Farmers Market Soup | Fall Recipes

Another Monday, another to-do list, another day of non-stop coffee drinking. I don't know about you guys but last week was insane. Honestly, the last two weeks have been insane. I’m sure this week will be no different considering work is a little bit out of control right now but the difference is I leave for a trip on Thursday night! I’ll be driving to Syracuse, New York overnight Thursday for a long weekend before heading to Boston on Monday and then Washington, DC on Thursday. It’s been a while since I’ve taken a trip and I honestly can’t wait to leave. The hardest part about going on trips is leaving the pups but they’re always here to come back to which is a lovely homecoming every time. In the meantime, this week is all about easy, low maintenance dinners...kind of like this Farmers Market Soup.

Confession...this was originally supposed to be a part of the Farmers Market Series but because of the craziness lately, I missed last week’s post. Whoops! So after a little game of editorial calendar tetris, it got switched to the very first fall recipe of the season! Every Monday in October, we'll be bringing you a new fall recipe to embrace the season. This might as well be called “Everything but the Kitchen Sink” soup. It’s basically a giant pot of all kinds of  veggie goodness. Late summer and early fall vegetables come together for a hearty vegetable soup that is thick and warm and comforting. It’s also pretty light too so it’s great for those days that start out brisk but warm up towards dinnertime. I prefer the brisk all day type of weather but I’ll take what I can get.

Start by sweating out your vegetables. The onions, garlic, potatoes, carrots, zucchini, and squash should all be softened a bit before adding the stock. The flavors should start to develop before adding liquid to the pot to give the soup more richness. This is not one of those soups where you simmer for however long you’d like. Once the vegetables have become fork tender, about 20-30 minutes, move on to the next part. You risk them becoming mushy and that is not the result you want. Once the vegetables are fork tender, add the remaining ingredients - corn, beans and kale - just to warm through and wilt down. I love adding kale to soups and stews because it’s a nice and sturdy leafy green that is packed with nutritional goodness. It’s an easy way to get in some extra vitamins, especially when you’re dealing with picky eaters.

There’s a lot of prep to this soup, I won’t lie, but it’s well worth it. Plus, once you get the prep done, the soup practically takes care of itself. I would estimate about 15-20 minutes of prep to get all the vegetables diced and cut up. Once that’s out of the way, it’s smooth sailing. The house will smell lovely, dinner will feel good and the leftovers will be divine. Welcome fall! The time of year when food feels good, smells good, and you actually want to eat it! We’re embarking into the season of comfort food and there’s no better time of year. This soup is the perfect way to kick it off.

Farmers Market Soup
Ingredients:
2 tbsp. Olive Oil
2 tbsp. Butter
1 Onion, diced
3 Garlic Cloves, minced
3 Red Potatoes, diced
3 Carrots, sliced
1 Zucchini, diced
1 Yellow Squash, diced
1 tbsp. Dried Basil
1 tsp. Dried Oregano
1 Bay Leaf
5 cups Chicken or Vegetable Stock
2 Ears of Corn, kernels removed
15 oz. Cannellini Beans, drained
2 bunches Kale
Salt & Pepper

Directions:
1 - In a soup pot, heat the olive oil and butter over medium-high heat. Once the butter melts into the oil and it’s shimmering, add the onion and garlic. Saute for a few minutes until the onion becomes translucent. Add the potatoes and carrots. Cook 5-8 minutes until the potatoes start to get a little golden color. Add the zucchini and yellow squash. Season generously with salt and pepper, stir in the basil, oregano, and bay leaf. Add the chicken or vegetable stock and cook until the vegetables become fork tender, about 20-30 minutes.

2 - To the pot, add the corn, beans and kale. Cook a few minutes longer until the kale has wilted into the soup. Serve with toasted bread or a nice baguette.