sausage, shallot, kale, carrot & tomato soup
hi friends, lovers + people probably related to me —
95 — i’ve been thinking a lot lately about being scared, which is honestly not ideal, because the list of things i’m scared of is infinite. so what i’ve been doing is writing them down as a to do list of sorts — giving them less power, making them more tangible. making them something that i could reasonably cross off if i really want to. for example watching a scary movie is definitely not one of them — bc i’ve been there & done that (dear 15, 17, 18 & 26 year old me why did you try to be the cool girl?) . so absolutely the eff not. i will remain scared of them, which is okay — we should all have a healthy fear of something, like getting murdered.
instead in that handy little notes app i wrote down things i’m scared of that i actually want to do something about, fears i want to conquer. i bought a mandolin & let me tell you my radishes are now so freaking thin.
soup sunday v. 2
if you hadn’t noticed it’s like fully winter right now. there’s snow. it’s p. cold. it’s v. grey. so you should make soup to have for dinner tonight & to stockpile in your freezer. bc honestly nothing is nicer than coming home from a long day at the office & having some cozy soup that’s already made. hits just as good when you warm it up after going for a chilly lunchtime run on those wfh days. this soup is the sister to this one. both are brothy, laden with veggies, crispy sausage, tiny pastas, lemon kisses, crispy crunchies & snowstorms of parm
ingredients
hot italian sausage
shallots
garlic
tomato paste
large can of san marzano tomatoes
kale(s) — dinosaur
leftover white wine
salt & pepper
chicken bouillon
water
olive oil
red pep flakes
teeny pasta — i used these, they are so cute + small, and i love them
parm
panko
lemons
steps
1st in a dutch oven or other large heavy bottom pot, add a generous splash of olive oil, 2 thinly sliced shallots, 5 cloves of grated garlic, and hot italian sausage with some salt, pepper + red pepper flakes. let cook together so that the flavor really melds + the the sausage is so nice and crispy and starting to stick to the bottom of the pot. deglaze the pot with like a cup or so of leftover white wine. once the wine has evaporated add a lil tomato paste & the tomatoes (crushing them with your hands) + a couple tablespoons of chicken bouillon + some water. give it a stir and let hangout for awhile. then add the carrots.
2nd make crispy crunchies — toast panko breadcrumbs in a skillet with olive oil, garlic, salt + pepper — when almost toasted add parmesan and stir to make little clusters — take off the heat and sprinkle with flaky salt
3rd now that the soup has been hanging out for a lil while add in all the kale which you’ve cut into such pretty ribbons, some more salt + pep. once the kale has wilted down add the teeny pasta. when the pasta is cooked through add the juice of half a lemon. taste the soup & add red pep, regular pep, salt as needed.
4th ladle into nice deep bowls, add crispy crunchies, some parm + more lemon. eat and feel content. ladle all the rest into those quart containers for the fridge, the freezer, friends, 4ever.
particularly good things i consumed recently
roast chicken sunday — which is better than any other sunday. recipe coming soon to a newsletter near you, thanks janel & kate for taste-testing
the rabbit hutch — v. well written, vivid, a terrible sense of dread that builds, poetic & beautiful in a shit city of the midwest
the maybe baby chicago cohort discord — if you know, you know — can’t wait to meet everyone!
le bouchon w/ kiera — kir royales, foie and pancakes, steak frites & a bottle of red — too good
milwaukee for the weekend — but also for always: shaken espresso, amtrak, reading on trains, empanadas, skinny crispy fries, pull tabs, gin & tonics, skeeball, pizza as an appetizer, falling asleep on the couch, chicken biscuits, walks w/ friar & bren. kept telling people i was going on vacation, getting out of town
some perfect citrus — tangerines with their lil leaves still on, a peak winter moment
liking every outfit i wore to the office this week (monday: baggy plaid flannel trousers, oversized white turtle that makes me look like a snowball, bostons. tuesday: white canvas barrel like pants, slime green cashmere turtle, platform docs, new blue coat — felt like a cool girl & also an artist. thursday: loooong v-neck sweater dress that looks like theory, patent leather boots, felt like a put together city girl) 1
CHAOS — a long well researched book about obsession, a not entirely satisfying but an interesting commentary on the 60s & the case itself
avec w/ janel for restaurant week — 10/10 no notes & i ran into 2 people i know so now i know what being famous feels like. if you have the secret to that sweet potato dish their doing plz let me know
currently consuming
a relatively quiet weekend spent cooking, doing errands & watching poker face (which is v. freaking good — love a mystery). also does someone want to buy me this hat? plz & thank you
as always,
mk
both pants were from roucha so i should just buy more pants from there honestly