This CHILLY-COLD-COLDER weather needs a WARM-HOTTER-SPICY soup . . . and in my part of the world, the cold is just beginning . . . (and I’m not quite ready to deal with it yet) !
It’s quite surprising when we realize the importance and/or obsession most of us have with weather. It obviously affects our mood but it regulates our day-to-day planning of things too, not necessarily of that same day because we’re already “living it” but for TOMORROW - THE NEXT DAY - THE WEEK AHEAD - THE WEEKEND !
What will I wear tomorrow ? Do I need an umbrella ? Can I ride my bike to work ? Do the kids need extra layers of clothing ? Will I feel too cold or too warm ? Can I have a drink or meal on a restaurant terrace ? Is the outdoor terrace heated ? Will I feel happy or sad or in-between ?
All this planning has gone even beyond the day by day approach, because now we expect hourly weather predictions ! The same questions above apply but with even more precision-planning and tuning ? Everybody watches or listens to the weather reports once or twice a day which is genuinely the least interesting and least important part of the news, unless you live in a place affected by the hurricane-typhoon-tornado-flood season (poor people, I feel so bad for you) and we get annoyed missing the weather announcements !
And all for what ? It’s wrong half of the time We know that it’s going to be wrong half of the time and yet we’re interested in knowing what they’ll predict. It’s like playing the lottery or cards … there’s something so FUN & SIMPLISTIC & POPULAR about it and we love it, like a sweet chocolatey addiction.
Let’s talk a little bit about the soup (even though it’s super-simple to make) . . .
You know what, if it’s getting cold-colder-really cold out there, make this soup. If you want more 'kick& punch', add extra chili pepper to heat you up and get that blood flowing and pumping. If it’s really warm where you are, chill it, like a gazpacho, it’s versatile and has no dairy added (no milk, no cream, no butter) that could quickly spoil, whether kept in or outside the fridge (if you’ve made a lot).
A friend and neighbor recently remarked that I always roast my vegetables before using them in any dish (yes EMMA my dear neighbor, I’m talking about you !) … of course I do. It cuts my cooking time in half (on the range top), deepens and accentuates the flavors with that roasted “smokiness” and let’s me do other stuff and preparations while I’m waiting around for the stuff to roast.
Another friend & blogger (yeah dear DANA from www.ivegotcake.com, it’s your turn now) chatted with me recently about the difficulty and sometimes necessity of replacing dairy in some recipes … In these types of soups, one usually adds some cream to deepen the flavors and make it creamier of course. This soup doesn’t need any dairy; the roasted flavors, the puréeing or blending of the whole thing and the olive oil get the job done just right, in under 1 hour.
HAVE A GREAT & LAZY WEEKEND, YOU LAZY SLOTHS ! I think I’m also going to try to take it easy after this crazy, rough and fun work week I’ve had … ;)
