Alicia's Magical Healing Soup

Serves 2... but I double it and add plenty of extra veggies, so I always end up with lots of leftovers.

Ingredients

• 1/2 medium carrot, cut into large chunks
• 1/4 medium daikon, cut into large chunks
• 1/4 red onion, cut into large chunks
• 2-3 celery stalks, chopped
• 3-4 small broccoli florets
• 4 button mushrooms, sliced
• 2-3 trumpet mushrooms, sliced
• 1/2 medium leek, halved then cut into large chunks ans swirled in a bowl of water to dislodge any grit
  
• ginger juice to taste (grate about a 1" piece of ginger and squeeze out the juice with your fingers)
• Shoyu to taste
• 1 whole scallion, thinly sliced on the diagonal
• 1/4 bunch watercress, tough stems discarded
  
• Mochi, chopped or shredded (optional)
• Toasted nori pieces (optional)
  

Directions

Bring 3 cups of water to a boil in a large pot. Add the carrot and daikon. Reduce the heat to a simmer. Add the red onion, and cook for 2 to 3 minutes. Add the celery, broccoli, mushrooms, and leek. Add the ginger juice and shoyu to the broth to taste. Simmer until the vegetables are cooked through but still slightly firm, about 5 minutes. Add the scallion, and turn off the heat. To serve, ladle the soup into bowls. Top each serving with some watercress, mochi, and nori.


The kids LOVE this. It is very simple, but it does wonders for getting them to eat vegetables. I use the recipe for using up vegetables that I know are going to go bad within a few days. Try bok choy, lotus root, garlic, collards, kale, cilantro, tomato, potato. I've yet to find anything that didn't work. :)

Recipe from The Kind Diet by Alicia Silverstone. (I am loving trying all of these recipes, they call for a LOT of Japanese ingredients that are very easy to find right now.)