Winter Vegetable Soup with Garlic Twist Bread Revisited

Jan here, talking about losing things.

NOT losing my marbles...although it feels a little bit like I am some days! But losing things that I thought I had. That I knew where they MUST be.

I'm not alone in this, am I?

We've been in our new house for just over a year, and last week I finally unpacked the last couple boxes. I knew what was in those boxes - one of them had my mom's old cookbooks and a few other things like that. And it was one of those "few other things" that I was looking for.

A bread cookbook that I got several years ago when I bought my Bosch mixer...but it wasn't there! That was, literally, the last place I looked. How can something just disappear?

*sigh*

Then I remembered that I had shared this recipe from that cookbook here at the Cafe many years ago - almost eight! - so I thought I'd share it again so we could all enjoy it!

This post also includes my own Winter Vegetable Soup, adapted from Nourishing Traditions, one of my go-to cookbooks. Here's the link, in case you're interested: Nourishing Traditions

A few days ago, I couldn't imagine making this soup. We were at the end of more than a week of 95°+ temperatures...but then the weather changed. SUDDENLY it's feeling awfully fallish!

Maybe not quite that fallish - it will take a few more weeks for the aspens to don their golden cloaks. But the deer and bison are gathering into their winter herds, the birds are returning from the far north on their way south, and I'm putting on a jacket when I take Sam for his morning walks.

Here’s my updated version of this delicious soup:

Winter Vegetable Soup

Ingredients:

¼ cup butter

2 medium sized turnips, chopped

3 parsnips, chopped

3 carrots, chopped
2 medium potatoes, chopped

1 onion, chopped

1 ½ quarts stock – chicken or vegetable

2 teaspoons salt

½ teaspoon pepper

2 cloves garlic

1 teaspoon dried thyme, or one sprig fresh thyme

¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper

½ cup heavy cream

2 cups kale

1 Tablespoon each, butter and olive oil

In a large soup pot (I use an 8-quart pot), melt the butter. Add your turnips, rutabaga, parsnips, carrots and onions.

Cook on medium-low heat for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.

After the 30 minutes, add your stock, garlic, thyme, salt, pepper and cayenne. Bring it all to a boil, and then reduce it to a simmer and cook for an additional 30 minutes or so until the vegetables are soft.

When your veggies are nice and soft, it’s time for the blender. (If you used fresh thyme, remove the sprig now.)

If you have one of those handy immersion blenders, this is the time to put it through its paces. Just stick it in the pot and blend until the soup is smooth.

If you don’t have one of those, put the soup – about a quart at a time – in a big blender and blend away. As each part gets done, put the blended soup in a large bowl and do the next batch until the whole pot of soup is nice and smooth. Then return it to the soup pot and put it back on the stove on medium heat.

While the soup is coming back up to temperature, tear the kale into 1-inch pieces.

Heat butter and olive oil in a skillet until melted. Add the kale and stir to coat. Add salt to taste. Cook at medium heat, stirring, about 3 minutes. Cover the skillet, reduce the heat to low, and let the kale steam for about 5-7 minutes, or until soft.

While the kale is cooking, add the cream to your soup and let it heat slowly. You don’t want to heat it too quickly or let the soup boil or the cream will break.

Serve the soup in bowls with a nice dollop of kale for a garnish.

Now, soup for dinner begs to have bread on the side, and the fresher the better.

For this yummy Garlic Twist Bread you need:

one loaf of bread dough

2 Tablespoons butter, softened

2 teaspoons minced garlic (about 3 cloves)

¼ cup shredded parmesan cheese

¼ cup shredded mozzarella cheese

1 teaspoon dried Basil

Since I make my bread six loaves at a time*, it’s easy to use one lump of dough for this recipe…

*2020 note - I no longer make six loaves at a time. Remember, we're empty nesters now!

OR, you can buy a loaf of frozen bread dough from the grocery store…

The main thing is to have bread dough ready to go.

On a baking pan (greased or lined with baking parchment), spread your dough out into a rectangle, about 9 inches by 12 inches.

On this rectangle, spread 2 Tablespoons softened butter. 

In a bowl, mix together 2 teaspoons minced garlic, ¼ cup parmesan cheese, ¼ cup shredded mozzarella cheese and 1 teaspoon dried basil.

Spread this mixture evenly over your dough.

Now, roll up your rectangle from the side, jelly-roll style.

Next, cut the roll up the middle.

If you don’t have a pair of kitchen shears, buy one. They’re way too handy not to own a pair.

Oh! When you’re cutting, stop just before you get to the end!

Now, carefully twist the two halves of the roll around each other. This isn’t as easy as it looks, but it works.

Warning: you’re going to make a mess. Just put any spilled filling back on top of your bread.

Brush the top of the loaf with an egg beaten with a tablespoon of water, then sprinkle with sesame seeds. (This step isn’t crucial to the recipe, but it sure makes the loaf look professional!)

Let it rise for about 20-30 minutes, and then bake at 350 degrees for 20-30 minutes, or until nicely browned on top.

Now, doesn’t that look like a great cold-weather meal?

Back to my lost cookbook - I've given up trying to find it. Maybe I loaned it to somebody, or maybe it slipped into the trash when I wasn't looking one time...

But I know where to get a new one! My friend Martha Greene wrote the cookbook, and sells it on her website: Built From Scratch Life The original cookbook that I lost has been revised and updated, but my favorite bread recipe (Best Bread) is still included! Here's that link: Make It Special

Have you ever "misplaced" a favorite cookbook? 

Jan Drexler has always been a "book girl" who still loves to spend time within the pages of her favorite books. She lives in the Black Hills of South Dakota with her dear husband of many years and their active, crazy dogs, Jack and Sam. You can learn more about Jan and her books on her website, www.JanDrexler.com.