cauliflower and celery root soup with kale chips

We've been trying to eat more green around here. I never realized how difficult it was to get to 8-10 servings of fruits and veggies a day. Oh, my. We headed out to Trader Joe's this past Sunday and stocked up on eggplant, bags of greens, melon, avocado, and tons more. And then we received our CSA box on Tuesday filled with pounds of pounds of plums, oranges, kale, cauliflower, and the like. People - we are up to our ears in fruits and veggies.

In an attempt to put this produce to good use, I whipped up a soup using 4 of the vegetables in our kitchen. I was pretty pleased with the results, if I do say so myself. Oh - and I made my first batch of kale chips. It was love at first bite!

I had some roasted butternut squash and cooked green lentils in the fridge. I blended this with cauliflower, celery root, vegetable broth, and a tablespoon of curry powder. The result was a hearty, creamy soup without any added milk or cream.

Oh - and just so we're clear - yes, I know I used a Magic Bullet to blend my soup. I broke our blender earlier this week. I learned an important lesson: do not leave metal spoons inside the blender and then furiously hit the pulse button. It will break. Sigh. I also learned a second, possibly more important lesson, I need an immersion blender. Badly.

I love spicy foods, so I topped mine with about a teaspoon of chili oil. And then some goat cheese and microgreens because they never hurt anyone.

When I opened the CSA box and saw kale, my first reaction was KALE CHIPS! I have been dying to make a batch ever since I saw the easy recipe in Bon Appetit a year or so ago. I don't know what took me so long. These are addictive. And oh so healthy. I made some extra so I could bring them as a little afternoon snack for work tomorrow.

cauliflower and celery root soup
(makes 2 dinner portions)

1 large cauliflower
1 small celery root
1/2 cup roasted butternut squash
1 cup cooked green lentils
4 cups low sodium vegetable broth
1 tablespoon curry powder
1 tablespoon salt
Optional garnishes: goat cheese, microgreens, chili oil

Cut the brown skin off the celery root and chop into 1/2 inch pieces. Place celery root in vegtable broth, bring up to a boil, and then reduce to medium. Cook for 7 minutes. Breakdown cauliflower and add to broth. Cook for an additional 5 minutes, or until celery root and cauliflower are fork tender. Turn off heat and mix in butternut squash, lentils, and curry powder. Let cool for 5 minutes and then blend soup in batches.

Garnish with goat cheese, microgreens, and chili oil - if you'd like.

kale chips
(makes enough for 1-2 people, depending on how greedy you are)

1 bundle kale
Olive oil spray
Salt

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Wash kale and dry thoroughly. De-stem the kale and rip into pieces. Place on lined cookie sheet. Spray with oilve oil and sprinkle with salt. Bake for 12 minutes, or until kale are crispy.