Soup is on the minds of many at this time of year. Here in Chicago, we are enduring temperatures well below freezing so it feels good to keep your hands wrapped around a warm cup or bowl as often as possible.
I love making soup but often get stuck in a rut with my same recipes. And, although leftovers are my favorite food group, I must admit that the third or fourth time into the same pot of soup to finish off the batch starts to make me lose enthusiasm for even the most delicious soups.
This winter, after talking to my mom about attending a holiday cookie exchange, I had the idea for a soup exchange - an event that embodied all of my favorite things: gathering with friends, eating together, talking about food and sharing food. I sent out an email calling all soup makers, we gathered, ate together and exchanged our soups. It was such a hit!
Here is how it worked:
I made a pot of soup to serve. Each guest (a wonderful mixed group of co-workers, old friends and neighbors) made soup and packaged it in 3 cup containers (about 2 servings). After we ate together and discussed our recipes, we gathered around the table to exchange soups. However many containers each person brought, she chose the equal number to bring home. It was such a success… we all felt giddy with excitement as we reloaded our bags with an arsenal of soup for our freezers.
It was a surprise to see how each participant’s personality showed in her soup offering. My considerate and crafty neighbor tied a box of Jiffy cornbread mix atop each of her chili containers. My talented co-worker who is a designer had beautiful labels on her curried pumpkin soup. My Parisian neighbor brought a delicious creamed cauliflower soup and a plate of the most delicious macaroons for dessert. (I like to believe her ability to make the best macaroons ever is partly due to genetics and her French blood.) For weeks after the exchange, on busy days when I had not thought about preparing dinner until I was starving, I opened my freezer and found my friendly containers of soup waiting to be discovered.
A few other helpful ideas for hosting a Soup Exchange:
- Use soup recipes that can be frozen. If the recipes call for pasta or fresh things that do not freeze well, leave it out and include instructions to add it when reheating.
- Include instructions for garnishes or ask guests to include copies of the entire recipe with each container.
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Lately, I have been hungry all the time and I have finally figured out why: Too many people around me are dieting. The January health kick-off craze has had an adverse affect on me… it is just making me want to eat bad things incessantly. I love food and think of it regularly but it has become a serious distraction. I can barely work for more than fifteen minutes without fighting the urge to break off yet another piece of chocolate from the bar stashed in my drawer. The gym is crowded with three times as many people, my yoga classes are so packed we are bumping arms and I overhear people everywhere giving a rundown of their diet plans. Perhaps as a way to balance out the universe, my mind has started encouraging me to eat enough potato chips for everyone!
I recently found the newest Hands On Gourmet newsletter in my inbox which always includes a letter from one of my favorite pals and chefs, Stephen Gibbs. Since I can’t say it better myself, I will tell you what he had to say:
It’s always a difficult thing to admit to yourself when a relationship just isn’t working out. You wake up one day after all those years with “the one” to discover that you never really knew that object of desire. Ohhhh, the long painful days suffering the loss of what you believed to be a perfect match, balanced chemistry, amore! Guilt drives you to desperately try to figure out what went wrong. But in the end, you know that you just have to walk the other way and give up on all of those silly diets, right?
That’s right folks, diets. Now that it’s a New Year, lets all take a good look at what is working and what can get kicked to the curb. Think about it, low fat, no fat, reduced sugar, sugar free, organic, bio-dynamic, eat for your blood type, Atkins? I mean really!
As consumers, we’re driven to go out and buy items and eat foods that promise to makes us lean, mean and happy. Is there such a food? In my book, the only thing that can really do that is a balanced plate. We all need carbs, proteins, fat and H20 to keep our engines NASCAR approved. No one food is going to give you everything the body needs.
So eat what you damn well please and don’t feel guilty. Your body will tell you when you’ve been excessive. That’s when it’s time to take a break from the saturated fat and booze. Eat a huge plate of greens and down gallons of water and when your body gives you the green light, then dive right back in with a plate of braised meat and polenta, completed with a nice glass of Shiraz. Being a lover of food doesn’t condemn you to a life of tight britches. Go on, eat!
When you make our featured recipes, don’t skimp on anything, and you’ll see what I mean. Live a little today, and have a snappy tomorrow.
This is Chef Stephen saying - live!
Chef Stephen
P.S. I forgot to mention my resolutions: to be kinder to my fellow citizens and stop late night fridge raiding (That’s what keeps my britches tight.)
Thank you, Chef Stephen. I am with you and call for the end of diets and the beginning of committments to long-term, healthy, balanced lives. And, until everyone joins me on this bandwagon, I’ll be eating enough chips and chocolate for you all….
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