Apple Curry Squash Soup

Autumn is here in Vermont. Actually, technically it's practically over. Peak foliage has passed. Leaves are on the ground and snow has already hit the mountain tops. Which means it is prime soup weather. I love soup. A bowl of it with slices of homemade bread is one of my very favorite lunches.

I also love to can. There is something about hoarding mason jars that makes me really happy. As I follow USDA regulations I don't can anything with dairy so the two soups I made this week are all vegan and very healthy as I also didn't use any oil.

You will need:

2 lbs (about 2 cups) roasted butternut squash (Check out my post on easily roasting a squash whole.)
1 lb of apples, sectioned but not peeled (Macintosh or another squishy saucing apple works best)
1/2 cup sliced red onions
1 clove garlic, minced
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1 1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 TBS curry powder
6 cups vegetarian stock (I use a Vegetarian "Chicken" Flavored powder, 1 tsp per cup)

Chop apples leaving the skins on. Slice onions and mince garlic. Put it all into a stockpot and saute using the cider vinegar. (If you wanted to you could substitute in a little oil here.) The apples will start getting a little squishy. This means you are ready to puree.

Puree the apples, onions, and garlic. Add 1 1/2 tsp of salt and 1/2 tsp pepper to the puree and mix. 

Return the puree to the pan and heat.

Add the 6 cups of stock into the apple puree. 

Puree 2 cups of squash until smooth and add to the pan. Stir in well.  

Add curry into pan and mix in. 

Simmer the soup over low until slightly reduced for about 20 minutes. Taste and add salt if necessary (curry usually has salt in it so I always undersalt then taste it to avoid a salt-tastrophe!). 

If you're serving it right away then dish it out and enjoy with some bread!

If you're canning it make sure to use clean, hot sterilized jars. Fill the jars leaving about 3/4" of headspace. Wipe the rim and threads and top with clean sterilized NEW lids and a clean ring tightened (but not cranked on too tight). The soup will need to be pressure canned at 11 lbs of pressure (I do 15 since I have a weighted canner) for 55 minutes. Store for up to a year to enjoy on cold winter days.

                                       

Sweet Potato, Black Bean & Pork Crockpot Stew

At this point in my pregnancy dinners are alternating between quick and fresh (salads, eggs, fruit) and slow cooked meals that are ready at dinner with no effort. Slow cooked meals feel like a bit of a gamble as I prepare them... will we be around for dinner that night? Or will my water break leaving a simmering crockpot meal for whomever picks up our dog to take to their house?

This meal is everything I like in a dinner. It's hearty with chunks of meat- I tend to load my bowl with more veggies while my husband loves the carnivorous elements. It's quick to prepare and it's cheap. Pork stew meat runs around $1.49/lb in our local grocery stores and I managed to snag a pack that was .50 off. Topped off with some lime spiked sour cream it was a hit with everyone in our family.

Sweet Potato, Black Bean & Pork Crockpot Stew (total cost for recipe is $5.25 or .88/serving)
(serves 6)

1 1/2 pounds pork stew meat (2.19- .50 coupon= 1.69)
1 1/2 pounds sweet potatoes (.99/lb = 1.49)
1 15.25 oz can black beans (.89)
1 28 oz can diced tomatoes (.95)
1/2 cup orange juice or the juice of 1 orange (estimate .23 cents cost)
2 cloves garlic
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 teaspoon dried cilantro
Top with: sour cream, lime & parsley (optional)

Gather your ingredients by the slow cooker. Use a garlic press or mince the garlic and add it into the cooker. Peel and dice the sweet potato and add that into the cooker.

Add the pork in on top of the sweet potatoes. 

Dump in the can of beans and the can of tomatoes. 

Pour the orange juice over the top. 

Add all spices and set the slow cooker to start. I cooked on high for 4 hours but you could also do low for 8 hours. 

When the time is up on the slow cooker and you're ready for dinner you can create a quick lime sour cream topping for your stew. I mixed a couple of spoonfuls of sour cream with the juice from a lime wedge and some lime zest and set a dollop on top of each bowl along with a lime wedge. I also sprinkled some fresh parsley on top since I had some on hand. Toppings are optional. Enjoy!

Creamy Tomato Soup

There is a comfort element to tomato soup. This recipe will taste like you slaved away in the kitchen for the day but really only takes 45 minutes to simmer on the stove. I throw this together frequently as a quick lunch and serve it with slabs of homemade bread. Yesterday, my husband got solitude time in the woods to cut some fallen trees into rounds and this was a hearty lunch when he came back. My father in law and I also needed a hearty lunch because we had spent the morning with the 17 month old who was unfortunately ill. She took comfort in the dog.

Creamy Tomato Soup (roughly $3.02/batch)

(serves 6-8)

1 inch of ginger

2 cloves of garlic

2 TBS olive oil

4 TBS chopped fresh basil or 2 TBS dried basil

1 lg can crushed tomatoes (1 lb) 1.09

1 lg can tomato puree (1 lb) .95

2 cups broth (I used chicken but you can use veggie for a vegetarian version of this soup.)

1 cup cream (I used light cream but have used whipping cream in the past.) .70

3 TBS butter (.75/stick=8 TBS) .28

salt & pepper to taste

1. In a stockpot, heat up 2 TBS olive oil. Add the minced ginger & garlic and stir for about 2 minutes with a rubber spatula until light brown. For a ginger mincing trick check out my ginger post. Add the basil & give it a quick stir. 

2. Add the two cans of tomatoes. I've found the key to getting a great texture in the soup is to use both puree and crushed. Stir in the two cups of broth. Let it simmer on medium low for 20 minutes. I cover it in case it splatters a little. (The blocks in my picture are the frozen chopped basil I used.)

3. Add the cream and the butter (cut into TBS's). Stir gently to melt the butter. Let simmer for 20 more minutes so that the flavors marry. This is a good time to season with salt & pepper to your taste. 

Dish out and enjoy! 

Meatless Monday: Speedy Vegan Black Bean Soup for Two

Here in Vermont it is raining. That's right, it's January and it's raining. Cold, disgusting rain. My husband is cranky because it isn't snowing, the 16 month old has the chickenpox, I'm starting to feel like my pregnant belly leads me everywhere I go, and the dog is out of sorts because he ate a jalapeno that I accidentally dropped on the floor. So tonight called for a quick comfort meal. This recipe can please almost anyone. The spices give the soup a fantastic flavor. The recipe can easily be doubled or even tripled but this small version is what I make when we need a quick dinner and I don't want to add to the leftovers piling up in our fridge. I like to serve this with jalapeno boats.

Vegan Black Bean Soup
(Serves 2)

2 stalks celery, diced
1 large carrot, peeled & diced
1 garlic clove, diced
1 small piece ginger (the size of your garlic clove), peeled & diced
1 15 oz can black beans
2 cups veggie stock
1/3 cup tomato sauce
1-2 TBS oil
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
a pinch of cinnamon
1/2 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper

1. Dice vegetables. I press the garlic & ginger directly into the pan with a garlic press. This way the juices also run into the pan.

2. Saute the vegetables on low for about 5 minutes. Stir to make sure they cook evenly. 

3. Add spices to pan. Stir. Add black beans, tomato sauce & stock. Simmer over low heat for 10 minutes.

4. Process the soup in food processor or blender until smooth. Pour into pan to reheat if necessary. 

Enjoy with fresh bread or jalapeno poppers. This recipe makes a hearty serving with seconds for one person or 2 decent size servings with a side for 2. My picture shows the soup with sour cream on top- for vegans omit sour cream. Enjoy!

Persian Stew with Greens & Beans

I was a little under the weather earlier this week so I went back to a childhood comfort stew. It's a little late for Meatless Monday but it's a great vegetarian dish & can easily be made vegan or gluten-free with minor modifications. The great thing about this stew is that because there is no dairy in the actual stew you can pressure can the leftovers.

Ash-eh Reshteh
(serves 4-8 easily)

10 cups water
8 oz lentils
1 15 oz can chickpeas

1 bunch chopped flat Italian parsley
1 bunch chopped cilantro
1 bunch scallions, green parts chopped
1 16 oz bag of chopped frozen spinach
a small handful of spaghetti noodles
1 onion
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon turmeric
2 tablespoons oil
plain yogurt for topping the stew

In a stockpot, put the 10 cups of water, lentils & rinsed chickpeas. Bring to a low boil for 20 minutes while you chop all the greens. After 20 minutes add the parsley, cilantro, scallions, and spinach into the pot.Cook on a low boil for 30 minutes. After 30 minutes, add the spaghetti noodles into the pot. Saute the onions & garlic in the oil in a frying pan. After they soften add the turmeric. Add half the onions into the stew & stir. Check to make sure the noodles are cooked through, salt if necessary and serve with yogurt on top of each serving. To make vegan eliminate yogurt topping & use vegan noodles. To make gluten-free replace noodles with a gluten-free substitute.
Enjoy!