Winter may lack the color, warmth and activity of other seasons, but it does draw us inside for thoughful nesting, crafting and cooking. This is the season to reach out and share what foods you love the most, or try a new recipe that has been cut out of the newspaper ages ago and is still on your "want to try list".
How to begin? Try a recipe exchange. By email send to 10 friends, a letter introducing a recipe exchange. Put your name in a #1 position. Each person sends you a recipe and than moves their name into the #1 position, while contacting 10 email friends of their own to continue the process. Yes, it becomes a food chain, worth continuing, as the chain goes on you can receive recipes from all over the world. What a great way to spread the love of cooking!
Soups on! Another way to share the hearty goodness of winter. Choose a few friends and ask each to make a pot of their favorite soup. Make a copy of the recipe for each person as well as filling a pint container of the soup for a tasting sample. Containers can be frozen and used on those days you just hunger for a cup of homemade soup!
Use your imagination of other ways to share the winter bounty of your cooking, winter revival, and winter survival in one!
One recipe to try:
(adapted from Moosewood Cookbook Classics)
2 -3 tablespoons olive oil
2 large yellow onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 stalk celery, diced
2 large sweet potatoes, diced
1 teaspoon sea or kosher salt
1 can diced tomatoes
2 teaspoons paprika
1 teaspoon turmeric
1 teaspoon basil
a dash of cinnamon
a dash of cayenne
1 bay leaf
4 cups vegetable broth or water
1 (14 ounce) can chick peas, drained and rinsed
2 cups kale leaves or spinach, torn into bite size pieces, stems removed
1. In a soup pot or large saucepan heat the olive oil and saute onion, garlic and celery over medium-low heat until tender. Add sweet potato and salt; saute 3-4 more minutes.
2. Add seasonings, tomato, broth, chickpeas and kale. Bring to a boil and simmer slowly for 25 minutes until sweet potatoes are tender. Taste halfway through and adjust seasonings if needed. Remove bay leaf before serving. Serve immediately with crusty bread.
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