Brrr … it really has been cold and dreary lately. I am glad that I’m not affected mentally by weather. I try and take it as it comes and just put more layers on or take some off. However, as I write this and look out the window at rain and bare-leaf trees, I do want to crawl back into bed and read. That must mean it’s time to rally and make soup!
All the magazines and blogs this time of year are focused on soup. There’s a reason for that. It takes only a mental picture of a bowl with enticing aromas and a hint of steam coming off of the top to take many of us back to childhood. A bowl of soup is a bowl of hugs.
Last week I wanted to make some soup for a couple of special deliveries and so, true to my style of cooking, I opened the pantry door, the fridge door and the freezer door. Ahah! I had some good Gulf shrimp frozen, as well as my favorite smoked sausage, Conecuh from Alabama. I also had, for some unknown reason, a plethora of carrots. So, there were the basics of three soups. My pantry held some Camellia brand red kidney beans and a can of coconut milk, and my freezer had some homemade chicken broth. With a plan in mind, I went to the store and made a few purchases to flesh out these mental recipes: a few gold potatoes, two polio peppers and two cans of creamed corn.
With my arsenal of products arranged on the counter, supplemented by onions and garlic and seasonings, I proceeded over the next two days to make Red Bean and Sausage Soup with Rice, Corn and Shrimp Chowder and Roasted Carrot, Poblano and Ginger Soup. Once I pictured these soups, it was easy to find recipes online or in my cookbooks to see if I left anything out. However, these are the types of soups that don’t require exact amounts of anything and can be adapted to what you have on hand. Many carrot soups also include white or sweet potatoes or butternut squash.
Terry doesn’t like corn off of the cob so I used creamed style, but in the summer you could use fresh corn and also put the cobs into the soup to simmer, for extra corn flavor.
Here are two recipes I found that are close to what I made. Stay warm and cozy with a bowl of soup.
CARROT-COCONUT SOUP
Serves 4
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
1 pound carrots, peeled, chopped
1 medium garlic clove
1 half-inch piece of ginger, peeled and smashed
1 medium onion, chopped
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
13.5-ounce can unsweetened coconut milk
2 tablespoons Thai-style chili sauce plus more for serving
Fresh cilantro leaves (for serving)
(Note: I roasted the carrots and poblanos to concentrate their flavor, and then added them to the broth and pureed.)
CHEF JOHN FOLSE’S RED BEAN AND SAUSAGE SOUP
Serves 4
1 cup dried red kidney beans (I recommend Camellia)
1/2 pound smoked sausage, sliced
9 cups low sodium chicken broth
1/2 cup diced onion
1/4 cup diced celery
1/4 cup diced bell pepper
1/4 cup sliced green onions
2 tablespoons chopped parsley
2 tablespoons garlic, minced
1 bay leaf
2 teaspoons cider vinegar
1/4 teaspoon thyme
1/4 teaspoon chili powder
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
The Dispatch Editorial Board is made up of publisher Peter Imes, columnist Slim Smith, managing editor Zack Plair and senior newsroom staff.
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