by Jeannette Ordas of Everybody likes Sandwiches

Maybe it's the changing seasons or maybe I'm just a bit overworked, but whatever the cause, I'm feeling a bit rundown and tired. I don't want to get sick so I decided to take preventative measures. I made soup for lunch. Luckily I work from home, so whipping up a little something hot isn't a big deal, but even if you aren't home-bound like me, this is still quick enough to whip up for a dinner and you can take the leftovers with you to work the next day.

While I did write a recipe of what I included in this soup, please take this as a guideline. Use up what you have in your own fridge and don't feel the need to shop for certain ingredients. Substitute and make do with what you've got. Use herbs, use spices, play around with different vegetables and grains. With soup, it's easy to throw things into a pot and have things turn out well. Soup is forgiving like that and when you feel a cold coming on, it's only a bit more work than getting out your can opener. And trust me, homemade soup is way better than anything out of a can.

Vegetable & Whole Grain Soup
3-4 c water + stock cube, or your favorite flavourful stock
1 c Harvest Grains blend from Trader Joe's (or use couscous, quinoa, millet, orzo or a drained can of chickpeas instead or a mix of everything)
2 shallots, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
4 kale leaves, chopped
2 roasted peppers, diced
1/4 c frozen corn
a few dashes of hot sauce
salt & pepper to taste

In a medium sized pot, bring water (+ cube) or stock to a boil. Add in grains/pasta/beans along with garlic, shallots and kale. Lower heat and cover for 15 minutes. Add in peppers, corn and hot sauce along with some salt and pepper to taste. Serve.