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HOW TO: Make A Hearty And Healthy Vegan Bean, Squash And Corn Soup (aka Three Sisters Soup)

Posted By Marni Fogelson-Teel On January 23, 2013 @ 12:00 pm In cooking,food,green family,healthy recipe,how-to,recipe,vegan cooking,vegetarian | 1 Comment

 
 
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Although we'll happily slurp our way through bowls of gazpacho in the summertime, we love pumpkin soup in the fall, and can't get enough of spring soups that use the first garden yields of the year -- winter is undeniably the season of soups [5]. And with snowy weather upon us, what better to keep little ones warm and well-fed than with a hearty and healthy soup that will keep them full for hours and which incorporates some favorite seasonal veggies? This corn, black bean, and butternut squash soup was inspired by the "three sisters," the vegetables that have made up a large part of Native American crops for centuries. The three sisters even offer a valuable lesson in family dynamics for siblings who may not always play happily together for hours on end: the squash helps prevent weeds, the height of the corn allows the beans some climbing space, and the beans add nitrogen to the soil.

Three Sisters soups are pretty open to variation and adaptation -- other recipes include green beans in lieu of black and hominy instead of corn. You can use canned, organic black beans or cook yours from scratch. Likewise, you can use fresh or frozen corn (we used this recipe to finish off the last of the batch we had blanched and frozen from our CSA). Butternut squash was covering the tables at our farmer's market this week, asking to be included in this recipe, but you can substitute another type as well; just use any variety that can be easily peeled and cooks fairly quickly. Read on for a nourishing, fulling, and speedy vegan soup recipe or find one-page, printable directions here [6].
 
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three sisters soup, healthy recipe, vegan soup, cooking [12]

1. Gather the ingredients.

  • 1 Tbsp olive oil
  • 1 cup diced carrot
  • 1 cup diced onion
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 2 cups peeled, seeded, diced butternut squash
  • 2 cups fresh or frozen corn
  • 1 1/2 cups cooked black beans (or 1 15oz can black beans, drained and rinsed)
  • 4 cups vegetable broth
  • Salt, about 3/4 tsp or to taste
  • 1/2 tsp cumin (optional but encouraged)

three sisters soup, vegan soup, vegan cooking, food [13]

2. Sauté the garlic, onion, and carrot.

Heat the olive oil over medium heat in a medium-sized soup pot. Add the garlic, onions, and carrot and sauté for about 10 minutes, until the onions are translucent and the carrots have softened slightly. Stir occasionally to keep from sticking to the pot.

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3. Add beans and other vegetables and sauté.

Add the beans, butternut squash, and corn, and sauté for another 2 or 3 minutes.

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4. Add vegetable stock and cook.

Add the vegetable stock and raise the heat so that the soup comes to a boil. Lower the heat to medium or medium-low and simmer uncovered about 10 minutes until vegetables are tender.

healthy recipe, winter soup, vegan soup, recipe [16]

5. Season and serve.

Add salt to taste and cumin (if using) and cook another 4-5 minutes. For a different texture, you can also puree some of the veggies in the blender and then add them back to the soup pot. Serve warm! Enjoy by itself or serve with cornbread or over rice, quinoa, or millet.

vegan recipe. vegan cooking, recipe, cooking [17]

Vegan Black Bean, Butternut Squash, and Corn Soup (aka Three Sisters Soup)

  • 1 Tbsp olive oil
  • 1 cup diced carrot
  • 1 cup diced onion
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 2 cups peeled, seeded, diced butternut squash
  • 2 cups fresh or frozen corn
  • 1 1/2 cups cooked black beans (or 1 15oz can black beans, drained and rinsed)
  • 4 cups vegetable broth
  • Salt, about 3/4 tsp or to taste
  • 1/2 tsp cumin (optional but encouraged)

Heat the olive oil over medium heat in a medium-sized soup pot. Add the garlic, onions, and carrot and sauté for about 10 minutes, until the onions are translucent and the carrots have softened slightly. Stir occasionally to keep from sticking to the pot.Add the beans, butternut squash, and corn, and sauté for another 2 or 3 minutes. Add the vegetable stock and raise the heat so that the soup comes to a boil. Lower the heat to medium or medium-low and simmer about 10 minutes until vegetables are tender.Add salt to taste and cumin (if using) and cook another 4-5 minutes. For a different texture, you can also puree some of the veggies in the blender and then add them back to the soup pot. Serve warm! Enjoy by itself or serve with cornbread or over rice, quinoa, or millet.

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