Soup Season

I may miss the warm weather, but I am happy when the weather gets chilly, because I can get out my collection of soup recipes. It certainly was cold last night, and from what I hear, we had our first snow, even if it was only a flurry. Making soup is like therapy for me~ it gets my mind off of everything that is going on in my life. The fact that it makes the house smell good is icing on the cake. I made this soup last night: it is called Saint Seraphim Soup, and it comes from one of my favorite cookbooks, called 12 Months of Monastery Soups by Brother Victor-Antoine d'Avila-Latourrette. This cookbook is great for those who love light soups~ most of them are vegetarian, though they do incorporate meat broths, and the occasional fish. Here is the recipe:

Saint Seraphim Soup

4 Tablespoons butter, margarine, or oil of coice

1 cup rice

7 cups boiling water

1 large carrot, grated

1 onion, sliced

1 green pepper, cut into small pieces

2 Tablespoons chopped parsley

salt and pepper to taste

sprinkle of saffron

Melt 4 tablespoons butter or oil in a large soup pot, and add the cup of rice to it, stirring continuously for 1 or 2 minutes.

Immediately add the boiling water, carrot, onion, green pepper, and parsely.

Cook the soup over low heat, covered, for about 30-40 minutes, until the rice is tender. Add the salt and pepper and sprinkle of saffron for a bit of extra aroma and taste. Let the soup stand, covered, for 10 minutes, the serve.

~I changed this recipe a bit when I made it~ instead of the water, I added chicken broth, and instead of the pepper, I added celery. It turns out to be a very easy chicken rice soup!

This photo is from staceyhasenfratz (www.staceyhasenfratz.etsy.com). Cuteness!