Sunday, April 3, 2011

Fennel and Greens Soup

Sometimes you just can't have enough soup. That time is all the time.

Ingredients

  • olive oil
  • salt and pepper
  • 1 tbsp butter
  • 1 fennel bulb, trimmed and chopped
  • 1 small onion, chopped
  • 1 lb mixed leafy greens (kale, swiss chard, mustard greens, collards, whatever)
  • 6 cups stock
  • oz spinach
  • 1/2 cup heavy cream
  • 1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
  • garnish of dill or fennel
Heat oil and butter and add salt, fennel, onion, and pepper. Cook until the vegetables are slightly browned, 7-8 minutes. Everything should be soft.
Add leafy greens (no spinach yet) and stock to the pot and simmer, uncovered, until greens are tender, about 30 minutes. Stir in the spinach and cook until just wilted (maybe 1 minute).
Puree the soup in your blender or by using a stick blender. Return to heat and add the heavy cream and lemon juice. Heat on low until desired temperature.
Also good with Parmesan cheese.

Thoughts: Delicious, but I can't get enough vegetable soup. This is my favorite style of soup -- cook everything, blend it, return to heat and add dairy. It's a pretty simply formula, and one that yields awesome soup every time. I don't think Dan is nearly as crazy about soup as I am, so he probably wouldn't give this a 1, but it was pretty much a 1. I'll give it a 2 just to prevent arguments.

Disaster Index: 2/10