Esmé’s Article: ‘Soup’

What a wide subject! I have a large book called ‘The Soup Bible’ which has 200 recipes. I eat soup almost daily. Why? I have lost my appetite and also have difficulty in swallowing. I cook a meal almost every lunchtime, but sometimes cannot eat it. I tip it into my food processor and add juice before spinning it into soup. I make the juice using vegetable stock cubes stirred into wine. Usually I sprinkle chopped parsley over the finished dish.

Many of my French friends adore soup, with onion being their top favourite. Often big towns have soup kitchens. We sometimes sat outside the one in Marseille which is on the harbourside. We enjoyed the soup, while watching the luxury liners coming and going.

If I have visitors and serve soup as a starter, I never put croutons into it, as some people do not like them. I make them and put them into little bowls so that visitors can help themselves. Croutons need to be fairly small. You can use cooked potato, bread, or little cubes of cooked vegetables - just combine colour and flavour. Beetroot is often used in France. Cooks in a hurry sometimes offer crisps! On a cream soup, they add interest On a dark soup you can swirl double cream into a flower shape and add a bright crouton in the centre…

If you have made too much soup, a mug-full at bedtime is a good night-cap!

Happy ‘Souping’!

Esmé

In a previous recent article by Esmé, she encouraged people to ‘write a poem’! So here is a worthy response to that suggestion:

Owed to the taxman by Alan Jenner

I write my tax records on cold winter nights
I list my expenses to pay for the lights!
I’ve not done much ministry. (I’ve had covid fears)
So my ministry income’s two years in arrears.
I could put some prices up (or get on the road)
But I’ve had prostate cancer so must lighten the load
The warm summer weather aids recuperation
Leave until January the superannuation!