Udon Soup

Hope everyone had a fabulous NYE! I absolutely love this time of year, setting goals and making resolutions with all the hope and promise that comes with a clean slate :-)

Since my husband and I have both been under the weather, we've been eating a lot of soup -  I wanted to make a quick and easy Udon Soup at home and used this recipe as a starting point.  I am lucky to live near a Mitsuwa  Japanese market, where finding these ingredients was super easy...   This is a really healthy and satisfying meal - we'll probably be having it again this week!

For what I made, you will need:
      -Dashi soup base (fish flavor)
      -Udon noodles
      -Shitake mushrooms
      -Leeks
      -Spinach
      -Broccoli
      -Soy sauce

**The recipe calls for chicken, but I made this vegetarian - feel free to throw in some tofu if you like for added protein...

First, bring the Dashi soup base to a boil (follow instructions on the box for making the broth)

In the meantime, prep your vegetables: I used spinach, broccoli, leeks, and mushrooms - I added the broccoli to the broth for a few minutes to cook a bit before assembling for the soup...

The recipe calls for Shitake mushrooms (which I LOVE), but I saw this bag of assorted mushrooms at Mitsuwa and decided to be adventurous....

You will begin preparing your soup by placing the cooked Udon in the bowl first - (in the interest of getting this meal on the table faster, I purchased pre-cooked Udon from the refrigerated aisle):

Next, assemble your vegetables on top of the Udon noodles - I skipped the step of boiling the spinach first since I wanted a fresher feel to the vegetables:

Finally, pour the hot broth over everything and enjoy!  Add soy sauce to taste - I added quite a bit to cut down on the fishiness of the Dashi broth...