Recipe: Coconut Lemongrass Vegetable Ecstasy Soup
Description: Seriously, this Thai-style soup inspires your consumers to vocal joy.  I made it a group of family members.  Although my unadventurous dad&rsquo;s palate could do without, the remainder (none vegan) LOVED it and moaned happily, reminiscing about the restaurants where they&rsquo;d had similar soups.  Have also made for non-vegan friends, to rave reviews.  You are, more than likely, going to need to go to an Asian market for the lemongrass, veggie fish sauce, curry and tamarind pastes.  If you&rsquo;ve never been, just take your time getting acquainted with the store, and ask for help if you can&rsquo;t find these things.  While you&rsquo;re there, you might as well get the basil (Asian-style is different &amp; more potent than Italian-style), coconut milk, soy sauce, ginger and dry shitakes: you&rsquo;ll have more choices and likely better prices than your standard grocer.  And get some Sriracha hot sauce too.  (Plastic bottle, bright orange sauce, green top.)
Ingredients: [{"text": "3 carrots (sliced or julienned)"}, {"text": "1 bell pepper, sliced into strips"}, {"text": "3 stalks celery, sliced"}, {"text": "1 onion, chopped"}, {"text": "5 cups vegetable broth (or water + boullion)"}, {"text": "1 head broccoli, chopped"}, {"text": "2 -3 stalks lemongrass, bruised with meat tenderizer"}, {"text": "4 potatoes, diced (no peeling necessary)"}, {"text": "1 cup dried shiitake mushrooms or 3 cups fresh shiitake mushrooms, in strips"}, {"text": "1 (16 ounce) can chickpeas (non-tofu protein) (optional)"}, {"text": "1 tablespoon fresh ginger, grated"}, {"text": "3 tablespoons vegetarian fish sauce (pad Thai sauce works)"}, {"text": "1 teaspoon Thai curry paste"}, {"text": "2 tablespoons soy sauce"}, {"text": "1/4 cup tamarind paste"}, {"text": "2 (16 ounce) cans coconut milk (don't mess with low-fat)"}, {"text": "1/2 cup fresh basil, chopped"}, {"text": "2 limes, juice of"}, {"text": "2 teaspoons lime zest"}, {"text": "1 cup vegetarian chicken pieces (optional) or 1 cup tofu, chunks (optional)"}]
Instructions: Heat coconut oil over medium heat&mdash;do not let it smoke&mdash;and add carrots, bell pepper, celery and onion.  Saute until crisp-tender.
Add all ingredients, down to and including tamarind paste: broth, broccoli, lemongrass, potatoes, shitakes, chick peas, ginger, fish sauce, curry paste, soy sauce, tamarind paste.
Bring to a boil, stirring frequently.
Reduce heat to simmer: add remaining ingredients and simmer until potatoes are soft.  Do taste tests from time to time.  If the flavor is lacking, add more tamarind, or soy sauce, or fish sauce, or more curry paste if you like it HOT!  You are unlikely to need to salt this soup with all those delicious seasonings.  If you don&rsquo;t like the veggie-to-broth ration, add more broth.
Remove lemongrass and serve (but put it back in with any leftovers in the fridge; this soup gets better every day).  Put some Sriracha on the table for the hot-sauce devotees.
