The recipe I am posting about today came about because I had quite a few odds and ends in my crisper drawer that needed to be used as soon as possible. I love soup a lot, but I don't always have broth on hand. I do often make my own, but there is often a gap between when I run out and when I remember to make some more. For me this is a barrier, because I don't usually like buying stock from the store. Since I know I can make a much better product, I don't usually buy it, but then I still don't end up making it right away either.

Maybe this is only me, but sometimes I just want my soup now. Like instant noodles now. I am so very happy to say that thanks to Marisa over at Food in Jars, I have found a happy medium between homemade quality, and cup of noodles fast. Her recipe is basically a salt preserved veggie paste that lives in your fridge and gives you soup whenever you want it. It's one teaspoon per cup of boiling water, and there you go! This is something I always have in my fridge now. It's one of my favourite pantry staples, and something that gets even more interesting in flavour the older it gets. Her recipe uses dried tomatoes, but what I had on hand was dried wild mushrooms "foraged" (read purchased) from a shopping trip to Costco, of all places, so I substituted them and it was a really delicious choice. Find her recipe here if you would like to make some (I highly recommend it)!

Due to a lack of stock in the freezer, I turned to this soup concentrate paste to transform my wilting veggies into a beautiful, deeply flavoured soup! Use anything you have around. I had a bunch of root veggies, and some other things, but really the sky is the limit here. Roasted tomato soup with this method would be amazing, or maybe you have some lettuce, or kale that you didn't quite make it through - throw that in there (although add it in right after the roasting step). The only thing I would consider is making sure the final colour of your soup will be appetizing. The sky is technically the limit, but you might want to think twice about using your kale and tomatoes - for example - together since red and green when combined make grey. It will still be perfectly edible, and probably tasty, but it won't be winning any beauty pageants! Chop everything up into large chunks, and roast in a 350 degree Fahrenheit oven for about an hour, or until it is all fork tender, and getting caramelized around the edges. Your next step is to bend, add liquid, season it, and simmer the whole thing until you are happy with it! Feel free to also use regular broth or stock in this recipe if that is what you have and it will taste just as delicious!

Your yield for this recipe will vary a lot, since it is just using up whatever you have around. Don't worry about specific amounts. What I used in the above photo (baking tray is the largest size, for reference) made enough soup for about 5 servings.

Roasted Vegetable Soup

Yield will vary

Miscellaneous vegetables (I used parsnips, carrots, onion, garlic, leeks, celeriac, and sunchokes)
Olive oil
Salt
Pepper
Juice from One Lemon
6 cups of water (or substitute stock/broth and omit the soup base)
6 teaspoons soup base

Chop vegetables into large pieces (peeling is not necessary, but if your veggies are a little bit past their prime it might be a good idea), and arrange in a single layer on a baking tray. Drizzle with olive oil, season with salt and pepper, and roast in a 350 degree Fahrenheit oven for about an hour. Veggies should be fork tender, and lots of caramelization is a good thing (ie: they might look quite dark, or even a bit burnt around the edges, but that will add flavour).
Transfer vegetables and a cup or two of water into a blender or food processor, and purée until smooth. (This is when you add your leafy greens if you are going to be using them).
Pour the whole mix into a pot on medium heat (or a slow cooker if you want to do it ahead of time) and add the rest of the water a cup at a time until you like the consistency. Whisk in the soup base, taste, and season with additional salt and pepper as desired. The soup base is very salty so definitely taste before adding any more salt.
When you are happy with the consistency and overall flavour, stir in the lemon juice. Soup is ready to eat as soon as it is warmed through.