I hope everyone enjoyed a peaceful Christmas as we count down to 2026! Here in SoCal, we had 56 mph wind gusts along with heavy rain for most of Christmas Eve, which made for a cozy holiday.

It seemed like a great time to choose soup as a first course. For whatever reason(s), as often as I make variations of this recipe, the end result is inconsistent. Sometimes it’s great, sometimes NOT.

This time, I nailed it! The flavor was absolutely PERFECT, exactly what I had hoped for, and I decided to dust off my baking chops and make individual herby focaccias to accompany it.

I tend to make gigantic batches of soup, enough to feed an army, so this time I thought I’d scale it down to a more manageable amount.

Easy Veggie Soup
🌿 Saute 1/2 onion, a couple ribs of celery, and 1/2 bell pepper.
🌿 When onions are translucent, add two teaspoons of vegan Better Than  Bouillon.
🌿 Cook for a few minutes and add 8 cups of water, along with two bay leaves.
🌿 Add two or three sliced carrots.
I think this is where the magic happened. For some reason, I was out of tomato paste AND canned tomatoes. I didn’t feel like going to the store and was lucky enough to find a jar of marinara sauce in the pantry so I added about 3/4 cup, stirred, and brought it back to a low simmer.
🌿 Let it cook for a couple hours or so, adding more water as necessary.
🌿 Cut one or two potatoes into bite sized pieces and add along with a can of beans (any kind will work, I used garbanzo beans).
🌿 Simmer until potatoes are soft, adding more water as needed for desired soupiness.
🌿 Finally, add 1/2 cup alphabet pasta, some garden herbs, a bit of Hawaiian sea salt and pepper.
Options: Add cubed tofu, more beans…or blend for a smoother consistency.

🌿🌿🌿 🌿🌿🌿 🌿🌿🌿 🌿🌿🌿 🌿🌿🌿 🌿🌿🌿 🌿🌿🌿 🌿🌿🌿 🌿🌿🌿 🌿🌿🌿

Individual Focaccia
* 1 teaspoon active dry yeast
* ¾ cup warm water 
* 1 ⅔ cups all-purpose flour
* ¾ teaspoon sea salt
* 1/2 teaspoon sugar
* 2-3 tablespoons olive oil. I use avocado oil because I don’t really like the taste of olive oil. Flaky salt for topping. I chopped some of the same garden herbs: sage, chives, oregano, thyme added to the soup.

* Add the yeast to a medium bowl, then pour the warm water slowly over it. Let the mixture sit for five minutes to allow the yeast to activate.
* Add the flour, sea salt, and sugar to the yeast mixture and stir together until it forms a shaggy dough. It’ll be sticky, so you can use a bench scraper or silicone spatula. Although hands work great, too, it’s messy.
* To develop gluten, fold the dough over itself a few times until it’s stretchy and no longer shaggy.
* No kneading necessary!
* Cover the bowl with a kitchen towel or plastic wrap, then set in a warm place to rise for about an hour or until doubled in size.
* In a square 8 inch baking pan or a couple smaller pans for individual servings, drizzle a tablespoon of the olive/avocado oil to cover the bottom.
* When the dough has doubled in size, transfer the dough to the oiled baking pan(s). Gently spread the dough so that it covers the entire bottom of the pan. Push or lightly stretch the dough into the corners a couple of times to get it to stick.
* Lightly cover the dough and let rise for about 30-40 minutes, until visibly puffy.
* During the last few minutes of proofing, preheat the oven to 425°F
* Drizzle 1-2 teaspoons avocado/olive oil over the top of the puffy dough, along with herbs if used.
* Press your fingertips through the dough to the bottom of the pan and back out to form dimples.
* Sprinkle the flaky salt evenly across the top of the loaf. Bake for about 20 minutes or until brown.
* Remove from the oven and allow to cool in the pan for at least 15 minutes before eating. 

Soup + focaccia makes a great first course or dinner. Add a salad for a complete healthy meal.