When I woke up yesterday morning, I decided that I was going to try something new for dinner – miso soup.  I had it for the first time (that I can remember) the other day when I was getting lunch after an amazing massage and reflexology session.  I knew that it was a healthy option for lunch, and it was so nourishing!  I had a container of miso paste at home in the fridge so I was all set to try it.

I think I’ve been scared away from my kitchen.  My mom is such an amazing cook – everything she touches in the kitchen comes out wonderfully, and she often makes it seem so effortless.  I think that I was worried I wouldn’t have the same success.  The truth is, the more I find my way back into the kitchen, the more fun I’m having, the more experimenting I’m doing, and the more I’m learning.

As dinnertime approached yesterday, I set Chloe up with some hummus and whole wheat crackers.  She loves to load a cracker full of dip and use the cracker like a spoon.  She’s calling everything guacamole these days so I bet you can guess her favorite!  Once she was occupied with that, I got my ingredients out of the fridge and off the counter and started to make the soup.

I heated up some olive oil in a pot over medium heat, and added in the onions and garlic.  Once the onions became translucent, I added a new ingredient that I discovered, lotus root.

 

I gave the lotus root a couple of minutes to cook, though keeping it a little crunchy added a nice texture to the soup so I wouldn’t recommend cooking it too long.  I added the mushrooms and kale, and stirred it all together.  Once the kale began to wilt, I added the veggie stock, covered, and simmered for about 5 minutes.

At this point I took a break to play with Chloe, who had moved on from the hummus and was using her fork to play on her new drum – the trash can.  She was thoroughly entertained by the sounds she was creating, and was very happy.  I told her I was making soup for dinner and that dadu (that’s what she calls Jon) would be home soon.  This started an alternating chorus of ‘soup’ and ‘dadu.’

I headed back to check on the soup, and it was looking amazing!  I was getting excited.  Then I added the miso and stirred some more to help it dissolve.  I turned the heat down a bit and waited for Jon to get home.

We met Jon in the hallway, and Chloe wanted to walk for a bit, so she and Jon were out there playing while I tested the soup (yum!!), added some water to make it “soupier,” and loaded the dishwasher.  They ran into a neighbor, and I decided to pack up some soup to share with her – she was delighted at the surprise dinner!

Sitting down as a family to eat a delicious homemade soup was so wonderful, and definitely something that I want to do many more times during the cold winter months.  The warmth of the soup and time spent with loved ones warms the body and soul in such an amazing way.

Miso is a great soup to try out – you can add whatever veggies you want and it’s super healthy.  Miso is fermented soy, and fermented food products are great for building up the healthy bacteria in your gut, which helps your overall health.  I’ll talk more about that in an upcoming blog about my 30 day sauerkraut challenge.

If you’re interested in making the soup, check out the recipe below.  I’d love to know if you enjoyed it and if you made any changes to the recipe,  I’d love to hear about your variations! Please share in the comments below!

Peace, Love, and Wellness,

Xandra

Xandra’s Happy December Miso Soup

What to Use:

1-2 tbs olive oil

2 onions, chopped

3 large cloves of garlic

½ lotus root, washed, peeled, chopped

1 cup mushrooms, washed and quartered

½ head kale, washed and chopped

4 cups vegetable stock

3 tbs of organic miso (or to taste)

Filtered water to add as needed to get desired soup consistency (I used 2 cups)

What to Do:

Heat oil in pan, and add chopped onion and garlic.  Cook until onion is translucent.

Add lotus root and cook for about 3-5 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Mix in mushrooms and cook for 2 minutes.

Stir in kale and cook until it starts to wilt.

Pour the vegetable stock in, and stir.  Put a lid on the pot and let cook 3-5 minutes.

Remove lid, and mix in the miso.  Cook until miso is dissolved.

Add water as needed.

Enjoy!

Makes enough for 6 (or 3 with leftovers) when you add 2 cups of water

Time saving bonus tip: You can chop the mushrooms and kale ahead of time so they are ready to throw into the pot when it’s time to make dinner!