Soup's On!

"Eat soup first and eat it last, and live 'til a hundred years be passed"

~French Proverb

This morning the temperature was a balmy 11 degrees F with a wind chill of 1. That was at 6 AM when I first checked. I have no idea how much colder it may have been at 4 AM when I was numbly doing my paper route.

One thing screamed at me when I hit the warmth of the house this morning and that was, "SOUP!".

There is nothing better, more satisfying or more comforting on a cold day.
On your coldest day, I should think one of these would serve you well.




Translated as 'pasta with beans' and known as 'Pasta Fazool' in Philly, this soup that has so many variations I can't count them. Everyone has a family favorite recipe and each one is the 'right' one. This is the way I like it - sometimes with red kidney beans and larger chunks of tomato - but always with lots of garlic.

Pasta e Fagioli
Serves 8
Printable Recipe

4 Tablespoons olive oil
1 small yellow onion - chopped
2 stalks celery - chopped
2 medium carrots - peeled and chopped
6 cloves garlic - minced
8 cups chicken stock
1 bay leaf
1 handful freshly chopped parsley
4 cups cooked cannellini beans
1 cup crushed tomato
1 cup small pasta such as ditalini, small elbows or small shells
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese plus more for serving

1. Heat oil in a large soup pot over medium-high heat. Add onion, celery, carrot and garlic and turn the heat low. Stir and cook until softened - take your time with this step, it will add a lot of flavor. Keep the heat low - it takes about 10 minutes or so.

2. Add stock, parsley and bay leaf and bring to a boil - reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes, or until veggies are tender.

3. Bring to a boil again and add beans, tomato and pasta. Reduce heat once more and cook until pasta is done - about 20 minutes longer.

4. Take off heat and add Parmesan. Stir well and serve with more Parmesan for the top.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Basque Vegetable Soup
Serves 8-10
Printable Recipe

3/4 lb Polish sausage-sliced
1 broiler-fryer chicken (2-3 lbs.)
8 c water
2 leeks, sliced
2 carrots, sliced
1 lg turnip, peeled and cubed
1 lg onion, chopped
1 lg potato, peeled and cubed
1 clove garlic-minced
1 1/2 t salt
1/2 t pepper
1 T snipped fresh parsley
1 t dried thyme
1 c shredded cabbage
2 c cooked navy or great northern beans

In a skillet, cook the sausage until done. Drain and set
aside. In a large dutch oven, cook chicken in water
until tender. Remove chicken-let cool. Strain broth and
skim off fat. Return broth to dutch oven. Add parsley,
thyme and all vegetables except cabbage, beans and
cooked sausage. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and
simmer for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, remove chicken from
bones and cut into bite size pieces-add to the dutch
oven. Add cabbage, beans and cooked sausage. Simmer,
uncovered, for about 30 minutes or until vegetables are
tender.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Pistou Vegetable Soup
Serves 10
Printable Recipe

1 lb. dried white beans, cooked
1 Tbsp. olive oil
2 onions, chopped
4 cloves garlic
3 carrots, chopped
1 celery rib, chopped
4 potatoes, diced
28 oz. whole tomatoes, diced
1/4 head cabbage, shredded
8 leaves kale, shredded
6 cups chicken broth, canned or homemade
1 tsp. thyme
Salt and pepper to taste

Puree half the beans in your food processor and set aside. In a large
pot, heat olive oil and saute onion and garlic for about two minutes
or until translucent. Add carrot, celery and potato and saute another
2 minutes. Add tomatoes and their liquid, beans, bean puree and
seasoning. Let simmer 5 minutes.

Add chicken broth to the mixture (sooner if it seems to be drying
out). Add cabbage and kale, correct the seasoning and simmer until
veggies are tender. Serve with a dollop of pesto
(homemade or readily prepared from a jar) on the top.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Prince Edward Island Potato Soup
Printable Recipe

1/4 c butter
1 lg onion-diced
4 med P.E.I. potatoes-diced
6 carrots-diced
3 c water
2 chicken bouillon cubes
freshly ground pepper
3 T flour
3 c milk
1/4 c dried parsley
1 t dried Thyme

In a large stock pot melt butter, add onion and cook
until onion is transparent. While onion cooks, place
diced potatoes, carrots, water and bouillon in another
large stock pot and bring to a boil. Cook until tender,
about 10 minutes. Season with pepper to taste.
When vegetables are cooked, add flour to onion to make a
paste. Add milk gradually. Mix well and heat over low
until warm. Add vegetables and liquid. Stir thoroughly
and heat for 5 to 10 minutes, over medium heat, stirring
occasionally until mixture thickens slightly. Add
parsley and thyme. Heat thoroughly and serve.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Martha Washington's Crab Soup
Printable Recipe

1 T Butter
5 ts Flour
3 Eggs; hard boiled;sieved
1 Lemon; grated rind of
1 pinch -Salt
1 pinch -White pepper,freshly ground
4 c Milk
1/2 lb crab meat - cooked
1/2 c Heavy cream
1/2 c Dry sherry
1 ds Worcestershire sauce


In a 2 qt saucepan, combine butter, flour,
sieved eggs,lemon rind, salt and pepper.
In a separate saucepan, bring milk to a boil, remove
from heat.
Gradually pour in the hot milk into the egg mixture,
stirring with a wire whisk. Add crab meat, and cook over low heat for
5 minutes-do not boil. Add cream and remove from heat. Stir in
sherry and Worcestershire sauce and serve piping hot.