Vegetable soup is a hearty, flexible, and healthy dish, and is also a great way to use leftover veggies or produce that only has a day or so of freshness remaining. Don't be afraid to experiment to tailor the recipe to your tastes—this is a very forgiving soup, and you might be pleasantly surprised by the results.
This recipe for mixed vegetable soup calls for carrots, celery, broccoli or cauliflower, potato, leek, leafy greens, and other vegetables like green beans, corn, and tomato. Thyme and bay leaf add a wonderful earthy flavor, and pureeing half of the soup creates a nice, smooth texture. Serve for lunch or as a start to dinner with warm crusty bread.
Ingredients
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1 tablespoon olive oil
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1 onion, chopped
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2 carrots, chopped
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1 stalk celery, chopped
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1 head broccoli or cauliflower, chopped
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1 potato or sweet potato, peeled and chopped
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1 leek, chopped, optional
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1 bay leaf
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1 sprig thyme
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Kosher salt, to taste
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1 cup green beans, corn, chopped tomato, or other vegetables
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3 to 4 cups leafy greens, chopped, such as kale, collards, spinach, watercress, or broccoli rabe
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Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Steps to Make It
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Gather the ingredients.
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Heat olive oil in a soup pot.
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Add onion, carrots, and celery and cook for 5 minutes.
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Add broccoli or cauliflower, potato, leek (if using), bay leaf, and thyme.
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Add enough water to cover vegetables, as well as a generous pinch of salt.
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Bring soup to a boil, then cover and reduce heat. Simmer soup for about 20 minutes or until vegetables are tender.
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Remove about half of the soup to a large measuring cup or another pot and puree using an immersion blender, or place in a blender or food processor and puree.
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Return pureed soup to pot. Add remaining vegetables of your choice and the leafy greens. Cook until greens are tender.
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Season to taste with salt and pepper and serve.
Use Caution When Blending Hot Ingredients
Steam expands quickly in a blender and can cause ingredients to splatter everywhere or cause burns. To prevent this, fill the blender only one-third of the way up, vent the top, and cover with a folded kitchen towel while blending.
Recipe Variations
- Vegetable bouillon cubes (made from dried vegetables and herbs) make a nice flavor addition for vegetarians and can be found, additive free, in health food markets. Just make sure to adjust your spices accordingly—especially the salt—when using bouillon cubes.
- Meat eaters can substitute some or all of the water in this recipe with chicken or beef broth.
- If you don't have thyme, substitute rosemary or marjoram instead.
Tips
- Since this is a vegetable soup and doesn't contain any meat, this recipe does not have to cook that long. Simmer it for 20 minutes, or just enough to soften the vegetables to al dente.
- The recipe calls for pureeing only half of the soup to create a smooth, thick base; If the entire pot of soup were pureed, it would be similar to baby food.
How to Store
- Mixed vegetable soup (that has cooled completely) can be stored in a covered container in the refrigerator for three to four days.
- This soup can be frozen for four to six months when placed in zip-top freezer bags or airtight containers.
Nutrition Facts (per serving) | |
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125 | Calories |
3g | Fat |
23g | Carbs |
4g | Protein |
Nutrition Facts | |
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Servings: 4 to 6 | |
Amount per serving | |
Calories | 125 |
% Daily Value* | |
Total Fat 3g | 4% |
Saturated Fat 0g | 2% |
Cholesterol 0mg | 0% |
Sodium 106mg | 5% |
Total Carbohydrate 23g | 8% |
Dietary Fiber 6g | 21% |
Total Sugars 4g | |
Protein 4g | |
Vitamin C 51mg | 256% |
Calcium 69mg | 5% |
Iron 2mg | 10% |
Potassium 702mg | 15% |
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice. |
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