THE WINTER IS UPON US
BY DON DOUCETTE
The winter season is the traditional time to prepare and consume bulky soups and stews.
Here in the Ten Mile River Watershed this timeless tradition continues.
I have in freezer one wrapped ham bone with a zip bag containing spiral ham bits saved from a previous meal. The bone and ham bits for body will stew with the simmering soup before the bone is fully recycled.
Potato soup is our desired destination – never before prepared by myself.
I have a plentiful supply of wrinkling and sprouting potatoes, my motivation for this project.
Even yet boldly stepping forward and using some basic vegetable elements to my culinary concoction, leek and fennel – just now cleaned and diced, heretofore vegetables alien to myself and thus, my casting caution to the wind and trusting.
One large punky carrot, near to over ripeness, parts of which were surely salvageable consisting of the most beautiful shade of orange and of sweet tasting over ripeness – shredded just now and set aside.
And two large battle-scared celery stalks, the worse bruises removed, tough celery strings purged and the better parts diced.
As you may discern, I’m counting on some veggies with questionable futures only now being closely evaluated and the better parts used as a foundation for this uncharted winter soup project.
I’m laying out the construction site as this building project is expected to last several days leading to the final taste test and anticipated winter meal enjoyment.
All my sound vegetable scraps and peelings go into a large zip lock freezer bag for a future broth project.
I’m using the worst vegetable candidates for longevity found in my larder, evaluating their better parts as a basic system of economy, acting upon such and fabricating a basic winter potato soup fully promising to nourish.
The old saying of “waste not, want not” yet prevails.
Don Doucette
“Ten Mile River Rambles”