Brrr - it's soup weather!

The past several days have been pretty chilly in the Bay Area - and by that I mean FREEZING - by our standards, anyway.  Now they're not as freezing.  They're just sopping wet.  Definitely NOT my favorite weather. In fact, about the best thing I can say about this weather is it reminds me that it's the perfect season for soup!  I love soup.  And thankfully I've passed that love on to my children - I hear of these children who don't like soup and I wonder what's responsible - is it nature or nurture that's failed them?

Every year I'm good for at least a couple of batches of Split Pea Soup - Natalie's favorite.  This year was a little more challenging in light of her vegetarianism and I was afraid that I wouldn't be able to pull it off.  After all - you can't make split pea soup without the smoky flavor of ham hock and pieces of ham in it, right?!  Wrong!  Wandering down the grocery store aisle a couple of months back I came across a bag of peas called "HamPeas" - complete with artificial ham flavoring:

So I gave it a whirl - using vegetable stock in place of my usual chicken, and loading up on the fresh thyme.  The result?  Really not bad.  With a side of cornbread and healthy little scoop of bacon bits in my bowl, I have to say it worked.

Of course, following Thanksgiving this year, I made Turkey Noodle Soup.  I went a little heavy on the carrots so it was a touch too sweet, but otherwise it was very good - hearty, savory and peppery.  Jack and I mowed through it in about 3 days and Jack's comment was "I love soup when there's not too much broth - yum!"

Last week I was ready to tackle something new.  I settled on a twist on something familiar... Roasted Potato Leek Soup.   It seemed to offer everything I was craving in a winter soup: starchy creamy cheesy roasted goodness.  (That's the roasted potatoes and leeks at the top, with the addition of baby arugula wilted in the final minutes.) And since I happened to have some leftover homemade vegetable stock on hand, I could make it veggie-friendly!  Of course I made the optional crispy shallots and they were the perfect garnish!  (Though Jack would likely say that the spicy Italian sausages I sauteed to add to his soup were the magical finish.)

I made all of this last Sunday in anticipation of coming home from work on Monday to decorate the first Christmas tree we've had in 4 years instead of spending the evening making dinner. And it's a good thing I did it that way:  while not especially challenging, this recipe takes awhile.   But it's well worth it and it allowed us to accomplish this: