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I'm definitely a soup girl. To me, there's something magical about a bowl of hot soup on a chilly, autumn or winter day And if there are raindrops pattering on the roof or or snowflakes softly falling, it's even better. On days like this, somehow soup makes me feel all homey, warm and cozy. Do you know what I mean?
I get inspired to hang-out inside all day wearing my favorite soft sweatshirt and stretchy pants. I finish up projects around the house, tidy up, organize drawers, cabinets and cupboards and ........... make more soup! Although I enjoy full course dinners with all the fancy fixings, I'm just as happy with a bowl of soup, some crusty, warm bread and a good friend or two.
Last night it was three (friends) because in addition Scott, our son, Nick and his sweet wife, Lindsay stopped by for dinner. We've been feeling the extended effects of Hurricane Sandy here in the Carolinas, with lots of rain and cool temperatures, so it was perfect evening for this delightful soup. Everyone at the table loved it and my Nick and Lindsay were happy to leave with leftover soup for their lunches.
You can feel good about making and serving this creamy, flavorful soup since it's super healthy; no butter or cream, just a bit of healthy olive oil. There's onions, shallots, garlic, chickpeas, potatoes and tiny green peas along with a mountain of spinach to fill your veggie quota! The chick peas add a bunch of extra fiber and protein. Chicken stock, fresh and dried herbs and a delicious topping of Feta cheese, butter-toasted pine nuts (just a half teaspoon of butter) and a sprinkle of bacon add tons of delicious flavor!
This is a great way to use up greens that are starting to wilt a bit. I love to buy those big boxes of fresh spinach but it seems that we can never get through the whole thing before it goes bad. Soup is a great remedy for this dilemma and arugula will work as well as spinach in this recipe.
Don't wait for a rainy day though to whip up a batch of this yummy Spinach and Potato Soup. It's perfect, not only for a lovely casual dinner, but it makes a delicious and beautiful appetizer soup as well. Take a pot to a friend along with all the fixings, you will be thought of fondly with each and every bite :).Your family will love finding a thermos in their lunch bag. Go ahead .............. let the magic begin!
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Spinach and Potato Soup
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 medium onion, roughly chopped
- 1 large shallot, roughly chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, peeled and roughly chopped
- 2 teaspoons Herbes de Provence
- 64 ounces low sodium chicken broth
- 2 medium bay leaves
- 4 large yellow potatoes peeled and roughly chopped
- 1 - 15 ounce can chick peas, drained and rinsed
- 6 ounces tiny frozen peas
- 5 ounces arugula, spinach also works well
- 1 teaspoon sea salt, more to taste
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 2 tablespoons pine nuts
- ½ teaspoon butter
- ⅛ teaspoon fine sea salt
- Feta cheese
- 4 slices cooked bacon, crumbled
Instructions
- In a large stock pot heat oil over medium high heat until hot. Add onions and shallots and cook until softened and translucent, about 4-5 minutes. Add Herbes de Provence and garlic. Cook for 1 minute longer, stirring continuously.
- Add chicken broth, bay leaves, potatoes and chick peas. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a gentle simmer.
- Remove from heat and discard the bay leaves. Add arugula and peas. Puree soup until smooth and silky with either a stick blender (right in the stock pot) or using a regular blender, puree soup in batches, then return to pot. Taste and season, if needed with sea salt and pepper.
- Melt butter in a small sauté pan. Add pine nuts and cook, stirring constantly until golden brown. Serve in bowls, garnished with about a tablespoon of Feta cheese topped with butter toasted pine nuts and a sprinkle of crumbled bacon.
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I wish I could give you a better answer but I purchased these at a thrift shop in London. Sorry, but if you ever want to borrow mine, you're welcome to! 🙂
Omg i love love the bowl may i ask the brand and where you purchased it from
Thanx
This is totally diet approved for me and I love soup also. It is finally getting cooler here!
First of all I love this soup bowl - very pretty and love the unique shape.
And wow this soup sounds so good! I love arugula but never used for soup before. Very nutritious and delicious soup! Love the toasted nuts topping. Little things like this makes a huge difference! 🙂
i love everything you make! this sounds really good, i want to learn to make more western soups like this. Yeah, read about hurricane sandy. Glad to know that your place there are not affected by it.
I love making soup too! In fact during the cooler months I make it at least once a week - usually twice. Nice flavors in this soup - I'm a fan of Herbes de Provence also. We still have quite a bit of Swiss chard growing in our garden, and I'll bet that would make an interesting substitute for the arugula in this soup. Good stuff - thanks.
Happy Halloween!
Great idea for leftover greens! And we're definitely arrived soup weather here...this would be perfect for dinner tomorrow!
I cannot wait to try this. I would love a bowl tonight for dinner!
I'm not a huge soup eater but slurping this up while watching the snow flakes would be just perfect!
For starters, the soup is stunning! Great variety of colors. And of course, it sounds absolutely delicious. LOVE the combination of toppings!!
What an interesting combination of flavors!
I can barely imagine 10 days w/o power. Have never been through a hurricane myself and believe me, it's not on my bucket list either.
Fantastic! Lots of flavor and texture.
I am a soup girl too! This looks beautiful and delicious. I love that soup bowl!
I love the soup but the garnish really makes it look so pretty and so extra appetizing.
This is my kind of soup!
I am always ready for a healthy and delicious soup!
This soup looks really great. I like all the different ingredients. I bet it has a lot of flavor!
Those yummy pine nuts really seal the deal.
Super happy to know that you are okay Chirs... I'm soup kind of girl too and I'm charmed by yours, definitly gonna try it!
I'm with you on the soup - I could eat a bowl everyday - hot or cold outside - it doesn't matter. This is a very interesting combination of ingredients - I am intrigued!
I can tell how delicious this soup is, just look at all the goodness it has. I'd love to make it someday!
That looks so delicious! What a great combination of flavours.
The soup looks amazing!!! I love that you snuck in chickpeas in it!! This is one I am going to make this fall/winter!! I love it!
Yum! I'm a soup girl too!
I like all the layers of flavor and the very pretty color of your soup, sounds like the perfect dish to share with friends or family- pass the warm crusty bread;-)
Hi,your soup sure look delicious and appetizing. Love the roasted pine nuts, nice to munch on it's own too.
I like the bowl, look so cute.
Have a nice week ahead.
Look absolutely amazing!!
Some days I had porblems to enter the blog but now was OK:)
I love to make a pot of soup and freeze a few containers. I been thinking about boot camp at your house??? Yum.
I am in full on soup mode now that the weather is getting cooler and constantly on the lookout for new recipes to try- I love the color of this one- definitely bookmarking it!