Sometimes the simplest dishes are amazingly delicious. Vegetable soup can be so good, and yet when I order it out it’s usually got lots of root vegetables in it (which makes it a carb soup in my book – and definitely not my favorite in generic category of “vegetable” soups), tomatoes and has a red hue. This one is nothing at all like that – mostly green veggies with the hint of smoky bacon (optional) and a bit of milk and cream. This is a “dry” soup – not much liquid.

A year or so ago I began subscribing to a blog called Cooking in the Archives. It’s a blog from 2 very erudite women, both professors and researchers in English Lit, books in general, and rare books in particular. They must have become friends somewhere along the way and they both enjoy researching “old-tyme” recipes and updating them to today’s kitchens. I always enjoy reading their own journey as they identify a recipe (always shown in “old-tyme” language as well, then their translations) and about the permutations they make to the recipe.

A recipe that had me interested was one they posted earlier this year, called Herb Soop (no, that’s not a typo). Today I set out to make it – but then when I went to the grocery store I somehow forgot to buy some of the important ingredients that went into it. So I decided to make my own detour with what I had on hand. I’ll make that soup another day.

In February I’m hosting a luncheon here at my house (along with my friend Linda I.) for a small group of my P.E.O. sisters, as we watch a DVD on some thing yet-to-be-selected about American history, and I thought it would be fun to prepare a lunch that highlighted old-tyme food as well. The blog actually highlights recipes from 1600-1800, and not always American ones. But this soup recipe I made was just fabulous – although not necessarily an historical recipe.

Now, this soup. I started off with some very lean bacon, just because I think a bit of bacon adds SO much flavor to soups. You could leave it out if you’re a vegetarian. And you can use vegetable broth instead of chicken broth too. I rendered the bacon, then added a bit of oil (because the bacon had almost no fat in it), then half an onion chopped, and let that cook for a bit. Then I added Savoy cabbage (chopped), a poblano chile chopped up (certainly not in the original recipe) and celery and let that cook a bit. Then I added a package of frozen veggies I had on hand from Trader Joe’s (it’s a mixture of green beans, cauliflower, broccoli and peas). I didn’t really want cauliflower in this and I’ve not included it in the recipe below, but you can add it if you’d like to. Meanwhile I chopped up some fresh parsley and fresh mint and had those ready nearby. I added some chicken broth and allowed the vegetables to cook until they were nearly done, but not quite. Then I added a cup of milk to which I’d whisked in an egg (to thicken the soup just a little – this was in the Herb Soop recipe), and the herbs, plus a little sprinkling of freshly grated nutmeg (so good in creamy things – strictly my idea) and let that heat through and the veggies were cooked just perfectly. I scooped the soup into a wide bowl, garnished it with some more herbs and ate it with relish.

What’s GOOD: I threw this together in about 30 minutes of chopping and stirring. It’s a DRY soup – if you know what that means – it does not have a lot of liquid in it – so it’s mostly vegetables with a bit of a creamy base. I absolutely loved it. It was very filling, had a delicious variety of flavors and textures, enhanced by the herbs. I particularly liked the fresh mint in it – not something you see often. The poblano chile added quite a bit of heat – if you’re sensitive to hot stuff, leave it out. It will be just fine without it. You can add heat to your own taste with cayenne or some of the Slap Yo Mama Cajun seasoning. Don’t overdo it, though.

What’s NOT: Make sure you’ve GOT enough green veggies to make this – variety is the spice of life, and this soup! If you have a meat-eating family, they may not be satisfied with this. If I had to add some protein to this I’d add some shrimp, I think. Maybe some mild fish like sole.

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Lentil Soup. Comfort food at its finest. What you see in that bowl are lentils, multi-colored carrot chunks, tomatoes, onions, a Poblano chile all cut up, celery, broth, some Indian spices (explanation below) and a dollop of Greek yogurt on top. Very easy. VERY easy. And SO GOOD!

I think “hankering” must be an old-time word. I don’t hear people use it much. That’s what I had – a hankering for lentil soup when I walked into my kitchen and decided that I’d make a batch. Lentil soup doesn’t take long to prepare since lentils cook from beginning to finished in about 20 minutes. I could have made my Dad’s recipe. I’ve written up a long post about that soup before. He’d have been so happy to see his recipe here on my blog (my Dad, who only knew how to grill, really, did make lentil soup, about the only time he stepped into the kitchen his entire married life – and never in my mom’s kitchen, only when he was away from home). When my parents came to visit, my Dad would ask if we wanted it. Of course we did. If you want to see that recipe, it’s a fairly standard, plain-Jane kind of lentil soup with bacon.

Searching my cookbooks, and searching online yielded no particular recipes that interested me. I read about the quantities of onion, carrots and celery, thyme, salt and pepper. Some of them included cumin. That’s what got my mind to buzzing. What if I made a lentil soup with Indian spices. I searched for Indian lentil soup recipes, and came up with much the same ingredients (without thyme). So, I just started making my own version. It was easy. I had a poblano chile in the refrigerator, so was determined to use that. I had those rainbow carrots, so I used purple and yellow. I had one big onion, plenty of celery, regular brown lentils. I did not want a pureed soup – I wanted a soup with texture, and that’s exactly what I got here. And the soup was ready to eat in about 45 minutes.

First I rendered a couple slices of bacon (you can eliminate that step if you’d prefer to make this vegetarian), then added onion, carrots and celery. I let those simmer for awhile until they were soft (about 5-8 minutes, I’d guess), then I added in a can of tomatoes and some chicken broth (I used Penzey’s soup base and water). And lastly, I added in the poblano chile that I cut up into short slivers about 1/4 inch wide. I brought it to a simmer, covered it and let it percolate for about 20 minutes. I think it took close to 30 minutes to get the lentils to just the right consistency (the older the lentils, the dry-er they are, and hence will take longer to cook). Ground cumin was added, some turmeric, salt and pepper. Just before serving I added a spoonful of garam masala (it’s best added in just at the end). When I scooped it into the soup tureen you see in the photo, I put on a dollop of Greek yogurt. The fragrance was wonderful, let me tell you!

Oh my YES! This soup was fabulous. Such a humble meal, but long on flavor. I’ll be eating from that batch of soup for days.

What’s GOOD: Chunky. Full of texture. Easy to make. Full of flavor from the vegetables and the cumin and turmeric and garam masala. Altogether delicious and I’m sure I’ll be making it this way again. Soon. This doesn’t have any meat, as such, but you could add some. You could also not use bacon and it would be a true vegetarian meal if you used vegetable broth.

What’s NOT: nothing, really. The soup was just what I wanted – I satisfied my hankering, for sure.

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When I got home from my trip to Africa, this was the first thing I made. A recipe from one of the safari camps in Botswana. The ginger adds just a slight kick and the lime juice gives a hint of citrus and tart. Wonderful soup.

Nearly every night on the 2 weeks of safari trips, we were served hot soup as a first course at dinnertime. It seemed kind of incongruous to me – I almost never make or eat hot soup in hot weather. But we all enjoyed it and savored the varieties we were served. This one was the standout – so much so that I asked for the recipe, as did many others who went on the trip with me. It tasted just as good as it did in Botswana.

First of all, DO start with good carrots. Don’t use a bunch that’s been sitting in your crisper for a week or so. You want flavorful carrots, otherwise this soup will be ho-hum. I generally buy organic carrots, and these were fresh carrots I’d purchased a day before I made this. If you have more carrots than you need, taste them and see if they’re good and use the best ones. Use the others for snacking or something else. You want flavor here.

You sweat some veggies, add the raw, chunked carrots and cook them through in vegetable or chicken stock. It’s pureed in the blender until it’s super-smooth. It’s like silk it’s so smooth. Half a cup of cream is added, some fresh ginger and serve it with a paper-thin slice of lime floating on top. Done. Easy. The recipe said it could be served hot or cold. I’d choose hot.

What’s GOOD: silky, smooth texture, lovely bright carrot flavor, enhanced by the lime juice and the ginger. Altogether delicious soup. A keeper.

What’s NOT: nothing that I can think of.

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Honeydew. Summertime. Melon. Cool soup. Ahhh. . .

Just a week or so ago I posted a recipe for a Cantaloupe Soup, explaining that I tried to replicate a recipe from a list of ingredients. It was delicious, but I do think this one, made with honeydew, is even better. To recap, when I was visiting my friends Lynn and Sue in Colorado, one day we visited Willow Creek Restaurant in Evergreen, a tiny little town in the foothills of the Rockies. The restaurant overlooks the town lake. It was a warm summer day and the chef had just made this soup. It sounded so refreshing (it was). Sue and I both ordered it and could hardly keep ourselves from licking the little bowl. We asked what was in it. The hostess went back to the kitchen and asked, and there we got the ingredients. It was our job to figure out how much.

Sue made this recently, using her version of the ingredient list, and sent it to me, so I set to work making it. Can I just tell you – MAKE THIS! Not only is it super easy (it’s all done in a blender) but it’s just SO “summer,” SO “light,” and just gosh-darned delicious. I wasn’t having guests and I ate it all by myself over the course of 4 days.

The toasted almonds are a real must – don’t neglect that little tiny aspect as it kind of makes it – it’s the crunch, I think. I sought out every last little speck of toasted almond in the bottom of that bowl up there. And be sure to choose a very ripe and tasty melon – I let mine ripen on my kitchen counter top for several days before I refrigerated it – that’s my one little technique for buying melons. The soup will shine only if the melon flavor is good to begin with.

What’s GOOD: the honeydew flavor is predominant, although honeydew (or any melon for that matter) flavor is subtle. But it shines through here, and the addition of mint or basil is key, as are the toasted almonds. Make a day or so ahead. You’ll hear raves, I promise you. EASY!

What’s NOT: not a single thing.

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Yes, it’s summer. Yes, this was hot soup. May not be appealing to some, but it was a somewhat cooler evening and I was tired of the usual braised, broiled, steamed or grilled salmon. I had zucchini and a sweet potato, so I improvised with everything else.

Cooking for one can definitely be a challenge. And most often I prefer to make something that will give me at least 2 dinners before I’m tired of it. I simply cannot make any more large quantity things that are frozen in smaller portions, as my freezer is full of them. Recently I made a chicken curry dish that I just love-love, and froze it in about 8 different sizes of ziploc bags. But that’s one that I crave quite frequently, so I agreed with my reasoning to make a big batch. I’m doing my level best to NOT buy more meat since I have a freezer full of meat in my garage.

This day, I’d defrosted a lovely salmon fillet but hadn’t decided what to do with it. Searching through my to-try file I ran across this recipe, from Food 52. It was a “community pick.” I don’t know exactly what that means in their vernacular, but the write-up about it – it’s Brazilian fish stew  – sounded intriguing. I didn’t exactly follow the recipe to the letter – as I mentioned above – I needed to improvise a bit. But I had the salmon, sweet potato, zucchini, part of a hot pepper, onion, a red and yellow bell pepper, garlic, coconut milk, canned tomatoes, cilantro and some fish stock. And fresh limes.

First you marinate the salmon (I cut it up into bite-sized pieces) in lime juice, EVOO, and salt. But only for 30-60 minutes (otherwise the lime juice would start to make ceviche!). That is set aside while you prep the other ingredients. That part didn’t take long. In a big skillet (with lid to use later) you start by sautéing the sweet potato in a bit of oil. As it takes on some caramelization, stir it around to cook it on all sides. I just stirred it several times – I was far too lazy to try to turn each little piece of potato. Perhaps my method of cooking this isn’t exactly true to the original recipe (or to the traditional Brazilian method) but because of some of my ingredients I had to improvise. I added the raw, chopped and sliced onion, and let the two items cook a bit. Then I added the garlic, tomatoes, some of the coconut milk, some fish stock. I covered the pan for about 5 minutes to let the potatoes cook. I had some already cooked zucchini and some cooked pasilla pepper (instead of the jalapeno or serrano), so that was added in at the end, but if you’re using fresh zucchini, add it in during this part so it steam-cooks. I used about half a can of chopped tomatoes, and had intended to use about half the can of coconut milk. Then I added in the marinated salmon and simply let those pieces sit on top of the stew. On the lid went and I allowed it to simmer for about 5 minutes. Into a bowl it went with some fresh minced cilantro on top and my dinner was done.

Afterwards, I realized that I had more than enough for another meal, so I added in the remaining coconut milk. I’ll save the remaining tomatoes for something else, because I thought it would make this too tomatoey. It will be heavy with the veggies and creamy broth rather than salmon, but there’s enough for another soup meal for me. I remember what the Food52 test kitchen person had mentioned, that they couldn’t wait to tell people they had to make this because it was SO flavorful. And yes, it really is. You might not think so because of the rather ordinary ingredients. It all comes together somehow. These Brazilians are onto something!

What’s GOOD: the whole bowl of soup was unctuous. That’s the best word I can come up with. Every bite was delicious – I particularly liked the sweet potato – just barely cooked through with a bit of form to it still. You don’t want to over cook the sweet potato. The coconut milk – well – I think it probably is the star of the dish, but you don’t realize it – it just provides a silkiness to the creamy brothy part. Altogether delicious, and I’d definitely make this again.

What’s NOT: not a single, solitary thing. This is a keeper. And it’s VERY easy.

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Is it past soup season? My apologies for forgetting this recipe when it was still cold, and you wanted warmth in your tummy. And perhaps I’m the very last person on the planet who hadn’t ever HAD this soup. Oh my goodness, is it ever tasty! And it’s unbelievably easy too. I didn’t put all the trimmings on the soup when I took the photo – there should be cilantro and Fritos all over the top too.

My best friend Cherrie and her husband go camping (really, it’s glamping) a lot. They have a huge (long) 5th wheel that attaches to Bud’s BIG truck and they go up the coast of California, down the coast and inland too (and to Arizona for baseball spring training). Everywhere. And truly, theirs is big enough to live in. Cherrie is an immaculate housekeeper and the 5th wheel is always decorated as cute as a bug. They have several sets of friends and some relatives that they meet in these various places. And THIS is one of the gargantuan meals Cherrie now fixes for the gang. They usually take turns preparing dinner for everyone. Cherrie raved about it, so of course (and gave me a sample), so then I had to try this myself. Cherrie got the recipe from one of the other glamping couples.

Did I tell you this recipe is EASY? Yes, I did, but it bears repeating. This is SUPER EASY! Get out your slow cooker, friends. Make a huge batch and if you can’t eat it all now, freeze it in family-sized portions. The only thing you’ll have to do later is prepare the garnishes (of which there are a few).

It’s like a chili – you could use ground turkey – but the ground beef one was awfully good. You brown up the beef and onions, then pour everything into the crockpot (beans, tomatoes, corn, olives, chiles, taco seasoning AND, the surprise ingredient: a package of dried ranch salad dressing mix) and let it slow-cook for about 6 hours. Done. Meanwhile, prepare the toppings: grated Cheddar, sour cream (or yogurt if you prefer), Fritos, cilantro and avocado. That’s it. Put out bowls and have at it. My mouth is watering just writing up this post, and it’s been several months ago that I made it (small batch, all gone, none in freezer).

What’s GOOD: if it wasn’t extraordinarily tasty I wouldn’t be going on and on about it. It’s delicious. Really delicious. Tummy warming. And, it’s EASY. You could make it without meat, too – I bet it would be fine. I absolutely guarantee you’re going to hear “mmmmm’s” from everyone. I’m just sorry I don’t have any in the freezer, although it’s getting to be warmer weather and this is probably best in colder seasons.

What’s NOT: there’s no down side to this recipe. Make it.

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Here it is, May, and in SoCal, it’s been downright cold. So soup was the order of the day.

Since returning from my trip, it’s taken me awhile to catch up on all the blogs I read. I hate to tell you how many. At least 50. And some of them post multiple times a day, like Food52 and AppAdvice. But Dorie Greenspan only posts once in awhile, and when I saw this recipe for soup, it just leaped out of the screen saying “fix me.” Dorie wrote this up in her Washington Post column. So, even though I wasn’t feeling good, or maybe it was really because I wasn’t feeling good (as I’m writing this, I’ve been down sick with a bad cold for about 5 days) anything soup + chicken (or turkey) sounded good to me.

It did require a trip to the grocery store – I needed numerous fresh veggies (I used fresh mushrooms, a bag of baby spinach, and a fresh bag/pack of broccoli, snow peas, and carrots). I also needed fresh ginger and  enough shallots to measure 1/2 cup. And, freshly ground turkey and riccotta cheese and Thai rice noodles. Plus fresh mint and fresh cilantro. Actually, that was a lot, but I made it a quick trip in and out.

First you make the meatballs – the ground turkey (the store didn’t have the dark turkey mix, only light), ricotta, ground ginger, fresh garlic (I probably used more than the recipe called for – isn’t garlic supposed to be good for a head cold?). Eggs are added to bind the mixture together, along with some bread crumbs, salt and pepper, fresh lemon zest and the shallots. Dorie recommended using a cookie scoop to make the meatballs because they’re sticky – they do require a little bit of light rolling in your palms to make them round and you drop them into the 10 cups of chicken broth. I used my Penzey’s soup base for the broth, and I also added a little dollop of the mushroom soup base I have in my refrigerator just because it’s full of flavor. I had to cook the meatballs in 2 batches, about 12-14 of them in each batch. They don’t want to touch or they might attach to each other. The broth is kept at a very low simmer, and the meatballs cook in about 10 minutes. Then they’re removed. The broth, at this point, is a bit cloudy from little tiny pieces of things from the meatballs. Dorie suggested you can strain it at this point. I didn’t. Too lazy. Meanwhile, I prepped all the veggies (the bag-packed mixed veggies needed some chopping, the box of crimini mushrooms sliced, the herbs minced). Meanwhile you soak some Thai rice noodles. This was the first time I’d used Thai rice noodles (she recommended Taste of Thai, which I found at the market). They’re soaked for 20 minutes in hot water, then cooked in a separate pot for 4 minutes before being added to the soup.

The only thing I’ll tell you about rice noodles is that they go from cooked just right to sludge in a matter of half a minute. So watch them carefully as you cook them for 4 minutes. Since the noodles are long, I chopped them some after soaking them (to make them mouth-manageable) and I didn’t use anywhere near as much as Dorie did – 8 ounces makes a lot of noodles. Fine for a family with carb-hungry children, but I didn’t want that much. I was in it for the meatballs and the vegetables! I’ve left the recipe below as-is, so you can decide if you want to use that much of the rice noodles.

The veggies are added in (carrots first if you want them to be mostly cooked through) and lastly the meatballs to just heat through. It all came together pretty easily. You serve it with ample fresh herbs (I used cilantro and mint), a drizzle of sesame oil (yum) and you can add some sriracha sauce too, and soy sauce if you’re so inclined. Do taste for seasonings – my soup needed more salt and pepper.

What’s GOOD: the word that comes to mind is FRESH. Loved all the veggies and the little drizzle of sesame oil at the end gave it a lovely hint of Asia. Choose veggies you like – carrots add nice color. The fresh herbs are a must – don’t NOT do that part as they impart lots of flavor. The meatballs are, well, turkey meatballs. Good. Not exactly exceptional, but good. Certainly this soup is super-healthy. The only fat in it is what might be in the chicken broth, the tiny bit in the ground turkey and the tiny jot of sesame oil at the end. Make sure your chicken broth is flavorful, otherwise it will be a bit ho-hum.

What’s NOT: nothing in particular. The meatballs take a little bit of time to make, but only about 15 minutes. If you buy ready-to-cook veggies, it’s pretty easy, really.

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There’s still a minimal amount of cooking going on at my house these days. I’m going to cooking classes occasionally, and I’m reviewing books, and I am cooking, but I’m not doing much cooking that’s all that noteworthy. Worthy of a blog post, anyway. But this soup, oh gosh, is it ever good. Such comfort food, good for cold weather and something to come in from the rain to enjoy.

Actually my daughter Sara and I made this several months ago. I realized that I’ve had the recipe up in my browser for a good long time and hadn’t ever transferred the recipe to my software (MasterCook). Then I went looking for the picture I’d taken of it. Couldn’t find it. So, the credit goes to Bon Appetit, whence the photo came, from the article they did on this soup years ago.

An equally long time ago – a couple of years ago, I’d think – I wrote up another recipe with a similar title (Lemon Chicken Soup with Orzo) , from my friend Linda. It’s a thick soup with oodles of orzo in it. This one is completely different – it’s a more brothy soup, with very little orzo, but enough that you know it’s there. It’s a very flavorful broth (from canned stock), and it has big shreds of chicken meat. And celery and leek, and a lovely sprinkling of fresh dill when it’s served. The day Sara and I made this at her home in San Diego, we were trying to make 2-3 dinners on a Saturday so she’d have some things already made for busy school nights with her family. We had this for dinner that night, and we just couldn’t get enough of it. It’s the lemon juice that makes it – and there’s almost nothing made with lemon juice that I don’t like – so it was a given I’d be head of heels in favor of this soup.

It’s not hard to make – just buy a leek, some fresh chicken thighs (or breasts), have celery on hand, chicken broth, and then some dill. Don’t forget the dill – it’s essential. Oh, and the lemons, obviously.

What’s GOOD: everything about this soup is delicious. As I mentioned, the lemon flavor was what struck me first, and I loved the fresh dill too. Hearty, but not thick. Remember, it’s a brothy soup. No cream or dairy in it. Healthy soup too, but you’d never think it because it’s so flavorful.

What’s NOT: nary a thing. I loved this soup. I have a small Ziploc bag in my freezer right now – Sara sent me home with one portion. I need to find it. I’m not making a whole lot of headway at cleaning out my freezer.

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What’s more comforting than a hot, steaming bowl of creamy soup? This one would be right at home in a British pub. Some beer cheese soups are more broth-oriented. This one’s milk and cream with broth also, but it’s loaded with flavor from the onion, carrots, celery and shallots – oh, and how could I forget? The bacon! Of course, the bacon flavors everything. So does the ale. Make it you must.

Once in awhile I crave this kind of soup. It’s been awhile since I had beer cheese soup (years, actually), but when I saw this recipe in my to-try collection the other day, I decided it really needed to be made. Next month I’m hosting a tea for a group of lady friends – not a “real” afternoon tea kind of thing – this one’s a soup, scones, dessert and tea kind of lunch meal. And I thought since I’m going to teach these ladies how to make a proper pot of tea (that’s part of the event – it’s a fund-raiser – and I thought they all ought to know how to make a traditional pot of tea), I might as well make the menu a bit more British inspired. I’ll have to make this soup again when it’s time. This batch I’ll probably eat up in the next few days. It’s SO good.

Many years ago I wrote up an entire post about making a proper pot of tea – a “praw-per” tea, the British way. My dear friend Pamela (and her late husband Jimmy) befriended us, my DH and me, in a pub one evening in Ilminster, a small town in SW England, and we became friends. This was waaaay back in 1981. We stayed with them many times over the years, and on one occasion Pamela taught me how to make tea. She had a particular blend of tea that she combined herself. Her belief is that you must have some portion of a tea combo a smoky tea – like Lapsang souchong. [By the way, did you know that Lapsang Souchong is the oldest tea known and that it’s smoked over pine wood?] I’m not so crazy about smoky tea, and never all by itself. Pamela’s personal mixture was: 1/4 smoky tea, 1/4 English Breakfast, and 1/2 Darjeeling. That combination I like, though, so I may have to buy some of those varieties for my tea event – just so I can have everyone taste it. My guess is that most Americans (without a Chinese background or a very strong interest in tea) hardly know about smoky teas. I have all of those teas in my stash, but haven’t used any of them in years and years. Some websites say tea should be thrown out in 2 years, but some people have used tea more than 20 years old and they thought it was fine. A taste test will need to be done.

Pamela and Jimmy were very particular about their tea, so over the years I learned more and more about it. In years past when I had a lot of trouble sleeping, if I woke up in the middle of the night and would decide I had to get up, not just toss and turn, I’d quietly pitter-patter to the kitchen, bundled up in a warm robe and fuzzy slippers, light a fire in the fireplace sometimes, and I’d make a pot of tea, in the Pamela fashion. I might read, or watch TV, or sometimes I’d play games on my computer. I don’t think Pamela ever had Earl Grey (she would frown terribly at the thought, I’m sure, but it’s probably my favorite). She didn’t like floral-flavored teas. On one trip to England I bought some Lady Grey tea, which is a take-off on Earl Gray, but a little less bergamot (I think), the bergamot being the addition that makes Earl Grey distinctly different. For my event I’ll probably serve 3 kinds of tea, the above mix, Earl Grey and maybe an herbal tea for those who don’t like black tea or caffeine.

Well, I got sidetracked talking about tea. Let’s get back to the soup. With me – as I write this anyway – still wearing my special boot – I thought this soup would be easy to make. Well, it wasn’t hard really, but it sure took more time than I’d anticipated, so my foot was aching by the time I was done. I should have done the vegetable prep earlier in the day, but as it was, I was up and down about an hour. I used my Vitamix to puree it. First I tried my immersion blender, and should have done it BEFORE I added the cheese. It stuck to the immersion blender, which took a brush to remove once I got to cleaning it. I gave up on the immersion blender because it wasn’t doing a good job. Anyway, whatever you do, make it really smooth. After 6-8 minutes of using it the immersion blender, there were still lots of pieces of things in the pot, so the regular blender was the way to go.

The original recipe I got from Williams-Sonoma, but I altered it some, adding some things, and taking out some things. Bacon was my addition (oh, and a good one). I didn’t add the paprika called for, nor did I add cayenne. Could have, I guess. Another recipe suggested a couple tablespoons of sherry at the end, but mine was plenty ale-tasting already and I didn’t think it needed sherry. I think I added an extra carrot – no biggie. I purchased an 18-ounce bottle of ale – I had to carefully peruse the shelves for an ale, not just a beer. According to the write-up about the recipe, it’s the hops in the beer that’s needed, so I found one that said the hops were prominent. I’m not sure I’d do that part again – but then, I’m not a beer drinker. If you are, then by all means go for the hops-forward style.

What’s GOOD: well, the flavors first and foremost. You definitely taste the beer/ale, the cheddar and the BACON. Loved that part for sure. I used some sharp American cheddar and some Irish sharp cheddar (both white cheeses, not yellow, otherwise you’d end up with a very orange colored soup). You need to cook it long enough to get the booziness out of the soup, then add the dairy at the last. Altogether delicious. Don’t know that it will freeze – it might separate if you did that. So plan accordingly. The other things that make the soup are the garnishes – the bacon and crispy shallots. The soup doesn’t have any texture once you puree it, of course, so the bacon and shallots add a bit of that. You could also serve it with some croutons. That, too, would be a nice addition.

What’s NOT: nothing really – just plan about an hour of prep and cooking, then the pureeing, then the cheese and reheating. Have everything else all ready once you start the puree process. Or make it earlier in the day and reheat. That would work fine too.

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Without a doubt, this soup could be made with leftover turkey – in which case you wouldn’t need to use the slow cooker. But the flavors are lovely. Simple to make. Hearty for a cold night.

Making this soup was a milestone for me in more ways than one. If you’re not a regular reader of my blog, you won’t know that I’ve been suffering from plantar fasciitis in my left foot, and the most painful thing I do is stand still. So standing at my kitchen counter is painful.

When I do stand there, usually for just a very short time, I put more weight on the other foot, which then makes my right hip talk to me. I also try putting more of my weight on the ball of my foot, which doesn’t hurt. But that isn’t exactly comfortable for any length of time, either. Anyway, I’ve purchased another pair of the shoes that are so much better (Brooks Glycerin 12’s) and now I’ve added in two more things: Aetrex arch supports (which have a cloud-like feeling to me) and Feetures cushioned socks. Those have made a huge – and I mean huge – difference in my walking ability. Even some of the standing-still ability as well. Of course, if I’d lose 50 pounds, my foot might not hurt so much.

I’m tired of eating out. Not that I’ve done that every day – I don’t. I’ve dug things out of the freezer lots of nights. I had more of that fabulous Moroccan Harira Chicken Soup, that I can’t get enough of, some lentil soup I made many months ago, before my injury to my foot, and I’ve defrosted some pork chops and have managed to stand long enough to cook those in a skillet. I’ll make some fresh vegetables – love Brussels sprouts with dried cranberries and a tiny bit of maple syrup drizzled in at the end. Or zucchini and onion with thyme. Nothing very exciting for veggies, but they’re something I can do without too much standing. I visit my local Mexican place once a week. And I buy any number of things at Trader Joe’s. I’ve poached salmon in my Lekue case on a number of occasions because it’s done in the microwave. And I stick a few veggies in there too, so it’s a meal in one. I discovered an ancient bag of soup in my frozen Soup Library that was made in 2009 – a Mexican Black Bean Sausage Chili. Oh my goodness was it delicious. I ate it 3 nights in a row. Who says frozen food doesn’t taste good after a year. I thought it was great, and it was 5 years old! I also make myself an omelet for dinner once in awhile. If I have a big lunch out, then I eat salad (often one from Trader Joe’s ready-made ones, my current favorite being Chicken Citrus Salad) or soup, or even cold cereal on occasion.

All that story leading up to the fact that the other night I WANTED to cook. That’s the other milestone. Since Dave died (8 months ago now), my interest in cooking has been only because I needed to feed myself. The joy of cooking had completely vanished. I won’t say that I didn’t enjoy eating the food I ate, I just didn’t want to cook it and if I cooked, it wasn’t fun at all. This particular morning, though, I thought about what I’d like to have and felt that I’d be able to do something in my small crockpot. I went to one of my crockpot cookbooks and found this one. I had all the ingredients, so that made the decision very easy. What appealed to me was beef stew, but I didn’t have any beef chunks in the freezer, so that idea went down the drain. I did have chicken, though. I almost always have chicken breasts and thighs on hand.

So with this recipe I’m celebrating the fact that I wanted to cook and that I was able to stand up at the kitchen counter long enough to do the food prep. Hooray! I had 2 pounds of boneless, skinless chicken thighs. I cut them up into large-ish bite-sizes. I sautéed the onions, added the garlic in at the end, sort of browned the chicken, then added in everything else and let it slow cook for about 2 1/2 hours. The recipe said 6-8 on low, 3-4 on high. Well, that didn’t work for me – this soup was completely done in about 2+ hours on low. I went online and read another website with this recipe (which came from Andrew Schloss’s Art of the Slow Cooker: 80 Exciting New Recipes). Others commented that the chicken was dry after that many hours, so I’d definitely not leave this to cook all day. Chicken thighs do have a lot more moisture, but chicken breasts would probably be done in an hour. You could slow it down by using chilled chicken broth, chilled canned tomatoes, etc.

Based on info I found in the comments at that website, I added a large can of tomatoes and more chicken broth. For myself, and because I’d added more liquid volume to it, I also amped up the spices just a little – rounded the teaspoons for all of them. I added regular grocery-store chili powder, which doesn’t have much heat – use your own judgment about that for you and your family. If I served this again, I might also add just a little bit of frozen corn (just to give it some color). Corn isn’t necessary, but it would be a nice addition. I’ve added it into the recipe below even though I didn’t use it. The chocolate – well, it wasn’t noticeable, to me. I think it would need more than an ounce. Someone else used chocolate chips, chopped up some.

What’s GOOD: how easy and quick it was to put together. You do need to sauté the onions (which gives them more flavor). My small crockpot allows me to sauté in the pot. I took out the onions then added in the chicken, then added all the ingredients (except the cilantro and chocolate added at the last). It was really delish. For a quick meal you could do this on the stove and it would be ready in about 30 minutes, I suppose. I decided to use the slow cooker because I was going to be gone for awhile in the afternoon (went to a movie). When I got home the soup was done to perfection.

What’s NOT: this isn’t really complex chili – although by adding your own type of chili powder (ancho? New Mexico?) it might change the flavors some. I was completely satisfied, though, for a quick dinner. I now have frozen half of it and will eat the rest for another 2 meals. If you’re feeing 6 hungry people, it might not be enough. Add another can of beans perhaps?

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Files: MasterCook 5+ and MasterCook 14 (click on link to open recipe in MC)

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