Miso Noodle Soup with Edamame

From Veg Times, yum!

Start with the smaller amount of the miso, and add more as needed, dissolving extra spoonfuls in hot soup liquid. If you have both dark and light misos on hand, use half of each for a more complex flavor. If fresh edamame are already cooked, add them to the soup at the last minute.

• 2 oz. bean thread noodles
• 3 oz. fresh shiitake or button mushrooms, chopped finely
• 2 tsp. canola oil
• 3 scallions, thinly sliced with white and green parts
• 1 small carrot, halved lengthwise and thinly sliced on diagonal
• 1 cup (6 oz.) frozen shelled edamame
• 5 oz. baby spinach
• 1 tsp. grated fresh ginger
• 4 to 6 Tbs. dark miso
• 1/4 tsp. toasted sesame oil
• Tamari soy sauce, optional 

-Put noodles in a bowl with water to cover, and set aside.
-Heat oil in a soup pot. Add scallion whites, mushrooms and carrot, and cook over medium-high heat, stirring frequently, until mushrooms begin to soften, for about 2 minutes.
-Add 5 cups water, and bring to a boil. Add edamame, and cook for 4 minutes. Drain noodles, and add to pot with spinach and ginger. Reduce heat to medium-low, and cook until edamame are tender but still firm, for about 1 minute more. Stir in scallion greens.
-Blend 4 tablespoons miso into 1 cup warm water, using a fork to mix. Reduce heat to low, and stir miso into soup, adding more miso for a more intense flavor, if desired. Add sesame oil and tamari to taste. Serve hot.
-I also add seaweed....

Thai Tofu & Winter Squash Stew

2-3 leeks, white parts
2 tbspn oil
2 garlic cloves
2 serrano chiles, minced
1 tbspn finely chopped ginger
1 tbspn curry powder
1 tspn light brown sugar
3 tbspn mushroom soy sauce
1 (15 oz) can coconut milk
1 tbspn fish sauce
1 1/2 lb butternut, peeled and diced into cubes
salt
1 10 oz. tofu, cut in cubes
1 lime juiced
1/3 cup raw peanuts
1/4 cup chopped cilantro

-Cut leek whites in half, then cut them crosswise into 1/4 inch pieces.  Make sure there is no dirt/sand in them, wash.
- Heat oil in soup pot, add leeks and cook over high heat, stir often, until softened, 3 minutes or so.  Add garlic, most of the chilis, ginger, cook for a minute, then add curry, sugar, soy sauce.  Reduce head to medium.  Add 3 cups water, coconut milk, fish sauce, squash, teaspoon salt.  Bring to a boi, lower heat and simmer, covered, for 15 minutes.  Add the tofu (you can fry a bit before to add extra flavor and texture, or add raw), to the soup once the squash is almost tender, then simmer, until it's done.  Taste for salt and add the lime juice.
-Fry the peanuts in a few drops of peanut oil, until browned, then coarsely chop.  Serve over rice, top with cilantro, peanuts and the remaining chili.

Vegetarian Gumbo

* 1/2 cup vegetable oil
* 1/3 cup flour
* 1 small onion, chopped (1 cup)
* 1 small green bell pepper, chopped (1 cup)
* 3 stalks celery, chopped (1 cup)
* 1 28-oz. can diced tomatoes
* 2 cups fresh or frozen green beans
* 3 carrots, sliced (2 cups)
* 1 parsnip, diced (1 cup)
* 1 cup fresh or frozen sliced okra, optional
* 1 Tbs. ground cumin
* 1 Tbs. paprika
* 1 Tbs. dried oregano
* 1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper

1. Stir together oil and flour in Dutch oven or heavy-bottomed pot until smooth. Cook over high heat 10 minutes, or until roux turns a dark caramel color, stirring constantly.
2. Add onion, bell pepper, and celery, and cook 5 minutes, or until vegetables are softened. Stir in all remaining ingredients and 4 cups water. Season with salt and pepper. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and cook 40 minutes, or until carrots are tender. Serve over rice.

Green Curry with Straw Mushrooms

1 1/4 cup coconut milk
3 Tbsp Green Curry Paste
1 1/4 cup Vegetable Stock
4 small round eggplants, cut in rounds
any other vegetables you like
4 shallots
3 Tbsp palm sugar or light brown sugar
bamboo shoots
1 tspn salt
4 tspn vegetarian nam pla (fish sauce) or soy sauce
1 oz krachai or 3 inch piece of fresh galangal, peeled and sliced
14 oz can straw mushrooms, drained
1/4 green bell pepper, thinly sliced

Garnish:
handful of fresh basil
2 tbsp coconut milk


-heat the coconut milk in a saucepan, add the curry paste, and stir. Add the stock and then teh eggplants, sugar, salt, nam pla or soy sauce, krachai or galangal, shallots, bamboo shoots and mushrooms. Bring to a boil and cook, stirring, for a few minutes. Add the bell pepper, reduce the heat and cook for a few minutes more.

Serve in a bowl, garnished with basil and drizzled with coconut milk.

Mexican Rice Soup

Serves 6

Yum, this is normally made with chicken broth and chicken, here's a vegetarian variation. It's a light, healthy and warming soup, gets its body from diced avocado, which is served with tortilla strips and added right before it's served, along with lime wedges and freshly chopped cilantro and green onions. The heat of the soup warms the avocado and tortilla strips without turning them to mush, if you add them at the end. Enjoy!

Broth
* 1 Tbs. olive oil
* 1 small onion, finely chopped (¾ cup or more)
* 2-4 cloves garlic, minced (2 tsp. or more)
* 3 cups vegetable broth
* 1 Tbs. grated lime zest
* 1 tsp. dried oregano


Soup

* ¼ cup short-grain rice
* 2 small tomatoes, diced (1 cup)
* ¹⁄3 cup fresh or frozen corn (I have also used canned)
* 1 flour tortilla
* 1 avocado, diced (1 cup)
* 2 green onions, thinly sliced (¼ cup)
* ¼ cup chopped cilantro
* 6 lime wedges
* Hot sauce for garnish, optional

To make Broth, Heat olive oil in saucepan over medium heat. Add onion, and sauté about 5 minutes, or until softened. Stir in garlic, and sauté another minute or so. Add vegetable broth, lime zest, oregano, and 3 cups water; cover, and reduce heat to medium-low. Simmer 10 minutes. Strain Broth, discard solids (optional), and return to saucepan.
2. To make Soup: Add rice to Broth. Bring to a simmer over medium-low heat, cover, and simmer 15 minutes, or until rice is soft. Stir in tomatoes and corn, and season with salt and pepper. Simmer 10 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 350°F. Spray flour tortilla with cooking spray or a bit of olive oil, and cut into thin strips. Arrange strips on baking sheet, and bake 5 to 7 minutes, or until tortilla is crisp.
4. Place diced avocado, green onions, cilantro, lime wedges, and tortilla strips in small bowls. Ladle Soup into serving bowls. Garnish with avocado, tortilla strips, green onions, cilantro, lime wedges, and hot sauce, if desired.

Thai Ginger Coconut Soup - Tom Kha

3 cups coconut milk
2 cups chicken or vegetable stock
4 stalks lemongrass, bruise it with butt of knife and chop into couple inch pieces (will remove later)
2 tablespoons fresh ginger, peeled and thinly sliced (will remove later)
10 black peppercorns, crushed
10 kaffir lime leaves, put cuts in it and/or tear, gives it such good flavor!
2 cups button mushrooms
1/2 cup baby corn cobs
4 Tbsp fresh lime juice
3 Tbsp fish sauce

Garnish
2 red chilies
4 scallions, chopped
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
3 tablespoons fresh lime juice
avocado
bean sprouts

-Bring the coconut milk and stock to a boil in a saucepan. Add the lemongrass, ginger, peppercorns, and half of the kaffir lime leaves. Reduce the heat to low and simmer the mixture for 15 minutes.

-Strain the stock into a new pan. Return to heat, add the button mushrooms and baby corn. Simmer for another 10 minutes.

-Stir in the lime juice, fish sauce to taste, and the rest of the lime leaves. Serve hot, garnish with red chilies, scallions, and cilantro.

Lentil-Vegetable Super Soup

This nourishing soup contains not only healthy amounts of iron and calcium but also a big dose of complete protein, thanks to the beans and rice.

* 2 Tbs. oil
* 2 onions, chopped
* 5 cloves garlic, minced
* 1 16-oz. bag lentils
* 10 cups water
* 2 vegetable bouillon cubes
* 3 medium-sized carrots, sliced
* 3 celery stalks, sliced
* 1 15-oz. can navy beans
* 2 15-oz. cans stewed or diced tomatoes, undrained
* 1/4 cup dry brown rice
* 1/2 cup white wine
* 1/2 tsp. dried thyme
* 1/2 tsp. dried basil
* Dash of oregano
* Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
* 1 0.2-oz. pkg. dried nori seaweed, crumbled for garnish

-Heat oil in large pot over medium heat. Sauté onion and garlic about 5 minutes, or until tender. Add remaining ingredients. Reduce heat to low, and cook 1 1/2 to 2 hours, or until rice and vegetables are tender.
-To serve, ladle portions into individual bowls, and sprinkle with dried seaweed.

Tender Ginger Tofu Soup

Women in Okinawa have the longest lifespan in all of Japan. A study of Okinawan centenarians attributes their lasting health to low calorie intake. Okinawans mainly eat tofu and sea vegetables, staples that are naturally low in calories. In this recipe, the tofu soaks up the flavors of the mirin, chili-garlic sauce, and natural inflammation-reducer fresh ginger, which helps with nausea and has proven to help arthritis and ovarian cancer in many studies.

2 c chicken, miso, vegetable broth
1 3/4 c water
1/4 c mirin (aka sweet sake, low-alcohol rice wine. You can substitute brown sugar, but it won't give you the same authentic Japanese flavor.)
2 Tbsp low-sodium soy sauce
1 Tbsp fresh minced ginger root
1 tsp chili-garlic sauce (like Sriracha)
1 14 oz firm tofu, drained and cut into cubes
1 1/2 c shredded carrots
6 oz snow peas, trimmed and cut in half diagonally
1/4 c chopped fresh chives

-Combine broth, water, mirin, soy sauce, ginger, and garlic sauce, bring to a boil.
-Stir in tofu, carrot, and snow peas and return mixture to a boil.
-Reduce heat and simmer until vegetables are tender, 6 to 8 minutes.
-Stir in chives and serve.

Miso Soup

2 Tbsp Dried Wakame
3 cups water
.75 oz packet dashi stock base
2 Tbsp white miso
12 oz. silken tofu (drained and cut into cubes)
1 cup thinly sliced shitake mushroom caps
1/4 cup thinly sliced scallions
1/2 Tbsp soy sauce

-Soak wakame in water for 10 minutes or so, or until fully hydtrated; drain
-Bring water to boil, add dashi packet, reduce heat and simmer, covered, for 10 minutes, remove packet.
-Ladle a half cup of dashi into a small bowl, whisk in miso and set aside.
-Stir tofu and mushrooms into pot, simmer for a few minutes. Stir in miso mixture, top with scallions and soy sauce. Serve :)

Roasted Butternut Bisque

SERVES 12

* Olive oil
* 2 heads garlic, halved crosswise
* 1 3-lb. butternut squash, peeled and cubed, about 8 cups
* 2 Tbs. olive oil
* 2 large leeks, well rinsed and sliced, about 1 3/4 cups
* 1 2/3 cups coarsely shredded carrots
* 3 medium-sized russet potatoes, peeled and cubed
* 1 Tbs. chopped fresh sage
* 6 cups vegetarian stock
* 1/3 cup nutritional yeast
* 1/3 cup mild white miso
* 1/4 cup dry vermouth

1. Preheat oven to 400F. Spray baking sheet with oil.
2. Spray cut surfaces of garlic with oil. Place halves back together, and wrap each tightly in foil. Bake until tender, about 40 minutes. Cool garlic in foil.
3. Place squash in single layer on baking sheet. Spray with olive oil. Bake for 40 minutes, stirring occasionally.
4. In 6-quart saucepan, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add leeks, carrots, potatoes and sage. Cook 5 minutes, stirring frequently. Spray with cooking spray, if needed.
5. Bring stock to a boil, then pour into vegetable mixture. Reduce heat to medi-um, and cook mixture 30 minutes, or until vegetables are tender.
6. In food processor and in two batches, blend soup vegetables with squash, peeled garlic and yeast. Process to thick purée, return to saucepan and mix thoroughly.
7. Combine miso and vermouth in small bowl, blending together with small wire whisk or fork. Add mixture to bisque, and simmer for 5 minutes. Do not boil.

Indian Spiced Couscous Soup

a quick and easy vegetarian and vegan Indian food recipe with a bit of spicy kick!

* 2 tbsp olive oil
* 1 onion, chopped
* 2 cloves garlic, minced
* 1 tsp ground coriander
* 1/2 tsp cumin
* 1/2 tsp chili powder
* dash cayenne (optional)
* dash salt, to taste
* 5 cups vegetable broth
* 1/3 cup couscous, uncooked
* 1/2 cup chickpeas
* 1 tbsp fresh mint, chopped
* 1 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped (optional)

Sautee the onions and garlic in olive oil until soft, about 3 to 5 minutes. Add the spices and cook for one more minute.

Add the vegetable broth, chickpeas and couscous. Bring to a slow simmer and cook for 3 to 5 minutes. Stir to fluff the couscous. Allow to sit for a few more minutes, if needed, to allow couscous to finish cooking.

Garnish with mint and parsley and serve hot.