Asparagus and Quinoa Soup

I made this back when I was using up stuff on hand after the tea party.  The vegetable stock emptied the whole broth bag, so I could start fresh.  It's good to do that every six months or so; otherwise, the veggies at the bottom get freezer burn.

This was also before the squirrel started stealing all my tomatoes and citrus out of the back yard.  Half of this year's oranges are gone and they aren't fully ripe.  It must be a new squirrel.  The old one just barked at everyone, but stayed up on the wires.  He hasn't realized my few tiny butternut squash are edible yet.  I should just pick them this weekend and hope for the best.

This gets points for being both vegan and GF, if that's a thing with you.  I had buttered bread on the side, since that's not a thing with me.  This is easy, even if it does use more dishes than I wish it did, and is ready in about half an hour if you don't make your own broth.

*1 qt vegetable stock
*1/2 onion, diced
*2 ribs celery, diced
1 Tb olive oil
1 lb asparagus
*2 Roma tomatoes, diced
*2/3 C any color quinoa
salt and pepper to taste

1.  If necessary, soak or rinse quinoa.  Start cooking to package directions.  This generally takes about 15 minutes.

2.  In a soup pot, sautée onion and celery in oil until softened but not brown, about 5 minutes.  Add stock and tomatoes.  Bring to a boil, then let simmer on low heat 15 minutes.

3.  While the broth is simmering, prep asparagus.  Trim off tough bottoms and cut remainder into inch-long pieces.

4.  Here's where there's some leeway.  You can add the asparagus and quinoa at the same time and let cook about 5 minutes for crunchy asparagus.  I happen to like mine as mushy as canned and let it cook another 15.  If you do that, wait until the last couple of minutes before adding the cooked quinoa.

5.  Taste and add salt and pepper as needed.  Serve hot.  The first day, you have to keep stirring to bring up the quinoa.  For leftovers, it's much easier to get an even distribution.

Difficulty rating  π