Soup Getaway
By Sidonie Maroon, Culinary Educator for The Food Co-op
The days are short, the skies gray, but we can transform the winter blahs with a soup adventure—A cozy cook-the-books. The cookbook 400 Soups, edited by Anne Sheasby, is perfect for a recipe romance. With its step-by-step instructions and how-to photos, it’s more than a guide; it’s an invitation to explore the world from your kitchen.
Curating the Getaway
Every adventure begins with inspiration, and 400 Soups is brimming with it. The book is a treasure chest of global flavors, from creamy French bisques to spicy Indian dals, hearty Italian minestrones and bright, citrusy Asian broths. Will January bring the earthy comfort of a roasted root vegetable soup or the fiery kick of a Mexican tortilla soup? February might call for the velvety decadence of a classic clam chowder, while March could offer the herbaceous promise of spring with a Greek avgolemono.
The beauty of this challenge is choosing. Each recipe is an opportunity to try something new, to let your taste buds wander far from home even as you stay snug in your kitchen.
Setting an Alliterative Day
Imagine creating “Soup Sundays” where your kitchen is a haven of simmering pots and savory aromas. Marking “Soup Sunday” on the calendar transforms dinner from a task into a tradition, something to anticipate.
Knowing Your Adventure Style
Are you a recipe follower or improviser? This adventure invites both. 400 Soups provides structure, but there’s plenty of room for creativity. Maybe you add a pinch of smoked paprika to a lentil soup or swap out potatoes for parsnips in a chowder. Discover your style — do you measure meticulously or cook with a “little of this, little of that” approach?
Building Confidence and Imagination
Each pot of soup is a lesson in technique. Learn the techniques of building layers of flavor and achieving spice balance. You’ll see recipes as starting points rather than strict instructions. You might even dream up your own soups—perhaps a curry-spiced carrot and coconut soup or a smoky black bean and chipotle stew. This is the magic of a Soup Adventure: it builds your culinary imagination, one bowl at a time.
Exploring Textures and Color
Soup is a feast for the senses. It’s the vibrant orange of roasted squash, the emerald green of fresh herbs, the creamy swirl of yogurt atop a spicy red lentil soup. It’s the way a hearty stew feels grounding, while a light, clear broth feels peaceful. As you cook, take time to notice the details. May the process be as nourishing as the product.
Creating a Winter Challenge
By the time spring arrives, you’ll have a repertoire of new recipes, a stronger sense of culinary confidence, and the satisfaction of having created something beautiful during the coldest months of the year. So, grab your copy of 400 Soups (or any soup cookbook that inspires you) and begin! Home is where some of the best adventures happen, with a ladle and a soup pot.
Adventure Checklist
● Unpack your adventurous spirit and pull out a favorite soup cookbook or buy a used copy of 400 Soups
● Set aside time during the week to read through recipes and decide which ones you’d like to try. Make a grocery list and go out to find the spices, herbs and produce you’ll need. A field trip to The Food Coop or Chimacum Corner Farmstand might bring a smile to your day.
● Give yourself a luxurious amount of time to make your steaming pot of soup on a Sunday, and maybe invite friends or family over to try it. Who knows, you might start something good.
● Mull over what you learned, maybe take a picture or mark the recipe as a winner and look forward to trying something next week. Soon you’ll romance those recipes and look forward to each week’s soup adventure.
Mi Ga Vietnamese Roasted Chicken Noodle Soup
Serves 4
Make this satisfying, flavorful noodle soup when you have leftover roasted chicken and bones to make stock. It’s easy using the Instant Pot or on the stovetop.
For the Broth
6 cups unsalted chicken broth, preferably homemade
2 tablespoons fresh ginger, minced
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 medium onion, chopped
2 teaspoons fish sauce
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon Chinese five spice (preferably freshly ground; see recipe below)
1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil (more for the table)
2 teaspoons maple syrup or sugar
1 tablespoon rice vinegar
For the Soup
4 cups baby spinach or bok choy, halved lengthwise and cut on the diagonal into about 2-inch pieces
2 cups roasted chicken, cut into bite-sized pieces
8 ounces dried Chinese noodles (ramen or soba noodles), cooked according to package directions and drained
For the Garnish
½ cup cilantro, roughly chopped
2 scallions, sliced
Toasted sesame oil
Freshly ground black pepper
Instant Pot Method
● Add the chicken broth, ginger, garlic, onion, fish sauce, soy sauce, and Chinese five spice to the Instant Pot. Set to the broth cycle or cook for 30 minutes at high pressure with an instant release. Strain the broth through a sieve lined with muslin to ensure clarity. Bring the strained broth back to a simmer using the sauté setting. Add the spinach or bok choy and cook for about 1 minute. Taste and adjust with toasted sesame oil, rice vinegar, and maple syrup or sugar as desired.
Conventional Method
● In a soup pot, combine the chicken broth, ginger, garlic, onion, fish sauce, soy sauce, and Chinese five spice. Bring to a boil and simmer for 30 minutes. Strain through a sieve lined with muslin until the broth is clear. Return the strained broth to the pot and bring to a simmer. Add the spinach or bok choy and cook for about 1 minute. Taste and adjust with toasted sesame oil, rice vinegar, and maple syrup or sugar as desired.
Final Assembly: While the broth is cooking, prepare the noodles and chicken. Divide the noodles and chicken between four deep bowls. Lightly dust the chicken with a pinch of Chinese five spice. Add the hot broth and top with cilantro and scallions. Let diners add fresh black pepper if they wish.
Tip
● Keep the bowls, noodles, and chicken warm in the oven set at 140°F.
Chinese Five Spice
Makes: ¼ cup
1 tablespoon star anise pieces
1 tablespoon fennel seeds
1 tablespoon ground cassia cinnamon
1 teaspoon whole cloves
1½ teaspoons Sichuan pepper or black peppercorns
● Toast the star anise, cloves, peppercorns, and fennel.
● Mix in the cinnamon and grind into a powder using a spice grinder.
Sweet Potato and Tart Apple Soup
Instant Pot and Oven Roasted
Makes 6 cups
A recipe for Yam and Apple Soup in “The Chesapeake Bay Cookbook” by John Shields intrigued me. A fine Eastern Shore duo, it read. Indeed! A fine duo for showcasing my favorite technique of making a soup’s broth out of its scraps. And an example of adding roasted flavors to soup. I rewrote the recipe, adding tart apple, spices, roasting and designer broth, but kept the whipped cream topping with maple syrup and grated nutmeg. Why ever not! It’s a delightful bright creamy soup that’ll become a family favorite.
Roasting
⅓ cup unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
1 medium onion, chopped
1 large red garnet sweet potato, peeled and chopped (about 3 cups) (reserve peels and ends)
1 medium tart apple, Pink Lady or Granny Smith, peeled, cored and chopped (reserve peels and core removing the seeds)
¾ teaspoon fine sea salt
Broth
4 cups water
Sweet potato peels and ends
Apple peels and core with seeds removed
1 medium onion, chopped
¼ teaspoon black peppercorns
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3 allspice berries, crushed
3 slices fresh ginger (¼ inch thick)
2 teaspoons fennel seed
¾ teaspoon fine sea salt
2 bay leaves
Finishing
2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar or to taste
½ teaspoon flaked sea salt
2 tablespoons maple syrup
Optional Garnish
Freshly grated nutmeg
2 cups lightly whipped cream flavored with 2 tablespoons maple syrup
Beginning
Prep all the produce, creating the broth ingredients as you prepare the roasting ingredients. Measure out the spices. To make the soup, you’ll use both the oven and Instant Pot and then puree the roasted produce and broth together.
Broth
Add all the broth ingredients to the pot. Make sure the Instant Pot seal is in place and put the lid on. Set to the broth cycle or high pressure for 30 minutes with a natural release. After the cycle is complete, strain the broth through a sieve into the bender jar.
Roasting
Preheat the oven to 425 F. Lay all the roasting ingredients on a large parchment paper lined baking sheet. Dab with the butter and sprinkle with salt. Roast for 20 minutes. Stir and continue to roast for another 20 minutes or until soft. Be careful not to let the food on the edges burn. Lift the parchment paper and slide the roasted produce into the blender jar with the broth. Puree at a high speed until smooth.
Finishing
Bring the soup back up to serving temperature in the Instant Pot. Taste and add the finishing ingredients as needed.
Serve the soup hot with dollops of whipped cream and grated nutmeg.
Roasted Crimini Chowder in Delicata Broth
For Chowder
¼ cup unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
1 lb cremini mushrooms, thinly sliced
2 medium yellow onions, chopped
4 medium carrots, cut into thin sticks and then a medium dice
2 stalks celery, cut into thin sticks and then a medium dice
6 cloves garlic, minced wit inner growing stem removed
2 teaspoons dried thyme
¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 lb russet potatoes, peeled and cut into a medium dice
For Broth
Scraps and peelings from the vegetables, but not the papery parts of the onions.
2 bay leaves
1 whole delicata squash, roughly cut up, include the skin and seeds
1 quart chicken broth, homemade preferred
1 teaspoon sea salt
To Finish
½ cup cold water
2 tablespoons potato starch, cornstarch will work
2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar
Roast the mushrooms 425 F , on a parchment lined baking sheet, for 20 minutes. Pour off the mushroom liquids and reserve. Roast for another 8 minutes or until meaty and rich tasting.
On another parchment lined baking sheet, roast the other vegetables with the butter, thyme, salt and red pepper flakes sprinkled over them. They should all be about the same size to roast evenly. Roast them for 20 minutes, stir and continue to roast for another 15 to 20 minutes.
While the vegetables are roasting, simmer the broth together in a soup pot for 30 minutes. I used my Instant Pot on the broth cycle. Strain the broth.
In a small liquid measure, make a slurry by adding ½ cup water to 2 tablespoons potato starch. Slowly add to the strained broth. Blend the broth and slurry together in a blender at high speed.
Add roasted veggies (not mushrooms) and blended broth together in the soup pot. Remove two cups of veggies and broth, blend them together and return the puree to the pot. Add the mushrooms, reserved juices and vinegar. Stir and taste.
Roasted Carrot Bisque with Coconut and Citrus
Makes 1 quart
Roasting Ingredients
2 tablespoons avocado oil
1 medium onion, chopped
1 inch nub fresh ginger, unpeeled, minced
1 inch nub fresh turmeric, unpeeled, minced
3 cloves garlic, minced
6 medium carrots, unpeeled, chopped
1 tablespoon garam masala, recipe below
1 teaspoon fine sea salt
1 teaspoon dried thyme
Finishing Ingredients
14-ounce can full fat coconut milk
Juice and zest of one medium lemon
Juice and zest of one medium orange
Fried Topping Ingredients
2 tablespoons avocado oil
⅓ cup unsweetened wide coconut flakes
¼ cup dates
¼ cup raw cashews
¼ cup pumpkin seeds
sprinkle of flaked sea salt
1 teaspoon coconut sugar
1) Grind spices together for garam masala. Preheat the oven to 425 F line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Toss all the roasting ingredients together with the oil, salt and spices. Roast for 25 minutes. Stir and roast for another 20 minutes.
2) In a high-powered blender, puree the roasted ingredients with coconut milk and citrus until smooth. Taste and correct as needed.
3) While the carrots roast, make the fried topping. Using a medium to medium high heat, warm the ghee or oil in a heavy-bottomed frying pan. Add the toppings and fry, stirring and watching closely until toasty, about 4 minutes. Pulse them together in a food processor, until medium fine, about 10 pulses. Serve with bisque, or generously add to the top of the individual portions.
Garam Masala
Grind together and store in a jar to use as needed
2 tablespoons coriander seeds
1 tablespoon cumin seeds
½ teaspoon allspice berries
1 teaspoon green cardamom pods with hulls removed
2 dried bay leaves
1 teaspoon red pepper powder
2 teaspoons cinnamon
