A good soup is to be treasured like a friend. It forgives all mistakes and never asks you to make a fuss. Bubbling all day in a pot, soup rarely requires more than a stir; and if you listen closely to its gentle murmur, you can almost hear it whisper: “You go curl up with a book. I’ll finish supper.”
With autumn’s arrival, a recipe for a dependable, nourishing meal-in-a-bowl is as necessary as a sweater and a yard rake. No need to mourn the end of corn, tomatoes and okra when you can create wonderful soups from fall greens, root vegetables, pumpkins and squash — balancing out the protein with the addition of dried or frozen peas and beans.
To get started, here are recipes for Kale, White Bean and Sausage Soup; Puree of Baked Sweet Potatoes and Apples with Candied Bacon and Toasted Pecans; and a New Orleans Green Gumbo that can be prepared vegan-style.
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Kale and White Bean Soup with Sausage
Hands on: 20 minutes
Total time: 1 hour, 50 minutes (plus overnight soaking for beans)
Serves: 6
This full-meal soup goes well with cornbread or good crusty bread. For a lighter soup or appetizer course, you can leave out the sausage and still have a fine soup.
1 ½ tablespoons olive oil
2 medium onions, chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 pound dried white beans (such as great northern, cannelloni, or navy), picked over and rinsed
5 cups chicken broth (preferably homemade)
8 cups water, divided
1 tablespoon fresh rosemary, finely minced
2 bay leaves
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 pounds smoked sausage, sliced into ¼-inch pieces
1 pound kale, stems removed, chopped
2 teaspoons salt
4 carrots, sliced
Soak beans, covered by 2 inches of water and refrigerated, overnight. Drain and rinse.
In a large, heavy soup pot, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add onions and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, about five minutes. Add garlic and cook, stirring, for one minute. Add beans, stock, 4 cups of water, rosemary, bay leaves and black pepper. Stir and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, until beans are just tender, about one hour. (Note: depending on the size of bean, you may need to cook longer.)
Meanwhile, in a heavy skillet, brown sausage on both sides. Transfer to paper towels to drain.
Add kale, sausage, salt and remaining 4 cups of water to soup. Simmer, stirring occasionally, until kale is tender, about 12-15 minutes. Stir in carrots and cook until tender, about five minutes. Taste, adjust for seasonings, discard bay leaves and serve.
— Adapted from "The Gourmet Cookbook," edited by Ruth Reichl (Houghton Mifflin, $40)
Per serving: 642 calories (percent of calories from fat, 39), 39 grams protein, 66 grams carbohydrates, 19 grams fiber, 30 grams fat (9 grams saturated), 54 milligrams cholesterol, 1,520 milligrams sodium.
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Puree of Baked Sweet Potatoes and Apples with Candied Bacon and Toasted Pecans
Hands on: 20 minutes
Total time: 1 hour, 30 minutes
Serves: 4
This puree is rather like having sweet potato pie in a bowl, and the candied bacon and toasted pecans add a nice savory touch. If you are shy about eating such a rich dish or don’t have time to fool with the bacon, you may garnish with parsley or other herbs and still have a delectable presentation. Any leftover puree can be used as a base for sweet potato pie or soufflé. The puree is a nice accompaniment to any kind of roasted meat, and would sit especially well with roast duck or lamb. Note: If you want to save time, you may boil peeled and chopped apples and sweet potatoes (about 20 minutes), drain, mash and proceed with recipe.
For the garnish:
4 strips smoky bacon (preferably thick-sliced)
½ cup brown sugar
freshly ground black pepper (optional)
¼ cup toasted pecans, chopped
For the sweet-potato puree:
4 medium sweet potatoes
2 apples (preferably tart green apples, but any type will do)
1 tablespoon butter
1/3 cup brown sugar
½ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
¼ teaspoon ground ginger
¼ teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
1 cup half-and-half (or heavy whipping cream)
½ cup apple juice
Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
Place the strips of bacon on a tray or cutting board, and coat all over with brown sugar. Sprinkle with freshly ground black pepper (if using). Line a cookie sheet with a layer of parchment paper. Place the bacon on cookie sheet and back for about 15-20 minutes. Remove from oven, drain any grease that has accumulated, and flip the bacon. Return to oven, and cook for about 15 minutes, or until crisp. Remove and allow to cool. Chop into chunky bits and set aside for garnish.
Meanwhile, wash and scrub the sweet potatoes and rinse the apples. Prick the sweet potatoes with a fork or sharp knife, and place them on a cookie sheet or roasting pan. Bake for 30 minutes. (You may cook at the same time as the bacon.) After 30 minutes, the apple skin should puckered and the apples quite tender throughout, but you may check by inserting a sharp knife. Put apples on a plate or cutting board to cool. Return sweet potatoes to oven and continue baking for 30-45 minutes, or until they are tender enough to pierce all the way through with a sharp knife.
After the apples have cooled enough to handle, remove skin, core and any stems. Chop roughly and place in a large mixing bowl. After sweet potatoes have cooled, peel and add to bowl with apples. Mash and stir well. Add butter, brown sugar, nutmeg, cinnamon, ginger, salt and cloves, stirring well to combine. Add half-and-half (or heavy whipping cream) and apple juice. Whip with a hand mixer or immersion blender until smooth. (Or you may puree the mash in a food processor.) After the mixture has blended, stop and take note of the consistency; if it isn’t soupy enough for your liking, mix in a little more apple juice or half-and-half. Taste and adjust brown sugar, cinnamon, etc., to taste.
Divide into four large, flat cream-soup bowls and garnish with candied bacon and chopped pecans.
Per serving: 484 calories (percent of calories from fat, 33), 7 grams protein, 77 grams carbohydrates, 6 grams fiber, 18 grams fat (8 grams saturated), 35 milligrams cholesterol, 319 milligrams sodium.
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Green Gumbo
In Creole New Orleans, they call this dish Gumbo Z'herbes. The idea is to use as many leafy green vegetables as you can find. If you use water instead of chicken stock, you will have a vegan dish. The gumbo begs for condiments; we suggest grape tomatoes, but feel free to bring chopped onion, relish, chow-chow and hot sauce to the table. Serve over rice.
Hands on: 15 minutes
Total time: 1 hour, 30 minutes
Serves: 6-8
3 tablespoons vegetable or olive oil
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
2 yellow onions, chopped
6 green onions, including tops, chopped
2 celery stalks, including leaves, chopped
1 green bell pepper, seeded and chopped
6 garlic cloves, minced
8 cups water or chicken stock
1 dried red chile
1 bay leaf
1 teaspoon dried thyme, crushed
2 teaspoons salt
½ teaspoon ground black pepper
6-8 cups of mixed greens (such as collards, kale, mustard, turnips, chard, cabbage, spinach, etc., in any combination), washed and drained
2 cups cooked black-eyed peas, drained (may use any type of legume such as fresh field peas, butter beans or lima beans)
½ pound fresh okra (preferably small whole pods; sliced if not; may use frozen okra)
6-8 cups warm cooked white rice
Filé powder (optional)
1/2 cup chopped fresh tomato (preferably grape tomatoes) for garnish (optional)
In a large heavy pot or dutch oven over medium-low heat, warm the oil and stir in flour. Cook, stirring constantly, until thickened and lightly browned, about five minutes. Raise the heat to medium and add the yellow onions, green onions, celery and bell pepper. Sauté until wilted, about five minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook, stirring, about a minute.
Raise the heat to high and slowly stir in the water or chicken stock. Add the dried chile, bay leaf, thyme, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium-high, and cook uncovered at a low boil for 15 minutes. Add greens and cook until tender (from 5-15 minutes, depending on taste). Stir in the black-eyed peas, turn heat down to low and simmer for 5 minutes. Taste and adjust for seasonings. About 10 minutes before serving, add the okra and allow to cook until just tender, about 8 minutes, being careful not to over stir and break up okra. (If using frozen okra, you may need to turn up heat until the soup is at a full simmer and the okra thaws; then turn down to low.)
Serve over rice, topped with a sprinkle of filé powder and the chopped tomatoes, if using.
Per serving, based on 6: 452 calories (percent of calories from fat, 16), 14 grams protein, 82 grams carbohydrates, 9 grams fiber, 8 grams fats (1 gram saturated), no cholesterol, 750 milligrams sodium.
— Adapted from "Soul and Spice," by Heidi Haughy Cusick (Chronicle Books, $16.95)
