Both healthy and delicious: a culinary miracle.
Photo: Nina Lincoff
What’s amusing about a vegetable? Well, they have no thoughts of their own. Apparently, they can make it into some seats in Congress. At times, Jack Nicholson is a very engaging vegetable. So metaphoric vegetables then, of the political, mental, and fully functioning idiotic kinds, are highly amusing. But those that grow in the ground? Not particularly interesting. Unless, of course, you get the occasional hilarious squash or beautifully skinned tomato. And lettuce, sometimes perfectly curled and full of deep pockets, can be mysterious and wonderful. Hmmm.
So, vegetables. More amusing than I initially thought.
A phenomenal way to consume a ridiculous amount of veggies, and I mean a truly obscene amount, is to throw it all into a soup. Poured into a bowl, each spoonful is an easy step towards making the “five-servings a day” mark. Throw in a little quinoa and you’ve covered the entire food pyramid or food plate, whichever you prefer.
But besides being ‘healthy and delicious,’ this soup has another thing going for it: simplicity. Take the onion, leek, and spice base, and simply add vegetables. It doesn’t really matter what veggies. Like peppers? Throw them in there. Need a little more body to the soup? Add a potato. Zucchinis add a nice fleshiness to a veg soup; sweet potatoes add a bit of toothiness. Fresh corn adds crunch; spinach creates a silky, almost egg-like consistency. Fresh vegetables distilled in a bowl: the ultimate combatant to a diet otherwise lacking in greens.
The best way to make this soup, perhaps, would be to go to a grocery store and grab one of everything you like in the produce section. Simply judge the vegetables and starches’ necessary cooking time and throw them into the simmering pot accordingly.
Go ahead. Eat your veggies.
Vegetable Bin Soup with Quinoa
Inspired by the Whole Foods produce section
1 cup quinoa
1 large leek
3 yellow onions
2 tablespoons unsalted butter or olive oil
2 red potatoes
1 large carrot
1 zucchini
2 teaspoons cumin
2 teaspoons coriander
1 can, (about 12 oz.), tomato puree
8 cups vegetable broth
1 Thai chili
2 ears fresh corn
1 sweet potato
3 cups spinach
Salt and pepper for taste
1. Rinse the quiona and remove any sticks or stones. Let the quinoa rest in a bit of water while preparing the soup. Slice the darkest green portion and the roots off the leek. Slice in half and wash, making sure to remove all the dirt and grime. Thinly slice the leek and set aside. Peel and thinly slice the onions. Add the onions and leeks to a large soup pot. Add the butter or olive oil and a sprinkle of salt. Sauté the onions and leeks until translucent and tender.
2. While the leeks and onions are sautéing, peel and wash the potatoes and carrots. Cube the potatoes and slice the carrots into small chunks. Slice the zucchini into equivalent chunks. Add the potatoes, carrots, zucchini, cumin, and coriander to pot and sauté for about 5 minutes. Add the tomato puree, vegetable broth and Thai chili. Break open the chili if you like a little heat. Bring the mixture to a boil and then reduce to a simmer. Simmer, covered, for about 5 minutes before adding the quiona. Simmer for 25 minutes, covered.
3. Immediately peel and cube the sweet potatoes and add it to the pot. While the quinoa is cooking, add the corn, and spinach in the last five minutes. Season with salt and pepper and simmer for an additional 5 minutes. Serve immediately.
