Soups

Soup Recipes

Zuppa Toscana

This is a healthy remake of an Olive Garden soup. It is a hearty and flavorful soup; perfect for those cooler days. Use organic vegetables and organic, hormone free meat when possible.

3 lb bag of petite red potatoes, quartered or 4 russet potatoes, peeled and chopped
5 chicken sausage links, hot Italian
½ cup Earth Balance
2-4 cups of chicken stock
Water
Salt and Pepper
1 bunch of Kale, chopped

Put potatoes and whole sausage links in a large soup pot. Cover with chicken stock and water and add Earth Balance. Bring to a boil and then simmer, covered, for about 20-30 minutes or until potatoes are soft. Remove sausage from pot and peel off casing. Cut sausage up and put back in pot. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Add kale and heat for about 5 minutes more. Serve hot.

Cook Time: 30-40 minutes
Serves: 8

Tomato Basil Soup

This is a delicious and comforting soup. It is from Feeding the Whole Family. Pair it with a wrap or salad for a more filling meal.

3 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
1 tbsp Earth Balance or Butter
1 onion, chopped
2 – 3 cloves of garlic, minced
1 tsp sea salt
2 cups vegetable or chicken stock
1 28 ounce can organic, crushed or chopped tomatoes
1 tbsp honey
¼ cup sour cream or vegan sour cream
¼ cup chopped fresh basil
Freshly ground pepper

Heat oil and butter or Earth Balance in a 4-quart pot over medium heat. Add onion, garlic, and sea salt and sauté until onions are soft and translucent. Add stock, tomatoes and honey and simmer for about 10 to 15 minutes.

Let soup cool slightly and put half of it into blender or food processor with sour cream. Blend until smooth. Transfer to another pot. Blend the half of the soup with the basil and add to pot. Reheat blended soup and add pepper to taste and serve.

Prep Time 25-30 minutes
Makes 4 servings

TAN KA GAI

This Thai soup is creamy and flavorful. Serve with a green salad for a delicious, healthy meal.

1-2 tablespoons olive oil
2-3 cloves garlic minced
2 tablespoons fresh ginger root grated
1 lemon grass stem (peel outer leaves and trim top and bottom)
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1 teaspoon coriander
1 teaspoon cumin
¾ lbs boneless, skinless, chicken breast
1 onion sliced thin into half moons
1 teaspoon sea salt
2-3 cups pure water
14 oz can of coconut milk
3-4 tablespoons fish sauce
1 baby bok choi sliced into strips
¼ cup sliced cilantro
Fish sauce, coconut milk, and lemongrass can be purchasesd at most natural food stores.
Substitute tofu for chicken for meat intolerant individuals and safflower oil in place of olive oil for fruit intolerant individuals.

Heat oil over medium heat in large saucepan. Add garlic, ginger, lemon grass (white part sliced thin and green part cut in larger pieces so they can be removed at end of cooking), red pepper flakes, coriander, and cumin and let cook for 2 minutes. Add in chicken, onion, and salt and cook until chicken is white and onions are translucent which is around 5-6 minutes. Stir in water, coconut milk, and fish sauce and let simmer for 25 minutes. Add bok choi and cilantro and simmer for another 5 minutes. Remove from heat and serve.

Cook Time: 1 Hour
Serves 4-6

Split Pea Soup with Fresh Peas and Potatoes

This soup has as much flavor as Split Pea with Ham with a lot less salt. I found this recipe in the “Feeding the Whole Family” cookbook. Cold-pressed sunflower or high-oleic safflower oil can be substituted for the olive oil. Potatoes can also be omitted from the recipe and it still has great texture and flavor.

2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 onion, chopped
1 stalk celery, chopped
1 carrot, chopped
2 small red potatoes, cubed
1 teaspoon cumin
Black pepper, 1-2 turns of grinder
1 cup green split peas
4 cups of water or vegetable stock
large bay leaf
½ cup fresh peas (frozen if fresh is unavailable)
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 tablespoon fresh dill or 1 teaspoon dried

Heat oil in a pressure cooker or soup pot. Add onions and sauté until they begin to soften. Add celery, carrot, potatoes, cumin, and pepper. Sauté 5-7 more minutes. Add split peas, water, and bay leaf. If pressure-cooking: bring up to pressure, lower heat and cook 40 minutes. If using a soup pot: bring to a boil, lower heat, and simmer for 1 ½ hours. Add fresh peas, salt, and fresh dill; stir. Continue cooking a few minutes until peas are tender. Soup is ready to serve.

Prep Time: 50 Minutes(pressure-cooked), 1 hour 45 minutes(soup pot)
Makes 4 Servings

Rosemary Red Soup

This soup makes a delicious meal with some bread and a salad. It is found in the “Feeding the Whole Family” cookbook. You can substitute safflower or sunflower oil for the olive oil.

3 medium carrots
2 beets
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 large onion, diced
2 tablespoons fresh rosemary or 2 teaspoons dried
1 tablespoon fresh oregano or 1 teaspoon dried
1 cup dried red lentils
2 bay leaves
6 cups water or stock
2-3 tablespoons light miso

Scrub and chop carrots and beets. Heat oil in a soup pot; add onion and sauté until soft. Add carrots and beets; sauté a few minutes more. Finely chop rosemary and oregano leaves, if using fresh herbs. Wash and drain lentils. Add herbs, lentils, bay leaves, and water or stock to onion mix; bring to a boil. Lower heat and simmer 40 minutes. Remove bay leaves. Puree soup in blender or processor. Dissolve miso in ½ cup water and add to soup. Gently reheat before serving.

Prep Time: 50 Minutes
Makes 6-8 Servings

Root Soup

This is another easy soup to make in the crock pot. It is a hearty soup filled with vegetables you may not eat on a daily basis. Serve it over brown rice to make it a complete meal.

2 celery ribs, chopped
1 leek, rinsed and sliced
1 dikon radish, peeled and sliced
2 carrots, peeled and sliced
1 medium to large beet, washed, peeled and chopped
1 onion, chopped
2 whole garlic cloves
1 zucchini, chopped
Juice of one lemon and some lemon zest
¼ cup Italian parsley, chopped
1 cup red lentils, rinsed
8 cups of water
Salt to taste

Put all of the ingredients, except salt and lemon into a crock pot. Cook on low heat for 10-12 hours, until lentils are tender. Add lemon and lemon zest and salt to taste for the last 45 minutes. Serve or cool and reheat later.

Prep Time 20 minutes
Serves 6-8
Cook Time 10-12 hours

Crock Pot Lentil and Rice Soup

This soup is flavorful and it makes a great lunch. Just put all the ingredients in the crock pot the night before and your soup will be ready in the morning to take with you for a lunch later.

1 cup of brown lentils – sorted and rinsed
1 cup of brown rice – rinsed
1 medium onion – chopped
2 medium carrots – sliced
1 14 ½ ounce size can of diced tomatoes with roasted garlic or basil
4 cups of chicken broth
4 cups of water

Stir all ingredients into a crock pot. Cover and cook on low heat for 10 hours or until lentils and vegetables are soft. Add salt to taste at the end.

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 10 hours
Makes 6 servings

Chicken and Rice Soup

This is a simple, but flavorful soup. This soup is great for a cold day or when you are feeling a little run down and need a boost. It is easy to make, especially if you cook it in a crock pot. Add a side dish of greens or salad to make a balanced meal.

2-3 chicken breasts leave them whole
3 carrots, chopped
3 celery ribs, chopped
1 onion, chopped
6-8 cremini or white button mushrooms, cleaned and sliced
1 cup brown rice, rinsed
4 cups chicken broth
3 cups water
Juice of one lemon
Salt and pepper to taste

Put all the ingredients, except lemon juice, salt and pepper, in a crock pot. Cook on low heat for 4-6 hours, until vegetables are tender and chicken is done. When done, add the lemon juice and salt and pepper to taste and shred the chicken up with a fork (it should just fall apart). Serve. It also tastes great reheated for lunch the next day.

Serves: 6-8
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 4-6 hours

Black Bean Soup

This soup goes well with a large vegetable salad and corn bread.

2 cups dry black beans
2 tablespoons oil
3 medium sized carrots diced
2 ribs of celery diced
1 onion diced
12 cups of filtered water
Bay leaf
1- 1 ½ cups of brown rice
1 tablespoon oregano
1 tablespoon paprika
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon basil
1-2 tablespoons sea salt
1 teaspoon pepper

Optional Toppings:

Sour cream
Chives
Hot sauce

Sort through dry beans and make sure no stones are present. Soak beans in 4 cups of water, cover, and let sit over night. Heat oil in large pot over medium high heat. Sautee carrots, celery, and onion for 5 minutes. Add water, bay leaf, and beans and bring to a boil. Once water comes to a boil remove any white foam that may surface. Then cover and simmer over low/medium heat for 3 hours or until beans are very soft. Rinse brown rice in water a few times to discard any impurities. Add rice to soup pot and return to a boil, cover, and let simmer for 40 minutes over low/medium heat. After 40 minutes check soup to make sure rice is soft. Add in seasonings and let cook for five more minutes. Seasonings can be adjusted to fit your palate.
Variations: Before adding rice, remove a portion of beans for burritos or to put over nachos

Prep Time: 20 Minutes
Cooking Time: 3 1/2 Hours
Servings: 6-8

Red Bean and Quinoa Chili

This makes a great meal on a cold day. All you need is some steamed vegetables or a salad to make a nutritionally complete meal. Sunflower or safflower oil can be used instead of olive oil.

1 cup dried kidney beans, soaked overnight
1 teaspoon cumin
3 cups water
2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
2 teaspoons sea salt
1 large green or red pepper, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1-2 teaspoons cumin
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/8 teaspoon cinnamon
1/8 cayenne
2/3 cup quinoa, rinsed in warm water and drained
1-2 cups organic tomato sauce
1 cup water

Drain soaking water off beans. Place beans in a large pot with cumin and water; bring to a boil. Cover and simmer over low heat until tender (50-60 minutes) or pressure-cook using 2 cups of water (45 minutes). Heat the oil in skillet on medium heat. Add onion, salt, garlic, pepper, and spices; sauté for 5-10 minutes. Add rinsed quinoa and stir in. Add tomato sauce, and water to onion/quinoa mixture. Simmer together 20 minutes. Add cooked beans to other ingredients; simmer another 10 minutes.

Prep Time: 1 ¼ hours, 30 minutes if beans pre-cooked
Makes 6-8 servings

Chunky Sweet Potato Stew

1 tbsp Olive Oil
1 onion, thickly sliced
2 large garlic cloves, chopped
1 14 oz can stewed tomatoes with juice (low or no salt)
1 large sweet potato, peeled, cut into ½ inch pieces
½ cup canned garbanzo beans (chick peas) or white kidney beans, (low or no salt), drained
¾ tsp dried rosemary
1 medium zucchini, cut into ½ inch thick rounds, or cut into bite size pieces
Black pepper to taste
Mrs. Dash seasoning, to taste (or other No-Salt seasoning)

Heat olive oil in large saucepan over medium heat. Add onion and cook about 5 minutes, until slightly softened, separating slices into rings. Add garlic and cook 1 min. Mix in stewed tomatoes with juice, sweet potatoes, garbanzo beans and rosemary. Bring mixture to a simmer, stirring occasionally. Cover and cook 5 minutes. Add zucchini. Cover and cook until sweet potatoes are tender, about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Season to taste with pepper and/or Mrs. Dash (or other No-Salt seasoning)