Soup and more Soup

After months of the hottest weather ever, it is soup-friendly cold.

Soup is something my family never gets tired of, and of course, it is good for your body and your soul.

The biggest problem people have in making soup is not respecting the soup. That sounds funny, I know, but you really have to treat soup with a certain kind of reverence. No leftovers, unless they are appropriate, and no fake ingredients.

Soup always starts with a broth. I'm no rigid traditionalist on this matter. I personally like nothing more than to boil bones, but I know that isn't everybody's cup of tea. I also am perfectly happy to use store-bought broth, or even bouillon cubes - or even water, if that is what I have.

If you are making broth from, hopefully, the carcass of a home-roasted chicken (or even a store-roasted chicken), you want to add the bones, some veggies (carrot, celery, onion, maybe a tomato or two) and some spices - bay leaves and peppercorns - to a pot and cover it with cold water. Salt generously and bring to a gentle simmer and let bubble away on the back burner for an hour or so.

Many chefs insist you have to skim, skim, skim away the entire time. I think that is way too much trouble, gets more spoons and dishes dirty, and just generally discourages people from making soup in the first place. So I don't skim. Nobody has ever died from my soup either, or done anything but want more, so I feel fairly confident that this deviant behaviour will not end in total ruin.

Once you've made your broth you will need to strain it. I put it in a colander over a big bowl or even another pot. I'm all about saving things from getting dirty, so I think the idea of using cheese cloth to strain is another needless way to make yourself more work that really doesn't make any difference in the end result.

Now that you have your broth, put it back on the heat and start chopping veggies. One or two onions, 3-4 carrots (microwave these after you've peeled them and they will be much easier to chop), several stalks of carrots, a turnip if you have one on hand, and always some squash - yellow crookneck, zucchini, mexican white zuchini - whatever you find at the market or have on hand. I also add either canned tomatoes, or roasted tomatoes out of the freezer. If I don't have either of those I whiz up a few fresh tomatoes in the food chopper. Easy, and tons of extra color, nutrition and flavor.

Now that you've done the veggies you'll have to decide what kind of starch you'll add. The options are pretty much potatoes, rice or noodles. If you add noodles add them at the very end, when the soup is basically finished (when the veggies are nicely done - don't worry about cooking it all day!) and cook just long enough for the noodles to be done. If you are adding potatoes or rice, add it after all the veggies are in. If you have cooked, chopped leftover chicken you want to add it now - not before, because it will become very stringy and nasty if you cook it for a long time.

Finally, season to taste with salt and pepper.

If you are making soup without home-made stock you will start by sauteeing your onions, carrots and celery in some olive oil or canola oil. Just give them some color and then add your water. This will give you a veggie stock which will make a very good soup indeed.

Soup makes a great afterschool snack and even a good breakfast in the winter - at least my kids love it!

As always, keep the ingredients as real as possible, and your soup will be divine, and your family will think, as they should, that you are a goddess.