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Green Soup, Really?

Yes! This bright green soup is sure to lift the spirit and boost the immune system…

Download the Recipe PDF

Welcome to spring in the Pacific Northwest! The damp chill is still with us, but the days are getting longer and the birds have started singing.

And most exciting of all, Stinging Nettle has begun to grow once again from the forest floor.

Last week we took you along for our favorite Spring Equinox tradition; harvesting stinging nettle. This week we are sharing our favorite recipe for using fresh nettles.

Don’t worry if you don’t have nettles where you live, or aren’t ready to harvest your own! Spinach makes an easy ingredient swap in this restorative tonic.

*A look at the vegetables for the soup and stock (broth). If you don’t have stinging nettles, you can swap them for spinach.*

What Do You Need?

ALL INGREDIENTS

8 cups water
Discarded vegetable scraps
3 Tablespoons butter
3 Tablespoons olive oil
4-5 small leeks (white parts only), sliced
1 medium potato, scrubbed and sliced
3 - 4 stalks celery
Salt and pepper
1 bunch (about 12 oz) spinach or nettles
1/2 - 1 cup snow peas (frozen or fresh)
8 branches parsley, chopped
Nutmeg, lemon juice, cream (optional)

ALL EQUIPMENT

Large pot with lid
Wood spoon
Cutting board
Sharp kitchen knife
Measuring cups and spoons
Several bowls
Immersion or regular blender
Canning funnel (optional)
3-4, 1-quart mason jar or water glass (optional)

Building Flavors

Soup doesn’t have to be boring or include lots of fancy ingredients and complicated steps to be tasty! We eat LOTS of soup in our household and I’ve developed some trusted methods to build flavors. Here' they are:

Making Your Own Stock

While water or store-bought bouillon can work, making your own stock will create a flavorful foundation for your soup. It’s also a great opportunity to use extra vegetables you have around as well as the trimmings from the soup ingredients. For example in this recipe, we use extra carrots in the fridge as well as the potato peel and spinach stems. To save time you can start the stock while you prep the rest of the ingredients for the soup.

Prep Your Ingredients

Having everything ready to go when you start cooking helps with peace of mind and your final product. I group items by step. For example, all of the root vegetables go in one big bowl, and all of the herbs and greens go in another. This way as I start cooking, I don’t have to think through what goes in when.

Stewing the Root Vegetables

While you could throw everything in the pot at once for this recipe, you will miss out on flavor big-time. This simple step of stewing the root vegetables with a little stock helps bring out the complexity of the ingredients and make it taste like gourmet restaurant quality soup (not that we’ve gone to a fancy eatery since we moved to the country).

Blanching the Greens and Herbs

Greens take far less time to cook. By adding them later in the flavor-building process you allow them to keep their color, flavor, and nutrients.

Fine Tuning

Once all the main ingredients are cooked, it’s time to tweak the flavors. While you can eat this soup without pureeing, there is something extra special about the color and consistency when blended. Nutmeg might seem a strange choice here, but it’s a surprising nuttiness to balance the bright flavors of the vegetables.

Adding a Flourish

If you have chives blooming in your garden, this is the perfect time to use them! Their little purple blossoms add a slight onion flavor that delights the eyes and taste buds. Since the soup is somewhat light, it’s also a great time to have homemade croutons or sourdough bread.

Meal Prepping

We often double this recipe and eat for a whole week. We love any excuse to use mason jars, so once the soup is cooled, we ladle it into quart-sized jars and then put in them in the fridge. One jar feeds us both for dinner - with a big salad and a piece of bread it makes a satisfying meal. It’s a simple way to eat healthy homemade food even on work nights.