Miso Soup

Ingredients:
3 to 4 cups of water
vegetable buillion, 2 cubes, chopped into small pieces
1/4 cup dried wakame (seaweed)
2 T shiro miso (white fermented soybean paste)
2 scallions, thinly sliced on the diagonal
1/8 pound soft tofu, drained and cut into 1/2-inch cubes

Optional: 2 T brown shiro miso (in addition to white shiro miso); thin sliced bok choy; canned water chestnuts, julienned. In place of plain water, prepared low sodium dashi (according to package instructions) can be used. If using dashi, adjust quantity of miso paste, and add one sliver of lemon peel to the broth as it steeps off the fire at the end before serving.

Preparing the miso soup:
Place wakame in a fine mesh strainer and rinse under cool running water.

Heat water in saucepan to boiling. Add chopped vegetable bullion cubes and dissolve. Remove a ladleful of the liquid to a separate bowl with shiro miso to thin.

Add rinsed seaweed to saucepan, lower heat and simmer until seaweed is fully rehydrated (5 minutes). If using bok choy, add now along with the seaweed.

Add thinned shiro miso to saucepan along with soft tofu and scallions, cover pot and remove from heat and let stand until soft tofu is heated through. If using water chestnuts, add at this point, along with the soft tofu.

Serves 2