Warming Up the New Year

Now that the holidays are over, it's time for me to return to my veggie-filled, less-fattening but still tasty diet. I found this soup recipe on www.delish.com, and it sounded like a great way to get back on the healthy track. Plus, I got to use more of my Christmas presents: a giant (16-quart) soup pot, a fancy chopping knife and a bamboo cutting board. I followed the recipe almost exactly — I just can't help myself sometimes. But, all I really added were some diced carrots, and I opted to leave the skin on the potato and just saute it with the onion. The dollop of pesto as a garnish really adds a lot, so I'm glad I didn't omit it, as is sometimes my wont.

Spicy Vegetable Soup

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 large onion, diced

3/4 cup diced carrots

2 teaspoons hot paprika

2 cups vegetable broth

2 (15-ounce) cans diced tomatoes

1 medium yellow summer squash, diced

2 cups potatoes, diced

1 1/2 cups green beans

2 cups (5 ounces) frozen spinach 

2 tablespoons red-wine vinegar

Prepared pesto

1. Heat oil in a Dutch oven over medium heat. Add onion, potato and carrots, cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until beginning to brown, about 6 minutes. Add paprika and cook, stirring, for 30 seconds. 

2. Add broth, tomatoes, squash, potatoes and beans; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are just tender, about 12 minutes. (It took me a bit longer than that, as the potatoes weren't precooked as originally called for). Stir in spinach and vinegar; continue cooking until heated through, 2 to 4 minutes more. Ladle soup into bowls and top with fresh basil or a dollop of pesto.