Week 17 -- Nacho Soup

I love nachos.  I have several different nacho cheese recipes, depending on the mood I'm in, but they all have one thing in common -- nuts or seeds, so they're high fat.

This soup doesn't have that problem.  It's nut free and the creaminess comes from cauliflower.

The soup is great on its own, but it's even better garnished with salsa and avocado.  I don't currently have any corn-safe olives, but a few sliced olives thrown into the soup would probably be a nice addition.

Here's the finished soup, ready to eat with all the extras.

This is what the veggies look like before cooking and blending.  

Here's the blended soup with the beans, tomatoes, and peppers thrown in.
You can tell my eyes were bigger than my soup pot.  I should have used the stock pot!

Nacho Soup

1 medium onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, chopped
1 large carrot or 2 smaller carrots, chopped
1 medium head cauliflower, chopped
5 cups water, divided
1 bell pepper, diced
2 tomatoes, diced
1 Tbsp miso
1 Tbsp lemon juice
2 Tbsp nutritional yeast
1 tsp mustard powder
1 tsp turmeric
1 tsp paprika
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
1 can black beans

1.  Saute the onion and garlic in a little water. 
2. Add the carrot and cauliflower.  Pour in about 1-2 cups of water, cover, and let steam until veggies are tender.
3.  Turn off the heat and add the miso.  Blend the veggies, adding more water to get to desired consistency.  Turn the heat back on to warm soup, but try not to boil it.
4.  Add the seasonings, black beans, tomatoes, and bell pepper.  Let all warm up.
5. Serve with salsa and avocado if desired, or eat as is.

Makes 6 servings.

Week 2 -- Broccoli Cheese Soup

I wasn't raised eating a whole-food plant-based diet.  I spent the first two and a half decades of my life eating a relatively healthy version of the Standard American Diet.  We enjoyed occasional junk food, yes, but we generally ate what we thought was healthy: lean meat, low-fat dairy, and, of course, lots of fruits and vegetables.  Like most families, we relied on fast food on busy days, and one of my favorites was broccoli cheese soup.  The sub-zero temperatures this weekend made me nostalgic for that creamy, cheesy, "it has a vegetable so it's healthy" soup.

Today's soup is not as healthy as last week's.  I would consider it WFPB junk food.  But it is so much healthier than traditional broccoli cheese soup, you can't even compare them.  I do make an even healthier "cheezy broccoli" soup with white beans that I'll share another day, but this weekend I wanted the junk food taste.

This soup starts with a veggie-based "cheese" sauce.  It's the same sauce I use for mac and cheese, but thinned out a little.

Add lots of steamed broccoli in tiny bits.

Let it simmer for the true "this sat in the restaurant kitchen all day until someone was
foolish enough to order it" taste.

Sprinkle a little extra paprika on top for a fancy lunch.

Broccoli Cheese Soup

2 heads of broccoli

2 cloves garlic

2 medium or 3 small gold potatoes

2 carrots

1 medium onion

1/2 cup cashews

water

1-2 Tbsp miso (to taste)

1 Tbsp lemon juice

1 tsp mustard powder

1 tsp turmeric

1/2 tsp paprika

fresh black pepper

1. Chop the broccoli and set aside (this gives the enzymes time to activate).  

Chop the garlic and do the same.

2. Chop the other vegetables.

3. In a saucepan, steam the garlic, potatoes, carrots, and onion in a bit of water until tender, 

about 8-10 minutes.

4. Blend the cashews with 1/2 cup water.  Add the steamed vegetables and enough water

to make a smooth cheese sauce.  Blend in the miso and seasonings.  Return this to the saucepan and keep warm but don't boil.  Add water to get to desired thinness.

5. Steam the broccoli separately.  Add the broccoli to the soup.  Let simmer a few minutes, then enjoy.

6. Makes 4 servings.

*Note: if you don't get to chop the broccoli very long in advance, that's okay, because we're adding a bit of mustard powder.  That mimics the enzyme in the broccoli and you'll still get the full nutrition.