2  cups  fresh corn kernels (about 4 ears)
• 2  pounds  cubed peeled Yukon gold or red potato
• 1  teaspoon  salt
• 1/4  teaspoon  freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4  cup  finely chopped fresh parsley
• 3  tablespoons  chopped fresh chives

Preparation
Heat butter and oil in a large Dutch oven over medium heat. Add leek, celery, and bell pepper; cook 4 minutes or until vegetables are tender, stirring frequently. Combine milk and flour in a small bowl, stirring with a whisk. Slowly add milk mixture to pan, stirring constantly. Stir in broth, corn, potato, salt, and freshly ground black pepper; bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer 20 minutes or until potato is tender. Stir in parsley and chives.

*In my kitchen, I almost exclusively substitute 2% milk for whole milk and heavy cream.  I personally don’t think cream or whole milk is worth the added fat and calories.  This soup is fantabulous with regular milk.

Carrot Soup

Last year’s favorite (and still obviously in the top 3) is my Carrot Soup recipe. The original recipe is from Moosewood Restaurant.

image from here

Ingredients

• 2 pounds peeled or scrubbed, chopped carrots
• 4 cups stock
• 1 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 medium potato, chopped
• 3-4 tablespoons butter
• 1 cup chopped onion
• 1-2 small cloves crushed garlic
• 1/3 cup chopped cashews
• 2 pinches of nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon dried mint
• dash of cinnamon
• 1 cup milk

Preparation
Place carrots, stock, salt and potato into a medium sized soup pot and bring to a boil. Cover and simmer it for 12-15 minutes. Let it cool to room temp.

Saute the onion, garlic and nuts in the butter until the onions are clear. You can sprinkle in a little salt to help draw the moisture out of the onions. Towards the end of cooking, stir in the nutmeg, mint and cinnamon.

Use an immersion blender to puree. Whisk in milk. Garnish with toasted nuts, some toasted bread crumbs, grated parmesan, or eat just as it is.

Curried Cauliflower Soup

Last year we received a giant head of cauliflower in our CSA box, and I felt totally stumped.  My dad always hated Cauliflower, and growing up I decided I hated it too, despite never having actually tasted it (I trusted my dad, what can I say?).  When I used it to create this Curried Cauliflower Soup, I was blown away.  Apparently I don’t hate cauliflower after all. The original recipe is from Vegetarian Times.

image from here

Ingredients

• 2 Tbs. olive oil
• 1 small onion, chopped (1 cup)
• 1 medium tart apple, such as Granny Smith, peeled, cored, and coarsely chopped (1 cup)
• 1 Tbs. curry powder
• 1 clove garlic, sliced (1 tsp.)
• 1 large head cauliflower, chopped into 1-inch pieces (6 cups)
• 4 cups low-sodium vegetable broth
• 1 tsp. honey or agave nectar
• 1 tsp. rice wine vinegar

Preparation
1. Heat oil in large pot over medium-high heat. Add onion, and sauté 5 to 7 minutes, or until soft and golden. Stir in apple, curry powder, and garlic, and cook 2 minutes more, or until curry powder turns deep yellow.
2. Add cauliflower and vegetable broth, and bring to a simmer. Cover, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer 20 minutes. Cool 20 minutes, then blend in food processor or blender until smooth. Stir in honey and vinegar, and season with salt, if desired.

I hope you guys love these recipes as much as I do!  And please, if you have your own favorite soup recipes, share in the comments!!