Seems like I am the luckiest mama in the world. I have 2 daughters who love to cook and who love to share their recipes. One daughter, who you all know as the “Reluctant Veggie,” I gave birth to; the other, my son brought into our lives.

This daughter-in-love sent an email to me last week with the subject heading: “Soooo good!” It was a recipe she absolutely raved about. And when that happens I take notice. She is a very good cook. She says she loooooooooves Ina Garten, (the Barefoot Contessa) and found the recipe online while looking for a different soup recipe. I am glad she did.

The recipe looks complicated, but it is very simple and easy to make. There are three components to the soup which can be done in stages.

Begin by roasting the root vegetables in the oven. You can do this the night before and serve the vegetables as a side dish, which is what Ina Garten does. They are awesome just like that. The remaining roasted vegetables are then pureed with broth to make a rich, and thick soup.

To serve, the soup is topped with homemade croutons. The croutons are good enough to eat as a snack. When all these components are melded together you have mouthwatering bliss!

Here is a photo of the vegetables prior to roasting:

Roasted vegetables:

And here is the soup with homemade croutons:

The recipe is from the Ina Garten Barefoot Contessa Family Style Cookbook. It was easily adapted to a vegetarian version by simply substituting vegetable broth for chicken broth. I used the Whole Foods 365 Brand Vegetable Broth {it’s Nightshade Free}.

Roasted Winter Vegetables:

Ingredients:

• 1 pound carrots, peeled
• 1 pound parsnips, peeled
• 1 large sweet potato, peeled
• 1 small butternut squash (about 2 pounds), peeled and seeded
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Cut the carrots, parsnips, sweet potato, and butternut squash in 1 to 1 1/4-inch cubes. All the vegetables will shrink while baking, so don’t cut them too small.
2. Put all the cut vegetables in a very large bowl. Drizzle them with olive oil, salt, and pepper. Toss well.
3. Place on two large baking sheets in a single layer.
4. Bake for 25 to 35 minutes, until all the vegetables are tender, turning once with a metal spatula.
5. Sprinkle with parsley, season to taste and serve hot. (If not serving as a vegetable dish, let cool before proceeding with soup recipe.)

Yield: 8 servings

Roasted Vegetable Soup:

Ingredients:

• 3 to 4 cups vegetable broth
• 4 cups Roasted Winter Vegetables
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions for Soup:

1. In a large saucepan, heat 3 cups of vegetable broth. Coarsely puree the Roasted Winter Vegetables and the broth in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade (or use a handheld blender).
2. Pour the soup back into the pot and season, to taste.
3. Thin with more broth and reheat. The soup should be thick but not like a vegetable puree, so add more broth and/or water until it’s the consistency you like.
4. Serve with croutons, a sprig of parsley and a drizzle of olive oil.

Note: I used all of the roasted vegetables in the recipe above for the soup except for about 2 small servings. Therefore, I used about 6-7 cups of vegetable broth. The recipe made enough soup for 6-8 servings.

Whole Wheat Croutons:

Ingredients:

• 6 ounces whole wheat bread (or bread of your choosing; I used ½ loaf of bread)
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Slice the bread about 3/4-inch thick. Cut off the crusts and then cut the slices in 3/4-inch dice.
3. You should have 3 to 4 cups of croutons.
4. Place the croutons in a bowl and toss them with the olive oil, salt, and pepper.
5. Arrange on a baking sheet in one layer. Bake for 10 to 15 minutes, tossing once, until they’re nicely browned on all sides. Cool to room temperature before using.

Yield: 3 to 4 cups

For your information:
This recipe is vegetarian and vegan. It is also nightshade free, dairy free, soy free, egg free, cinnamon free, and contains no msg. It can also be wheat free and gluten free depending on your choice of bread for the croutons.

The Epic E-Book

If you're anything like me, you have big, amazing, ambitious dreams.

In this epic e-book, I'll walk you through the ideas and exercises that have transformed my life - and the lives of my clients - and brought those ambitious dreams into being.

Get in on the fun.