The Family

Lotsa Veggies Lentil Soup

1 teaspoon olive oil
1 medium onion, diced medium fine
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 teaspoons dried Thyme
1 teaspoons dried Tarragon
several pinches fresh ground pepper
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
2 ribs celery, diced small
1/2 pound carrots, diced small
1.2 pound zucchini, diced small
1 cup lentils
6 cups vegetable broth
6 oz tomato sauce
1/4 pound spinach leaves, well washed and chopped

Preheat a 4-quart pot over medium heat. Spray with cooking spray and saute the onions in oil for about 5 minutes, till translucent. Add garlic, thyme, tarrigon, pepper, and salt. Saute another minute.

Add celery, carrots, zucchini, lentils, and vegetable broth. Mix to combine. Cover pot and bring to a boil. Once boiling, lower heat to simmer for 30 – 45 minutes, or until lentils are tender.

Add tomato sauce and bring to simmer. Stir in spinach. Turn heat off, cover, and let sit for 10 – 15 minutes.

As to what I did different… I chopped my veggies a little larger than small and did not chop the baby spinach. If the spinach had been larger, I would have chopped it a little, but spinach wilts. I guess if you want a more even texture, you should chop everything small.

I liked it. Luke didn’t. He says it needs sausage, but he is not sure that would be enough to save it. It would be better with sausage. I will probably add veggie sausage next time. I will be making it again. I think its good, and different, and interesting.

I made cornbread which was good with it. (By the way, cornbread made with applesauce and almond or rice milk and no milk, eggs, or butter is pretty good, especially in a bowl with soup broth soaked in the way I like it.)

Kidney Bean Soup (using dry beans)

7 cups vegetable broth or water (or a combination of both)
1½ cups dry kidney beans, soaked overnight (or 1 cup kidney beans, soaked, and ½ cup black beans)
1½ cups brown rice
1–2 cups chopped onions
2 cans Rotel tomatoes
½ t salt
2 tablespoon Dijon mustard
6–10 cups, loose packed, chard, spinach, beet greens, kale, or other flavorful green
3–4 large cloves garlic, crushed or chopped fine
2–4 tablespoons minced basil or 2 – 4 teaspoons dried
2–4 tablespoons minced parsley or 2 – 4 teaspoons dried
1–2 teaspoon dried oregano
Salt to taste

Drain beans. In a large pan, add beans and broth. Bring to a boil, lower heat, and simmer for 30 minutes. Add rice, onions, Rotel tomatoes, salt, and mustard. Simmer for about 1 hour. As beans and rice cook, tear greens into small pieces, discarding stems and veins. When beans and rice are tender, stir in greens, garlic, basil, and oregano. Add salt to taste. Add water if needed. This can be soupy or not as you prefer. Cover, and cook for 10 – 15 minutes, or till greens are wilted and tender.

Kidney Bean Soup (using canned beans)

5 cups vegetable broth
2 cans Rotel tomatoes
1–2 cups chopped onions
2 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1½ cups brown rice
3 cans Kidney beans (or 2 cans kidney and 1 can black beans)
6–10 cups, loose packed, chard, spinach, beet greens, kale, or other flavorful green
3–4 large cloves garlic, crushed or chopped fine
2–4 tablespoons minced basil or 2 – 4 teaspoons dried
2–4 tablespoons minced parsley or 2 – 4 teaspoons dried
1–2 teaspoon dried oregano
Salt to taste

Put broth, Rotel tomatoes, onions, and mustard into a large pan. Add rice, cover, bring to a boil, and simmer for about 30 minutes. (As rice cooks, tear greens small, discarding stems and veins.) Add beans and cook for 15-30 minutes till rice is almost done. (You can add canned beans with or without their liquid, but if you add the liquid, you will need to add no or very little salt.) Stir in greens, garlic, basil, and oregano. Salt to taste. Add water if needed. Make it soupy or not as you prefer. Cover, and cook for 10 – 15 minutes, or till greens are wilted and tender.

Note:
This soup freezes well. If you plan to freeze some, remove it from the soup pot before adding the greens. Then, add greens once you have defrosted the soup. This way you don’t lose a lot of the greens nutrients in the freezing process.

Kale with Panfried Walnuts

yield: Makes 8 servings
active time: 20 min
total time: 30 min

Ingredients
• 3 pounds kale
• 1 cup chopped walnuts (3 1/2 ounces)
• 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped

Preparation
Tear kale into large pieces, discarding stems and center ribs, steam until tender but not limp, about 6 minutes.

Cook walnuts in oil in a large heavy skillet over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, until pale golden, about 5 minutes. Stir in garlic and cook, stirring, until very fragrant, about 1 minute. Add kale and salt and pepper to taste and cook, tossing, until heated through.

Serve warm or at room temperature.

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The recipe calls for vegetable oil, but I used olive oil and it worked fine. I did keep my heat down, of course. The second time I made it I reduced my oil considerably and stirred constantly. I guess the nuts absorbed the oil because it seemed like I was cooking the walnuts in a dry skillet, but it worked fine. If you are not trying to cut back on fats, I would go ahead and use the whole amount, though. The little bit of walnut flavored oil on the kale when you toss it in is good.

Also, I doubt if i had 3 pounds of kale. I had a large bunch as sold in the store. I used the full measure of walnuts and garlic, though.