Root Vegetable Soup

My Eureka! Moment for Vegetable Soup

While travelling around Cuba, many of our meals began with a simple vegetable soup. The soup was like most other vegetable soups – some carrots, celery, onions, turnips, and perhaps a little kale – nothing particularly remarkable. But what amazed me each time was the broth. The broth always tasted amazingly like carrots.

Store-bought vegetable stocks often have a bit of a chemical taste. To me, the stocks don’t seem to taste like “vegetables,” but often I don’t have the time to make a vegetable stock from scratch. I was thinking about this while grocery shopping last week. That’s when I stumbled upon the “Eureka!” moment. I was buying juices and decided to try some Boathouse brand Orange Carrot juice. I saw that they also sold plain 100% Carrot Juice. THIS was the ingredient I needed to add to my stock!

Take your favorite Vegetable Soup recipe and substitute carrot juice for half of the vegetable stock. It’s guaranteed to make your vegetable soup taste fresher and more flavorful – more like vegetables. Another simple trick for increasing the flavor in your vegetable soup is to roast the vegetables to caramelize and concentrate the flavors before adding them to the soup. Here’s an easy recipe with the secret ingredient: carrot juice!

ROOT VEGETABLE SOUP

2 rutabagas (or turnips), peeled and chopped
2 carrots, peeled and chopped
2 parsnips, peeled and chopped
1 sweet potato, diced (about 2 cups)
1 medium celeriac (celery root), peeled and chopped
2 stalks celery, sliced
1 yellow onion, chopped
Olive oil
3 cups kale, chopped (can substitute baby spinach)
1 quart vegetable broth
1 quart Boathouse 100% Carrot Juice
Salt & Pepper, to taste
1 tablespoon of your favorite fresh leafy herbs, minced (e.g. dill, parsley, cilantro)

Preheat your oven to 425 degrees.

Place the first seven vegetables (all but the kale) on a foil-lined cooking sheet, toss with a little olive oil and roast for 20-25 minutes until the vegetables are tender enough to be pierced with a knife, but not mushy.

Place the vegetables, stock, carrot juice and kale into a soup pot and heat until the soup is warm and the kale is wilted. Add the fresh herbs and salt and pepper to taste.

If you like more broth with your soup – add a couple more cups of vegetable broth. To make the soup a bit more substantial, you could add a can of drained white navy beans or top with some grated parmesan cheese.