February is for lovers, right? Ha. No. While I’ve practiced and enjoyed a Valentine’s Day in my life, and will certainly do so again, I find that February is actually one of the best months out of the year to practice self-love rather than consume yourself with romance.

It’s an even better month to do it than January frankly, because too many of us make resolutions too lofty to keep. February is when reality sets in again, the snow is blowing, and the time to self-reflect, heal yourself, and fall in love with who you are all over again is happening.

I practice self-love through cooking, which I try to do many days a week. I find that feeding myself a meal cooked from scratch brings a fulfillment that ordering in simply cannot match, even in the most hungover of moments. I like to make big batches of food – whether it’s chicken meatballs or a delicious soup, so I can feed myself for days.

Today I’m sharing my recipe for Seasonal Vegetable Soup, a hearty and filling soup that’s packed full of nutrients to keep your personal engine running smoothly. I say “Seasonal” because the same cooking method can be applied with any vegetables you choose.

I went with Romanesco, Broccolini, Yellow Squash, and the classic onion, celery, and carrot. My chicken broth is flavored deeply by adding a chicken carcass from a roasted chicken made earlier in the week – doing so adds flavor because it’s pulled from the bones, along with vitamins and minerals to enrich the stock even more for good health. You can make this soup in about an hour, but it always tastes better the next day.

Seasonal Vegetable Soup

(serves 4)

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1/2 white onion, chopped
• 2 carrots, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
• 2 celery sticks, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
• 1 small head of Romanesco, chopped
• 2 yellow squash, halved and cut into 1/2 inch pieces
• 1 small head of broccolini, with most of the stems removed
• 1/4 cup white wine
• 10 cups chicken stock
• chicken carcass (optional)
• 2 bay leaves
• handful of parsley stems
• 6 sprigs of thyme
• salt and pepper

Procedure:

1. In a large pan, melt butter over medium heat and cook onions until they start to become translucent. Adding a tiny bit of salt at this point helps to open them up and speed up the cooking process.
2. Add carrots and celery and cook veggies, stirring occasionally until brown. Add the rest of your vegetables and cook for 5-10 minutes, browning a bit and adding flavor to the pan.
3. Deglaze your pan with white white and let reduce for a minute or so.
4. Add your chicken stock, and your optional chicken carcass, along with your bay leaves, thyme, and parsley stems. Boil for about an hour.
5. Remove the carcass, season with salt and pepper and enjoy!

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