Winter Is For Soups…….

We are having some very warm weather in my neck of the woods lately.

It's February, and our weekend temps are going to near 70 degrees!

To some of you frozen over in the tundra, that may sound heavenly, but I would prefer a little snow.

To which we have had none so far.

Now normally, as soon as fall hits and the weather is a bit chilly, the soup bug bites me.

I love soups of all kind.

Chicken noodle.

Beef stew.

Chili.

Tomato Bisque.

Potato Corn Chowder.

I could go on and on.

I'm always looking for new recipes, I get stuck in a rut and make the same stuff all the time.

Probably because it's easy.

Our local newspaper recently did an article featuring soups, and they broke down the different types.

I liked the clarification and thought maybe you are a dork like me and might want to know about all the different soup bases.

However, if you are a fancy soup chef or some kind of aficionado, you might want to skip this next part.

Types of Soup

Bisque- a thick, rich soup made from fruits, vegetables, game fish or shellfish and thickened with cream, pureed until smooth, and often contains sherry. 

Bouillon- A clear, thin broth made typically by simmering chicken or beef in water with seasonings. It can be consumed in this state, or used as a base for other dishes, sauced. Bouillon is a stock that is strained and then served clear as a coup.

Broth- a thin soup made from a clear stock foundation that can be thickened with starch or the addition of rice, barley, vegetables of eggs.

Chowder- a soup usually with fish or seafood as the main ingredient. Potatoes and other vegetables are typically added and the soup is enriched with salt pork fatback and thickened with flour or crushed soup crackers-two ingredients that define a chowder.

Consomme- a refined, clarified broth.

Puree-  a soup made from boiling vegetables that are strained into a smooth pulp.. A good puree has the consistency of thick cream.

Stock- a liquid in which leftover flesh, bones or shells and vegetables have been boiled to create a flavored base. The flavor is extracted by long, slow cooking. Stock is not seasoned; it is an unfinished product that is an ingredient in another dish.

Veloute- the richest, thickest soup of all, veloute is a broth-usually chicken or shellfish-thickened with eggs, butter and cream.

Well, I feel a little smarter reading that- how about you?

I had never heard of a "Veloute" before and if I had been asked on some game show to describe the difference between a broth and a bouillon, I would have failed miserably.

So now that we are geared with the knowledge of soup bases, the possibilities are endless.

I have heard before that

  "with a sharpened pencil, anything is possible….."

or

"with enough coffee, anything is possible……"

But maybe, we can now say,

"with the right broth base, anything is possible….."

And since Pinterest is my bff, I 'm going to share a few soups from my board that look good.

Happy Soup Day to you!