We’ve had some cold days recently, and soups are great when it’s cold. They are better warm, and for leftovers that can be a hassle without a microwave, but paired with some fresh bread, they still hit the spot. I also made my own vegetable stock, which will keep in the freezer all winter for when I need it.
Vegetable Stock
I do have to say, buying $20+ worth of vegetables in one shopping trip is a new thing for me, especially when most of that is sort of for one dish.
The basics for stock are pretty basic. No salt though.
The first step is adding gelatin to water. I think this is to thicken the stock, but I think I’m doing something wrong because it usually ends up in globs and not dissolved.
I like to chop everything beforehand. Even if I don’t need it till the end (as long as it doesn’t brown like the apples). This way, after bringing something to a boil and when you suddenly need 2 diced onions you overlooked you aren’t left scrambling (though I do still miss ingredients).
The next step is to pretty much cover everything in water.
And then bring to a boil and let simmer.
Here we are just about done.
Then a quick strain.
And then separate into ~1cup batches for freezing. Yeah, I realize how much these look like urine. Now it looks like I have a bunch of frozen urine in my freezer.
The Recipe:
-4 large celery stalks, roughly chopped
-2 large carrots, roughly chopped
-2 medium onions, roughly chopped
-2 granny smith apples
-4 oz gelatin
-8 oz mushrooms
-pepper
Hydrate gelatin in 4 cups of water for 10mins.
Just cover chopped vegetables in cold water, add gelatin, bring to a boil and then simmer for 40-60mins, until about 2 quarts remain. Strain and freeze for later use.
Broccoli Parmesean Soup:
The ultimate goal of making the stock was making the Broccoli soup. The added bonus is I have leftover stock for future soups.
This soup contains some more familiar elements that my diet is used to – cheese, garlic, salt and milk for starters, and I suppose broccoli as well.
Again, I like to chip everything up first.
The first step is pretty much saute the onions, celery and garlic in some butter.
Then add some milk.
And then add the broccoli. This was 2lbs, the recipe calls for 12 cups of florets and stems, and that is unusual for a serious eats recipe because it doesn’t really give a weight.
At first the broccoli won’t fit in the liquid, but after a couple minutes it will soften and go down. I think this has something to do with the baking soda.
You bring this all to a boil and simmer until the broccoli is tender and olive green.
Meanwhile you can double check on the chicken you have in the sous vide…
And when the broccoli is pretty much falling apart you add the cheese, which will melt fairly quickly.
Then you take the immersion blender to it and make it a soup. The actual recipe calls for straining it, but I haven’t found that to be necessary.
And right before the end, add the juice of one lemon – this was a particularly large lemon and my first time using this juicer, but it worked out pretty well I think.
There you have it, a healthy, hearty, broccoli soup for the winter. Now I have another 5 cups or so to finish. Luckily work has a microwave so I can warm it up easily there.
The Recipe:
-3 tbsp butter
-1 medium onion, diced
-4 medium stalk celery, diced
-3 clove garlic, minced
-3 tbsp flour
-2 cup milk
-2 cup vegetable stock
-12 cup (~2lbs) broccoli florets and/or stems
-3 oz parmesean cheese, grated
-Juice from 1 lemon
Calories: 1511
Weight: 2582g
Melt butter in dutch oven or stock pot over med-high heat. Add onion, celery, garlic and saute until soft but not brown.
Add flour and cook, stirring until it is all absorbed. Stirring constantly, add the milk and stock. Stir in broccoli and baking soda and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook until broccoli is tender, about 20mins.
Add the parmesean and use an immersion blender to puree the mixture. Whisk in lemon juice and salt/pepper.
Notes: Serve with fresh bread (or freshly warmed frozen homemade bread) for some nice texture.