Fresh Garden Soup
With fall suddenly in the air, it’s time to start wrapping up some of the garden and/or farmers market produce and to make the best of things that need to be harvested right away.
I’ve been busy coming up with ideas for whatever I have the most of this year and decided to can a couple things. Canning takes a bit of time but is a great way to preserve whatever you’ve got on hand and also gives you a jump on holiday giving because who doesn’t love homemade goods?
Happily, I still have some baby vegetables that needed to be used as well, so what better way to marry too much garden produce and the coming of autumn with a lovely vegetable soup.
- 4 cups vegetable or chicken broth
- ½ cup rice
- 4 cloves garlic, sliced
- 1 Anaheim pepper, seeded and diced
- 6 small carrots
- Kernels from 1 ear of corn
- 4 very small zucchini squash, green and yellow varieties, sliced
- 1 cup chopped broccoli rabe
- ½ cup fresh herbs, such as cilantro, basil, parsley and/or dill
- 2 Tb butter
- Salt and pepper
The key to this soup is to use the smallest farm-fresh vegetables possible. It’s a very simple soup and the freshness and tenderness of the vegetables make it anything but boring.
Bring the broth to a boil, add the garlic, Anaheim pepper, and the rice, reduce to a simmer and cook about 12 minutes until the rice is close to tender. Add the vegetables and cook until just tender, 5-7 minutes. Stir in the butter, the herbs, and season with salt and pepper to taste.
