my 10 minute soup

A few days of sunshine after a week of rain created the perfect weed pulling opportunity. The ground was so saturated that weeds came out clean from the roots with the gentlest of tugs. The most prolific weed is the oxalis, the sour grass known and loved by children, with its bright yellow florescent flowers that really clash with just about everything. But more important than clashing colors is their very tallness. In the right conditions, they can grow very long stems and engulf  “proper” plants.  This weekend I liberated my one bed of winter greens from the suffocating yellow blooms,  and excavated a bed of Italian greens I planted from seed in the late fall. Suddenly, my garden became a treasure trove of greens! Mizuna, bok choi, Russian kale, Lacinato kale, frisee, mustard greens, radicchio Treviso, the beautifuly variegated radicchio Castelfranco, a few very small  puntarelles, and a two perfectly blanched pan di zuccheros. Yes, I love winter greens and chicories. Except for some of the chicories, most of the other greens are of the cut and come again variety. In fact, except for the puntarelle and the pan di zucchero, I treat the chicories as cut and come agains, too! Freshly harvested winter greens are fantastic alone but especially when you can just have a nibble from this plant and that one. And with a nice mix on hand, this is a perfect soup to make.

This is a very humble soup. Bread, garlic, olive oil, greens, and parmesan. If you want to add pancetta to the greens, go for it. Toasted pinenuts are also a great addition. I guess, this is a gardener’s soup. It taste best when a variety of greens are combined. I happened to have a jar of truffle paste given to me by my friend Franco, Mr. Exotic Edibles, which I added.

Green Winter Soup

• Leafy winter greens, and lots of them. I filled a salad bowl and it served 3!
• A good bread, I used a miche from Trader Joe’s
• Olive oil
• Garlic, 2 cloves peeled and chopped
• Grated parmesan
• Salt and pepper

1. Thoroughly wash your greens, spin, and finely chop.
2. In your largest sauté pan, heat some olive oil and gently cook your garlic.
3. Add the greens and about a cup of water.
4. They will cook quickly, with a gently stir once or twice. Salt and pepper as you like.
5. Once perfectly wilted, turn off the heat. Do not drain! You will use the “broth.”
6. While greens are cooking, thickly slice and start toasting the bread. (This happens to be a great soup to make on the open hearth) I usually make two slices of bread per person.
7. When all the bread has been toasted, you can start assembling the soup.
8. Place one piece of toast in each bowl, add some greens, repeat.
   
9. I added a big dollop of truffle paste to the broth, gave a quick stir, and then poured the broth evenly in each bowl.
10. Add the grated parmesan.
11. Serve immediately!

Once the greens are washed and chopped, this is a very fast soup to make. This isn’t just a recipe for the Frugal Foodie but also one for the Busy Foodie!  It is hearty and satisfying, and a perfect meal with your favorite bottle of red wine. Some guests have even been known to  pour a little of their wine on top, but I never do…

Planning and organizing are second nature to me. Lately, between a handful of jobs and a 2 1/2 year old that has stopped napping, my world comes to a grinding halt if I am not prepared. For years I struggled with a partner whose effusive, charming, and spontaneous energy overwhelmed my daily life. I always felt as if there was something seriously lacking in my nature because it was so very hard to accomplish the simplest of tasks. Although spontaneity is a wonderful state of mind, sometimes planning is necessary to accomplishing the smallest of goals. If you are a creative and self employed individual with varied interests, planning and organizing are guiding lights that add structure to your life and allow you to somehow squeeze it all in. I am amazed at my current level of productivity and, for the first time in a very long time, all the different parts of me are solidly unifying. So don’t let anyone call you uptight, stand proud besides your lists and post-its!

Every week I make a pot of beans, one soup, some kind of chicken stew or pasta sauce, and a batch of scones or quick bread. It does sound like a lot for two people but between my daughter’s voracious appetite and friends who stop by, everything always gets eaten! And in a pinch, all I have to worry about is quickly preparing some vegetables. The last few days have been cold and very damp so I decided to make my favorite spiced chickpea and lentil soup. Always a welcome treat on cold days.

Obama Soup

1. 3 cups cooked chickpeas
2. 1 1/2 cups orange lentils
3. 1 medium yellow onion, finely diced
4. 2 carrots, cut in half length wise and finely sliced
5. 3 celery stalks, cut in thirds lengthwise and finely sliced
6. 1 clove of garlic
7. 1 bay leaf
8. 6 cups chicken broth
9. 4 cups water, or liquid from cooked chickpeas
10. 1 cup tinned tomatoes
11. 1 teaspoon ground ginger
12. 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
13. 1 teaspoon tumeric

• Cook the chickpeas according to instructions on the package
• In a soup pot place 2 tablespoons olive oil and the onion and cook slowly.
• When the onion is soft, add the carrots and celery. Cook until soft and lightly browned.
• Add the garlic, lentils, bay leaf and  chicken broth and water.
• Bring to a simmer and cook gently for 25 minutes.
• Add the chickpeas, tomatoes, and all the spices.
• Simmer for about 45 minutes 
• Use a bean masher (ricer to the rest of the world) to mash all the ingredients for a thicker soup.
• Salt to taste.

I like to serve this soup with a dollop of plain yogurt, chopped cilantro, and crusty bread. The spice and texture of this soup create a hearty and satisfying meal on a cold gray day.

NB: This is a wonderful vegetarian soup, simply omit the chicken broth and cook the chickpeas in plenty of water. The chickpeas and their broth can become the base onto which to build this soup.