Claude Monet's Vegetable Soup (with matzo balls)

My grandma Judy brings this vegetable soup to Passover each year as a vegetarian option for the soup course. She says it is Monet's own recipe, taken from the cooking journals he kept at Giverny. I'm imagining that Monet was inspired to grow his own vegetables in the beautiful gardens at Giverny for this classical but inventive soup.

The soup bursts with an addictive sort of salty-sweet flavor that pairs so nicely with a matzo ball (which, of course, was added to this recipe post-Monet). I think the shredded sweet potato really does the trick.

To shred the vegetables, use a box grater or the shredding blade on a food processor.

Lemony Lentil Soup

Here is a recipe for a staple lentil soup that is clean and simple, courtesy of my friend Eleonore.  This and the Split Pea Soup posted recently are her two regular soup choices and both are great recipes.  Both are simple, inexpensive, light, vegan, easy on the stomach, and freeze well.  In this recipe, the fresh lemon juice brings out the flavor of the lentils really nicely and makes it so not very much salt is required to get great flavor. 

Split Pea Soup

This is a friend's split pea soup recipe.  She eats very, very healthily but says that this is a recipe that even "regular people" like.  She encouraged me to taste it, and now it is one of my favorite soups.  I admit it doesn't sound or look as good as it tastes, but it really is an excellent soup.  It is healthy, tasty, easy to make, inexpensive, and it freezes well.

I've always made this soup with green split peas, but our grocery store was out of them so I made it with yellow split peas this time.  It tastes exactly the same, but it does change the look.  Feel free to use either kind.

Chicken Soup with Matzo Balls

My mom's chicken soup with matzo balls is a recipe you'll want to hold onto.  She's served it every year at Passover and Rosh Hashanah for as long as I can remember, and the whole family looks forward to eating it.

As my mom says, it's a chore, but it'll be worth it!  And it's not difficult to make, it just takes time.  On day one, veggies and chicken are simmered for three hours.  Then the veggies and chicken are taken out, the soup is strained, and everything is left to cool.  Then comes the most fun part which is pulling the cooked chicken off the carcass.  My mom loves doing it, but when I was little I thought it was the grossest thing in the world to watch.  But now I realize that there's nothing like sitting down in front of the TV and dissecting some chicken soup chicken.  Finally, the broth is covered and left in the refrigerator overnight.  In the morning the fat will have congealed and can be skimmed off the surface.  Matzo balls can be made and all can be served right away or frozen.

Lentil and Spinach Soup

I love lentil soup but when I stop to buy it for lunch at a grocery or sandwich place I am usually disappointed about half the time.  There is nothing worse than being starving for lunch all morning and then finally getting a few minutes eat and realizing that the lunch you bought is just gross.

So I finally had time today to make a big batch of my own - and this is an incredibly delicious and simple version of lentil soup so I'll be sure to have  satisfying and tasty lunches all week!

The soup is started by frying some chopped bacon in the bottom of a soup pot.  The fat that comes out of the bacon is used to saute some vegetables and then the lentils are added and simmer for about a half an hour.  Throw in a bunch of spinach and you're done!

Sweet Corn Soup with Roasted Pepper Puree

This pureed corn soup is simple food at its best.  It is equally delicious served warm or chilled and is perfect for dinner on a warm summer night.

Although I am a fan of Alice Waters, I've found that some of the recipes in her latest cookbook The Art of Simple Food are a just too simple and come out a little bland or lacking.  This recipe however is so full of sweet and salty flavor.  Since it was featured in Food and Wine's Best of the Best cookbook which pulls recipes from the 25 best cookbooks each year, I thought I'd give it a try.

Mushroom, Leek, and Potato Soup

If I had to credit one cookbook author with teaching me how to cook it would be Deborah Madison.  I cooked my way almost entirely through Vegetarian Suppers and then moved on to The Greens Cookbook, where I found this recipe.  In this soup, mushrooms are reduced in white wine and then added to potatoes and leeks simmered in a mushroom broth.  It is already bursting with delicious flavor even before it is topped with finely chopped fresh herbs, which make it even more special. 

White Bean and Pancetta Soup

The subtle flavor of thyme and the smokiness of the pureed pancetta make this a very interesting soup.  It pairs really nicely with the red pepper cumin salad from my last post spread over a toasted slice of baguette.  The soup benefits from some contrast in color and texture, and they tie together in flavor because of the use of thyme in each.  It's also a good thing that they both use thyme because you can't always buy thyme in small enough quantities so here are two recipes to help you use it all up.

Spiced Lentil Soup

Here is an easy soup to make, although it does take some time to simmer.  For me it was insanely inexpensive because I already had all of the ingredients in my kitchen except for the canned tomatoes.  So for about $4 we had one tasty dinner for two with gluten-free walnut bread, and I'll have enough for lunch every day this week, too.

It is not necessary to puree the soup if you find you like it better chunky, but I think pureeing it adds some elegance and makes it looks nicer, too.  The spices are really what make this soup, so I really recommend buying any you don't have already and not trying to omit any of them.  Don't skip the lime juice either!  It significantly brightens all the flavors in the dish.

Chicken Udon Noodle Soup

When I started making this recipe I thought, "I see what we're doing here - we're making chicken noodle soup."  I'm familiar with a good chicken soup recipe because my mom makes a really good one and I make it myself when I'm feeling sniffly or sneezy.  But as I started reading the recipe, I soon began to worry: no carrots or celery? no matzah balls??  and we're adding soy sauce???  It's amazing how switching out just a few ingredients gave this chicken soup a completely different feel. I packaged up the leftovers in pyrex containers to bring in to work for satisfying lunches.

Dress-Me-Up-Or-Down Squash and Sweet Potato Soup

I walk through Union Square daily now to get to work which means many impulse stops into Whole Foods.  Last week I stopped in for a snack of a deliciously creamy squash soup that was thickened just by pureeing its vegetables and contained no butter or heavy cream.  It really hit the spot for me, but after paying nearly $4.00 for about a cup of their soup I vowed to save some money for the coming week by making a batch of my own.

Comforting Corn Chowder

Check out the new poll feature and vote on your favorite comfort food!  The current poll question is inspired by this corn chowder recipe which is such a great comforter on cold winter days like this one.  The chowder is thickened by pureeing some of its potatoes and corn so it doesn't contain any heavy cream or butter and is completely non-dairy.  If you can find organic potatoes then you can leave the skins on for extra fiber and nutrients.  PJ doesn't usually have a great food memory and often forgets a dish we've eaten by the next day, but he actually asked for me to make this one again!  So it must be pretty good. 

Rustic Vegetable Soup with Chicken Meatballs

I just found out that I'll be starting my new job tomorrow and my first reaction was a panicked trip to the grocery store so I could fill up my freezer with as much food as possible before my time is consumed with work. One of the things I made was a big pot of this soup and put half in the freezer so I'll have lunches ready to bring to work with me or quick dinners if I get home late. I guess it's irrational, but now that my freezer is full I feel calm and prepared for the new job! I also made my favorite quick bread and another great soup that I will share later. This soup is really filling because of the chicken and beans and tons of vegetables so I think it makes a great one-dish meal. The small handful of cheese could certainly be omitted from the meatballs if you're not a dairy person or if you don't mix meat and milk. And for those who don't eat meat, it's still a great soup on its own without the meatballs.

Warming Winter Beet Borscht with Dill

Here is another beet recipe, but this time it is a warm hearty portion of borscht. I never thought that I'd like borscht, mostly because the name is unappealing but also partly because it seems kind of simple and old-fashioned. But I had to share this recipe because it is really amazing! For the little money it costs for the ingredients, you get a huge reward of color, comfort, and taste. I make this in my pressure cooker and it only takes 6 minutes on high pressure, but if you don't own one I've included how to make it by simmering.