Roasted Zucchini Soup

As many of you may know, getting in good amounts of exercise has become my new favorite thing to do. I started running and wake up at the crack of dawn to get to a 6 am workout class twice a week. Some people look at me like I am crazy - but most think it's great and then start to think about how they can start adding more exercise into their lives. Along with this new love comes a great desire for my children to be excited about exercise and keeping their bodies healthy.

Today was sunny and warm and absolutely gorgeous - and so I most certainly wanted to spend as much of my day outside as I could. I was certain that my kids should head outside right after completing their homework so they could have some healthy fun! Being the cook in the family, I knew that I would need to make sure that dinner was ready before their homework was done so that we could play outside until dinner time :)

While I love to cook - today was a day that I was thrilled to be able to make good use of the leftovers in my fridge. (As children, my brothers and I HATED leftovers, funny what becoming the cook of the house can do to you!) I had plenty of the hamburgers I made yesterday in the refrigerator and then I realized that I also had a whole container of the roasted zucchini I made the other day. I quickly sauteed some onions and then added the roasted zukes to the pot along with some fresh parsley and basil. I filled the pot with water - brought it all to a boil and then pureed it with my handy dandy immersion blender and presto - roasted zucchini soup! I created a salad and voila - dinner was done! (Yes - it is VERY similar to the first zucchini recipe I posted, but has somewhat of a different flavor because the zucchinis have been roasted.)

Dinner and homework completed, my kids grabbed their helmets, scooters and a big ball and we headed outside. For well over an hour my scooted happily and then joined me in a little running and then we had loads of fun playing monkey in the middle, kicking the ball and practicing volleyball serves. We all had a blast - and got our heart rates up too! 

Soo..as the winter turns into spring...why not make it a habit to make some easy dinners so you too can have time to play outside with your kids!!

Roasted Zucchini Soup

3 sweet onions

A handful of fresh basil

A handful of fresh parsley

Roasted zucchini

Water

Roast the zucchini: Preheat oven to 425. Wash and cut zucchinis in to half moons and then place on a roasting pan with a little olive oil, salt, pepper, garlic and oregano. Roast for about 20 minutes or until soft. 

For the soup: Cut onions into chunks and sautee in a little olive oil. Add in the basil and parsley. Add the zucchini and allow to cook together for a few minutes. Add enough water to cover the veggies, plus a little more. Bring to a boil and then puree. (Please note, you may have to add additional seasoning after you have pureed the soup. I found that mine needed a little more salt added at the end.)