Turkey Alternative Part I: Italian Bread Soup

Oh bloggy,

How I've missed you.

What better week to celebrate beautiful food than thanksgiving week? This is part one of two great recipes I recently tried out. They aren't necessarily turkey-alternatives but more-so awesome cool-weather meals that are relatively quick and easy.

Part Uno:

I'm not really sure how accurate this recipe is to traditional Italian Bread soup. Or if traditional Italian Bread soup really exists? I randomly saw a picture in a cookbook and said "hey, I can make this vegan." The rest is sort of just history.

Italian Bread Soup

1 loaf ciabatta bread (sorry gluten-free faces!)
1 28oz. can of crushed tomatoes
2 tbsp fresh chopped sage

1 32oz. thing (package? can?) of vegetable broth (if you're crafty and not working and going to school full-time you should prolly just make your own)

6+ crimini mushrooms chopped

1/2 onion chopped

2 large carrots

1/2 head of savoy cabbage chopped (make sure to get this and not some other imitation cabbage)

olive oil

salt and pepper to taste

Preheat your oven to 400.˚ Heat about 2 tbsp of olive oil in a frying pan. Once oil has heated for a minute throw in the onions. Brown slightly. While you are doing this, stir the tomatoes and vegetable broth together in a large pot. Bring to a boil. Once boiling add carrots, mushrooms, sage and browned onions. Simmer and cover (or vice versa). I would let this simmer for about 25 minutes so everything can cook together. If you like things to cook for longer - go for it - who am I to judge? Now add the cabbage and cook for another 5 minutes. You don't want to overcook your cabbage - overcooked cabbage is nar the horn nasty.

About 15 minutes before your soup is cooked - chop enough bread for you and who-so-ever is dining with you. Place the bread on a cookie sheet and sprinkle with olive oil. You can sprinkle some salt on their too depending on your taste. Place in oven for about 10 minutes until it's nice and toasty. Take out of oven and off of the sheet.

When you are bowling up your soup (bowling?), put at least a few slices of the bread on top of the soup so they can soak in. This soup wouldn't be Italian Bread soup without BREAD in it (gluten-intolerant friends, I encourage you to try this with your favorite bread alternative).

Bring this to your Thanksgiving party and say "L-tryptophan what?!?"

Love you, mean it

Emily