Tortilla Soup (Vegan)


Hearty and flavorful, this Mexican – inspired soup is the best option whenever you feel like eating something satisfying and flavorful but time isn’t exactly your best friend. The juxtaposition between the hearty and tangy soup and the crunchy tortilla croutons is simply wonderful. This dish is ready in practically no time and it requires only budget-friendly ingredients. It’s so tasty that I find it simply impossible to limit myself at just one bowl. It’s packed with veggies, each and every one of them doing its own thing, transforming this dish into a color and flavor symphony. Simply amazing…

Ingredients (for 6 servings):

  • 1 can of corn
  • 1 can of red kidney beans
  • 1 can of chopped tomatoes
  • ½ red bell pepper
  • 1 medium onion
  • 3 garlic cloves
  • 3 Tbsp olive oil
  • 800ml vegetable soup
  • juice of 1 lime
  • 1 tsp oregano
  • 1 tsp cumin
  • 1 tsp paprika
  • ¼ tsp chili

for the tortilla croutons:

  • 2 large tortillas
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 tsp brown sugar
  • ¼ tsp cumin
  • ¼ tsp paprika
  • ¼ tsp garlic powder
  • ¼ tsp salt


Method:

Preheat de oven at 400°F/204°C (treapta 6). 

Peel the onion and give it a chop. Remove the seeds from the red bell pepper and cut it into small cubes. Peel the garlic and mince it.

Preheat the olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat and sautee it until translucent. Add the minced garlic and sautee it as well until fragrant. Add the spices and give the ingredients a stir.

Add the canned tomatoes and the soup and bring the pot to a boil. Simmer the soup for about 5 minutes.

Add the beans and the corn and boil it for about 15 minutes.

Meanwhile prepare the tortilla croutons. Slice them into 2 cm thick ribbons, lay them over a parchment paper-lined tray and bake them in the preheated oven until golden.

Carefully remove them from the oven, drizzle the 2 Tbsp of olive oil over them and sprinkle them with the spice mix.

Serve the soup in large bowls garnished with the tortilla croutons.


Pasta e Fagioli (Vegan)



This Italian-inspired dish is so delicious and extremely easy to make. Basically, we are speaking about some small pasta cooked in a basil-flavored tomato broth, together with buttery cannellini beans, carrots, celery and onion. With some organisatory work done ahead this no fussn dish takes no longer than 30 minutes. Those vegetables I’ve mentioned above combine together in a genuine taste symphony, creating an absolutely delicious dish which is also heart and packed with nutrients. If I’d have to place it in a category I’d say it stays somewhere between a soup and a stew. I love my pasta e fagioli on the thick side but if a soupier dish is your cup of tea, please feel free to add more liquid.

Ingredients:

  • 2 Tbsp olive oil
  • 2 medium onions (200g, chopped)
  • 2 large carrots (200g, chopped)
  • 3 celery stalks (150g, chopped)
  • 4 garlic cloves
  • 10 basil leaves
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 1 can of crushed tomatoes
  • 4 – 5 cups of vegetable broth
  • 2 cans cooked cannellini beans (500g)
  • 1 cup dried small pasta (120g)
  • salt and pepper to taste

Method:

  1. Broth. I heated the vegetable broth over high heat. If you use room temperature broth, it would take longer for the soup to reach boiling point.
  2. Vegetables. Peel the onions, carrots and garlic cloves. Chop the onions, celery and carrot. Finely chop the garlic and basil.
  3. Sautee the vegetables. In a large saucepan heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onions and sautee them until translucent. Add the garlic and continue cooking until fragrant (about 1 minute). Add the carrot and the celery and sautee for further 3 minutes.
  4. The liquid. Add the chopped basil and bay leaves. Add the crushed tomatoes and about 4 cups of hot soup. Cover the saucepan and bring it to a simmer. Lower the heat to medium and cook the soup for 15 minutes. Add the cannellini beans and cook for further 10 minutes.
  5. Pasta. Finally add dry pasta and cook it until tender (about 10 minutes). Season with salt and pepper and serve in large bowl with olive oil drizzled on top.

Source: www.themostlyvegan.com

Cream of Pumpkin Soup

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pumpkin-soup-up

Cream of pumpkin soup is one of my favorite soups. I know I say the same thing about almost every soup I try and I’m also aware of the fact that I might have a problem. I wouldn’t call it a problem, though. I would rather call it an affinity for everything that’s nutritious, delicious and hydrating.
Pumpkin-wise, this year has been extremely productive and rewarding. I harvested some huge pumpkins from my own veggie garden. And when I say huge, I mean huge-huge, that’s-the-biggest-vegetable-I’ve-ever-seen kind of huge. If last year I had two semi-decent looking pumpkins (who am I kidding, they were a cross between a melon and a tennis ball, to be more accurate), this year I had about a dozen giant ones. And they were so incredibly tasty! Sometimes I looked at them and I felt it would be a shame to cook them, and then I remembered their perfect flavor and their addictive sweetness. And that was the nudge I needed to get things going! Continue reading Cream of Pumpkin Soup