and for my next soup....

When it looks like this outside....












and you have an overabundance of celery....
it's time for more soup.













I started with this recipe from Epicurious...and adapted. I added a large parsnip and a yukon gold potato. (I had no celery root)

Ground some celery seed and tellicherry pepper together for spice. And I don't puree....I like a chunky soup. Sometimes I mash it a bit with my potato masher.

Oh, and when I finish it, I won't be using heavy cream...maybe a bit of half and half.

A new soup....

I've been craving a new soup. Something different from the old standbys I make.
When I saw this on Last Night's Dinner, I had a starting place.

Here's what I did.
Drained a 28 oz. can of dice, organic, fire roasted tomatoes. Saved the juice and poured the tomatoes into a large glass baking dish. Studded the tomatoes with 4 large garlic cloves and drizzled with olive oil. Roasted at 450 for about 20-30 minutes.
Meanwhile I sautéed 3 minced shallots in a little olive oil and added some dried basil. Then added 1/2 cup rinsed barley and a large carton of organic chicken broth. When the tomatoes are done, add them to the pot. Simmer until barley is done. You might need to thin with a bit more chicken broth. ( I did have 2 chicken sausages that were defrosted, so I cut those in small cubes and added them, too, but they weren't necessary.)

This was hearty and so good...almost buttery tasting. And what better to serve it with than a grilled cheese sandwich!