All posts filed under: Soups

Chicken Udon Noodle Soup

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I have really been into making Asian foods lately—and who could blame me— they are so good! Since it’s been cold out, I have been turning to lots of soups from all over Asia to warm me up such as Chinese Wonton Soup, Korean Kimchi Jiggae and now this fantastic Japanese recipe for Chicken Udon Noodle Soup. This soup combines basic ingredients like chicken thighs, spinach, scallions, and egg with some of my favourite Asian ingredients. These include shimeji mushrooms, enoki mushrooms, shitake mushrooms, sesame seeds, udon noodles, nori snacks, and kombu (also known as seaweed). If you are unfamiliar with these types of Asian  mushrooms that I just referred to, check out my last post “What’s In Season- Mushrooms” for the low-down. Asian ingredients all in one warming, healthy bowl! I have only recently began experimenting  with more Asian ingredients after moving to Vancouver Island and finding a large gap in the quantity and variety of Asian cuisine available. I came from Vancouver, so there is no comparison with what Vancouver offers! While there …

Carrot, Ginger & Turmeric Soup

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The holidays are upon us and that means there will be lots of treats and rich foods to indulge in. While these foods should be enjoyed this time of year (tis the season after all), we don’t want to let our waistlines get too out of control. To avoid this, I have come up with this delicious recipe for Carrot, Ginger & Turmeric Soup. Not only will it keep your waistline trim, it uses all fresh, seasonal ingredients and it will keep you healthy all winter long! The Inspiration Behind the Recipe This recipe was inspired by a recipe for Ginger & Carrot Soup that I found in Vitamix’s cookbook. I love my Vitamix and use it every single day. I honestly don’t know how I lived my life without one! While the Vitamix recipe is delicious, I find that it is a little too “fresh tasting” as the recipe directs the cook to add raw carrots to the blender. It has that fresh carrot taste, and isn’t sweet like carrots should be. So, I …

Roasted Red Pepper Soup

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When you see fresh red bell peppers go on sale at the market or grocery store, it’s a sign from the Food Gods that you need to make this delicious Roasted Red Pepper Soup. Typically, red bell peppers are the most expensive out of all the varieties of bell peppers. That’s because they are simply the best! They’re sweet, crunchy and refreshing and continue to be a crowd favourite time and time again. Fresh vine tomatoes from Windset Farms, BC-grown red bell peppers from The Root Cellar and basil from my balcony all go into this fabulous summer soup! While people may think that red bell peppers are completely different than green bell peppers, brace yourselves because I’m about to blow your mind: red bell peppers are really green bell peppers that have been fully ripened on the vine before they are harvested! Say WHATT?! Yes, it’s true! Similarly, yellow and orange bell peppers also start out as green bell peppers. Yellow bell peppers are harvested earlier on in the peppers maturity phase and orange …

Soup Series: Beef Stew with Dumplings

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I couldn’t get through my #SoupSeries without including a meat-based soup. And while this isn’t a soup, I still think that this qualifies to be in the series since: 1) it’s warming, 2) contains rich broth and veggies and 3) makes you feel all cozy inside. So here it is, my recipe for Beef Stew with Dumplings. While soups and stews can contain both meat and veggies, they are a bit different. The main difference between a soup and a stew is consistency. Obviously a stew is thicker (i.e. not as watery) because it uses less stock or water in the recipe. Also, while others may not 100% agree with me on this, the size of the chunks of meat and veggies are much larger in a stew than a soup. I love biting into a big, tender piece of meat or carrot. It just makes it seem much more hearty, rich and filling! To make a great beef stew you need to build lots of flavour at the beginning when you are cooking the …

Soup Series: Wonton Soup

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Hey there everyone! I am back again with another fantastic soup recipe for my #SoupSeries. I would say that this recipe for Wonton Soup is my quickest and easiest recipe in the series, but only if you do a bit of prep work in advance. Once you have the wontons all made (which is a tedious but highly rewarding task), this soup takes 15 minutes or less to cook from start to finish! How’s that for a quick and easy meal?! As I mentioned above, the wonton-making process can be a bit tedious but trust me, it is DEFINITELY worth it. I take a quick short-cut by using store-bought wonton wrappers, just for convenience, but other than that, everything else that is going into them is homemade. I really like making my own fillings because you know exactly what ingredients are going into the wontons and you know how fresh they are- something that you don’t always know when buying them from the grocery store. Plus, if you make them homemade, you can fill them …

Soup Series: Cauliflower and Roasted Garlic Soup

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Just like I mentioned in my Fried Cauliflower with Coconut-Curry Dipping Sauce post, I can’t seem to get enough of cauliflower these days. I love the dense and hearty texture of this cruciferous vegetable in the late fall and early winter. It just seems to really fill you up and keep you warm. Speaking of keeping you warm, you wouldn’t suppose this yummy veggie would keep you EXTRA warm in soup form? Hey, I’m looking for any heat I can get- it is the rainy season after all! So there it is, in all its cauliflower and garlicky glory, Cauliflower and Roasted Garlic soup! My partner and I had a version of this soup last spring at Artisan Eats Cafe on Bowen Island. It was so warm and comforting on this cold day, and that view was really amazing! I however, could have done without the semi-burnt toast and tons of cream in the soup. But from the first spoonful, I knew I had to make this at home! And clearly it was a very memorable …

Soup Series: Homemade Congee

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Looks like the dreary rainy weather has finally set in here in Vancouver. Up to today, I have not seen the sun in two weeks, which is fairly typical for the southern coast of BC during this time of year, but caught a glimpse of it today for about three hours, before it got dark again. I really love the rain, I jut hate when it rains incessantly for months on end. Plus it is dark, cold and just not welcoming at all. But being the eternal optimist that I am, I am choosing to make the bet of this situation and look at the silver lining of these rain clouds. How, you ask? Through indulging in the most warming and comforting meal there is: SOUP! The beginnings of vegetable broth <3 I could honestly eat soup every day for the rest of my life and never get bored of it. There are so many different variations of soup including bisques, chowder, broths, stews, chili, and so on. Plus, there are so many ingredients that …

Curried Butternut Squash Soup

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  As the autumn days get cooler and rainier, I am in constant search for something to keep me warm. Whether it is a cup of peppermint tea (my current obsession) or a cozy blanket, nothing beats a nice warm cup of soup. Soup has to be one of my most favourite meals. I could probably eat it every day and never get sick of it since there are so many soup variations out there. On the lighter and healthier side we have classics like tomato and basil soup, chicken noodle soup, lentil soup, bone broth soup, minestrone soup- they’re all amazing. And on the more decadent side we have cream of mushroom soup, broccoli cheddar soup, French onion soup, beef stew with dumplings, ramen- the list goes on….and I love them all! Hmm..now that I’m thinking of all these soups, I need to post more on the blog! So you should look forward to a soup series coming next month 😛 Anyways, for the fall we have to make some sort of squash soup. …

Basic Betch-table Soup

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Today was another typical Sunday. I woke up, made a breakfast of egg white omelette and a smoothie, make a fresh press of Starbucks coffee, lit my Basalm-scented candle, and sat around in my leggings browsing Pinterest, Instagram, and YouTube all day. The same content appears across all three of these platforms: food (of course), style, workout moves, puppies and kitties, DIYs, more food, travel, motivational quotes, you get the picture- there is a total basic betch vibe going on. I’ve only been called a basic betch once- by my friend Stephen, when I was making this soup. You see, Stephen was over and I was telling him how I wanted to shed a few pounds. I jokingly told Stephen that I was only going to drink vodka sodas, do Pilates, and eat this basic vegetable soup to do it. Stephen, being as witty as he is, laughed to himself then turned around and said “No, you mean you’re going to eat Basic Betch-table Soup“. I died. I loved it. The name was perfect. And hence, …