Lighter Cream of Asparagus Soup

This past weekend was a mixed bag of emotions.

The low: JoePa passed away. I graduated from Penn State and this makes me incredibly sad. That man dedicated his life to Penn State. He will be MISSED. (Edited to add: If you have a minute, read this article…it highlights what an incredible person JoePa was. “He was a humble, funny and giving man who was unlike any other coach I ever met in college football. He rolled up his pants to save on dry cleaning bills. He lived in the same simple ranch house for the last 45 years. Same glasses, same wife, same job, for most of his adult life.”)

The highs:

• The Patriots are going to the super bowl (wahoooooo!)
• Most importantly, Kaylin said her first word! Dada . I almost fell on the floor when I heard her say it. So cute.
• The cream of asparagus soup I made Sunday night

After an indulgent dinner Saturday night, I wanted something lighter and greener. I have made cream of asparagus soup many times before, but I have made a vegan version from Tal Ronnen’s, the Conscious Cook.  Since I didn’t have any raw cashews for the cashew cream, I tried to make a dairy version.

Ingredients:

• 1 to 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 bunch of asparagus with ends trimmed off, chopped into bite sized pieces
• 3 stalks celery, chopped
• 1/2 large onion, chopped
• 2 1/2 cups chicken or vegetable broth
• 1/8 teaspoon ground red pepper
• 3 tablespoons butter
• 3 tablespoons flour
• 1 1/2 cups low-fat milk
• 2 cups of spinach

Directions:

Heat a large pot over medium heat. Add olive oil and heat for ~1 minute. Add asparagus, celery, and onion. Cook for ~10 minutes or until celery is softened up.

Add stock and red pepper. Turn heat to low and let mixture simmer, covered, for ~30 minutes.

Meanwhile, melt butter over medium low heat. Add flour and cook for 1 to 2 minutes. Whisk in milk, turn the heat to medium, bring to a boil and continue to whisk until mixture has thickened.

Add milk mixture and spinach to vegetable/broth mixture. Cook for 5 additional minutes. Puree using an immersion blender or blend in batches.

The soup was VERY tasty! Everyone enjoyed it- Josh even went back for seconds. We also had a simple salad (bad picture) on the side of spinach, almonds, Chinese noodles, tomato and cucumber. We also had sourdough bread and fruit:

Yum Yum! Have you had any highs or lows this week?