Want to bring a childhood favourite back without having to open a can? This Alphabet soup recipes is full of vegetables and flavour and the child inside us all can appreciate the nostalgia.
In Saskatchewan it has finally started to feel like a normal winter, and by normal I mean cold! This past weekend it was -40 Celsius so staying indoors was a must and cooking up something warm for lunch was a great idea. Soup is one of my favourite things to spend a morning making. It fills your house with a wonderful smell and you can make any kind of soup you want. When I first started cooking I never used a recipe, it was always like making a potion, throw a little of this in and a little of that, tasting as I go. Soup is one of those meals that measuring is not nearly as important so you have the freedom to add whatever you like.
This soup recipe is a basic tomato vegetable soup, using traditional herbs and spices like basil, oregano and a bay leaf but if you feeling adventurous try adding something like rosemary or chilli pepper flakes to bring a little heat. As with spices vegetables are also interchangeable, cauliflower, corn, potatoes, and any kind of bean would make a wonderful addition to this soup. The basic formula for soup starts with the same couple steps, below pictures will illustrate these steps.
If you live alone soup is a great way to meal prep, most recipes are large enough to feed you several meals and can easily be frozen into serving sizes to be microwaved at a later date. It's a great lunch to take to work, although right now so many are working from home it still makes for a great way to refuel during your work day.
Alphabet Soup
Ingredients:
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 white onion, diced finely
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 cups carrot, diced
- 2 cups celery, diced
- 1 1/2 cups green beans, diced
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon dried basil
- 1 bay leaf
- 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 can diced tomatoes, 796ml can
- 1/3 cup strained tomatoes
- 8 cups vegetable broth
- 1 cup frozen peas
- 2/3 cup Alphabet Pasta
Instructions:
In a large pot, heat oil on medium heat. Add onion and cook until fragrant and translucent, about 2 minutes. Add garlic and cook for another minute. Stir in carrots, celery and green beans, cook for about 7-9 minutes until vegetables start to soften, stirring a couple times to evenly cook.
Stir in oregano, basil, bay leaf, salt and pepper, cook for about a minute. Add vegetable broth and cook for another minute. Stir in tomato paste, diced tomatoes and strained tomatoes, bring soup to a light boil and cook for 2-4 minutes. Stir in frozen peas. Taste soup to make sure you don't need more seasoning.
Lower heat to medium low and stir in alphabet pasta, cook for about 5 minutes, remove soup from heat and cover with lid for an additional 2 minutes. Remove bay leaf. Serve warm and enjoy!
A quick and easy soup recipe that your kids will love and you will appreciate the upgrade from your childhood canned lunch.
Enjoy!
Recipes and more will always be posted on my Instagram page @_thefooddiaries Facebook page The Food Diaries and Pinterest page The Food Diaries.
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