Farmer's Market Vegetable Soup
This recipe post is to encourage you to shop at your local farmer's market. The fruit and vegetables taste amazing. If you don't have a farmer's market nearby, try shopping local. The closer your food is to your plate from where it is grown, usually the better. Think about that for a minute. If your food has to travel from 1,000s of miles away, it will take time before it gets to the stores, which means it will take more time before you get to the store to buy it, and even more time before you prepare and eat it. In other words something has to be done to the food to prevent it from spoiling. While fresh food doesn't keep for very long, it is worth the extra effort to buy locally grown, organic produce to minimize your exposure to pesticides and other preservatives.
Materials:
Large cooking pot
Cuisinart Food Processor (with shredding disc)
Cutting board
Vegetable knife
Soup scooper
Wooden spoon
Peeler
Grater
Garlic press
Ingredients:
Head of green cabbage
3 small red potatoes
1/2 yellow or white onion
1 bunch of chard
1 bunch of carrots (equivalent to ~15 baby carrots)
1 stalk of celery
1/2 head of broccoli with stem
3 cloves of garlic
1 inch piece of fresh ginger (1 tablespoon grated)
1 tablespoon dried lemongrass
1-2 tablespoons unrefined virgin coconut oil
1/2 teaspoon sea salt (or more if desired)
1/4-1/2 teaspoon ground white pepper
Boiling water (8 cups +/- depending on desired amount)
Directions:
Dice onion and celery into small pieces. Sauté these veggies in the coconut oil on medium heat in a large pot for 3-5 minutes. Mince garlic, peel and grate ginger, and add to the pot along with salt and pepper. Stir everything in the pot with wooden spoon for 2 minutes. Chop carrots, potatoes, and broccoli into small pieces and add to the pot. Shred cabbage in food processor and add to the pot. Pour boiling water over vegetables (at least enough to cover them). Stir all the ingredients in the pot well. Cut stalks off chard and chop chard into smaller pieces. Add chard and dried lemongrass to the pot and mix well. Cook soup until potatoes and broccoli stems are soft, then reduce heat. Cover soup with a lid and simmer until you are ready to eat. Store in glass container for 3-5 days in the refrigerator or freeze for later.