White Bean & Potato Broth w/ Mixed Greens, Thyme, and Lemon

One-bowl meals are popular at our place…to be precise, they are my significant other’s favorite type of meal.  And, while I tend to prefer plated meals that consist of several distinct foods, I think he’s on to something there.  Soups, stews, curries…anything that lends itself to combining veggies, legumes, and other goodies into one pot usually makes a quick and satisfying meal…not mention easy cleanup.

I picked up some beautiful braising greens recently, and with the addition of some yellow potatoes, cannellini beans and a few other elements, this made a simple one-bowl meal. It's very basic and nothing special I know, but it turned out  tasty and rustic-looking so I thought I might as well post it.

I think the key to making this nice and savory is to let the broth simmer for a while before adding in the main vegetables.  If I don't have any homemade broth stored in the freezer, I like to use Seitenbacher Veggie Broth;  it contains a really nice combination of  nutritional yeast, dried veggies, and herbs including turmeric root, lovage, nutmeg and paprika, among others. In it's simplicity, it makes a really tasty broth and/or seasoning.

Serves 4
Broth:
1 large leek, sliced into thin rounds (2 cups sliced)
3-4 cloves garlic, slightly crushed but left whole
2 ribs of celery, chopped
8 cups water (I went with 4 cups veggie broth and 4 cups plain water)
pinch of red chili flakes
smattering of dried oregano
olive oil for sauteeing (or whatever you prefer to saute with) 

Veggies:
10 -12 medium-sized yellow potatoes, cut into quarters
large bunch of mixed greens/greens of choice (~ 1 pound's worth)
2 cups pre-cooked cannellini beans
lemon wedges
fresh thyme

Saute the leek, garlic, and celery until they become tender and aromatic...(I added a pinch of red chili pepper and some oregano too). Add the veggie broth/water and allow to simmer gently until the leek, garlic, and celery have infused nicely into the broth...this could be anywhere from 30 minutes to an hour. Then add the potatoes and continue to simmer until the potatoes are tender. Depending on the volume of your potatoes and how much the broth has cooked down...you may have to adjust the amount of  water. A few minutes before serving, add the greens and the beans. Serve with fresh lemon and thyme.

Along with a salad freshly picked from the garden it makes a pleasant seasonal meal.

But wait...there's more! I was delighted when I saw some organic blackcap raspberries at the local co-op. I was thinking of giving them a post all their own...but I didn't do anything special with them...we just ate them plain. And, that's all you need to do. They are my favorite summer berry: a tart edge over a deep raspberry flavor...truly delicious and perfect just the way they are.