Staying Warm with Soups and Toques

Well it is definitely soup and toque season for those of us lucky enough to be living here on Vancouver Island and with my love of staying warm, I decided to write a little post on these two little things which help to keep me toasty!

As the days have started chilling down, I once again find myself pulling out vast toque collection. For those unfamiliar with word, a toque is a hat with a very narrow brim, or even no brim at all. Canada has widely adopted the word to describe knitted winter hats (otherwise known as beanies).

Sure, some might think it silly for a 24 year old woman to wear a rainbow coloured monkey  head hat, but to be fair, I never claimed to be a fashionista! To be completely honest, I have much more than a monkey hat in my toque collection, much much more: I believe no knitted hat collection would be complete without my owl toque with it's silly goggly eyes, or my ever favourite gladiator mohawk toque. The point is, these colourful hats, each as unique as the next, make me happy and they keep me head warm- Seems like a win-win!

At the same time of year that the toques come out, I start what I like to fondly call "soup season".

Although I have experimented with a few soup recipes already this year, the soup I made today was by far my favourite. In fact, it was so good that I had to share this fabulously easy vegetarian quinoa soup with spinach and squash, that is so hearty it satisfied my meat-eating boyfriend!

Quinoa, a new favourite in my kitchen, is an ancient Peruvian grain that is similar to cracked grain without the chewy texture. High in protein, quinoa is a staple in my pescatarian diet, and many refer to it as a super grain.

Quinoa Soup with Spinach and Squash
(serves 4)

 1 tablespoon olive oil

 1 medium onion, chopped
 4 garlic cloves, sliced
 1 cup quinoa
 1 cup butternut squash, chopped
 1 cup sweet corn

 1 cup shredded fresh spinach                                   
 1 cup shredded bok choy
 1 bunch shallots, chopped
 4-5 cups vegetable broth
 1 pinch thyme leaves
  1 pinch nutmeg
  salt and pepper to taste

Heat oil in a pan and add the chopped onion, brown on medium heat (8-10 minutes). Add in sliced garlic and shallots, keep stirring for another two minutes.
Add squash and stir in for a minute.
Add 3 cups of vegetable broth, nutmeg, salt and pepper and bring to a boil.
Add quinoa and bring to a boil again. Reduce heat and simmer, covered for 15 minutes.
Add corn, and remaining vegetable broth and cook 5 minutes.
Now add the spinach and bok choy in handfuls, and cook 5 minutes until wilted.

Serve immediately and Enjoy!

This amazing (and healthy) soup comes together almost effortlessly and you can really create some tasty alterations. Ginger root, potatoes, and even cabbage would be spectacular.

Be it soups or toques, I am doing my best to stay warm this winter season (until I get to Jamaica)- and hope you are too!