A Winter Blues Fix: Healthy Delicious Soup

After the holiday festivities and indulgences are over, we have to weather the coldest part of winter in New England.

One of my favorite ‘cleanse’ foods is a tofu vegetable soup that has a lots of green veggies, plant based protein in form of tofu and edamame, and a light vegetable stock.

This is a vegan recipe but you can substitute any protein of your choice for the tofu such as chicken, pork, sausage or beef and you can use chicken, beef or turkey stock instead of vegetable stock.

Ingredients (serves 6):

2 tbsps toasted sesame oil

1 cup chopped white onion

3 garlic cloves, chopped

14 oz extra firm tofu pressed dry with paper towel and then cubed

3 cups whole mushrooms (any kind), sliced

2 cups chopped washed swiss chard (or any green)

3 cups vegetable stock(I like ‘better than bouillon brand)

1 fennel bulb (if you like fennel) cut into small pieces

2 tomatoes, chopped

1 12-14 oz packet frozen edamame(soy beans)

8 oz frozen peas

3 cups broccoli florets

3 cups cauliflower florets

2 tbsps chopped cilantro

2 tsps sugar

2 tbsps lime juice

Sambal Oelek chili paste to taste

In a large pot, turn the stove on to moderate to high heat and saute chopped onions and garlic in sesame oil until fragrant (few minutes) and then add the cubed tofu and stir on moderate heat until tofu is slightly browned.

Add in the sliced mushrooms and again stir on moderate heat until mushrooms have released their liquid.

Then add the chopped greens and cook until greens are wilted.

Add the fennel, tomatoes, edamame, peas and the vegetable stock.

If that’s not enough liquid, you can add more or just add water so it doesn’t get too salty.

Bring this too a boil, add the sugar, lime juice, and salt to taste if you need it.

I like my broccoli and cauliflower slightly crunchy so I then put them in at the end and take the soup off the heat, stir in the cilantro and chili paste (this is optional and to your taste, I tend to add four tablespoons).

It’s incredibly healthy, warming and can be made as spicy as you want to clear up your sinuses!

Nutrition information per serving:

Calories       271

Total Fat      10.4 g

Cholesterol      0 mg

Sodium         246 mg  

Total Carbs     29 g

  Fiber              9.6 g

  Sugars         10.4 g

Protein          20.5 g