Garlic is the feature of this soup. It has natural antibiotic properties and is known for contributing to overall health. It is easy to find now in the spice section already chopped and jarred or in the freezer section already minced. This is the best option for this soup, which calls for 20 cloves of garlic. Worried about bad breath? Always remember that two garlics cancel each other out, which is why this soup recipe makes plenty to share. It is also incredibly fast to make, so just in case you were thinking of driving to a fast food restaurant, this soup will be in your mug or bowl in 20 minutes at the most.
Ingredients
5 cups chicken or vegetable broth
1 large yellow onion - diced
20 cloves garlic (or equal amount of prepared garlic)
1-2 cups of frozen chopped spinach
2 carrots shredded
protein - either in the form of 2 eggs, 1 chicken breast, or 1 can of white kidney beans
1 tbsp of thyme
Salt and pepper to taste
Extra virgin olive oil (enough to sautee onions)
Preparation
Sautee the onion in extra virgin olive oil over medium heat until the onions get translucent. Add the 5 cups of broth and garlic to the stock pot and bring to boil. Add in shredded carrot and spinach and return to boil. Add thyme and salt and pepper. If using chicken, chop and drop into the soup and let poach in the garlic broth. If not, add kidney beans toward end of cooking or eggs right before serving, using a fork to shred the eggs into the soup. The perfect topping for this soup is just some extra black pepper or sprinkle parmesan cheese.
Want to make this fancy? Take some parchment paper and spread it on a baking sheet. Sprinkle parmesan cheese in little circles spaced an inch apart, like making cookies. Sprinkle black pepper on each mound of cheese and put under the broiler. WATCH these, they'll melt quickly, but turn into delicate parmesan pepper crisps for the top of soup.
I was deciding what to make for dinner tonight when I was checking your blog. I decided to try this soup, with a few additions (different veggies that I had on hand and diced tomatoes). I think it might be a little heavy on the thyme for my taste. Did you mean a tablespoon of fresh or dried? I thought about that after I put in a tablespoon of dried. We'll see how it turns out. Thanks!
ReplyDeleteI use fresh, mainly. I should've mentioned that. Dried I would go with about 1 tsp. It all depends on your tastes, too. If you're not so big on thyme... no big deal. I have always thought that there are so many herbs for so many tastes... and not to limit yourself by recipes. I'm tickled you looked through my blog for suggestions for dinner. I just love writing about this stuff so much - that it reaches others is what makes this even better.
ReplyDeleteEven though I used a tablespoon of dried, it still turned out pretty good. My kids weren't huge fans of all the spice, but my husband and I loved it! Thanks!
ReplyDeleteAren't kids funny. I'm glad you enjoyed it. My tastes for herbs and spices or anything new really didn't expand until late in high school, so as a kid this probably would have ended up sitting and getting cold.
ReplyDelete