Creamy Celery and Garlic Soup

Creamy Celery and Garlic Soup, annotated

1 Tablespoon grapeseed or canola oil
1 bunch green onions, chopped, or 1 small onion, chopped (We prefer green onions)
1 head garlic, cloves separated and peeled (That’s right: a whole head of garlic!)
1 bunch celery, sliced, leaves removed
1 large potato, peeled and diced (We don’t peel our potatoes…)
7 cups water or veg broth (We use water)
2-3 vegetable bouillon cubes (We use 2 Knorr Veg. Bouillon cubes. You might have a healthier alternative)
2 sprigs fresh parsley
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste (There’s plenty of sodium in the celery and bouillon; We never need to add any)

Heat the oil in a large soup pot and sauté the onion until tender, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the garlic and celery and sauté for another 2 minutes. Add the potato, water, veg bouillon cubes, and parsley, and bring to a simmer. Cover and simmer 30 minutes. Remove the parsley and discard (We like to leave it in. You can also use dried parsley if that’s all you have). Remove from the heat, add salt to taste and puree in a blender (We bought an immersible blender – We much prefer that because there’s less cleanup), in batches. Return to the pot and heat through. Add pepper to taste, adjust the salt, and serve. (Again, no added salt needed.)

—Martha Rose Shulman, from Fast Vegetarian Feasts

One-Pan Salmon Veggie Bake

Aluminum foil

Nonstick vegetable oil cooking spray

2 pounds new potatoes (small red and yellow potatoes)

2 tablespoons olive oil

4 tablespoons lemon juice

4 cloves minced garlic

2 tablespoons fresh thyme

salt and pepper to taste

2 tablespoons honey

2 teaspoons chopped ginger

2 salmon fillets

1 bunch of asparagus, about 1 pound

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 400°F/200°C.

Cover a sheet pan with aluminum foil and spray with nonstick cooking spray. Spread out potatoes on the pan and drizzle with 1 tbsp. olive oil and 1 tbsp. lemon juice. Season with salt and pepper and sprinkle 1 clove minced garlic and 1/2 tbsp. thyme over the potatoes. Bake for 15 minutes, flip, then bake for another 10 minutes.

In the meantime, create the salmon glaze. Combine 2 tbsp. lemon juice, 2 tbsp. honey, 2 tbsp. lemon juice, 2 tsp. ginger, 2 cloves minced garlic, and 1 tbsp. thyme. Set aside.

Take the potatoes out of the oven and push them to the top or side of your pan. (Don’t cramp them — make sure to still space them out a bit.) Place the salmon fillets on the pan. Season both sides with salt and pepper and brush on the glaze onto both sides. Place asparagus on the pan and top with 1 tbsp. olive oil, 1 tbsp. lemon juice, salt and pepper, 1 clove minced garlic, and 1/2 tbsp. thyme. Bake for 8-10 minutes. (The salmon should flake easily with a fork when it’s ready.)