okra maitake soup

I just got home from camping this weekend.. and luckily it was way more comfortable and enjoyable than the last camping trip I blogged about :) We enjoyed swordfish kabobs (again) and I brought a whole bunch of soaked and dehydrated walnuts, fresh peaches and nectarines, some buckwheat cookies, and some dried fruit. The weather was perfect and we basically had the camp grounds to ourselves. But in the end, I still missed my kitchen.. here's the first thing I made when I got home.

Okra Maitake Soup - Makes 2 bowls (or 3-4 small servings)

1/2 yellow onion, chopped
1/3 cup dried maitake mushrooms, soaked for 30 minutes in about 2/3 cup lukewarm water (keep the water)
1 handful of okra, washed and cut into pieces
1 handful of spinach leaves
1 small serving of tempeh(and brand of kind you like), cut into cubes
1 cup chicken broth (or veggie broth
2 tbsp olive oil
1-2 tbsp tamari (wheat free soy sauce)

Soak maitake mushrooms in lukewarm water for about 30 minutes and save the water.
Heat olive oil in a pan and sauté onions for a few minutes, then add the okra and sauté a few minutes more. Add the tamari and then about 1/3 cup of the chicken broth with the spinach leaves and the tempe. Let steam for a couple minutes. Finally add the mushrooms and their soaking water and the rest of the chicken broth. Cook until thourouly heated and serve :)

Enjoy!