I have been a bad, bad blogger.
I’ve been holding out on you, in more ways than one.
I’ve been putting down soup, like a champion soup eater, at a one spooned soup eating contest, during the world’s largest and most densely populated soup eating convention.
It’s been Souperlicious, Soup City, and Soup Central at my place, and I love it.
Today I’m sharing with all of you, the Top Five Reason Soup Rocks My Socks; in a completely non-literal way. Although if it was literal, that’d be pretty sweet or perhaps a little distracting, which might not play well with a liquid based product. Obviously there are still a few design flaws to be worked out with the whole rocking socks thing. I’ll add it to one of my many lists though.
The Top Five Reason Soup Rocks My Socks
5) Soup is like getting a long, slow and satisfying hug after a particular arduous day. It’s a big bowl of warmth and comfort; at least the kind I’ve been making, which is perfect when you consider we’re officially in Fall. First comes soup, then comes sitting fireside, preferably with a steaming bowl of yep, you guessed it, more soup.
(Creamy Potato Soup with Chives. This soup is creamy and satisfying, without being overtly spicy or in your face. It’s simple, subtle and delicious. I make giant vats of this every single year. The recipe comes from a cookbook named The Best Recipes; clever marketing those folks.)
4) Soup usually requires minimal cleanup, and since I find washing dishes to be a huge pain in my non-ass ass, this is a big selling point for me. Get yourself a big old pot and nice wooden spoon (or really any kind of spoon since I don’t even own a wooden spoon) and it’s game on; or should I say Soup’s On. That was corny; I’ll admit it, and I think I’ll even name today’s post after it. Sometimes there’s no accounting for taste.
(Tomato Basil Soup based off this recipe, which I actually made vegan by swapping the stock to Veggie and using Soy Milk instead of heavy cream. I also used my own slow roasted tomatoes in this dish. Either way, if you are a fan of tomatoes, then this is the soup for you. It’s sweet, savory, light and satisfying, all at the same time.)
3 a) Soup is versatile. It can be hearty or light, broth filled or creamy in texture. It can range in flavors from subtle to strong and sometimes even sweet.
(Apple Fennel Soup. This was the first time I’ve eaten fennel and actually liked it; probably because it tasted more like applesauce when it was all said and done; a very rich and filling applesauce, mind you. If fennel makes it way back into my food share, I’ll be making this number again.)
3 b) Soup can be a meal in and of itself, especially when you add some Parmesan Rosemary Drop Biscuits or a Savory Butternut Squash Muffin.
(Savory Butternut Squash Soaked Oat Muffins. These are delicious and as an added bonus, you don’t even have to precook the squash, which is why it’s the only squash I’ve used this season in my ever growing squash arsenal.)
2) Soup freezes phenomenally well and since we all know how big I am on freezing things, this makes me over the moon happy. I usually make a giant pot, give the Hubby a plus size serving for the week, keep one for myself and stick one in the freezer for some unknown, but sure to be great future date. My stockpile grows.
(Artichoke and Brown Rice Soup. I’m in the stages of recipe testing this little gem, so expect the details in the near future).
1) Soup is a great way for me to use all my lovely CSA veggies in one dish, including a cabbage which was over six weeks old by the time I got around to using it. It was still good. Amazing right?!
(Thai Inspired Vegetable Soup.)
I owe this wonderful creation to Kirsten over at Farm Fresh Feasts who came up with the recipe base for this soup, along with a carnivorous version: Thai Inspired Chicken Noodle. I also need to thank Kirsten’s mom, whom I’ve never met, yet am a lucky recipient of her food shopping ways because along with the recipe, Kirsten literally gave me the Thai ingredients to make this (purchased by mom and gifted to me). I’m so grateful she did because this soup is a winner. So much so, I’ve gotten Kirsten’s permission to share my veggified version of it.
Thai Inspired Vegetable Soup (serves 8-12)
Broth Ingredients
- 3 quarts vegetable stock
- 3 teaspoons Galangal
- 3 teaspoons Kaffir Lime Leaves
- 3 teaspoons Lemon Grass
- 3 teaspoons Thai Basil leaves.
- 1/2 of a hot pepper.
Broth Directions
- Add broth ingredients to a large pot on your stove top set to Medium Heat. Bring it to a simmer and let simmer for at least thirty minutes. Mine simmered for a couple of hours.
- Drain the solids, while retaining the liquid. Return liquid to the pot on the stove top or you can put it in the fridge to be used the next day, which is what I did.
Soup Ingredients
(Note: the below veggies are a guide only. I used them simply because they were what I had on hand as a result of my weekly CSA share. If you don’t like radishes, use more bell pepper instead. Green beans aren’t your thing? Then skip ’em and stick to cabbage.)
- 1 cup of Green Beans, washed and cut into 1 inch sections.
- 2 Bell Peppers, washed and cut into matchstick slices (see picture below). Use different colors to make the dish “pretty.”
- 3 Large Carrots, washed, peeled and cut into matchstick slices.
- 1 small Onion
- 1/2 of a medium Cabbage
- 2 Radishes, finely diced
- 1 Tbsp. of Sugar
- 2 tsp. of Lemon Juice
- 1 tsp. of Hot Sauce
- 1/2 tsp. of Ginger
- 1 10 oz. can of Coconut Cream
- Fresh Cilantro (for the garnish)
- Chopped Peanuts (for the garnish)
- Return broth to a large pot on the stove top at medium heat. Add your ingredients starting with the green beans and going straight through to ginger and let simmer for at least another 30 minutes or on low heat for hours if you’ve got the time.
- Taste it and adjust seasonings as necessary.
- Stir in the coconut cream and heat through.
- Serve each dish with a garnish of chopped peanuts and fresh cilantro. You can skip the garnish, although I don’t recommend it because the way the flavors meld with the cilantro and crunch peanuts makes the dish.
Have you been making soup yet? What’s your favorite soup to make? What’s your favorite soup to eat?
I was so intrigued by the apple fennel soup that you posted on Instagram! I love fennel for its slightly licorice-tasting flavor (my toothpaste is actually fennel-flavored) althought I must admit that combined with apple is a slightly strange concept to me.
3b. So so true. When I was younger the only way I would eat soup (other than Campbells when I was sick) was with a ton of Saltine crackers, a grilled cheese, or a deli turkey sandwich from my church with the best Chicken Noodle Soup ever.
I’m pretty happy that you shared the recipe for the last soup though because that picture looks the most delicious. I’m not sure I’ve ever seen something crunchy like peanuts added to a soup before. Mint yes, which still freaks me out… but peanuts I can definitely see as being a good addition.
The peanuts were a very new and yet absolutely fantastic edition. I highly recommend it.
Since I am not a fan of licorice, I’m pretty sure the only way for me to enjoy the fennel was to combine it with other flavors. Hence, the apple. By the time it was all said and done, I couldn’t really taste any licorice at all, which is probably why I liked it. Sorry buddy. If I get more fennel, I’ll send it your way.
Ahhhh! The Soup is UP!!! I knew this post would be SOUPer! Though I have to say I’m a bit bummed you didn’t go with the SOUPerlicious post title! Lol
Your photos are looking mighty good Miss Meghan!! All the colors…and the arrangement of threes…and the fact that I feel I can almost taste those muffins through my screen!! Oh and I’m totally coveting that bejeweled spoon of yours!
The Apple Fennel Soup is definitely on my list…I think it shall be my first soup of the season actually…and I’ll let you know if I get any closer to figuring out the rocks in the socks thing after I make it! 😉
The Hubby said the same thing about the title! Ha.
I’m certainly trying with the photos. My reflector is almost fixed and now I need to make a ligth box. Wanna come back and help me? I still have the instructions you gave me months and months ago. 🙂
You forgot one thing…Soup makes it socially acceptable to eat bread as a side! I can’t eat soup without bread. Dunk it in and let it soak up the goodness…is there anything better in this world?!?! Make lentil soup yesterday but by far my favourite soup is any mushroom.
I never mix my soup with bread/crackers. I’ll eat them side by side, but there is no dunking action happening here. My Hubby is a big dunker though and I do recognize my non-dunking ways are the stranger of the two, so I say dunk on.
Because we’ve had snow, and sleet, and hail, and freezing rain multiple times a day for the past few days, it is soup weather down here too. I’m working on a celery and rice soup, since the re-grown celery needed to be harvested before the hard frost, and I need ideas to love celery.
However, now I want Thai soup, so thanks not only for highlighting (can I say not here, or is that too many nots?) one but two of my recipes, AND thanks for getting my soup cravings intensified.
I would love to freeze some soup, if only there was room in my freezers.
We got that wintery mix too. It was awful, and we even had a couple inches of snow on the ground, which then forced me to bring all the indoor/outdoor plants inside. It’s like a jungle in my house right now. Oscar is loving it and I may have to separate him from the plants or at the very least cover the plant bases in mesh, so he stops digging all the soil out of them. Silly cat.
Make some great dips for the celery. Or maybe you can grind it down and make celery salt, which you could then use to season your stock. That could be cool. I’m throwing darts here.
Yay for soup!! I LOVE making big batches on the weekends for the upcoming work week. Soup is one of those foods that actually tastes BETTER as leftovers :).
It does taste better the next day.
i love me some soup! These look awesome and those muffins..mmmm!
The muffins were Fab. U. Lous.
I adore freezing soup (and any leftovers that freeze well really). Also “my non-ass ass” made me laugh out loud.
I so wish I could grow an ass ass. I’ve always wanted one. 😉
Welp, now I want soup. And I’m pretty sure the best part of making soup is getting to use my wooden spoon (that I highly recommend you get- I got mine for like 2 dollars at target I believe). I always wait until my cabbage is on it’s last leg before using it up for some reason (which has been around 4 week, I’m impressed with your 6 week!)
Does the wooden spoon do anything special for the soup? I may need to break down and get one.
I did have to toss the outermost layer, but the rest was good, and six weeks might have been generous. It might have been closer to 8. Oops.
I was fortunate enough to try the Artichoke and Brown Rice Soup today and I thought it was fantastic!! Yuummmmmmy! Thanks for the sample!! 🙂
I’m glad you enjoyed it. Round Two is coming tomorrow.
Ok, I must admit, I’ve never been the biggest fan of soups as all the ones I’d ever consumed had a resemblance to flavoured water. Now, I am tempted to delve into the waters again…although with Summer coming I’m clearly on par with seasons :p
Saying that, whenever I go to Thai restaurants I ALWAYS order a side of hot and sour tom yum soup or Japanese- Miso- just not as a meal!
Flavored water..What? Who is feeding you? Where are you getting your soup from? Whoever and where ever it is, they are doing it wrong.
You need a summer soup. Try Gazpacho. If you like tomatoes, you’ll love this. http://cleaneatsfastfeets.com/recipes/breads-salads-and-soups/gazpacho/
P.S. It’s a cold soup and does well with some cheesy homemade croutons for added texture.
I’d say I’m not a big soup fan, but then you’ll probably have me eating some in no time just like with salads, and I’ll have to take back my words. I mean, I love a good tomato soup with grilled cheese, but otherwise, I have a hard time being satisfied by soup. But those muffins? Now those sound delicious. Especially since I have a squash that needs to be used, and nope, no way I’m precooking that business either. As if baking doesn’t take long enough/stress my patience enough as is.
Yeah, we’re going to need to do a winter trip this year so I can entice you with soup. Some days I think I could live on bowls of nothing but soup and biscuits. Plus, the options are pretty limitless. You can also curl up into a little ball while you eat it. They are comfort through and through.
You’ll love these muffins. They are savory and delicious. Oh and they have oats and buttermilk too, so a little nutritional va-va-voom. That’s what I’m talking about.
First all of these sound AMAZING! I happen to be a bit of a soup addict so I am always happy to see others who share my enthusiasm. Second I am so so happy to have the recipe for that Thai Veggie soup (I’ve been drooling over your IG picture since you first shared it). Third your photos in this whole post look beautiful!
I have no thoughts on the rocking of socks for now (though I love me some crazy socks I prefer them without soup on them) but I trust if it’s on a list you’ll figure it out eventually!
Thanks love. I myself was very pleased with how the Thai Veggie Soup came out: the actual dish and the pictures. De-Lish!
I’ve got to get into soup mode. I keep scratching my head as to what to cook (with all of my fridge issues, I can’t really stock up on things) Soup will answer a lot of questions, like…”What’s For Supper?!” Your soups look delicious!
Fridge issues? What’s going on over there in New Jersey?
Soup is always good for supper. Throw in a salad or some biscuits and you’re good to go.
Now I get the appeal of soup, especially during the Michigan fall and winter, but I have to say that I don’t love it. I don’t know what it is about it in general, but it never feels like a complete meal if I can’t eat something with my hands. Before going vegan I did love my mom’s chicken noodle soup because she used thick Reames’ egg noodles and tons of carrots, but since then…not so much.
But when I am in a soupy mood, I like Amy’s Organic lentil vegetable. It’s the perfect size for one person-me!-and I can add something on the side to eat with my hands. Yes, it’s from a (BPA-free) can, but I don’t like soup enough to make a big batch to eat for days. Quit judging me! 😉
I could eat soup all the time, although even I will get sick of the same soup if I eat for days straight. I usually eat it once, maybe twice and then into the freezer it goes until one day months from now, I remember it’s there.
I’m a fan of Amy’s lentil soup. You’ve got good taste. 😉
Yes, we’ve begun the Season of Soup! Right now my freezer is stocked (har!) with: veggie lentil chili, lentil spinach, Tuscan kale minestrone with butternut and white beans, and a hearty tomato. How well does the thai soup freeze, do you know? I am dying to try that and the artichoke one. Really though, they all look good!!
I’m coming to your place because all of those sound delicious.
The Thai Soup freezers great, although I’m not sure how well it will do upon reentry. I haven’t defrosted and eaten him yet so I’ll have to report back when I do. I have frozen other soups with various kinds of milk in them (almond, soy) though and never had any issues so I’m hoping it’ll be the same with coconut milk. Time will tell.
I read that first line and I read it: “I’ve been a bad bad badger”. I was thinking were getting more wild monkey talk. damn.
BUT soup is almost as awesome. Thanks for all the soup porn soup nazi! That artichoke/brown rice one sounds amazing.
I’m all for monkey, but badgers sound a little too risqué. 😉
I just remade the artichoke and brown rice soup and it’s fabulous. I took it to work and got a bunch of requests for the recipe. I guess I need to type it up now, huh.