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Immunity Boosting Green Goddess Soup

Recipe video above. A feel-good soup packed full of nutrition created to cure winter colds! While you could switch out the veg with whatever you’ve got, I’ve tried various combinations and this is my favourite for best flavour so it doesn’t taste like you’re eating a bowl of hot grass.Don’t skip the spices. Doesn’t look like much but it really makes a difference!

Prep Time
15 mins
Servings: 8 people
Calories: 191 kcal
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: American

Ingredients

  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 onion , diced (Note 1)
  • 1 leek (white part only) or another onion , diced (Note 1)
  • 1 medium fennel , chopped (Note 2)
  • 2 celery stems , roughly chopped
  • 5 garlic cloves , roughly minced
  • 3/4 tsp All Spice powder (sub mixed spice)
  • 3/4 tsp cumin powder (sub coriander)
  • 1 medium potato (any type), peeled, 1.5 cm cubes
  • 1 head broccoli , florets (peel and chop stalk too)
  • 2 1/2 tsp cooking / kosher salt
  • 3/4 tsp black pepper
  • 1.75 litres / quarts water (Note 3)
  • 1 cup frozen peas (Note 4)
  • 5 cups (tightly packed) kale leaves , roughly chopped (1 small bunch, Note 5)
  • 5 cups (tightly packed) baby spinach (Note 6)
  • 3/4 cup thickened cream (Note 7)
Garnishes
  • 2 tbsp sunflower seeds, toasted (or croutons or other toasted nuts, Note 8)
  • Cream and/or olive oil for drizzling

Instructions

    Cup of Yum
  1. Sauté aromatics: Heat oil in a very large pot (6L/qt) over medium high heat. Cook onion, leek, celery, garlic and fennel for 5 minutes until softened.
  2. Cook spices: Add all spice and cumin, and cook for 1 minute.
  3. Add water, potatoes, broccoli, salt and pepper. Stir, bring to simmer, and simmer for 7 minutes (no lid) until the broccoli is tender.
  4. Add peas: Add peas, simmer for 1 minute.
  5. Blitz in kale: Remove pot off the stove. Add kale, push it under the liquid, then blitz with a stick blender until mostly smooth. Add spinach, push under the liquid then blitz again until smooth as possible (approx 3 to 5 mins). This will result in a smooth soup but with little green bits in it - I like this for a little texture.
  6. Serve: Stir in cream. Ladle into bowls, drizzle with extra cream and/or olive oil and finish with a sprinkle of sunflower seeds. Eat and feel great!

Notes

  • Onion / leeks - Use either one of each, as shown in the base recipe and recipe video, or use either 2 leeks or 2 onions. Leek has a slightly sweeter, more rounded flavour which I like to use when they're on special!
  • Fennel adds a great flavour base to this soup so really try not to skip it. For those who are not a fan of the aniseed flavour of fennel, don't worry, you can't taste it!
  • Just water is required for this soup. We don’t need chicken or other stock for a flavour backing, like I use for most soup recipes. We’re essentially making a homemade vegetable stock here!
  • Peas can be substituted with more broccoli, fennel or potato.
  • Kale - Nutrition booster! In case you're concerned about a strong kale flavour, don't worry! With everything else going on in the soup, the kale flavour is not really there. Substitute with more baby spinach or English spinach. Or 300 - 400g frozen kale or spinach (thawed, excess water lightly squeezed out).
  • To remove kale leaves, enclose your hand around the base of the stem then run your enclosed fist up the stem to strip the leaves off. To measure, push the kale leaves really tightly into the measuring cup. Jam pack it in!
  • Baby spinach - Substitute with English spinach, or more kale. To measure, jam pack it really tightly into a measuring cup!
  • Cream alternative - To make this vegan, use a vegan cream (available at some grocery stores these days), coconut cream or coconut milk (it will add a touch of coconut flavour which I think would be nice).
  • Sunflower seeds - To toast, preheat a small pan (no oil) over medium high heat then toast the sunflower seeds, stirring or shaking the pan every now and then, until light golden. Do the same with other nuts/seeds of choice (pine nuts, pepitas, almond flakes would be nice). For croutons, use the directions in the Celeriac soup recipe.
  • Nutrition per serving, about 2 1/2 cups per serving (generous meal!).

Nutrition Information

Calories 191cal (10%) Carbohydrates 17g (6%) Protein 5g (10%) Fat 13g (20%) Saturated Fat 6g (30%) Polyunsaturated Fat 1g Monounsaturated Fat 5g Cholesterol 25mg (8%) Sodium 806mg (34%) Potassium 678mg (19%) Fiber 6g (24%) Sugar 5g (10%) Vitamin A 6824IU (136%) Vitamin C 83mg (92%) Calcium 192mg (19%) Iron 2mg (11%)

Nutrition Facts

Serving: 8people

Amount Per Serving

Calories 191

% Daily Value*

Calories 191cal 10%
Carbohydrates 17g 6%
Protein 5g 10%
Fat 13g 20%
Saturated Fat 6g 30%
Polyunsaturated Fat 1g 6%
Monounsaturated Fat 5g 25%
Cholesterol 25mg 8%
Sodium 806mg 34%
Potassium 678mg 14%
Fiber 6g 24%
Sugar 5g 10%
Vitamin A 6824IU 136%
Vitamin C 83mg 92%
Calcium 192mg 19%
Iron 2mg 11%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.