When times are cold, warmth from the inside goes a long way to making the situation look better. Soup's just the thing, but a can of Campbell's is not the only way (or even the best way) to give yourself a culinary hug. Here's a good cold weather soup and some hearty potato bread to go along with it.
VERY VEGGIE SOUP
This recipe is a variation on a minestrone recipe by two dear lovers of history, Sandy and Mabel Formica, of Little Rock, Arkansas. The original is found in their cookbook Mediterranean Basin Cooking (Sherwood, Arkansas: Formica CO., 1997). The original calls for a chicken stock base, but I have changed it up a bit to make it vegetarian and increase the ratio of vegetables to stock and reduce the cooking time to preserver more of the vegetables' vitamins. I also eliminated the pasta called for in the original recipe, which is typical for minestrone, because I serve it with polenta dumplings that make it plenty hearty, even without the pasta.
INGREDIENTS
• 1 can diced tomatoes
• 2 tbs. olive oil
• 1 large onion, cut in half and sliced thin
• 3 carrots, sliced thin
• 2 stalks celery with the leaves, thinly sliced
• 1/2 cup celery root, chopped (or use more celery stalk)
• 3 stalks swiss chard, chopped (if you can’t find chard, substitute some fresh spinach)
• 1 zucchini, chopped
• 1 cup mixed dried beans (cook these ahead of time--garbanzos, Great northerns, kidneys, Christmas limas, cranberry beans,navy beans, pintos, etc.)*
• 4 cloves garlic cloves, minced
• 2 bay leaves
• 2 quarts vegetable broth
• 1 cup of your favorite spaghetti sauce
• Salt and pepper to taste
INSTRUCTIONS
In a heavy stock pot, fry the onion and garlic in olive oil until soft. Add the rest of the ingredients and cook until the vegetables are soft. Add salt and pepper to taste. The soup tastes better if it is made a day ahead. Pour the soup into bowls and then place a warm polenta bumpling in the center of each bowl. The recipe serves sixteen. Good served with Potato Bread Jummy!
*To cook the 1 cup of dried beans, first rinse them, then place them with 4 cups water and 1 tbs oil into a pressure cooker. Do NOT add salt! Cook for 30 minutes, and then remove from heat and allow the pressure to drop by itself (do not place the pot under water or use the button on the pressure cooker to lower the pressure rapidly—that would make the beans burst—which is ok if you are making refried beans, but not good for this recipe). Drain the bean before adding them to the vegetables. I also sometimes add black-eyed peas, but they have to be cooked separately, as they take much less cooking time than other beans. If you are in a hurry, you can add canned beans instead, but then you will not have the variety of different beans that makes this soup so interesting. One cup of dried beans yields about 2 cups cooked—so a standard can of kidney beans would be equal to the 1 cup of dried beans called for here.
POLENTA DUMPLINGS
• 2 cups water
• 1 cup milk
• 3 tablespoons butter
• 3/4 tsp salt
• 1 1/4 cups polenta
• 2 tablespoons finely chopped onions
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 2 well-beaten eggs
• 1/4 cup grated Parmasan or Grana Padano cheese
• 1/4 cup grated gouda cheese (Monteray Jack will also work)
• 1 tablespoon parsley
• Oil or clarified butter for frying
INSTRUCTIONS
In a large saucepan, combine water, milk, 3 tablespoons butter and 3/4 teaspoon salt; then bring to a boil over high heat. Slowly add polenta, stirring with a whisk. Reduce heat to medium and cook, stirring constantly, for 2 minutes. Reduce heat to very low and cook, stirring often with a wooden spoon, until polenta is thickened and tender, about 20 minutes.
Meanwhile fry finely chopped onion in 1 tablespoon butter (or more as needed) until golden. Preheat oven to 215 degrees Fahrenheit (100 degrees Celsius). Remove polenta from heat; stir in well beaten eggs, onion, cheese and parsley. Let stand until cool enough to handle, about 10 minutes. Wet hands and then form patties about 3/8” thick and 2.5” in diameter. You will need to wash your hands several times before you have finished forming all of the dumplings, otherwise things can get a little sticky. Fry the dumplings in oil or clarified butter for about 5-10 minutes per side until golden brown. Place on a baking sheet and bake for about 15 minutes more just before serving. Because the oven temperature is low, the time can be extended if necessary). If you are serving this soup to guests, it is also possible to make the dumplings ahead of time, refrigerate them, and then do the last step (the part in the oven), just before the guests arrive. Serve with Very Veggie Soup. This makes enough for 16 people.
POTATO BREAD
This is a recipe has its origins among the Pennsylvania Dutch. The only thing it has in common with the commercial breads sold under this name is just that--the name. One very good characteristic of this bread is that it does not go stale or dry out very fast. The bread rises wonderfully, especially if whole grain spelt flour is used. It is still goad when made with whole wheat flour, but the loaves are not quite as high. The recipe makes two good-sized loaves, but it can easily be cut in half if only one is needed.
INGREDIENTS
• 2 cups mashed potatoes
• 1 cake of fresh yeast (or 2 packages of rapid rise yeast)
• 1 1/4 cup warm water (120 degrees F. if using rapid rise yeast)
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons cooking oil (or melted butter)
• 1 cup whole grain flour (I use spelt flour, but whole wheat also works)
• 6 1/3 cups white bread flour
• 1 tablespoon salt (or less if you want to cut down on sodium)
INSTRUCTIONS
Combine mashed potatoes, yeast, water, sugar, oil, and whole grain flour. Mix on high. Then add the salt and then slowly kneed in the rest of the flour (I use the dough hook of a Kitchenaid mixer for this). Kneed for about ten minutes. Then let rise until double. Punch down and form into two round loaves. Place on greased cookie sheets which have been liberally sprinkled with corn meal. Let rise until double again. Cover with foil before putting into the oven. Bake as follows:
• 15 minutes at 450 degrees Fahrenheit, then
• 15 minutes at 400 degrees, then
• remove foil and bake for a final 15 minutes at 375 degrees.
