Is there anything more comforting on a cold winter’s day than a warm bowl of soup? Soup has been around since early man realized that sticking food in a fire gave it a whole new taste dimension. You can make it out of just about anything, and it’s a dish that almost every culture has adopted and adapted over the years. I am a big fan of soup. It’s warming, filling, and most of all, easy. Yeah, I know the Campbell’s can is real easy to open, too, but making soup from scratch is a great way to use up odds and ends in your fridge, and you can make a ton for next to nothing.
Vegetable soup is my very favorite, which is a good thing, since I always have a bunch of veggies in varying stages of decay on hand, and often need to use them up quickly. Here’s my basic recipe. It takes about an hour from start to finish, depending on how fast you prep. You can add almost any other vegetables to this, but you may need to add a little more broth.
Fresh Vegetable Soup
2 tbsp. olive oil
1 small onion, minced
2 ribs of celery, chopped fine
2 carrots, peeled and chopped fine
2 garlic cloves, minced
½ tsp. dried oregano
½ tsp. dried basil
Salt
6 cups of vegetable broth
2 red potatoes, diced
1 (14.5 oz.) can of diced tomatoes (I like the roasted kind best)
½ (14.5 oz.) can corn kernels, drained
¼ lb (about 10) fresh green beans, trimmed and cut into pieces
Pepper
Heat the oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-low heat until shimmering. Stir in the onion, celery, carrots, garlic, and ¾ teaspoon salt. Cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are very soft, about 20 minutes.
Stir in oregano and basil, and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in broth, potatoes, and tomatoes. Bring to a simmer and cook for 10 minutes, potatoes should be starting to soften. Add green beans and corn, and cook until potatoes are soft, about 10 minutes.
Season with salt and pepper to taste, and serve. I like to make soup a day in advance, so all the flavors have a chance to meld a little better, but it’s great right from the pot.
Once cooled, this soup can be stored for about 3 days in the fridge or frozen up to 1 month. Reheat over low heat.