Spring or Winter Vegetable Soup

In this article i will show you how to make Vegetable Soup. Here’s a basic vegetable soup in two versions. Choose either the spring or winter vegetable soup to prepare this nice recipe. The parsley should be cooked slowly at first to infuse the oil. Here are step by step directions.

INGREDIENTS :

2 tablespoons olive oil1 large yellow onion, finely chopped1/4 cup chopped parsley leaves2 garlic cloves, minced1 large beefsteak tomato, cored and finely chopped8 cups (2 quarts) chicken broth1 bay leaf

Spring Vegetables

2 medium zucchini, roughly chopped2 medium yellow summer squash, roughly chopped1 medium fennel bulb, trimmed and roughly chopped1/2 pound green beans, ends trimmed and cut into 1-inch pieces1/2 pound asparagus spears, ends trimmed and cut into 1-inch pieces1/2 pound sugar snap peas, stems and fibrous veins removed, roughly chopped

Winter Vegetables

4 medium carrots, peeled and thinly sliced1 medium acorn squash, peeled, halved, seeded, and roughly chopped3/4 pound yellow-fleshed potatoes, such as Yukon golds, peeled and diced1/2 pound Brussels sprouts, quartered1/2 pound cremini or white button mushrooms, thinly sliced1 teaspoon salt1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

DIRECTIONS :

Heat a large Dutch oven or soup pot over low heat. Swirl in the olive oil, then add the onion and parsley. Cook slowly, stirring often, until the onion is golden, about 7 minutes.Add the garlic, cook for 15 seconds, then add the tomato. Stir well, raise the heat to medium-high, and pour in the broth, scraping up any browned bits on the pan’s bottom as the broth comes to a simmer.Stir in the bay leaf and all the spring vegetables (the zucchini, yellow squash, fennel, green beans, asparagus, and sugar snaps) or winter vegetables (the carrots, acorn squash, potatoes, Brussels sprouts, and mushrooms).Cover, reduce the heat to low, and simmer slowly until the vegetables are tender, about 30 minutes for the spring vegetables, 45 minutes for the winter ones. Remove the bay leaf; stir in the salt and pepper before serving.

Makes 6 servings.

Variations:

Stir in 2 cups cooked and drained shaped pasta (ziti, rigatoni, farfalle) during the last 5 minutes of cooking.For a brighter taste, stir in 2 teaspoons cider or white wine vinegar with the salt.For a deeper taste, use beef broth instead of chicken.For a richer soup, add the rind from a wedge of Parmigiano-Reggiano with the vegetables. Shave off the wax and any ink with a vegetable peeler before adding. The cheese will melt as the vegetables cook; discard the remnant after cooking.

Lots of fun preparing this popular soup recipe and Bon Apetit.