Simple Slow Cooker Spring Vegetable Soup
May seems unusually busy. We’ve shed our Winter skin and seem to be racing towards Summer at a rate of knots. Awash with school socials and graduations, field trips and fundraisers, it is also the month in which Everest was first conquered by Sir Edmund Hilary and Tenzing Norgay, Florence Nightingale was born (hence International Nurses Month) and the world was stunned by the first 4 minute mile.
So as we dive headlong into our busy social calendars, it’s a good time to bring some calm into our kitchens for the month with some easy to assemble, tasty, aromatic recipes.
I’m partial to roasting a chicken for Sunday lunch, not only for it’s simplicity and because it tastes and smells so good but as we fight over the crispy bits of seasoned skin I’m aware of its multiple meal-giving opportunities it gives me for the remainder of the week.
About a year ago, following such a meal, I inaugurated my slow cooker with a simple chicken broth recipe. Cooking every last morcel of roast chicken deliciousness using the bones makes a good broth suitable for another recipe during the week. I wouldn’t make it any other way now because I find doing it on the stovetop requires my frequent attention to keep the temperature constant, whereas my slow cooker does not.
In bringing back the basics this month, we’re sharing slow cooker tips on homemade broth, soups, marinades, herbs and spices.
Soups
|
Vegetable base |
Aromatics |
Beans, Grains, Meat and Fish |
Broth & Stock |
|
Spanish – Sofrito – Garlic, onion, tomato |
Paprika |
Garbanzo, White Beans |
Chicken or Vegetable |
|
French – Mirepoix – celery, onion, carrot |
Herbes de Provence |
Lentils |
Chicken or Vegetable |
|
The American South, Creole, Cajun – Holy Trinity – Onion, peppers, celery |
Thyme, Cayenne Pepper, Parsley |
Sausage, Chicken, Shrimp |
Chicken Broth, Clam Juice |
|
Thai Asian – shallots, ginger, garlic & lemongrass & chili |
Coriander seed cilantro, Lime leaves, Thai Basil |
Noodles, Chicken, Shrimp, Pork |
Chicken or Vegetable |
As the farmers markets open up outdoors, take advantage of the spring vegetables available. Even my city garden is producing asparagus and pea shoots already. Add them at the end of cooking this Simple Spring Vegetable Soup to maintain their sweet and crunchy goodness. This soup is really good chilled too with a drizzle of olive oil and an ice cube.
| Prep Time 15 minutes Cooking Time Low 8 hrs Servings 6 |
Ingredients
1 tbsp olive oil
1 medium/1 cup onion, small dice
1 medium/1 cup carrot, small dice
1 medium/1 cup celery, small dice
3 cloves garlic, crushed
1 tbsp Italian Herbs
3 medium potatoes, cubed
3 1/2 cups chicken broth (store bought or see recipe below for easy homemade) or vegetable broth
2 1/2 cups water
6 spears /1 cup asparagus, chopped
2 handfulls / 2 cups sugar snap peas, chopped
fresh mint to garnish & lemon juice
In a skillet heat the olive oil over a medium heat. Add the onion, celery, carrot and garlic and cook gently for 3 minutes. Transfer to your slow cooker. (You can skip this step and place them directly into your slow cooker if you wish, but you may need to add more herbs and seasoning)
Add the diced potatoes, dried Italian Herbs, broth and seasoning. Replace the lid and cook on LOW for 6-8 hours.
After 6-8 hours, remove the lid and add the chopped asparagus and peas before pureeing with a stick blender. Add the chopped mint and a generous squeeze of lemon juice or vinegar at the end.
Homemade Chicken Broth
| Prep Time 5 minutes Cooking Time Low 6-8 hrs Servings 3 1/2 cups (from a 3 lb chicken) |
Ingredients
1 chicken carcass, (from a 3 lb chicken meat removed and bones broken up)
1 large carrot, cut into halves
1 medium onion, quatered
2 sticks celery, cut in half
2 cloves garlic
1 bay leaf
6 peppercorns
4 cups water
Place all the ingredients into your slow cooker insert, replace the lid and cook for 6-8 hours on low. Once cooked, drain the broth through a sieve over a bowl, cool and chill. Once cooled you can remove the fat from the top with a spoon. Freeze for up to 2 months.
Zen Toolkit
Pour leftover chicken broth into ice cube or muffin trays, pop out and store in sealed bags in the freezer for up to 3 months. Use as needed in soups, casseroles and stews.
Zen Moment
“Three Rules of Work: Out of clutter find simplicity; From discord find harmony; In the middle of difficulty lies opportunity.”
– Albert Einstein
