CSA member, Kathleen Gibson, says Tuesday mornings are the time for her weekly batch of Abundance Soup. Kathleen says: “I leave a batch in the crock pot for an easy supper after driving to the farm and home again, and freeze the remainder for some cold winter night.” Here’s how she does it:
Chop veggies from previous week’s harvest which haven’t been consumed. Be sure to add potatoes and carrots, no matter what, even if you have to buy them from the grocery store (try to get organic—best price is at “Trader Joe’s”).
Sauté the vegetables in olive oil, hard vegetables first. Use whatever you have:
carrots
potatoes
turnips
kohlrabi
radish
onion
garlic
Then add the vegetables that are medium-hard, such as:
zucchini
summer squash
eggplant
bok choy
leeks
fresh mushrooms
Finally add tender vegetables:
leafy greens
sweet peppers
tomatoes
Add 21 ounces of canned or homemade tomato sauce* and 1 quart organic vegetable broth or water. Add a sea vegetable like arame or chopped wakame, if desired, for extra minerals. Add cooked beans, (such as lentils, pintos, navy beans, aduki, or garbanzos), pureed or whole, with their liquid. Add herbs and cooked pasta or rice, if desired or if you have leftovers. Finally, add a dash of salt and pepper, chili powder, and lemon juice or apple cider vinegar for zest.
* Kathleen’s Homemade Tomato Sauce: clean core and cut tomatoes. Cook for 15 minutes with favorite herbs and then puree. (It is not necessary to skin the tomatoes.) Make the tomato sauce while chopping the other vegetables so that it’s hot and fresh when added to the soup.
Kathleen adds: “This freezes very well, so your family can enjoy our abundant harvest throughout the winter.”
Thanks, Kathleen!