Week 128:

Name: Eggplant Soup
Ingredients: 2-3 tbsp olive oil; 1 medium onion chopped; 2-3 carrots chopped; 3 celery stocks chopped; I medium/large eggplant cubed into ½ pieces; 1lb ground meat of your choice – beef, turkey, chicken, or we use plant-based Impossible Beef; I large can diced tomatoes – I used fire roasted diced; 2-3 containers of broth – beef, chicken, vegetable, mushroom (I use a combo of vegetable and mushroom); 1 cup elbow macaroni; 3-4 handfuls of chopped kale; Salt; Pepper; Ground nutmeg; Chopped parsley; Parmesan cheese – optional

RECIPE OF THE WEEK FROM HIGHFIELD HALL & GARDENS STAFF, LISA WALKER

This recipe has been adapted from a Sunset Magazine recipe that I first cooked 22 years ago and is still in frequent rotation at my house!

Half of my family hates eggplant, or at least they think they hate eggplant, but they love this soup! Little do they know, they eat eggplant more than they think as I find it to be a secret ingredient in many other recipes! This soup is really easy to put together and is packed full of healthy vegetables. It’s also versatile with the type of protein you choose to use.

Eggplant Soup

Ingredients

2-3 tbsp olive oil
1 medium onion chopped
2-3 carrots chopped
3 celery stocks chopped
I medium/large eggplant cubed into ½ pieces
1lb ground meat of your choice – beef, turkey, chicken, or we use plant-based Impossible Beef
I large can diced tomatoes – I used fire roasted diced
2-3 containers of broth – beef, chicken, vegetable, mushroom (I use a combo of vegetable and mushroom)
1 cup elbow macaroni
3-4 handfuls of chopped kale
Salt
Pepper
Ground nutmeg
Chopped parsley
Parmesan cheese – optional

Instructions

In large stock pot over medium high heat olive oil, add chopped onion, carrots and celery and cook 3 minutes.
Add ground meat of your choice and cook. If you are using ground beef you may need to drain some of the fat once cooked. I find you don’t need to drain fat if you use lean turkey, chicken or the Impossible Beef. Once meat is cooked add diced eggplant and cook together for a few minutes.
Add the can of diced tomatoes and broth. Season with salt and pepper and 1-2 teaspoons of ground nutmeg. Cover pot and let simmer on low for 45-mins or until eggplant is cooked down – I sometimes let this sit on low for a couple hours but 30-45 minutes is good.
When ready bring the soup back up to a boil and add the macaroni, just before the pasta is cooked through add the chopped kale to wilt in soup.
Ladle into bowls, top with chopped parsley and grated parmesan cheese. Bon Appetit!

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