Sra. Yague's Underground Soup

I am asked for this recipe often enough that I thought it belonged on my blog. This is a delicious Spanish soup that a lady named Senora Yague taught me. I lived with her while I was studying Spanish in Madrid.


It is so flavorful, you would not guess that it consists of only vegetables, water, and salt. Sra. Yague, had a name for it that meant "underground" in Spanish (because of the underground vegetables). At the time, I didn't recognize the word. If anyone out there knows this soup and the true Spanish name for it, please let me know.


I like to dress it up with a drizzle of nice olive oil and nonfat yogurt, but it really isn't necessary. If you have an immersion blender, this is a very easy soup to make.


Peel and coarsely chop the following:
2 onions
4 carrots
4 potatoes
4 small turnips (or 2 large ones)


Put the vegetables in a pot and cover with water. Cook until the vegetables are tender. Then place two fresh tomatoes in the hot water until the skins can be peeled off. Removed the tomatoes, remove skins (after they cool a bit!), and remove the seeds. Return them to the pot.

Now just puree' with the immersion blender until smooth, and salt to taste.

If you are tempted to drain off some of the water before using the blender, don't throw it out, you will probably need to add it back in. Also, because of the potatoes, this soup doesn't freeze well.