In the coldest days of winter, I put soup on repeat. When the icy wind howls, steaming broths and molten purées are the only things I want for dinner. I simmer them up night after night, working my way through my familiar repertoire of red lentil, white bean, potato-leek and mushroom spinach.
After a while though, there’s a need to break out — not away from my soup pot, but from the sameness of things. So, I created three new recipes inspired by foods that did not start out in liquid form. I chose favorite dishes with big, powerful flavors I knew I could translate from solids into sippable elixirs that warm a body through.
I based the first on pasta with pesto, a bright, herby Italian crowd-pleaser with warm weather associations: Even just thinking about pesto makes the sky outside seem a little more blue. To add protein and heft, I stirred in some ground turkey, and a handful of baby spinach for a colorful pop. If you happen to have homemade pesto squirreled away in the freezer, this is the perfect time to use it. But store-bought pesto works just as well, its garlic and basil pungency infusing the broth like a welcome summer breeze.
Similarly summery, three bean salads are usually the stuff of picnics and potlucks. But that same combination of canned beans and fresh green beans turn soft and silky when simmered into soup, which I season with tomato paste, ground coriander and a sprinkling of Parmesan. And just like in my favorite three bean salad recipe, I also add some lightly pickled red onions, scattering them on just before serving for acidity and crunch.
And lastly, I looked to the creamy, garlicky comfort of hummus as a starting point, knowing that I could blend chickpeas, cumin and tahini into a nutty tasting purée that was thick and satisfying. For a bit of texture, I top the soup with crunchy fried chickpeas and garlic slivers, which are salty-sweet and impossible to stop eating once you start.
Warming to eat and simple to cook, these three soups have classic, compelling flavors that transcend their forms. They’re recipes you’ll be happy to make all winter long.
Pasta Pesto Soup With Turkey and Spinach
An orzo spinach soup with ground turkey. Hummus, bean salad and pasta pesto are the inspiration for these Melissa Clark recipes, each ready to warm you right up. Food Stylist: Rebecca Jurkevich. (Linda Xiao/The New York Times)
Like its viral cousin, lasagna soup, pasta pesto soup is based on a crowd-pleasing Italian classic. Use either homemade or store-bought pesto to imbue the broth with the pungent flavors of garlic and basil. Ground turkey adds a satisfying meatiness, while baby spinach turns this into a one-pot meal. And although the ricotta is optional, a dollop or two stirred into the bowl adds a lovely creaminess that rounds everything out.
By Melissa Clark
Yield: 4 servings
Total time: 35 minutes
INGREDIENTS
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 onion, chopped
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper, more to taste
1/2 teaspoon fine sea or table salt, more to taste
1/2 pound ground turkey
1/2 cup pesto, store-bought or homemade, more for serving
1 quart vegetable or chicken broth
1 cup orzo or macaroni
5 ounces baby spinach
1 lemon, halved
Whole-milk ricotta, for serving (optional)
DIRECTIONS
1. Heat a large pot over medium-high for a minute or so to warm it up. Add the oil and heat until it thins out, about 30 seconds. Add onion, red pepper and a pinch of salt, and cook until very soft and brown at the edges, 7 to 10 minutes.
2. Add the turkey and pesto, and cook, breaking up the turkey with your spoon, until the meat is browned in spots, 4 to 7 minutes.
3. Add broth and bring to a simmer. Simmer until the soup is nice and flavorful, adding more salt and red pepper, if needed, 15 to 20 minutes. Add the pasta during the last 10 to 12 minutes (check the package instructions for the pasta timing).
4. Add the spinach to the pot and simmer until soft, 1 to 2 minutes. Squeeze some lemon juice into the pot, adding as much as you like to make the soup lively and bright. If using the ricotta, add dollops to the pot but don’t stir it in — just let it sit for a minute or two to heat up.
5. Serve the soup with more pesto drizzled on top.
Three Bean Soup
A three bean soup. Hummus, bean salad and pasta pesto are the inspiration for these Melissa Clark recipes, each ready to warm you right up. Food Stylist: Rebecca Jurkevich. (Linda Xiao/The New York Times)
Three bean salads are usually the stuff of picnics and potlucks. But that same combination of canned beans and fresh green beans turns soft and silky when simmered into broth, rounded out with tomato paste for body and sweetness, ground coriander for a warm note and a sprinkling of Parmesan for depth. And just as in a classic three bean salad, a garnish of lightly pickled red onions adds acidity and crunch.
By Melissa Clark
Yield: 4 servings
Total time: 40 minutes
INGREDIENTS
1 large red onion, thinly sliced
3 tablespoons fresh lime juice
1 teaspoon fine sea or table salt, more as needed
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, more for serving
2 celery stalks, sliced
1 carrot, sliced
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, more for serving
1 quart vegetable or chicken broth
1 (15-ounce) can white beans, rinsed
1 (15-ounce) can kidney beans or chickpeas, rinsed
8 ounces green beans, cut into 1-inch pieces (about 1 3/4 cups)
Grated Parmesan, celery leaves and chopped parsley, for serving
DIRECTIONS
1. In a small bowl, combine 1/3 cup of the onion slices with the lime juice and a pinch of salt and let sit, tossing occasionally, while the soup simmers.
2. Heat a large pot over medium-high for a minute or so to warm it up. Add the oil and heat until it thins out, about 30 seconds. Add remaining onion slices, celery, carrot and a pinch of salt, and cook until the vegetables are very soft and brown at the edges, 7 to 10 minutes.
3. Add the garlic, tomato paste, coriander and pepper, and cook until the paste darkens and the garlic is fragrant, about 1 minute.
4. Add broth, white beans and kidney beans, and bring to a simmer. Let simmer until the soup is nice and flavorful, adding more salt if needed, 15 to 20 minutes. If you like a thicker broth, you can smash some of the beans with the back of the spoon to release their starch. Or leave the beans whole for a brothier soup.
5. Add the green beans to the pot and simmer until tender, 4 to 8 minutes.
6. Top each bowl with some of the pickled onions and a little of the lime juice if you like, plus a generous shower of Parmesan, more pepper, celery leaves, parsley and a drizzle of olive oil.
Hummus Soup With Crispy Chickpeas
This rich soup was inspired by the creamy, garlicky comfort of hummus, blending chickpeas, cumin and tahini into an easy, nutty-tasting soup that’s thick and satisfying. It’s a natural fit, given that hummus has long found its way into soup (the Turkish Cypriot humus çorbası comes to mind). Here, a topping of crisp fried chickpeas and garlic slivers is salty-sweet and impossible to stop eating. Sprinkle it on the soup just before serving to preserve the delightful crunch.
By Melissa Clark
Yield: 4 to 6 servings
Total time: 40 minutes
INGREDIENTS
4 (15-ounce) cans chickpeas, rinsed
4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, more for serving
1 teaspoon fine sea or table salt, more as needed
4 garlic cloves, 2 thinly sliced, 2 finely grated or minced
1 teaspoon whole cumin seeds
Large pinch of crushed red pepper, more as needed
1 large onion, chopped
1 teaspoon ground cumin, more to taste
3 to 4 cups vegetable or chicken broth
1/3 cup tahini, more for serving
1/2 cup cilantro or dill
1 lemon, halved
Pita chips and sweet or smoked paprika, for serving (optional)
DIRECTIONS
1. Place a can’s worth of chickpeas on a clean kitchen towel or a double layer of paper towels, and pat them dry.
2. In a large soup pot, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium-high. Add the chickpeas and 1/2 teaspoon salt, and cook, stirring occasionally, until crisped, 6 to 10 minutes.
3. Add another tablespoon of oil, sliced garlic, cumin seeds and crushed red pepper to the pot (save the grated garlic for later). Cook until the garlic is golden brown at the edges, 2 to 3 minutes. Use a slotted spoon to transfer the chickpeas and garlic to a plate. While the crispy chickpeas are still hot, sprinkle them with more salt to taste.
4. Add the remaining 2 tablespoons oil to the pot and heat until it thins out, about 30 seconds. Add onion, ground cumin and a pinch of salt, and cook until very soft and brown at the edges, 5 to 7 minutes.
5. Add 3 cups broth, remaining chickpeas and 1/2 teaspoon salt, and bring to a simmer. Simmer until the soup is nice and flavorful, adding more salt to taste if needed, 10 to 15 minutes.
6. Stir in the tahini, cilantro and grated garlic. Using an immersion or regular blender or a food processor, purée the soup, making it smooth or leaving it chunky, as desired, then add it back to pot if necessary. If it seems too thick, thin it down with some or all of the remaining broth.
7. Squeeze some juice from the lemon halves into the pot, adding as much as you like to make the soup lively and bright. Ladle the soup into bowls and serve topped with the crispy chickpeas and a drizzle of olive oil or more tahini, and a sprinkling of paprika if you like, with pita chips on the side.
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