True Confessions

Well, it's time to "fess" up and tell you first, the sukkah is down, the holiday is over and I didn't post the final picture! Sorry...well, there's always next year! Second, I have a thing for Mark Bittman of the NY Times food section. Just when I am sure that there is no variety to the food we eat; he comes up with something interesting! This past week David declared our home "Chicken Free"! He said he could finally understand why my Dad started to hate to eat the yellow things! Well, Mark had a recipe for a Zucchini-Pear Soup in this past week's paper that was great; it passed the test, no chicken in it! For those of you who might be interested:

3 TBS butter or extra virgin olive oil, or a combination
1 med carrot, peeled and diced
1 med onion, peeled and diced
1 med potato, preferably high-starch (russet or baking) peeled and diced
1/2 tsp fresh thyme leaves, or a pinch of dried thyme
Sale and pepper
4 med zucchini, trimmed and diced
2 med ripe (but still firm) pears, peeled, cored and diced
4 cups chicken or veg stock, or use water (I used veg stock for obvious reasons!)
mint leaves for garnish

1. Put butter and/or oil in a large skillet over med heat; within butter melts or oil is hot, cook carrot, onion, potato and thyme with a healthy sprinkling of salt and pepper. Stir occasionally, adjusting heat so vegetables do not brown. When onion is softened, about 5 minutes, add zucchini and continue to cook until everything is tender, 10 to 15 minutes.
2. Add pear and cook until has softened, about 5 minutes more. Add liquid and bring to a boil; taste and adjust seasoning. Cook mixture, then puree. Serve cold or reheat and serve hot, garnished with mint, if desired. Serves 4

Well, this is definitely the season for this soup. It's the end of the zucchini season and the pears are wonderful!