Hearty Healthy Harvest Soup

   I know its still summer in my neck of the woods but I'm dreaming of fall and craving a hot wholesome stew or soup..... a friend had gifted me some Harvest Soup Mix so to that I added my own twist and came up with a soup that my girlfriends all enjoyed and a recipe was requested....so here goes!! I cooked this in an Instant Pot for about half an hour open saute then ten mins pressure cooked.

Harvest Soup Mix           One pack

Butter                               A dollop to top soup before serving

Extra Virgin olive oil       Two Tablespoons

Garlic                               Five cloves chopped

Onion                               One medium chopped

Bay Leaf                          One

Pepper Corns                   Five    

Oregano                           A pinch

Thyme                             A pinch

Cumin powder                 Half a teaspoon

Coriander Powder            Half a teaspoon

Worcestershire Sauce      A dash

Red Wine Vinegar           A dash

Balsamic Vinegar            A dash

Sea Salt                            To taste

Lemon Pepper Salt          To taste

Celery                              One Bunch roughly chopped

Leeks                               One Bunch roughly chopped

Carrots                             Three roughly chopped

Cream of mushroom soup One small can

Cilantro                              just to garnish, chopped

Feta Cheese                        just to garnish

Lemon wedges                   just to garnish as desired

Water                                  about six cups...adjust as per thickness desired

Saute chopped garlic in extra virgin olive oil, add a bay leaf and peppercorns. Stir in the  chopped onion. Add chopped carrots, leeks, celery and stir well. Add the Harvest soup mix and stir. Now add six cups of water, worcestershire sauce, red wine vinegar, balsamic vinegar, some sea salt, black pepper powder, lemon pepper salt, oregano, thyme and give it a good mix

. The Harvest soup mix has wild rice and lentils and you can later adjust the amount of water depending on the desired consistency. Once this comes to a boil add the can of cream of mushroom soup and set to pressure cook. My Instant Pot pressure cooked this in ten minutes....you can cook in a stock pot with a lid on gently stirring until you find its all cooked, if you don't want to pressure cook.

When the vegetables are still a bit crunchy and rice and lentils seem done, check if you need to add more water and stir the soup. Taste and check flavor. Add a dollop of butter, feta cheese, cilantro and serve with a lemon wedge on the side. A hearty chunky slice of warm bread would complete this meal on a cool night.

Hope you enjoy this hearty autumnal soup on a chilly day! I know I took it to a group of friends who loved it...