I am in the middle of moving. Again. We are finally finishing the last bits of the renovation and starting to move our things to the new flat. As anyone who has renovated (or constructed for that matter) knows, this becomes an interminable phase which involves a million little things that you suddenly notice are unfinished or need to be changed --- things which seem to multiply overnight!
So that’s where I have been, and still am. Halfway packed with a new kitchen agonizingly near yet still so painfully out of reach. Near enough so I can almost taste it, but too far to actually do so. So cooking has been sporadic and not particularly inspired. Waking moments are filled with back-and-forths between the contractor, the interior designer, and us. Thank goodness we found a place that sells decent chocolate croissants or I don’t know what I’d do for sustenance!
In preparation for the big (and final!) move, I’ve been trying to use up all the bits that have been hanging around my fridge and freezer. Despite all the hustle, and the awkward half packed state of affairs over here, and the odds-and-ends ingredients, this soup turned out to be a lovely by-product of the clean-out.
I first took two roast chicken carcasses that I had tucked away in my freezer for future stock use, along with a bag full of random vegetable parts (broccoli trunks, the woody parts of asparagus, parsley stems, etc), and plopped them all in a pot with an onion, some bay leaf, black pepper, salt, and water. I let this simmer and reduce until I had a nice flavorful stock…which I then strained and set aside. I peeled and chopped another onion, the two last carrots in the crisper, and a lonely sweet potato --- these I sautéed with a nice amount of butter in another pot. In went some generous shakes of cumin, a smidgen of cinnamon, a few twists of black pepper, and the stock. I cooked this until the vegetables were tender then took everything off the heat to puree the lot with a hand-held blender. At this point you should taste and adjust seasoning, as well as add more stock if the soup needs to be thinned out (or cook further if it is too thin). I topped mine with a dollop of Greek-style yogurt which I strongly recommend!
Sorry for the lack of recipe…I really just cobbled together what I had. It turned out so well though that I had to share it here (no matter how wooly the description). And I will definitely be making this again, perhaps taking better notes and fashioning a recipe for it. Perhaps when I am at last cozily ensconced in our new kitchen which I cannot wait to start cranking up. Until then I just want to let you know that I’m still here, and no matter how hodge-podge, I’m still cooking! :)
To those who celebrate it…Happy Easter! :)