W-W Fresh Vegetable Soup

Some say this soup is the secret to their weight-loss success. It’s a great midday snack or dinner appetizer. If you like thick soups, consider pureeing this recipe in the pot with an immersion blender. There are so many variations on this recipe. This is delicius ! <3 <3

Hands-on time: 20 minutes
Time to table: 35 to 40 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1 onion, diced (see TIPS)
• 2 carrots, peeled and diced (see TIPS)
• 1 red bell pepper, diced
• 1 rib celery, diced
• 2 cups (about 5 ounces) chopped cabbage
• 2 cups (about 6 ounces) cauliflower, cut into florets
• 2 cups (about 6 ounces) broccoli, cut into florets
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme (or 2 teaspoons fresh thyme)
• 2 cloves garlic, minced small
• 2 cups Swiss chard, washed well and cut into ribbons
• Fresh parsley or fresh chives, to taste
• 1/2 teaspoon table salt or to taste
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper or to taste
• Juice of a fresh lemon, about 2 tablespoons

Instructions:

1. In a microwave, bring the broth to a boil. (This step keeps the soup moving but can be skipped if there’s no rush.)
2. In a large pot or Dutch oven, collect the vegetables in the order given, squeezing in the Swiss chard to compress a bit if needed. Pour the hot broth over top. Cover and bring to a boil over MEDIUM HIGH. Once the liquid comes to a boil, crack the lid so that a little steam can escape, then reduce the heat to maintain a slow simmer and let simmer for about 10 minutes until the bottom vegetables are done.
3. Stir in the parsley, salt, pepper and lemon juice. Let cool. Transfer to storage containers and refrigerate overnight or for 24 hours. Reheat to serve.

SIZE MATTERS Before getting out the cutting knife, decide how “big” you want the vegetable pieces. This batch, I decided on large and distinct pieces but another choice is to dice the vegetables quite small, this would mean getting a spoonful of lots of different vegetables at once.
CARROTS Skip the so-called “baby” carrots which aren’t baby carrots at all but big ol’ honkin’ huge carrots scraped down into neat little packages for easy consumption. They’re fine cold and raw but don’t cook well. Buy a bag of carrots, it”ll take just a minute or so to peel and cut them.
BELL PEPPERS Red, yellow and orange peppers are pretty but much more expensive than green peppers. I often go for the green, with little real taste difference.
SPEAKING OF COST There are a lot of different vegetables in this soup! At my house, the leftovers don’t go to waste because my standard lunch is a Quick ‘n’ Easy Raw Salad
SHOP THE SALAD BAR Some times, the salad bar is a good place to pick up small volumes of a few vegetables. Vegetables are more expensive per pound at the salad bar but the “most expensive vegetable is the one which goes to waste”.
FOR TASTE Don’t skip the onion or the cabbage, they’re what make the broth taste slightly sweet after the soup rests overnight.

NUTRITION INFORMATION: Per Cup: 48 Calories; 0g Tot Fat; 0g Sat Fat; 0mg Cholesterol; 80mg Sodium; 11g Carb; 3g Fiber; 5g Sugar; 2g Protein.  W-W Old Points 0, W-W PointsPlus 1, W-W SmartPoints 2, W-W Freestyle 0  CALORIE COUNTERS 100-calorie serving = 2 cups