Pantry Soup

We’re in between grocery trips, so we’re a bit low on produce. In an effort not to eat out AGAIN, I searched through the pantry for possible meals. I was inspired by a recipe I found in Passionate Vegetarian, and came up with this soup…it was simple, yummy, and really cleaned out my pantry! I would change a few things next time…for one thing, I’d use canned diced tomatoes instead of the tomato sauce. The consistency was reminiscient of Campbell’s tomato soup, and I prefer my soups to be a bit more brothy. I think any veggies you have on hand would be good in this soup…the flavors are so simple that anything goes. If you are going to use the tomato sauce, I’d opt for no-salt-added, so you have more control over the saltiness of the finished dish.

In other news, I stayed up into the wee hours of the night reading Desert Blood: The Juarez Murders by Alicia Gaspar de Alba. This was the chosen book for a new book club I’ve joined, and it was such a page-turner that I couldn’t put it down. It’s not really my favorite type of book…I generally avoid murder mysteries and other such non-happy books, but it was still a very good read. It’s eye-opening and uncomfortable, and it brings attention to a subject that has been avoided for too long. I usually opt for light reading, because I tend to become so engrossed in what I read that my emotions won’t settle down, even when I take a break from it. I do the same thing with movies, and with dreams. My dreams are so vivid that I will often carry those emotions with me throughout the day. Needless to say, light reading and comedies are my favorite forms of entertainment.

On to the soup!

Bean and Sweet Potato Soup

  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1/2 small yellow onion, chopped
  • 2 cans vegetable broth
  • 1 can cannelini beans, undrained
  • 1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
  • 1 (8-ounce) can tomato sauce, or 1 can diced tomatoes
  • 1 small sweet potato, peeled and diced
  • 2 bay leaves
  • Freshly ground black pepper

Heat the olive oil in a soup pot over medium heat. Add the onion, and saute until translucent. Add the remaining ingredients and simmer for 15 or 20 minutes, or until the sweet potatoes are tender.

Makes 4 servings.

Adapted from Passionate Vegetarian by Crescent Dragonwagon.

3 responses to “Pantry Soup”

  1. Yumsters! I might take out the black beans, but I’m making it soon. Probably next Wednesday, in fact (D doesn’t like sweet potatoes, so I save those recipes for writing group night).

    I like happy books too.

  2. I think I know what we are doing for dinner tomorrow. I love that cookbook too.

  3. Sounds like a good recipe to tuck into the back of mind and to tuck into. Black beans and sweet potatoes look like a good combo.

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