Holy SOUP!

Soup requires no introduction. It is that comforting deliciousness that makes us all warm and happy inside. And there is no better way to make soup, in my opinion, then to just wing it with what you have lying around. Of course, you have your basic soup structure of, at the very least, onion, garlic, and vegetable broth, but the rest is up to the imagination. Crafting a delicious soup has the potential to serve so many functions, like allowing you to use up items in the kitchen that might otherwise go bad, offering the opportunity to pack in maximum nutrition, and giving you the chance to get creative - all along with being super tasty! 

Here is a truly noteworthy soup that I made the other day: Potato leek lentil green bean soup spectacular. 

I was inspired to make soup because I had a lot of veggies in my fridge and I was becoming concerned that they may not all get eaten in time. Among these were leeks, green beans and arugula. I decided to throw them all together, plus potatoes, onions, cabbage and lentils, into one big delicious sloppy mess. 

First I prepped my veggies. I picked the ends off the green beans and gave them a good rise.

Then I sliced the leeks (I used 3) and soaked them in some water to remove any hidden dirt (leeks tend to collect lots of dirt in their little ringlets).

Next I chopped some of my gorgeous CSA red onion, just for some color and flavor depth (leeks are very oniony in taste, so adding extra onion is by no means necessary).

Then, lots and lots of fresh garlic.

I heated a pot with olive oil and butter (soup is one of the few things that I always put butter in) and sauteed the leaks, onions and garlic. I also tossed in some random cabbage that I had that needed to be used up.

To that I added spices, like celery salt, pepper and a couple bay leaves. I let it cook for a few minutes before adding in the liquid: a jar of beet juice (made when boiling my CSA beets - homemade veggie stock!), some vegetable stock, white wine (dry wines like Pinot Grigio are good for cooking), and lemon juice.


Then I added some beautiful CSA potatoes and chopped green beans.

Next, some lentils. 

Then, after coming to a light boil, I set the pot on low heat and walked away. For an hour and half. Patience is essential to cooking a flavorful soup. Once you have everything in there, nothing but time will allow it all to come together into one tasty entity.

Finally, I spooned about half of the soup into the blender and blended it all together. I then added it back into the pot. This allows the soup to further combine into one coherent whole.

All that was left to do was toast up some of the incredible jalapeno pepper jack bread, that I got at the Henniker farmer's market, in a pan with some olive oil.

And badabing badaboom - a perfectly awesome dinner that is even better as leftovers throughout the week!