Spring Veggie Soup

I know, I've been away from here for far too long. I haven't forgotten about this space, or the people who stop by here, I've been thinking of it all very often. But I've been unable to make myself write anything recently, and I blame this on benadryl. I've been on benadryl every day for more than a month, but I'm delighted to say that I'm back and feeling much more like myself again. I owe this recovery to my holistic allergist. I know I said before that I was sceptical about the BIE allergy treatments I've been having...but I think I'm proof that they work!

My allergist has been clearing me for a lot of different foods, but most importantly, she has been clearing me for different emotions. She has a theory that many allergies are caused by emotional issues; your body creates allergies as a response to things it cannot properly deal with. (I know, it sounds crazy...but it actually works!) She helps my emotional issues by clearing them with BIE, and using something called Neuro Emotional Technique (NET). For me, the big emotions are stress and anxiety, and I can tell that it's working!

She has also begun clearing me for bread crumbs and the smell of wheat baking, since I have allergic reactions to airborne wheat. Since this clearing I have smelled the bread baking for Subway sandwiches while standing in a store adjacent to it, without a reaction. I started sneezing and thought that I was going to have a reaction, but it stopped. It stopped! A-mazing.

I will post more about BIE another time, but for now I have a recipe I have been excited to share. I created this soup when we had a fridge full of veggies and needed something for dinner. It was perfect the first time, and I have been able to re-create it a few times since. I call this my Spring Veggie Soup because it takes advantage of delicate asparagus, and deliciously sweet peas. It is too early in the year for those to be harvested here yet, but they are readily available in grocery stores. I tend to always have frozen peas in the house, I agree with Jamie Oliver and think that they are the best frozen veggie, mostly because they do not lose much of their integrity when frozen.

Spring Veggie Soup

2 onions
1 fennel bulb
2 cups/500 mls of chopped celery, about 4-6 sticks, depending on size. You can include the leaves too, if you wish.
1 tsp dried thyme leaves, not ground
1 tsp dried lavender, not ground
about 12 cups/ 3 litres of chicken or veggie stock
2 cups/500 mls of chopped asparagus, about one bunch
1 cup/250 mls of peas, fresh or frozen
sea salt and pepper, to taste
juice of one lemon
a few pinches of lemon zest


Slice onion and fennel thinly. In a large pot add the onions and fennel, some oil, and a teaspoon or two of sea salt. Cook on medium heat until caramelized, about 20-30 minutes. Add celery, thyme, lavender, and stock.  Simmer until celery is nearly tender. Add asparagus, and simmer until nearly tender, about a minute or two. Add peas and bring them to temperature. Season to taste with salt, pepper, lemon juice, and zest. Serve hot and enjoy!

Notes:

- This makes a big pot of soup, if you want a smaller batch simply reduce the quantity of the veggies by half.

- The asparagus and peas will be vibrant green if you eat this soup right away. While they sit in the soup they will lose that colour, so if that is important to you try serving this right away. While you do lose colour in those veggies as time goes by, you gain flavour so do not be discouraged.

- If you only have ground spices then make sure to reduce the amount listed here, and season to taste.

Alterations:

- If you are allergic to onions and/or fennel you may make this soup without them, but make sure you have a flavourful stock to compensate.

- If you are allergic to any of the green vegetables, or the herbs listed simply omit them or replace them with your favourite.

- If you are allergic to lemons you may simply omit the zest from the soup. You will want a bit of acidity in the soup, so try replacing with apple cider vinegar, but go slowly and keep tasting to ensure you do not overdo it.

I have linked this recipe with Allergy Friendly Friday (Saturday this week). Check out the other amazing recipes there!

*Please Note* These recipes are part of my personal allergy diet. Please remember that everyone's allergies are different.  If you are unsure about any ingredients listed in these recipes please check with your doctor before introducing.