THE SOUP RECIPE YOU MUST MAKE FOR THE HOLIDAYS
Holiday greetings from my kitchen to your’s. Today I’m sharing the soup recipe you must make for the holidays. It’s not only pretty to look at in its festive bright green, it is also extremely delicious and healthy at the same time. What more could you ask for?
So, what kind of soup is it? It’s Watercress Soup. Did you guess? Probably not because I’m guessing it’s a little outside of the box for most people. But trust me, as so many people I have served it to would agree, this soup is really, really yummy.
It would not be Christmas in my household without Watercress Soup. I’ve been serving it every single Christmas day for decades. It’s the starter course for our traditional Christmas Dinner menu which consists of:
Watercress Soup
Prime Rib of Beef
Yorkshire Pudding
Whipped Horseradish Cream
Creamed Spinach
Creamed Corn
Yes, as you can see, we don’t skimp on decadence, calories and cholesterol count at Christmas. But surprisingly, my recipe for Watercress Soup contains no cream, it’s brimming with healthy antioxidants and is low in calories. What a great way to begin a special meal!
So, let me show you how to prepare this quick and easy recipe…
Start by melting 3 tablespoons of butter in a large, high-sided saute pan over medium heat.
Dice 1 medium sized onion…
and chop up 3 stalks of celery.
Add the diced onion and celery to the pan with the melted butter…
and saute over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until softened.
In the meantime peel and cube 1 medium sized russet potato.
Add 1, 32 ounce box (4 cups) chicken stock to a medium sized saucepan.
Stir in 1 teaspoon of kosher salt and 1/4 teaspoon of Lawry’s Season Salt.
Add the cubed potato to the saucepan and cook, covered, over medium low heat until the potatoes are tender. The potato is what will give the soup a creamy texture so that you will never miss the addition of cream or milk.
While the potatoes are cooking prepare the watercress. I buy 4 bags of living watercress…
then cut off the stems…
and throw the watercress in a salad spinner. Wash the tender leaves and spin off the excess water.
Remember to reserve a few small leaves to garnish the soup later.
Once the onions and celery are tender, add the watercress to the saute pan…
and quickly saute until just wilted. Then turn off the heat.
By this time the potatoes should be tender. Add the contents of the saute pan to the liquid stock and give it a stir.
Then carefully transfer the soup into a blender. This may have to be done in batches depending on the size of your blender. I use my Vitamix for a wonderful, creamy texture. You may also use an immersion blender but the texture will be more coarse.
Using a dish towel to prevent hot spills, hold down the top of your blender and blend on medium high until the soup is creamy.
Return the soup to the saucepan and reheated it just before serving.
Pour into your favorite soup bowl, garnish with a couple of reserved watercress leaves and enjoy.
Not only do I always serve this on Christmas Day, this year I decided to share the recipe with my Healthy Cooking Group at our holiday gathering.
The soup was our first course before we enjoyed a delicious Sweet Potato, Red Onion & Fontina Tart.
Dessert was beautiful and delicious Pomegranate Poached Pears with Pomegranate Sorbet. It was out of this world delicious, nutritious and refreshing. One of these days I hope to prepare it myself, at which time I’ll share the recipe with you.
Wishing you a wonderful, healthy and delicious holiday season!
- 3 Tablespoons Butter
- 1 Medium Onion, Diced
- 3 Stalks Celery, Diced
- 1 Medium Russet Potato, Cubed
- 1 32 Ounce Box (4 cups) Chicken Stock
- 1 Teaspoon Kosher Salt
- ¼ Teaspoon Lawry's Season Salt
- 4 Bunches Watercress, Tough Stems Removed
- Melt butter in a large, high-sided saute pan over medium heat.
- Add the diced onions and celery to the saute pan with the melted butter and saute over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until softened.
- Add the chicken stock, Kosher salt, season salt and cubed potatoes to a medium sized saucepan.
- Cook covered over medium low heat until the potatoes are tender.
- Once the onions and celery are tender, add the watercress to the saute pan, reserving a few leaves for garnish.
- Quickly saute until just wilted, then turn off the heat.
- By this time the potatoes should be tender. Add the contents of the saute pan to the liquid stock and potatoes and give it a stir.
- Carefully transfer the soup into a blender or Vitamix. This may have to be done in batches depending on the size of your blender. You may also use an immersion blender but the texture will be more coarse.
- Using a dish towel to prevent hot spills, hold down the top of the blender and blend on medium high until the soup is creamy.
- Return the soup to the saucepan and reheated it just before serving.
- Garnish with reserved watercress leaves.
So there you have it: THE SOUP RECIPE YOU MUST MAKE FOR THE HOLIDAYS
Thanks for dropping in! Do please leave a comment below. I’d love to hear from you!
All opinions expressed in this post are my own. Unless otherwise credited, all photos are the original property of Celia Becker @ www.AfterOrangeCounty.com and may not be reproduced without specific permission.
