Mirepoix: yellow onion, red pepper, carrot, garlic, celery. Ham, roasted butternut squash, potato, coconut flakes, cinnamon, paprika, cayenne pepper.
As you may have noticed, there’s been a lot of ham soups recently. That’s what happens when we are donated two giant slabs of it. Fun to see how each soup maker added their own twists.
“If we had some eggs, we could have eggs and ham. If we had some ham.” Groucho Marx
Mirepoix: yellow and red onion, celery, rainbow carrot, green bell pepper. NY steak, crimini shroom, butternut squash, beet horseradish, paprika, potato starch
Martin often finds a fun key ingredient. Today it was beets marinated in horseradish. Added a unique twist.
“Breathe properly, stay curious, and always eat your beets“. Tom Robbins, Jitterbug Perfume
Mirepoix: red onion, carrot, celery. Pork, hominy, mushroom, butternut squash, spring onion, tomato, salsa verde, more onion, paprika, oregano, red wine vinegar, fresh rosemary, cumin, corn starch.
Super chunky soup made by Martin. Available were these bags of salsa verde with pork bits, so in it went.
“A first-rate soup is more creative than a second-rate painting.” Abraham Maslow
Mirepoix: yellow onion, rainbow carrot, celery. Chicken thighs, asparagus, artichoke heart, red bell pepper, worcestershire sauce, Greek yogurt, mint, paprika, cayenne pepper, raspberry jam.
Forget the Sick Man of Europe moniker. These flavors rock together.
“Dünyanın bir tarafında bir yerde, bir piyango çekiliyor, savaş yapılıyor ve hepimizin alınyazısı da böylece uzaklarda belirtiliyordu.” Ivo Andrić
I have no idea what the quote means, but that’s a pretty funky looking language!
Mirepoix: yellow onion, rainbow carrot, celery. Bacon, sausage, pepperoni, sauerkraut, potato, apple, more onion, more carrot, paprika, dill, radish tops.
So tangy, a great mix made by Martin. Makes you think you’re in Central Europe.
“General Lee took possession of Chambersburg on his way to Gettysburg. Among the first things he demanded for his army was five barrels of Saur-Kraut.” Editor, The Guardian
Mirepoix: shallot, yellow onion, celery, carrot. Ground turkey, roasted brussels sprout, carrot, poblano chile, red bell pepper, Peter Pan squash, fresh garlic, baby arugula, chive, fresh basil, paprika, lime juice.
Had a vigorous vegetable flavor, enhanced by those Belgian sprouts roasted by Martin. Treacherously good.
Standard mirepoix. Portobello mushroom, crimini mushroom, kale, kumamoto tomato, bacon, canned salmon, sweet mozzarella cream cheese, paprika, garlic, ginger, chive, fresh basil.
Martin crammed so many mushrooms in this that it practically exploded. A really great flavor.
“I’m just some lunatic macaroni mushroom, is that it?” Joe Pesci
Standard mirepoix. Cod, green and yellow zucchini, Tostitos Fiesta Bowl bean dip platter, red and orange bell peppers, yogurt, jalapeno relish, Juanita’s Fiesta Bag of corn chips, cumin, paprika, cayenne pepper, garlic.
Eeek ugly picture. Oh well, at least it tasted good!
And remember, if there’s ever a taco emergency, call 9 Juan Juan.
Standard mirepoix. Beef, red black and great northern beans, Anaheim pepper, bell pepper, spring onion, sugar, paprika, lemon juice, mint, basil, chive, lime leaf, corn starch.
Martin knocked this one out of the park. A lush potpourri of tastes. Me like.
“An idealist is one who, on noticing that roses smell better than cabbage, concludes that it will also make a better soup.” H.L. Mencken
Onion sweated in ghee, gefilte fish, potato, matzo, garlic scape, egg, black pepper, paprika, lemon juice, sugar.
Gather round ye Israelites and gentiles, Martin has made another another scrumpy soup. Although as he notes, gefilte fish was enjoyed through the Balkans and central Europe as a soup of celebration.
The fish cakes and potatoes melted into the broth just like the face of that Nazi in Raiders of the Lost Ark.
Mirepoix: yellow and red onions, organic rainbow carrot, green bell pepper. Roasted eggplant, roasted cauliflower, cod, garlic poblano peppers, more carrot and onion, fish sauce, sugar, basil, lime zest and juice, soy sauce, paprika.
An opus from Martin. Almost an Asian feel to it.
“If God ever wanted to be a fish, he’d be a cod”. Or a whale, I get confused.
Made 7/3/19
Mirepoix: yellow onion, garlic scape, carrot. Tomato, roasted red bell pepper, tzaziki dip, spinach dip, Tuscan white bean puree, barley, fennel salami, bacon, Anaheim pepper, radish, extra garlic scape, paprika, worcestershire sauce, garlic, sugar.
Martin made this tantalizing concoction. As usual, we use what’s available, even if a bit unusual, hence the dips. Worked out perfectly.
” I don’t have to take a trip around the world or be on a yacht in the Mediterranean to have happiness”. Queen Latifah
Made 6/26/19
Chicken stock, barley, chopped almonds, peanut butter, kale, carrot, roasted red bell pepper, fish sauce, roasted chicken demi-glace, cayenne pepper, paprika, Tuscan white bean puree spread.
At times the boss man needs a super quick and easy soup when customer flow is heavy (sometimes it’s as simple as broth and canned chicken). So as my second soup of the day, I splashed this one out.
Basically throw ingredients into a pot and heat. But I just had to have some fun with it, hence the nuts.
“The Germans have sent some people forward to take our surrender.” Brig. Gen. McAuliffe replied, “nuts”.
Mirepoix: red onion, celery, carrot, red bell pepper. Ground turkey, roasted purple and green cauliflower, roasted eggplant, okra, Anaheim pepper, garlic, sweet potato, fresh basil, fresh mint, fresh oregano, turmeric, paprika, lemon juice.
Martin tamed the ground turkey, although it still looked sorta like brain at the beginning. The fresh herbs were a key. And the turmeric too.
Made today, 6/19/19
Mirepoix: yellow onion, red and green pepper, carrot. Sausage, nasty industrial cheese goo, mushrooms, extra red green and orange bell pepper, extra onions, roasted chicken stock, fish sauce, hand-made croutons, oregano, paprika, cumin, lemon juice.
A left-field attempt to make Philly Cheesesteak Soup, but with sausage. Totally winging it on this one. I had the option to use Permesan cheese, but went with the 7-11 nacho goop.
I made the croutons in the oven, but once in the soup they simply became bread again. Lesson learned.
” They say that this is where revolutions begin and nations are born. They say that this is a place where steel rules all and there is something called a cheese-steak sandwich that is supposed to be manna from heaven!” Dylan Callens
Mirepoix: yellow onion, red and green pepper, carrot. Ground turkey, rice, asparagus, poblano pepper, extra onion and pepper, zucchini, radish greens, Cajun spice mix, paprika, lemon juice, dill, marjoram.
Martin commented that the turkey looked a bit nuclear when it was cooking. It reminded me of those flying pizza things that don’t like light and that attacked Spock in that one episode.
Sometimes when we’ve got a lot of customers, the soup makers don’t have access to one or two of the burners, because we need to get a soup heated quickly to get it upstairs to serve out. Thus Martin roasted the mirepoix in the pan I used to cook my sausage. Sometimes pragmatism works well–the mirepoix soaked up the brown bits of the sausage and it tasted great.
Made today, 6/12/19
Mirepoix: yellow onion, carrot, bok choy. Pre-made meatballs, potato, portobello mushroom, fromage blanc, lemon extract, half and half, fish sauce, tomato paste, tomato sauce, rice wine vinegar, garlic, paprika, black pepper.
Attila blessed it.
Made 8/7/18
Yellow onions, potato, zucchini, broccoli, freekah, paprika, garlic, sriracha, fish sauce.
“Awwww freekah, Le Freak, c’est chic”. Nile Rogers helped me with this one.
According to Wikipedia, freekah is ” a cereal food made from green durum wheat that is roasted and rubbed to create its flavor. ” Rubbed? Your guess is as good as mine, but had no protein, so in it went.
Made 8/14/18
Mirepoix: yellow onion, celery. Bacon, roasted butternut squash, corn, hondashi, half and half, turmeric, paprika, garlic.
Used the rendered bacon fat to sweat the mirepoix.
“Hope is a good breakfast, but it is a bad supper“, as said Francis Bacon.
Made 9/25/18
Mirepoix: yellow onion, green and red bell pepper, poblana pepper, carrot. Catfish, Brussels sprouts, morel mushrooms, apricot jam, strawberry jam, paprika, worcestershire sauce, cayenne pepper, lime juice.
I didn’t have the luxury to fry the catfish properly as any Cajun would, so my bad. But it turned out pretty good–got kudos from another volunteer and some clients.
As I think I’ve mentioned before, sometimes we get unexpected donations. This time it was a huge box of morels. The heaven’s light shone through.
Made 4/17/19
Mirepoix: red onion, celery, red and green pepper (I think that’s the Holy Trinity, no?). Beef, potato, cauliflower, tomato, mushroom, cumin, coriander, cayenne pepper, paprika, sugar, lime juice, worcestershire sauce.
“You’re a better man than I am, Gunga Din”.
And as Morrissey says, “I am cumin and I need to be loved”.
Made 4/10/19
Standard mirepoix. Ham, tomato, red bell pepper, mushroom, farfalle noodles, milk, dijon mustard, paprika, garlic.
Ok ok, this is only borderline goulash–it was the closest I could get.
Mirepoix: yellow onion, carrot, green bell pepper. Broiled green beans, chorizo, quinoa, crispy fried onions, lime juice, cinnamon, nutmeg, paprika, garlic
Another surprise protein ingredient. Never used it before, but sounded fun. And the condiment shelf provided an oniony surprise.
For the mirepoix, from about this time on I’ve been using coconut oil. No real reason.
Made 11/27/18
Regular mirepoix. White fish (the package had no label–maybe it was cod), eggplant, yellow bell pepper, carrot, fish sauce, lime juice, sriracha, fresh lemon thyme, fresh Thai basil, ginger, paprika, garlic, cinnamon, chive.
Made 10/17/18
Standard mirepoix. Tomato, white fish (the package had no label; it might have been cod), fresh coconut water, coconut milk, cumin, oregano, parsley flakes, paprika, cayenne pepper, garlic.
Que bacana–leite de côco. Não tenho a mínima ideia do que tipo de peixe usei– não tinha etiqueta. Talvez fosse bacalhau.
Feito 10/10/18
Mirepoix: yellow onion, celery. Brussels sprouts, eggplant, Greek yogurt paprika, mint, cumin, coriander.
Finally had celery for the mirepoix, but no carrots! We’re totally at the mercy of our food donors, and sometimes they don’t donate some of the basics. The mint gave a nice brightness to offset the cumin and coriander.
Made 10/9/18
Soup Kitchen Recipes 