First Soup of the Season

There is a chill in the air here in Georgia, and that means soup! For some reason, I'm not a big fan of soups during the warmer months, but when the leaves are turning, and the wind picks up, there is nothing better than whipping up a big pot on a Sunday afternoon.

I like them for the sake of convenience too. One pot (read: fewer dirty dishes). Large quantities (read: I only have to cook once and I have meals for several days/nights now, or in the future in the freezer).

The other reason I love making soups is because I can control the ingredients. Yeah, yeah, of course it's better for my health...more veggies, lower sodium, leaner meats.

But, the real reason I like controlling ingredients is because I can be as creative as I want. Sure, there are tons of great recipes out there to follow (which I encourage!), but I've learned to let my imagination run wild with soups and throw a little of this in and then a little of that and viola! A masterpiece. Trouble is, I always forget to write down the magic formulas. Darn.

This past week, I was watching back episodes of Giada de Laurentiis on DVR and came across an episode where she made this delicious, easy tomato soup. It was so easy and absolutely delicious!

Even though I didn't make it up myself, I felt like I did since everything I needed was in my pantry or fridge, and I pulled one of those "on camera" moments where I effortlessly grabbed this and that and ended up with this:

Quick and Spicy Tomato Soup
(by Giada de Laurentiis)

Ingredients:

3 tablespoons olive oil
2 carrots, peeled and chopped
1 small onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1 (26-ounce) jar marinara sauce (recommended: San Marzano brand)
2 (14-ounce) cans chicken broth
1 (15-ounce) can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1/2 cup pastina pasta (or any small pasta)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper


Directions:
1. Warm the olive oil in a large soup pot over medium-high heat.

2. Add the carrots, onion, and garlic and saute until soft, about 2 minutes.

3. Add the jar of marinara sauce, chicken broth, cannellini beans, red pepper flakes, pasta, salt and pepper.

4. Simmer for 10 minutes.

5. Ladle into bowls and serve.

Headed to the Borough

I just got back from a trip across The Pond. Yep, that's right. I had the opportunity to take two weeks and visit my dear friend, Dr. Nellie, while she was finishing up a bit of studying in London.

My next several posts will be about my adventures with Dr. Nellie...beginning with our trip to London's famed and beloved Borough Market.

I first became aware of this wonderland of food when I saw it on Ina Garten's London special during the holidays last year. Knowing I was headed there in the spring, I have pretty much been obsessed ever since.

The market is made up of of hundreds of vendors selling everything from piping hot Hunstman Pie...

to giant, steaming pots of paella...

to sweet and savory homemade marmalades...

to pastries that will make you want to cry...

and everything in between.

Walking around the market with a zillion of your closest friends takes some patience, but it's hard to really lose your cool when you realize that you are milling through this foodie mecca with your own people.

I mean, how can you fault someone for stopping in the middle of the isle because they just tasted the creamiest, richest cheese of their life? Or for taking 20 minutes in line ahead of you to decide which of the homemade truffles - dark, white, milk, cayenne, chai, strawberry... - is "the" one? I just don't think you can.

If I were an athlete, experiencing Borough Market would definitely be like winning the Superbowl or the World Series.

Dr. Nellie and I roamed and roamed, ogling at all the delights...then, suddenly, there it was: The Flour Station. This is the very vendor where the Barefoot Contessa herself purchased an unbelievably gooey, glistening sweet roll on her trip to Borough Market. I must have one.

I had stood where Ina had been. Happy, happy girl.

After a couple hours of exploring all the cracks and crevices of the market, we picked up some sandwiches and a glass of cold cider to wash them down (I literally watched them pour my cider straight from the cask!) and sat down to rest our feetsies for a bit before heading back to the flat.

Words cannot even begin to describe the swelling in my heart that Saturday morning.  Sheer and utter thrill, complete amazement, crazy wonderment. I felt as if I had come home walking through the market bustling with people, smelling the aromas of the bounties of this earth (and some from grandma's kitchen) and truly savoring every moment.

Cheers!

Arugu-what?

Arugula. It's kind of an odd little green, isn't it? I mean, you always hear chefs talk about it's "peppery" hints. How the heck can a leafy thing taste like pepper? I mean, I've always thought arugula was just one of those "fancy" greens that celebrity chefs use to make a dish more enticing.

Oops, sorry. That's parsley.

The last time I was in San Francisco, I picked up the most amazing cookbook:

It's organized by season and by vegetable and fruit within that. So, if it's October and I want to know how to cook a sweet potato (and where it came from, what it's best served with and what time of year it's best), I can just flip open this magic book and there's a delicious recipe. That's what I did with arugula.

This is what I made:

Whole wheat penne drizzled with olive oil and sprinkled with salt and pepper and mixed with some chopped garlic, cherry tomatoes, wilted arugula and freshly shaven parmigiano-reggiano.

Fresh.

Easy.

Fast.

Oh-so-delicious.

(Folks, there's no recipe, just cook the pasta and toss the ingredients. You cannot screw it up.)