Summer Vegetable Soup

Ah, summer. Finally, you can put away the winter coats and break out the sandals. Is there a better way to celebrate than making soup? I think not...but I have a weird thing for soup.

Summer Vegetable Soup is super easy and so fresh! I also love this recipe because it has a creamy feel to it!

Here's what you'll need:

2 medium potatoes, cut into 1-inch pieces
4 cups of water
1/2 medium yellow onion
4 large cloves garlic (more or less to taste)
3 stalks of fresh celery
1-2 medium carrots
1 cup of chopped cauliflower
1 cup of chopped broccoli
1 bell pepper (any color), cut into strips
1/2 a pound of fresh green beans, chopped
1 medium zucchini, diced
1 10 ounce can of corn (fresh corn works too)
Extra virgin olive oil
Oregano, basil, dill, chives, salt, and pepper to taste.


Instructions: 

1. Brown onion and garlic (both coarsely chopped) in medium sized pot in 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil for about 10 minutes on medium heat.
2. Add water and chopped potatoes into pot. Bring to a boil, then lower to a simmer until potatoes are tender. 
3. Break out the blender! Pour water/tater/onion mixture into a blender and puree! After it's creamy enough for you, pour it back into the saucepan, add chopped celery and spices to taste, and set aside. 
4. Steam SOME of the vegetables. I used a microwave because it is 10x easier. Separate the veggies into these combos and steam separately: 
1. Carrot, broccoli and cauliflower 
2. Green beans 
3. Zucchini and bell pepper
5. *Reheat potato base if it has cooled, then stir in all of the steamed vegetables. Also add the corn. 
6. Enjoy!

*You can prepare the vegetables and the potato base the day before. When you're ready to serve, complete step 5.
Adapted from: Mollie Katzen's Moosewood Cookbook 2nd ed. 1992