Cooking Class: Soup Solution – Use Soups as the Key to Successful Healthy Meals

Julieanna Heaver, The Plant-Based Dietitian

Soups are the perfect way to incorporate the healthiest food groups in a delicious, comforting, and pleasurable way. Soups can include flavors and ingredients from around the globe in a variety of ways to satisfy any palate. In this class, Julieanna will cover basic broths, stocks, stews, chilis, and chowders with a focus on batch cooking and convenient, health-promoting meal planning with soup at the center. 

Mighty Miso Mushroom

Yield: 4 servings

As a young girl, I toured in Japan with a theatre company and had the opportunity to stay with host families in Tokyo and Kyoto. It was my first exposure to traditional Japanese diets, and I was impressed and excited by the idea of enjoying miso soup and rice three times a day. Rich in probiotics, miso soup is considered good for digestion. This recipe bulks up a simple traditional soup with extra mushrooms, zucchini noodles, and bok choy to make a heartier, more satisfying meal.

Ingredients

• 3 tablespoons wakame
• 16oz (450g) shiitake mushrooms, sliced
• 1 teaspoon reduced-sodium tamari
• 6 cups low-sodium vegetable broth
• 3 scallions, sliced
• 2 cups zucchini noodles
• 4 cups thinly sliced baby bok choy
• 2 tablespoons miso paste
• 1 teaspoon sesame seeds (optional), to garnish
• Togarashi (optional), to garnish

Instructions

1. In a medium bowl, soak the wakame in hot water for 5 minutes. Drain, squeeze to remove excess water, and set aside.
2. Place a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the mushrooms and 2 to 3 tablespoons water, cover, and cook for 3 to 5 minutes until the mushrooms release liquid and it begins to bubble.
3. Once bubbling, remove the cover, add the tamari, and cook for 3 to 5 minutes, stirring frequently, until the mushrooms start to brown. Add a little water, if necessary, to prevent burning.
4. Add the broth, scallions, zucchini noodles, and bok choy, and bring to a boil. Once boiling, stir in the soaked and drained wakame, and turn off the heat.
5. In a small bowl, combine the miso paste with 1⁄2 cup of hot broth from the pot, and stir to dissolve. Add the miso mixture to the pot, stir to combine, and serve hot. Garnish with sesame seeds and togarashi, if desired.

Smoky Split Pea Stew

Yield: 8 servings

Classic comfort food with extraordinary nutritional gravitas! With optimal levels of fiber, folate, iron, potassium, phosphorus, magnesium, and zinc, split peas are an ideal ingredient as the main attraction, backed up by creamy potatoes and a hit of liquid smoke for a super-satiating staple meal.

Ingredients

• 1 yellow onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 3 carrots, diced
• 3 stalks celery, chopped
• 1 medium celery root (celeriac), chopped
• 2 cups dried split peas, rinsed
• 3 medium Yukon gold potatoes, coarsely chopped
• 7 cups water
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 teaspoon celery seed
• 1 teaspoon dried parsley
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1 teaspoon dried rosemary
• 1⁄2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 2 tablespoons reduced-sodium tamari
• 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1 1⁄2 teaspoons liquid smoke or smoked paprika, to taste

Instructions

1. Heat a large saucepan or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. When hot, sauté the onion with as little water as possible, just enough to avoid burning, for 3 minutes or until translucent. Add the garlic, carrots, celery, and celery root, and cook for 2 minutes more.
2. Add the peas, potatoes, and water to the pot. Stir in the bay leaf, celery seed, parsley, thyme, rosemary, and pepper. Bring to a boil over high heat. When boiling, reduce the heat to medium-low, and simmer, partially covered, for 50 to 60 minutes until the peas are soft. Stir in the tamari, lemon juice, and liquid smoke.
3. Once the peas are tender, taste and adjust the seasonings as needed. Cook for 3 to 5 minutes, uncovered, to thicken (or add water to thin). Remove bay leaf and serve immediately or refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 6 days.

Hearty Butternut and Millet Stew with Fresh Dill

Yield: 4 servings

Millet is a gluten-free seed grass that has been enjoyed by humans for thousands of years. This underappreciated staple has a mild flavor and lovely, chewy texture that makes this stew seem like a savory porridge. 

Ingredients

• 1 sweet yellow onion, chopped
• 2 teaspoons ground turmeric
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 4 carrots, sliced into 3⁄4-in (2cm) pieces
• 3 celery stalks, sliced into 3⁄4-in (2cm) pieces
• 2 cups chopped butternut squash
• 1 (15oz; 425g) can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
• 3 medium russet potatoes, chopped
• 1⁄2 cup chopped fresh dill, divided
• 1 cup millet
• 4 cups low-sodium vegetable broth
• 4 cups water
• 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon reduced-sodium tamari
• 1⁄4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• Aleppo powder or paprika (optional), to garnish

Instructions

1. Heat a large saucepan or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. When hot, sauté the onion with as little water as possible, just enough to avoid burning, for 3 minutes or until translucent. Add the turmeric, cumin, and red pepper flakes, and cook for 1 minute. Add the carrots, celery, squash, chickpeas, potatoes, 1⁄4 cup dill, millet, broth, and water.
2. Bring to a boil over high heat. When boiling, reduce the heat to low, and simmer, partially covered, for 30 to 40 minutes until the vegetables are tender.

Turn off the heat. Stir in the remaining 1⁄4 cup dill, lemon juice, tamari, and pepper. Serve hot, with a sprinkle of aleppo powder or paprika to garnish, if using, or refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 6 days.

Peanut Butter Vegetable Curry

Yield: 4 servings

If there is one way to make veggies more enticing, it would be to add peanut butter. This hearty array of vegetables mixed with warm, spicy curry seasonings and the creamy goodness of peanut butter makes for a simple, comforting treat. (P.S. Nobody would think of this as a “weight-loss” food, so have it at the ready when you are hosting guests and trying to impress.)

Ingredients

• 1 cup chopped yellow onion
• 1 tablespoon finely minced jalapeño
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 teaspoon minced fresh ginger
• 2 teaspoons curry powder
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
• 1⁄2 teaspoon cayenne
• 1 medium Japanese eggplant, sliced
• 1 cup fresh green beans, trimmed and halved
• 1 small red bell pepper, chopped
• 1 cup chopped kabocha or butternut squash
• 1 (15oz; 425g) can fire-roasted tomatoes
• 2 cups low-sodium vegetable broth
• 1⁄4 cup tomato paste
• 1⁄4 cup peanut butter
• 2 tablespoons reduced-sodium tamari
• 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lime juice
• 1 teaspoon liquid smoke
• 1⁄2 cup chopped fresh cilantro, plus more to garnish
• Cooked brown rice or cauliflower rice (optional), to serve
• Harissa powder (optional), to garnish

1. Heat a large saucepan or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. When hot, sauté the onion with as little water as possible, just enough to avoid burning, for 3 minutes or until translucent. Add the jalapeño, garlic, ginger, curry powder, cumin, paprika, and cayenne, along with a 1 to 2 tablespoons water, and cook for 1 minute more, stirring frequently.
2. Add the eggplant, green beans, bell pepper, squash, tomatoes, broth, tomato paste, and peanut butter, and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. When boiling, reduce the heat, and simmer for 20 to 30 minutes until the vegetables are tender.
3. Add the tamari, lime juice, and liquid smoke. Taste and adjust the seasonings as needed. Remove from the heat and stir in the cilantro.
4. Serve warm over brown rice or cauliflower rice, if using, and garnish with harissa powder and additional cilantro, if desired.