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Rustic Cabbage Soup

admin — Thu, 16 Oct 2025 11:32:43 +0000

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Today’s cabbage soup recipe was inspired by the a mystery box delivery from Mariquita Farm in Watsonville, Ca. I show up to a designated pick-up spot, pay $25 and in turn get what feels like twenty pounds of beautiful produce direct from the farm. This time of year I might see the eyes of impossibly petite potatoes peering back at me, they could be nestled alongside a kaleidoscope of vibrantly colored carrots, or shouldered up against a of pile of parsnips.

Cabbage Soup Ingredients

Taking inspiration from a beautiful moon-shaped cabbage and potatoes in the mystery box, I sliced a the cabbage into thin ribbons and cooked it down in a simple pot of sautéed potatoes, beans, onions, garlic and flavorful broth. Each bowl was finished with a generous drizzle of great olive oil, a couple dabs of sour cream and a jolt of something spicy – in this case a bit of Calabrian chile paste. Couldn’t be more simple.

But before I get too far ahead of myself on the soup front, let me tell you a bit more about Mariquita Farm and what Andy and Julia are doing. There’s a bit of back story. I used to buy produce from Mariquita at the farmers market on Saturdays. After many years they decided not to do the market anymore. Mariquita sells my favorite rainbow carrots, and I was convinced I was going to have to find a new source. Not the case, Julia emailed some of her regulars last summer mentioning that she would be making the occasional delivery to San Francisco…“would we be interested in doing a pick-up?” She also mentioned the option of buying one of Andy’s specially curated mystery boxes – which have since become very popular.

This isn’t a CSA, it’s more guerilla than that. As it stands now, every other week(ish) Julia and Andy pack a huge delivery truck with many, many mystery boxes. Julia then climbs into the big truck and navigates her way over the Santa Cruz mountains down into Silicon Valley and then north toward San Francisco. She parks the truck in front of a previously designated neighborhood restaurant and people come from all over the city to trade cash for mystery crops. It’s great. I end up trying all manner of ingredients I might not buy otherwise. The crops are beautiful and bright because Andy takes such care in growing and handling them.

With out sounding too mushy, this is just one more reason I love living in San Francisco. On a good night, not only do I go home with the box (er, bag – the boxes get reused), but sometimes I even get to sit down for a drink or slice of pizza and catch up with Julia. It’s a real treat.

A few related links:

Mariquita Farm (website)
The Ladybug Letter (Letters from Andy)
Julia’s blog

Cabbage Soup Variations

Back to the soup – there are a bunch of variations I’ve made over the years cooking this. Here are a few stand-outs.

Parmesan Cabbage Soup: There are nights when I keep this super simple, finishing things off with a generous dusting of Parmesan cheese and a few chopped herbs.
Curried Cabbage Soup: Add a scant tablespoon of curry powder to the pot prior to stirring in the broth.
Lemony Cabbage Soup: Make the soup as written but serve each bowl topped with freshly grated lemon zest and a generous drizzle of lemon olive oil.

Cabbage Soup Leftovers

This is a great next-day soup. So keep that in mind. And, generally speaking, there are a couple ways to deal with leftovers (like, if you make a double pot). Cabbage soup freezes well, so eat your fill of the soup for a day or two, then freeze the remaining. You’ll want to make sure it is room-temperature or cold prior to freezing. Allow to thaw before reheating.

I suspect many of you have all the ingredients needed to cook this on hand – aside from the cabbage. I’m going to encourage you to give this a try! It’s a great staple recipe to have in your back pocket. This recipe was originally posted in early 2008, and I’ve cooked it many times in the years since. Enjoy! -h

More Soup Recipes

A little side note, if you enjoy making soups as much as I do, you’ll want to start making your own homemade bouillon powder. So easy, and nice to keep on hand!

Continue reading Rustic Cabbage Soup on 101 Cookbooks

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Homemade Condensed Cream of Celery Soup

admin — Mon, 14 Jul 2025 19:03:47 +0000

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This easy to make homemade condensed cream of celery soup is made with fresh, whole ingredients and can be frozen to keep on hand when needed. Thick and full of flavour, this soup can be used in any recipe that calls for canned cream of celery soup.

Homemade Condensed Cream of Celery Soup

This delicious homemade condensed cream of celery soup makes a fantastic replacement for the condensed can version or as a delicious stand-alone soup.

Easy to make, using fresh, quality celery helps creates a delectable soup that is so full of flavour.

Soup Variations

Try using vegetable broth instead of chicken broth.
This is to replace a condensed canned version of soup. If you want to use it as a soup, thin it out by adding extra milk or broth.
Cornflour can be used instead of plain flour.
Unsalted butter can be used, though you may want to add about ¼ tsp of salt.
One onion diced can be added to the saucepan with the celery.
4 garlic cloves minced, can be also added to the saucepan with the celery.
Fresh herbs and spices can also be added.
This soup can also be used as a base for other ‘cream of’ soups – just substitute the celery with things such as diced mushrooms (½ cup), asparagus, cheddar cheese ( 1 cup shredded) diced potato or even broccoli.

Ingredients for Cream of Celery Soup

To make around 2 cups of soup, which is equivalent to 1 can of condensed soup, you will need:

¾ Cup Celery, Finely Chopped
¾ Cup Chicken Broth
2 TBSP Plain Flour
2 TBSP Salted Butter
½ Cup Milk
Salt and Pepper, to taste

Making Homemade Cream of Celery Soup

Place the butter in a small saucepan and melt over medium heat.

Finely chop the celery and add it to the saucepan and cook for 5 to 7 minutes, until soft.

Add the flour and cook for 1 minute while stirring constantly.

While whisking, slowly add the broth and the milk. Continue to cook and whisk until smooth and the mixture thickens. This should take about 3 to 5 minutes.

Season with salt and pepper.

Use immediately or let cool and store in the fridge for up to 4 days.

For a lovely, creamy texture, blend the mixture with a blender, immersion blender or in a food processor. Though, be careful not to overdo it. Also, if blending when hot, be careful not to spill the hot soup on your.

Storing Cream of Celery Soup

Use immediately in place of canned cream of celery soup or enjoy as a soup, just thin it out with a little extra milk or broth.

Let it cool, then store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days.

Or, store in a freezer-safe container for up to 6 months. Let thaw in the fridge before using.

Condensed Cream Of Celery Soup

Simple Living. Creative Learning

This easy to make homemade condensed cream of celery soup is made with fresh, whole ingredients and can be frozen to keep on hand when needed.

Servings 2 Cups

Calories 173 kcal

Prep Time 15 minutes

Total Time 15 minutes

Cook ModePrevent your screen from going dark

Notes

Soup Variations

Try using vegetable broth instead of chicken broth.
This is to replace a condensed canned version of soup. If you want to use it as a soup, thin it out by adding extra milk or broth.Cornflour can be used instead of plain flour.
Unsalted butter can be used, though you may want to add about ¼ tsp of salt.
One onion diced can be added to the saucepan with the celery.
4 garlic cloves minced, can be also added to the saucepan with the celery.
Fresh herbs and spices can also be added.
This soup can also be used as a base for other ‘cream of’ soups – just substitute the celery with things such as diced mushrooms (½ cup), asparagus, cheddar cheese ( 1 cup shredded) diced potato or even broccoli.

Nutrition

Nutritional information is an estimate and provided as a courtesy. The values may vary according to the ingredients and tools that are used. Please use your preferred nutritional calculator for more detailed information.

Keyword Celery, Condensed Cream of Celery, Condiment, Cream of Celery Soup, Soup

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