Spring Soups from the Garden

My friend Greg, who has been gardening for more than 30 years, knows his vegetables, and he loves spring soups. His huge garden here in northeast Massachusetts has already offered up soup ingredients – kale and asparagus, and greens for a salad to finish out an evening meal. I’m totally with him.

Former Chez Panisse chef and cookbook author Jeremiah Tower Cooks writes that before refrigerators and ice boxes, people around the world all had their own versions of early spring soup. The broths celebrated the first life-giving young shoots after a long bleak winter to a population starved of fresh vegetables. Incorporating whatever green vegetables are in the garden together with herbs, these healthy tonics were a fast and easy meal. Chef Cooks prefers water as a base for a purer, truer flavor, but a light chicken stock will make the soup richer.

Here in New England, it’s warmer outside, and we’ve likely passed the last threat of an overnight frost, though the nights are still cool. Luckily for me, spring vegetables are available in our local farm markets. If you’re a forager, ramps and fiddleheads are out there in the woods. All of this bounty means nutrient-packed soups – asparagus, peas, leeks, kale – along with radishes, spring onions, chard, and spinach. I’m thankful that I can flavor my soups with fresh herbs that I have available right outside my porch door: parsley, oregano, thyme, tarragon, chives, and mint.

Brothy and frothy

After a long winter of those thick, rib-sticking stews, I’m ready for something frothy and lighter. In her book Salt Fat Acid Heat, author and chef Samin Nosrat writes that soup is easy and economical to make. Her soups fall into three categories: brothy (clear and delicate with only three or four ingredients); chunky (robust and rich with longer ingredient lists); and smooth (pureed when everything is just tender). And while soup may be easy to make, Nosrat says you must have a reason for every ingredient you choose. That advice aside, you still don’t need to search endlessly for a specific recipe. Focus instead on Nosrat’s advice that spring soups in particular start with a good broth, with aromatics, fresh vegetables, maybe some protein and/or starches, rounded out with herbs.

My pal Greg has his favorite routine. He roasts a chicken for one meal and uses the rest of the meat for another meal of chicken salad. He uses the carcass to make stock. His spring soups start with aromatics: onion, celery, and garlic. Then it’s simple, he says. Add some protein – beans or meat – to the aromatics with your broth. When the protein is almost cooked, it’s time to add spring vegetables, all cut into bite-sized pieces. When they’re almost tender, add your chopped fresh herbs, and soup’s on. Greg’s favored protein is pork tenderloin, and he likes butter beans and white beans. Sometimes, he’ll start his aromatics by sautéing some pancetta. You might try adding some carbohydrates – spring potatoes or even rice or pasta. Just make sure you have enough liquid to adequately cover your carbs as you simmer away till they’re done.

Light and delicious

As for me, we enjoyed a spring herb soup with fregola and pancetta that was a big hit, not to mention fast and simple. Starting with pancetta that was cooked until the fat rendered, I added chopped onion and cooked it until soft, then deglazed the pan with dry white wine. I added orzo (substituted for fregola) and flavorings – garlic, fennel seeds, and crushed red pepper – together with some good chicken stock, and simmered it until the orzo was al dente. In went canned cannellini beans and my herbs: parsley, tarragon, thyme, and oregano. We garnished the soup in our bowls with some grated Romano cheese, and voilà: spring at the dinner table.

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