Vegan Broccoli Soup with Avocado & Jalapeno or Basil oil or Gremolata

All Photos © Christine Elise McCarthy 2013

To see images of my past posts & get links to the recipes – look on my Pinterest board – HERE.

This recipe makes a lot A LOT – of soup. Be prepared to freeze some. I had a 3 pound bag of broccoli from Costco & it had to be used & used fast. I find freezing fresh vegetables renders them a yucky, mushy, unappetizing mess – but freezing dishes MADE with vegetables works out just fine. I suppose you could cut this recipe in half easily – so maybe consider doing that.

This soup would be amazing with a homemade vegetable stock (there is a recipe at the bottom of the post HERE) but it works out just great using bouillon, too.

This soup can be served with all sorts of little garnishes from the avocado-jalapeno combo to the basil oil drizzle I show here to the gremolata that I also show here of with crispy bacon crumbles or some blue cheese crumbles or feta cheese. Use your imagination! Add some corn or steamed broccoli or tortilla strips. Go nuts! I found these red jalapenos at an Asian market & I love them because they are so PRETTY! But green ones work just as well.

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Vegan Broccoli Soup with Avocado-Jalapeno or Basil oil or Gremolata

INGREDIENTS

2 large heads of broccoli (or two pounds florets)

2 large onions – chopped

1/2 cup fresh parsley

1 large potato – cubed

8-10 cups of vegetable stock – depending on how thin or thick you like your soup

S&P to taste

2 TBS olive oil

GREMOLATA

1/2 cup parsley – chopped very fine

4-5 garlic cloves – minced

1/4 cup lemon zest

OR BASIL OIL

1 packed cup of fresh basil

3/4 cup high quality olive oil

Salt to taste

JALAPENO -AVOCADO

Sliced avocado

diced jalapeno

cilantro

DIRECTIONS

Heat the olive oil in a large stock pot. Cook the onions until they are soft & translucent. Add broccoli, potato, parsley and the stock. Bring to a boil then reduce heat to low & simmer. Once the broccoli & potato are tender – puree in batches or use an immersion blender. Blend until very smooth. If the soup is too thick – add a bit of water. If it is too thin, cook it over med-low heat until it reduces to the thickness you prefer.

Zest the lemon, chop the garlic & parsley. Blend them in a small bowl.

BASIL OIL –

Blanch the basil in boiling water for 10-20 seconds than plunge into ice water. Squeeze out the water & puree in a food processor with olive oil & salt to taste. Go light on the salt. Set aside.

Serve the soup with either the avocado/jalapeno combo or a drizzle of basil oil or a hefty portion of the gremolata. MMMMM!

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