Glass of Win

We’ve all been in What’s-For-Dinner-Hell.
You don’t want to eat anything too heavy, but you also want to be sure whatever you eat fills you up…you’d like for it to be healthy, quick and tasty. Gosh, aren’t you picky! Just kidding. I’m like that, too, and this soup hits just the spot. It’s perfect for chilly days, to sate a need for spice, and will blow open your sinuses if need be.
Let me give you a little history in the development of my herb & noodle soup.

Once upon a time my cousin married into a Vietnamese family. To impress her stern Vietnamese mother-in-law, my cousin decided to make traditional Pho soup. She pulled out all of the stops – a big-ass metal wash basin for her soup cauldron, soup bones that simmered for hours, all of the yummy fixins, you wouldn’t believe it. It was the most delicious soup I have ever had. I decided to master a simplified version of the soup, which I am now presenting to you.

HERB & NOODLE SOUP

Prep Garnish:
Mint
Basil
Cilantro
Green onions
Bean Sprouts
Spicy chili garlic sauce (I recommend Sriracha)

OPTIONAL: Paper thin slices of raw beef

In a large soup pot, heat 64 oz. low-sodium beef broth over medium heat.
Halve a lime, squeezing the juice into the broth and leave the lime in the liquid.

As the broth heats up, fix you rice noodles.
(Add rice noodles to boiling water – let cook for 2-4 minutes, drain in colander, rinse noodles with cold water)

In a bowl, add your noodles, spicy chili garlic sauce, garnish and beef (optional).
Ladle broth over items in bowl, stir contents with chopsticks (beef will cook in hot broth).

Eat and enjoy!

What have you been cooking in your kitchen lately?

For those of us in the Northern Hemisphere, it is winter right now and the weather begs us to make a piping hot pot of soup. I decided to tackle vegetable soup, as per my family’s request. It came out pretty tasty, simple, light but filling. This is honestly the simplest recipe I’ve ever posted here.

VEGETABLE SOUP

Serves: a ton (8-10 probably)

Broth
1 quart veggie stock
2 14 oz. cans low-sodium chicken broth
1 can Trader Joe diced tomatoes with juice
1/4th onion (diced)
1/4th onion, (rings)
3 celery stalks (leafy kind)
dried basil
black pepper
sea salt
garlic powder

Contents
carrots
green beans
zucchini
corn (frozen)
okra (frozen)
peas (frozen)
white kidney beans (pre-cooked)

Grab your biggest pot and add all of the ingredients listed under broth.
Let the broth simmer for one hour.

Add uncooked veggies, continue to simmer until veggies are tender but not mush.

Add any frozen veggies & pre-cooked beans at the last 10 minutes

Remove celery stalks & onion rings, discard

Ladle up and enjoy!

NOTES
To veganize, just use veggie stock entirely. I did not have enough, so I used chicken broth.
Use whatever vegetables you want ~ fresh or frozen. Just remember to add fresh way before frozen, otherwise you run the risk of it becoming mushy.
Other deliciousness to add: shallots, fresh chopped garlic, red potatoes, cauliflower, red pepper flakes for a kick, tofu cubes, orzo, lentils, roasted peppers, leeks.

Do you have a particular obsession with one dish; an obsession so deep that anytime you notice it on a restaurant menu you have to order it, despite your better judgment telling you there is no way in hell that particular place (particularly a chain brand eatery) could ever perfect such a dish? I’m that way with French onion soup, my favorite comfort food of all time. I can vaguely recall the night my dad made it for our family and friends of our family, well over twenty years ago.
There is a local, authentic French bistro that has the best French onion soup, but on those occasions when I (a) don’t want to pay for it (b) don’t want to wait and (c) want to have leftovers I needed to come up with the best recipe I could refine. My mom used to make it out of low-sodium chicken broth, when low-sodium beef broth was unavailable. It was a decent substitute for many years, but far from the quality we became accustomed to since frequenting our bistro. It was time to hunt down and refine a new recipe. I formed this recipe using Alton Brown’s recipe as a base.


What I Used:
Onions: 5 yellow onions, 3 tablespoons of butter (I use smart balance), 1/2c. sherry
Broth: 32 oz. certified organic beef broth, 14 oz. low-sodium chicken broth, 14 oz. canned beef broth, 1/2 c. spiced apple cider, 3/4th c. white wine (chardonnay)
Spice: Allspice, cloves, black pepper, thyme, sea salt & cumin – lots of cumin!
French bread & shredded Gruyere cheese (I used Trader Joe’s brand and I’ll never switch it up unless they do it first)
How much does this make? A shit ton (maybe 6-8). I also use regular bowls, not special mini soup crocks. Step by step instructions with pictures are as follows:

Chop the two largest onions into fine, half-moon shapes:

Yummy chunky onions

Finely mince the remaining three, smaller onions (I used a food processor) then set them aside.

Best investment mom ever made

Heat up a skillet and melt the butter on high. Once the butter is melted, layer the chopped, half-moon shaped onions and let them sweat down and brown on medium heat until they reduced to a rich caramel color. This takes awhile, 30-45 minutes. Add the 1/2c. sherry, reduced heat and stir.

Smells delicious

In a large pot, add the liquids (beef broth, chicken broth, cider, wine), the minced onions we set aside earlier and the spices (I repeat, be generous with the cumin).

The liquids I used for the broth

Bring to a boil, then add the caramelized onions from the skillet, reduce heat & simmer for about 20-30 minutes, fiddling with your spices until you have the taste you like.


Try not to drool

While that’s going, this is the perfect time to grate the Gruyere cheese. Our food processor has a grater blade *grin*

Cheese!

When the soup is done and the cheese is grated, it’s time to cut the French bread in small rounds and toast them.

Toasty toast!

Ladle the soup in a bowl (or mini crock bowl, whatever), add the toast in the soup, (don’t burn yourself) and sprinkle the cheese on top. Then, place the bowl(s) on a cookie sheet and into a pre-heated oven set for “broil” ~ around 400-500 degrees F.

Hot oven is hot.

In anywhere from 3-5 minutes, the cheese will have melted and bubbled and it’s time to turn off the oven and carefully remove the soup ~

Be careful, it’s crazy hot!

Grab a soup spoon, dig in and enjoy!

NOTES:
To veganize! simply use vegetable stock and add a vegan ‘beef’ bouillon.

Question: What is your favorite soup?