One of the beautiful things about living in Phoenix is that we've been having 75 degree temps during this Winter. While the rest of the nation is wrapped in parkas and scarves, we're wearing short sleeved shirts and capris like it's Spring.
I went to The Simple Farm for their new Tuesday farmer's market, and Lylah gifted me with some fresh sorrel and arugula. Since it is technically winter, I thought making a soup with the sorrel would be befitting.
I've never had sorrel before and thought it would be fun to try this green also known as "sour grass" which is member of the rhubarb family and commonly used in France. Sorrel looks like spinach. To me, the sorrel tastes more like a tangy herb.
I found this cool vegan Sorrel-Kale soup recipe on the blog Oops It's Vegan, and based my soup recipe on their recipe.
I will throw in a disclaimer with this soup. Sorrel has a sour taste, and arugula has a bitter taste so combine the two and this soup will have a strong green flavor to it. Next time, I make this soup, I would use spinach instead of the arugula to tame down the bitter. I really like the strong peppery taste of arugula, but it is not for everyone. The lemon does help cut down the bitter taste.
However, arugula is nutrient packed, and it has one of the highest ANDI scores of food. Combined with the protein from the turkey sausage, I would call this recipe a power soup.
I also used mushroom broth instead of vegetable stock because I don't like celery, and most veggie stock is made with celery. Also, I thought it would be fun to do something different, and use the mushroom instead of the vegetable stock.
Ingredients:
- 1-1/2 tbsp Earth Balance Soy-Free Buttery Spread
- 1/2 sweet onion chopped
- 1 medium potato chopped into cubes
- 2 cups chopped fresh sorrel
- 2 cups fresh arugula
- 1 mild turkey Italian sausage diced
- 1/2 lemon
- 3-1/2 cups organic mushroom broth. I used Pacific Natural Foods brand.
- Salt & pepper to taste
Let's get cooking:
- Melt the Earth Balance in a medium pot and add the onions and potatoes with some salt and pepper to taste. Saute the onion and potato until the onion gets soft.
- Add in the diced Italian sausage meat with the onion and potato, and cook until the sausage is browned.
- Toss in the sorrel and arugula and saute for about a minute.
- Add in the mushroom broth. Cover the pot and simmer for 15 minutes.
- Remove the pot from the hot plate, and squeeze in the juice from the half lemon. Mix well.
Wait for soup to cool down, and serve warm. Enjoy!