I officially entered the land of crazy this weekend. As I mentioned before, I am training for my first marathon. In fact, the marathon is less than two weeks away (cue the butterflies). There are times when this thought makes me want to close the blinds, wrap myself in a blanket and eat soup all day to comfort myself (this Healthy Mushroom & Swiss Chard Soup will do nicely, thank you very much). Thankfully for my morale, these days are overshadowed by the moments when I practically itch to lace up my running shoes and hit the road.
This past Saturday was one of those really good days. Okay, I admit that being faced with my longest run ever was a bit much to take on a Saturday morning. Luckily, my husband (a darn impressive marathoner) was there to give me the “Take it slow. Just check off the miles one-by-one” pep talk.
After a lot of mental games, a crash into the proverbial wall at mile 16 and a near-sprint up the hill at the end (I credit that burst of energy to sheer delirium), I finished at the 20.5 mile mark. Yep, I am an official citizen of the land of crazy.
The rest of the day? Oh, there was a lot of reclining, heaps of food consumed and an obscene amount of moaning and groaning over sore muscles. If I had the energy, I would have done a happy dance when I remembered that there were leftovers of this soup in the fridge. The light broth, earthy mushrooms and vitamin-packed chard nourished my body and brought some life back to my muscles.
A few days before making this soup, I stumbled upon some whole wheat orzo at my local supermarket. The texture was perfect for the soup and would work well in any dish that calls for regular orzo.
The recipe:
Heat 2 teaspoons olive oil in a large saucepan set over medium heat.
Add the onion and garlic, and cook, stirring occasionally, until onions are translucent, 4 to 5 minutes.
Add the remaining 1 teaspoon olive oil, mushrooms, pepper and sage. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the mushrooms are tender, about 5 minutes. Stir in the balsamic vinegar.
Add the vegetable broth to the onions and mushrooms. Stir well. Bring the mixture to a boil over medium-high heat.
Add the orzo and cook until the orzo is almost al dente.
Add the Swiss chard, cover the saucepan and cook for about 3 minutes, or until the Swiss chard is wilted. Serve it up!
Other healthy vegetarian soups:

Cookin’ Canuck’s French Onion & Endive Soup with Pancetta
Cookin’ Canuck’s Hearty Lentil & Black Bean Soup with Smoked Paprika
Fat-Free Vegan’s Slow-Cooker Hot & Sour Soup
84th & 3rd’s Winter White Bean & Kale Soup
Carrie’s Experimental Kitchen’s Mushroom Barley Soup
From the kitchen of Cookin Canuck. www.cookincanuck.com
Ingredients
- 3 tsp olive oil, divided
- 1/2 large sweet onion, diced
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 12 oz. crimini (baby bella) mushrooms, sliced
- 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
- 1 tbsp minced fresh sage
- 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
- 7 cups vegetable broth
- 2/3 cups whole wheat orzo
- 4 cups chopped Swiss chard
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Heat 2 teaspoons olive oil in a large saucepan set over medium heat.
- Add the onion and garlic, and cook, stirring occasionally, until onions are translucent, 4 to 5 minutes.
- Add the remaining 1 teaspoon olive oil, mushrooms, pepper and sage. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the mushrooms are tender, about 5 minutes. Stir in the balsamic vinegar.
- Add the vegetable broth to the onions and mushrooms. Stir well. Bring the mixture to a boil over medium-high heat.
- Add the orzo and cook until the orzo is almost al dente.
- Add the Swiss chard, cover the saucepan and cook for about 3 minutes, or until the Swiss chard is wilted. Serve it up!






















{ 49 comments… read them below or add one }
YAY! YAY! YAY! YAY! YAY! YAY! YAY! YAY! YAY!
YAY!
You are a wonder woman and I’m encouraged by every one of your steps! This soup is just what I need to add to our recipe lineup right now. It’s challenging finding something healthy, tasty and energy boosting at the same time. Will be trying it very soon.
You’re so sweet, Amy. I appreciate all of your support! I need you along the sidelines on marathon day!
If you’re not a little scared, it’s not worth doing, right? Congratulations on taking this brave step (or leap)!
And this soup? It looks phenomenal. Yum.
Kare, that’s so true!
GOOD FOR YOU!!! You are going to do awesome, I just know it! I have just now started doing my 5k races. I have done 2 in the past 2 weekends and I have done really well with them. If you had told me last year that I would be doing 5k’s I would have laughed in your face, but I am so glad I did!
This soup looks amazing! I was just talking with my girlfriends about how delicious soup is during Fall time. It is so comforting and warming on the chillier days!
Well done on your 5k races! It’s truly amazing what we can do when we push ourselves.
As for soup during the fall – oh yes, it’s a must!
Dara, you are incredible. I am SO excited about your marathon training!!!
Way to go!
And this soup looks wonderfully healthy and comforting. Yum!
Thanks so much, Ali. I really appreciate your support!
Definitely healthier than the soup that I just posted but you had me at the mushroom and balsamic combo! Good luck with the marathon!
Ah yes, but your soup looked awfully good. Thanks, Kevin.
The soup looks delicious. Good luck with the marathon!
Thank you, Barbara!
This soup looks delicious. I don’t know why I’m so scared to take the plunge and start running. I think it may have to do with bad gym class memories as a child (I was always the chubby slow one). I need to finally go for it! Thanks for the motivation.
Jen, I NEVER thought I’d be a runner. It took awhile for me to convince myself that I could do it, but now I’m so glad I persevered. I KNOW you can do it!
You are my hero!! And this soup sounds absolutely perfect for a fall night!
You’re so sweet, Deb. I’ll be making this soup many times this fall and winter.
What an inspiration you are, Dara! I have hopes of just running around the block one day. I’m actually a very fast walker now and am really missing my daily walks since I’ve been sidelined with a broken ankle. I’ll never be a marathon runner, but your determination inspires me to keep up the walking that I *can* do. Oh, and…love the soup!!
Thanks so much, Lana. I’m so sorry about your ankle. I hope that it heals quickly. Walking, running…it’s all good!Reply
This is my kind of soup, I love the orzo! And congrats on your training and continued success running. You are such an inspiration!
Thanks, Cassie. I adore orzo, too and was glad to find this whole wheat version.
I love soups with greens and grains – this looks like a perfect hearty mix!
Thanks, Sally. They really do go well together.
This looks delicious, and good for you!! Good luck!
Thanks so much, Gina!
You made me just WISH I was running right now. I am so incredibly impressed by you, Dara. You are an inspiration!
Thanks, Kristen. Let’s hope we can run together someday!
Gee whiz..over 20 miles is darn impressive!! I’m doing a marathon soon too but….on my bike, so nowhere near the amount of respect you deserve
That’s awesome, Gerry! Everyone has the exercise that makes them feel good. Whether it’s biking or running, you’re still getting out there and moving your body.
Oh, my goodness, I just lunged at the screen! This looks AMAZING, and I’m going to the store tonight. Yay for me!
I’m also closing on my own house in the land of crazy.
Way to rock it out this weekend!
LOL. Thanks, Cindy!
As for “land of crazy” – you arrived there a long time ago, my amazing running friend.
Can not believe you ran over 20 miles. I am so impressed!!!!! I’ve never run a mile in my life. Regardless, I want to eat this soup right now!!!
Thanks, Liz. Believe me, I never thought I’d be running that far!
All the best of luck for your marathon! I need some motivation to get moving (in much smaller doses!) and think I may try the nike sensor on my shoe to track my distances. The watch you used looks neat too.
Your soup looks beautiful!
Thanks so much, Holly. Yes, I adore my Garmin watch. It gives great feedback on distance, pace, etc. My greatest motivation, however, is my family. I want to be able to keep up with my kids for many years to come!
Girl!! You are so there! I can’t believe how far you’ve come, I’m beyond proud of you!!!
And this soup. Amazing. A bowl of pure goodness. I love whole wheat orzo.
Thank you, sweet Aggie. You’re always such a wonderful support for me.
Looove hearing about your marathon training! You’re going to rock your first race, and I can’t wait to hear the results. Keep up the awesome work!
Thank you, Katrina. I’ll be sure to write about the marathon after it happens.
I love running in the morning, that’s about it, maybe someday I can tackle a marathon like you, great job! I also love soups, can’t wait to add this one to my list!
Thanks, Carrian. Oh yes, running in the morning is the best – it makes you feel like you’ve done something good for yourself before the craziness of the day kicks in.
Your soup looks amazing and thank you so much for featuring my Mushroom Barley Soup. Good luck with the marathon!
My pleasure, Carrie. It looks wonderful!
I usually just lurk but I had to pop in and say. I recognize that bowl! Camp? Yes? XOGREG
Beautiful combination: mushrooms, orzo, swiss chard. Looks delicious!
Question: could you substitute the orzo for quinoa or barley?
I am making this tonight for dinner and would so appreciate an answer as quickly as possible.
Thanks,
Abi
Hi Abi, I don’t see why you couldn’t substitute orzo or barley for the quinoa. However, I’d probably lean more towards the barley because of the texture. I hope you enjoy it!
If I were running a marathon, I’d want a bowl of this soup waiting for me at the finish line!! Good luck with your marathon (seeing as you don’t need any in the kitchen)
-Shannon
The combination of mushrooms and garlic could never go wrong. I shall definitely try your recipe however intricate it might seem
. Kisses.
I made this for dinner last night and it was delicious!! I traded out the onion for a stalk of chopped leeks, and I didn’t have any sage on hand so I used some fresh tarragon instead. The tarragon added a really unique flavor… it was super yummy!!
Thanks for the recipe!
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