The story below is from our January/February 2021 issue. For more stories like it, Subscribe Today. Thank you!
What better way to soothe the soul in cold months than with a delicious soup?
Becky Ellis
Past Fagioli Zuppa with Red Pepper Pesto
On blustery cold winter days, there is nothing better than a steamy bowl of homemade soup to keep you and your family warm and toasty. There are so many wonderful things about soup – it’s a one pot wonder, so easy to make and serve with crunchy French or Italian bread for a satisfying supper. Dress soup up for company with garnishes (only limited by your imagination) to add crunch, color and pizazz and don’t forget a dash or two of hot pepper sauce. My recipes include locally made hot pepper sauces.
Mosaic Potato Corn Chowder
8 servings
- 8 slices thick cut bacon, cut into very small pieces
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 cup diced onions
- 1 leek, white part only, cleaned, cut into thin slices
- ½ carrot, diced
- 1 stalk celery, diced
- 2 teaspoons Greek seasoning
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 Knorr chicken bouillon cube
- 2 tablespoons Clark and Hopkins Chesapeake Bay Pepper Sauce
- 6 cups chicken broth
- 2 russet potatoes, peeled and diced
- 1½ cups frozen corn
- 1 cup whipping cream
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground pepper
For mosaic garnish: finely diced red bell pepper, crisp bacon crumbles, finely shredded cheddar cheese, thinly sliced green onions and a few drops of pepper sauce.
Place bacon and olive oil in a large stock pot. Cook over medium-high heat until bacon is crisp. Reduce heat to low and add onions, leek, carrot and celery. Stir and continue to cook for 1 minute. Add Greek seasoning and thyme and crumble the Knorr chicken bouillon cube into the mixture. Add pepper sauce, chicken broth and potatoes. Stir and increase heat to medium.
When the soup starts to simmer, reduce heat to low and cook, stirring occasionally until potatoes are tender, 10-15 minutes. Add corn, whipping cream, salt and pepper. Stir and continue to cook for 1 more minute. Keep warm until service. Garnish each bowl of soup with finely diced red bell pepper, crisp bacon crumbles, finely shredded cheddar cheese, thinly sliced green onions and drizzle with pepper sauce.
Virginia wine pairing suggestion: Gabriele Rausse Albemarle County Viognier. $22 range.
Sausage & Lentil Soup
Recipe inspired by Carrabba’s Sausage and Lentil Soup.
8 servings.
- 1 cup diced onion
- 1/2 cup diced carrot
- 1/2 cup diced celery
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tablespoons butter or olive oil
- 1 pound Italian sausage
- 1 48-ounce package low-sodium chicken broth
- 11/2 teaspoons Greek Seasoning
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 14.5-ounce can diced tomatoes
- 1 cup red lentils
- 2 tablespoons Clark and Hopkins Chesapeake Bay Pepper Sauce
In a large pot, add onions, carrots, garlic, and celery and butter or vegetable oil. Sauté until the onions are transparent. Cook sausage in a skillet until browned. Drain fat off of sausage and add to pot.
Add chicken broth, salt, Greek seasoning, diced tomatoes, red lentils and pepper sauce. Cover with lid and simmer for about an hour. Add additional chicken broth if too much liquid cooks out during the cooking process.
Virginia wine pairing suggestion: True Heritage Castalia Farm Reserve Petit Verdot Monticello 2018. $20 range.
Slow Cooker Salsa Chicken Soup
Makes 6 cups
- 2 (3/4 pound each) boneless skinless chicken breasts
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 12-ounce jar Gunther’s Gourmet Salsa Fresca
- 10.5-ounce can cheddar cheese soup
- 1 cup Green Giant Steam Crisp Mexicorn
- Cooked Jasmine rice for serving
- Garnishes: shredded pepper jack cheese, sour cream, chopped green onions, chopped cilantro
Place chicken breasts and chicken broth in a slow cooker and cook on high for 3 hours or until fork tender. Place chicken on a cutting board (reserve chicken broth in slow cooker) and shred chicken into small pieces with a fork. Return chicken to slow cooker and add salsa, cheddar cheese soup and Mexicorn. Stir to combine. Add some additional chicken broth if too much liquid cooks out during the cooking process. Heat in slow cooker on low heat until ready for service. Serve over jasmine rice in soup bowls with garnishes.
Virginia wine pairing suggestion: Grü-V Grüner Veltliner. $20 range.
Pasta Fagioli Zuppa with Red Pepper Pesto
- Red Pepper Pesto:8 ounces roasted red bell peppers
- 5 tablespoons Parmesan
- 2/3 cup roasted pine nuts
- 1/2 cup fresh basil
- 5 tablespoons olive oil (or more as needed)
- 1/2 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
- 3 cloves garlic, quartered lengthwise
- 1/8 teaspoon pepper
- 1/8 teaspoon salt, or to taste
In a blender or food processor, purée peppers until they are smooth and well blended. Add parmesan cheese and pine nuts to peppers and blend until well combined. Chop basil into tiny pieces and blend into peppers, cheese and nut mixture. Add oil and vinegar to combined ingredients. Add additional oil if needed to make a smooth pesto. Press garlic and combine with other ingredients. Add salt and pepper. Cover and refrigerate.
Pasta Fagioli Soup
“Ditalini” translates to “little thimbles.” It is the traditional pasta used in rustic Italian soups.
- 2 slices of bacon, chopped
- 1 small onion, chopped fine
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- 1 small rib of celery, chopped fine
- 1 carrot, sliced thin
- 1 1/2 cups chicken broth (or more as needed)
- 15.5-ounce can Cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
- 16-ounce can tomatoes, drained and finely chopped
- 1/2 cup Clark and Hopkins Chesapeake Bloody Mary Mix
- 1/3 cup ditalini pasta
- 2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley leaves
- Garnish: freshly grated Parmesan and crumbled baked prosciutto
In a heavy saucepan cook the bacon over moderate heat, stirring, until it is crisp, pour off all but 1 tablespoon of the fat, and in the remaining fat cook the onion and the garlic, stirring, until the onion is softened. Add the celery, the carrot and the broth and simmer the mixture, covered, for 5 minutes.
In a bowl, mash 1/3 cup of the beans, stir them into the bacon mixture with the remaining whole beans, tomatoes and Bloody Mary mix and simmer the mixture, covered, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes. Stir in the pasta simmer the soup, covered, for 10 minutes, or until the pasta is al dente and if desired thin the soup with additional chicken broth. Let the soup stand off the heat, covered, for 5 minutes, stir in the parsley and serve the soup in bowls, sprinkled with Parmesan and a large dollop of red pepper pesto and crumbled baked prosciutto.
To bake prosciutto: Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Place slices of prosciutto flat on a rack on a baking tray. Bake prosciutto 7 – 10 minutes or until the prosciutto is crispy. Watch carefully to prevent burning.
Virginia wine pairing suggestion: Villa Appalaccia Virginia 2019 Toscanello. $21 range
Buy it local:
- Zen Pepper Sauce: Mr. Bill’s Wine Cellar and Roanoke Natural Foods Co-op
- Clark and Hopkins Artisan Pepper Sauces: Wine Gourmet and clarkandhopkins.com
- Clark and Hopkins Bloody Mary Mix: Food Lion
- Gunter Salsa: Roanoke Natural Foods Co-op
- Virginia Wine Selection: Mr. Bill’s Wine Cellar
The story above is from our January/February 2021 issue. For more stories, subscribe today or view our FREE digital edition. Thank you for supporting local journalism!