Recently I wrote about making soup each weekend for our friend Bob who is in his last days on this earth. It is hard to really put words to the humble honor I feel each Saturday as I plan and prepare soup to share with him the next day. It has become a bit of a rhythm, an anchor to my weekends and will forever remain in my heart as an act of remembrance for him each spring. I have found inspiration in Janet Reich Elsbach's book Extra Helping and thought it might be nice to share with you all the various recipes I have made for him thus far. Each week I add a topping or two for the soups like shredded parmesan cheese or some roasted veg for the side along with some homemade biscuits or bread. I try to tuck in a jar of something as well like canned peaches from last summer or some jam to top the biscuits with. Here is my currant favorite biscuit recipe. The opportunity each week to think about what I would like to share with Bob, to check in on him and see how he is faring between our meetings at mass and the act of making something of sustainable for someone has been central for me throughout this spring and lenten season. Each week in mass, I catch myself watching Bob as he sits in the front pew seemingly fully captivated by the incredible music of the gospel choir. Many of those songs had already held special meaning for me but are taking on a whole new life as I see him singing along.
March 3, 2019 ~ Sausage and Veg Soup
This was definitely a wing it, kitchen sink type soup. I started with sautéing onions and adding veggies like carrots, celery, and yam. I let this all soften a bit and added some turkey sausage and chicken broth. I think I even tossed in some white beans just to add a bit of heft for this man that is getting leaner by the day and needs every ounce of added calorie for strength. This is a typical soup we eat all winter long around here. After learning that the "chunky" nature of this soup might be a bit difficult for Bob to get down (throat cancer you are a bitch) you will see I have moved onto softer and puree style soups for him henceforth.
March 10, 2019 ~ New England Bob's Barnacle Bisque
See the last post for full details on this soup, but suffice it to say you can see I need to enlist Bob to create names for all of my made up soups. I love the flair he named this one with.
March 17, 2019 ~ Irish Carrot and Potato Puree
Today was St Patrick's Day so I went with the theme and shared with Bob how when my girls were very young we were treated with a trip to Ireland with my family. As I was on one of my very first ever international trips AND I was traveling with a 6 year old and 1 1/2 year old, I remember very little of the vacation other than how in love I was with the incredible vegetable puree soups I feasted on most days. I was a strict vegetarian back in those days so no Guinness Stew for me. Sharing a bit of the back story on what I included or why with Bob has become part of my routine.
March 24, 2019 ~ Chicken Congee
I landed on this choice for two reasons; Bob has started passing items on to me when I deliver the soup on to him each Sunday, notably the book The Art of Eating my MFK Fisher, some beautiful prayer cards, a few pieces of his china dishes and some pantry items like olive oil, rice, couscous and honey. I had also recently landed on the book Extra Helping and when I spotted the Congee recipe I knew I would use the rice he passed on to make chicken and mushroom congee for him.
March 31, 2019 ~ Red Lentil and Veg
This soup is another standard in our rotation at home, which though simple, felt so right to share. I like the idea of sharing a meal with him that we eat on a very regular basis, I am not a fancy cook. This soup is very similar to the sausage and veg soup but using red lentils rather than meat and adding a jar of canned tomatoes.
April 7, 2019 ~ Butternut Squash Soup
Bob has commented online recently how he is really battling nausea lately and so I am hoping a smooth soft butternut squash puree will fit the bill this week. This recipe is another standard of ours that comes from the Seattle Junior League cookbook, Simply Classic. This soup, I swear will turn even the biggest squash hater around into a lover.
Sadly, today when delivering a fresh batch of soup, applesauce, fresh eggs and bread to Bob he informed me this would be the last week for our little exchange. He is barely able to take in food at this point due to extreme pain and keeping anything down with the strong nausea is increasingly rare. He has lost so much weight, he's trying to hold onto his currant 130 pounds to make it to his Celebration of Life gathering next month. If you are the prayerful kind, send one his way please... for peace of heart and comfort of body. Thank you.
Sunday, April 7, 2019
Monday, March 11, 2019
New England Bob's Barnacle Bisque
What do you do when someone you know is dying?
There really will be a kitchen story here, stick with me please...
Some 25 years ago when my husband and I began going to the church I had grown up in, we met Bob, Uncle Bob as many referred to him. Bob is one of those people that just draws the world to him. He is impossibly tall, pastoral is ways that I continue to stand in awe of (we Catholics are still figuring out that lay people can be incredible ministers without the trappings of titles), and always ready with a smile and a wry observation to share. Bob, was a leader in our church in spite of himself and in ways that one could not likely find in any other Catholic setting. Early on, he played a very key role in one of the most devastating times a young couple could ever encounter. Bob offered himself to us in profound ways that I am still unpacking and will forever look back on with deep gratitude and appreciation. Skip ahead a few years and Bob was no longer a regular presence in our community, I don't even really know how or why. It could have been a slow departure, a rift with leadership, or something in his own life pulling in a new direction. Well, slide to present day and Bob is back... for a while at least. Some time ago a cancer diagnosis came; illness, treatments, symptoms, and the rollercoaster of feeling better and worse. In this time Bob resurfaced at our church and brought with him some familiar faces of days past, he always did travel with an entourage. Now, months in, Bob has made the choice to forgo treatments and live out his remaining days on his own terms.
So what do you do when someone you know is dying? I mean this is really happening, there are no positive thoughts, prayers or well-wishes that are going to chance this reality. Bob is about to die. I have not been in this place, of sitting in the presence of someone that is facing the imminent return to their maker since that time many years ago when Bob sat with us. Full circle moment here. So I reached out and told him how much he has meant to my husband and myself and offered the only thing I could think of... Can I bring you a soup supper each week? Cooking for people is my go to way of sharing a bit of kindness and love with them. So now we are a few weeks in, we have a lovely weekly dance of trading the empty half gallon jar for one filled with a freshly made soup and some biscuits or corn bread for dipping. Bob refers to this as my lenten journey.
In trying to think about soups that will go down easy for one dealing with throat cancer, as well as something sustaining to help keep a bit of meat on his increasingly lean body, I went with a chowder with corn and smoked salmon this last week. I consulted a few recipes for some framework but as usual I kinda winged it and crossed my fingers. Each week as I am making soup for Bob, I feel such a sense of humble honor to be able to do something, anything that might be of help or support to him. I am thankful for the opportunity to reconnect with this man who has been a pillar of our community, who even in these final days is finding ways to minister to and lift up those around him. Bob sent me a message last night after sampling the week's soup supper offering and told me that I had not made a chowder but in fact a New England Bisque (I honestly have no idea what the difference is, but will dig into that research eventually), and Bob named my creation -- New England Bob's Barnacle Bisque. Typically I am really a throw it together and call it good kinda cook, but this time I am going to create a real recipe for this dish and add it to our annual lenten rotation. As a reminder of the man who gave it a name, the man who will forever dwell in our hearts as a welcomer, a challenger, and a giver.
New England Bob's Barnacle Bisque
Ingredients
2 tbsp butter
1 small yellow onion, diced
2 large carrots, diced
3 yellow potatoes, cubed
2 cups sweet corn kernels (fresh or frozen)
1 1/2 cups smoked salmon, shredded
1 tsp dried thyme
1 tsp smoked paprika
1 - 2 tsp salt (to taste)
1 tsp fresh ground back pepper
2 cloves garlic chopped fine
1/4 cup flour
6 cups water
1 cup half and half
Process
Sauté onion in butter until just beginning to go translucent then add the carrots. Continue to sauté these until carrots begin to soften then add the potatoes. Once potatoes begin to cook through add the garlic, corn, thyme, paprika, salt and pepper. Once this all gets going add the flour, and mix. If it feels too dry add a small pat of more butter. You want to cook the flour and spices with the veggies for a few minutes then add the water. Turn your burner to a med low now and cook until the potatoes and carrots are soft, about 15 - 20 minutes. Now you should have a very chowder looking situation going on, add the smoked salmon and the half and half and stir through and let the heat permeate the bisque. I made this the day before gifting a half gallon and we were left with enough for 3 for dinner. Serve with corn bread or buttermilk biscuits. Enjoy and think of Bob!
There really will be a kitchen story here, stick with me please...
Some 25 years ago when my husband and I began going to the church I had grown up in, we met Bob, Uncle Bob as many referred to him. Bob is one of those people that just draws the world to him. He is impossibly tall, pastoral is ways that I continue to stand in awe of (we Catholics are still figuring out that lay people can be incredible ministers without the trappings of titles), and always ready with a smile and a wry observation to share. Bob, was a leader in our church in spite of himself and in ways that one could not likely find in any other Catholic setting. Early on, he played a very key role in one of the most devastating times a young couple could ever encounter. Bob offered himself to us in profound ways that I am still unpacking and will forever look back on with deep gratitude and appreciation. Skip ahead a few years and Bob was no longer a regular presence in our community, I don't even really know how or why. It could have been a slow departure, a rift with leadership, or something in his own life pulling in a new direction. Well, slide to present day and Bob is back... for a while at least. Some time ago a cancer diagnosis came; illness, treatments, symptoms, and the rollercoaster of feeling better and worse. In this time Bob resurfaced at our church and brought with him some familiar faces of days past, he always did travel with an entourage. Now, months in, Bob has made the choice to forgo treatments and live out his remaining days on his own terms.
So what do you do when someone you know is dying? I mean this is really happening, there are no positive thoughts, prayers or well-wishes that are going to chance this reality. Bob is about to die. I have not been in this place, of sitting in the presence of someone that is facing the imminent return to their maker since that time many years ago when Bob sat with us. Full circle moment here. So I reached out and told him how much he has meant to my husband and myself and offered the only thing I could think of... Can I bring you a soup supper each week? Cooking for people is my go to way of sharing a bit of kindness and love with them. So now we are a few weeks in, we have a lovely weekly dance of trading the empty half gallon jar for one filled with a freshly made soup and some biscuits or corn bread for dipping. Bob refers to this as my lenten journey.
In trying to think about soups that will go down easy for one dealing with throat cancer, as well as something sustaining to help keep a bit of meat on his increasingly lean body, I went with a chowder with corn and smoked salmon this last week. I consulted a few recipes for some framework but as usual I kinda winged it and crossed my fingers. Each week as I am making soup for Bob, I feel such a sense of humble honor to be able to do something, anything that might be of help or support to him. I am thankful for the opportunity to reconnect with this man who has been a pillar of our community, who even in these final days is finding ways to minister to and lift up those around him. Bob sent me a message last night after sampling the week's soup supper offering and told me that I had not made a chowder but in fact a New England Bisque (I honestly have no idea what the difference is, but will dig into that research eventually), and Bob named my creation -- New England Bob's Barnacle Bisque. Typically I am really a throw it together and call it good kinda cook, but this time I am going to create a real recipe for this dish and add it to our annual lenten rotation. As a reminder of the man who gave it a name, the man who will forever dwell in our hearts as a welcomer, a challenger, and a giver.
New England Bob's Barnacle Bisque
Ingredients
2 tbsp butter
1 small yellow onion, diced
2 large carrots, diced
3 yellow potatoes, cubed
2 cups sweet corn kernels (fresh or frozen)
1 1/2 cups smoked salmon, shredded
1 tsp dried thyme
1 tsp smoked paprika
1 - 2 tsp salt (to taste)
1 tsp fresh ground back pepper
2 cloves garlic chopped fine
1/4 cup flour
6 cups water
1 cup half and half
Process
Sauté onion in butter until just beginning to go translucent then add the carrots. Continue to sauté these until carrots begin to soften then add the potatoes. Once potatoes begin to cook through add the garlic, corn, thyme, paprika, salt and pepper. Once this all gets going add the flour, and mix. If it feels too dry add a small pat of more butter. You want to cook the flour and spices with the veggies for a few minutes then add the water. Turn your burner to a med low now and cook until the potatoes and carrots are soft, about 15 - 20 minutes. Now you should have a very chowder looking situation going on, add the smoked salmon and the half and half and stir through and let the heat permeate the bisque. I made this the day before gifting a half gallon and we were left with enough for 3 for dinner. Serve with corn bread or buttermilk biscuits. Enjoy and think of Bob!
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