Arugula & Pear Soup

A good friend of mine is moving from Peru back to the US for what she and her family consider a "long visit." Since she plans to be back in a year or two, I encouraged her not to take everything she owns simply because it isn't necessary. So, luckily I am the lucky "babysitter" for several of her cookbooks.

One of these cookbooks is "A Year in a Vegetarian Kitchen." I do not make many vegetarians dishes, but I enjoy looking through and finding ideas for meals of side dishes. The first thing that jumped out at me, I just kept coming back to over and over. It is a soup which is based on pears and has arugula blended in.

I like arugula but I do not buy it very often. I like pears, but only when they are hard. Once they soften, they are completely unappetizing to me. But I thought this soup might be a good way to "get rid" of them. Pears are one of the "world's healthiest foods" are considered part of the rose family and are related to quince and apples. They are a good source of vitamin C and copper and are even considered a hypo allergenic fruit! Historically, pears were cultivated more the 3,000 years ago, although there is speculation that they existed even in the stone age.

I found that although the soup was good, it was not great. But, I was curious enough to try and thought you just might be curious enough to try as well.

Arugula & Pear Soup
A Year in a Vegetarian Kitchen
Serves 4

2 tablespoons of olive oil
4 medium ripe pears (about 1 3/4 pounds) peeled, quartered, cored and cut into 1-inch chunks
1 medium onion, chopped
1 medium russet potato, peeled and diced
4 cups of vegetable broth
Salt and freshly ground pepper
4 cups stemmed arugula, washed & chopped

1. Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add pears and onions and cook stirring often until softened, about 5 minutes.

2. Add the potato, broth and salt and pepper to taste and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat, cover, and simmer until the potatoes and pears are tender, 15 to 20 minutes. Stir in the arugula and continue cooking, until the arugula is wilted, about 2 minutes.

3. Puree the soup in batches in a blender until very smooth. Adjust the seasonings, adding salt and pepper to taste. Serve immediately.

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Arugula & Pear Soup is being served up for Weekend Herb Blogging. WHB was created by Kalyn of Kalyn's Kitchen and this week hosted by Wandering Chopsticks. Check out the round up soon!!