By Jen, on October 18th, 2012% 
I love making a big pot of vegetable soup. Especially when my fridge is overflowing with all sorts of produce like parsnips, peppers, carrots and greens.
The secret to making homemade soup is to adjust according to your tastes (and what you have on hand). Take this hearty veggie soup recipe…it’s a good, basic recipe that can be modified to make your own.
-No time to make vegetable stock? Use water instead. Taste and add more salt or seasoning, if needed.
-Like a thinner soup? Add more veggie stock or water.
-Not a fan of coriander or bittersweet paprika? Substitute your favorite spice or herb blend. Or, add another that complements the flavor. (I would have added ground cumin to the soup, but ran out.)
-Have fresh herbs on hand? Garnish with fresh cilantro, flat leaf parsley or a few thyme leaves.
Hearty Fresh Vegetable Soup Recipe
1 tablespoon olive oil or virgin coconut oil
1 medium onion, chopped
1 medium red bell pepper, coarsely chopped
2 medium carrots, peeled and thickly sliced
1 pound parsnips, peeled and thickly sliced
1/2 pound small new potatoes, quartered
4 cups Vegetable Stock (recipe follows)
1 1/2 teaspoons fine sea salt
1 1/2 teaspoons ground coriander
1 1/2 teaspoons bittersweet paprika
Dash cayenne pepper
1 large fresh tomato, chopped
3 cups fresh baby kale or spinach
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 to 2 tablespoons tamari or soy sauce
In large pot, heat oil over medium heat. Add onion and bell pepper; cook 10 minutes to soften, stirring frequently.
Add carrots, parsnips, potatoes, vegetable stock, salt, coriander, paprika and cayenne pepper. Bring to boiling; reduce heat. Simmer, covered, for 20 to 25 minutes or until vegetables are just tender.
Add tomato. Return to boiling; reduce heat. Simmer, uncovered, 10 minutes more. Add kale; cook until wilted and tender.
Stir in lemon juice and tamari. Taste and adjust seasoning, if needed.
Makes about 8 cups soup
Easy Vegetable Stock Recipe
1 medium white or yellow onion, peeled and sliced
4 stalks celery, cut into chunks
2 carrots, peeled and cut into chunks
1 large tomato, cut into chunks
2 bay leaves
1/2 teaspoon whole black peppercorns
Fresh thyme sprig
6 cups fresh cold water
Add all ingredients to a large pot. Bring to boiling; reduce heat. Simmer gently, covered, for 60 minutes. Cool slightly. Strain mixture; discard solids. Makes about 5 cups vegetable stock.
Recipe Link:
Favorite Veggie Soup
Product Links:
Get Vitamix 5200 Blender with Free Shipping Code
The Best of Clean Eating: Over 200 Mouthwatering Recipes to Keep You Lean and Healthy
By Jen, on February 29th, 2012%
Cozy up to a steamy bowl of lentil soup that’s brimming with veggies. Fresh mushrooms, Swiss chard and tomatoes add flavor and color to this comforting soup.
Vegetarian Lentil Soup with Rainbow Chard
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
8 ounces white or cremini mushrooms, sliced
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
6 cups water
1 cup dry brown lentils, rinsed and drained
1 1/2 teaspoons fine sea salt
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
Dash cayenne pepper
1 bunch fresh rainbow Swiss chard
1 cup chopped fresh tomato
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon tamari or soy sauce
In large pot, heat oil over medium heat. Add onion; cook 3 minutes until softened, stirring occasionally. Add mushrooms and garlic; cook 5 minutes, stirring frequently. Add water, lentils, salt, oregano, thyme and cayenne pepper. Bring to boiling; reduce heat. Simmer, uncovered, 30 to 40 minutes until lentils are tender.
Meanwhile, remove stems from Swiss chard. Trim and discard any woody sections from stems; coarsely chop stems and set aside. Coarsely chop Swiss chard leaves and set aside.
Once lentils are tender, add Swiss chard stems; simmer 5 minutes.
Add Swiss chard leaves and tomatoes; simmer about 5 minutes more or until Swiss chard leaves are tender. Stir in lemon juice and tamari.
Makes about 9 cups soup
Tip: You can use fresh kale in place of the Swiss chard. If using kale, add leaves only. (Remove and discard kale stems.) Add the kale leaves once the lentils are tender; simmer 5 minutes. Then add tomatoes and simmer about 5 minutes more or until kale leaves are tender. Stir in lemon juice and tamari.
Recipe Links:
Red Lentil Soup with Sweet Potatoes and Kale
Favorite Veggie Soup
Product Links:
Get Vitamix 5200 Blender with Free Shipping Code
The Best of Clean Eating: Over 200 Mouthwatering Recipes to Keep You Lean and Healthy
By Jen, on March 20th, 2011% 
What makes this veggie soup my favorite? Memories of my favorite cookbook, the fifteenth anniversary (1992) edition of Mollie Katzen’s Moosewood Cookbook. It was the first cookbook I bought with my own money. The first cookbook I read like a novel…the story got better with each turn of the page. Using the Moosewood Cookbook helped me learn how to cook new and delicious vegetarian dishes.
Over the years I added at least 100 cookbooks to my collection, but my battered Moosewood Cookbook still had a prominent place on the shelf. You can imagine my disappointment when I somehow lost the book in a move. Since my edition of the cookbook was long out of print, I was out of luck. That is until I found a used copy at Powell’s Books in Portland. You should have seen the smile on my face.
Anyway, I’ve been paging through the book again and came across a vegetable soup recipe I used to make. I always loved the name, Gypsy Soup. What I liked most about it was the combination of sweet potatoes, chickpeas, tomato and paprika. (That was pretty exotic when I first started cooking.) So, today I cleaned out the vegetable drawer and made a pot of soup inspired by my trusty Moosewood Cookbook. I improvise when making soup, throwing a bit of this and that in the pot, so it’s not the same recipe as the one in the book. But, it reminds me enough of Gypsy Soup to make it my new favorite veggie soup.
Favorite Veggie Soup
1 tablespoon canola or safflower oil
1 medium onion, chopped
1 medium green or red bell pepper, chopped
2 carrots, chopped
8 ounces white button or cremini mushrooms, sliced
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
6 cups water
2 large sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed
1 1/2 teaspoons sea salt
2 teaspoons curry powder
1/2 teaspoon mild paprika
Dash cayenne pepper
1 can (14.5 ounces) petite diced tomatoes (do not drain)
1 can (15 ounces) chickpeas (garbanzo beans), rinsed and drained
Juice from half of a fresh lemon
1 to 2 tablespoons soy sauce
In large pot (5-quart), heat oil over medium heat. Add onion, bell pepper and carrot; cook 8 minutes, stirring frequently. Add mushrooms and garlic; cook and stir 2 minutes.
Add water, sweet potatoes, salt, curry powder, paprika and cayenne pepper. Bring to boiling; reduce heat. Simmer, uncovered, for 10 to 15 minutes or until vegetables are just tender.
Add tomatoes and chickpeas. Return to boiling; reduce heat. Simmer, uncovered, 5 minutes more.
Stir in lemon juice and soy sauce. Taste and adjust seasoning, if needed.
Makes about 11 cups soup
Serving Tip: Top each serving with a sprinkle of fresh chopped cilantro.
Recipe Link:
Curried Squash, Mushroom and Orange Soup by Mollie Katzen
Product Link:
The New Moosewood Cookbook (Mollie Katzen’s Classic Cooking)
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Welcome Hi there, my name is Jen. Eating Clean Recipes is my healthy recipe blog. It's a place where healthy meets delicious. All recipes are created by me and made in my Minneapolis kitchen. I follow a plant based diet, so fresh and natural foods are my ingredients of choice. I hope you enjoy these healthy vegetarian recipes and easy vegan recipes. Thanks for visiting.
All text and photos © 2009-2012 Food Fix, LLC
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