It’s will be almost 90 degrees in DC today, so my timing for posting this soup recipe might be a little off. But I’ve been sick for the past couple of days so I think it’s still works and well, my schedule is just a little off recently. So deal with it? No doubt we’ll have a few cooler days this spring, and you’ll want to make this light spinach and tomato soup for a simple weeknight dinner soon.

This is one of those things you can throw together so easily, with whatever you have in the fridge and pantry. Making this really made me excited for the CSA I joined – it would be great to throw in even more fresh veggies in there. I can’t wait until I start getting my CSA produce…hopefully with my new schedule it will force me to get in the kitchen when I can and be a little more creative too. Looking forward to sharing those meals with you – I have a fun series planned!

Ok let’s get to this recipe, which really is an anti-recipe, because 1. I don’t totally remember it and 2. this is my chance to teach you to be a little more free in the kitchen…realize that you can just throw together a bunch of ingredients and with some repetition and confidence, you too will think something like this is so so easy to make. Without planning, I whipped this up in about 30 minutes and had leftovers for days. Go ahead, try it…

Spring Spinach and Tomato Soup

In a large pot, heat a few tablespoons of olive oil and butter. Sautée chopped garlic, onion, and carrot until they start to soften over medium heat (I had shredded carrot from a salad a made a few weeks ago). Add in a few cans of crushed or whole peeled (then chopped) tomatoes plus some chicken stock (I used 2 15-oz cans of each and always keep these things stocked in my kitchen). Got some good white wine you’re going to drink later? Pour a little of that in too. (1/2 cup or so?) Bring to a boil. Ok, I’m lazy and don’t want to wash another dish, so I cook my pasta right here in my soup. It totally works but when you do this you might need some more liquid because when the pasta cooks, it soaks it up. So if you’re doing this, have some extra chicken stock (and wine!) on hand that you can add in after if needed. You can also leave out the pasta, but really why would you do that? Once boiling, add in angel hair pasta. Once cooked through (only about 3 minutes, longer with other pastas) add in a can of cannellini beans and a whole bag of fresh spinach leaves. Stir well. You can season with salt, pepper, bay leaf (don’t forget to take it out when you’re done), and some Italian seasoning mix as you go or at the end. After all the spinach as wilted a bit, you’re all set. Grate some good Parmesan on top. Serve with crusty bread and more of that wine if you aren’t sick.

Haha ok, hate me? You can do it. Bon appétit!

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