I spent the weekend at the Pennsylvania Farm Show. In between my canning demos, Scott and I explored the many halls and sampled a goodly portion of the treats and fried delicacies on offer. By the time we got home on Sunday evening, I was feeling decidedly overfed (french fries, a hot dog, two potato doughnuts, a smoked brisket sandwich, a buttered soft pretzel, and a milk shake from the PA Dairymen will do that to a girl).
I ate lightly yesterday, but woke up this morning feeling strongly that I needed to focus primarily on vegetables for a little while. Other times of the year, I might spend a few days slurping down green smoothies for breakfast and eating salads for lunch and dinner, but current temperatures make all cold foods seem unappealing. Enter my mom’s signature green soup.
It’s a recipe that found its way into her recipe binder sometime in the 1970s under the title Bieler Broth. The name is misleading, as there’s nothing brothy about this soup. It’s a hearty puree of greens, carrots, onions, broccoli, garlic, and nutritional yeast (total hippie ingredient) and it’s just the thing when you’ve binged on the kind of food you can only get at festivals, state fairs, and farm shows.
The ingredients are fairly flexible, but the basics are these. You want at least half the substance of the soup to be green leaves of some kind. I use a combination of spinach, kale, and parsley (chard, beet greens, collards, and even arugula work nicely). Broccoli florets, grated carrot, half a chopped onion, and a few peeled garlic cloves make up the balance of the soup.
When they’re in season, summer squash is a nice addition, but they’re just no good this time of year (being that it’s not summer). Green beans and peeled celery can also be added, but I didn’t have either in the fridge, so I left them out. A little chopped cabbage is fine, but use it sparingly.
I always opt for the curly kind of parsley because it’s what my mom prefers, but flat leaf is okay too. It is really good for you, but if you’re sensitive to bitter flavors, use a sparing hand.
To make the soup, you pour two cups of boiling water into the bottom of a roomy pot (a 5 1/2 quart Dutch oven is my go-to) and set it over medium heat. Add the greens first and stir until the wilt into the water. Then add the broccoli, carrots, onion, garlic, green beans, and whatever else you’re including. Simmer for 15-20 minutes, until the firmest vegetables are tender (but not entirely limp).
When the vegetables are finished cooking, ladle them along with their cooking liquid into a blender. Add 2 generous tablespoons of nutritional yeast, a healthy pinch of salt, the juice from 1/2 a lemon, and a couple turns of a pepper grinder. Hold a towel over the top of the blender and puree (gradually increasing the speed until things are really moving). Taste and adjust the seasonings. Know that if it’s tasting a little TOO green for you, the flavor will mellow in just 15 minutes time.
At this point, the soup is done. I like to eat it warm, but it’s also good chilled. I find that I need a spoonful of plain yogurt or a little bit of coconut milk swirled in to make a meal out of a bowl(if it’s the kind of thing you have around, some cashew milk or creme is also good). Anything with a little fat helps keep me full a bit longer and that’s always useful
I find that it will keep three or four days in the fridge, so I typically make a big batch and have it for lunch all week. Just know that the color will fade a little over time. It’s not a sign of spoilage, though, so no need to worry!
What do you guys eat when you’re recovering from a period of overindulgence?
Veggie-Stuffed Hippie Soup
Ingredients
- 10 ounces spinach baby spinach makes for a milder soup
- 1/2 bunch of kale chopped (remove tough stems)
- 1 bunch parsley no stems
- 1 head broccoli florets no stems
- 1/2 medium onion chopped
- 1 large carrot grated
- 3 cloves garlic
- 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- juice from 1/2 lemon
Instructions
- Measure 2 cups of boiling water into a medium Dutch oven set over medium heat.
- Put the spinach, kale, and parsley into the pot and stir it into the water so that it wilts slightly.
- Add the broccoli, onion, carrot, and garlic to the pot and put a lid on the pot. Simmer for 15-20 minutes, until the onions and garlic are tender (they tend to be the last to soften).
- Pull the pot off the heat and let the contents cool for a couple minutes.
- Transfer the vegetables and the cooking liquid to a blender carafe. If you have more than fits in your blender, do this in two batches.
- Add the nutritional yeast, salt, pepper, and lemon juice.
- Holding a towel over the lid of the blender, puree the soup until it is smooth. Add an extra splash of water if it is too thick. Taste and adjust seasoning, if necessary.
- Serve warm or chilled, topped with a dollop of plain yogurt or a little coconut milk.
I can see how this soup would be just what you wanted to eat at the end of a nice, gluttonous winter day. All those greens lend it such a mesmerizing, vibrant colour – beautiful!
So here’s what I need to know: is Bragg’s nutritional yeast seasoning the same thing as straight up nutritional yeast? Can I use them interchangeably?
And that soup looks awesome and will happen in my kitchen this weekend, to my children’s dismay, I’m sure. (“It’s so GREEEEEEEN!”)
I believe that what Bragg’s sells as their nutritional yeast seasoning is just nutritional yeast and you should be able to use them interchangeably. What does it say on the jar as far as ingredients goes?
Yes it’s the same, but it’s usually way cheaper to buy it in the bulk section!
Marisa, I see you have the ultimate in blenders of which I seriously covet like I did a KA mixer before I got my own…could I use a food processor or a hand blender to make this? It really looks like something I could take with me to work with some good bread and cheese!
You can certainly puree the soup with an immersion/hand blender. I don’t think that a food processor will give you the texture you want.
This looks very yummy. I am looking forward to trying it.
This sounds and looks yummy, especially with coconut milk. I would use my immersion blender rather than a regular blender and leave in some texture.
Eat all the veg! Or I guess drink all the veg. 🙂 Either way, this sounds like such a great green-tasting soup to eat in the dead of winter.
I want to believe I would like this, but it just seems awful! I’d much rather just eat all those veggies roasted or raw (in the case of the spinach). Good for you though!
I promise, it’s not awful!
Such a perfect time of year for green soups! I recently discovered this one — really similar to your mom’s with a few tweaks. I added extra cilantro, coriander, and my habanero hot sauce to this recipe — delicious. I’m interested to try it as the base for a healthy chili (!) with a jar of homemade tomatillo sauce and some ground turkey crumbles added.
Here’s the recipe!
food52.com/recipes/31438-anna-thomas-green-soup
ooooh, this looks good! I totally understand the cycle of fried crazy food + home veggie food. We do it too! When we’re tired of fair food, we eat vegetarian at home with very limited sweets and cheese. My best friend jokes about eating sauteed kale and brown rice after every holiday.
By the way, we put nutritional yeast on our popcorn and this taste has spread like wildfire among my friends and family (I think it also helps that I pop the corn in a well-seasoned cast iron Dutch oven). If I make this soup, then I will have another use for the yeast. . .
Looks good – do you know how this freezes? I like to freeze soup to take to work.
I’ve not tried freezing this one, but I’d worry that it would separate upon defrosting.
Mmmmm, this sounds delicious! I’m thinking I would mix it up a little and use some bone or chicken broth in exchange for some water for the taste and health benefits. Maybe toss in some curry powder if I’m feeling especially fancy.
awesome name! I made something similar this week (sans nooch) http://atravellingcook.blogspot.de/2015/01/lentil-and-green-vegetable-soup.html
I can’t afford that blender, either, but my new Nutribullet (the 600 watt one) will puree even whole apples and other fruits and veggies into the smoothest puree anyone could want, at a far lower price. I just took some hard, dehydrated plum tomatoes, added a cup of hot water, and zapped up some tomato sauce.
Marisa,
I sneak that ‘hippie’ stuff into all sorts of things…mac’n cheese ( really deepens the cheese flavor) on popcorn-family favorite, mixed into savory breads, and although I’ve sprinkled it into minestrone soup mixed with the parma cheese I haven’t tried it in a veg. soup. On my list for the weekend, something warm and green sounds good. Thanks for the recipe.
For Casey above, the yeasts all have a slightly different taste to them I’ve found. Some are more toasty cheesy others more salty, you may want to find your favorite brand. And yep bulk is more cost effective. I buy a large bag put some for daily use in a mason jar and freeze the rest.
Look how green those veggies are! Love this. Bookmarking.
Already tried it, and my 2-year old loves it, as well as my husband, who doesnt eat vegetables.
Thanks!
I’m delighted to hear it!
I’ve made this a couple times now, I make a big batch on the weekend and take it for lunch during the week. It is a good way for me to clean out my fridge and last time I added a long forgotten can of pumpkin puree that was in the back of the pantry. I like it best topped with cottage cheese and served with some crusty bread for dipping.
Thank for the recipe!
Hi Marisa. I’m new to your site and late to this post, haha. I’m on the hunt for a solid herby green and packed soup for when you need a heavy dose of leafy greens– still haven’t found one I like yet, even with personal adjustments. I’m excited to try this one this week. My question is, would adding a can of drained canned beans (say cannellini? Great northern? Or something like that?) Ruin the flavor or texture of this recipe? I would like to add a bit of protein if possible to the soup itself which is why I ask. Otherwise I can supplement with toppings/sides as you suggested in a single meal. Please let me know what you think about those beans, though! Thanks!
I’ve never tried adding a can of drained white beans to this, but I think that would be delicious. I could also see adding a package of silken tofu and blending it in. Either would be good and would add a healthy dose of protein.