Black-eyed Pea Soup

This is a hearty, flavorful soup with a slightly spicy, smoky kick to it. Sadly, as soup is not the most photogenic food, I don't have any decent photos to include.

2 TBSP safflower oil
2 large green bell peppers, diced (about 3 cups)
1 very large (or 2 medium) Vidalia onion, diced (about 3 cups)
1 to 1.25 lb white mushrooms, stemmed and cut into 1” pieces about 0.25” thick
4 medium tomatoes, diced (about 3 cups)
24 oz frozen black-eyed peas
6 or 7 cups vegan “chicken” broth or vegetable broth
½ tsp salt
1 tsp ground black pepper
1 tsp smoked paprika
4 bay leaves
2 TBSP Earth Balance soy free buttery spread
½ cup organic potato flakes

In a large stock pot, heat oil over medium. Add pepper and onion and cook covered, stirring periodically, until the onions and peppers start to soften. Add the mushrooms, tomatoes, black-eyed peas, and broth before turning the heat up to high. Combine salt, pepper, and smoked paprika and stir them into the soup along with the potato flakes. Gently stir in the bay leaves and buttery spread. Once the soup reaches a boil, cover it again and turn the heat to low. Simmer until all the vegetables and the black-eyed peas are tender. Remove the bay leaves before serving.

Notes:
For the broth, my first choice is definitely vegan “chicken” broth. Both Better Than Bouillon and Edward & Sons make it, the former is paste while the latter is cubes. Make it with at least as much bouillon as the package says to use, possibly extra to suit your taste.
If you wish to substitute canned black-eyed peas for frozen, be aware that they will be softer; frozen works best in this recipe.
To lower the fat content, skip the oil and use the buttery spread to cook the onions and peppers instead of adding it later.
Do not use regular paprika in place of smoked paprika! The smoked paprika gives this soup a delightful smoky flavor that you won’t get from regular paprika.
This makes a lot of soup because I like to make enough to have leftover soup to last several people for days. If you want to make a smaller amount of soup, see the halved ingredients list below:

Half Recipe Ingredients
1 TBSP safflower oil
1 large green bell peppers, diced (about 1.5 cups)
1/2 very large (or 2 medium) Vidalia onion, diced (about 1.5 cups)
8 to 10 oz white mushrooms, stemmed and cut into 1” pieces about 0.25” thick
2 medium tomatoes, diced (about 1.5 cups)
12 oz frozen black-eyed peas
3 or 3.5 cups vegan “chicken” broth or vegetable broth
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
1/2 tsp smoked paprika
2 bay leaves
1 TBSP Earth Balance soy free buttery spread
¼ cup organic potato flakes

Enter the Muir Glen Fire Roasted Tomato Soup and Chili Throwdown

A while back, Muir Glen sent me some of their canned tomatoes. I'm not that big a fan of most canned tomatoes so it was a real surprise when I tried their Organic Fire Roasted Diced Tomatoes in a pot of chili and LOVED them! If you haven't tried them yet then you are missing out.

Muir Glen just contacted me again about a recipe contest featuring, you guessed it, their Fire Roasted tomatoes! I am happy to pass this info along to my readers so you can enter your best tomato soup or chili made with fire roasted tomatoes.



Take a peek at the nice prizes the winner gets:


Not pictured: the title of "Muir Glen Soup and Chili Master" and an honorary plaque.

Here are the details:

"Are soup and chili your claim to fame? If so, we’re challenging you to put a twist on your tried and true recipes using Muir Glen Fire Roasted Tomatoes in our first annual Soup and Chili Throwdown. Get your creative juices flowing for a chance to win your own stash of soup and chili-worthy Muir Glen Organic Fire Roasted Tomatoes (recipient of the 2012 Bon Appétit Seal of Approval), a tomato red Le Creuset stock pot and a set of tomato serving bowls. Plus, the grand prize winner will walk away with the title of Muir Glen Soup and Chili Master and an honorary plaque, which will be yours to defend in next year’s Throwdown. Contest ends 2/28."

Enter at http://www.muirglen.com/connect/sweepstakes

I would love to hear about your entries but make sure you actually visit that link to submit them.

Perhaps you have a winning tomato soup or chili recipe up your sleeve! Good luck!

Basic Vegetable Soup **

I like to make many different kinds of soup, especially during the cooler months, and this recipe is for a basic vegetable soup. It's nothing fancy, but most of the ingredients can be stored for a long time and pulled out when you don't know what else to make or didn't make it to the grocery store. You'll need a really large pot to make this soup and several large containers for leftovers (as well as refrigerator space).

Ingredients:
1 large onion, chopped
3 or 4 cartons of vegetable broth *
1/2 cup pearled barley***
1 bag frozen mixed vegetables
1 can of beans (other than chickpeas)
1 bag frozen lima beans **
1 can diced tomatoes
dried dill weed to taste (I like to use a lot)
dried parsley to taste (plenty of this also)

Combine the onion, broth, and barley in a very large pot over high heat. Add the vegetables, beans, limas, and tomatoes. When it reaches a boil, turn the heat down to medium or medium-low. Add the dill and parsley and stir. The soup will need to be stirred periodically; putting a lid on will retain more liquid. Once the barley is soft (but still a bit chewy) the soup is ready.

* If you like a lot of broth, use 4 cartons. If you like less broth, use only 3. If you want to make the soup cheaper, you can substitute water for part of the broth; each carton is 32 oz so just replace a carton of broth with 32 oz of water.

** I like lot's of lima beans in my soup but if you do not, just use a second can of beans instead.

*** For gluten-free soup, skip the barley and use one or two large potatoes cut into 1" pieces.