Soup Night (7 page)
Authors: Maggie Stuckey
Pozole (pronounced puh-
soh
-lee and also spelled
posole
) is the name of both the dish and its main ingredient. Pozole is another name for hominy, a food item unfamiliar to many of us (unless we grew up in the South — hominy is what grits are made from). Hominy is corn kernels that have been treated with an alkali, such as lye, which keeps them from sprouting while stored and makes the kernels expand in size. It is sold in dried form in Latino markets, or canned in most large supermarkets. Take my advice, and used the canned version;
much
easier.
Pozole the dish is an incredibly rich and flavorful stew that is very popular in the American Southwest. Often churches there host a pozole night, where volunteers prepare huge cauldrons and sell take-home containers as a fund-raiser for the church.
Civano Soup Supper
Tucson, Arizona
In the southeastern corner of Tucson you will find an extraordinary neighborhood. It was conceived as a village, a place where old-fashioned neighborliness would thrive, facilitated by the design of the houses and the layout of the streets. Front porches abound, garages are hidden in back, sidewalk strolling is easy and safe, and outdoor benches placed here and there invite folks to sit a spell and visit. Today this “solar village” comprises about 650 homes, a school, a community center, a plant nursery, and other retail businesses. Best of all, that sense of community that the designers envisioned back in 1996 has taken root and grown with a vigor and richness that surpass all hopes.
People in Civano have wildly different backgrounds, but the Soup Suppers pull us together and put us on equal ground. Hostility disappears when people sit down next to each other to eat together.
“The dream of the men who built Civano,” longtime resident
Judyth Willis
says, “was to create what we all had as children. That sense that you know all your neighbors, and they know you, and everyone gets along.”
“It was designed from the get-go as a village,” newer resident
Elizabeth Newland
adds. “A place where you can sit on your front porch and watch the world go by. And if you want to, sit out there with a bottle of wine and two glasses, and when somebody nice walks by, invite them up. The thing is, we are all conscious of deliberately working to make it a neighborhood. You know that expression, ‘It takes a village to raise a child’? Well, I believe it takes a village to sustain people. We are herd animals; we’re not meant to live apart.”
Underscoring all of this neighborliness, and partly responsible for it, is their monthly Soup Supper. On the third Sunday of the month, from September to May, 50-some neighbors gather in the community center for soup and conversation. Often there is a program, with an invited speaker, but the real “agenda” is getting to know the neighbors.
And it works.
Ann Bates
, who has lived in Civano about five years, explains it this way. “We have a neighborhood that believes in a strong sense of community, and many friendships have emerged from that feeling. A very important part of it is the monthly Soup Suppers. These dinners are a wonderful place to learn more about our neighbors, our community, our desert, and our world.”
As a testament to how significant this one event can be in fostering community, consider this story from Judyth Willis. “Those of us who were here from the beginning bought into the idea that this was a place for people who
wanted
to be neighborly. Then about year 10, the population changed a little, and that sense of community began to fade. What to do? We hit on the idea of restarting the Soup Suppers, and announced it in our newsletter. Well, we had more than 60 people show up that first night! Lots of new families with kids and babies, sitting down with older folks, people meeting each other for the first time, and having a grand time. It was marvelous, so obviously we had to continue,” she says with a laugh.
In terms of logistics, having the community center is a great advantage, of course, with its full kitchen and ample table space. People sign up to contribute food on a potluck basis: five or six people offer to bring soup, enough to feed eight; then two others sign up for bread, two for salad, and two for dessert. A few volunteers come early to set up, a few others stay for cleanup. In between, there is great food, lots of chatting, laughing, exchanging of addresses and phone numbers — all the small, sweet details of life in a close-knit neighborhood.
Elizabeth Newland eloquently summarizes: “People who live in Civano have wildly different backgrounds, income levels, political opinions, all of that. But the Soup Suppers pull us together and put us on equal ground. Some of these differences are natural points of contention that in another setting could easily lead to arguments, but hostility disappears when people sit down next to each other to eat together. This is a hugely important part of my life.”
Recipe from Elizabeth Newland,
Civano Soup Supper
, Tucson, Arizona
Serves 4–6
Elizabeth says: Always a potluck favorite . . . tasty and no strange ingredient surprises!
- 5 bacon strips, diced
- 1 small leek, trimmed and thinly sliced (see
page 186
) - 2 teaspoons fresh thyme or winter savory, or
1
⁄
2
teaspoon dried - Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 2 large russet potatoes, peeled and cubed
- 2 cups milk
- 2 cups cream
- 2 cups corn kernels, fresh or frozen (preferably fresh)
- 1.
Brown the bacon in a large soup pot over medium heat until crisp, 5 to 7 minutes. Drain off all but 2 tablespoons of the bacon fat. - 2.
Add the leek, thyme, and salt and pepper to taste to the pot and sauté until the leek is softened, about 5 minutes. - 3.
Stir in the potatoes, milk, and cream, and bring to a gentle simmer over medium heat. Simmer (do not boil) until the potatoes are tender. - 4.
Add the corn and continue to simmer until the corn is tender, about 4 minutes for fresh or 7 minutes for frozen. - 5.
Serve hot.
Variations:
Elizabeth suggests, “This soup can be dressed up by adding mushrooms or shrimp.” When the corn is tender, stir
1
⁄
2
cup sautéed mushrooms or 1 cup cooked shrimp into the soup, bring up to heat, and serve.
Make ahead?
Prepare through step 3, but remove from the heat just before the potatoes are completely cooked. Refrigerate. Rewarm at serving time, simmering until the potatoes are totally tender.
For large crowds:
This recipe is easily doubled or tripled. To economize, use chopped parsley or chives as garnish in place of the shrimp.
Recipe from Elizabeth Newland,
Civano Soup Supper
, Tucson, Arizona
Serves 4–6
Elizabeth says: I created this recipe in desperation. I can’t eat any kind of fresh or canned peppers, and I spend four months of the year in the Southwest, where heated discussions of proper chili recipes can lead to blows. This in no way meets a cowboy’s standards for a proper chili, but I’ve never had any complaints, and it always disappears on potluck nights. Best of all, I can eat it!
- 3 bacon strips, diced
- 1 small onion, chopped
- 1 garlic clove (or more to taste), minced
- 1
1
⁄
2
pounds lean ground beef - 1
⁄
2
–2 teaspoons chili powder - 1
1
⁄
2
teaspoons ground cumin - 1
1
⁄
2
teaspoons smoked Spanish paprika - 1
⁄
2
teaspoon cayenne pepper - 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 (14.5-ounce) can fire-roasted crushed tomatoes
- 1 (8-ounce) can tomato sauce
- 1 cup Pilsner beer
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 (14.5-ounce) can pinto beans, drained; or 2 cups cooked pinto beans (see
page 27
)
- Grated cheese
- Sour cream
- Sliced scallions
- Nacho chips
- 1.
Brown the bacon in a large soup pot over medium heat until crisp, 5 to 7 minutes. Drain off some of the fat, if you like, keeping at least 1 tablespoon in the pot. - 2.
Add the onion and sauté until softened, 5 to 7 minutes. Add the garlic and sauté for 1 minute longer. Add the ground beef, stirring to break up the meat, and sauté until browned. - 3.
Add chili powder to taste, cumin, paprika, and cayenne, and season with salt to taste. Cook for 1 minute, and then add the crushed tomatoes, tomato sauce, beer, and Worcestershire. Simmer for 30 minutes. - 4.
Add the beans and heat through. Serve hot with any or all of the garnishes.
Make ahead?
Liz says this is actually
better
if made a day ahead, refrigerated, and gently reheated.
For large crowds:
You can expand this indefinitely, but for economy you might wish to increase the proportion of beans and decrease relative amounts of ground beef.
Recipe from
Maureen Ruddy
, Fairfax, Virginia
Serves 6–8
Maureen says: Serve with a crusty loaf of bread and enjoy!
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 2 leeks, trimmed and chopped (see
page 186
) - 1
⁄
2
sweet onion, such as Vidalia, chopped - 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 4 cups vegetable broth
- 3 red potatoes, cubed
- 2
⁄
3
cup whole milk - 1 pound salmon fillet, skinned and cut into bite-size chunks
- Chopped fresh dill
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1.
Melt the butter in a large soup pot over medium heat. Add the leeks and onion and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in the flour and cook for 2 minutes to make a light roux. - 2.
Add the vegetable broth and potatoes. Bring to a boil and cook until the potatoes are fork-tender, about 10 minutes. - 3.
Add the milk and return to a gentle simmer. Add the salmon and simmer until the fish is cooked through, 2 to 3 minutes. - 4.
Stir in dill to taste. Season with salt and pepper to taste and serve hot.
Make ahead?
Prepare the chowder base, but do not add the salmon. Refrigerate, reheat, and stir in the salmon.
For large crowds:
To economize while maintaining the basic idea of this soup, add other, less expensive types of fresh fish to the salmon.
Barbara Rice
Chantilly, Virginia
I first met
Barbara Rice
through a blog post she titled “The Loveliness of Soup Night.” (With her kind permission, I’m sharing some of it with you.)
Her goal: use a casual meal as a way to get the neighbors together. “It’s so easy to lose track of everyone — we’re all busy and not everyone has kids of bonding age.”
Barbara’s first Soup Night was October 2006. “I had lived in the neighborhood for 13 years,” she says, “but there were some people we didn’t know well, some we hardly ever saw. For that first night, I wrote up invitations and my kids and I hand-delivered them to all the neighbors, explaining the idea.” (Barbara and her husband have six children, ranging from 6 to 20.) “That invitation covered three Soup Nights, so I also sent reminders a few days before each one.
“That first night, I wasn’t sure what to expect. People had been very receptive when I gave them invitations, but still I had a moment of anxiety. Turns out, I need not have worried. We had a great time, and now it’s a well-established neighborhood tradition. People send their kids down even if they themselves can’t come! We do it once a month during soup season (usually October to April), and we have 20 or so people. The most we ever had was 40 — that was fun!”
Two of Barbara’s neighbors tell us what it’s like.
Maureen Ruddy
has lived in the neighborhood 18 years. Her family and the Rices are original owners in the development. Barbara’s Soup Night, Maureen says, is a “delightful mix of childhood chaos and adult calm. The kids range from preschool to college age, and they create this happy chaos. The kitchen, in contrast, is very orderly and calm. I don’t know how she manages it.
“But even though Barbara’s soups are always fantastic, it’s really not about the food. She has created this lovely way for us all to connect in a community that doesn’t have a natural constituency. There are many people in the neighborhood I don’t know well. Or didn’t. I think that’s pretty common; in the modern world, it’s typical not to know your neighbors. But Soup Night is a wonderful way to bring together diverse people who would not normally hang out together.
“The huge gift from Barbara is that nothing is expected in return. People don’t have to do anything except come and spend time with neighbors. To give something freely with no expectations, this is so rare, and quite extraordinary.”
Jan Bayer
and her family have been attending Soup Nights since the beginning. When Barbara first knocked on her door with the invitation, she thought, “Oh, what a nice idea! We keep going,” she adds, “because it’s such a wonderful avenue to catch up with everyone in a friendly way.”
Jan’s two daughters, ages 10 and 13, especially love Soup Night. Jan believes the kids get as much out of the experience as the adults, and her oldest daughter, Jean, confirms it. “It’s fun! You get to meet some other kids you don’t know well. There’s a kids’ table, and the soup is really good. Then after supper we all go down to the basement and tell scary stories. Or play the piano and dance. Or dress up the littler kids in costumes.” Can’t you just see it?
“I’m so grateful to Barbara for doing this,” Jan concludes. “It’s a very nice way to get back to basics.”
In
chapter 6
, “Start Your Own Soup Night,” you will find some of Barbara’s tips, learned over the years. Thanks, Barbara, for sharing.
