Soup/Stew

Cream of Wheat, or farina, is the secret to the smooth, thick texture of this soup.

If you like broccoli, you’ll love this nourishing bowl of comfort.

Lots of fresh parsley and a touch of cream cheese give this soup its special character. Serve with crusty French or Italian bread.

Cashew butter makes an offbeat, rich-tasting soup base. This luscious soup is good hot or at room temperature.

If you’re looking for a mild, soothing soup for a rainy spring evening, here’s a pleasant choice.

I recommend steaming the green beans separately, and adding them once the asparagus is tender-crisp. The result is a satisfying Asian-flavored stew with the green vegetables all done just right.

Here’s a lively soup that comes together quickly. Serve with a big Greek-style salad and a fresh flatbread for a light yet satisfying meal.

This light soup of lettuce, cucumber, and fresh spring peas was quite common in nineteenth-century America. Potage maigre translates loosely as “fast day” soup, traditionally made for Lent. Versions of it appear in old Creole cookbooks.

You’ll love making and serving this earthy medley of colors, textures, and flavors on a rainy spring evening.

Nutty-tasting Japanese soba (buckwheat noodles) add an offbeat touch to this soup. Look for them in natural food stores or Asian groceries.

Brimming with fresh produce in a light, mildly seasoned broth, this is just the soup to serve as an introduction to a festive spring meal such as Easter dinner or the Passover seder.

This soup is very warming, and more filling than more common, very brothy miso soups.

This Asian soup is brimming with invigorating flavors and textures. I love it as a change of pace in the winter from thick soups and stews. It’s still every bit as warming. Despite the length of the ingredient list, this is a quick soup—you’ll be eating in about half an hour.

With Thai ingredients available at most natural food stores and well-stocked supermarkets, it has become easy to enjoy the delightful flavors of this cuisine at home. Use your discretion with the red or green curry paste; a little will give a hint of heat, but if you want a spicier stew, you can step it up from there.

This soup features a slew of compatible ingredients made even more companionable in a mildly curried broth.

A satisfying meatless take on the classic Hungarian goulash, this makes good use of seitan, a high-protein, low-fat meat substitute.

For a hearty combination, serve with Hearty Bean Bread (page 146), or for a lighter accompaniment, serve with Bruschetta (page 159).

Cooked cornmeal makes a delightfully dense soup base. Serve this meal-in-a-bowl with a bountiful salad and crusty bread.

This is a good, basic, everyday sort of soup, suitable for cold weather. Try Cheese and Herb Corn Muffins (page 150) as an accompaniment.

Lentil soups are so satisfying in winter. Served with Quick Sunflower-Cheese Bread (page 144) or Focaccia Bread (page 148), this soup needs only a simple salad to make a very filling meal.