Chicken-Vegetable Stoup ¶

This is a hearty dish that is thicker than a soup and thinner than a stew, a preparation which the Food Channel’s Rachael Ray dubbed a stoup. It is to be served during Monday Night Football on trays set before the TV, accompanied by crusty left-over bread brought home in a doggie-bag from a restaurant you went to on date night over the weekend, along with a glass of wine that urges you to cheer the team you favor that night. Despite the somewhat long list of ingredients, it can be prepared rather quickly, if you have previously prepared the chicken chunks and made the home-made consommé. If you haven’t made any, you can use low-sodium canned or bouillon-cube-made chicken broth.

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 2 large chicken thighs, skinned, boned, and cut in 1” chunks
• 1 cup onion, chopped
• 1 cup red bell pepper, diced
• 1 cup carrot, grated
• ½ cup frozen lima beans
• ½ cup frozen yellow corn kernels
• ½ cup textured vegetable protein (TVP)
• 2 cups chicken consommé†
• 2 bay leaves
• ½ tsp ground rosemary
• ¼ tsp ground thyme
• 1 large vegetable bouillon cube
• 2 tsp dried onion soup mix
• 2 tsp dried parsley flakes
• 1 tbsp cornstarch
• ¼ cup cheap sherry wine

Brown the chicken in the oil in a stock pot, add the onion, bell pepper, and carrot, and continue to cook until the onions become translucent. Add all the remaining ingredients except the cornstarch and sherry, bring to a simmer, and let simmer for about 20 minutes.

Make a slurry of the cornstarch and sherry and add this to the stoup pot, stirring as you pour it in. Continue simmering and stirring until the stoup is fully thickened. Serve immediately in the manner described earlier.

Serves 3–4.

cold vegetable garden soup

This recipe is like an Andalusian Gazpacho, but made to be a little lighter and less filling, so as not to dull the appetite for the rest of an extended dining experience, such as a Thanksgiving’s Day Dinner.

• 1 cup soft white bread crumbs
• 4 tbsp red wine vinegar
• 3 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed
• 1 small onion, minced
• ¼ cup olive oil
• 1 large cucumber, peeled, seeded and cut in fine dice
• 1 large green pepper, cored, seeded, and minced
• 2 (14½-oz) cans tomatoes, diced, unsalted
• 2 cups water, cold
• 1 oz lemon juice
• 2 tsp <sugar>
• ½ tsp <salt>, correct to taste
• ¼ tsp black pepper, fresh ground
• 1 dash Tabasco® sauce, or to taste
• 10½ tsp garnish of dill, basil, watercress, or parsley

Place bread crumbs, vinegar, garlic, onion, and oil in a bowl and mix vigorously with a fork or hand blender to form a smooth past; set aside. Mix all remaining ingredients in a large mixing bowl and then blend in the bread paste. Cover and chill at least 24 hours before serving. Serve icy cold in soup bowls as a first course, garnished with sprigs of fresh dill, chiffonade of basil, watercress, or parsley.

Serves 10.