Vegetable Soup

My Mom made the absolute best vegetable soup in the world! I've tried to copy it without using meat, but haven't gotten the results I've wanted...until now. This soup satisfies my hunger and my soul. I can close my eyes and remember eating Mom's soup as a child. Hope you enjoy it as much as I do. The liquid smoke and No Beef Base are optional, but highly recommended for the deep, rich flavor I look for in vegetable soup.

Vegetable Soup

1 small wedge cabbage, shredded
1 can green beans, mostly drained
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
1/2 large onion, chopped
3 small gold potatoes, medium diced
1 cup frozen corn
1 bag frozen roasted vegetables, optional
4 carrots, scrubbed and sliced
1 can lima beans, mostly drained
1 can diced tomatoes
1 small can tomato sauce
1 small can water
vegetable broth
salt and pepper to taste
garlic powder
onion powder
liquid smoke, optional
1 teaspoon Better Than Broth No Beef Base, optional
1/4 cup rice or other grain (to give the soup a little substance)

 

Put all ingredients in a Dutch oven and bring to a boil. Lower fire and cover. Cook on low (hard
simmer) until cooked, about 1 hour, adding vegetable broth as needed.

Broccoli Slaw

I love the organic broccoli I get at Whole Foods. It has a wonderful, clean taste, but is on big long stalks. I've been putting some of the stalks in my stock bag in the freezer but throwing the rest away. Hated that. Then I was talking to my daughter the other day and she mentioned she made some broccoli slaw as a side for dinner. Broccoli slaw! What! She gets hers in a bag all shredded but I knew I would be making mine! Woohoo...here come the broccoli stalks!

Broccoli Slaw

1/2 cup plant milk
1 tablespoon lemon juice

1 wedge cabbage, green or purple
2 carrots, scrubbed if organic, peeled if not
2 large broccoli stalks, peeled

2 tablespoons tofu mayonnaise
1 teaspoon yellow mustard
1 tablespoon sugar (agave nectar is fine too)
salt and pepper to taste

Stir the lemon juice into the milk and let it sit a few minutes. This is your buttermilk substitute.

In a food processor, shred the cabbage, carrots, and broccoli stalks. Place slaw mixture in a large bowl.

Mix together the mayonnaise, mustard, and sugar and add to the slaw. Pour in the buttermilk and mix well. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Refrigerate for about an hour to allow flavors to blend.

Potato Cabbage Bowl

Today for lunch I was hungry for potatoes, cabbage, and cauliflower. But I couldn't think of any recipe that used all three of those ingredients. And I felt like steamed food too. So I decided to "channel" my Mom and just put everything I was hungry for into my steamer and hope for the best! It was so good I ate almost all of it!

Potato Cabbage Bowl - serves 2

2 medium gold potatoes, scrubbed and cut into pieces
1/4 to 1/2 head of cabbage, rinsed and torn into medium to large pieces

1-2 handfuls of cauliflower florets, rinsed
1 can pinto beans, drained and rinsed
Low sodium seasoning salt

Put all ingredients into a steamer and liberally sprinkle with seasoning salt. No need to stir. Add water to steamer bottom and set timer for 40 minutes. When done, stir to mix vegetables and seasoning. Sprinkle with a little salt and pepper, to taste.

Note: You can mix and match the vegetables, change the type of beans, use different seasonings, add onions, etc. to add variety if you wish.

Smothered Cabbage

This is my Mom's recipe. It's funny how my tastes have changed over the years. I remember walking into my house after school and smelling this cooking and dreading dinner. I took as tiny a serving as allowed and did my best to choke it down. Now I love it...it's one of my comfort foods! I hope my Mom is smiling when she looks down from Heaven and she sees me eating her smothered cabbage.

Smothered Cabbage

1/2 green cabbage, cut into wedges
1/4 cup onion, diced
salt and pepper, to taste

water or vegetable broth

Rinse cabbage and place in Dutch oven. Add onions and sprinkle with pepper. Pour about 1/2 inch of water into the bottom of the pot and bring to a boil. Cover and reduce heat to high simmer/low boil. Cook until cabbage is soft. Add water during cooking, if needed. Taste and salt if needed.

IP Directions:

Rinse cabbage and place in the IP liner. Add onions and sprinkle with pepper. Pour 1 cup hot water into pot with cabbage. Cover and seal. Cook on Manual for 3-6 minutes, depending on how soft you like the cabbage. Quick Release. Season to taste.