Cream of Collards Soup

I'm trying to eat as many of my collards as the butterflies hanging around in my garden. They (the collards, not the butterflies) usually find their way into stir-fries or vegetable soups, but this was a good chance to give them a starring role. This soup was adapted from a swiss chard cream soup from my old Peace Corps cookbook, "Buen Provecho."

Cream of Collards Soup
4 cups collard greens, coarsely chopped
1 red potato, boiled or baked
1 medium yellow onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 tbsp. all purpose flour
1 1/2 cup soymilk (or any other nondairy milk)
1/2 cup vegetable broth
1 tbsp. olive oil
2 tbsp. vegan margarine
salt and pepper to taste

1. In a soup pot, steam the collard greens with about a half cup of water. Steam just until they turn a bright green. Remove and drain, reserving the cooking liquid. Allow the greens to cool a little, then blend with the potato in a blender or food processor.

2. In the same pot (well dried), heat oil and margarine and saute onion and garlic until just beginning to brown. Add flour, and stir constantly as the flour cooks in the oils - just a couple of minutes.

3. Add the soymilk and vegetable broth and bring to a simmer, stirring to blend well with the flour-onion mixture. Add the collards and potato blend. If the soup seems too thick, add the remaining collard cooking liquid, or a little more vegetable broth. Season to taste with salt and pepper.