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Purple yam soup with ginger and garlic, fresh dill, bean sprouts and walnuts

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The purple yam gives this very simple soup a vibrant dark purple colour; the walnuts and bean sprouts, a rich texture.

1T cooking oil
1/4t coarse sea salt
1T fresh garlic, minced
1t fresh ginger, minced
1/4 cup fresh dill fronds and 2T minced
2 cups purple yam, peeled and diced (1/2″)
4 cups vegetable stock
2T nutritional yeast, divided
1T tapioca flour dissolved in 2T cold water
1/2 cup mung bean sprouts
1/4 cup chopped walnuts
Sea salt and black pepper to taste

In a larger pan with a lid, bring the cooking oil to heat on medium high.
Add the sea salt, garlic, and 2T dill; saute for 2 minutes.
Add the yam and saute another 2 minutes.
Add the stock and deglaze the pan.
Cover, reduce heat to low, and simmer until the yam is fork tender.
Remove from heat, add 1T nutritional yeast, and puree the soup.
Return the pan to a light simmer.
Add the tapioca solution slowly stirring continuously until it thickens.
Season to taste.
Ladle out the soup and garnish with bean sprouts, dill fronds, walnuts and nutritional yeast.

Mostly raw watercress, green apple soup with cashew cream

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Normally cooked and chilled, this soup is a very
nutritious, simple and mostly raw variation on this
superb if surprising flavour pairing.

Ingredients

2 green apples, cored and thinly sliced, 1/8″ (reserve 4-6 slices for garnish)
1 cup packed watercress, minced
1/4t coarse sea salt
2 scallions, minced (reserve 4″ of green for garnish)
2t fresh garlic, minced
1T lemon juice
2T cashew butter
2 cups warm water
2T nutritional yeast
Sea salt and black pepper to taste

For the garnish
2t cashew butter
2t warm water
1/4t coarse sea salt
2t nutritional yeast
Sliced apple and sliced scallion as above

Directions

Puree the apples with the watercress, garlic, scallions, nutritional yeast, and lemon juice with the cashew butter and sea salt until smooth.
Add the warm water, let stand 20 minutes, and puree again.
Chill the soup for one hour to setup.
When ready to serve, ladle out into bowls and add the garnish
Dissolve the cashew butter in the 2t water and sea salt to make the cashew cream. Add another 1t of water if necessary for consistency.
For the garnish, add a few apple and scallion slices to the middle of the soup, sprinkle with nutritional yeast and a few dollops of cashew cream.

Spicy chick pea and greens soup in a light tomato broth

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A simple, rich and nourishing soup with no added oil and no added sugar.

Ingredients

1T smoked paprika
1/4t dried, crushed red chili (or to taste)
1/2t dried, ground cumin
1/2t dried oregano, rubbed
1/4t dried rosemary, rubbed
1/4t dried marjoram, rubbed
1/4t coarse sea salt
2 scallions, minced (3″-4″ green reserved for garnish)
2T warm water
1T fresh garlic, minced
2 cups vegetable stock
1 cup passata (or tomato puree)
1 ‘sprig’ dried kombu (about 1″)
1 cup cooked chick peas
1 cup shredded green cabbage (I use coleslaw mix)
1/2 cup mixed baby greens
Sea salt and black pepper to taste

Optional: Garnish with 1T nutritional yeast for some additional nutrition and flavor. Saute with 1T cooking oil in place of 2T water if you prefer. A little dulse, nori or sesame seeds would also go well with this soup.

Directions

In a medium pan with a lid, toast the paprika, cumin, and chili on medium heat for 2-3 minutes. Add the scallions and sea salt. Stir to combine. Add the green herbs and water. Water saute for 2 minutes. Add the garlic and saute for another minute.

Add the stock, kombu, chickpeas and cabbage. Simmer for 5 minutes. Add the passata. Cover, reduce heat to low, and simmer for another 20 – 30 minutes or until the cabbage is wilted but not mushy. Don’t overcook — use the texture of the cabbage as a guide.

When ready, remove from heat. Remove the kombu. Add the greens and stir to combine. Let cool 5 minutes and for the greens to wilt. Ladle out, garnish with scallions greens sliced on an angle and nutritional yeast if you’ll be using it, and serve.

Chickpea, potato and kale soup

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With a light tomato, herb broth, this is a rich but simple soup with lots of colour and flavour. This makes 4 small bowls or 2 good sized ones.

Ingredients

2T water
1/4t coarse sea salt
2T scallions, minced, 2″ – 3″ green reserved for garnish
1/4t black pepper, freshly cracked
1/4t dried red chilis (or to taste)
1t dried basil, rubbed
1/2t dried oregano, rubbed
1/4t dried thyme, rubbed
1T fresh garlic, minced
1 cup cooked chickpeas
3/4 cup white potatoes, 1/3″ dice
1/2T lemon juice
2 cups vegetable stock
1/2 cup tomato passata (or puree)
2 cups green curly kale, chopped coarsely
1T nutritional yeast
Coarse sea salt, nutritional yeast, and black pepper to taste

Optional: Garnish with 2T minced fresh basil at the end (in lieu of dried at the beginning) to add flavour and colour. Add more passata for a stronger tomato flavour. A tablespoon oil for the saute in place of the water will add some richesse. Use white beans instead of chickpeas for something more traditional. About 1/3 cup dried chickpeas will yield 1 cup cooked. I usually make my chickpeas with kombu in a batch so that I always have some on-hand.

Method

Bring a medium pan with a lid to heat on medium high. Add the scallions, green herbs, chilis, black pepper, 2T water and sea salt. Water saute for 1 minute. Add the garlic and saute another minute. Add the potatoes and chickpeas and saute for another minute or so. Add the lemon juice and deglaze the pan. Add the stock. Bring the pan to a simmer, cover, reduce heat to low and simmer for 20 minutes or until the potatoes are fork tender.

Add the passata, cover and simmer for another 2-3 minutes. Remove from heat. Add the kale and stir to combine. Add the nutritional yeast and stir to combine. Let stand 1 minute for the kale to wilt. Season to taste, and ladle out. Garnish with additional nutritional yeast if you like and scallion green sliced on an angle.

Roasted red pepper, tomato soup with sesame and parsley

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A simple soup with a lot of bright colour. Served here with socca, but fresh bread, crackers or potatoes all make good accompaniments.

Ingredients

1 cup vegetable stock
1/4t coarse sea salt
1 red pepper, roasted, cored, seeded and peeled
1 cup tomato passata (or puree)
1/2T fresh garlic, minced (reserve a little for the garnish)
1t herbes de Provence (or similar)
1/2 cup flat leaf parsley, minced (1 – 2T reserved for garnish)
Coarse sea salt and black pepper to taste

For the garnish
1/2T sesame seed butter
1T white pickling vinegar
1T unsweetened soy milk
1/2t fresh garlic, minced (as noted above)
1/4t coarse sea salt (or to taste)
1 – 2T parsley (as noted above)

Optional: A tablespoon or so of nutritional yeast will add flavour and nutrition.

Method
Preheat the oven to 450F and roast the pepper until the skin is charred (or use the stove top method if you have a gas stove). Remove from heat and set aside to cool. Peel, seed and core the pepper. Chop roughly.

Bring a medium pan with a lid to heat on medium high. Add the pepper, garlic and herbs and stir fry for 2 minutes. Add the stock and passata. Reduce heat to medium low and simmer about 10 minutes (or until reduced by about 1/4).

While the soup reduces, whisk together the sesame seed butter, vinegar, soy milk and sea salt until thick. Set aside while the soup finishes. It will continue to thicken and the taste will soften.

When the soup is ready, remove from heat. Add about half of parsley to the soup and stir to combine. Let stand 2 minutes to cool. Season to taste. Ladle out. Season the garnish to taste. Drip the garnish gently onto the soup and then style how you like. Sprinkle with remaining
parsley and serve.

Mushroom, pepper and potato soup

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A simple, colourful and light soup. A good appetizer or a very light lunch, this makes a small bowl for 4 or good sized bowl for 2.

Ingredients

2T water
1/4t coarse sea salt
2 scallions, minced, 3″ – 4″ green reserved for garnish
1T fresh garlic, minced
4 large cremini mushrooms, stemmed and thinly sliced, 1/8″
1T smoked paprika
1/4t black pepper, freshly cracked
3 small white potatoes, 1/4″ dice (about 1 cup)
1/2T white vinegar
2T tamari
3 cups vegetable stock
1 ‘sprig’ dried kombu (about 2″)
1 red shepherd pepper (or red bell, see the note below)
1 green bell pepper (a few very thin slices reserved for garnish)
2T nutritional yeast
1/2T arrowroot flour dissolved in 2T cold water
Coarse sea salt and black pepper to taste

Optional: Add lentils, chickpeas, cubed tofu, dumplings or pasta for a more filling soup. Red bell pepper will work as an alternative to the red shepherd, but it won’t be as juicy. Add a few tablespoons tomato passata and/or a couple tablespoons of cashew butter or olive oil to add body and flavour. Add some finely chopped figs and/or sun-dried tomatoes to broaden out the flavour. Add some leafy greens for additional colour and nutrition. Slowcook if you prefer.

Method

Warm a large pan with a lid on medium heat. Add the water, scallions and sea salt. Water saute for 2 minutes. Add the garlic. Saute for 1 minute. Add the mushrooms and paprika.

Increase heat to medium high and saute for 3 minutes. Add the potatoes and saute for another 2 – 3 minutes. Add the vinegar and tamari and deglaze the pan. Add the stock and kombu.

Return the pan to a simmer, cover, reduce heat to low and simmer 10 minutes. At the 10 minute mark, uncover and add the peppers. Increase heat to medium low and simmer for another 10 minutes uncovered or so until the potatoes are tender.

Remove from heat. Remove the kombu. Add the nutritional yeast. Stirring continuously, add the arrowroot mixture slowly. Stir until it thickens (should be immediately). Season to taste.

To plate, ladle out into bowls. Garnish with scallion green sliced on an angle and thin slices of green pepper. Sprinkle with some additional nutritional yeast if you like and serve.