Kitchen Sink Soup

We've all done it, our eyes were bigger than our stomachs at the grocery store.  We tossed leafy greens into our cart with reckless abandon, oblivious to the short shelf life of these super foods.  Personally I hate throwing money away and that's literally what we do when we toss away bags of spoiled fruit and vegetables into the garbage pail or compost bin.  One of my goals for the end of this year and into next is to stay on budget with my grocery bill.  I can accomplish that in two ways, one is to spend less-obviously!  The other is to use what I buy.  Enter soup!



Kitchen Sink Soup

It's been getting cold here in the Pacific Northwest!  Which makes it the perfect time of year to savor a nice bowl of homemade soup.  Which is also the perfect way to use up the extra veggies you (I) may have...over bought....

Olive oil
1/4 Red Onion
Garlic, three cloves, smashed and sliced thickly
Carrot, two, thickly sliced
Potato, two, sliced
Ginger root, 2" whole
Spinach, cleaned and removed from stem
Collard Greens, one bunch, removed from stem and sliced
Oyster mushrooms

Heat olive oil in a large soup pot and saute the onion until soft.  Add the garlic and saute until fragrant.  Add the carrots and potato, saute, add in the greens and ginger and fill the pot with filtered water.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.  Float the mushrooms on top and simmer until veggies are soft.  Check and adjust seasonings as needed.



Soup is very forgiving.  You can dress it up with exotic spices or keep it simple with just salt and pepper.  I floated 1/2 dozen whole peppercorns in the pot while it simmered, you can add any herbs you might have on hand as well.  It might seem easier to pop open a can of Campbells but there's nothing like a pot of soup simmering on the stove on a chilly night, and there is really nothing like knowing I'm not tossing my money into the trash pile.  It's a win-win for sure!