Two Great Soups

Okay, so I know it's not exactly soup season. I should be posting "Two Great Ice Creams." I'll get to that.

But these soups are really great. They can be made vegetarian. And I think soups are just a really nice way to get a bunch of vegetables into your lunchtime routine. Also, if you work in an office, let's face it, you're probably wearing a sweater because due to mysterious laws of the office universe, it is required to keep the office at approximately 62 degrees in the middle of the summer when everyone is wearing their sweet little summer dresses. At least this is my experience with office work or any indoor work in the summer. If someone could please explain to me who decides to keep it so bloomin' cold inside when it's so bloomin' hot outside so that you're body goes completely schizo and there's no right way to dress for anything, I'd appreciate it.

In the meantime, take one of these soups to work. Or feed them to your hungry kids. Or just hoard them for yourself and send everybody else outside with PBJ's while you dine.

1. Split Pea Soup. I really love split pea soup. I fell in love with it when I lived for many months in Belgium and The Netherlands where they really know their soup. If you think you dislike split pea soup, it's probably because you've only ever had bad split pea soup. When I was living in Europe and raving about soup, my mom sent me a sweet little care package with (among other things) a package of split pea soup. Compared to the stuff I was eating, it should have been labeled split pea puke. Because it was not good. My point being that you really need to make it from scratch and have a decent recipe. I've only ever made it with ham or sausage or bacon, so this meatless recipe made me a little nervous. I didn't know if it'd have any flavor. Let me tell you this. It was the best split pea soup I've ever made. The lemon and zest just make it so fresh tasting and just really great. They also make it feel a little more summery (even though lemons really aren't a summer fruit). Try it.

2. Tomato and Parmesan soup. At least this is slightly appropriate for the advent of tomato season. This recipe was slightly fussy as it required several pots (I made the stovetop version--the crock pot one might be less fussy). I tried adapting it to just one pot, which worked, but then the carrots took forever to cook. I was so irritated by the time I got it off the stove, I was sure I was going to hate it. Nope. It was awesome. Especially the 2nd, 3rd, 4th days. A really wonderful and filling tomato soup.