Although it has been sunny and warm, Saturday was a cold rainy day and the sea was white with rolling waves.

I got wet and cold on a short walk and wanted something to eat, something warm and comforting. Soup! I had carrots and tomatoes so I made tomato and carrot soup. Here’s how I did it: ... read more

What is it about chicken soup? There is a series of inspirational books titled Chicken Soup for the Soul, John Steinbeck mentioned it in East of Eden, Moshe ben Mainmon, a twelfth century Egyptian physician and philosopher, recognized it as a remedy for cold symptoms and his advice has been supported by evidence from a scientific study done at the University of Nebraska.

My resolution to cook simple food that tastes even better the next day and the first verse of Chicken Soup with Rice, written by Maurice Sendak and set to music by Carole King, inspired me to make my favorite chicken soup.

In January it’s so nice
While slipping on the sliding ice
To sip hot chicken soup with rice
Sipping once, sipping twice
Sipping chicken soup with rice.

Cooking chicken soup can be an all day affair but by beginning with chicken broth and a rotisserie chicken from the market, I had a full flavored, body-and-soul warming soup ready in less than an hour.  Here’s how I did it: … read more

I have been in the kitchen since Thanksgiving except when I was at the market gathering food to refill the fridge and pantry.

The week between Christmas and New Year’s Eve was a marathon of mixing, stirring, slicing, dicing, creaming and blending. It was time to make a change. I have resolved that until I get to Sicily in February, I will make meals that are simple to prepare, have a limited number of ingredients and are even better the second time around. Corn Chowder was my course changer.

Chowder is defined as any of a variety of soups, made with milk, enriched with salt pork and thickened with flour. It has been around since the sixteenth century when it was considered “poor man’s fare”. The word chowder may come from the French chaudiere, a pot used by fishermen in France to make a hearty fish stew by cooking fish with milk and vegetables, or it may come from jowter the Old English term for a person who sells fish.

Made with bacon, potatoes, corn and milk, the soup I made was chowder without fish because the closest fish to my pot was a twenty minute drive through the snow and eliminating trips to the market was part of my new resolve. I’m confident that the recipe police will not come to my post holiday kitchen to give me a ticket. Here’s how I made it: … read more

My painting of a turnip was featured in the Fall issue of Edible Green Mountains along with an article entitled Edible Traditions – Vermont roots: Gilfeather Turnips.   Inspired by the article and delighted to find locally grown, organic gilfeather turnips at the farmers’ market I decided to try this heirloom vegetable in my version of Turnip Soup. Worried that it would be too ‘turnippy’ I added potato and a bit of sour cream to the pot.

I wanted to serve the soup for dinner and decided to toast some pita and top it with cheese and tomato. I put the pita into the oven, set the timer for four minutes. Unfortunately, the broiler in my new oven is much more robust than the broiler in my old oven.  At the three minute mark, there were flames coming out of the oven vent. I opened the oven, dumped the flaming pita into the sink and filled the kitchen with smoke.

Twenty minutes later, the smoke was gone, (no we didn’t need the help of those folks who come in the big red truck), I made toast and dinner was ready and delicious. Here’s how I did it:

… read more

Summer has arrived in Vermont. It’s 83 degrees in the shade. At the farmers’ market, I saw the biggest Spanish onion I have ever seen. After the farmer assured me that no steroids had been used, she went on to say that the onions were sweet and mild. I thought, “Perfect for gazpacho,” that wonderful raw, Spanish soup served cold. Plans for dinner came together quickly, along with the tomatoes, cucumbers and bell peppers I needed for the soup I chose three curried vegetable samosas from the “Taste of Africa” booth and headed home.

Although many cooks use a food processor or blender to make a uniform soup I like the taste and appearance of hand cut vegetables. Here’s how I did it: … read more

Packaged for delivery to a friend, carrot soup is easy to make and says ‘I send you love.’

Here’s how I did it: … read more