Family Foodies

You’ve probably noticed that each of the 15 minute soup ideas presented this week called for 32 oz. of vegetable or chicken stock. So, I got to wondering how in the world does one make vegetable stock?

After some research I found an easy answer that will help make your soups delicious and nutritious.

Tools:

• Pressure Cooker (takes 10 minutes to prepare at high pressure)
• Standard stove top stock pot (takes 60 to 90 minutes)

Take Your Pick Ingredients for Vegetable Stock:

• Asparagus and broccoli stalks
• Bay leaf or a few pinches of dried herbs
• Celery, parsnip and carrot chunks, peelings and trimmings
• Corncobs and husks
• Garlic (unpeeled, crushed)
• Kale stalks (if you’re looking for a strong distinctive flavor like cabbage)
• Leek greens and roots
• Onions (unpeeled for a darker stock)
• Potatoes and potatoe peelings (remove any green spots)
• Scallions (including root ends)
• Sweet potatoes, apples or pears (for a slightly sweet stock)
• Tomatoes or lemon slices (for a slightly acid stock)
• Turnips (peel to avoid bitterness)
• Wilted celery, lettuce and watercress
• Winter squash (avoid waxed peels)
• Zucchini

Must Have Ingredients

• 8 cups water
• 8 cups coarsely chopped miscellaneous vegetables
• 2 medium onions, coarsely chopped (include sins for a daker stock)
• 1 to 2 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed (optional)
• 3 large carrots, cut into 3 to 4 chunks
• 4 large ribs celery, cut into 3 to 4 chunks
• 1 to 2 parsnips, cut into 3 to 4 chunks (optional; makes the stock sweeter)
• 2 bay leaves
• 1/4 to 1/2 cup tightly packed minced fresh parsley stalks and leaves
• A few sprigs of fresh thyme or oregano, or 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme or dried oregano (optional)
• Sea salt to taste

Pressure Cooker Instructions:

1. Place the water in the cooker and over HIGH heat begin bringing to the boil.
2. Prepare and add the remaining ingredients except for the salt.
3. Lock the lid into place.
4. Over high heat bring to high pressure.
5. Lower the heat just enough to maintain the pressure at high and cook for 10 minutes.
6. If time permits, allow the pressure to come down naturally.
7. If you’re in a hurry reduce pressure with a quick-release method.
8. Remove the lid, tilting it away from you to allow any excess steam to escape.
9. Allow the stock to cool slightly.
10. Pour the stock through a strainer into one or more storage containers.
11. Smash the vegetables against the sides of the strainer to extract all of the liquid.
12. Cool and refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze up to 3 months.

Standard Stove Top Instructions:

1. Finely chop the vegetables.
2. In a large soup pot, proceed as directed in Steps 1 and 2 of the Pressure Cooking Instructions.
3. Bring to the boil.
4. Reduce heat and simmer, partially covered until the vegetables have given up their flavor for about 60 to 90 minutes.
5. Follow Steps 9-11 from the Pressure Cooking Instruction.

photo credit: joyosity

Leek soup is another healthy and low calorie soup to add to your cooking arsenal.

Nutrition Information:

• 70 calories per servings
• 1/2 cup vegetables
• 7g carbohydrate
• 1 g protein
• 3g fat (0g saturated fat)
• 0mg cholesterol
• 340 mg sodium.

Ingredients:

• 1 Tbsp Pure Olive Oil
• 32 oz. chicken or vegetable stock
• 16 oz. leeks, cut into 1/2 inch slices
• Salt and pepper
• 1/2 tsp. herb seasoning salt

Instructions:

1. Add leeks and olive oil to stockpot on MEDIUM-LOW
2. Cook, stirring often, 10 minutes or longer until onions are soft and translucent, but not browned
3. Add stock
4. Season with salt and pepper
5. Bring to a boil on HIGH
6. Reduce heat and simmer about 10 minutes, until leeks are fork- tender
7. Season to taste with herb seasoning salt
8. Ladle into warm bowls

photo credit: diekatrin

Asparagus soup is great if you’re concerned about calories and sodium intake.

Nutrition Information:

• 60 calories per 1 cup serving
• 3/4 cup vegetables
• 7 g carbohydrate
• 2 g protein
• 3  fat (0g saturated at)
• 0g cholesterol
• 430 mg sodium

This recipe makes 5.5 cups and takes at total 20 minutes (15 minutes active preparation).

Tools:

You’l need a handheld blender for this one.

Ingredients:

• 1 small white onion, 1/2 inch dice (1  cup)
• 1 Tbsp pure olive oil
• 32 oz. vegetable stock
• 1 lb. asparagus, trimmed, 1 inch diced
• Salt and pepper
• Herb Seasoning Salt

Instructions:

1. Add onion and olive oil to stockpot on MEDIUM-LOW.
2. Cook on LOW, stirring often, 10 min or longer until onions are soft and translucent, but not browned.
3. Add stock and asparagus.
4. Season with salt and pepper.
5. Bring to boil on HIGH.
6. Reduce heat and simmer 5 minute until asparagus is knife-tender.
7. Remove pot from heat.
8. Carefully puree soup with handheld blender until smooth.
9. Season to taste with herb seasoning salt.
10. Ladle into warm bowls.
11. Garnish with creme fraiche or Parmigiano-Reggiano.

photo credit: stu_spivack

This is definitely a soup that would have caught Popeye’s eye. Bluto wouldn’t have stood a chance against this tasty spinach soup!

Dietary Information:

This soup makes 5.5 cups and takes 25 minutes to prepare. Each serving of this soup (1 cup and 1 poached egg) contains 180 calories, 1/2 cup of vegetables, 11g carbohydrates, 9g protein, 7g fat (2g saturated fat), 180 mg cholesterol and 580 mg sodium.

Tools:

• For this soup you’ll need a handheld blender.

Ingredients:

• 1 small white onion, 1/2 inch diced (1 cup)
• 1 Tbsp. olive oil
• 32 oz. of vegetable or chicken stock
• 2 pkgs (5 oz. each) baby spinach
• Salt and pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon herb seasoning salt

Instructions:

1. Add onions and oil to stockpot on MEDIUM-LOW.
2. Cook, stirring 10 minutes or longer, until onions are soft and translucent, but not browned.
3. Add stock and spinach
4. Season with salt and pepper
5. Bring to a simmer
6. Cook about 3 minutes or until spinach is wilted and tender.
7. Remove pot from heat
8. Puree soup carefully with handheld blender until smooth
9. Season to taste with herb seasoning salt
10. Ladle into warm bowls
11. Serve with poached egg

photo credit: bobjudge

I’ve never been a big fan of celery, but this soup actually tastes good. For those of you who are tracking your nutritional values/calories each one cup serving of this soup contains 60 calories, 1/4 cup vegetables, 6 grams carbohydrates, 2g protein, 3g fat, 0 g cholesterol and 610mg sodium. This recipe makes 5 cups and takes only 15 minutes to prepare.

Ingredients

• 1 small white onion, 1/2-inch dice (1 cup)
• 1 Tbsp Pure Olive Oil
• 32 oz. chicken or vegetable stock
• 1/4 lb. celery root, peeled and shredded very finely (about 1.75 cup)
• Salt and pepper
• 1/2 tsp. herb seasoning salt

Instructions:

1. Add onion and olive oil to stockpot on MEDIUM-LOW
2. Cook, stirring often, 10 minutes or longer until onions are soft and translucent, but not browned
3. Add stock and celery root
4. Season with salt and pepper
5. Bring to a boil on HIGH
6. Reduce heat and simmer 5 minutes, until celery root is tender
7. Remove pot from heat
8. Season to taste with herb seasoning salt
9. Ladle into warm bowls
10. Garnish with chives or scallions

photo credit: Charles Haynes

Vegetables soup recipes can help purify the body while balancing calories during a week of heavier eating. They’re delicious and can be made with fresh or frozen vegetables. And best of all you get to use up all the leftover vegetables that end up in the fridge.  And since we’re at the end of Nutrition Awareness Month I thought this might be good food for thought.

I found it very interesting that you can actually make the soup from scratch in just 15 minutes from start to finish. So here are the four main steps:

1. Cook onions
   1. Add 1 cup of diced onion
   2. Add 1 tbsp pure olive oil to stockpot on MEDIUM-LOW
   3. Cook and stir about 10 minutes until the onion is translucent
2. Add stock and vegetables
   1. Add 32 oz o stock
   2. Add 10 oz to 1 lb of vegetables
   3. Season to taste. You can use bouillon cubes for a more robust flavor
3. Follow recipe heating instructions
   1. Cook until vegetables are tender
4. Puree
   1. If you’d like a creamier soup, puree a part of your vegetables and stir it back into the soup

Season to taste. Garnish and serve

photo credit: avlxyz