Creamy Veggie Soup

 

After a week of super, unseasonably warm weather last week, yesterday was a bit on the cooler side, which made me crave soup.  I have recently grown an affinity for soup making because, like chili, you can kind of put anything and everything into a soup and make it something unique every time.  I knew I wanted to make something healthy and hearty so I opened up my fridge and basically pulled out any veggie I could find.  I made this soup completely on the fly and I have to say it was the most satiating dinner for a cold evening in.  **Note: I did not add salt to this during the cooking process because I tend to top my soups with Parmesan Cheese which gives me the amount of salt I like (I tend to under-salt my food).  So as you cook the soup, taste it and adjust your salt levels as you like.

Creamy Veggie Soup

1/2 tsp Coriander Seeds

2 Garlic Cloves

2 Shallots

2 Celery Ribs

1 Carrot

3 Small Russet Potatoes

1/4 cup Skim Milk

1 Cup Low Sodium Chicken Broth

1 tsp Parsley

1/4 cup Flour

1/2 tsp Dill

Pepper

10 oz Frozen Cauliflower

2 cups Water

1 tsp Thyme

1 tsp Oregano

1 cup Frozen Broccoli Florets

2 tbsp Butter

1 tbsp Wondra

>Chop up your celery, carrot, shallots, and garlic.  Also, peel and cube your potatoes.

 > In a large pot, heat up some Olive Oil (about 2 tbsp) and throw in your coriander seeds.  Cook on a medium heat for about 2 minutes, then add in your celery, carrot, shallots and garlic.  Cook this down on a low/medium heat until the shallots are completely translucent.

 >Meanwhile, in a separate pot, you're going to cook your potatoes until they're fork tender.  Once they're tender enough, drain out the water and set the potatoes aside.

> So once your celery/carrot/shallot/garlic mixture is cooked enough, add in your 1 cup of chicken stock and 2 cups of water, and bring to a semi-boil.  Once it's somewhat boiling, add in your cooked potatoes.

 > Now it's time to season!  I went with a totally green seasoning medley which happened to work really well together -- so add in your dill, oregano, parsley, thyme and pepper.

 >Mix together and let the soup cook for about 10 minutes.

 >While the soup is cooking, you need to make your roux (a butter, milk and flour combo that helps to thicken your soup up).  In a saucepan, melt two tablespoons of Butter over a medium heat (not too high of a heat - you don't want to burn your butter).

 >Add in your 1/4 cup of flour and stir constantly until is starts to form crumbly pieces as shown below.

 > Now add in your 1/4 cup milk, while still stirring.

 >Stir until the mixture gets the consistency of a mashed potato-like mixture.  Remove from heat and stir into your soup.

 > In addition to the roux, I added a little bit of Wondra towards the end of the cooking process to help thicken up my soup more.  Wondra is commonly used in making gravy to help thicken it up (thanks mom for introducing me to this amazing product!)

 > Now you're going to add in your frozen broccoli and cauliflower - I didn't even unfreeze them because the heat of the soup with thaw them within minutes.  Cook for about 10 minutes on a medium/high heat.

 >  Once you feel your veggies are soft enough, it's time to puree the soup down.  You can use an immersion blender if you have one - sadly, I do not, so I used my Cuisinart to blend the soup down completely.  My Cuisinart looks so majestic in this photo :)

I topped the soup with a dollop of Sour Cream and Parmesan Cheese.  This recipe made enough for 4 very large bowls of soup.  Again, I didn't add salt during the cooking process, but most palates would probably want their soup a little saltier - so just taste as you go! ENJOY!

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