Hello,

The “Fall into Greens” CSA session starts next week and we couldn’t be more excited! We look forward to providing you and your loved ones with healthy, nutrient dense food. Contact us if you haven’t signed up yet!

We plan on making a lot more soup now that the weather will be cooling down a bit. One may think of ingredients first when building a soup but we suggest starting with the stock. A great stock is one of the most important (if not THE most important) elements to a great soup. Many think that a great stock means hours and hours of simmering on the stove but you can get great flavor with minimal ingredients in just over 30 minutes.

I made this stock for an egg drop soup but it can be altered in so many ways – use different vegetables (onion, leeks, carrots, fennel, etc), add whole spices (cinnamon sticks, coriander seeds, star anise, cumin seeds, whole cloves, etc), or char the vegetables on the grill instead of under the broiler (which would also give the stock a nice smoky flavor). Play around with it but I think you will agree that the small amount of time it takes will give you a big payoff in flavor.

Charred Vegetable Stock
makes 1 quart

Ingredients:

• 3-1/4 ounces scallions (white and light green parts only), from about 8 scallions
• 2″ piece of fresh ginger, peeled and quartered
• 3 large garlic cloves, peeled
• 4-1/2 cups water (to account for water that evaporates so you are left with a quart of stock)
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• Salt to taste

Directions:

• Place oven rack in the middle-upper position and heat the broiler to high.
• Line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil and evenly space scallions, ginger and garlic around the sheet. Place in oven and cook until first side is blackened, about 5 minutes (check every couple of minutes as broilers vary greatly). Remove from oven and flip everything over. Return to oven and cook until second side is blackened, about another 5 minutes.
• Transfer cooked vegetables to a medium saucepan and add water. Bring to a boil, cover and reduce to a simmer. Cook for about 30 minutes. Strain the vegetables, pressing on the solids to extract as much flavor as possible. Once cool enough, taste and adjust seasoning as needed (I added soy sauce and some additional salt).