Spring Fresh Vegetarian Pea Soup
This creamy soup is made with farmer's market-fresh spring peas, mint, and ghee for extra flavor and richness.
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Lactose-free ghee, lauded for its creamy and nutty flavor, can be used in the same way as butter. In fact, ghee is clarified butter, which means it’s basically butter with the milk solids removed. But to treat ghee as just a form of butter doesn’t properly acknowledge the fact that this food has traditionally been used for its health-giving properties. Ghee has a long and respected history as a medicinal and healing food in Ayurvedic medicine, a tradition that dates back nearly 5,000 years. In Ayurveda, it’s believed to strengthen the ojas, the vital energy cushion at the root of our well-being and immunity. In her classic book Food and Healing, Annemarie Colbin, PhD, calls ghee one of the three best-quality fats.
Ingredients
- 1 Tbs. olive oil or ghee (TRY: 4th & Heart Original Recipe Ghee)Â
- ¾ cup finely chopped spring onions (or leek or sweet onion)
- 3 cups low-sodium vegetable broth
- 1/3 cup plain Greek yogurt (or coconut yogurt)
- 2 Tbs. minced fresh chives
- 2 Tbs. minced fresh mint
- 1 Tbs. fresh-squeezed lemon juice
- 1 small clove garlic, minced
- 1 lb. shelled fresh sweet peas (or frozen baby peas)
- Salt and fresh ground pepper, to taste
- ¼ cup pastured or organic cream (or evaporated coconut milk)
Preparation
- Heat oil or ghee in soup pot over medium heat. Add spring onion, and cook 3–4 minutes until just beginning to soften. Add broth, increase heat to high, and bring to boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer about 8 minutes, or until onions are very tender.
- While onions are cooking, mix together yogurt, chives, mint, lemon juice, and garlic in small bowl, and set aside.
- Add peas, salt, and pepper to broth mix, return to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer until peas are tender, about 3 minutes.
- Purée soup until very smooth using an immersion blender, regular blender, or food processor. Return to low heat, and mix in cream. Adjust seasonings, if necessary, and serve each bowl with a generous dollop of the yogurt garnish.
Nutrition Information
- Calories 170
- Carbohydrate Content 22 g
- Cholesterol Content 5 mg
- Fat Content 5 g
- Fiber Content 7 g
- Protein Content 8 g
- Saturated Fat Content 1.5 g
- Sodium Content 250 mg
- Sugar Content 8 g