Scottish Oatmeal Vegetable Soup

Oatmeal soup? 

Sounds strange, but it is a popular dish in Scotland where oats have been grown for centuries and is a staple of the country. Scottish oatmeal vegetable soup is simple yet unusual. It's fast and easy and worth making. It often includes carrots, cabbage, turnips, onions,  leeks or even tomatoes. It comes out creamy and filling.

Oats are good for you (Even though oats are gluten free, oats need to be certified gluten-free, otherwise cross-pollination may occur and contaminate the oats when they are growing or being processed). Oats may help lower cholesterol levels and provide a decent amount of fiber which may help regulate blood sugar levels.

The first time I tasted this kind of soup, I was amazed how good oatmeal tastes with vegetables. After all, I've only ever eaten oatmeal for breakfast with cinnamon, (nut) milk and raisins. 

The idea of oats in vegetable soup was totally foreign to me. I've made the recipe two different ways; I'll share both ways. The first way is more traditional.  The 2nd recipe is my own crazy, but good, creation. 

Scottish Oatmeal Vegetable Soup -Vegan, GF, and Oil-free

Ingredients:

1 cup of diced onion 

1/2 cup of diced celery

1/2 cup of grated carrot

2 cups of chopped cabbage

1/4 cup of chopped curly parsley

1/4 teaspoon of turmeric

1/4 teaspoon (or more) of garlic powder 

2 cups of nut milk 

2 cups of vegetable broth

1 cup of water

1/2 cup of rolled oats

1/8 teaspoon of cracked pepper

Directions:

Add onion, celery, carrot, parsley, and cabbage to the bottom of a soup pot. Begin to heat vegetables on a medium heat for a minute stirring continuously. Add 1/4 cup of the vegetable broth, and slowly sauté the vegetables for a few minutes on a low heat stirring to avoid burning. Add the turmeric, garlic powder, cracked pepper, nut milk, vegetables broth, water and oats and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and cook on a medium/low heat for about 8-10 minutes (stirring to prevent sticking) until soup thickens somewhat and vegetables are soft. Turn off heat, wait 5 minutes, stir and serve.

Soup Two 

Judee's Quick Broccoli Oatmeal Soup- Oil-free, GF, and Vegan

 

The next recipe, I make really quickly. It was originally based on what I had in the house. I used frozen broccoli, rolled oats, vegetable broth, turmeric, water, and garlic powder.  Drumroll----- I eat it for breakfast!!

Ok, stay with me- it tastes better than it looks and sounds. In fact, I really love it- it's creamy, thick, flavorful, savory, and convenient. Can you trust me on this one ? It's a perfect breakfast for anyone on the starch solution. 

It's a very un-refined soup. I leave the broccoli florets on the large side, and I dont blend the soup- but you could blend it partially if you prefer.

I simply open a package of frozen broccoli florets and put them in a 3 quart soup pot with the other ingredients and cook, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking or burning, until the broccoli is soft and the oatmeal is cooked-

Then I dig in. This recipe is enough for two but  sometimes I eat it all.

2 cups of frozen broccoli florets

1.5 cups of water

1.5 cups of vegetable broth

1/4 teaspoon of garlic powder

Optional: few pinches of ground turmeric 

1/2 cup of rolled oats

Directions:

Add broccoli, water, and vegetable broth to a sauce pan. Bring to a boil and then reduce to a simmer and cook for 5 minutes until broccoli softens. Add turmeric, garlic powder and rolled oats. (add 1/2 cup more water if needed). Stir and cook for 4 minutes and serve.

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