Mastering the Art of French Cooking, Volume 2 (4 page)

T
HERE IS HARDLY A MAN ALIVE
who does not adore soup, particularly when it is homemade. Hot soup on a cold day, cold soup on a hot day, and the smell of soup simmering in the kitchen are fundamental, undoubtedly even atavistic, pleasures and solaces that give a special kind of satisfaction.

Although many of us think immediately of French onion soup when we put France and soups together in our minds, informal vegetable combinations are far more typical of that best of all cuisines—the cooking one finds in French homes and small family-style restaurants. Leek and Potato Soup, the
potage Parmentier
, and its numerous variations in Volume I, is the most typical of all, but there are many other vegetable combinations, including spinach, cucumbers, green peppers, celery, peas and pea pods, even eggplant, that are interesting, unusual, easy to make, and delicious to serve. In many of these soups the vegetables are simmered in water rather than meat or poultry stock because water does not disguise the natural taste of a subtle vegetable like asparagus, for example. We shall begin with a group of these, follow with an opulent series of bisques and other shellfish soups, and end with three hearty fish stews, each one a meal in itself.

A NOTE ON PURÉEING

Most soups need puréeing at some point in the cooking, and we think the best puréeing instrument is the imported vegetable mill that has interchangeable disks illustrated in
the appendix
. It is very efficient even
with somewhat tough items like asparagus stems; it also performs the important function of holding back stringy fibers that you would otherwise have to sieve out. To use the vegetable mill, set it over a large bowl and pour the soup from saucepan through the mill, to strain liquid from solids; pour the liquid back into the saucepan. Purée the solid ingredients, adding some of the liquid now and then to ease their passage; scrape any adhering purée off the bottom of the machine and into the bowl, then pour contents of bowl into saucepan. (Some electric mixers come with puréeing attachments that work very well.)

If you prefer an electric blender or processor, pour liquid off solids and into a bowl; ladle a cup or so of the solids and a cup of the liquid into the container. Purée by turning the machine on and off every second or two to avoid that too-smooth effect of baby food, since you will usually want the soup to have some texture. Then, if you are doing a fibrous vegetable like asparagus butts or pea pods, strain all of the soup through a sieve just fine enough to hold back the fibers. A little experimentation and always an analytical sampling of the soup yourself will tell you what you need to do.

SOUP THICKENERS—LIAISONS

Puréed soups need a binder or liaison, which thickens the soup liquid enough so that the puréed ingredients remain in suspension rather than sinking to the bottom of the bowl. The simplest liaison is a starch of some sort, like grated potatoes, puréed rice, farina, or tapioca. Other soups, usually called
veloutés
, are thickened with a flour-and-butter
roux
. A more elegant liaison is raw egg yolks, which, when beaten into and heated with the soup, thicken it lightly. All of these liaisons are more or less interchangeable, and which one to use depends on what effect and taste you want to achieve.

ENRICHMENTS

Butter, cream, and, again, egg yolks, alone or in combination, are stirred into many soups just before serving. They give a final smoothness and delicacy of taste. You can omit them if you wish, or use just a small amount.

Sour cream, if you prefer less butter fat, may often be substituted for heavy cream. But
crème fraîche
is the perfect soup enrichment: mix 2 parts heavy cream with 1 part sour cream, let thicken at room temperature (5–6 hours), and refrigerate (keeps 10 days).

LEFTOVERS, CANNED SOUPS, AND IMPROVISATIONS

When you are the cook in the family, plan your vegetables ahead so that you will have leftovers for soup; it will save you a great deal of time, and make you feel remarkably clever besides. Extra rice, pasta, and creamed or mashed
potatoes are always needed as thickeners, while onions and mushrooms can always be added for flavor. Leftover cauliflower, for instance, can be combined with watercress to make
a delicious soup
; spinach is the main ingredient for the
velouté Florentine
; white beans or eggplant go into the
soupe à la Victorine
. Save also any extra bits of sauce or meat juices; these often provide that extra depth of taste and personality you are searching for. For example, a few tablespoons of leftover sauce from a chicken fricassee would be delicious in the
Cream of Celery Soup
; you could certainly stir hollandaise instead of butter into the
potage aux champignons
; and some juices saved from the roast would enhance any onion soup. Finally, save any leftover soup; you can add it to a new one, or use it to give a homemade touch to canned soups.

GREEN SOUPS FROM GREEN VEGETABLES

POTAGE, CRÉME D’ASPERGES VERTES

[Cream of Fresh Green Asparagus Soup]

At the peak of the asparagus season, when you can bear not to eat it whole, here is a marvelous soup to catch all the essence of that beautiful vegetable.

For 7 to 8 cups, serving 4 to 6

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