December 29, 2021

Dear friends,

Yeah, yeah, we know the drill: Cancel plans, buy masks, hunker down and bake bread. Sigh. In the space of a week the Omicron variant of Covid-19  bloomed coast to coast, upending flight schedules, bowl games and holiday get-togethers.

You may think I’m overreacting, but of the 800,000-plus U.S. deaths from Covid so far, people 65 and over account for 600,000 of them. I’m 72.

Still, I’m trying to count my blessings. Tony and I have avoided the plague so far, and this mess has spawned some excellent streaming — Bo Burnham’s Netflix tour de force, “Inside,” for example. And in that brief window between fully vaxed and again vulnerable I did see family, go to a couple of movies and dine out. But geez.

OK, enough complaining. I will self-isolate and embrace the Scandinavian concept of hygge with fuzzy loungewear and bowls of steaming soup. And I have just the soup to make everyone feel better. It’s a black bean soup more delicious than the one I called “best” last December. You know when something is so good you keep nibbling bite after bite even after you’re full? This soup is that kind of thing.

The recipe was pure chance. I was making Cuban black beans for Tony but he went hunting and I wanted soup instead. I didn’t have a ham bone or bacon for flavor but it turns out I didn’t need them. I think what makes the soup so good despite its simplicity is the vinegar added at the end. The acidic tang plays against the rounded bass notes of the beans to elevate the flavor to irresistible.

You might want to pair the soup with a loaf of 2-hour no-knead bread made with yeast left over from your early-pandemic bread baking.(https://www.jennycancook.com/recipes/2-hour-fastest-no-knead-bread/). Yes, we’re back to baking bread again.

THE BEST BLACK BEAN SOUP

****RE: The Best Black Bean Soup Recipe–DECEMBER 29, 2021 9:43 AM
PLEASE DO NOT USE the black bean soup recipe below. It was sent in error, the result of a faulty memory and bad note-taking. When I piece together the real recipe I created back in November, I will provide it*** Thanks ~Jane Snow

1 lb. black beans

1/2 cup olive oil

1 large onion, chopped

6 cloves garlic, minced

1 tbsp. salt

1/4 cup dried oregano leaves

3 bay leaves

4 cartons (32 oz. each) chicken broth

1/2 cup vinegar

Wash and sort beans (i.e., throw away any non-bean debris). Cover with water by 2 inches and soak overnight. Or bring to a boil, remove from heat and let stand 2 hours. Drain beans.

Heat olive oil in a soup pot. Sauté onion until softened. Add garlic and sauté a minute or two longer. Stir in beans, salt, oregano and bay leaves. Stir in broth. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 2 to 3 hours, until beans are tender and soup has thickened somewhat.

Taste and add more salt if necessary. Stir in vinegar and bubble a minute or two. Ladle into bowls. Makes about 10 servings.

GUT CHECK

What I cooked recently:

Fried egg and crumbled feta on toast; spice-rubbed smoked sirloin roast, mashed potatoes, pickled beets;  Japanese Christmas cake; garlic and spice-rubbed crispy roast duck, roast Brussels sprouts with miso-honey glaze, deviled eggs; meatloaf, pickled eggs.

What I ate out:

Southwest chile lime salad with chicken and a baguette at Panera Bread; liver and onions with mashed potatoes and gravy from the Circle Restaurant in Deerfield; pepperoni pizza from Big Star Pizza in Copley; pasta Milano (with chicken and cheese sauce) at Alexandri’s in Wadsworth; pork miso ramen and pork bao buns (both terrific) at Funny Noodle in downtown Akron; Italian salad with cheese and pepperoni pizza at Luigi’s in downtown Akron;  Buffalo wings and fries from Firehouse Tavern in Copley.

THE MAILBAG

From Carol W.:

We had the Baked Rice with the Pomegranate and Olive Relish with lamb on Christmas Day. Everyone agreed it was a spectacular dish! Even the next day, cold or reheated. Thanks so much for passing it on. Substituted balsamic glaze because I forgot to search for the pomegranate molasses. Since we live in Cuyahoga Falls, I’m sure I’ll find it in one of the Middle Eastern grocery stores. 

Dear Carol:

I’ll relay your thanks to my friend, Marty, who introduced me to the recipe. I love it, too.

From Cindy W.:

A little help, please. My holiday houseguest just shared the fact she’s searching for a particular sort of cookbook for her niece. The niece is a 20-something novice cook and newly minted vegetarian, not vegan. Have you a title or two to suggest? We’d be grateful for your guidance.

Dear Cindy:

Although I shared the information with you before it was too late, I’m repeating it here for those who may be cooking for or buying for vegetarians. That’s many of us these days.

Cooking Light recipes are reliable and interesting. Try “Cooking Light’s The Way to Cook Vegetarian.” Here’s another: “Super Natural Simple,” which was chosen one of the New York Times’ Best Cookbooks of 2021.