Leftover Vegetable Soup – Uses leftover vegetables whether from making vegetable broth or leftovers from meals and turns them into a nutritious warming bowl of loveliness.
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Leftover Vegetable Soup – It is what it says…
Leftover Vegetable Soup is exactly what it says… A warming bowl of yumminess that is made from leftover vegetables. Which means not only does it cut down on food waste, but it will make your money go further. I mean, let’s be honest. How many of us have veggies leftover at the end of a meal that we simply throw in the bin? I know I have been guilty on many an occasion.
It’s a travesty. According to the organisation Love Food Hate Waste, UK households waste an estimated 4.5 million tonnes of perfectly edible food every year… Enough to fill 38 million (yes… million!) wheelie bins. They also estimate that the average family of 4 could save around £60 per month by reducing food waste… That’s over £700 per year.
The beauty of Leftover Vegetable Soup is that pretty much anything works in it… Veg that has been boiled, roasted or fried… leftover from the Sunday lunch or the midweek traybake. When you put them all in the pot together, season well and blend, magic happens. Whether you have a lot of leftovers or just enough for one bowl, soup has to be a better option than the bin… right?
The inspiration for Leftover Vegetable Soup
The inspiration for Leftover Vegetable Soup came from making a very different soup which used a home-made vegetable broth… A delicious Spiralized Oriental Courgette-Noodle Soup. The roasted vegetables that formed the base to that broth were left in the sieve and were destined to be trashed. But they were simply too good to waste. So I decided they should be turned into a second soup.
Pimped up with a little chilli powder, salt and pepper and some quick-fried gluten free ‘Croutons’ and Crispy Fried Parsley to add a bit of bite, it made another perfect meal… Warming, filling and nutritious. The Croutons can be made with gluten free or ‘normal’ bread. My Gluten Free Wholemeal Bread or my Vegan GF Wholemeal Loaf are ideal for making them. The iron-rich parsley is speed-fried in hot oil so that it crisps up… a little like crispy seaweed in texture.
I did consider whether to bother blogging this soup at all after the triumph of its ‘better’ spiralized sister. But somehow it felt a little discriminatory not to… And plated, photographed and tasted, it seemed to redeem itself with its beautiful golden hue, rich flavour and attractive crispy accompaniments.
Are there any vegetables that I can’t use in this soup?
Pretty much any leftover vegetables can be used in this soup, with the possible exception of roast potatoes. Boiled potatoes and mashed potatoes are fine. But there is something about the texture and toughness of the skin on roast potatoes that means they don’t really break down well even when blended. So for that reason, I would probably avoid putting them in your soup.
Having said that… Slicing and frying up old roast potatoes can give them a second life. And eating them as a side dish to the soup works perfectly.
What if I don’t have enough leftover vegetables to make soup?
If you haven’t got enough leftover vegetables for a large meal, you have a couple of options… Save the leftovers you have got in the fridge or freezer until you do. Or if you have enough veg for a single soup bowl, make it anyway and snaffle it as lunch for one!
Other Soups at Gluten Free Alchemist
We have other delicious soup recipes at Gluten Free Alchemist too. Why not take a look at our Soups & Salads Index for more inspiration. One of our absolute favourites is the warming Pumpkin Soup served with delicious roasted pumpkin and seeds. But we also have another gorgeously thick and filling Roasted Vegetable Soup recipe too.
For lots of other gluten free cooking and baking ideas, we also have a beautiful on-line recipe book to browse. From meals to cakes and cookies, there’s something for everyone.
Leftover Vegetable Soup with ‘Croutons’ & Crispy Fried Parsley
Key equipment
- chopping board
- sharp vegetable knife
- blender
- saucepan
- wooden/silicone spoon
- small frying pan
- heat-proof spatula
- kitchen paper
Ingredients
Leftover Vegetable Soup
- 750 g leftover vegetables – any (approx weight) boiled/roasted/steamed (not roast potatoes)
- stock or water
- 1 tsp dried herbs of choice
- ½ tsp chilli powder optional
- salt and pepper
'Croutons'
- 2 slices bread gluten free if required
- 2 tbsp olive or sunflower oil
Crispy Fried Parsley
- small bunch fresh parsley
- 1 tbsp olive/sunflower oil
Instructions
Leftover Vegetable Soup
- The leftover vegetables used for the soup post are leftover from making Vegetable Broth (see NOTES). Or use any other leftover vegetables (boiled; steamed; roasted) and if large, cut into smaller pieces.
- Put the vegetables straight into a blender.
- Add a little stock (made with stock powder/cube) or water if using plenty of other seasoning.
- Liquidise the whole lot and season with a little extra salt and pepper and optional herbs or chilli, to taste.
- Pour into a saucepan and heat through before serving. Adjust seasoning to taste.
'Croutons'
- Take a couple of slices of bread (I used gluten free bread) and slice into bite-sized cubes.
- Heat the oil in a small frying pan until hot.
- Fry for a few minutes, turning until golden and crisp.
- Transfer onto some kitchen paper to soak off any excess oil.
Crispy Fried Parsley
- Take a handful of fresh parsley and rip it in half.
- Using a little hot olive or vegetable oil (you can use the oil from the croutons), drop the parsley into the pan (be careful – it will spit and crackle loudly) and toss through with a heat proof spatula.
- Cook for a couple of minutes. Be careful not to over-brown, or it will taste bitter.
- Remove from the pan and place on kitchen paper to soak off any excess oil.
To Serve
- Top the soup with croutons and crispy fried parsley and serve.
Notes
Nutrition
Gluten free AND Vegan (or thinking of heading that way?) – check out my post on Gluten Free Vegan – Surviving Veganuary and Beyond
What a glorious soup! Love the sound of the crisp parsley too. Thank you for sharing with the No Waste Food Challenge!
You're welcome xx
You cannot beat a good veg soup. It has to be the best way to use up any veg that is past its best. This soup looks and sounds delicious x #CookOnceEatTwice
Absolutely Kirsty. Any veg makes great soup. You can't beat it! x
This sounds gorgeous, Kate – and what a fab use of leftovers that might otherwise have gone in the bin! Eb x
Thanks Eb. I couldn't bear to throw away a load of tasty veg…. I had to do something with it! x
I love roasted veggie soup, This looks beautiful. Love the texture and crunch from the croutons and crispy parsley. Thanks for sharing with #extraveg & #creditcrunchmunch
Thank you Helen. you're welcome x
I love that you turned your stock vegies into a second soup – I rarely make stock unless making it from vegie scraps and I even feel guilty throwing them out. I think rather than calling them your better and second best soup you should call them the summer and winter sisters as when it is cold I would prefer this vegie soup – esp with the fried parsley which sounds interesting
Thank you Johanna. Making the stock would have seemed quite a faff if I hadn't benefitted from the veg at the end.
The summer – winter comparison is a good one! There was absolutely a warm heavy cold weather soup and a light fresh spring lunch option… And the crispy parsley was amazingly crispy!
What a fab presentation! I love the look of this soup it makes me hungry and I love the oriental touch!
Thanks Alida x
I don't ever want to hear you describe your food as nondescript. You must go back and change that wording right now!!!! It looks delicious 😉
Ha ha! Thanks Vicki. It was a good soup, but not a patch on the pretty front when compared with it's spiralized sister!
Yes we all need a break from time to time but what a frugal recipe to come back with – it looks delicious! 🙂 Thank you for linking up with #CreditCrunchMunch
Thank you Sarah. Frugal maybe…. but very yummy!
It does look absolutely beautiful and definitely worthy of being blogged! I love the idea of the crispy fried parsley on top too. Thank you for linking up with #CookOnceEatTwice again!
Thank you Corina. You're welcome. It was amazing how crispy the parsley was!