A bowl of hot soup in April – why not? After all, the weather has not been particularly generous with us around here, and spring is still not within our reach.
I made this Basel flour soup awhile ago for an Instagram collaboration, and then I got super busy with life, and I forgot to post it – until tonight! I was having a bedtime conversation with our daughter and she was telling me about S’mores and marshmallows roasted over the open fire – when suddenly, the memory of this soup hit me like a ton of bricks. I thought of it, and of past falls spent teaching at my beloved college – falls full of wonder, natural beauty, and the smell of burnt leaves (a quintessential sign of the cold season in Chicago). Going back to those pre-pandemic times is so surreal. I’m not even sure these days ever existed, to be honest…
Going back to this soup, I had an amazing time doing the research, and learning more about the rich cultural heritage behind it. I didn’t know you could make soup with flour as the main ingredient (such a wonderful discovery!) I tried several recipes, and the one posted on the Emmi Cheese website worked the best. I topped the soup with Emmi Gruyère and radish microgreens, and served it with fresh bread and a salad featuring homegrown lettuce and cilantro, as well as feta cheese and avocado. The mouthwatering combination of roasted flour and red wine, richly embellished by butter and cheese, conveyed incredible umami. I invite you to check out this delicious soup recipe, featured here.
Working on this post tonight has been therapeutic – and this is what I really love about writing: that it is a form of therapy. Maybe I was subconsciously longing for a return to my “lost time,” the pre-pandemic time. Maybe my mind was looking for the smallest sign to trigger a refuge in the past. Maybe I needed those memories to gently resurface, to give my soul some peace. I don’t know… I hope you will make this soup, and that you, too, will be enveloped by sweet memories of cherished times. Maybe this soup will also be to you what it has been to me: like Proust’s madeleine, a culinary story of belonging, soft and rich, warm and inviting, like the smell of burnt leaves, the sound of rain, and anything else you that can think of…
How often do you think of the pre-pandemic times? Let me know in the comments, and take care, everyone 🙂
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