Soup for You

We don't have many cold, miserable days in Tucson, but every so often it gets chilly and soup is in order. We had a day like that in mid-December, which gave me an excuse to finally enjoy the chicken soup at Little Café Poca Cosa (on the north side of the main library; 8am–2pm M–F, cash only, muy delicioso; I recommend the mole, and everything else for that matter).

Turns out that soup can also be ridiculously easy to make at home. Like everything else in the kitchen, you just have to shop and plan ahead a bit, and you can whip up a big enough batch to leave leftovers; the flavors are often better the second day. Here's a very easy and kid-friendly recipe that we just discovered. Enjoy!

Italian Sausage Minestrone

Delicious and easy minestrone, with quick prep. Prep time 15 minutes, cook time 30 minutes, serves 6 or so.

Ingredients:

• 1 ounce olive oil (a splash in the pan)
• 1 carrot, peeled and chopped
• 1 garlic clove, peeled, or 1 tsp crushed garlic from a jar (add more if you like garlic)
• 1/2 an onion, peeled and chopped
• 1 celery stick, chopped
• 32 oz (1 box) chicken stock
• 1 bay leaf (not critical, but adds flavor)
• 1 tsp dried thyme
• salt and pepper to taste, or 1/2 tsp each if you don't know what that means
• 1 package Trader Joe's Sweet Italian chicken sausage (other sausage will work fine, but these are low in fat and sugar)
• 1 can garbanzo beans (optional, if you tolerate legumes)
• 1 bunch spinach, washed and chopped (or just buy a bag of baby spinach and toss in some handfuls)
• shredded parmesan cheese (optional, but yummy)

Directions:

• Heat the oil in a large pot over medium-high heat for about 5 minutes.
• Sauté (cook uncovered and stir periodically) the carrot, garlic, onion and celery in the olive oil until the onion is translucent, about 10 minutes.
• Add the chicken stock and spices, and simmer for 15 minutes (low heat, partially covered; put the lid on at an angle).
• While the soup is simmering, slice the sausages lengthwise and chop into bites, to your preference. I get out the ruler and make each piece 1 cm wide. (Not really, but I do slice the sausages lengthwise into quarters.)
• Add the sausages, beans and spinach to the veggies and heat through, about 2 minutes. The spinach will wilt.
• Add salt and pepper to taste, serve, and sprinkle parmesan cheese on top.