Vegetable Soup

As you know, I've made it my mission to squeeze as much fiber into our diets as possible, and one delicious way I've been doing that is be starting every meal with a bowl of homemade bean soup. It's super-easy, as all soups I've encountered are, and the variations are endless. And on those evenings when the entree is taking a little longer to cook than expected, the soup is a great way to pacify our stomachs. An added benefit: I've read several articles that cite research proving that starting a meal with soup fills our stomachs and encourages us to eat fewer calories when we dig into the entree. I do love to reap multiple benefits from one easy task.

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I start this soup by soaking (overnight) half a bag of a sixteen-bean mix. I choose to soak my own beans because a) it's cheaper than buying several cans and b) it's healthier! By soaking dried beans, I can ensure that no salt or preservatives have seeped into the beans before I get to them. For me, that gives me a level of peace of mind. And soaking the beans is as simple as it gets; remembering to do it the trick.

When I'm ready to assemble my soup, I always start by sauteing a diced onion and chopped carrot. If I regularly had celery in the house, I would use that too. It's the holy trinity of French cooking! But I am not generally a huge fan of celery, so I almost never keep it in the crisper. I saute the onions and carrot until both become a little soft. Then, I add spices. Remember that we're building a soup, so add enough spices to sufficiently flavor the entire pot when it's full of stock. I usually use black pepper, garlic powder, oregano, basil, and chili powder. By cooking the spices with the vegetables, I am deepening the flavor of the base of my soup. And since I'm going to reheat this batch of soup over the course of the week, the flavors need to be strong.

Once I've incorporated the spices, I add my beans and give them a minute to heat with the rest of the base. At this point, the kitchen smells fantastic; it's near-instant gratification! When the beans are heated up, I add six cups of water. Now here's the deal: I make one batch of soup for the week, ladling out two bowls each night, and reheating before we have dinner. Every night, I add more water to the pot order to stretch the soup. I also add more spices every night to make sure it doesn't taste watered down. Making a big batch on, say, Sunday afternoon lasts us until Friday evening. If you've got a larger family, you may want to make a bigger batch at the beginning of the week. Or, if you're more inclined, make a big batch of your base (minus the stock) on one day and just use it as needed during the week, adding stock as you go. Whatever works for your schedule and family is what works.

I let my soup boil for at least twenty minutes. I add a few chicken bouillon cubes to make the stock richer and because I like the slight saltiness that it adds. If you want to keep your soup vegetarian, add vegetable bouillon cubes. Simple.

You know how to serve up soup, so I won't get into the mechanics of ladling. But one thing I discovered that I love is adding a couple of croutons to the bowl. When they absorb the stock, I melt with them. It's such a delicious bite!

Adding soup to your menu (especially one packed with nature's miracle food: the bean) can stretch the rest of your food budget and will add fibrous nutrition to your diet. Besides that: it's delicious and comforting. Enjoy-- with fork (or spoon) in hand.