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Can you believe it's Wednesday already? That means What I Ate Wednesday...to me anyway. I'm into stuff like that.
We had an unseasonably warm day a couple of days ago. Well, in the morning anyway. In the afternoon, it turned cold and rainy. All of that is to say that normally, from September to...oh, about May, we have good soup weather around here.
As the day goes on, my enthusiasm for cooking generally wanes. That's why I love the slow cooker. Throw a simple soup together when my energy is high in the morning, add bread and a salad in the evening, and dinner's on the table! On this particular night, pictured above, I paired the soup with a corn muffin, made from a recipe in How it All Vegan. This black bean sweet potato slow cooker soup is based on a recipe in Fresh From the Vegetarian Slow Cooker, a book I highly recommend. I have mixed black beans and kidney beans and added some sweet potato. I also reduced the amount of thyme, because I don't like a strong flavour of thyme. The recipe follows. If endorsements might convince you to try making this, you should know that my kids actually said this soup was good. That kind of high praise doesn't often come from those two...when it comes to healthy meals anyway.
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I shared a look at my parents' house yesterday. While we were there on the weekend, my mom made mashed potatoes and roasted veggies. Yes, those are the potatoes that my kids helped to peel. My parents and my brother had real chicken, while I had this fake chicken burger sans bun. I try not to eat much gluten, and the patty was already breaded. My kids and my husband had another kind of veggie burger. We were using up the vegetarian goods in my mom's freezer. Oh, and how could I forget? The cottage means drinks and sweets to me, so I washed my dinner down with a Smirnoff Ice.
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On Monday, while I took the boy to piano practice, my husband put together a nice meal. Here is a picture of the leftovers that I enjoyed for lunch the next day. Breaded and fried tofu with plum sauce, quinoa and veggies, salad with fruit and a natural root beer.
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On Tuesday night, my husband went out with his girls basketball team to celebrate post-season. My daughter went along to a sushi restaurant with him. I put together a very quick and surprisingly delicious soup for my son and me. I used a package of pre-chopped potatoes, carrots, leeks and onions. The instructions for soup are right on the package. Add veggie broth, boil for 20 minutes (it didn't take that long) and blend with an immersion blender. Add salt and pepper. That's it! We also had sweet potato fries dipped in a little bottle of Vegenaise that I got for free at the Toronto Vegetarian Food Festival. Every time I go to buy vegan mayo, I can't remember which ones are good. Some are horrible. This one is great!
How's your week in food looking?
And now for the winner...
The winner of last week's contest for The Simply Bar and Simply Protein chips is....Betty D., who said hard boiled eggs are her favourite quick protein source. Congratulations Betty! Look for my email.
Black Bean Sweet Potato Slow Cooker Soup
by
Keywords: slow-cooker soup/stew gluten-free vegan vegetarian sweet potatoes black beans fall winter
Ingredients
- 1 Tbsp or more olive oil
- 1 medium onion, chopped
- 1 medium carrot, chopped
- 1/2 small orange pepper, seeded and diced
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 15-oz can black beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 15-oz can kidney beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 14.5-oz can (or half of a 28-oz can) diced tomatoes, puréed in the blender
- 1/2 of a large yam or sweet potato, chopped
- 4 cups vegetable stock
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1/4 tsp dried thyme
- 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
- salt and pepper
Instructions
In a large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion, carrot, bell pepper and garlic. Cover and cook until softened, about 5 minutes.
Transfer the cooked veggies to a 4- to 6- quart slow cooker. Add the beans, tomato purée, sweet potato, stock, bay leaves, cumin, thyme and cayenne. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Stir to combine.
Cover and cook on low for 8 hours.
Remove the bay leaves and discard. To thicken, purée up to one half of the soup solids with an immersion blender. If you don't have an immersion blender, ladle some of the soup into a blender or food processor, blend and return to the cooker.
Congrats Betty!! And yum, soup! I was just thinking its soup making weather-- we shall give it a whirl!
ReplyDeleteSoup is generally easy too! That's what I like most!
DeleteThank you so much for posting this delicious soup recipe :)
ReplyDeleteNo problem. I hope you enjoy it! :)
DeleteThose roasted veggies look good. Mine lately have just been steamed or cooked in the microwave. I need to use the oven more when I get home!
ReplyDeleteThat soup looks delicious. I have yet to make a soup this season!!
There's something about roasting that makes them feel warm and yummy.
DeleteThe soup looks yummy and I always want to eat your tofu dishes right up off my screen!
ReplyDeleteYou're funny! I wish we could share a meal. :)
DeleteI agree with Mama Smith, your tofu pictures always look delicious. That soup looks great, too! We have a similar recipe somewhere... I should add this to my menu plan for next week!
ReplyDeleteThanks Laura. My husband made the tofu, which is even better in my eyes. Can't wait to see your menu plan! :)
DeleteNow that looks so delicious! I am trying that soup soon!
ReplyDeleteLet me know how it goes Ruthie! :)
DeleteLOL I just loved this post! because it was so homey, cozy and real....does that make sense? :)
ReplyDeleteWell to me it does. You posted a recipe and real life all at once.I for one, like it :)
Homey, cozy and real sounds good to me. Thanks. Very kind of you to say! :)
DeleteThat soup is gorgeous! It looks a heck of a lot better than what we ate tonight for dinner! I haven't tried a lot of soups with my boys (yet) but I love how healthy and nourishing this looks. Also, you can't beat things made in the slow cooker. You're my kind of mama!
ReplyDeleteI used to feed my kids lots of soups and stews when they were tiny, then they got super picky and now they are starting to get better again! Thanks for your kind words. :)
DeleteI love my slow cooker, but my go to recipes are heavy on the meat and don't work with my daughter's decision to be a vegetarian. This soup looks perfect! I can't wait to try it.
ReplyDeleteIt's a great choice for your daughter, then, and easy for you to make. You can pop that on in the morning and make your meat later. ;) Good protein for her from the beans too. :)
Deletemmm all looks so delicious - soup is definitely a necessity for winter!
ReplyDeleteFor sure! :)
Deleteoohh u mentioned smirnoff ice! love that soup! mmmm smirnoff ice!
ReplyDeleteYes, mmmm Smirnoff. I agree!
DeleteOh, that all looks delicious! And you can't beat a smirnoff ice to wash it all down ;) I do believe I'll have to try this soup.
ReplyDeleteGive it a try, and let me know how it goes! And wash it down with a Smirnoff. ;)
DeleteHappy WIAW! I love your slow cooker soup recipe. I am with you: I love my slow cooker.
ReplyDeleteI need to use my slow cooker even more often!
DeleteWhat great food ;)
ReplyDeleteHow nice of your hubby to make such a great dinner ;) Aren't those days when the husband cooks just the best! ;D
xoxo
Ella
That is FOR SURE, Ella! ;)
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