Category Archives: Soups

Mushroom Summer Squash Soup

30 Thursday May 2013

Posted by in Dairy Free, Egg Free, Gluten Free, Nut Free, Soups, Soy Free

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IMG_0297-psAfter five months, I’m back!  I had some really rough health months in the time I haven’t been posting, so my blog fell by the wayside.  I did take pictures of some of the recipes I created during that time, though, so I have recipes to share.  I just need to get them up on the web.  Easier said than done!

One of the changes that happened during that five month absence is that I removed black pepper from my diet.  I started getting migraines again, and I wasn’t sure why.  Through the process of elimination, I figured out black pepper was one of the main culprits.  I stopped eating black pepper right before Christmas, and within three weeks I had lost an entire dress size with no other changes.  Weight issues involve far more than just calories, sugar and exercise, but our society often fails to recognize that.

So for the past five months, I’ve been eating simply and eating without pepper.  It eliminated a few more of the very few processed shortcut foods I had (like a few of the Amy’s frozen dinners I could eat), but I’m probably better off without them.  It’s made me become more creative with seasonings rather than just relying on black pepper like so many of us are trained to do.

The soup below was a “use up what’s in the fridge” creation.  Summer squash are about to be overrunning CSA boxes locally, and squash recipes are always appreciated at this time of year.  This recipe could easily use zucchini, yellow, or zephyr squash or any other similar soft squash that you end up with.  Likewise, any type of mushroom that you prefer would work well.

This soup freezes well.

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Mushroom Summer Squash Soup

Splash of canola oil
1 large organic white or yellow onion, diced
1 organic green chile including seeds, sliced
4-5 cloves of organic garlic, chopped roughly
3 cups sliced organic mushrooms (I used cremini)
7 cups organic summer squash, cubed in 1 inch-ish chunks  (I used zucchini  and zephyr)
½ cup fresh organic parsley, chopped roughly
1 tablespoon fresh organic rosemary, chopped roughly
6 cups organic chicken broth

Saute the onions, chile and garlic in the canola oil until the onions are almost translucent.  Add in the mushrooms, squash, parsley, rosemary, and chicken broth.  Cook over medium heat until the squash are tender.  Once softened, use an immersion blender to blenderize the soup.   If you don’t have an immersion blender, transfer in small batches to a regular blender, being careful not to overfill.

Makes about 3 quarts.

©NaturallyElizabeth.com

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Vegetable Lentil Soup

01 Thursday Nov 2012

Posted by in Dairy Free, Egg Free, Gluten Free, Nut Free, Soups, Soy Free, Vegan

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While we’re back to warm weather in Central Texas at the moment, I’m sure it will get cold again… eventually.  This made a hearty soup earlier this week when the temperatures were a little cooler.

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Vegetable Lentil Soup

Adapted from “Easiest Black-Eyed Peas and Lentil Soup” in 1001 Low-Fat Vegetarian Recipes by Sue Spitler

3 medium organic carrots, sliced thinly
3 stalks organic celery, sliced
1 medium yellow or white organic onion, diced
4 cloves organic garlic, minced
2 tablespoons organic olive oil
8 cups organic GF low sodium vegetable or chicken broth*
2 cups filtered water
2 teaspoons dried organic thyme
1.5 teaspoons dried organic marjoram
1 teaspoon dried organic oregano
2 teaspoons sea salt
1 teaspoon organic black pepper
1 organic bay leaf
1-15 ounce can organic white beans or black-eyed peas
1.5 cup dried organic lentils (I used a combination of red and brown)
1-15 ounce can Muir Glen organic diced tomatoes
2 cups packed organic greens, cut in small pieces (chard, kale or collard greens work well)

Sauté carrots, celery, onion, and garlic in oil in large pot for a few minutes until they soften a bit (or stick to the pan… that’s my signal it’s time to move on to the next step).  Add broth, water, herbs, beans, lentils, and tomatoes.  Cook over medium heat until the carrots and lentils are soft (45-60 minutes).  Stir in the greens and allow to cook for 5-10 minutes until the greens are done.  Discard bay leaf before serving.

Makes about 4 quarts.

*If making this vegan, obviously choose the vegetable broth rather than the chicken broth.

©2012NaturallyElizabeth.com

GFDF Lentil and Sweet Potato Soup

05 Thursday Jul 2012

Posted by in Dairy Free, Egg Free, Gluten Free, Soups, Soy Free, Vegan

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[Update 7/7/12]

I realize that the soup picture above isn’t the most attractive looking; I used brown lentils in it which isn’t quite as pretty as when I make it with red lentils. It’s hard to make many blended soups look pretty, but this one tastes really good.  One of my sons doesn’t like beans in any other form, but he will willingly eat this soup.  He really likes to add in chunks of leftover baked potatoes to add a bit more texture and substance to it.  We all like to add in smoked sausage.

I often double this recipe so we have lots of leftovers.  It freezes and reheats well.

GFDF Lentil and Sweet Potato Soup

Adapted from Kalyn’s Kitchen

a few tablespoons of organic olive oil
1 large organic white or yellow onion, diced (about 1.5 cups)
4 teaspoons fresh organic ginger, minced
4 large cloves organic garlic, minced
1 serrano or jalapeño or other hot pepper of your choice, sliced thin
1 tablespoon organic curry powder
1.5 teaspoons sea salt
½ teaspoon organic black pepper
1 large or 2 medium organic sweet potato, peeled and diced
1.5 cups organic dried lentils (I use brown or red)
4 cups organic GF chicken broth (I use Imagine or Pacific)*
2 cups water
1 can light coconut milk
½ cup loosely packed fresh organic cilantro leaves

Optional add-ins:
1 pound natural smoked sausage, cut in pieces and cooked
2 cups baked organic white/red/yellow potato, diced

Sauté the diced onion in olive oil in the bottom of a soup pan over medium heat. When the onion is partially cooked, add in the ginger, garlic, and pepper and continue cooking for a few minutes more.  Add in the curry powder, salt, black pepper, sweet potatoes, lentils, broth, and water.  Allow to continue cooking until the sweet potatoes and lentils are soft, about 30 minutes.  Add in the coconut milk and cilantro leaves and cook for a few minutes more.

Remove from heat.  Using an immersion blender, puree the soup.  If you don’t have an immersion blender, allow the soup to cool and blend in small batches in a regular blender, taking care not to burn yourself.

If adding in the optional sausage or potato, do so right before serving.

*Use vegetable broth and don’t add in the smoked sausage to veganize this recipe.

©NaturallyElizabeth.com

GFDF Chicken Vegetable Soup

02 Friday Mar 2012

Posted by in Crockpot, Dairy Free, Egg Free, Gluten Free, Nut Free, Soups, Soy Free

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(While it’s a gorgeous 82F outside as I post this, winter will be back to Central Texas tonight with a colder and windy day forecast for tomorrow.  Soup season isn’t totally done around here!)

Like many parents, I struggle to get vegetables in my family.  I may serve the vegetables, but they don’t usually like them.  This is one of the exceptions to the rule.  My boys willingly eat vegetables in the form of soup.

This is a recipe I have been making forever and came up with through trial and error.  It comes out slightly differently each time I make it because I throw in whatever I have around.  I often put in zucchini or yellow squash.  This could easily be cut in half if you aren’t cooking for an army.

Chicken Vegetable Soup

organic canola oil
2 organic peppers, diced  (green, red, yellow orange– whatever is available) (about 2.5 cups)
6-8 stalks organic celery, thinly sliced (about 2 cups)
1 large organic white onion, diced (about 2 cups)
8 medium organic carrots, peeled, sliced and diced (about 3 cups)
1 organic jalapeno with seeds, minced (optional but recommended for cleaning out the sinuses!)
5 medium organic potatoes, peeled and diced (about 4 cups)
1 large organic sweet potato, peeled and diced (about 2 cups)
2 lbs organic boneless skinless chicken breasts, trimmed of fat but still whole
9 cups Mountain Valley spring water
1T organic garlic powder (or 6-8 cloves of garlic added with the onions)
2T sea salt
½ t organic black pepper
1 t organic dried rosemary
1 t organic dried thyme
1 t organic dried marjoram
2 packed cups of chopped fresh organic spinach

Coat  the bottom of an extra large pot with canola oil—I use a 7 quart Dutch oven.  Lightly sauté the peppers, celery, onion, carrots, and jalapeno over medium heat for a few minutes until the onions are beginning to become translucent.  Add the chicken, potatoes, sweet potato, water, garlic powder, sea salt, black pepper, rosemary, thyme, and marjoram.  Raise the temperature to high and bring to a boil.  Reduce to medium.  Continue cooking until the chicken breasts are done and the potatoes are starting to fall apart.  (I cook on an electric cooktop that takes longer than other stoves, so it is about 45-60 minutes on mine depending on the day and how frozen the chicken still is when I put it in the pot, but that’s just a guesstimate).  Remove the chicken breasts from the soup, allow to cool for a few minutes, and dice.*  Return the chicken to the pot along with the spinach.  Allow to cook for a few more minutes to allow the spinach to soften.

This soup will freeze but because of the potatoes in it, it doesn’t freeze well.

A half-batch version of this recipe also works well in the crockpot.  I lightly sauté the onions and then add all the ingredients except the spinach to the crockpot.  I cook on low for 8-10 hours in my 17 year old crockpot that cooks slower than new ones.  I throw in the spinach about an hour before serving.

*I abhor dealing with raw meat, so I choose to dice the chicken after it’s cooked.  You could also dice it raw and then not have to do this step.

©NaturallyElizabeth.com

GFDF Split Pea Soup

01 Thursday Mar 2012

Posted by in Dairy Free, Egg Free, Gluten Free, Nut Free, Soups, Soy Free, Vegan

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My kids will not eat this soup.  They refer to it as “green concrete” because of the way it congeals in the fridge.  I, on the other hand, love it.  It freezes well, so I will make a huge pot and defrost a jar of it on occasion when I want easy lunches for me.  It is not the most attractive looking soup, but it really does taste great.

This recipe is designed to feed a small army but can easily be cut in half.

Split Pea Soup

organic canola oil
1 small organic onion, finely diced
4 organic carrots, thinly sliced
2 stalks of organic celery, thinly sliced
3 cloves of organic garlic, minced
about 1 c organic diced peppers (in this green)
about 1 c organic cauliflower stalks (or whatever other veggies need using up)
about 3 c organic dried split peas
about 10 c of Mountain Valley water
2T dried organic tarragon
about 2T sea salt
about 2t organic black pepper
about 1 t organic garlic powder
1 bunch of organic greens or kale, torn in small pieces
2 -15 oz cans organic red beans (or white would work well, too)

In a large soup pot, sauté the onion, carrot, celery, garlic, peppers and cauliflower in a few tablespoons of canola oil for a few minutes.  Add the water, split peas, tarragon, garlic powder, salt and black pepper.  Cook over medium heat until the peas are mush and the veggies are soft.  Add the greens and cook for a few minutes until tender.  Remove from heat.  Stir the red beans in.  Puree with an immersion blender.  Freezes well.

©NaturallyElizabeth.com