Easy Veggie Soup

While I love my Spring/Summer CSA, every year around the time I start to get a little tired of getting creative with the random assortment of veggies I receive each week. I suppose I'm just ready for a little change of pace. However, I hate to waste (don't we all?!), so throwing a simple, quick soup together is a perfect use of all of those late summer veggies.

The key? A good chicken broth base. If you don't have the time to make your own, Trader Joe's has a great one (see below... Apparently it was selected as one of Real Simple's best chicken broths).

This is really a make-up-as-you-go kind of recipe, but to give you an idea, here's what I did last time:

I sautéed a little diced onion, celery and garlic in olive oil until tender, then added an assortment of veggies (diced squash, a diced potato, a few diced grape tomatoes, corn from the cob and half a bag of frozen mixed veggies) and spices (a little oregano, thyme, sea salt and pepper). I then added TJ's chicken stock, 2 cups of water and some fusilli pasta. In the past I've added a can of drained and rinsed black beans, too, but left them out this time.

I like to let it simmer for an hour or so, to really let the veggies and pasta soak up the wonderful flavor from the chicken stock.

Voila. Easy lunches for the week. Jett seemed to really like this soup, too, so it's also great for the little ones. And like most soups, it freezes well.

Enjoy!