Chinese Food Restaurant Soup Attempts

It occurred to me recently that my love of soup likely began with trips to a Chinese food restaurant in West Lebanon, NH as a kid. Of note, we very rarely ate out when I was growing up, but when we did it was often to a place called Pagoda in one of the 3 strip malls in 'West Leb'. I can picture the place vividly (it has been closed for many years), the crispy wonton chips and sugary red dipping sauce, and their soups-- either egg drop or hot and Sour (I think they must have had a wonton soup too, but I never got it). Ever since I've enjoyed egg drop at restaurant (hot and sour oftentimes has meat in it so I can't enjoy it at restaurants these days). 

I found several egg drop soup recipes and settled on this one to try. I couldn't readily find a hot and sour that didn't have pork or that otherwise spoke to me, so I decided to try this Spicy Korean Tofu Soup (that had hot and sour-like ingredients, including shiitakes that I love). I recognize that conflating a Korean dish with a Chinese-restaurant classic is problematic so want to be clear that the Korean soup was not a hot and sour or intended to be the same. 

Ultimately neither recipe brought me back to Pagoda nor wowed me otherwise. That said, the egg drop has potential-- I think that I need to practice my egg swirling skills to get the right 'ribbons'. I also added some frozen peas and think this was a nice addition but might play with the recipe a bit more. The Spicy Korean was fine – just nothing special/worth remaking. 

Cream of Mushroom Soup (with no cream)

I don't think that I've made a cream of mushroom before – which surprises me, given that I love mushrooms and creamy soups. I looked online at a variety of options and settled on this Skinny Taste recipe for a few reasons. First, it called for shiitakes, which are a favorite mushroom and I know pack a lot of earthy flavor. Secondly, the recipe didn't call for any cream – this means that it was low fat *and* relatively easy to make (some of the other options that I considered called for making a cashew cream or similar). Lastly, it centered the mushroom flavor – which is what I wanted. I certainly appreciate other flavors but in this instance I really did just want a mushroom soup that wasn't masked by heavy spices or other veggies. The resulting soup was excellent. I will make this again for sure, and consider doubling the recipe (portions were small, and considering how good it was I wanted more!). Note that I did use the optional butter (and just used regular unsalted butter since that's what I had on hand). I figured it needed *some* fat if I wasn't using cream of any sort. I also blended a bit more than the 1-cup that it called for and did so in my Vitamix so the resulting puree was super-smooth. I considered blending all if, but am glad that I kept some of the mushrooms in tact to break up the texture a bit. All in all this was an easy soup to make with a high return on the flavor factor! 

French Onion Soup (Vegetarian)

I loved French Onion Soup as a kid. It was my go-go order at a restaurant – always served in the brown handled crock. The salty/sweet and super-savory broth, the built-in crouton and Swiss cheese?!? Check! This hit all the marks. However, once I became a vegetarian I learned that key to [most] French Onion soups was beef broth – and not only dark broth that perhaps could be subbed with vegetarian broth; rather, actual beef broth (often complete with chards of beef in the broth). Needless to say, I haven't had French Onion soup in many, many years. I think I may have tried a veggie version in my 20's but was disappointed in it and so haven't attempted it since then. 

This past weekend was starting to feel like fall and so I was browsing soup recipes online. One of my go-to vegetarian sites had a French Onion soup recipe and so I figured I'd give it a go! The recipe required 3 lbs of Vidalia onions – and slow cooking them over the stove for some time. The smell in the house was amazing and the ensuing broth was incredibly rich. It was *not* the same as the beefy broth of my memory; however, it was also not a run-of-the-mill veggie broth. This soup has a ton of flavor, and lots of options for topping it off. Rather than following the recipe's instructions for the cheesy bread topper, I tried thin slices of Gruyere one day, leftover garlic bread from the kid's dinner another day, and bagged croutons one night (not the hit). While it isn't the same as a traditional French Onion Soup, this one was a worthy recipe that offered me a different flavor profile than is found in standard veggie soups. Success!

**Update: I just re-read a few other entries on this blog and apparently I *have* made/had French Onion Soup, and fairly recently at that. Apparently that recipe wasn't all that memorable...**

Ginger Sweet Potato Coconut Milk Stew w/Lentils and Kale

Not the most concise title, but this stew [more like a hearty soup] is good. It has all the things that I love (lentils! coconut! sweet potato!) and a yummy savory/sweet flavor profile. I had kale that I needed to use up, but I'm thinking this is one that I'll make again (and seek out ingredients vs. just using up what I have). I don't oftentimes use full-fat coconut milk but I sprung for it this time and it was worthy. I also think the squeeze of fresh lime juice added just before eating made the dish. 

This blog is one that I just found, but looks promising on a few fronts! This initial recipe was a success so here's hoping that I'll find others that are as good. 

Carrot Bisque

This is another from my *favorite* cookbook: Vegan with a Vengeance. I made this carrot bisque one year for Thanksgiving when we were in NY with my extended family. It was a hit and I've made it a few times since then. I've definitely upped the maple syrup BUT depending on your carrots the sweetness level can vary considerably. This is also a gorgeous (bright orange!) soup so looks great for a fall-themed/holiday spread. 

Originally I was using my immersion blender for this and the carrot texture is apparent (and just fine this way). But, for a super-smooth soup, go for the high-speed Vitamix blending and it really ups the ante for this one! 

Beet, Barley, and Black Soybean Soup with Pumpernickel Croutons

If you like beets and are looking for a change from basic veggie soups, this one is definitely worth making! Another win from my favorite cookbook, Vegan with a Vengeance, this combines beets, barley, soybeans, pumpernickel, dill (and I often add a dollop of sour cream- or could do vegan sour cream if you want vegan). It is not a borscht but just as beautiful! This one isn't posted on the Post Punk Kitchen (excellent repository for other veg. recipes though), but this site has it down. 

This is definitely a winter/cozy up/eat-hearty soup for cold days! 

Note: Black soybeans can be difficult to find but I've been able to purchase them at our larger Whole Foods (and stock up- they come canned). I imagine you could also purchase online or possibly other more natural grocery stores (though the Natural Grocers near me has not carried them). 

Cauliflower Cheese Soup

This is one of my OG go-to soup recipes. When I was in college I moved off campus my senior year with 3 friends. We had our own half-a-house, no more meal plan, a rickety kitchen (with a random useable toilet in the pantry... but that's another story) and big aspirations to be 'adult' by cooking for the first time in our 20-year old lives. One of my roommates, "Rank" knew that two of us were vegetarians and photocopied and spiral bound the entire Molly Katzen Moosewood Cookbook as a gift for us. I've since purchased many Molly Katzen books so don't feel *too* badly about this copyright infringement. Included in that cookbook is this recipe for a cauliflower cheese soup. While it does indeed have cheese in it, several times I've considered not adding the cheese, as it is really tasty as-is (and the carrots add a nice orange cheesy-color). The caraway seeds nod to an Eastern European or Russian flavor profile.