Roasted Vegetable and Orzo Soup

I’m still not quite sure that fall is completely and truly here. Yes, there’s a bit of a chill in the morning air. But we’re still seeing sunshine and blue skies most of the day. I think that may have turned into a mistaken humble brag. Sorry. But not sorry enough to delete it.

This really isn’t meant to be a complaint. Rather a nice anecdote to start this post. Is it working?

Let’s just move along…

My cooking and baking is seriously ready for cold weather. I want soups, breads and hot tea. I want my food to warm me up. And lately, it’s been a little overheating. It’s difficult to eat hot food when you’re contently warm and without shivers.

But, I made soup anyway. Take that “fall.”

This soup was born purely by accident. But it’s a happy accident (kind of like me). I had vegetable drawer full of tomatoes, carrots, onions and potatoes. So, I decided to give them all a good roasting followed by a trip to the blender.

That puree by itself could be a great soup. It’s rich, flavorful and surprisingly filling. But I like a little bite in my soup, so I added orzo, sausage, mushrooms and handful of sundried tomatoes to sweeten it all up.

Roasted Vegetable and Orzo Soup

4-5 tomatoes, sliced into wedges

2-3 carrots, cut into 2-3 inch pieces

1/2 onion, cut into think slices

3-4 yukon gold potatoes, quartered

3-4 garlic cloves

3 tablespoons olive oil

1/2 cup fresh basil

2 cups vegetable stock

1/2 cup milk

2 Italian sausages, sliced

2-3 cups cooked orzo

1 cup mushrooms, halved and sliced

1/4 cup sundried tomatoes, roughly chopped

Salt and Pepper

Parmesan cheese

Start by roasting the vegetables. On a foil lined baking pay, lay out the tomato wedges, carrots, onion slices, potatoes and garlic cloves. Drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Bake at 400°F for about an hour. All ovens are slightly different, just make sure it doesn’t burn.

Add your vegetable stock, basil and roasted vegetables to your blender. Blend until smooth. If your vegetables are still hot during this point, take the middle cap out of the blender lid and cover with a kitchen towel to let the heat and steam escape.

In a medium sized saucepan set over medium heat, add your sausage and cook for 5-10 minutes (getting out most of the pink). Add in your mushrooms and continue to cook, stirring occasionally for an additional 5 minutes.

Stir in your vegetable puree mixture, cooked orzo, sundried tomatoes and milk. Allow to cook until evenly heated, about 10 minutes. You can let it simmer longer, too.

Serve with a sprinkling of Parmesan cheese.