We all have our grandmother’s favorite soup. This is a take on the popular vegetable soup at Veselka, the famed Ukranian eatery in New York’s East Village. We’ve adapted it to make it, you know, healthier.

For Vegetable Stock:

2 yellow onions, peeled and halved

4 carrots, peeled and chopped

4 celery stalks, chopped

12 sprig of flat-leaf parsley

1 bay leaf

6 whole black peppercorns

1 teaspoon of sea salt

1. Place ingredients in large stockpot. Add 8-10 cups of water.
2. Cover pot and place on high heat. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low and simmer, uncovered for about 30 minutes, until vegetables are very soft.
3. Strain the stock and discard the vegetables.

For Soup:

6 cups of vegetable stock (see above) 

1 small onion

3 large carrots, shredded on the smallest holes of a box grater

1 1/2 cups chopped string beans

2 cups chopped cauliflower florets

2 small russet potatoes, peeled and diced

1 cup peas (frozen peas are fine) 

3 tablespoons of grass-fed or organic butter

1 tablespoon of Spike seasoning (If you don’t have spike, just mix 1/2 tsp of garlic powder and 1/2 tsp of onion powder and 1/4 tsp of dried dil)

Juice and zest of 1 lemon

Freshly ground pepper

Sea salt

Handful of freshly cut dill

1. Combine stock and all the vegetables in a stockpot. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, and simmer, uncovered, until all the vegetables are tender, about 30 min.

2. While the soup is cooking, add Spike and salt and pepper to taste.

3. Before serving, add lemon juice and zest and dill. Serve hot.

2
6