The Serendipity of Soups

Making soup is an activity we do a lot of in the winter; it usually involves making stock from the vegetables from last week’s soup (peelings, etc. thrown in from the freezer). I rarely follow a recipe, but soup almost always involves sauteing some alium or other, followed by root vegetables, followed sometimes by tomatoes, followed by the stock, followed by soaked beans, followed by leafy greens and seasoning. All the items above alter depending on what looks good to buy at the local food Coop, so no soup is ever really replicated. Getting really fancy involves springing for tarragon and a little wine in the soup.

Today, though, it turned out particularly well. I’m not quite sure why, but I suspect the presence of large quantities of garlic in the stock along with flageolet beans. These green, elegant beans are the “freshest” tasting of all dried beans and also have a wonderful texture. They are also harder to find than the pinto, black, white, or kidney beans we usually use, and cost more when found. I also used red chard and a leafy variegated thing which may have been related to mustard or dandelion but which was neither.

Bread, cheese, and soup: dinner for winter nights.