A Plentiful Pot of Roasted Tomato & Root Vegetable Soup

March 2015

A plentiful pot of soup is like a return to your childhood home after many months or years away. Every ingredient, like every quilt, stuffed animal or lingering teen heart-throb poster, tells a story and stirs nostalgia. This soup stirred a few tales.

lentiful Pot of Roasted Tomato & Root Vegetable Soup // www.WithTheGrains.com

First, there were friends gathered around our dining room table. The Urban Farmer and I shared our roasted chicken, vegetables, and hearty bread. They shared their heartwarming tales of transforming travels in Peru. That chicken became stock, and that stock became a base for this soup.

There was a long photoshoot. It began with meticulously styled, petite portions of chopped vegetables. It ended with a back seat and a trunk FULL of produce. Those excesses became a warm oven of slow roasting tomatoes, a house that smelled of Italy, and finally, a robust red sauce. That red sauce stirred the cravings for comforting tomato soup.

There was a Valentine’s Day break from reclusive hibernation and a bundled excursion to the butcher shop. The return adventure was a blinding blanket of white, a determined dog with a backpack full of bacon, and a very chilling walk on quiet, empty streets. Two honey-cardamom lattes and a chess game later, we were warm enough to think clearly. That bacon belonged in our soup!

Those tales simmered, bubbled and blended into something new.

lentiful Pot of Roasted Tomato & Root Vegetable Soup // www.WithTheGrains.com

With one hand on the old, familiar doorknob and the other hovering near the light switch, you hesitate. You breathe in the familiar smell. You hear the distant laughter, complaints and squabbles. You see the homework struggles, the sleepovers, the trophies and toys. Once back in the present moment, your hovering hand flips the light switch, pulls the door knob and closes the door on that childhood chapter. Similarly, each ingredient’s tale hovered, but new moments emerged as well, ready to be recalled with the next bowl of piping hot soup. This is why I slow cook.

Single-Grain

Go Stir Some Stories!
-Quelcy

Roasted Tomato & Vegetable Soup

About This Recipe: From the homemade stock to the slow roasted tomato sauce, this soup is a journey and a labor for the love of cooking. The result is a hearty vegetable soup that takes advantage of winter’s lingering root vegetables and warms the last chill in the air. Use whatever lingering root vegetables you have. Use a vegetable stock and skip the bacon if you want to avoid meat. Substitute a favorite pasta sauce instead of making your own. Be creative, experiment, and enjoy!

Roasted Tomato & Vegetable Soup
makes 8-10 servings

Ingredients

1/4 cup (half stick) organic, unsalted butter
10 green onions, chopped
A dash of each- salt, pepper, basil, thyme, red pepper

3 local, organic carrots, peeled & sliced
1 local, organic parsnip, peeled & chopped
1 small, local, organic kohlrabi, peeled & chopped
2 cups sweet potatoes, peeled and chopped

3 quarts homemade chicken stock

4 cups homemade roasted tomato & herb sauce

2 cups chopped roasted red peppers (or plain peppers)
2 cups chopped celery
1/4 cup Apple Cider Vinegar

3 pieces of local thick-cut bacon, chopped

Directions

Heat the butter in a large, heavy-bottomed stockpot over medium-low heat. Once melted, add the green onion and spices, stirring frequently until the onions begin to soften, approximately 7 to 8 minutes.

Add the carrots, parsnip, and kohlrabi, sweet potatoes and continue to cook for 4 to 5 more minutes, stirring occasionally.

Add the stock, increase the heat to high, and bring to a simmer.

Once simmering, add the tomato sauce, celery, and apple cider vinegar.

Reduce the heat to low, add the bacon, cover, and cook until the vegetables are tender, approximately 25 to 30 minutes.

Remove from heat. Season, to taste, with sea salt. Serve hot with a slice of rustic bread.

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This Post Has 97 Comments

  1. julieallyn

    Lovely. Mouth-watering, Warm and reassuring. I loved this!

  2. plclight

    It’s unfortunate to see many people eating fast food and not enjoying what is really out there.

    1. Donna

      I agree, this soup looks great for a rainy day. I bet it is better the second day, after the spices stew overnight. I think it would make a better office lunch than any drive through.

      1. withthegrains

        Indeed, the leftovers were delicious! Every bowl was a little bit different.

    2. Eilidh❤️

      I agree! I try to make the rest of my family eat better, which is weird because I’m the child, not the parent haha

      1. withthegrains

        awe, well, you are ahead of the curve. Keep up the good fight. 😉

  3. lcryan01

    Looks delicious, plus I love your logo!

  4. Cari

    Love this! Thank you for sharing!

  5. kimberlyannglover

    I haven’t made the soup yet, and probably won’t, because I have a similar recipe, but wanted to tell you that your story is lovely. You have beautifully captured the feel of a slowly cooked winter soup that is more than the sum of its parts.

    1. withthegrains

      Thank you for such kind words! I’m glad you have a soup story of your own too. 🙂

  6. Howard0912

    thank for sharing

  7. Marie

    There is a generosity of time in this telling, the unhurried anticipation of the unknown with reverence for remembering; sustenance in stories that linger over a meal. Well done.

  8. kthrog

    This sounds delicious. Thanks for sharing — beautiful photos, too!

  9. rickyolguin92

    That looks so delicious and amazing! I might have to make this later this week. 🙂

  10. Grace @ Cultural Life

    I love trying new soup recipes and this one looks great! 🙂 Congratulations on being Freshly Pressed!

  11. Eilidh❤️

    Looks delicious! Congrats on being freshly pressed!

  12. Mrs. Robinson

    UGH Ive been reading all your posts for Days and this Made me hungry hahaha write more! Oh and please check out mine im just new here so i Would really appreciate it!

  13. sugarysunshines

    Mmmm this makes me so hungry now. Too bad it’s a little too hot in my country for soup but I think I’m gonna try it anyway cause this just looks so good

  14. treatwilliams

    It is shocking that you are not a published writer. I am ashamed to be part of a culture that’s allowed that.

  15. das212

    yum!

  16. 8centpublishing

    I’ve tried many tomato soups, but I’ve never liked any of them. Every time I read about one though, it sounds so good! Maybe this is the right one…

  17. M.M.

    I have become the girl who watching needs her three daily. And i’d rather wait than have Taco Bell prepare my meals, you have just added to my obsession!

  18. angelpawsmd

    Thank you for sharing. It sounds absolutely wonder for a cold day we are having over here. 🙂

  19. Kev

    Beautiful writing and photos. Thanks for sharing this!

  20. tvbylinda

    Soup… sometimes the natural healer for mild cold-like illnesses, and also for breathing problems.

  21. Julianna

    Beautiful energy to this piece – and I’m sure to the soup as well!

  22. lisat

    Will definitely try this ! I love roasted parnships so always on the look out for easy recipes that feature this ingredient.

    1. withthegrains

      Glad to hear it. I hope you like it! The parsnip is definitely an under-appreciated root. 🙂

  23. resoplayer

    I have many fond memories of my grandmother, but the one I seem to recall most is her home made soup. Every ingredient came straight from a garden. She served it, not in a bowl, but on a plate, and with fresh biscuits and butter she churned herself. Now that was food fit for a king, and a little boy too!

      1. resoplayer

        Thank you! And thank you for sharing also. Food can be such an intimate affair, bringing family and friends closer than they might be otherwise. Taking the time to prepare a meal for those that are dear to us is one way to them know just how special they are, and leaves them with full tummies, and hearts.

  24. likelistph

    This looks really yummy! Your photos are fantastic! 🙂

  25. Linda A.

    Sounds like the perfect soup for a cold, rainy day.

  26. Chua Han Au

    Both your soup and writing are palatable! 🙂

  27. jodiezoesmom2

    Looks so yummy..I wrote down the ingredients.. I plan on trying it tonight minus the bread.

  28. jodiezoesmom2

    I made a big pot of this last night. My girls loved it.

  29. mpishipoa

    Looks delicious! Our rainy season is coming, this will be so welcome to keep us warm. I plan to add red hot chillie peppers to it to really heat things up;)

  30. The Artistique

    Nothing beats an amazing soup! I’m going to put one up in a few days too

  31. Joshua

    Delicious, loved it. Wow!!!

  32. Justin Philip Nash

    No better way to be grounded than by eating that which comes… from the ground. “Who woulda thought.” Inspiring recipe. Thank you.

  33. thriftydee87

    Reblogged this on thriftydee00 and commented:
    I’m looking forward to the summer when I can make soup out of the things that grow in my back garden !

  34. thriftydee87

    I’m looking forward to the summer when I can make soup out of the things that grow in the garden !

  35. slynn21

    This recipe sounds delicious! I love a good soup!

  36. brianhorst

    Reblogged this on healthyinterests and commented:
    This is an interesting way of describing what is being made and how it is being posted and shown.

  37. katherineetucker

    Oh goodness, this looks delicious! Thanks for the recipe, I’ll definitely put it to good use.

  38. YPF

    Colorful, mouth watering

  39. Robert

    I’m adding this to my recipe list!

  40. sharonah76

    This sounds really yummy! There’s nothing like a big bowl of delicious soup. A total comfort food.

  41. Captian

    Sounds delicious! I have to try this.

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