Dinner Tonight: Broccoli, Lemon & Parmesan Soup + Herb Jam

Tonight's dinner features lots of bright lemon, savory umami from parmesan and olives, and springy greens. A delightful dinner of elegant herb jam from the ever-brilliant Paula Wolfert, and a soothing broccoli soup from our very own Merrill Stubbs. Flavorful, beautiful, and healthy -- what more can we ask of our dinner? 

The Menu

Click through on the recipe photos or titles to see (and save and print) the full recipes, but we've also written you a handy grocery list and game plan below.

Paula Wolfert's Herb Jam with Olives and Lemon by Genius Recipes

Broccoli, Lemon and Parmesan Soup by merrill

The Grocery List 

Serves 4, with leftovers

Broccoli, trimmed and cut into florets
Chicken stock
Spinach (or other greens)
Flatleaf parsley
Celery leaves
Cilantro leaves
Oil-cured black olives

We bet you've got olive oil, garlic, salt, black pepper, lemons, paprika, cumin, cayenne, and parmesan hanging around your kitchen. If not, hop to it! You'll be needing those, too.

The Plan

1. The soup base needs to simmer for about an hour, so begin there by getting a pot of water boiling to blanch the broccoli.

2. Warm the oil and garlic, then add the blanched broccoli. Let it cook, covered, for about an hour. 

3. As the broccoli cooks, get started on the herb jam. It should take about 20 minutes. Set it aside to hold at room temperature. 

4. Finish the soup (add the stock, heat, blend, then cheese and lemon it up). Serve with the herb jam, plus crackers or nice, crusty bread, and a glass of wine -- maybe something zingy, white and refreshing to complement all that lemon.