Quick and Easy Vegan Slow Cooking (14 page)

12.
Serve garnished with cilantro leaves, if desired.

Spinach and Parsley Soup

W
HAT TO DO
with that half-bunch of parsley you have left after making tabbouleh or when your garden seems overrun with the stuff mid-summer? Make this soup, of course! It is a bright, fresh flavored, vibrant green soup that doesn’t taste overpoweringly of parsley; you may find yourself buying parsley for this, never mind for the tabbouleh! Remember—the spinach goes in at the end. If you put it in with everything else the color won’t be as vibrant and the spinach will be cooked just a touch too much.

Serves 4
Preparation time: 20 minutes

1 tablespoon olive oil

¼ cup finely chopped (flat-leaf or curly) fresh parsley stalks

2 shallots, finely chopped

1 medium onion, finely chopped

1 celery stalk, finely chopped
 

¼ cup white wine or vegetable stock, store-bought or homemade (
page 43
)
 

3 cups vegetable stock

1 large potato, peeled and finely chopped to no more than ¼-inch pieces

½ cup fresh flat-leaf (Italian) parsley leaves, packed (see Note)

½ cup fresh curly (plain) parsley leaves, packed
 

4 cups fresh spinach, packed
 

½ cup soy creamer or nondairy milk

Salt and black pepper

*To ensure the dish is gluten free, if necessary, please check all packaged ingredients, as noted on
page 39
.

1.
Heat the oil in a skillet over medium heat and sauté the parsley stalks, shallots, onion, and celery until the onion is soft and translucent, about 5 minutes.

2.
Deglaze the pan with the wine and transfer the contents to the slow cooker.

3.
Add the stock through the curly parsley; stir to combine.

4.
Cover, set the heat to LOW, and cook for 5½ hours, or until the potato is extremely tender.

5.
Add the spinach, stir into the soup to wilt, cover, and cook for 30 minutes to meld the flavors.

6.
Using an immersion blender, blend the soup until silky smooth.

7.
Add the soy creamer, taste, and season with the salt and pepper as required.

NOTE
: If you have only curly parsley, you can use it instead, but the soup will be noticeably more parsley flavored.

Black Bean, Red Pepper, and Arugula Soup

F
OR A BEAN
soup I find this one quite light and almost refreshing, and I like to serve it in late spring or early summer when the evenings can still be cool. It is still satisfying and warming, but I think that with all the vegetables and the different flavors, this soup remains interesting to the last mouthful. You can blend the soup as little or as much as you like prior to adding the arugula and pepper. If you’re unsure of the soy sauce amount or are salt sensitive, add it 1 tablespoon at a time, tasting after each addition. If you are making the soup ahead, add the lime juice after reheating and just prior to serving.

Serves 4
Preparation time: 20 minutes, divided

1 medium onion, finely chopped

1 celery stalk, finely chopped

½ red pepper, finely chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced

¹
/
₃
medium sweet potato, grated (1 cup)

½ teaspoon liquid smoke

1 teaspoon prepared yellow mustard

½ cup dry black beans, soaked overnight, drained, and rinsed

3½ cups vegetable stock, store-bought or homemade (
page 43
)
 

Additional stock
 

2 cups baby arugula

½ red pepper, finely chopped
 

1 tablespoon lime juice

2 tablespoons soy sauce

Salt and black pepper
 

Arugula leaves, optional

*To ensure the dish is gluten free, if necessary, please check all packaged ingredients, as noted on
page 39
.

1.
Combine the onion through the stock in the slow cooker.

2.
Cover, set heat to LOW, and cook for 8 hours, or until the beans are tender.

3.
Using an immersion blender, blend half the soup until it is mainly smooth with some chunks, adding additional stock as required to reach your desired consistency.

4.
Add the arugula and remaining red pepper pieces. Cook for 20 minutes to completely wilt the arugula.

5.
Add the lime juice and soy sauce, and season to taste. Garnish with arugula leaves, if desired.

Triple Tomato Soup

T
HERE ARE ACTUALLY
five forms of tomato in this soup, but the alliteration works better this way, in case you count and wonder what I am going on about! A childhood friend’s mother used to make the best tomato soup, and I have recreated it. I later learned that the secret recipe was just a can of Campbell’s Cream of Tomato and a can of diced tomatoes mixed together! But with no cream or help from Campbell’s, I matched the soup in my memory. This is rich, heavy, and very intensely tomato flavored, so only a small amount is enough. If you find the finished soup a little acidic (depends on your tomatoes), add an extra teaspoon of agave to balance it out. Drizzle with a little homemade or store-bought pesto for a luscious touch of summer.

Serves 4
Preparation time: 30 minutes

3 cups cherry tomatoes, stems removed but tomatoes left whole (about 18 ounces)

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar

½ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon chile flakes, optional

Black pepper
 

¼ cup red wine or vegetable stock, store-bought or homemade (
page 43
)
 

2 garlic cloves, minced

2 shallots, finely chopped

2 tablespoons tomato paste

1 tablespoon agave

1 teaspoon dried basil

½ teaspoon dried oregano

1 cup vegetable stock

One 15-ounce can diced tomatoes in juice, undrained

1½ cups tomato juice

2 tablespoons finely chopped sun-dried tomatoes
 

Salt and black pepper
 

Sliced cherry tomatoes, optional

*To ensure the dish is gluten free, if necessary, please check all packaged ingredients, as noted on
page 39
.

1.
Preheat the oven to 425°F.

2.
Toss the cherry tomatoes through the black pepper in a 7 by 11-inch baking pan, and roast, uncovered, for 20 minutes, or until the tomatoes split and release their juice.

3.
Deglaze with the wine and transfer to the slow cooker.

4.
Add the garlic through the sun-dried tomatoes; stir to combine.

5.
Cover, set heat to LOW, and cook for 5 hours, or until everything is completely melded.

6.
Blend with an immersion blender until smooth. If you don’t want the few seeds and skin that will be left, strain to remove. Taste and season with the salt and pepper as required.

7.
Serve hot garnished with sliced cherry tomatoes, if desired.

Crème of Broccoli Soup

S
O THICK, RICH
,
creamy, and velvety smooth, I would forgive you for thinking this soup is loaded with a cream substitute and lashings of margarine. You’d be wrong, though.

Actually, the wonderful texture comes from the potato and lentils, both cooked until really tender and then blended to add their special smoothness to the soup. All the powerful flavor comes from the broccoli. It’s really good! Unfortunately, this soup doesn’t freeze well because of the potato.

Serves 4
Preparation time: 10 minutes

½ medium onion, finely chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced

3½ cups light vegetable stock, store-bought or homemade (
page 43
)

1 large white potato, peeled and cut in ¼-inch pieces

½ cup red lentils

1 bay leaf
 

1 head broccoli, stalk and top chopped

1 teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon black pepper
 

Salt and black pepper

Additional stock