Winter Vegetable Medley Soup
A gorgeous soup, it is busting with the most wonderful vegetable flavours and with each bite you can practically taste the vitamins from the veggies permeating each cell of your body.
This divine soup does contain some ingredients which are not low in oxalates, so if you have vulvodynia you may wish to omit the celery and leeks (and anything else that might bother you) and add more of some of the other vegetables. Serve this soup warm, and be warned that it is completely addictive.
Winter Vegetable Medley Soup
4 cups of chicken, turkey or vegetable stock (preferably homemade or organic)
3 tbsp olive oil
2 leeks stalk, washed well to remove any grit, chopped finely
1 carrot, peeled and finely sliced
2 large sweet potatoes, peeled and diced
1 medium sized pumpkin, seed and chopped into small cubes
4 cloves of garlic, peeled and crushed (or more garlic if you like)
1 cup of heavy (whipping/double) cream
1 bay leaf
2 tbsp of fresh safe leaves, finely chopped (or ¾ tbsp fresh sage leaves or powder)
½ tsp ground nutmeg (preferably freshly grated)
½ tsp ground cinnamon
Kosher or sea salt and freshly cracked black pepper to taste
In a large, heavy bottomed stockpot (or soup pot/sauce pan) heat the oil in the pan, over a medium temperature. Put the leeks, celery, onions, sweet potatoes, carrot, pumpkin and garlic into the pot and fry them until they start to turn light golden brown.
Next add the bay leaf, cream and stock and bring the pot to a gentle boil. Reduce the heat to medium low and simmer, stirring often to prevent anything from sticking to the bottom of the pot, until all of the different vegetables are soft and cooked through.
Add the sage, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt and pepper to the soup and taste it to adjust the seasonings as desired. Extract the bay leaf from the pot and discard it.
Transfer the soup to a blender or food processor (using a hand blender in the soup pot itself) puree the whole quantity of soup until it is smooth and creamy. Serve warm, with a drizzle of cream and oodles of crusty bread to dip into it. Store leftovers, well covered, in the fridge for up to 3 days, or freeze for up to 2 months.
Serves 8 people