After a bit of a hiatus, Melissa (Smells Like Brownies) and I are getting back to our weekly vegetarian lunches.  Last week we tried this amazing soup recipe packed with veggies.  It is warm and comforting, with lots of flavor and texture – plus it’s really easy to make.  It’s also both vegan and vegetarian friendly.  And gosh, isn’t it pretty?

The soup starts out with sliced squash (we used acorn) and tiny cubes of turnip simmered in water until tender.  At first I thought that one small squash and one turnip wouldn’t be enough, but they turned out to be plenty!  So don’t go overboard and think that you need to get more/bigger.  The cooking water then becomes the base for the broth and miso, tahini, and lemon zest are added to round it out.

You can garnish the soup however you like, but we stuck with the original recipe and used avocado, chives, toasted nori, and toasted sesame seeds.

The soup can be served over a grain, and we choose to try out buckwheat.  We are both avoiding white rice for health reasons and thought this grain-like seed would be fun to try.  Unfortunately it cooks to a porridge like consistency instead of individual grains.  So I would recommend barley or brown rice instead. (more…)