autumn alphabet: e is for eating soup

I would be most content to eat a bowl of soup everyday of my life. I love soup that much. But, the arrival of Fall and its cool days just makes soup-eating all the more delightful.

When it comes to actually making soups, however, I don’t have the best track record. I have been known to make a decent bowl of chili, and I can usually hold my own in the kitchen, but I have several tales of woe when it comes to soup.

Soup Tale # 1- I adore pumpkin soup, but have found (much to my dismay) that few of my loved ones hold the same high esteem for my spicy, seasonal creation. I’ve made it on two different occasions with hopes to impress, and neither time produced the desired results. Both times, half-eaten bowls were left sadly on the table.

I haven’t made pumpkin soup since…

Soup Tale # 2 - One day while sitting in the doctor’s office perusing a magazine, I came across an easy and delicious-sounding recipe for tortilla soup. The ingredients were simple, and I was certain I could replicate the steaming bowlful displayed on the glossy pages. A week or two later, I set out to the grocery store. Tortilla soup was my mission. There was no problem with any of the ingredients except for the green salsa. The only green salsa in the entire store was labeled as spicy. Because there was no time for a second grocery stop, I made the decision to buy the spicy version. “How bad could it be?” I thought. Back home, I quickly whipped up the simple recipe, enjoying the Mexican aroma and awaiting the dinner to come.

However, after one bite of the soup, it became clear that the label had meant what it said. Now, you have to understand that Dan and I are not scared of a little spice. In fact, Dan has been known to (quite regularly) consume spoonfuls of Frank’s Red Hot…straight up. But, this soup hit a new level of spiciness…even for Dan. After adding several dollops of sour cream, I was able to consume the whole bowl, but the fiery concoction has become legendary in our house. Almost every spicy food we’ve eaten since has been weighed against the hotness of that crazy tortilla soup.

Despite my failed attempts at good soup-making, I still adore soup. And, I am feeling ready to try my hand at it again. I stumbled upon a lentil soup recipe the other day. I figure that as long as it contains no pumpkin or salsa, it should be smooth sailing.