Simmering Love

Year after year it never fails, as we draw in the last days of autumn, the thought of a hearty bowl of homemade soup pulls me into the kitchen. Making soups, chowders, stews and chilies goes back to when I was a teenager. Yes indeed, I have been chopping away and throwing all sorts of food mixtures into a large pot for many years. You don’t even need a recipe. Some of the best soups I have made come from clearing out my refrigerator. I would consider it a bit difficult to make a bad soup when the ingredients going into the pot are those you love.

I enjoy the process of preparation as I set the ingredients out before me and start peeling, chopping, slicing and dicing. It is rather a Zen feeling as I focus on the matter at hand. Yes, for me, soup begins as a state of mind and moves my hands to create a bowl of simmering love. You heard me right; preparing a meal of any kind is a gift of love to those seated at your table. But the sheer simplicity of a bowl of soup seems to transcend all other food. I can almost taste the soup as I throw each ingredient into the pot. The moment I engage the sense of smell and taste the hearty concoction before me, this bowl of love warms me from the inside out.

Don’t let the thought of making soup strike fear in your kitchen. Engage your senses and nourish your spirit, join me in a bowl of simmering love; and don’t forget⎯any kind of soup is good for the soul.

All you need photo courtesy of Dennis Skley