Plantain Soup

This past Saturday, I got together with some of my MAMA Project team members that went to Honduras back in January and February. It was suggested that we bring a Honduran or Latin American dish for our meal together. So I found a recipe for Plantain Soup that took about two and a half hours to make; but it was delicious. Below is a recipe for eight to ten servings:

• Finely chop two medium size onions, two carrots, two celery stems, and two garlic cloves and set aside.
• Heat two tablespoons olive oil in a large sauce pan over medium heat.
• Add chopped vegetables to large sauce pan and cook uncovered for about four minutes.
• Peel four plantains, quarter them lengthwise, and thinly slice them; set aside.
• Remove stems and finely chop one bunch cilantro; set aside.
• Add five 14 ounce cans (or 8 cups) of chicken broth and bring to a boil over high heat.
• Add plantains, cilantro, one and a half teaspoons cumin, and a bay leaf or two.
• Season with salt and coarsely ground black pepper.
• Return to a boil; then reduce heat to medium-low and simmer uncovered for forty to fifty minutes.
• Remove and discard bay leaf(s).
• Take half of soup and puree it in a blender till smooth.
• Return to large sauce pan.
• Add one more 14 ounce can of chicken broth
• Bring back to boil and serve.
• You may add more salt or cumin before serving to suit individual taste.

For those who want to know a little more about plantains, I recommend visiting the Cooking with plátanos web page.