Soup: A Way of Life

by Kafka, Barbara

• ISBN13: 9781579651251
• ISBN10: 1579651259
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 1998-11-01
• Publisher: Artisan

Summary

Few cookbook authors have done more to define how Americans eat than Barbara Kafka, whose award-winning Microwave Gourmet and Roasting revolutionized everyday cooking. With her encyclopedic knowledge and original approach, Kafka promises to do the same in Soup, a Way of Life. She takes this most satisfying of foods that epitomizes comfort world-round and shows us how to put it squarely on our table--simply, gloriously, soothingly, and often. She proves what a good friend good soup can be--it's not temperamental; it's forgiving; it knows no class or ethnic bounds. It restores; it refreshes; it celebrates. In nearly three hundred recipes--some so simple they require no cooking at all--Kafka offers up cold soups for hot days, hot soups for cold days, simple soups to start a meal and bountiful soups that make a meal. And most of all, there's Barbara Kafka, writing in her own inimitable way of food memories that are as enriching as the soups themselves.

Author Biography

Few have done more to define how Americans prepare food than Barbara Kafka, whose IACP and James Beard award-winning books Roasting and Microwave Gourmet made two underutilized techniques central to everyday cooking. Ms. Kafka is a former food editor of Vogue and a frequent contributor to The New York Times. She lives in New York and Vermont. The author of Artisan's Soup: A Way of Life and Vegetable Love, Barbara Kafka's immense achievements were recognized once more in 2007, when the James Beard Foundation gave her its Lifetime Achievement Award. Her most recent book is The Intolerant Gourmet: Glorious Food Without Gluten & Lactose.

Table of Contents

Family Soups

Vegetable Soups

Bird Soups

The Meat of the Matter

Swimmers in Soup

"Oats, Peas, Beans, and Barley Grow..."

The Soul of Soup

From Stock to Soup

Table of Contents provided by Publisher. All Rights Reserved.

Excerpts

Curried Onion Soup The onions are not browned in this recipe. For a soothing soup, you can add a cup of heavy cream and additional salt to taste. 1/4 pound (120g) unsalted butter, cut into pieces 1/4 cup (30g) curry powder 4 large onions, cut into chunks 4 cups (1 liter) Basic Chicken Stock (page 345) or commercial chicken broth 3 tablespoons fresh lime juice 1 tablespoon kosher salt, or less if using commercial broth 1 cup (250 ml) heavy cream, optional In a medium saucepan, melt the butter over medium-low heat. Stir in the curry powder and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes. Stir in the onions and cook, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes. Pour in the stock. Bring to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer for 10 minutes, or until the onions are very soft. In a blender, working in batches of no more than 2 cups (500 ml), puree the soup until very smooth, stopping once or twice to scrape down the sides of the jar. Scrape the puree back into the pan. The soup can be made ahead up to this point and refrigerated. Heat the soup through. Remove from the heat and whisk in the lime juice, salt, and if using, the heavy cream Makes 7 cups (1.75 liters) without cream; 8 cups (2 liters) with; 6-8 first-course servings Garlic Soup with Poached Eggs Let the bread sit at room temperature for several hours, or overnight, until dry. Garlic Broth (page 86) 4 teaspoons kosher salt 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper Eight 1/4-inch- (.5-cm-) thick slices French bread, dried 4 eggs Grated Parmesan cheese, for serving In a large deep frying pan, combine the garlic broth, salt, and pepper over medium heat. Arrange the bread slices around the edge of the pan, slightly overlapping them and leaving a circle about 6 inches (15 cm) in diameter in the center. Bring to a boil. Lower the heat so the liquid is at a lively simmer. Crack the eggs into the pan so they form a ring, without touching, toward the center of the pan. (If preferred, crack the eggs one at a time onto a saucer and slide them into the broth.) Cook just until the whites and the surface of the yolks are set, 3 to 4 minutes. Spoon broth over the tops of the yolks if they aren't submerged. To serve, ladle the broth and bread into large warm soup bowls and top each with an egg. Pass Parmesan at the table. Makes 4 first-course servings Garlic Broth This is really a base for other soups that can also be served on its own--but consider adding some jalapeno pepper, cilantro, and lime juice; or diced tomato, chopped parsley, matchsticks of zucchini, and thinly sliced basil; cooked peas and small leaves of spinach; lemongrass, curry leaves, and lime juice; or any other seasoning group that seems enjoyable. 3 small heads garlic, smashed and peeled 1 tablespoon olive oil Kosher salt, to taste, optional Freshly ground black pepper, to taste, optional Cut the garlic cloves in half lengthwise and, if necessary, remove the green germ growing throughout the center. In a medium saucepan, heat the oil over l

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Excerpted from Soup: A Way of Life by Barbara Kafka
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