>Simple. Let me walk you through my basic recipe: in my cheapo Waring
>blender, I drop in a tomato which I have either quartered or whacked
>into eighths, depending on the size. On top of the tomato pieces, I
>drop in one small quartered baby cucumber (usually about the size of
>two thumbs in length). I hit the grind button and turn these two
>ingredients into mush.
>Now it's time for a teaspoon of dulse. Then I add half of a bell
>pepper (green or red). Next come five to eight leaves of Romaine or
>other green-leaf lettuce. Pack all this stuff loosely into the
>blender. Now pull off three or four good-sized celery stalks and add
>them one at a time. Turn on the blender and use the celery stalks to
>push the other ingredients into the blades. After some cussing and
>frustration, the whole deal will eventually wind up as a liquified
>mass that doesn't look very appetizing.

Chet, I ever since you posted this I have been making it once or twice
a day and just love it.  It meminds me of Ann Wigmore's Energy Soup,
which I could never get enough when I was at her place some years ago.
Adding a slighty fermented almond creme to it would make my taste buds
sing to a degree, it would have have made any instincto green with
envy. :-) To your basic recipe I have been adding lemon, avocado, and
Summer squash and boy does it hit the spot. I sometimes eat the soup
with celery stalks. My latest creation has adding whole fresh shiitake
mushrooms to te finished soup.  Delicious!
As I have a fairly weak digestive system and tend not to chew my food
properly this way of eating sure helps with the gas problems and
bloating I often get from eating vegetables.
If anybody else has tried making these blended vegetable soups, I would
love to hear how it has worked for you.

Best, Peter
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P.S. I have been soaking chestnuts for 24 hours before eating them, but
do not really find them any different than when unsoaked. I was hoping
they would be tastier, and that it would be a lot easier to peel off
the shell, but no such luck. Any takes on this would be appreciated.