1 Stock, 100 Soups: Take 1 basic recipe and make 100 kinds of soup
By Linda Doeser
Paragon Publishing 2009, 221 pages
The past few days, the nights have been getting a little cool, down in the 40's. While it is a welcome change from those 90+ and high humidity temps, it does get one to longing for a nice warm bowl of soup for supper. Plus, adding soup at least one night of the week onto our menus, is very economical. Today's prices have us looking for ways to cut our grocery bills. Soups fit the bill. And the author of this book goes even further, to point out that a basic vegetable stock to start out with and fix a wide array of different soups from, is very economical, more so than the beef or chicken stocks and the vegetable stock will suffice for many types of soups, even the vegetarian versions. Another plus is that you can create a huge stock of it to can or put in the freezer, so you have it when you need it. Canned it can last for years, in the freezer, it will last up to 3 months. The recipes are easy to follow, and such a wide variety you will find yourself delving deep. After all, a nice warm bowl of hot soup and some homemade bread is almost like heaven...at least in my mind.
The book starts out with an easy recipe for making your vegetable stock, and over 100 recipes follow. My excitement grew when I found a recipe for Jerusalem Artichoke Soup. I have some growing and ready to be harvested. I've never seen that before. I have to try that one first.
If you are on a journey to add some new recipes to your repertoire, then you will want to investigate this book. From Seaweed Soup with Miso to Apple Soup to Crab and Noodle Soup to a basic Chicken and Rice Soup, you will for sure find a new winner. Doser, a prolific author known for her extensive work in the genres of cooking, food, and wine, focuses on culinary tradition and practical, easy recipes. She makes cooking fun for the average cook.
I will share the recipe I am soon trying. It is so simple, but I imagine so delicious!
Jerusalem Artichoke Soup
Serves 6
1 TB lemon juice
1 lb 9 oz Jerusalem artichokes
4 TB butter
1 TB sunflower oil
1 large onion chopped
5 2/3 cup basic vegetable stock
3/4 cup milk
1 TB snipped fresh chives
scant 1/2 cup heavy cream
salt and pepper
croutons for garnish
extra virgin olive oil for drizzling
Fill a bowl with water and stir in the lemon juice. Peel the artichokes and cut into chunks, immediately dipping in the water to avoid discoloration. Heat the butter with the oil in a large pan. Add the onion and cook over low heat, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes, until softened. Drain the artichokes, add them to the pan, and stir well. Cover and cook, stirring occasionally, for 15 minutes. Pour in the basic vegetable stock and milk, increase the heat to medium, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat, re-cover the pan and simmer for 20 minutes, until the artichokes are soft. Remove the pan from the heat and let cool slightly. Add the chives and transfer the soup to a blender in batches to process to a puree (or use an immersion blender). Pour the soup back into the rinsed-out pan, stir in the cream, and season with salt and pepper. Reheat gently, stirring occasionally, but do not let the soup boil. Ladle into warmed bowls, garnish with croutons, drizzle over the oil and serve immediately.
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