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What joy the gospel gives me. I can approach the throne of God with confidence, not because I've done a good job at my spiritual duties, but because I'm clothed in the righteousness of Jesus Christ. ~ C.J. Mahaney

Vegetable Chowder


When the weather turns cool, I start thinking about soup. Actually, I make soup year round, but there is nothing like soup for supper this time of year.

One of my favorite cookbooks is the
Moosewood Cookbook, by Mollie Katzen. All the recipes are vegetarian, and they are all delicious. One day, when I'm rich and famous and can afford a personal chef, this is the cookbook I want used primarily to prepare my meals. Every time I start thinking, "I need to start eating better," this is the book I reach for. I feel healthier just thumbing through its hand-lettered pages. She draws you in with her whimsical illustrations and interesting descriptions of the dishes. I've never made anything from this cookbook that I didn't like!



This recipe for Vegetable Chowder called to me and I couldn't resist. All day I've been dreaming of a hot bowl of this chowder served with a thick slice of homemade bread.
Vegetable Chowder
  • 1 tablespoon butter
  • 2 cups chopped onion
  • 6 (yes) cloves garlic, minced
  • 2 teaspoons salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon basil
  • 1 medium potato, diced
  • 2 medium stalks celery, diced
  • 2 medium carrots, diced
  • 2 cups chopped broccoli
  • 2 cups chopped cauliflower
  • 1/2 lb mushrooms, chopped
  • 2 cups corn (frozen is fine)
  • lots of fresh black pepper
  • 1 1/2 cups water
  • 1 quart milk, heated
Melt the butter in a kettle or Dutch oven. Add onion, half the garlic, salt, thyme, and basil. Saute' over medium heat for 5 minutes. Add potato, celery, carrots, broccoli, and cauliflower. Saute' another 5 minutes. Add mushrooms and corn, plus lots of black pepper. Saute' another 8-10 minutes.

Add water, cover, and simmer about 15 minutes, or until everything is tender.

Stir in hot milk and remaining garlic. Remove from heat until about 10 minutes before serving time, then heat gently.


The basic ingredients

The family will know dinner is started when they smell the onions and garlic!

This is looking really colorful!

The mushrooms....now we're talking.....

More color. The kids are going to love this!

Moosewood Magic. Soup's on!

More, please!

9 comments:

Sugar Bear said...

That looks so yummy! Thanks for sharing. Thank you also for your very kind comment. I truly appreciate it.
Karla

Rosie's Whimsy said...

Yum.... I will definitely try this one. I don't cook much anymore but a big pot of soup is something we will eat for days without getting tired of it....and this looks like a keeper!

Alyssa said...

Daddy says we're going to make this, but he's trying to figure out how to get meat in it!

Hon's Daddy said...

We had this for supper last night. It was a hit! Amanda noted that its was "off the credit"!
We followed your recipe to the letter. I so do not want to be one of those people who comment on a recipe and tell how they changed it. As if the recipe as it was given wasn't good enough until they added their modifications!
This is so different from the soups we normally make, and it was soooo good. Thanks for adding some much needed variety to our dinner menu!

kari and kijsa said...

This sounds absolutely fabulous! We are always looking for more delicious ways to get veggies in our kid's mouths! You are famous in our book for this one!

blessings,
kari & kijsa

Alyssa said...

I love the bowls with the quote from St. Clare of Assisi! Where did you find them?

Laura Lee said...

I'm so glad you enjoyed the vegetable chowder.

BTW, that photo of Holly was not staged! Honestly, she picked up her empty bowl to show me. I told her to hold it while I grabbed the camera.

About the bowls: Roy, you are so observant! Those bowls are from our set of Noritake china called "Country Diary of an Edwardian Lady." It was our wedding china, but we have used them everyday for over 24 years. Each piece of the table setting is different, with a different painting and different quote.

Hon's Daddy said...

Leftover Update....
I never really believed this to be true, however, there must be something to the cooling and reheating process, that when compounded with time that adds some unknown, but desired quality to this soup. It really is better the next day! Wow!

The Noritake pattern is very beautiful! Our wedding china is used twice a year, and usually something gets broken!

Laura Lee said...

There wasn't much left over at our house. But Holly pretty much polished off what little was left the next morning for breakfast. She prefers warm, savory foods any day over "typical" breakfast foods.