Meal-in-One Soup

The beauty of this soup is that you can substitute pretty much everything to suit your taste. We either make it dairy and add cheese when serving, or throw in some chicken or meat for a fleishig meal, or keep it pareve.

Dice the following veggies into cubes or rings: potatoes, sweet potatoes, carrots, celery, onions, and whole garlic. (You can sauté the onions and garlic first, but I prefer to leave out the oil.)

Add water and ½ cup of any (or all) of the following legumes: split peas, green lentils, chickpeas (either canned or precooked), brown rice, red lentils, presoaked beans, and barley.

Season with ½ cup soy sauce, salt, pepper, thyme, 2 bay leaves, onion powder, and garlic powder.

Simmer on low for 1½ hours or until legumes are soft.

—Faigy Peritzman, columnist

Creamy Vegetable Cabbage Soup

This is my go-to soup when I want something filling but not too heavy or calorie laden. It’s thick, creamy, and filling. I often send it to my marrieds after a fast. We all love the flavor, texture, and seasoning.

Serves 8

• 1–2 Tbsp oil
• 1 large onion, diced
• 3–4 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1–2 stalks celery, sliced
• 4 carrots, sliced or cubed
• 1 small butternut squash, peeled and cut into chunks, or 2 medium sweet potatoes, cubed
• 2 medium/large potatoes, cubed
• 3–3½ cups shredded cabbage
• 7 cups water
• 3 Tbsp pareve chicken soup mix
• 2 Tbsp flour
• pinch thyme
• 1 cube frozen basil
• generous handful fresh parsley, chopped, or 3 cubes frozen parsley
• 1½ tsp salt, or to taste
• black pepper, to taste
• dash of hot sauce or 2 pinches cayenne pepper (optional)
• chopped chives or fresh parsley, for garnish

Heat oil in a 6-quart pot. Add onion, garlic, celery, carrots, and butternut squash. Sauté for 15 minutes over small-medium heat, stirring occasionally. Turn up the heat for the last few minutes.

Dissolve soup mix and flour in some of the water. (It’s easiest to do this with a whisk.) Then add potatoes, cabbage, soup mix mixture, and remaining water. Bring to a boil.

Lower heat and add herbs, salt, and pepper. Cook for 45–50 minutes. Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary.

Remove half the soup and veggies to a large bowl. Blend the remainder of the soup. Return the reserved soup to the pot. Add the hot sauce or cayenne pepper if desired.

Note: This soup can be frozen. If you freeze it, be sure that all potato pieces are blended and all carrot pieces are very small (you can do this post cooking).

—Brynie Greisman, recipe columnist

Pantry Soup

I call this Pantry Soup because I go through my fridge and pantry on Monday night and use up my leftovers. Then I add in some extras from the pantry to bulk it up. I’ll start off by frying two onions, then I add whatever vegetables I have in the fridge, even leftover roasted vegetables. I also throw in a can of chickpeas or corn. Then I add in some broth or leftover chicken soup and finally some lokshen to round it out as a meal.

—Naomi Nachman, columnist

Anything and Everything Soup

I love soups and find that I can get away with sneaking lots of veggies and stuff into them that the kids would otherwise never go near! When I’m in a rush, I usually dump in whichever veggies I have on hand. This generally includes carrots, onion, zucchini, a potato or two, sweet potato, and celery and add in a handful of red lentils for some protein — which disintegrates so you never know it’s there. Additional vegetables welcome!

Once the vegetables are soft, I blend them and then search through my freezer to find some interesting or tasty add-ins. It can be frozen sautéed onion cubes, chopped and checked leek, cubed butternut squash, small containers of quinoa (I freeze leftovers for soup add-ins), or leftover shredded chicken or beef if I want the soup to be fleishig…it can be anything or everything! Sometimes I remove some of the potatoes or carrots after they’re cooked through, cube them, and place them into the soup once it was blended to have something satisfying to bite into. B’tei’avon!

—Faigy Grossman, recipe contributor

My Mother-in-Law’s Split Pea Soup

My mother-in-law’s recipe for split pea soup is the only split pea soup I like. It’s super hearty and really delicious! This is my take on it.

• 2 lb (910 g) meat of your choice (I use flanken, stew meat, turkey necks, boneless chicken thighs, or beef cheek)
• salt and pepper, to taste
• 1 6-oz (170-g) sleeve Manischewitz Vegetable with Mushrooms Soup Mix
• 1 6-oz (170-g) sleeve Manischewitz Split Pea with Seasonings Soup Mix
• 1 large zucchini
• 2 large carrots
• 10 cups water or homemade chicken broth

Spray a large pot with cooking spray. Season meat of choice with salt and pepper (turkey necks and beef cheek are pretty salty already and don’t need much at all), then sear on both sides. Add water and bring to a boil, then lower to a simmer. Add soup mixes and seasonings.

Using the small holes on a box grater, grate zucchini and carrot and add them directly to the soup. Simmer for 2–3 hours or until the peas have disintegrated into the soup and the meat is falling apart.

—Michal Frischman, recipe contributor; chief of staff, US office

Cream of Leek Soup with Cauliflower Rice

This crowd-pleaser soup has a thick, hearty texture but a very light feel due to the low-glycemic ingredients. It’s a perfect appetizer soup since it’s not too filling or heavy. Enjoy it plain as a weeknight dinner or get fancy with the garnish options for a beautiful Yom Tov appetizer. Enjoy!

Serves 8

• 3 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 large sweet onion, chopped
• 2 whole leeks, cut into half-moons (discard tops and first few layers)
• 2 cloves garlic, pressed
• 2 turnips, peeled and cubed
• 5–6 yellow squash, not peeled, cubed
• 4–5 cups water
• 2½ tsp sea salt
• ½ tsp coarsely ground black pepper
• 1 14-oz (400-g) bag cauliflower rice
• roasted cauliflower, chickpea croutons, or pumpkin seeds (optional), for garnish

In a 6–8-quart pot, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add onion and sauté until translucent. Add leeks and sauté until soft. Add garlic and sauté for 2 minutes. Add turnips, squash, water, salt, and pepper.

Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low and simmer for 2 hours.

When vegetables are well cooked, purée with an immersion blender. Add cauliflower rice, cover, and cook on low for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.

—Rorie Weisberg, health columnist

Squash-Broccoli Soup

I received this recipe from the amazing Rebbetzin Zimmerman (then in Gateshead, now in London). I later discovered it’s actually a Balabuste’s Choice 2 recipe — and a real winner. (It’s also my go-to for Succos night because it’s original, and it’s elegant enough for Yom Tov with the broccoli floating inside… Clip and save for next year!)

Try it if you’re looking for something different than the typical orange vegetable or classic chicken.

• 1 onion, diced
• ¼ cup oil
• 2 cubes frozen garlic
• 2 cubes frozen dill
• 3 medium squash, cubed
• 1 potato, cubed
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 Tbsp chicken soup mix dissolved in 1 cup hot water
• 10 (or more!) broccoli florets

In a 4-quart pot, sauté onion in oil until transparent. Add garlic, dill, squash, and potato. Add water until the pot is three-quarters full. Add salt and bring to a boil. Cook for 20–30 minutes. Blend soup. Add dissolved chicken soup mix and broccoli and continue cooking for an additional 10 minutes.

—Rochel Samet, writer

Tomato Cabbage Soup

We’re all big soup fans in our family! My kids love coming home to a hot pot of soup in the winter.

• 1½ Tbsp canola oil
• 1 large onion, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 14-oz (440-g) bag shredded green cabbage
• 1 14.5-oz (410-g) can Hunt’s stewed tomatoes
• 3 carrots, diced
• 1 large zucchini, diced (optional)
• 8 cups water
• 1 Tbsp chicken soup mix (optional)
• salt, to taste
• ½ tsp black pepper
• 1 large or 2 small bay leaves
• ¾ cup cooked chickpeas or other beans (optional)

Sauté onions until translucent. Add garlic and sauté another minute. Add carrots and zucchini, if using. Cook until the veggies are slightly soft. Add the cabbage, stewed tomatoes, spices, water, and beans, if using. Cook for 1½ hours. Enjoy!

—Sarina Laghaei, ad design

Carrots with Roasted Golden Beets and Sweet Potato Soup

Yeah, this soup has a long name. I have no idea how the combo of carrots, golden beets, and sweet potatoes came into my head. But it’s a good thing it did! Originally developed for Rosh Hashanah, it’s since become one of our favorites.

Serves 4

• 1 cup golden beets, cut into chunks
• 1 cup sweet potato, cut into chunks
• olive oil, for tossing
• 3 Tbsp avocado oil
• 1 lb (450 g) carrots, cut into chunks
• 1 medium onion, cubed
• 4 cups chicken or vegetable broth
• 1 tsp salt (see note)
• ⅛ tsp white pepper (optional)

Preheat oven to 375°F (190°C).

Toss beets and sweet potato with olive oil and roast for 30 minutes or until they’re somewhat soft. (They’ll be cooking in the soup later, so don’t worry if they’re still a drop hard.)

Meanwhile, heat avocado oil in a pot and add carrots and onion. Sauté for 15–17 minutes. Add roasted vegetables and broth to the pot and cook for 30 minutes. Purée using an immersion blender.

This soup gets thicker as it cools. Feel free to add a cup of broth to thin it out if you like it that way.

Note: If you’re using broth with salt, you may want to leave out the salt until after you taste it.

—Chaia Frishman, columnist

Roasted Pepper Soup

My husband and I really love this roasted pepper soup. It’s delicious and healthy, and no frying onions required!

• 2 red peppers, sliced
• 6 tomatoes, sliced
• 1 red onion, sliced
• 4–5 cloves garlic, sliced
• olive oil, for drizzling
• salt, pepper, oregano, and thyme, for sprinkling
• 4 cups water
• 2 Tbsp soup mix, or to taste
• 2 Tbsp tomato paste
• 2 tsp brown sugar or silan

Place all veggies on a baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt, pepper, oregano, and thyme.

Bake at 350°F (175°C) for 30 minutes or until done.

Transfer to a pot with water, soup mix, tomato paste, and brown sugar or silan. Blend it, and you’re done!

—Libby Livshin, administration

(Originally featured in Family Table, Issue 864)