Seasonal Sundays: Substantial Soups

This week's "Seasonal Seven" recipe collection is for all those who seek solace with sustenance, a lucky seven recipe ideas for soups able to stand on their own for supper, no salad or sandwich required. Easy weeknight soups because life goes on? Of course. A couple of weekend challenges for a healthy distraction? That too.

~ Skip Straight to the Good Stuff ~

~ PIN This ~

Welcome to Seasonal Sundays ...

As ever, thank you for welcoming me into your InBox and RSS feed reader. It's your kitchens, your lives ... and this week, your moods ... I conjure while writing ...

Well, hello, y'all, hello. It's been quite the week, wouldn't you say?

And if you're looking for someone to blame, blame me.

You see, just before the election in 2016, I wrote a column about the quiet pride of voting for a woman for president. When pride dissolved into puddles of desperate tears, I put the column aside, wondering if in my lifetime it would ever see print or pixels. A couple of weeks ago, I dusted it off for the first time in eight years. It held. It's good. "I can work with that," I thought.

And here we are again, such big dreams, dashed, such hope, shattered.

So yeah, I jinxed us. It's my fault.

But enough finger-pointing because I intend to atone by featuring recipes for hearty soups that are suitable for suppers, letting us gather round the table with loved ones who seek solace. Add some good bread, a pretty salad but most of all, save room for dessert.

Democracy Matters

The country needs calm, thoughtful and assertive voices amid the chaos inflicted by a minority new majority hellbent on taking/retaining generational power by strangling democratic principles and equal rights. None of us have to personally change the world. We just have to do our part. Pick one thing for the top of your To Do List this week.

Election Day, I paced the house at 4 a.m., nervous but also cautiously confident, hoping against hope for a big, inarguable blow out. Little did I know that 2016 PTSD would return with a vengeance and that exactly 24 hours later, first, Pennsylvania, then Wisconsin, and then, just like that, it was all over.

Four years of progress. An incredible 107 days of a nearly flawless campaign.

And now we must look to our left and to our right, knowing that every other voter chose chaos and corruption and that some 15 million voters just sat this one out.

So ... the grief is real, for all of us who invested so much to to improve the lives of everyday Americans across the entire country, to restore the freedom of choice for women, to face up to climate change, to prolong this American democratic experiment for another generation.

POTUS. SCOTUS.

The Senate. The House.*

Will there even be a country left?

What do we do?

So wrote a fellow democracy defender in abject despair dark-early Wednesday morning, a wail into the political night.

Some will recover sooner than others. Some will need more time or space.

So yes. Retreat if we must. Rest when it helps. Weep. Grieve. Mourn. Curl up in a ball. Shake fists at the universe. And then? All the re words. Reflect. Reckon. Recoup. Reassess. Reframe. Restock. Reset. Restore. Reenergize. Reconnect. And then when we're ready, Return to R.E.S.I.S.T.

And for anyone who's thinking that it's okay to ignore it all until 2028? or that it'll be enough, from here on, to show up on election day? and that if things go bad, we can just vote the bastards out in four years? If only it were so, if only.

* We may yet hold the House of Representatives, that count is still up in the air as I write. But at best, the margin will be slim, albeit highly meaningful because leadership would move to Democrats.

The Words of Wise Women & Others

• IF YOU NEED SOFT VOICES & CLEAR THINKING I listened to this 3 times, really. It helped. There's also a transcript, if that's easier. But do open up Trumped on Preet Bhara's podcast, with fomer US attorney Joyce Vance, political scientist Ian Bremer and historian Joanne Freeman. Zero screaming. Zero hand-wringing. I promise.


• IF YOU'RE READING PUNDITRY & THINKING, WHAT? REALLY? Read Sunday Morning Break by Robert Hubbell, retired lawyer, now activist and encourager-in-chief, who writes, "Choosing to write stories that “blame elitist Democrats” ignores the real story of what happened on Tuesday. That distraction normalizes the grotesque, existential threat of Trump's electoral victory. Trump could not buy more favorable and helpful coverage if he paid for those stories with Elon Musk’s billions."


• TO KNOW WHAT TO DO NEXT, LOOK TO BLACK WOMEN There's a truism that says, if you're somewhere and a kerfuffle starts, look to black women. If they're carrying on, it'll be okay. If they're alert and watching, be ready to pack up, fast. And if they're grabbing their purses and heading away, get out, get out now. After a funeral in a small Illinois town on Saturday, I linked up with two elderly Black women looking fine in colorful skirts, natty hats, gemstone pins, pretty shoes. We just kinda fell in with one another, walking from the church front to the back parking lot. An allusion was made to the election: these women were definitely voters. "Yes, honey," one counseled. "It's gonna be bad. Real bad." She paused, looking at her companion who nodded as if to say she agreed that I was trust-worthy, that she could speak openly. "But honey," she continued. "We've been through worse. We'll get through this too."


• IF YOU JUST WANT TO LOVE YOUR NEIGHBORS AGAIN Open up The Case of Treating Trump Like a Normal President in the Atlantic, by Never Trump writer Conor Friedersdorf who urges us, "Maybe voters made a terrible mistake in 2024. But that's a risk of democracy, so we must live with it. ... a part of me is glad that ... the results are clear enough to make Resistance 2.0 untenable ... stop indulging the fantasy that outrage, social stigma, language policing, a special counsel, the 25th Amendment, or impeachment will disappear him. And stop talking as if normal political opposition is capitulation."


• IF YOU'RE READY TO MAKE HISTORY You'll appreciate this short piece. "This is our Rosa Parks moment. This is our Stonewall." ~ Lucian Truscott, a writer and descendant of Thomas Jefferson, on Substack


• IF YOU'RE UNWILLING TO ACCEPT NOT THE DECISIVE ELECTION RESULTS BUT THE BRUTAL FASCIST AFTERMATH You'll definitely want to listen to especially this passionate introduction (about 12 minutes) from No Election Can Legitimize Fascism! We REFUSE to Accept a MAGA Fascist USA.


• I'm definitely in a follow mode now, stricken by grief and worry albeit still putting one foot ahead of the other. If you've found ways to cope that are helping, please do share ... I'm open and looking.

---

---

THE SEASONAL SEVEN: Substantial Soups for Solace & Sustenance

For this week's recipes, I aimed for cold-weather recipes with fall-to-winter flavors and combinations that ...

• ... are a mix of "tonight's supper" and "a weekend challenge"
• ... a range of meaty soups, noodle-y soups, bean-y soups, veg-y soups
• ... soups that are easily "dinner" without need for a salad or sandwich unless you're so inclined

• THE RECIPE Homemade Lentil Soup Comfort food for a crowd. (PIN This)
• ANOTHER TAKE Split-Pea Soup with Sausage & Kale A classic split pea soup recipe made extra-hearty. (PIN This)

• THE RECIPE Beef Barley Soup with Mushrooms Root vegetables, earthy mushrooms and nutty barley.
• ANOTHER TAKE Homemade Vegetable Beef Soup A concept recipe, all about the vegetables.

• THE RECIPE At Last! Black Bean Soup My signature recipe for thirty years. (PIN This)
• ANOTHER TAKE Cabbage & White Bean Stew Spartan and spare, a welcome reset for our bodies and tastebuds.

• THE RECIPE White Chicken Chili An old favorite, a little lighter. (PIN This)
• ANOTHER TAKE Smoked Turkey Chowder A melding of slow-cooked flavors. (PIN This)

• THE RECIPE Broccoli Potato Cheddar Soup Substantial enough for supper, light enough for lunch. (PIN This)
• ANOTHER TAKE Sweet Potato Soup with Quinoa & Coconut Milk Rave reviews!

• THE RECIPE Finnish Salmon Soup (Lohikeitto) Finland's "soul food," fish and potatoes in a creamy chowder broth. (PIN This)
• ANOTHER TAKE Lazy Man's Ciopinno A simple but celebration-worthy fish and shrimp stew in a light tomato broth.

• THE RECIPE Hamburger Soup A hearty soup with chunks of meat and a cornucopia of bright-colored vegetables. (PIN This)
• ANOTHER TAKE Weight Watchers Spinach & Tortellini Soup Slurpy with fresh noodles from the grocery store. (PIN This)

• THE COLLECTION Soup Recipes for light lunches and hearty suppers.
• AND ANOTHER Sandwich Recipes for quick lunches, suppers, even snacks.

Compliments!

Please know, YOU really matter here. Your comments and email (my current address is in the FAQs) encourage and inspire and motivate and some times make me laugh out loud or turn a little teary. It's a good day when I can "see" what you're cooking, "hear" how a recipe worked out, "know" what you're loving.

• "This was fabulous on a wintry autumn evening in the Sierra Nevada. We are adding it to our repertoire!" ~ Anonymous
• THE RECIPE Squash & Carrot Stew Rich with world spices.

• SHE LOVE MY CHICKEN NOODLE "It’s an Alanna Kellogg / Best Chicken Noodle Soup kind of fall day! Time to warm up the belly and Go Vote Blue, Nevada!" ~ author Sally Denton on Twitter
• THE RECIPE My Chicken Noodle Soup The way I make it, meaty and noodle-y with just a few noodles. (PIN This)

November: Reader Favorites

• THE RECIPE Chocolate Chili My long-time recipe, meaty and full of spices and a touch of chocolate. (PIN This)
• ANOTHER TAKE Crockpot Chili with Spicy Sausage Brown the meat, dump and go. (PIN This)

• THE RECIPE Creamy Brussels Sprouts Gratin An appetizer with toothpicks? A forgiving side dish? Yes and yes.
• ANOTHER TAKE Bodacious Brussels Sprouts Prep ahead of time, then finish just before serving.

November: Trending

• THE RECIPE Julia Child's Soubise (Onion & Rice Casserole) Thin ribbons of onion with rice and a little cream and cheese. (PIN This)
• ANOTHER TAKE Cheese Gnocchi Pie Kitchen Parade's debut column!

• THE RECIPE World's Best Green Bean Casserole Yesterday's comfort food made fresh. (PIN This)
• TRUE STORY: IT CHANGED MY LIFE Happy Thanksgiving from the Green Bean Casserole Lady: A Love Story (PIN This)
• ANOTHER TAKE Make-Ahead Fresh Green Bean Casserole America’s favorite casserole, fresh & convenient both.
• (NOT EVEN) A CLOSE SECOND (BUT) Mashed Potatoes & Carrots Why haven't we done this forever? (PIN This)

November: Recipes Lookin' for a Little Love

• THE RECIPE Cranberry Orange Relish with Fresh Ginger That old-time recipe with a whole orange, skin and all. (PIN This)
• ANOTHER TAKE Homemade Whole Cranberry Sauce for the Slow Cooker Sweet aroma of cranberries, fresh ginger and orange zest! (PIN This)

• THE RECIPE Pumpkin Corn Bread Who's got a cup of leftover pumpkin purée?
• ANOTHER TAKE Sweet Potato Cornbread Golden color + naturally gluten-free = a total winner.

The Kitchen Parade Almanac: Looking Ahead ...

• November 10th - Marine Corps Birthday (An Honored Tradition)
• November 11th - Veteran's Day
• November 28th (dang, so late this year) - American Thanksgiving
• December 1st - Alanna's Unofficial First Day of Winter

Looking Back ...

THIS WEEK, YEARS PAST
• 2019 Mid November (Week 46)
• 2020 After the Election (Week 46)
• 2022 Thanksgiving Pies (Week 46)
• 2023 My Dream Thanksgiving (Week 46) (PIN This)

RECENT WEEKS
• Casual Fall Suppers (Week 44) (PIN This)
• Seasonal Sundays: Fall Recipes for Cauliflower (Week 43) (PIN This)
• Pumpkin Season (Week 40) (PIN This)
• Fall Baking (Week 39) (PIN This)
• Seasonal Sundays' Five-Year Anniversary: My Signature Recipes (Week 38) (PIN This)
• Fall Meal Prep (Week 37) (PIN This)

Soups & Salads Especially for November

• NOVEMBER's COLLECTION Seasonal Soups & Salads for November Tons of seasonal ideas!
• BUT DON'T MISS THIS Carrot Salad with Pomegranate Quick and colorful, especially welcome during a dark winter.
• AND THIS Harvard Beets Simple and delicious, just cooked beets warmed through in an orange sauce. Long storied lore!
• AND THIS TOO Greek Lentil Soup A simple vegan soup with an unexpected ingredient, cinnamon.

Good to Know!

• THE METHODS Four Ways to Cut Brussels Sprouts Depending on how they'll be cooked + recipe suggestions.

The Best No-Recipe Recipe I Made This Week

Apple Cider + Bourbon + Ginger Ale = Solace in a Glass

2 parts apple cider + 1 part bourbon, chilled in a small pitcher if there's time and especially if serving with a small group

Fill an eight-ounce glass halfway with ice, pour over 1/2 cup of the cider-bourbon mixture. Top with fizzy ginger ale. As is my style, always but perhaps especially after not drinking at all for seven months, more wet than boozy!

Or is also my style, forget the "recipe". Just wing it and drink up.

A Quick Peek Into a Real-Life Kitchen

Just so you know, everything's not all pretty pictures around here, in the background is a pile of dirty dishes. And just like many (all?) of us, come five o'clock, I too draw a blank about what to make for supper, despite so many recipes I so dearly love. Here's a quick peek from this week.

Christmas in November? Sort of!

For years and years, my husband's big extended family has gathered here on Christmas Eve afternoon. To give the young families and family branches the chance to establish their own traditions, I moved the date to the Sunday before Christmas. It worked! And then ... Covid. We skipped 2020 and 2021. In 2022, we planned an outdoor event but chickened out before sending invitations, I'd be damned if after all this time, I would host some super-spreader event. (I even bought $100 of glittery trees from the dollar store to "decorate" our fenceline. Who knew that the dollar store doesn't do returns?) In 2023, we had to cancel because three households (including our own) contracted covid.

Defeat!

I vowed to never again "make plans" for Christmas. We might do some things, even host some things but nothing big and always impromptu.

And so in lieu of a big Christmas gathering, last Sunday four generations gathered here for a Fall Family Potluck. The rain held off (whew! cuz we got 9.5 inches in the next two days) and it was a lovely day to easily move between inside and out. The kids romped in the yard while the grownups re-connected, cousins from different branches who see one another, at best, at funerals. A niece and her husband came from California, another from Arizona.

It's the new tradition, already on the calendar for future years!

And the food? What a feast! Everyone brings a dish so it's an easy party, my personal challenge is to hold myself back.

• THIS WEEK By accident, I used great northern beans instead of pinto beans here and man, did the beans mimic Bush's Best canned baked beans. So good! (I did learn how important it is to test the beans every so often in the oven, these overcooked and after they were reheated the next day, turned kinda sludgy after awhile.)
• THE RECIPE My Homemade Baked Beans Slow-cooked to infuse with maple syrup, molasses and warm spices. (PIN This)

• THIS WEEK The family Littles love fruit and a platter of black grapes with tangerine sections was no exception, a new variation to simple fruit salad that's healthy to eat and pretty to look at. The black and orange would make it a fun addition to a Halloween menu too. So good!
• THE RECIPE Five-Minute Fruit Salad It's all in the presentation! (PIN This)

• THIS WEEK Black cherry and orange were a pretty combination, I wish I'd thought of this for Halloween too. A double batch was hardly enough. So good!
• THE RECIPE Easy Easy Magical Jello Bites Guaranteed to make kids' eyes light up! (PIN This)

• THIS WEEK The real star of this party is the big ham and this was our best ever. Our usual supplier has gone awol so the butcher we use in the country said he'd smoke a ham for us. And this ham was BIG, almost 30 freaking pounds. It didn't fit our fridge or even the oven! But it all worked out. We kept the ham overnight on ice in a cooler, then smoked it (bare heat) for 24 hours, mopping it with a watered-down molasses for the first few. Oh, it was soooo smoky! We worried that it would dry out when tending it overnight so put in a bowl of water. We'll definitely do this again on purpose though, if luck helps, with a smaller ham.
• THE RECIPE Twice-Smoked Ham How & why to smoke a smoked ham a second time. (PIN This)

• THIS WEEK If there's ham, there's gotta be some good mustard, too.
• THE RECIPE Famous Mustard Sauce (Carolina BBQ Mustard Sauce) A tiny-bit spicy and a tiny-bit sweet and totally addictive.

• THIS WEEK And if there's ham, the next day we cook ham 'n' beans, every single time. This week, I actually made three pots! The first one, I used mayocoba beans, they are just fabulous for ham and beans, very creamy without falling apart, will definitely keep a bag or two on hand. The second and third pots, I used the usual great northern beans but forgot to soak them overnight. People, beans just do better when they're soaked overnight. A quick soak just doesn't do as well. They take longer to cook which, at least this time, meant the beans broke down rather than getting all pretty and plump? But at least that first pot of beans? So darn good!
• THE RECIPE Ham & Beans How to make Ham & Beans with a leftover ham bone. (PIN This)

• THIS WEEK And yet a big ham takes real effort to use up, especially because ham doesn't freeze well, even when you send containers of ham plus Dutch ovens filled with Ham & Beans home with family. The last of the ham got used up here, we were so glad for those last smoky bites!
• THE RECIPE Ham & Eggs with Leftover Ham A hearty breakfast for one or two or a crowd.

• THIS WEEK I made a 1.5x batch of chicken salad. Some went into small brioche buns for a picnic in the woods with a niece/husband and their adorable kids who for some reason l-o-v-e the stuff. The next day I made a few more for a quick lunch with houseguests. The next day, I stuffed some into ribs of celery and cut them into two-bite lengths, a great quick appetizer. So handy, so good!
• THE RECIPE Chicken Salad for Sandwiches Makes up in minutes with pantry ingredients. (PIN This)

Don't Be a Stranger ...

I'd love to hear from you. Comment, send me a quick e-mail (my current address is in the FAQs), dot-dash in Morse code, build a fire for smoke signals, launch a message in a bottle, send a Christmas letter, get the dog to yip, toss me a note wrapped in a rubberband, write a message in the sky, scratch a note in the sand, listen to a seashell, tuck a question into a plastic Easter egg, whatever.

• Any advice for Seasonal Sundays?
• Just one thing that would make it more useful for you?
• Anything else? Chime in, chat away.

---

Kitchen Parade is written by second-generation food columnist Alanna Kellogg and features fresh, seasonal dishes for every-day healthful eating and occasional indulgences. Quick Suppers are Kitchen Parade favorites and feature recipes easy on the budget, the clock, the waistline and the dishwasher. Do you have a favorite recipe that other Kitchen Parade readers might like? Just send me a quick e-mail, you'll find my current address in the FAQs. How to print a Kitchen Parade recipe. Never miss a recipe! If you like this recipe, sign up for a free e-mail subscription. If you like Kitchen Parade, you're sure to like my food blog about vegetable recipes, too, A Veggie Venture. When you make my recipes, I'd love to know your results! Just leave a comment below or better still, on the specific recipe's page.

---

© Copyright Kitchen Parade
2024