Chilly weather is setting upon us, we get to pull out our comfy sweaters and try to stay cozy. Soups and stews are the perfect remedy for a cool night. Below will be an ever growing list of my favorite soup recipes. They are delicious, nutritious and filling. I think they’re just ‘souper’… yeah I said it.

Chickpea & mushroom miso soup

Serves: 6, Vegan

Ingredients:

2 Tablespoons olive oil
2 leeks, chopped (discard dark green leaves)
3 cloves of garlic, sliced
2 carrots, sliced thin
2 cups of cremini mushrooms, sliced
1/2 teaspoon each of thyme, celery seed, black pepper and rosemary (adjust to taste)
2 Tablespoons mirin (rice wine) or red wine
1/2 cup of miso paste dissolves in one cup boiling water
5 cups of water
2 cups cooked dried chickpeas, or one 15 oz. can
parsley for garnish

Directions:

In a frying pan, saute the leeks and garlic and carrots until tender in olive oil, then add the mushrooms and spices. When the mushrooms start to transform, add the miso, wine, stock and let simmer together for about 15 minutes. Then add the chickpeas. Garnish each portion with parsley.

This soup is best served with wild rice or soba noodles.

Per serving :

Calories 261.62
Total Fat 12.08 g
Trans Fat 0 g
Saturated Fat 1.64 g
Polyunsaturated Fat 4.19 g
Monounsaturated Fat 5.44 g
Cholesterol 0 mg
Sodium 1056.24 mg
Carbohydrates 31.55 g
Dietary Fiber 7 g

Mixed Miso Soup

Serves 4, Vegan and detoxing

The flavor of this soup is so refreshing and clean. You’ll feel healthier right away!

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon olive oil
1/3 cup red onion diced
1/3 cup chopped celery
1 cup peeled, chopped beet
1/2 cup chopped carrot
1 cup chopped asparagus (bases removed, tips left whole)
Some fresh scallions, chopped
Large handful flat-leaf fresh parsley, chopped
1 tablespoon minced ginger
5 cups water
3 tablespoons miso paste of choice
A little minced jalepeño or chile pepper (to taste)

Directions:

Heat the oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Add the onion and sauté for a few minutes until begins to brown. Add the celery and scallions and half the parsley and sauté for another minute.
Add the water, beet, carrot, ginger, jalepeno or chile pepper, and salt. Increase the heat to high, bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium/low, cover and simmer for 30 minutes.
While that cooks, remove a ladle of the hot water from the pot and place in a small bowl and dissolve miso paste in it. Add the dissolved miso to the soup pot. You can’t skip this step and just add the miso directly to the main pot of soup – it will clump and never fully incorporate.
Add the asparagus and cook for another 5 minutes. Remove from the heat when asparagus are bright green and still firm. Stir in remaining parsley. Place in bowls and serve warm.

Per serving:
Calories 104.19
Total Fat 4.51 g
Trans Fat 0 g
Saturated Fat 0.69 g
Polyunsaturated Fat 0.85 g
Monounsaturated Fat 2.7 g
Cholesterol 0 mg
Sodium 531.42 mg
Carbohydrates 13.15 g
Dietary Fiber 4 g
Sugar 5.5 g
Protein 3.79 g

Found on honestfare.com

Carrot & Parsnip Soup

Serves 6, Vegan & detoxing

Prep time: 20 minutes Cook time: 30 mins

Ingredients:

4 garlic cloves, sliced (see note)
1 yellow onion, diced
3 cups carrots, chopped
1 ½ cups parsnips, chopped
2 sprigs fresh thyme
Sea salt (omit if detoxing)
Fresh ground Black pepper
2 tbsp Olive oil
3 cups organic vegetable stock

Directions:

1. In a frying pan, sauté onion, garlic, and thyme in 1 tbsp Olive oil for a few minutes. Add in carrots and parsnips along with 1 tbsn olive oil, saute uncovered, tossing to keep from browning, for a few minutes.
2. In a large sauce pan bring vegetable broth to a nice boil. Combine all sauteed veggies and simmer until tender. 5 minutes.
3. Using a hand or regular blender, blend until silky smooth . Serve hot with diced chives, cracked black pepper. Add salt if desired.

Note: Let garlic rest for ten minutes before cooking with it. This keeps all its beneficial enzymes in tact.

Per serving:
Calories 105.17
Total Fat 4.76 g
Trans Fat 0 g
Saturated Fat 0.66 g
Polyunsaturated Fat 0.55 g
Monounsaturated Fat 3.33 g
Cholesterol 0 mg
Sodium 512.4 mg
Carbohydrates 15.14 g
Dietary Fiber 3.53 g
Sugar 6.43 g
Protein 1.25 g

Fresh Avocado, Arugula & Broccoli Soup

Serves 2, Raw and Vegan

Soup is great served hot or cold like gazpacho. Blend with additional water if you like thinner consistency. Use spinach as a sub if you don’t like arugula. Freezes great.

Ingredients:

1/2 ripe avocado
1 full head broccoli (with stem, one inch)
1/3 yellow onion
2 hand fulls fresh arugula
1 Tablespoon olive oil
Sea salt (optional, omit if detoxing)
1 Tablespoon apple cider vinegar
Red pepper flakes (about 1/4 teaspoon) or to taste
Drizzle of honey or agave (omit if detoxing)
Juice from half a lemon
1 inch minced ginger root
1 cup filtered water

Directions:

Lightly steam the broccoli, 8-10 minutes. Remove from heat when bright green. In frying pan saute onions in olive oil until just soft, 5 minutes.
Place cooked broccoli and onions and all the other ingredients in a blender, food processor or use hand blender. Add 1/2 cup water and blend. Keep adding more water until you reach desired consistency.
Enjoy warm or cold!

Per serving:
Calories 281.7
Total Fat 14.36 g
Trans Fat 0 g
Saturated Fat 2 g
Polyunsaturated Fat 1.68 g
Monounsaturated Fat 9.2 g
Cholesterol 0 mg
Sodium 110.82 mg
Carbohydrates 36.25 g
Dietary Fiber 11.52 g
Sugar 16.03 g
Protein 10.2 g

Hearty Stew with Mushrooms and Chickpeas

Serves 4: Vegan & detox optional

Ingredients:

5 ounces of cremini or button mushrooms, quartered
5 ounces some other fresh mushroom, shiitake, oyster, chanterelle, etc.
1 1/2 pounds lean boneless beef top sirloin steak, cut into 1-inch cubes (optional, can omit for vegan/vegetarian/detox)
2 Tbsp olive oil
Pinch Sea Salt
2 medium carrots, cut into 1/4 inch thick slices
1 purple carrot (optional)
1 medium onion, cut lengthwise into thin wedges
2 garlic cloves, sliced thin (let sit 10 minutes before cooking)
1/2 cup dry white or red wine (can sub beef, chicken or veg broth)
16-ounce can or fresh white beans (such as Great Northern, navy, or cannellini), rinsed, drained
14 1/2-ounce can diced tomatoes with garlic and onion, undrained
Chopped parsley for garnish

Directions:

1. Put a large skillet over high heat and add all the mushrooms. Shaking the pan from time to time to prevent the mushrooms from sticking, dry sauté them until they being to release their water. Keep cooking until the mushrooms begin to brown. Remove to a bowl and set aside.
2. Add 2 tablespoons olive oil to the skillet and turn the heat down to medium-high. Brown the beef cubes in batches, turning to brown at least two sides of the meat. Remove from skillet, add to the bowl with the mushrooms and sprinkle salt over them.
3. Add the carrots and sauté 3-4 minutes. Add the onions and cook another 5 minutes, then add the garlic and cook another minute. Add wine, bring to a boil and return the cooked beef and mushrooms to the pan. Continue cooking 3 more minutes.
4. Stir in the beans and tomatoes. Cook 5 minutes more. Add salt to taste. Serve, garnished with chopped parsley.

Per serving:
Calories 495.2
Total Fat 13.33 g
Trans Fat 0 g
Saturated Fat 3.28 g
Polyunsaturated Fat 1.13 g
Monounsaturated Fat 7.48 g
Cholesterol 61.23 mg
Sodium 283.07 mg
Carbohydrates 46.35 g
Dietary Fiber 8.47 g
Sugar 4.34 g
Protein 46.32 g

Tomatilla Gazpacho

Tart, sweet and salty, this cool gazpacho is a refreshing spring or summer soup!

Serves: 4

Ingredients:
2 tbsp Olive Oil
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 Cucumber, halved lengthwise and seeded
1 ripe avocado, halved and pitted
1 pound Tomatillos, husks removed, chopped*
1 green bell pepper, chopped
1-2 jalapeño peppers, seeded and chopped
1 15-ounce can reduced-sodium chicken broth, or vegetable broth
1 tsp raw honey
1/4 tsp sea salt
12 oz cooked and peeled medium shrimp, chopped
1/4 cup green olives, chopped
2 scallions, sliced

*Tomatillos are tart, plum-size green fruits that look like small, husk-covered green tomatoes. Find them in the produce section near the tomatoes. Remove outer husks and rinse well before using.

Directions:
Heat 1 tbsp olive oil in a small nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add garlic, stir until just starting to brown, about 2 minutes, remove from heat.
Next, chop half of the cucumber and 1/2 avocado and toss in your food processor. Add in your tomatillos, bell pepper, jalepeno, and browned garlic. Process until gazpacho is smooth.
Transfer to a large serving bowl and stir in broth, honey and sea salt.
Dice the remaining avocado and cucumber, put in a medium sized bowl. Add shrimp, olives and scallions, drizzle with remaining olive oil, gently toss to combine.
Ladle the gazpacho into bowls and top each portion with about 3/4 cup of the shrimp salad.

Per serving:
Calories 329
Total Fat 19 g
Trans Fat 0 g
Saturated Fat 2 g
Monounsaturated Fat 12 g
Cholesterol 174 mg
Sodium 597 mg
Carbohydrates 18 g
Dietary Fiber 7 g
Sugar 1 g
Protein 26 g
Potassium 962 mg

Morrocan Butternut Soup

Serves 6, Vegan

The spices in this recipe are so nice, it will easily become a favorite. Make an extra large batch to take with you to lunch.

Ingredients:
1/4 cup Extra virgin olive oil
1 leek, white part only, thinly sliced
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 red chilli, finely chopped
1 cinnamon stick
1 thumb sized piece of ginger, peeled, thinly sliced
1 1/2 tsp cumin seeds
2 carrots, peeled, coarsely chopped
3 lb butternut squash or pumpkin, cut into 1″ pieces
1/3 cup dried split peas
Juice from half a lemon
Fresh Cilantro to garnish
Toasted pumpkin seeds for garnish

Directions:
In a large saucepan, saute leek, and garlic in olive oil, add salt. Once tender, about 3 minutes, add chili pepper, cinnamon, ginger and cumin, cook for approx 1 minute. Next add carrots, pumpkin and split peas, mix well into onion and spice mixture.
Add 1 1/2 liters of water and bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 50 minutes.
Remove cinnamon stick.
In small batches, put soup through a food processor and blend until smooth. In a pinch you can use a hand blender as well.
Garnish with fresh cilantro and toasted pumpkin seeds.

Per serving:
Calories 127.8
Total Fat 9.18 g
Trans Fat 0 g
Saturated Fat 1.27 g
Polyunsaturated Fat 1.03 g
Monounsaturated Fat 6.6 g
Cholesterol 0 mg
Sodium 5.03 mg
Carbohydrates 9.13 g
Dietary Fiber 3.07 g
Sugar 1.39 g
Protein 3 g

Healthy Chicken Chili with White Beans

Serves 12
Ingredients:
2 tbsp EVOO
1 tbsp garlic, minced
3/4 cup red onion, diced
1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breasts, finely chopped
1 tbsp cumin
1 tbsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp white pepper
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
1 pound collard greens, stemmed and roughly chopped (about 5 cups)
3/4 cup chopped green chiles (fresh or canned)
1 quart low-sodium vegetable or chicken broth
2 15-ounce cans navy beans, drained and rinsed (or use fresh)
1/2 bunch fresh cilantro, chopped
Optional: Nonfat greek yogurt, chopped fresh tomatoes and lime wedges, for garnish

Directions:
In a large saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add onion and saute for a couple minutes, next add garlic, cook for another minute. Add the chicken, cumin, oregano, white pepper and red pepper flakes. Season with salt and 1 tsp of freshly ground black pepper. Cook, stirring, until the chicken is slightly browned, 3 to 4 minutes.

Add the collard greens and cook, stirring occasionally, until they are slightly wilted, about 5 minutes.

Add the chiles and chicken broth and bring to a boil, stirring occasionally. Once at a boil, reduce heat and simmer, stirring occasionally for 20 minutes. Stir in the beans and cook for another 10 minutes. Stir in the fresh cilantro.

Transfer the chili to bowls and garnish with greek nonfat yogurt, chopped tomatoes and/or lime wedges, if desired.

Per serving: Calories 245; Fat 7 g (Sat. 1.5 g; Mono. 3.4 g; Poly. 1.3 g); Cholesterol 38 mg; Sodium 755 mg; Carbohydrate 23.5 g; Fiber 8 g; Protein 22 g
Created from a Paula Dean recipe