Ash Reshteh (Persian Vegetable and Noodle Soup)

This hearty vegetarian soup is easy to make with a little planning. There are several versions online and this recipe contains personal tweaks. It is the type of recipe that tolerates "tweaks" very well. You can use alternate legumes, including canned ones if you are in a hurry. 

Soak 1-1/2 cups of dried beans in water for 8-12 hours. I used 1/2 cup each of garbanzos, navy beans and small red beans. Black beans, small fava beans, and green or brown lentils would also work well but I would cook the lentils separately.

Rinse the beans and cook in fresh salted water until they are tender. I used the Instant Pot (manual setting x 12 minutes with natural release).  This makes about 4 cups of cooked beans if you prefer to used canned beans.

In the meantime...

Use a large soup pot.

• Dice 2 onions, 3 cloves of garlic and soften in a tablespoon of olive oil on medium heat
• Add 8 cups of vegetable broth. I used Better than Bouillon paste and water.
• Add 1 generous cup each of chopped parsley, chopped dill, chopped cilantro and fresh spinach or baby kale to the broth. Bring to a boil and simmer until greens are wilted
• Add 200- 225 g of pasta like bucatini or linguine
• Add the cooked beans.

Simmer for 15 minutes until pasta is cooked.

Add 1 teaspoon of turmeric, 1 teaspoon of cumin, salt and pepper to taste

If you have some preserved lemons, finely dice the peel of 1/2 a lemon and add it to the soup. You could squeeze some fresh lemon juice in the soup instead. 

Add a dollop of sour cream or Greek yogurt to serve. 

Serves 6-8

Avgolemono Soup

I was recently introduced to this Greek soup with an egg-lemon thickened broth. Apparently there are many variations of this recipe served in Mediterranean and Baltic countries. It is easy to make and the soup is comforting on a cold day like today.

Here is a version with chicken as well as a vegetarian option. Each recipe makes about 4-6 servings.

In a large saucepan add

• a little olive or cooking oil
• 1 diced onion
• 1 celery stalk (optional)
• 1 diced clove of garlic

Cook for about 5 minutes until vegetables are softened.

Add 

• 4 cups chicken broth
• 1/2 cup white long-grained rice (I used converted rice)
• a little dried thyme, marjoram, and/or parsley if desired

Simmer for 20 minutes until the rice is cooked. Turn off the element.

In a separate bowl whisk together until thoroughly blended and frothy

• 2 eggs
• juice of 2 lemons- approximately 1/3 cup lemon juice (use 1 lemon for a milder flavour)

Put a cup of hot soup in a measuring cup and add to the eggs, a tablespoon at a time, whisking the eggs so they do not curdle. Once the egg-lemon mixture is warmed, add it to the soup, whisking the soup as it is slowly poured in. Add

• 2 cups of cooked chicken
• salt and pepper to taste

Do not allow the soup to boil when heating it up for serving. Other vegetables can be added at the start such as a diced carrot, 1/2 cup of peas, and mushrooms. I used enoki mushrooms which added a noodle-like texture that worked well in the soup.

Vegetarian option:

Sauté onions, celery, garlic as described above but add one diced carrot, 1/2 cup of peas and mushrooms. Add 1/2 cup diced firm tofu if desired.

Add 4 cups of vegetable broth. I used 4 teaspoons of Better than Bouillon in 4 cups of water. Add the rice and cook as above. Mix the eggs and lemon as described and finish the soup according the the previous directions.

This recipe is versatile and you can experiment with other add-ons as desired.

Black Bean Soup

The temperature this morning was "minus double digit" cold again even though it is March. This relentless winter pushes one to hibernate or fill up on warm comfort foods. This morning I put the high fibre cereal box back in the cupboard and heated some delicious black bean soup left over from dinner last night. With a freshly made sourdough whole wheat tortilla and a cuppa tea, I was ready to face the day.

In a large pot add

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 teaspoon crushed cumin seeds
• 1 diced onion
• 1 stalk celery diced
• 1/2 large carrot, diced
• 1/2 red pepper, diced
• 1 jalapeño pepper, diced

Cook over medium heat stirring occasionally until onions are starting to brown.

Add

• 2 cups broth
• 1/2 cup fresh salsa (I used Costco's fresh salsa)
• 4 cups black beans
• 1/2 cup corn (optional)
• Additional seasonings like basil, oregano, cayenne, red pepper flakes, chili powder to taste

Simmer until vegetables are tender and then crush 2 cloves of garlic in soup.

Put half the soup in a blender and process until smooth. Add blended mixture back into the pot. Stir and serve. Garnish as desired with sour cream, lime, tortilla chips.

Vegetable Stock

We eat a lot of soup and I try to keep cartons of vegetable stock on hand. Bouillon cubes are often high in salt and have other ingredients such as MSG added. Here is a recipe for vegetable stock.

Chop the following vegetables and soften them in 2 tbsp oil in a large stock pan:

1 medium onion
1 medium leek
1 stalk celery
1 carrot
1/2 small tomato
3 cloves garlic

Add 12-16 cups water along with:

1 bay leaf
1/2 tsp dried thyme
4 fresh parsley stems
3-4 peppercorns
salt to taste

Simmer for 30-45 minutes, strain and cool.

Other vegetables and herbs can be used such as oregano and mushroom stems. You should soften vegetables in oil or roast them before boiling the stock for the best flavour. Add vegetables ends to a bag in the freezer until you have enough to make stock.

Roasted Tomato Soup

Beth served this soup with grilled cheese croutons. You make a grilled cheese sandwich and cut it in crouton-sized squares.

10 plum tomatoes
6 cloves garlic, unpeeled

Brush with olive oil and season with a little salt. Roast on a tray or shallow baking dish for 1 hour at 350 F.

Dice one onion and sauté in a little butter or olive oil until softened. Add 1 tbsp honey and 1/2 tsp dried oregano.

Add tomatoes, garlic, and 4 cups vegetable stock to onions and simmer for 20-25 minutes, covered. Purée vegetables in blender and sieve to remove seeds.

Add salt and pepper to taste and serve with croutons.

Optional - Add 1/2 cup heavy cream if you need extra taste and calories.

Turkish Lentil Soup

This simple and delicious soup takes only half an hour to make. Our daughter had it in a restaurant when she visited Turkey earlier this year and highly recommended it.

Ingredients:

1 tbsp butter or margarine
1 medium onion, diced
1 medium potato, diced
1 large carrot diced
1 cup red lentils
4 cups vegetable broth
2 cups water
1 teaspoon salt or to taste
Lemon slices

Method:

Cook onions in butter until starting to soften. Add other potato, carrots, lentils, broth, water and salt. Simmer for 15 minutes or so until vegetables are soft and lentils are cooked. Put 3/4 of the soup in a blender and blend until smooth. Return pureed soup to pot or serving bowl. Squeeze fresh lemon juice on soup before eating. (just do it!)

Sprinkle with dried chili flakes if desired.

Serves 6

Simple Pasta e Fagioli Soup

It is a cold, rainy day and this the soup I made for a quick supper after work. There are pasta and bean soups with more ingredients but this was warming and satisfying.

1 carton vegetable broth (approx 1 litre)
1 carton water (approx 1 litre)

Bring to a boil and add:

2/3 cup ditali pasta (small tubes)
3 large cloves thinly sliced garlic
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp dried thyme
1 tsp dried pepper flakes (or to taste)
2-1/2 cups cooked white beans
1/2 bunch of kale, chopped, stems removed

Simmer until pasta is just done. Adjust seasonings to taste.

Serve with freshly grated parmesan cheese and some good bread.

Vegetarian Tortilla Soup for 50 or 12

Photo Credit: Matthew D. Lyons

We had a fundraiser lunch at church today and I made this recipe to serve 50. We actually served more people than that because there was other food and the soup bowls were small. I didn't have a pot big enough at home, but cooked the beans, onions and peppers ahead of time and assembled the ingredients in the church kitchen. I did not make the soup as spicy as I would at home and had some hot sauce available for those who wanted some extra heat. Feel free to adjust the proportions of any ingredient or the spices. The smaller recipe is below in red type.


1/4 cup oil
10 cooking onions, diced

1/4 cup oil  (second amount)
2 poblano peppers, diced
2 jalapeno pepper, diced
2 sweet green peppers, diced
4 sweet red peppers, diced
4 sweet yellow peppers, diced
(or a total of 8 lbs of sweet or hot peppers and onions)

4-28 ounce tins crushed tomatoes
6-900 ml cartons vegetable broth
6 cups canned or frozen corn
2 lbs dried black beans, cooked (8-10 cups cooked beans)
13 oz tin tomato paste

1/3 cup chili powder
1/3 cup ground cumin
8 cloves garlic, pressed
1 bunch chopped cilantro
salt and pepper to taste

Cook onions in oil until softened. Put them in the blender with some of the crushed tomato and blend until smooth. (This step is not needed if everyone likes visible onions in their soup)

Cook peppers until soft. Add onion mixture and all ingredients to the pot. Bring to a simmer and then add seasonings and pressed garlic. Adjust seasonings as required.

Serve with the following garnishes:

Tortilla chips, grated cheese, diced avocado, sliced lime, sour cream, chopped cilantro

We used 2 large bags of tortilla chips, 4 cups grated cheese, 6 avocados, 6 limes, 500 ml sour cream for the crowd.

Tortilla Soup for 12

1 tbsp oil

2 cooking onions, diced

1 tbsp oil (second amount)

1/2 poblano pepper, diced

1/2 jalapeno pepper, diced

1/2 sweet green pepper, diced

1 sweet red pepper, diced

1 sweet yellow pepper, diced

(or a total of 2-3 lbs of sweet or hot peppers and onions of your choice)

1-28 ounce tin crushed tomatoes

1.5-900 ml cartons (1.3 l) vegetable broth

1.5 cups canned or frozen corn

1 tin black beans, (2 cups)

4 oz tin tomato paste

1-2 tbsp chili powder

1-2 tbsp ground cumin

1-2 cloves garlic, pressed or finely chopped

1/2 cup chopped cilantro

salt and pepper to taste

Cook onions in oil until softened. Put them in the blender with some of the crushed tomato and blend until smooth. (This step is not needed if everyone likes visible onions in their soup but we have an anti-onion family member)

Cook peppers until soft. Add onion mixture and all ingredients to the pot. Bring to a simmer and then add seasonings and pressed garlic. Adjust seasonings as required.

Serve with your choice of the following garnishes:

Tortilla chips, grated cheese, diced avocado, sliced lime, sour cream, chopped cilantro

Mexican Fish Soup

Assemble your ingredients before you start, and this soup comes together quickly

1 dried chile (or more), opened with seeds and veins removed.

Cook dried chile in a small amount of water until softened (about 5-7 minutes) and put into blender with:
1 white cooking onion
2 cloves garlic
3 fresh tomatoes (plum tomatoes work well)
1 canned chipolte chile (remove seeds if you don't want the broth to be too hot)

Blend on high until smooth and add to a large soup pot along with

4 cups fish stock*
2 cups vegetable stock (or put in 6 cups vegetable stock if you don't have fish stock)
1-2 large potatoes (like a Russet) cut in chunks
1-2 large carrots cut in thick slices
3 large bay leaves

Bring to a boil and lower heat to simmer until vegetables are starting to soften (about 10 minutes) then add

1-1/2 lbs firm white fish like Pacific Snapper cut in chunks the size of the vegetables (see photo)

2-3 cups coarsely shredded cabbage or other greens
5 cilantro stalks

Simmer until fish flakes and vegetables are cooked (about 10 minutes)

Adjust seasonings adding salt, pepper, Old Bay Seafood Seasoning, etc.
If the broth is too spicy, add a 28 oz tin of crushed tomatoes. I did this and really liked the end result even better.

Serve with lime wedges, chopped cilantro, sliced avocado, tortillas, taco chips, tostadas or rice as desired.

Serves 6 main course dishes.

*Fish Stock (made ahead of time)

I made fish stock using the bones, fins and head of a mild, non-oily white fish from our fishmonger (about 3 pounds) simmered in a stock pot of water with one onion, leek tops, one large carrot, one large celery stalk, 1 tsp pepper corns, 3 bay leaves, 1 tsp each thyme and oregano, fresh parsley (or cilantro) stalks, salt. Simmer for 30 minutes, strain and cool. It made enough stock for 3 batches of this soup. Store unused broth in freezer.

Vegetable Barley Soup

This is a hearty vegetable soup/stew which takes just a few minutes to put in a slow cooker in the morning. It can be served over rice or pasta or with biscuits.  Ingredients can be changed according to the vegetables you have on hand.

3 onions finely diced 
1 cup sliced celery
1 diced green pepper
1 diced red or yellow pepper

Saute the first 4 ingredients in a frying pan in a little oil or broth until softened.
Put in slow cooker and add:

1 large carrot sliced
8 ounces sliced mushrooms
3 cups kidney beans, rinsed and drained (other beans can be used)
1 28 ounce can stewed tomatoes
1/2 cup pot barley (not quick-cooking)
2 teaspoons dried Italian seasoning or a mixture of oregano, basil, thyme, hot pepper flakes to taste
1 carton vegetable broth (4 cups)

Cook on low for 8-10 hours or on high for 4-5 hours. One half hour before serving add:

1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
3 cloves garlic, minced 
4 cups or more of chopped fresh spinach or kale
salt to taste

Tortilla Soup

This recipe is adapted from one published in the 2009 Milk Calendar from the Dairy Farmers of Canada. The original recipe calls for chicken and this version is meat-free.

Finely dice:
1 cooking onion
1 red pepper
1 jalapeno pepper

Cook until soft in 1 tbsp of vegetable oil or butter

Sprinkle 2-1/2 tbsp flour on cooked vegetables and stir it in thoroughly. Add

2 cups vegetable broth
1/4 cup tomato paste
1 tbsp chili powder
1 tin rinsed black beans
1 cup canned or frozen corn*
Handful of baby or chopped spinach

Cook over medium heat stirring until soup thickens

Add
2-1/2 cups milk of choice and heat through.

Top soup with broken tortilla chips, cilantro, diced tomato, grated cheese, lime juice as desired.

*I did not have corn on hand and added 1 cup of frozen edamame instead. The recipe is very versatile.

Black-Eyed Pea Gumbo Soup

Beth made this for us when we visted her recently. I tried okra once about 30 years ago and was not impressed with the flavour. But this recipe is delicious. I made the roux, but the soup would be tasty without it. The recipe is adapted from this one on allrecipes.com. Diced ham can be added if desired and it is tasty with a side of hot cornbread.

Ingredients

1/3 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 cups chopped okra
1 cup chopped onion
3/4 cup chopped celery
3 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
4 cups water
2 cups chopped tomatoes or canned crushed tomatoes
1/3 cup chopped fresh parsley or cilantro
1 jalapeno pepper chopped (use seeds if you want more heat)
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
2 bay leaves
1 (15.5 ounce) can black-eyed peas

1. Heat 1/3 cup oil in a medium saucepan over medium low heat, and whisk in flour. Whisking constantly, cook 5 to 7 minutes, until a golden brown roux has formed.
2. Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a large, heavy saucepan over medium high heat. Stir in okra, onion, celery, and garlic, and cook 10 minutes, or until tender.
3. Thoroughly blend roux into the vegetable mixture. Stir in water, tomatoes, parsley, salt, thyme, cayenne pepper, pepper, and bay leaves. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
4. Stir in black-eyed peas, and continue cooking until heated through.

Alternate method to decrease amount of oil: Cook vegetables in 2 tbsp of oil until softened. Add 1/4 c flour, stir in well and slowly add 4 cups water or stock. Bring to boil and stir until thickened. Add tomatoes and beans. Adjust seasoning. 

Delicious Vegetable Soup

The sweet potato gives this soup a very nice flavour. It is a complete meal on its own but could be served with some good bread and a salad.

1 tablespoon oil
2 onions diced

Cook onions in the oil in a large pot for five minutes until softened.

Add

900 ml carton of vegetable broth (regular)
500 ml of water
2 medium sweet potatoes scrubbed and diced
3 19 oz tins rinsed canned beans (black beans, kidney beans, etc)
1-2 cups edamame or other vegetable
8 cups chopped kale
1 pound spinach

1 teaspoon turmeric (optional)
1 teaspoon hot pepper flakes
1 teaspoon crushed cumin seeds
1 teaspoon oregano
salt and pepper to taste ( I don't add more salt)

Simmer until the sweet potatoes are tender.
I like to eat my soup with some chopped cilantro, red pepper, avocado and lime for a garnish.

Variation:

For a thicker soup, put a 28 oz tin of tomatoes in a blender with 3 tbsp flour and 4-5 garlic cloves. Blend until smooth and add at the end, Stir until thickened.

Serve with homemade croutons.

Goulash Soup with Vegetarian Option

I had goulash soup at our local Christkindl Market and analyzed the ingredients closely. This is my adaptation of this spicy dish. I serve it with fresh spaetzle.

Cube 2 pounds of beef round into 2 cm dice
Dredge in flour and brown in oil in a large soup pot.

Add
1-2 onions, diced finely
1- 28 oz tin of diced tomatoes
4 cups of beef broth
3-5 cloves of finely diced garlic
1-2 tbsp of paprika
bay leaf, marjoram, thyme, oregano, hot pepper flakes to taste

Simmer for 1½ to 2 hours until meat is tender

Add
4 diced potatoes
4 average carrots, diced
1 large green pepper, diced

Simmer until vegetables are cooked

Vegetarian Option:
Sept 1/07

I modified this recipe and am very pleased with the vegetarian option:

Cook 1 diced onion and 2 cloves of garlic in a tbsp of oil until softened. Add 1 tbsp flour to onion mixture and 2 cups of vegetable broth. I added 1 tsp Marmite for a richer flavour.

Add tomatoes, green peppers, potato, carrot and seasonings as above. Add salt to taste.
Simmer until vegetables are done.

I added one drained tin of kidney beans. Tofu, soy crumbles or other beans could be added instead, but it is very tasty and thick even without the beans.

Serve over noodles or rice.

Cream of Vegetable Soup

I am still trying to make at least one meal a week with local foods. As I write this on June 3rd, asparagus, fiddleheads, lettuces, spring onions, radishes and rhubarb are the only fresh, local items available. We still have local root crops from last year such as potatoes, carrots and onions.
This meal consisted of cream of vegetable soup, asparagus quiche and rhubarb crisp and a salad.
The quiche recipe is here. I steamed the asparagus spears lightly and placed them in spokes in the pie. The rhubarb recipe is posted here.

Vegetable Soup

2 cups or more of your favourite vegetable
(carrots, broccoli, cauliflower, etc. I used the asparagus ends, carrots and cauliflower)
One onion
one potato, diced or 1/4 cup rice
Garlic clove

Cook the vegetables in 4 cups of broth. Season to taste with herbs.

When the vegetable are soft, puree them with the broth in a blender.
Return mixture to the pot and thin to desired consistency with regular, evaporated or soy milk. Cream will also work well, if you can afford the fat. Adjust seasonings to taste.
Garnish with chopped chives and roasted peppers.

(If you use carrots, onion and rice, the resulting sweet soup is a beautiful colour)

Chicken Pot Pie

My husband's family are of German/Mennonite background, and this recipe was made often for supper. The noodle dough is stiffer than spaetzle and is rolled out thinly and cut into squares before it is put into boiling soup broth. My mother-in-law would cook chicken in broth (about 8-12 cups of liquid) and added only onions and parsley. After the chicken was cooked and deboned, the soup was brought to a boil and the "pot pie" noodles added. To me, chicken pot pie is made with pastry or biscuit topping, but this Pennsylvania Dutch recipe is made with noodles.
I add a few more vegetable to my soup. I took a picture of my last batch and there are onions, portabello mushrooms, parsley and cauliflower in the mix.

Soup

Cook a whole chicken or parts in 8-12 cups of salted water with a large diced onion
Cut the cooked chicken in chunks. I add 2-3 cups of chicken to the broth after the vegetables and noodles are cooked. Skim any fat from the broth.
Bring the broth to a boil and cook any vegetables you wish to add.
Place fresh noodle squares in the boiling broth and simmer for 5 minutes.
Season to taste.

Noodles

1 egg
1/2 cup milk
1-1/2 cups of flour

Mix ingredients into a smooth, elastic dough. Add enough flour to make a ball that is not too sticky to be rolled out. (Do not make the dough too stiff)
Roll out thinly with a rolling pin on a floured surface and cut into squares with a knife or pizza cutter.


Note: I learned a lot of these recipes from people who never used measuring cups or spoons. Creative license is allowed!

Pea soup

Mom made great soup. Most Saturday nights we had a bowl of hearty legume soup, or a homemade batch of baked beans. A cabbage salad and some good bread rounded out the menu. Soups are created from ingredients on hand and should vary from batch to batch. The story of Stone Soup gives the idea of how a great soup is created.
Soups made from dried legumes have been made in all cultures for millennia. Esau sold his birthright for a bowl of pottage served by his brother Jacob. This pea soup, made in the European tradition, can be sliced with a knife when cooled. It is thick, like pea soup fog. When I made the soup tonight, I took note of ingredients and quantities. I had a ham bone, ham, carrots, potatoes and half a tin of tomato paste in the fridge that needed to be used up, so in it went.




1 pound split green peas (I find split yellow peas take longer to cook)
1 large onion, diced
diced garlic to taste
8 cups water
stone soup additions (see below)
seasoning to taste ( I like to include a few hot pepper flakes)

In a large pot, soften onion in a little oil over medium heat. Add dried peas and water. Bring to a boil and simmer until peas are tender, about 1 hour.

Stone soup additions

Add any or all of these ingredients to the pot….
Ham bone
1 cup diced ham
2 peeled and sliced carrots
4 small potatoes, diced
tomato paste
canned tomatoes (a 19 ounce can will do)

Cauliflower soup or sauce

The Becka and I stayed overnight at Older Daughter's place after we attended a stage performance of Beauty and the Beast in her city. She made a wonderful hot supper for us before the show featuring two of her favourite recipes from home. 

  Cauliflower Soup 

1 medium cauliflower, cut up 

1 shredded carrot 

1-1/2 cups water 

2 teaspoons bouillon 

1 tablespoon butter 

3 tablespoons flour salt and pepper (and hot sauce) to taste 

2 cups milk 

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese 

Combine cauliflower, carrot, water and bouillon in a saucepan. Bring to a boil and simmer until the vegetables are tender. In another pan (or in the microwave) melt butter, and stir in flour and seasonings. Gradually add the milk and heat until the mixture thickens. Reduce heat and add cheese. Stir the roux into the cauliflower mixture.

May 2022- You can turn this soup into a delicious cheese sauce that is so good that even people suspicious of vegetables will not notice them. Simmer cauliflower, carrot and vegetable bouillon until the vegetables are soft.  Instead of making the roux, add grated cheese, nutritional yeast, garlic powder, salt to taste and milk or broth to get the sauce to the right consistency. It is delicious with pasta or on vegetables. 

Three Sister Soup

3 Sister Soup – Iroquois style

Made with the three sisters of corn, beans and squash, this traditional Iroquois soup is both healthy and delicious.

2 cups corn kernels
2 cups green beans, chopped
2 cups butternut squash, cubed and peeled
1 ½ cups potatoes, peeled and diced
2 tbsp. flour
2 tbsp. softened butter
3/4 tsp. salt
½ tsp. pepper

In a large pot, bring corn, green beans, squash and potatoes, and five cups of water to a boil. Reduce heat, then cover and simmer for about 10 minutes, or until the vegetables are almost tender. Blend flour with butter and stir into soup; increase heat to medium and cook stirring occasionally for about 5 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Makes 4 to 6 servings.