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Freekeh Vegetable Soup

From SABABA by ADEENA SUSSMAN, published by AVERY, an imprint of Penguin Publishing Group, a division of Penguin Random House, LLC. Copyright © 2019 by ADEENA SUSSMAN Freekah is wheat, but not all wheat is freekah. Freekah is green wheat kernels dried then smoked, so the nubbly grains naturally reverberate with some sexy, smoky low notes and make this winter warm-up anything but a ho-hum bowl of soup. Need more reason to love it? The Israelis pronounce it freaky.
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Total Time 55 minutes

Ingredients
  

  • 1 cup freekeh cracked or whole
  • 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil plus more for drizzling
  • 1 large onion diced
  • 1 medium kohlrabi rind and tough outer membranes peeled off, diced
  • 2 medium carrots diced
  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt plus more for seasoning
  • ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper plus more for seasoning
  • 3 garlic cloves minced
  • 8 cups vegetable or chicken broth plus more if needed
  • 2 medium zucchini diced
  • 1 Parmesan rind or 1 tablespoon nutritional yeast optional
  • 2 teaspoons chopped fresh za’atar or oregano
  • ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper or more to taste
  • Chopped fresh herbs za’atar, parsley, chives, or scallions, for garnish

Instructions
 

  • Place the freekeh in a medium bowl, cover with cold water, and set aside.
  • Heat the olive oil in a large (4- or 5-quart) saucepan over medium heat.
  • Add the onion and cook, stirring, until softened, 8 minutes.
  • Add the kohlrabi and carrots and cook, stirring, until the vegetables begin to soften, 5 minutes; season generously with salt and black pepper.
  • Add the garlic and cook 1 more minute.
  • Drain the freekeh, rinse it with cold water, and add it to the pot.
  • Add the broth, zucchini, Parmesan rind if using, za’atar, salt, and the cayenne. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer, uncovered, until the soup is thickened, 25 to 30 minutes (or a few minutes longer if you’re using whole freekeh instead of cracked freekeh).
  • Remove the Parmesan rind, season with more salt and black pepper to taste, divide among bowls, garnish with herbs, and drizzle with olive oil.