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After having dinner at Ubuntu, I have been thinking a lot about how much food we waste. Take a carrot for instance: we peel, scrub, and remove the tops. That is getting rid of half of a whole carrot. It just ends up in my compost bin. Well, for the first time, I decided to actually taste the carrot top. It tasted almost like parsley with a carrot aroma. Also, I always buy organic or pesticide-free carrots directly from a trusted farmer at the Farmer’s Market, so I can get away with just scrubbing and washing the carrot. Though, I do not know exactly what to do with carrot-tops, I am definitely open to experimenting and new recipes. Also, I stumbled upon this website that has a ton of information about carrots.

I also have been more inclined to test out iPhone recipe apps. I have all of the well-known, free ones downloaded, but never really cared to use them. I like opening up a cookbook, looking at the pictures, making marks and notes, and placing it right next to my chopping board (without fear of liquid spilling all over it). Anyway, Jamie Oliver’s app is very attractive and I decided to make the minestrone soup in the free sampler pack. I loved how easily you can create a shopping list (which I am known to leave at home if written on a notepad) right on your phone. It’s a really well-done app; one of the best I have seen. My only complaint is that it’s not easy to use the recipe on the phone while cooking. I am a bit clumsy so phone + liquids + messy hands = disaster. I actually gathered all of the ingredients, listed in the app minus the pancetta, pasta and, added a few of my own ingredients to what ended up being the best soup I have ever made. The quantity ended up being larger than I anticipated and we had soup for 8 servings! I love one-pot meals that last for several meals and the timing could not have been more perfect. We have been experiencing extremely cold weather and it was even supposed to snow in San Francisco!

Whole Garden Vegetable Soup
This soup is really simple to make and the garbanzo beans and potato makes it hearty enough to be a meal in itself. The baking soda helps to soften the garbanzo beans faster so you don’t need a pressure cooker. Serve with a slice of whole grain toast or a side salad if you would like. Store leftovers in the fridge or freezer an airtight container, but remove any remaining kale first.

Ingredients
Serves 4-6
2 cups water, room temperature, divided
pinch of baking soda
1/2 cup garbanzo beans, soaked overnight
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 large red onion
2-4 carrots with tops
2 branches of celery
2 garlic cloves
1/2 inch ginger
2 bay leaves
2 cloves garlic
1 small potato, diced
10 ounces canned tomatoes
1/2 cup vegetable broth
1 tablespoon cumin powder
1/2 cup kale, torn and tough parts removed
sea salt and freshly milled black pepper
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, grated
Extra virgin Olive oil for drizzling

Method

1. Rinse the soaked garbanzo beans and add them to 1 cup boiling water with a pinch of baking soda. Let boil while you work on the soup.

Leaves of the carrot-top

2. Chop the garlic, ginger, onion, celery, carrots and potato. Thinly slice the stalks of the carrot tops and reserve the leaves. Heat the oil in a large soup pot on medium heat, then add the chopped garlic, ginger, onion, celery, carrots, potato, and bay leaves. Lower temperature to medium-low and cook for 10 minutes or until the vegetables soften and start to caramelize. Stir occasionally.

3. Drain the garbanzo beans and add them to the soup pot. Next add the canned tomatoes, broth, remaining 1 cup of water, and cumin. Stir the ingredients together, turn the temperature up to medium-high and bring to a boil. Taste and adjust seasoning with more cumin, sea salt, and black pepper. Cover and simmer on low heat for 10 minutes.

4. Meanwhile, wash the kale in cold running water. Roughly chop it¸ removing the tough stems. Add it to the soup pot, cover with a lid, and cook for about 5 minutes, until kale is tender.

5. Ladle soup into bowls, drizzle extra virgin olive oil, garnish with carrot-top leaves, and Parmesan cheese. Serve immediately.

What is your favorite soup recipe?

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