A few weeks back I had a gift card to the bookstore burning a hole in my pocket. Gift card plus bookstore equals cookbooks, and with so many out there that I want, it’s hard to just let that card lie! Zander and I headed to the store, and that was when I picked up the latest Bittman book, but then on the way to the checkout, we passed the bargain book section. Sometimes I get a book from there that is a dud, and sometimes the books there are good, but there was no passing up the book that claimed 400 soup recipes buried within. So the Ultimate Soup Bible came home with me. Flipping through it, I was a little disappointed. A lot of the soups are based on seafood, which we seldom eat. But there were a few that completely intrigued me, including the one I made yesterday called Yellow Broth.
At first the recipe seemed straightforward and basic- vegetables and broth combined and turned into soup. Except that this soup called for the addition of something that I would have never thought of in a soup- oatmeal. Oatmeal is used as both a thickener and a flavoring agent, and I just couldn’t get this idea out of my head. Oatmeal…in a soup… I love oatmeal. Plain for breakfast, baked up in cookies and bread, or toasted for granola, oatmeal is one of our favorite foods. I had to try this soup. There was no way around it, and yesterday Zander actually asked for soup and bread for supper, so Yellow Broth it was.
This soup hails from Ireland, and I could see it as I made it. I chopped up humble aromatic vegetables and added them to the pot to soften with some oil and butter. After a few minutes, flour was added and cooked a bit, and then several cups of stock. I just imagined a desperate Irish housewife looking into the same pot I did, and trying to decide how to stretch this barely-sustaining soup to feed a family- and feed them without them feeling hungry a few hours later. As the vegetables and stock soften further and meld into one entity, the idea comes to her, and she reaches for the bag of oatmeal in the cupboard, as well as the last two potatoes. Saying a little prayer, she throws in a few handfuls of oatmeal, making sure there is still enough remaining in the bag for breakfast the next morning. A little seasoning is added, and then the soup is left to do its magic.
And magic it was. The oatmeal added a very delicate flavor along with its thickening power. But you’d never know it was oatmeal unless someone told you. Andy was very surprised to learn that he had just polished off a bowl of soup with oatmeal in it. I really enjoyed it- as did the kids. It was the perfect soup to serve on a cold winters night with plenty of homemade bread for dunking in the soup. It was warming, comforting, delicious, and by golly, it had that “stick with you” property that a hearty bowl of oatmeal has. While it wasn’t a spectacular soup, it was good enough to consider a repeater. Next time though, I think a handful of chopped greens would balance the sweetness of the soup perfectly. The original recipe did call for spinach, but I missed that on the shopping list, so I didn’t have any to add. I actually think a more robust green would be ideal here- mustard greens being at the top of my list. I just realized I forgot the parsley when serving. While it was fine without- the flavor added would have been perfect. Don’t forget the parsley.
For a vegetarian/vegan version, just eliminate the butter called for at the beginning, and use vegetable broth instead of the chicken broth. I think it would be equally delicious.
Yellow Broth
A classic Irish soup made with Oatmeal
1 teaspoon olive oil
1 teaspoon butter
1 onion, finely chopped
1 leek, cleaned and thinly sliced
2 carrots, finely chopped
2 celery stalks, finely chopped
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
6 cups chicken stock or broth
1/2 cup old-fashioned oatmeal
2 potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced
freshly ground black pepper
seasoning salt to taste
parsley for garnish
Combine the olive oil and butter in a dutch oven or other soup pot. Add the onion, leek, celery and carrots. Cook for about 5 minutes over medium heat. Add the flour, and cook for 1 minute. Add the chicken broth and stir to combine well. Bring to a boil, cover, and reduce heat to a simmer. Simmer for 30 minutes.
Add the potato and oatmeal to the pot, stir briskly. Cover, and continue simmering for another 20 minutes. Add pepper and seasoning salt to taste. Garnish with parsley right before serving.
Serves 4.