A Hearty Winter Soup And A Sideorder of Popovers

Continuing my winter soup obsession, today I tried a recipe from Martha Stewart Living magazine from January of last year. Of course I changed it up a bit and I must say it made a delicious, satisfying meal which we just finished.

It was an easy soup to make, many of the ingredients are in most pantries but I did substitute a couple of things mostly because I didn't have time for a trip to the grocery store.

The soup is accompanied by popovers. Popovers are light rolls, hollow if made correctly and are, by most accounts,  an Americanized version of Yorkshire Pudding a 17th century English offering. The recipes are quite similar but in Yorkshire Pudding, the fat from beef is added to the mixture resulting in a truly decadent muffin. In both, the muffin pops over the pan, hence the name.

Williams-Sonoma popover pan @ 21.00

I used ordinary muffin tins (worked just fine)  though the recipe called for a popovers tin...i checked on the Williams Sonoma website and of course there really is an actual popover pan, much deeper than an ordinary muffin pan. It  costs about $20. and makes 6 popovers at a time. 

Here are the recipes. Tomorrow we're in for another day of snow here in New York. This weekend might be a good time to give this soup a try. 

Hearty Winter Soup
Ingredients
2 tablespoons olive oil
7 finely chopped chives
3 celery stalks cut thin on the diagonal
3 carrots also cut on the diagonal
3 garlic cloves finely chopped
Salt and pepper contest
1 box vegetable stock
I large can of chicken broth
4 medium Yukon gold potatoes cubed
One small onion finely chopped
I can chick peas, drained and washed
Juice of one lemon
2 tablespoons finely chopped dill

Directions

• Heat olive oil enlarge pot adding garlic, celery, chives, onion and carrots plus one tablespoon of salt.
• Add beef and chicken stock and bring to a boil.
• Add potatoes and cook on low until vegetables are tender.
• Stir in chickpeas, lemon juice and dill.
• Salt and pepper to taste.
• Note: I had some leftover beef and chicken which I added to the soup.

Popovers
2 and a half cups of whole milk
2 and a half cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon kosher salt
6 large eggs whisked.
Unsalted butter for pans

Directions

• Preheat over to 425 degrees
• Mix flour, milk and salt.
• Whisk in eggs for a lumpy textured batter
• Heat popovers pan (or ordinary muffin pan) in the oven for 5 minutes.
• Brush cups generously with melted butter
• Fill three-quarters full and bake for 20 minutes until slightly golden.
• Let stand for 5 minutes and serve warm with butter.