Monday, August 4, 2014

Garlic and Zucchini Soup

Pretty much everybody who knows anybody with a garden has an abundance of zucchini in their fridge or on their counters. My family not only have one Summer squash plant growing in our backyard, but 6 - four standard zucchinis and the two heirloom pattypan squash I started from seed this Spring. We also have garlic from last year's planting, my Egyptian onions, yellow carrots and Lutz beets, the Romano beans and a host of other goodies, all of which are being consumed with relish. Of course, our backyard produce goes hand-in-hand with what we buy at the farmer's market now that the season is in full swing - meaning that I got a bunch of local garlic, peppers, tomatoes and berries for an absolute steal last week!    

Garlic and Zucchini Soup

As much as we love our veggies in everything, even my family can't combat the sheer volume of zucchini we've been pulling from the garden. It seems that every day a new, not-that-modestly sized log of squash finds itself on our kitchen table, eventually making its way into the fridge alongside it's older comrades.There's only so much ratatouille, stir-fry, omelettes and zucchini bread one can tolerate, so when I came across a soup recipe on The Kitchn that used up 1 1/2 lbs of the stuff in one fell swoop (along with a ton of our local garlic), I got chopping!

One of the major reasons I was drawn to the recipe was the potential for extra garlicky goodness in my bowl, not to mention it's a creamy puree without a smidgen of dairy! I bumped up both the garlic and zucchini content to meet my needs and wants, both of which played rather nicely with the "green" flavours of camelina oil and Egyptian onions. Packed with flavourful nutrition, a bowl of this more than satisfies a rumbling stomach after a round of golf (or weeding the garden). That said, my mom did crumble some leftover bacon on top and deemed it equally delicious!

Garlic and Zucchini Soup
Makes 8 cups, 6 (1 1/3 cup) servings
2 tbsp camelina or fruity olive oil
6 Egyptian onion bulbs (or 1 medium white onion), chopped
25 large cloves garlic, chopped
4 large zucchini (about 35 oz total), chopped
¼ cup dry white wine
4 cups low sodium vegetable broth
2 cups water
¼ tsp powdered ginger
½ tsp black pepper
salt, to taste
  1. In a large, heavy pot, warm the oil over medium heat. 
  2. Add the onions and cook on medium-low heat for about 5 minutes, until soft.
  3. Add garlic and cook 5 minutes longer - don’t brown the garlic, just cook to soften.
  4. Add the zucchini and cook, stirring occasionally, until beginning to tenderize. 
  5. Pour in the wine and stir to incorporate, then add the broth and bring to a simmer. 
  6. Reduce the heat and simmer, uncovered, 45 minutes.
  7. Puree smooth using either an immersion blender or in batches with a regular blender to puree.
  8. Stir in ginger, pepper and salt.
  9. This soup is better after a night in the refrigerator, and freezes well too - make tons in season for Winter noshing!
Amount Per Serving
Calories: 112.1
Total Fat: 4.8 g
Cholesterol: 1.7 mg
Sodium: 101.4 mg
Total Carbs: 14.3 g
Dietary Fiber: 3.6 g
Protein: 2.1 g

No comments :

Post a Comment

Thanks for the feedback!