Weather is really getting crazy. After the cold, we're back in the 50s in New York. Still, this is not an excuse to stop having soup, at least for lunch. It's January after all!!
The best thing about soup, is that you can have it as a complete satisfying meal, even if it doesn't contain actual pieces of meat or chicken. You can have it alone for lunch, or as a starter in dinner. Sometimes I even have it as a hearty snack in the afternoon, instead of a cup of hot beverage and a cookie. It is easy to come up with delicious recipes for soup using what you have in the kitchen, or even some leftovers in your fridge. For my next recipe I actually used the cooked Lima beans in tomato sauce we had at dinner one day before, since I was sure that nobody was going to eat the same side dish again soon. But that will be our little secret, I'll give you next the "official" recipe for the soup.
THREE BEANS SOUP
It's a hearty soup that I like to serve as a one pot meal. It has everything you need: proteins (beans), carbs (orzo or pastina), lutein (tomatoes) and vitamins and nutrients (vegetables). I always make a big pot, even if I am serving 2 or 3 people, soup is always welcomed in my house. Also I try to make it early in the day so it can be ready for lunch, and the pasta in it will be fully plumped. You'll need:
3/4 cup orzo, or any small pasta like stars
1 (15.5 oz) can each cannellini and chick peas
1 package frozen Lima beans
3 to 4 celery stalks
1 handful baby carrots or 1 large carrot
1 tbsp frozen onion/garlic mixture
1/2 (28oz) can crushed tomatoes
Stock, chicken or vegetable
In a 5.5 qt pot wet the orzo with the oil and stir on high heat until light golden brown. The idea here is that when you brown the pasta this way, it will keep its shape and size, even if the soup is reheated several times. When you drop the pasta in the soup, it will keep absorbing the liquid and grow in size. Add the onions and stir for a minute. Add the Lima beans, even if not completely defrosted, and stir to completely defrost. Add the crushed tomatoes and the stock, up to the handle of your pot. Bring to a boil and keep the cover ajar. Chop the carrots into bite size and add them to the pot. Slice the celery and add it to the soup. When the veggies are almost done drain the cannellini and the chick peas, rinse them in cold water and drain them again, then add them to the pot. Stir everything together, adjust seasoning and serve.
BASIC SOUP
I just realized that we've been talking about soup without mentioning the obvious: basic soup with pastina. I've already gave you my basic recipe for stock, chicken, meat, duck or even rabbit (Boil the meat first, discard the water, rinse and boil again in a clean pot adding one small onion, salt, pepper, ground cardamom, mastic and celery salt until the meat is tender). Sometimes, when it's really cold, I'm satisfied with just a cup of hot clear stock.
My favorite chicken soup ever, was the chicken rice soup I used to have at school. Nobody could replicate it until now. I don't know why. Our cook tried, my grandma tried, I tried several times, still, it was not the same. Maybe it's a childhood thing that is gone forever!!
So, I usually go for my second best: chicken and orzo soup. It's a very easy recipe. Actually you don't need a recipe at all. All you have to do is brown the orzo (or any small pasta: starts, shells, alphabet, or even rice) in a drop of oil, add the stock, stir and let cook on medium high until the pasta is done. How easy is that?
Browning the pasta adds some color to the soup and keeps the pasta from swelling excessively. The soup in the picture is actually a rabbit stock I had made two days ago to serve as Melokheya, and this was the leftover soup.
NOTE: Another favorite soup is what we call the HALF AND HALF SOUP. Just boil some water, add one cube chicken stock and one cube beef stock. Break a couple of spaghetti into 1 inch bits, add to the pot and cook until the pasta is done. This was our favorite late night snack while studying in high school.
BASIC SOUP
I just realized that we've been talking about soup without mentioning the obvious: basic soup with pastina. I've already gave you my basic recipe for stock, chicken, meat, duck or even rabbit (Boil the meat first, discard the water, rinse and boil again in a clean pot adding one small onion, salt, pepper, ground cardamom, mastic and celery salt until the meat is tender). Sometimes, when it's really cold, I'm satisfied with just a cup of hot clear stock.
My favorite chicken soup ever, was the chicken rice soup I used to have at school. Nobody could replicate it until now. I don't know why. Our cook tried, my grandma tried, I tried several times, still, it was not the same. Maybe it's a childhood thing that is gone forever!!
So, I usually go for my second best: chicken and orzo soup. It's a very easy recipe. Actually you don't need a recipe at all. All you have to do is brown the orzo (or any small pasta: starts, shells, alphabet, or even rice) in a drop of oil, add the stock, stir and let cook on medium high until the pasta is done. How easy is that?
Browning the pasta adds some color to the soup and keeps the pasta from swelling excessively. The soup in the picture is actually a rabbit stock I had made two days ago to serve as Melokheya, and this was the leftover soup.
NOTE: Another favorite soup is what we call the HALF AND HALF SOUP. Just boil some water, add one cube chicken stock and one cube beef stock. Break a couple of spaghetti into 1 inch bits, add to the pot and cook until the pasta is done. This was our favorite late night snack while studying in high school.
No comments:
Post a Comment