Kitchen Sink Soup

Serves 6-8
Vegan (unless you top yours with cheese)

Want to clean out your refrigerator? Is there a drawer full of pathetic vegetables somewhere in your kitchen giving you puppy eyes? Fear not! Soup is the perfect answer for such a circumstance (and if you happen to be watching a 3-day marathon of LOST, and can not be bothered to prepare and eat something that requires concentration). Provided below are my favorite things to make soup from, but they also happen to be the ingredients that seem to invade my house most frequently. Fire at will.

olive oil
1 onion, chopped
1 head of garlic, cleaned and chopped
3 large carrots, skin on please, cut into large chunks
1 bell pepper, chopped
2 large potatoes (or 4-6 of those mini ones), chopped
1 zucchini, chopped
salt & pepper
fresh or dried herbs (I like thyme and oregano, but use what you have / like)
1 small can of tomato paste
2 boxes of your favorite vegetable stock
a few handfuls of your favorite pasta (I like whole wheat rotini)
1 bag of fresh spinach
a few handfuls of frozen peas
1 can of white beans

Sauté the onion, garlic, carrots, bell pepper, potatoes, and zucchini in some olive oil until they are translucent. Add salt & pepper.

Add a few spoonfuls of tomato paste, and stir into veggies.

Pour in 1 box of stock. If you want more liquid, add some more stock. Add more salt, pepper, and herbs.

Add some pasta, some spinach, some frozen peas, and the beans. Cook for 10 minutes, or until the pasta is cooked.

TASTE IT! Add more salt, pepper, and herbs until you like the way the soup tastes.

Enjoy!

What else can you put into soup? How about fresh tomatoes, asparagus, cauliflower, green beans, corn, sweet potatoes, butternut squash, pumpkin, chilies, kale, cabbage, every single bean you can think of, tofu, rutabaga, your kid sister.