Deep South Minestrone
The Ur-recipe for this soup was found in the Tallahassee Democrat when I was in my twenties. I was a vegetarian and trying to figure out how to cook. If only I hadn’t been so poor and could have gone to Italy. However, I was poor, so Italy was not an option. I’ve been...
Yellow Pepper Soup
I first tasted this soup at Cibreo, the Florentine restaurant famous for not serving pasta. Florida State has a study abroad program in Florence, and the first time we spent a semester there was the fall of 1992. I fell in love with Cibreo, which then consisted of two...
Chicken Soup
For years I made a quick chicken soup in tandem with my Deep South Minestrone at the beginning of every semester to fight the onslaught of mid-term germs that goes with teaching at a party school. Around mid-term my students come dragging in sniffing and coughing. It...
Miss Josie’s Gumbo
Makes 10 generous servings My husband grew up in Louisiana and this is his mother’s recipe for gumbo with few adaptations. Miss Josie Dyson grew up on a farm in Tangipahoa Parrish. I was lucky enough to visit the old place one day when David and I were in Baton Rouge...
Ligurian Fish Stew
(six servings) This is an adaptation of a Mario Batali recipe. You are going to have to vary the fish according to what you find at the market. Just buy fresh, firm fish that is not oily. This is a great dish to serve at a dinner party. This soup is so easy, but it...