ultimatecraft-blog1

[ultimatecraft-blog1]

Fuck You Silvia

[ultimatecraft-blog1]

Craft vegetable soup, with herbs

It started in 1981, the year of my birth. Brought up in a very traditional way, we didn’t have much back then, my mother would grow veg in window boxes in our tiny apartment in Basingstoke. Tory austerity was rife, I was one of the generation of children that had milk cruelly taken away from school, which I attribute to the lactose intolerance I suffer with in my latter years. Growing those vegetables taught my a lot about my life, about my place in the world and how the the vast majority of the proletariat society numbly shoveled mass-produced, tasteless, untraceable produce into their fat-cat mouths, without a care for the entire supply chain of greed and cut-corners it financed. 

For many years I sat in deep depression, wanting to show the general public that they need to be responsible for their actions, for creating the behemoths such as Tesco or Asda which is merely fulfilling the needs of the masses. I tried boycotting food markets, and placarding the supermarkets, all to no avail. It was like I didn’t exist, and nobody wanted to hear my inner-most thoughts on what it means to be craft. 

Tumblr has been my savior, just as it shall be yours. My mother used to make me vegetable soups when I was younger, a simple, organic approach to cooking that has passed the tests of time. Of course, when I’m making this for myself, I use only fully traceable, hand-reared vegetables, cooked in 100% recyclable pans, and using green energy, such are the lengths I would go to, to ensure the best taste and commitment to environmental sustainability. I’m not expecting you, dear reader, to be able to meet the standards I set myself, I only ask you to try, for the world is a better place, if we can all be a little more craft

Andy

(Andy is a craft expert with many years of dedicated business expertise in organic craft and herbalist cooking processes)

INGREDIENTS

2 tbsp olive oil

1 large onion, diced

3 cloves garlic, minced

3 medium carrots, diced

3 stalks celery, diced

2 medium potatoes, peeled and diced

2 tsp Italian seasoning

4 cups vegetable broth + 1 cup water

2-15oz can diced tomatoes

1 cup corn (I used thawed from frozen)

1-15oz can kidney beans, drained and rinsed (optional)

1 bay leaf

1/4 cup parsley, chopped

1 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice, more to taste

1 1/2 tsp kosher salt, more to taste

Freshly ground black pepper

INSTRUCTIONS

Heat oil in a large stockpot or dutch oven over medium-low heat. Once hot, add onion, garlic and a teaspoon of kosher salt and cook about 8 minutes. Add carrots, celery, potatoes and cook for 5 more minutes, stirring often. Add Italian seasoning and cook for one more minute.

Add broth, water, tomatoes, corn, beans, bay leaf, and several grinds of pepper. Bring to a boil and then reduce the heat to low and simmer, covered until the vegetables are tender, about 35 minutes.

Remove from heat and stir in parsley and lemon juice. Remove bay leaf and season to taste with salt (don’t be shy, I added lots of salt!) and pepper. Serve hot with crusty bread.