Table Talk: Nothing beats soup to banish winter chill

By CLAIRE HOPLEY

Published on November 14, 2008

"Soup! Beautiful soup!" sang the Mock Turtle in Lewis Carroll's "Alice in Wonderland." "Soup of the evening! Beautiful soup!"

He made a good point. And one could go further: Soup of the evening can be not just beautiful, but really rather seductive.

Of course the Victorians who first read Carroll's tale probably thought of soup - quite possibly mock turtle soup - as the start of a meal that would continue with meat, fish and dessert. We don't, or rather can't, eat like that any more because most of us are permanently worried about weight or other food-related health issues. In any case, there isn't enough time to make soup as well as a main dish.

Perhaps for this reason soup has become a typical lunch, rather than suppertime meal. But thinking of the Mock Turtle's serenade conjures visions of soup as the main course at the end of the day, especially a fall or winter day when darkness falls early and the world is gripped in chill.

Imagine the variety. You could have a substantial bowl of herby broth, dense with chunks of vegetables and meat. Or a fish soup, aromatic with parsley and perhaps saffron, its fragrance calling up memories of the shore in summer. Or what about an enticingly smooth vegetable soup, say butternut or potato, served with some savory add-ins such as sausage slices or scallops or wild mushrooms?

Add-ins and accompaniments play a vital role in soup. Without them it can seem frumpily ho-hum. Scattering on a little chopped parsley or a few shavings of Parmesan is like giving soup a touch of lipstick: It makes it look like it has an interest in life. You can move on to the garnishing equivalent of eye-liner and mascara, with swirls of cream or snippets of crisp bacon or crunchy homemade croutons, lusciously fried in olive oil or butter.

Crusty bread and perhaps cheese or a salad are obvious added enticements, and essential at an evening meal for people who have been out all day and are longing for the comforts of warmth and home. More unusual reinforcements can beguile and nourish even more. Two or three fat sea scallops, seared warmly brown, look alluring sitting in the middle of a dish of smooth vegetable soup, and they add substance to the meal without making it too heavy. Try this with butternut soup for example, or a creamy mushroom or celeriac soup.

A short skewer of shrimp, a few slivers of smoked salmon or a scoop of crab salad can play the same role. Meat lovers will enjoy some cubes of roast chicken or some strips of roast beef, while for vegetarians, marinated tofu chunks add flavor and nutrition.

Such pairings are traditions with some classic soups. Portuguese kale soup is made with sausage, which is then served whole on the side or sliced in the soup. Russian soups are often served with small pies filled with meat or cabbage. English, German and Austrian soups come with hearty dumplings, sometimes flavored with herbs or caraway.

Here are some soup-and-something partners to keep winter chills at bay.

PORTUGUESE KALE SOUP

Controversies rage around whether kale soup, called caldo verde, "green soup" in Portuguese, should have the sausages cooked in the same pot as the vegetables or separately as in this rather purist version of a classic dish in both its homeland and in southeastern Massachusetts, where Portuguese fishermen have settled.

5 medium-large potatoes, peeled and sliced

1 teaspoon salt

1 large onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, chopped

4-6 tablespoons olive oil

about 6 cups fresh kale, washed, trimmed and cut into inch-wide strips

1 pound linguiça sausage

½ pound chouriça or chorizo

Put the sliced potatoes, salt, onion, garlic and a tablespoon of olive oil in a large pot with 2 quarts water. Bring to the boil and cook for about 15 minutes.

Remove the heat and break up the potatoes - still in the liquid - with a potato masher so they are in biggish pieces. Add the strips of kale to the pan and return to the heat. Boil for another 8-10 minutes or until both potatoes and kale are tender.

Meanwhile, prick the linguiça and chouriça and cut into 2-inch pieces. Heat a couple of tablespoons of olive oil in a large frying pan and fry the sausage in it for 10 minutes. Put a piece of each sort of sausage into each of 4 large soup bowls. Ladle the soup on top. Drizzle in a little of the remaining oil. Have more oil and either Portuguese or Italian bread on the side. Or have corn bread, the typical choice in much of Portugal.

SALMON, LEEK AND CORN CHOWDER

Sometimes small bits of salmon are sold cheaply for making salmon burgers. You can use these for this soup. This is an adaptable recipe. You can increase the amount of leeks, corn and salmon and definitely add more milk if you like. A final addition of a few tablespoons of cream makes this extra special.

1 slice bacon

1 small onion, chopped

2-3 medium potatoes, peeled and diced

5 peppercorns

½ teaspoon thyme

salt to taste

3 leeks

1 cup fresh, frozen or canned corn kernels

12 ounces salmon, cut into 1-inch pieces

1-2 cups milk or more to taste

2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

Cut the bacon into 1-inch pieces. Put them in the base of a large saucepan over low heat, and let them cook gently until the fat is running. If you have more than a tablespoon of fat, discard the excess.

Add the onions and continue cooking for 3 minutes, without letting them brown. Add the potato cubes and stir them with the onions and bacon. Sprinkle in the peppercorns, thyme and salt to taste, then add 1½ cups water. Simmer for about 12 minutes or until the potatoes have softened a little but are not falling apart.

Meanwhile, trim off the green tops of the leeks and any coarse exterior leaves. Wash by slitting down the center for about 5 inches, splaying out the layers and running under cold water.

Cut into 1-inch lengths and place on top of the soup without stirring them in. Add the corn and simmer for another 4-5 minutes. Now add the salmon and the milk. Simmer for 5 minutes or until the salmon is done. Check for seasoning and add more salt if liked. Serve into bowls and sprinkle with parsley.

BUTTERNUT AND ORANGE SOUP WITH SCALLOPS

1 tablespoon oil

1 medium onion, chopped

1 large butternut squash weighing about 2 pounds, peeled and cut in chunks

1 large orange

pinch cinnamon

salt and pepper

½ cup half-and-half or more to taste

1 teaspoon butter

12 large sea scallops

about 2 teaspoons black bean paste (optional)

In a large pan over medium heat, warm the oil and gently cook the onion in it until it has softened but not browned. Stir in the butternut. Grate the zest from half the orange and add it. Also sprinkle with cinnamon  only a small pinch  and pepper and salt.

Cut the orange in half and add 2 tablespoons of the juice from the half whose zest you grated off, reserving the rest of the orange for serving. Also add four cups water. Cover the pan and simmer for about 20 minutes or until the vegetables are falling apart.

Let cool a little then pass through a food mill in batches or process in a food processor until completely smooth. Mix in the half and half. Taste and season with more salt and pepper and a little additional orange from the zested half if you think it needs it.

Cut the remaining orange slice into wedges or slice it and cut the slices into half moons. Put the soup into a clean pan to reheat slowly while you deal with the scallops. Pat them dry with paper towel. Melt the butter in a non-stick frying pan and wipe it all over the base with a paper towel. Put in the scallops and let them cook over high heat for 2-3 minutes or until the bottom is golden brown. Turn and cook for another 2 minutes.

For serving, pour the soup into shallow soup or pasta dishes. Position the scallops in the center (2 or 3 to a dish). Add a tiny dot of black bean sauce to the center of each scallop. Serve with a piece of orange for squeezing.

Black bean sauce is very hot, so if you prefer you could bring it to the table so people can add it for themselves. A side dish of plain boiled basmati rice could also be served so people can add some to their soup if they like.

CHICKEN & ALMOND SOUP WITH POMEGRANATE SEEDS

This soup is adapted from a 14th-century recipe called Blank Desire. The name perhaps suggested open-ended passion, but its meaning is in fact more prosaic. Blank indicates a white soup or stew, while Desire actually means that it comes from Syria - a tip-off that this dish, one of many similar dishes recorded in late-medieval cookbooks, was brought to England by the crusaders. The almonds and especially the garnish of pomegranate seeds reveal its origin in the eastern Mediterranean. This is a two-stage soup. First, you should cook the chicken and let it chill overnight. Then the next day - or up to two days later if you prefer - you can proceed to make the soup. The colors - white with a crimson scatter of pomegranate seeds - give this one a festive look.

4 bone-in chicken thighs

1 bay leaf

1 thyme sprig

2 stems parsley

5 peppercorns

salt to taste

1 cup ground almonds

1 cup flavorful white wine such as Chardonnay or Gewurztraminer

rice flour

1/ 3 cup flaked almonds

seeds from half a pomegranate

Put the chicken thighs in a large saucepan. Add the bay leaf, thyme, parsley, peppercorns and ½ teaspoon salt. Pour in three cups water, bring to simmering and simmer for 45 minutes or until the chicken is tender. Strain off all the liquid and put it in the fridge overnight.

Remove all the chicken from the bones. Discard the bones and skin. Cover the chicken and refrigerate.

To proceed, remove all the fat from the reserved chicken broth. Reheat the broth. Have the ground almonds in a large bowl. Pour on the simmering broth and let stand for 30 minutes.

Now pass this through a fine sieve. When all the liquid has passed through, press the ground almonds to make sure you get everything out of them. You can then discard them.

Return the almond-chicken broth to a pan. In a small dish, mix the rice flour to a paste with a couple of tablespoons of the broth. Stir it into the pan of broth and bring to simmering point over low heat. Dice the reserved chicken and add to the liquid in the pan. Simmer until the liquid is smooth and the chicken heated through.

Meanwhile, toast the flaked almonds until light golden brown. You can do this by spreading them in a single layer and microwaving them for about a minute - microwaves vary, so you may have to do this twice - or putting them into a 300-degree oven for about 7 minutes. (Whichever method you use watch them carefully as they can burn quite easily.)

To serve, ladle the soup into shallow bowls. Scatter the pomegranate seeds on top of each serving, keeping them around the perimeter. Scatter almond flakes in the center. This serves 4-6 but the recipe can be doubled .

CHESTNUT, CARROT AND LENTIL SOUP

This hearty fall-and-winter soup takes advantage of canned chestnut puree. Be sure to buy the unsweetened kind for this dish. You could add some grated cheese to the grated carrot that tops this soup, or some chopped parsley or for a bright and refreshing contrast, some quartered cherry or grape tomatoes.

1 cup lentils

1 bay leaf

1 onion, peeled and chopped

2 carrots, peeled and sliced

2 stalks celery, peeled and chopped

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 tablespoon soy sauce or tamari

1½ cups coarsely chopped fresh parsley

salt and red pepper flakes

1 7-ounce can (about 1 cup) unsweetened chestnut puree

about ¾ cup grated carrot

Soak the lentils for about an hour in cold water. Then drain and rinse and put them in a pan with 5 cups of water and the bay leaf. Boil vigorously for about 10 minutes, then reduce the heat, cover the pan and simmer for 45-60 minutes or until they are tender.

Meanwhile in another pan, heat the oil and stir in the onions, carrots, and celery. Season with salt, cover the pan and cook for about 5 minutes on low heat until the vegetables soften. Add a cup of water and cook until they are completely tender. Combine the cooked vegetables with the cooked lentils.

Discard the bay leaf then process in batches in a food processor or blender or pass through a food mill. Return to the pan and stir in the soy sauce or tamari, 1 cup of the parsley, and about 2 cups of water or whatever amount is needed to achieve a thick-but-not-too-thick soup. Season with salt and about ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes - just enough to provide a faint zing rather than real heat. Stir in the chestnut puree, and bring to simmering point. Serve with the rest of the parsley and the grated carrot as a garnish. Serves 4-5.