Upsides to the Down Economy/ A Pot of Soup

It's cold here in Miami (really!) and about to get colder, so the only thing to do is make a big pot of soup. Although, steaming hot soup makes perfect sense at this time of year, I like to make soup once a week all year round. This week it was French Onion, last week it was Cream of Cauliflower. Besides making a cheap and nutritious dinner (when paired with sandwiches or salad), the remaining soup makes a perfect lunch or mid-afternoon pick-me-up. I found myself snacking on the Cream of Cauliflower with curry every time I needed to fill my stomach. At only 15o calories a bowl, it was a nutritional bargain and the creaminess comes from, not cream but half and half (I used 2 percent milk) and the fact the cauliflower is pureed. Yummy! Other favorite soups in my repertoire are Split Pea, Roasted Chicken Noodle, Italian Wedding and Spicy Pumpkin. Just read about an easy soup in the paper: Bring 6 cups of chicken or veggie broth to a boil. Add a bag of frozen cheese tortellini until floating and then add frozen peas. As Ina says "How easy is that?" When I had a "procedure" a couple weeks ago, the only thing I could eat was "clear liquids". I was amazed at how good plain old heated chicken broth can be!

Here is the recipe for Cream of Cauliflower Soup. I clipped it from Parade.

Cream of Cauliflower Soup

2 leeks, with 2" of green

2 Tbsp olive oil

2 Tbsp unsalted butter

1 celery rib, with extra leaves, coarsly chopped

2 Tbsp finely minced garlic

2 tsp curry powder

2 tsp ground ginger

6 cups chicken or veggie broth

Juice of half a lemon

1 head of cauliflower, cored and broken into florets

1 cup half and half

salt and pepper, to taste

1. Cut leeks in half lenghtwise. Wash to remove dirt. Pat dry and thinkly slice crosswise.

2. Heat the oil with the butter in a heavy pot over low heat. Wilt the leeks and celery with leaves until softened, 10 minutes, add garlic during last 5 minutes.

3. Stir in the curry poseder and ginger and cook over very low heat to permeate the veggies, 1 minute.

4. Add the broth, lemon juice and cauliflower florets. Raise the heat to high and bring to a boil; reduce the heat and simmer, partially covered, until cauliflower is very tender, 15 minutes. Cool slightly.

5. Puree in a food processor until very smooth, adding half and half through the ffed tube. Add extra broth if neccessary. Season with salt and pepper.

Serves 8

Per serving: 150 calories