Les vieux pots font les bonnes soupes.*

When the fall harvest begins to roll into our kitchens, we have an opportunity to create some unique, hearty soups. Soups have been a mainstay of American cooking, with native foods like corn, beans, squash and potatoes forming the base for many. These everyday items can be transformed into a nutritious centerpiece for any meal, including school lunch boxes. Add some crusty whole grain bread, crunchy toasted croutons or crispy crackers and the meal is complete. By improvising with what you have on hand, this simple and economical dish will yield a new creation every time.

A good soup is easy to make and nearly impossible to ruin - unless, of course, you burn the bottom of the pan or add a cup of salt by mistake. Also, soup is usually made with inexpensive ingredients, often from the foods you have too much of in your refrigerator or the trimmings from your salads or other cooked vegetables. In the European rural tradition, a pot is kept on the back of the stove (referred to by the French as the pot au feu), into which they add various leftovers and a few simple ingredients for a nutritious and frugally conceived supper.

The success of a good soup depends on a hearty stock as its base. Your best bet is to make your own instead of relying on commercial broth cubes or powders. One very easy method is to keep a large container in your freezer to which you add stock from vegetables you have boiled or steamed. Leftover bean-cooking water can be used as well. A miso broth is the ultimate in simplicity- dissolve miso to taste in warm water. Don't boil this one or you'll destroy the beneficial enzymes in the miso.

As the days get shorter and the nights colder, what better way to have an evening meal than centered around a rich, hearty soup. Generally, the longer your soup simmers, the more flavorful it becomes. Use this extra time to enjoy the warmth of the fire in the woodstove, a good book or the company of family and friends. Let life's (too often) fast pace begin to drift away, to be replaced with the fragrant aroma of the soup pot and a time less hurried.

Below is a simple stock recipe that can be refrigerated or frozen and soup recipes that may help get the creative gastronome in you going. Use these as a starting point to find new culinary delights for your evening meal.

* (It's the old pot that makes the good soup.) - Creole proverb

Basic Stock

Collect skins (cleaned!) of onions, garlic, potatoes, carrots, etc. Avoid strongly-flavored vegetables, such as cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower or celery or at least go lightly with them. Also collect limp-but-still-okay vegetables like tired, old zucchini, carrots, potatoes, etc.
Boil your collection in lightly-salted water for 30 minutes to an hour. Cool, strain, and taste. If you like the flavor, use the stock for soup.

Sweet Potato Soup

Heat 2 Tbs. canola or olive oil in a large soup pot.
Add 2 medium onions, chopped, 2 medium carrots, diced, and 1 large celery stalk, diced and sauté over low heat until the onions are golden. Add a handful of celery leaves and 6 cups diced sweet potatoes. Add just enough water to cover all but about 1 inch of the vegetables.
Bring to a boil, then stir in 2 bay leaves and 1/4 tsp. dried thyme & 1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg. Simmer over moderate heat until the sweet potatoes & vegetables are tender, about 20 minutes.
With a slotted spoon, transfer the vegetables to a food processor or blender with about 1/2 cup of liquid. Purée until smooth and stir back into the pot.
Add 1 cup soymilk as needed to achieve a slightly thick consistency.
Season to taste with salt and pepper, simmer over low heat for 10-15 minutes and serve.

Basic Dashi (Japanese Kombu & Shitake Mushroom Broth)

Combine 6 cups water & 2 strips of kombu (a type of seaweed) in a soup pot. Bring to a boil, then remove the kombu.
Add 6 to 8 dried shiitake mushrooms to the stock & remove from the heat. Let stand for 30 minutes. Remove the mushrooms from the stock with a slotted spoon. Trim them of their tough stems and save them for another use or slice them and use them in the broth.
For variety, cook Oriental noodles until al dente or simmer thinly sliced vegetables such as carrot, cabbage or daikon radish until tender.
Season to taste and serve.

German Potato Soup

Peel and chop 8 large potatoes, 4 large carrots and 3 small onions. Place in a large soup pot and cover with water. Add salt and pepper to taste, 2 Tbs. minced, fresh parsley, and 1 tsp. dried basil. Cook until the vegetables are tender.
Put the vegetables through a food mill or purée in a blender until smooth. Return the puréed vegetables to the pot. Add 2 cups soy or skim milk and heat thoroughly, but do not boil. Taste, adjust seasonings if necessary and serve.

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