Two Green Soups as I eagerly await Spring

vegetarian, hearty, silky, luxurious green soups to keep warm

Winter season always feels so long. No matter how many winters I spend on this earth, it always feels impossibly long every single year.

Just when I thought spring was on the horizon, a massive winter storm with heavy snowfall adorned our mountains last week. The chill that followed froze me to my core, or at least that’s how it feels. On such weeks I long for soup. Bowls and bowls of hot velvety liquid warming my throat, my stomach, my entire being.

Cold days, like last week, also mean I lack motivation to grocery shop. I really don’t want to leave the house or the comfort of my blanket. But I also really want soup. Since I am a free style home chef, my creativity usually flows while I mull over ideas in my head under the warmth of my big blue blanket on the couch.

While staying cozy under the blanket, I created two soups in my head last week from ingredients I already on hand. Once I cooked them, I must say, I surprised myself! Both soups are healthy, versatile, flexible, low carb, customizable & can be consumed as the main dish or an appetizer or a side.

I liked one better than the other but overall both achieved the desired goal. They warmed my bones. Or such was how it felt. I invite you to give these soups a try. I am confident they will warm you too.

Soup 1: Creamy Zucchini & Peas Soup

I found some zucchini in the fridge and I almost always have frozen peas and dried herbs in the house. So it was natural to experiment with all these ingredients. The best part? Easiest soup I have ever made! I tossed the zucchini (600g), frozen peas (350g), dried herbs (thyme, rosemary, fennel), basic spices (salt, pepper), vegetable bouillon (1 cube), & water (3 cups) into the instant pot and pressure cooked for 7 mins. After releasing the pressure, I tossed in fresh herbs growing on my windowsill (basil, mint), nutritional yeast (2 tbsp), and a splash of heavy cream (1 tbsp) prior to immersion blending it all into smoothness. I adjusted the salt and pepper at the end.

I served this soup with some extra virgin olive oil and freshly shredded parmesan cheese toppings. Oh my, it was delicious and warm and smooth and herbaceous. I couldn’t believe I had not made this before! As a main meal, this would make ~2-3 servings but as an appetizer or a side this would easily be ~4-6 servings. I devoured it as my main meal and went back for seconds. It was absolutely perfect for the cold winter day.

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Soup 2: Silky Broccoli, Tofu, & Peas Soup

Since the first soup was so successful, I was inspired to make another one. This time I had broccoli and a forgotten about silken tofu packet in the fridge, so I decided to incorporate those. Into the instant pot I added: broccoli florets (350g), frozen peas (250g), dried herbs (thyme, rosemary, parsley), basic spices (salt, pepper), vegetable bouillon (1 cube), & water (3 cups). I pressure cooked for 7 mins and then released it. Next I added the silken tofu (15 oz, entire package), nutritional yeast (2 tbsp), & fresh mint to immersion blend it all into silky smoothness.

I love the lime green-ish color this version of the soup took on. I adjusted salt and pepper at the end and decided to serve it with a sprinkle of Sumac, a mediterranean spice that lends a tangy flavor. This was a luxurious soup. It highlighted silky, hearty, tangy, warmth, all in one slurp. And slurp away I did, to my heart’s content. I once again ate this as my main meal (2-3 servings) but it could easily be served as an appetizer or on the side. I enjoyed this second soup more than the first one.

Both of these soups were the highlight of my cold snow-laden week. They not only warmed me but also let my creative juices flow to free style cook the ingredients and yield delicious winning results. The versatility of these soups is what excites me. I can swap out ingredients based on what I have, I can add less or more water to make them thicker or thinner, I can play around with toppings to add more layers of flavor to the base ingredients. The possibilities are endless and I cannot wait to explore them.

Which Green Soup would you try first?

Dish Debrief:

• Is this my winner or disaster? win

• How would I rate this dish out of 10? 9 out of 10

• What would I change next time? I can’t wait to try other greens combos.

• Would I make this again? yes, to keep warm on cold days