Lately I've been a tad obsessed with finding new blogs to follow. Whether they be about food, day-to-day life, weddings and events, or crafts, I really have been eager to see what's out there in this little blogosphere. My friend Aimee, who blogs about her life in San Francisco, fashion and all things fabulous here, suggested I check out the blog 101 Cookbooks. All of the recipes are made with natural foods, most are vegetarian and many are vegan so naturally I fell in love. Many of the foods are quite foreign to me, which is really fun because with alot of things I tend to fall into pattern then into a rut. This is helping me expand my vegan food dishes and even my palate! I started with a recipe that had a lot of unfamiliar ingredients, well at least to my taste buds, with leeks and green chard! Whats even better is that this recipe is one she adapted from an other, so now through that I've found even more sites and books of more recipes! I was delighted with this recipe, it tasted amazing. I ended up not using any vegetable broth and only the water, for a very hearty soup. And be sure to add the freshly ground black pepper and fresh squeezed of lemon juice at the end, oh man does that just multiply the exuberance of the flavors!! Because I like a little crunch I went ahead and quickly made fresh croutons (so fast and easy, who knew!) to put right on top for the perfect texture balance.
I hope you enjoy this as much as I did!
"1 large yellow onion
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 1/2 teaspoons sea salt, plus more to taste
1 large sweet potato
1 large leek, white and light green parts
1 bunch spinach (8 ounces)
1 large bunch green chard (12 ounces)
3 tablespoons chopped fresh ginger, plus more to taste
2-4 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
freshly ground black pepper
Chop the onion and cook it slowly in the olive oil with a sprinkle of salt, stirring now and then, over low heat until it is soft and golden, about half an hour.
Meanwhile, peel and dice the sweet potato and put it in a large soup pot with 4 cups (1 liter) water and a teaspoon of sea salt. Thoroughly wash the leek, spinach, and chard, chop them coarsely, and add them to the pot, along with the chopped ginger.
Bring the water to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer the soup, covered, for 30 minutes, or until the vegetables are completely tender. Add the caramelized onions when they are ready. When the vegetables are soft, add the vegetable broth (you can add less if you like a thicker soup) and decide whether you want your soup chunky, like this, or smooth. If the latter, puree the soup in a blender, in batches, or with an immersion blender until it is smooth.
Stir in 2 teaspoons of the lemon juice and a few grinds of black pepper. Taste, and correct the seasoning with additional salt or lemon juice.
Serves 5-6.
This recipe was adapted from Love Soup by Anna Thomas. Published by W. W. Norton & Company; September 2009. For those of you who want to get books signed, Anna is visiting quite a number of California book stores throughout October and November, more info here. Prep time: 10 min - Cook time: 30 min "
Homemade Croutons
Dice two slices of bread of your choice, lately I've been using a sourdough, and place in oven safe dish. Drizzle extra light olive oil until well coated, crack a bit of pepper and salt on top and lightly toss together. Place under a high boil until golden brown. Be sure to toss a few times so to cook evenly.
