Chinese Hot & Sour Soup

You are likely to find this soup on just about every menu in every Chinese restaurant in America. There are lots of variations in recipes, with some using chicken in the soup, and others using tofu, and still others using meaty tasting mushrooms, and I guess you could call it the "deluxe version" with all of these ingredients included.

 

For this, you use the white part of the green onions in the actual preparation of the soup, and you keep the green part for finishing the soup and as a garnish.

 

 

Ingredients (6 servings):

6 cups chicken broth

1/3 cup thinly cut carrot (matchsticks)

4 green onions, white part only, chopped

1 tablespoon grated ginger

1/3 cup sliced shiitaki mushrooms 

1/3 cup firm tofu cubes

3 cloves of minced garlic 

3 tablespoons Asian chili sauce

1 teaspoon ground white pepper

4 tablespoons soy sauce

2 teaspoons brown sugar 

1/4 cup rice vinegar (1/3 cup if you like a bit more tartness)

1 teaspoon sesame oil 

4 tablespoons cornstarch, mixed with equal amount of water

2 large eggs, well beaten

green part of 4 green onion, chopped

In a pan, add the chicken broth, carrot, white part of the green onions, ginger, minced garlic, chili sauce, white pepper, soy sauce and brown sugar. Let come to a boil over high heat, then reduce the heat to simply maintain a nice gentle, but steady simmer for 10 minutes. Add the sliced mushrooms and tofu, and simmer another 5 minutes, then stir in the rice vinegar and sesame oil. With the soup still simmering, stir in the cornstarch mixture and continue stirring until the soup thickens. Gradually add the beaten eggs, and then stir lightly after about 45 seconds. Add half of the green part of the onion and give it a quick stir. Remove the soup from the heat. Garnish each serving with a bit of the remaining green from the onions.

 

 

 

 

WORD HISTORY: 

Clerk (Clark/Cleric)-These words are related to "clergy." The ultimate origin of "clerk/clark/cleric" is uncertain, although Indo European "kleh," meaning "to cut down," is thought to be the ancestor by some. Ancient Greek had transliterated "kleros," which meant "a chip of wood used for casting lots," but then the expanded meaning of "something assigned by lots (land, farm, house, etc), inheritance,"^ which produced the transliterated Greek adjective "klerikos," meaning "of or about the clergy," as in religious usage in Greek, the word came to be applied to priests, who were seen as ordained by God's choice (lot). Latin borrowed the adjective as "clericus," meaning "of or about the priesthood, priestly," but it also used the word as a noun to mean "priest, member of the clergy." This was borrowed into Old English as "clerc," meaning "priest, clergyman." In those times, the clergy were some of the few in society who were educated; thus, they were used as record keepers of accounts and of other written documents. This idea of being able to read and write eventually superceded the meaning of "priest;" thus, those employed to keep records continued to be called "clerks," but without the "clergy" meaning at all. The idea of a "sales person" is from the latter part of the 1700s in American English. The verb form is from the noun in the mid 1500s and meaning "to provide the services of a clerk." "Clark" is from a spelling variant of "clerk" in the Middle Ages, which has remained as a popular family name dating from those times (also spelled "Clarke").

^ In this case, the idea of "inheritance" is seemingly from God, and this meaning connects the word to religion.

Onion Soup of Tuscany: Carabaccia alla Fiorentina

I've read that this was a favorite soup of Leonardo da Vinci, and that the soup was taken by Catherine de Medici's Florentine kitchen staff to France, where it was used as the basis for what is now the famous French Onion Soup. I'm not totally certain of this, but it "seems" the original Italian onion soup of Medici's cooks did not have bread in it, with this part of the recipe being added later, but whether this was due to French influence, I have no idea (although the Italians put the bread in the dish and THEN put the soup over it), and there are other Italian onion soup recipes with bread that are similar to "carabaccia," but not quite the same, but variations in recipes for just about any good basic food exist. Bread was added to soups as a good way to use up bread, as it had no preservatives, and especially in warm weather, it would go bad quickly. Further, the addition of bread made the soup more substantial; that is, it could help to fill one's belly. 

The soup has a slight tanginess, but it's still to the sweet side from the onions, carrots and honey (if you use it).

Ingredients (about 4 to 6 servings):

3 red onions (baseball + size), peeled and thinly sliced

1/2 cup peeled and thinly sliced carrot

3 tablespoons olive oil

2 teaspoons salt

1/4 cup ground almonds

1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon 

3 tablespoons red wine vinegar

(optional) up to 2 tablespoons honey

4 cups vegetable stock

1/4 to 1/3 freshly grated pecorino toscano cheese (Tuscan), or parmigiano reggiano*

4 to 6 half slices of toasted Italian bread or slices of baguette 

extra virgin olive oil for toasting the bread and for drizzling 

In a heavy-bottomed pan, heat the olive oil over medium heat, then add the sliced onions and salt and reduce the heat to low. The heap of onions will look a bit intimidating, but don't worry, they'll cook down, so don't shed any tears (get it? Onions ... tears? Damn... tough crowd!). As the onions cook down, keep giving them a stir to prevent any heavy browning or burning, as the object is to cook the onions until they are super soft and sweet, and this can take 30 to 45 minutes. When the onions are well softened, add the carrot, ground black pepper, ground cinnamon and ground almonds; stir to mix. Cook a further 3 or 4 minutes, still on low heat, then add the stock, vinegar and honey and stir well. You can turn the heat up to medium and let the soup cook for 25 to 30 minutes (make sure the carrots are tender), stirring occasionally. Some people keep this as a soup (in this case, put a lid onto the pot after you add the stock), with a fair amount of broth, but others cook it down to make it more of a stew (keep the lid off after adding the stock). Add a slice of toasted bread to each bowl, then add the onion soup over the toasted bread. Sprinkle a little grated Pecorino over each bowl, and add a teaspoon or two of Italian extra virgin olive oil.  

* There are various types of Pecorino cheese in Italy, which are made from sheep's milk (a 'pecora' is a sheep in Italian, with 'pecore' being the plural). The most famous Pecorino cheese, and a major favorite of mine, is Pecorino Romano. The Tuscany region has its own type (Pecorino toscano), which is less salty and with a milder flavor than the more famous Pecorino Romano. It is very similar to the famous Parmigiana Reggiano, which is, therefore, a good substitute in this recipe. 

 

I set the slice of bread on top for the first two photos, so that it would be easier to see, but I put the bread into the bowl first, then poured the soup over it in the last photo, which is the traditional way to serve this soup ...

WORD HISTORY:

Puncture-This word is related to quite a number of other words, including to: "punctual," "pungent" and "pugilist," Latin derived words borrowed by English from that language, and to "repugnant," another Latin-derived word, and borrowed from Latin-based French, but with Latin influence (or less likely, but possibly, the other way around). "Puncture" goes back to Indo European "pewg/pewk," which had the notion of "to hit an object," but which had the further meaning "to hit an object with the intent to pierce that object." This gave Latin the verb "pungere" meaning "to pierce, to prick," a participle form of which was "punctus,"^ which gave Latin the noun "punctura" meaning "a piercing, a pricking," and English borrowed this from Latin in the latter part of the 1300s. The verb form developed from the noun, but not until the second half of the 1600s, with the meaning "to pierce something with a pointed object," eventually adding on, "to deflate an object by piercing it."     

  

^ Some etymologists believe "punctus" also had the meaning of "pointed object," and that's certainly possible.

Madeiran Tomato Soup with Onion: Sopa de Tomate e Cebola

Madeira is a group of four islands in the Atlantic Ocean about 325 miles west of Morocco and about 675 miles from mainland Portugal. The four islands are: "Madeira" and "Porto Santo," both of which are inhabited, and also "Desertas" and "Selvagens," which are uninhabited. Madeira is a constituent part of the Portuguese Republic, commonly simply referred to as "Portugal."

 

While such soup is available on the mainland of Portugal, it is a popular staple in Madeira, and there are varying recipes. I've seen this dish made as more of a "stew," in that it was cooked over low heat for an hour or more, with little or no liquid added, except for that of the tomatoes, and this produced a very thick dish; but on the other hand, I've seen it made as a true soup, with plenty of liquid. You can certainly use all fresh tomatoes, or all canned tomatoes, but I decided to be steadfast (haha) and to use some of both, and if you make this, you'll have no doubt that it is made with tomatoes, as that is the overwhelming taste that dominates. Since tomatoes are very acidic, I list the option of using a little sugar to offset the acidity, but I actually only found one recipe that used some sugar, and I probably looked at a dozen recipes. Just for the record, I use 1/4 teaspoon sugar sprinkled over the soup and then stirred into the other ingredients near the end of cooking.    

 

 

Ingredients (6 to 8 servings):

 

1 to 1 1/4 pounds of ripe tomatoes, blanched and skins removed

1 can of whole peeled tomatoes and juice (28 ounces)

1 baseball size onion, chopped

3 medium cloves garlic, chopped

3 tablespoons olive oil

2 bay leaves

1 heaping tablespoon cilantro (coriander) leaves, finely chopped

1 teaspoon ground white pepper

1/2 to 1 cup chicken broth (depending upon desired thickness)

(optional) 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon sugar

eggs

1 slice rustic bread for each egg (on Madeira, many use the flatbread made there*)

Blanch the fresh tomatoes in boiling water briefly and remove the skins, then roughly chop the tomatoes. (Bring enough water to cover the tomatoes to a boil. Before adding the tomatoes, use a sharp knife to cut through the skin of each tomato and make an 'X,' this will make the tomatoes easy to peel.) Add the olive oil and the chopped onion to a heavy-bottom pan over low heat. Let the onion saute for a few minutes until it starts to soften, then add the fresh tomatoes and canned tomatoes with juice. Let the mixture come to a simmer and then add the chicken broth and adjust the heat to low and add the white pepper, garlic and bay leaf, cover and continue to let the soup simmer. When the tomato and onion are well softened, add the chopped cilantro and simmer for another one minute. Remove the bay leaves, then use an immersion blender (stick blender) to "smooth out" the soup, but you can leave about a third of the ingredients in pieces to give the soup some texture. I've seen recipes that poach the eggs in a separate pan, but I've seen recipes that poach the eggs in with the soup; I poach them separately. When serving, add some soup to a bowl, add one of the poached eggs, and serve with a slice of bread. I've also seen some people serve the dish by putting a slice of bread in the bowl first, then adding the poached egg followed by adding the soup. 

 

* For Madeiran sweet potato flatbread, here is the link: https://pontificating-randy.blogspot.com/2023/04/madeiran-sweet-potato-flatbread-bolo-do.html 

     

 

WORD HISTORY:

Butcher-This word, used as a noun and a verb, is related to "buck" (a male goat or deer), a word from the Germanic roots of English. The noun "butcher" has an uncertain origin, as both Old Germanic and Old Celtic had similar words, and there is some question as to whether Germanic got its form from Celtic, or if Celtic got its form from Germanic, and Celtic and Germanic did have large amounts of contact back in ancient European history. On the other hand, Old Germanic and Old Celtic are Indo European languages, and for both to have similar forms of a word is hardly astounding.^ Anyway, Indo European had "bhug," meaning "male goat or antelope type animal." This gave Old Germanic "bukkaz" with the same meaning, which then gave Frankish^^ "bukk," with the same general meaning. This was absorbed into Old French as "buc," then as "bouc" meaning "male goat," and this gave Old French the noun "bouchier," meaning "one who slaughters goats," and the word was rendered as "boucher" among the descendants of the Normans in England. English borrowed the word circa 1300 as "boucher" with the meaning "one who slaughters animals and prepares them for sale at market." The mid 1400s saw the borrowed use of "bocherie" (from French "boucherie") as both the name of "a place that slaughtered animals and then prepared and sold them," and as the name for the profession that did such, and it later became "butchery," although the compound "slaughterhouse" rose to become the more common term for the business place itself (both "slaughter" and "house" from the Germanic roots of English). "Butchery (and "slaughter") also later added the meaning "horrendous, barbaric killing(s)." The verb form of "butcher" is from the mid 1500s and meaning "to kill and prepare animals for food," and about a hundred years later the figurative meaning developed, "to mangle or mess up something (usually by incompetence)," as in, "The singer butchered the lyrics to the song." Buck-The Old Germanic form gave Old English "bucca" (male goat) and "buc(c)" (male deer), and these then combined to become "buck," "a male animal of certain species." Circa 1300, the word was also used for "man," then as "young buck," for "a young, energetic and virile man," and later (early 1700s?), "a well dressed man," and also used derogatorily in American English for "young male Indians" and "young black men." Relatives of "buck" in other Germanic languages: German has "Bock," Low German "Buck," Dutch "bok," West Frisian "bok," Danish "buk," Icelandic "bokkur," Norwegian "bukk (?), Swedish "bock," all generally meaning "male animal of certain species like sheep, goats and deer."  

 

^ Keep in mind, it doesn't really matter to the rest of the history of the word if Germanic had the word from its Indo European parent, or if it had borrowed it from Celtic, because Germanic passed it on to its Germanic offspring, including English.

 

^^ Frankish was the language of the Germanic tribe the Franks. The Franks conquered much of what is modern France (then called Gaul), but their language did not overtake the Latin already firmly establish there, but rather, over centuries it was absorbed into what came to be called "French," a word from Frankish (France is another such word).   

Red Cabbage & Sausage Soup

Red cabbage is a nutritious vegetable often prepared with apples or applesauce or pears and various spices as a side dish or as part of a main dish where meat like sausages or pork are served on top of red cabbage. It is common in German cuisine; that is, German in the broad sense that includes not only in Germany, but also Austria, Switzerland and Alsace, but I'm not certain about Luxembourg or Liechtenstein), and also in German immigrant communities in the U.S. (and I "assume" Canada and perhaps Brazil).     

 

This recipe takes red cabbage in a little different direction by making it a big part of soup. By letting the sausage slices not just warm up, but actually remain in the soup for the last part of cooking, they will give give added flavor to the soup. 

 

 

Ingredients:

 

5 cups shredded red cabbage

5 cups beef broth

1 cup water 

4 cloves garlic, chopped

2 bay leaves

2 teaspoons ground allspice

1 1/2 tablespoons cider vinegar

3 tablespoons tomato ketchup 

1 or 2 frankfurters, sliced (slices of about 1/3 inch)

1 or 2 cooked bratwursts, sliced (slices of about 1/3 inch)

1 teaspoon ground black pepper  

1/2 teaspoon salt (if the beef broth is salty, you can skip adding this salt)

sour cream for garnish

 

You can easily make this in a crock pot or slow cooker by putting all of the ingredients, except the sausages and sour cream, into the cooker and cooking everything on high setting for one hour, then turn the heat to low and cook it for 4 to 5 hours, or until the cabbage is tender. Add the cut up sausages for the last 45 minutes. Otherwise, in a pot or large pan over high heat, you can do the same: add all of the ingredients except the sausages and sour cream. Bring the soup to a simmer, then adjust the heat to simply maintain a steady simmer. Cook until the cabbage is just about done, then add the sausage slices and stir well to mix. Let the soup come back to a simmer and let it cook for 30 minutes more. Serve with a dollop of sour cream in the middle of each serving.

The sausage slices get dyed from the red cabbage ...

 

 

WORD HISTORY:

 Ledger-This noun, related to "lay," "lie" (not the "untruth"), "lair" and "low" (all original English words from its Germanic roots), goes back to Indo European "legh," which meant, "to lie flat, to lie down, to lay;" thus also, "to sleep or rest in a flat position." This gave its Old Germanic offspring, "lagjan(an)," with the same basic meanings. This gave Old English (Anglo-Saxon) "lecgan," meaning, "to make to lie down, to set or place." This then became "leggen," and this spawned the noun, "legger," meaning, "a book that lies in a particular place," often used in reference to religious writings centuries ago, but by the second half of the 14th Century, it was used as "ledger book," to mean, "a book of business transactions, business account book," although it was often simply used as "ledger." The word also was used in fishing for "ledger bait;" that is, "bait that was made to be kept in the same place." From what I can tell, English is the only language to use a form of the word in the account book context, which is an English invention. It has relatives in the other Germanic languages, but with other meanings, mainly "lay/lie," although some have borrowed "ledger" from English as a synonym for their own words, which often mean "main book." 

Red Lentil, Carrot & Sweet Potato Soup

This is an Indian influenced soup and it is vegetarian, which is also true of a number of Indian dishes.

 

I love chili peppers, so I almost always leave the seeds in, but if you are not especially fond of chili pepper heat, instead of using 2 small chilies (1 to 1 1/2 inches long), you can substitute one small jalapeno chili, seeded, then chopped.

 

Ingredients (6 to 8 servings):

 

1 1/2 cups red lentils

3 tablespoons sunflower oil or corn oil or vegetable oil

1 1/2 cups chopped onion

5 cloves garlic, minced

3 inch piece peeled ginger, grated

2 small red or green chilies, chopped (or one medium jalapeno, seeded and chopped)

1 1/2 cups peeled, chopped sweet potato

1 cup peeled chopped carrot

6 cups vegetable broth

2 teaspoons ground cumin

2 teaspoons ground coriander

1 teaspoon ground turmeric

1 teaspoon ground black pepper

1 cinnamon stick (2 to 3 inches)

1 teaspoon ground red pepper (like cayenne) 

1 teaspoon salt

1 can coconut milk (14 to 15 ounces)

1/4 cup cilantro (also known as fresh coriander), chopped

In a heavy-bottomed pan, heat the oil over medium heat and then add the onion; cook while stirring the onion around, until it softens, then add the minced garlic, grated ginger and chopped chilies; cook for just one minute, stirring everything around during that time. Add the sweet potato and carrot, then add the vegetable broth, stir to mix everything around. Let the broth come to a boil, then immediately adjust the heat to maintain a steady low simmer, stirring occasionally. After ten minutes, add the spices (ground cumin, ground coriander, ground turmeric, ground black pepper, cinnamon stick, ground red pepper and salt, stir well to mix. Keep simmering the soup until both the carrot and sweet potato are tend (but not mushy). Now add the lentils, stir well and bring the soup back up to a low steady simmer. Check the lentils after about 3 minutes (red lentils cook pretty fast), if they are tender, add the coconut milk, stir well again and let the soup come back to a bare simmer, then turn off the heat and stir in the chopped coriander (cilantro). 

 

 

 

WORD HISTORY:

Pare-This word is closely related to "prepare," a word derived from the noun "preparation," a Latin-based word borrowed from French, but with Latin influence, to "parent," another word of Latin derivation borrowed from French, but with Latin influence, to "parade," another Latin-based word borrowed from French, and to "parasol," another borrowing from French, which had it from Italian, which had it from Latin. "Pare" goes back to Indo European "pere," which had the notion of "to bring forth, to produce, to bring or move to the front," with slightly altered forms that differentiated meanings like "to give birth, to spawn, to beget," and "to arrange, to make ready," and more. The Indo European form gave Latin the verb "parare" meaning "to make ready;" thus, "to prepare, to make available, to put into order;" thus, "to arrange, to get, to purchase;" so, a whole series of meanings. This gave Old French "parer" meaning "to arrange, to prepare;" thus also, "to trim, to decorate;" thus also, "to dress lavishly" (from the idea of "prepare oneself for an occasion"). English borrowed the word in the early 1300s as the verb "paren" meaning "to trim off the peel/skin/crust of foods (often fruits and vegetables, but also bread and certain meats). The early 1500s saw the idea of cutting away part of something giving the verb the further meaning "to make something less in size, often incrementally." When English shifted to a different way of conjugating verbs, "paren" became "(to) pare." The 1400s saw a noun developed from the verb as "parer" (the stem par + er) meaning "tool used to pare fruits and vegetables," and this then became "paring knife." While the term "paring knife" is still around, I don't hear it all that often in American English anymore (I don't know about in Britain or other English speaking areas), but from the time I was a kid and into young adulthood, just about any small knife in a kitchen was called a "paring knife," and the term was heard very often.    

Uzbek Lamb & Vegetable Soup: Shurpa

The name "shurpa" has variant spellings, like "chorba," "shorba," "shorwa," "shorpa," "çorba" and others. The many names are because the general dish is not only known in Uzbekistan, but also in parts of the Middle East, in parts of the Indian Subcontinent and in parts of southeastern Europe. Just as there are many names, there are also many recipes, with some versions being more like soup, and others being thick like stew, and there are variations even within a given country.When I've made this dish, the chilies have not made it spicy hot, so unless you use super hot chilies, I can't imagine it being hot. Also, I use boneless lamb, but the people of Uzbek almost always use lamb bones or lamb on the bone when making this dish, as the broth is what makes this tasty, and the lamb bones impart flavor; so, if you can get a lamb bone or two, great; if not, the world won't end because of it.

 

Uzbekistan is a central Asian country that was formerly part of the Russian Empire, as Turkistan, and then became the Uzbek Soviet Republic when the former Russian Empire became the Soviet Union after World War One. The capital of Uzbekistan is Tashkent, and the county's population of about 36 million is overwhelmingly Muslim. The principal language is Uzbek, which is from the Turkic family of languages, but the Uzbek area's long association with Russia/the Soviet Union has left many people with varying degrees of knowledge of Russian.    

 

Ingredients (6 servings):

 

1 to 1 1/2 pounds lamb shoulder, cut into bite-sized pieces 

(optional) a lamb bone or two from your butcher shop

2 onions (baseball size), sliced, then halve the slices

2 potatoes, each cut into 8 pieces 

1 cup chopped carrot

1 large red bell pepper, cut into strips

2 medium tomatoes, chopped

2 chili peppers, sliced

6 cups water (to start, + additional 1/2 to 1 cup if needed)

2 bay leaves

2 teaspoons ground cumin

2 teaspoons ground coriander

2 teaspoons ground black pepper

2 teaspoons salt (or to taste)

1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro (coriander)

1 teaspoon ground turmeric

5 green onions, chopped (with the green)

1 can garbanzo beans (14.5 ounces to 16 ounces), drained

2 tablespoons vegetable oil 

 

Heat the oil in a pot over medium heat, then add the lamb pieces. Brown the meat for about 3 minutes, then add the onion and cook a further 3 minutes, stirring the meat and onion around. Now add the potato pieces and the chopped carrot (and lamb bones, if using). Add the water and increase the heat until the mixture begins to boil, then adjust the heat to maintain a steady simmer. After about 8 minutes, add the red bell pepper slices, bay leaves, ground cumin, ground coriander, black pepper and salt. Stir well and continue simmering until the lamb and vegetables are tender. By that time, you will likely need to add some more water, as the soup will have cooked down a bit. Add another 1/2 cup up to 1 cup of additional water and stir well, then add the cilantro (coriander), turmeric and green onions; simmer another 3 to 4 minutes, then add the drained garbanzo beans, heat for another 3 minutes, then remove from the heat. Serve.  

 

 

WORD HISTORY:

Sty- This word, long with the meaning "pen for animals, primarily used in reference to an enclosure for pigs," is a word of unknown ancient derivation, but Old Germanic had "stigjan," seemingly meaning "enclosure of wood," as the usage by its Germanic descendants imply that broad meaning, and this gave Old English (Anglo-Saxon) "stig," meaning "animal pen, pig pen, house, hall (with its meaning of "room," as in "dining hall, dance hall"). "Stig" then became "sti," then "sty," and the meaning became specific to "a pen for pigs." ^ The compound word "pigsty" also came to be used in the second half of the 1500s for "dirty or messy room or home." The other Germanic languages have: German has "Stiege," meaning "wooden box/crate for fruit or potatoes," although originally meaning, or "perhaps" more prominently used for, "animal stall for livestock" (seems also to have been used at some point to mean "cage"), Low German once had "stiga" meaning "pig pen, pig stall," which then became "stege," with the same meaning, but also "lattice for enclosing areas," I could not find a form in modern Frisian, and it's a tough language to research, but it very likely had a form in the past, but uses in modern German, Low German, Dutch and Frisian, in reference to animal pens, has shifted to forms of "stall," and their cousin, English, still retains the word "sty," but unless perhaps in dialect usage, it is almost always used in the figurative sense of "dirty house or room" in the compound "pigsty," as English too often uses "pen" or "stall" for animal enclosures, Danish has (or had?) "sti," "pen for pigs," Swedish has "stia," "pen for pigs (seemingly in the past also for some fowl)," Icelandic has (had, antiquated?) "stia" meaning "animal pen."        

^ This noun meaning "pen for pigs," is not related to the other noun of this spelling,"sty," and meaning "swollen and inflamed area on the eyelid."

Finnish Salmon Soup: Lohikeitto

This salmon soup can also be called salmon chowder, and it is a fairly common dish in some parts of Finland, which is understandable, as it is wonderful! You can certainly cut some of the fat and calories by substituting canned evaporated milk (NOT sweetened condensed milk) for the heavy cream. Of course too, you can adjust the salt and pepper amounts to your taste preference.

 

Ingredients  (5 or 6 servings): 

 

1 1/4 pound salmon, in bite-size pieces 

2 cups sliced leeks, mainly white and light green part

5 tablespoons butter

2 cups diced potatoes

1 cup chopped carrot

4 1/2 cups fish stock

1 cup heavy cream

1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

1/2 teaspoon salt (remember, the butter and the stock have salt)

3 tablespoons chopped dill, divided use

 

In a heavy-bottom pan, melt the butter over medium heat, add the leek slices and saute until they soften. Add the carrot and potatoes and saute a further two minutes, stirring often (you don't want the veggies to actually brown), then add the fish stock, bring to a boil and adjust the heat to maintain a steady simmer until everything is tender, but not mushy. Add the salmon pieces and simmer another 5 to 6 minutes. Add the cream, black pepper, salt and 1 tablespoon of the chopped dill, stir to mix in. Let the now cream laced soup heat up, but do not boil. Remove from the heat, top each serving with some chopped dill. 

 

  

 

 

WORD HISTORY:

Normal (Norm)-The ultimate origin of this word is shaky, but it seems to go back to Indo European "gnoh/gneh," meaning "to know," making it a distant relative of English "know," "can" and "ken/kenning," which are all from the Germanic roots of English, and it is related to "quaint" and to "cognizance," both Latin-derived words borrowed by English via French. The Indo European form gave transliterated Greek "ginosko," meaning "to know." This seemingly gave transliterated Greek "gnomon," which meant "carpenter's square." Latin borrowed this from Greek ("perhaps" via Etruscan?^) as "norma" also meaning "carpenter's square," but also, "a pattern, a model." This was taken by Latin-based French as "norme," essentially meaning "pattern, model, something to be followed (a "rule," both "the piece of wood used for measurement and drawing straight lines," AND, "a policy to be followed"), and English borrowed the word by the 1820s. Latin "norma" (mentioned above) spawned the Latin adjective "normalis," meaning "done following a carpenter's square;" thus also, "done by the rule, done following a pattern or model;" thus, "done in the common way." English borrowed the word from Latin initially in a rather limited way as a mathematics (geometry) term for "having to do with perpendicular, being at a right angle" (later also used with the meaning "perpendicular" as a noun), but later with the meaning "having to do with doing things in the established or standard way," and the word's usage began to become much more common by the early part of the 1800s. The latter part of the 1800s saw usage as a noun for "the common state of something," as in, "The normal for our family is to eat dinner on Sundays at 4 o'clock," and adjectivally as, "A normal Sunday for us is to eat dinner at 4 o'clock." Close English relative, German, also borrowed "normal" from Latin during the 1700s, also meaning, "(pertaining to) normal, usual, regular, standard." Example: "Ich hätte gern(e) einen normalen Kaffee" ("I would like a regular coffee"). 

 

^ Etruscan is a mystery language, "possibly" related to some languages of the Aegean Sea area, including "Minoan." In ancient times, Etruscan was spoken in a fairly large part of what is now Italy, but it eventually died out when Latin came to the area, although some Etruscan words were borrowed into Latin. "Etruscan" lies behind the words "Tuscan" and "Tuscany" (Italian: Toscana), a region in western Italy, the regional capital being Florence (Italian: Firenze).      

South Tyrolean Wine Soup: Südtiroler Weinsuppe

The South Tirol (German: Südtirol) is a region of northern Italy with a complicated demographic history, as people who came to be called Germans settled in part of the region about 1500 years ago. The area later was part of the Holy Roman Empire, a confusing title that was really the name used for the Old German Empire (as French philosopher and writer Voltaire said in the mid 1700s, the Holy Roman Empire was "neither holy, Roman, nor an empire"). The area eventually became part of the Habsburg family lands (the Habsburgs were a German noble family with their base in Austria), but after the defeat of Austria-Hungary in World War One, Italy received the South Tirol for having fought on the Allied side during the war. The northern parts of the region were exclusively German for all practical purposes, but the population was more and more mixed (German and Italian) the further south in the region one went, with some areas having Italian majorities. The whole matter was very contentious, but eventually the region, known in Italian as "Trentino Alto Adige," was granted self-governing rights on local matters, but within Italy. German is the language of every day communication for much of the population, except of course in Italian areas, and the German dialect there is a part of Austro-Bavarian.

 

This is not a diet soup, but you can cut some of the fat and calories by substituting canned evaporated milk, which has far less fat and calories than cream does. Remember, the South Tirol is in the Alps, with farming being one of the main parts of the economy. Foods that provide calories have long been important in such communities, but of course, this was generally before there was much thought about heart health or other health concerns. 

 

A good bread for the croutons is "Bauernbrot" (farmer's bread), a sourdough rye bread common in German cultural areas in Europe, that was often taken along when people left those areas and became immigrants to other countries. In larger German immigrant communities, bakeries were founded to supply the immigrants with their customary breads and other baked goods from their homeland. Bauernbrot is available in the U.S. and Canada, and likely other countries too, but as a specialty bread or as an import; thus, if you're interested in buying it, you may have to check around for it. Here in the Greater Cleveland area the number of German bakeries has dwindled, as large scale German immigration is no longer taking place, but we still have "Reinecker's Bakery" in suburban Cleveland, and they make Bauernbrot, as well as some other German and European bread types. Some German breads, usually already sliced, are also imported from Germany, and Dimpflmeier, a German bakery in the Toronto area of Canada, was exporting breads to the U.S., but the pandemic disrupted this, and I'm not sure whether this has resumed or not. (Just a note, Haab's Bakery was a well known German bakery on W. 19th Street here in Cleveland, and it was in business for more than 100 years, but it is now gone.)    

Gewürztraminer is actually a type of grape used to make a type of white wine also called "Gewürztraminer." The grape seems to have begun in the Tramin area of the South Tirol. Tramin is a village there; thus, the second part of the grape name. "Gewürz" in German means "spice, seasoning, flavoring," and the aroma and flavors of the wine earned that description. Gewürztraminer is often dry, but there are somewhat sweeter versions too; so, semi-dry. This recipe uses dry white wine, and while in the South Tirol dry Gewürztraminer is commonly used, of course, you can use other dry white wine.

 

Ingredients:

 

3 cups chicken stock

1 1/2 cups dry white wine (dry Gewürztraminer is common in the South Tirol)

4 egg yolks (from large or extra large eggs)

1 1/2 cups heavy cream (or evaporated milk, or evaporated milk mixed with some heavy cream)

2 or 3 light (in color) rye bread slices, crusts removed and cut into cubes for croutons

3 tablespoons butter

1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 "good" pinch nutmeg

(Note: I use no salt in this at all, as the chicken stock has some salt, but you can certainly add salt to your own taste.)

 

For the croutons: Melt the butter in a skillet over medium heat. Add the cubed bread and saute, turning the bread pieces until lightly browned. Remove the croutons from the skillet to a plate with paper towels to absorb excess butter.

 

For the soup: In a heavy bottom pan, add the chicken stock and the white wine over medium heat. Let this heat up, but do not boil it, then turn the heat to low. In the meantime, mix together the cream (or milk or cream and milk) and the egg yolks and beat well. Next, use a whisk, add the yolks and cream mixture to the warm stock and wine slowly, whisking constantly to prevent the yolks from scrambling. Keep the soup over low heat, DO NOT BOIL! Sprinkle in the ground cinnamon and the pinch of nutmeg and stir well (the tastes of the spices are NOT supposed to be anywhere near prominent).

Serve with some of the croutons with each serving.   

 

 

 

WORD HISTORY:

Fair-This is for the adjective, NOT the noun meaning "market, festival," which is unrelated. "Fair" has lots of meanings and "fair" goes back to Indo European "pek," with the notion of "to make clean, to make pretty, to tidy up or make suitable." This gave its Old Germanic offspring "fagraz," meaning, "beautiful, pretty, suitable, fitting, proper," which gave Old English (Anglo-Saxon) "fæger," meaning, "beautiful, pleasing," with the extended meanings, "bright, clear (of weather)," and for people, "morally proper, of good character, honest." The spelling then became "fager," and then "feyr," as the "g" sound died out, and finally, "fair." The positive meanings of the word were easily contrasted with negative meanings; thus, "fair" came to be used in competitive events for "play by rules, play honorably;" thus also the expression, "fair play." The idea of "proper and honorable" moved "fair" along to also mean, "unbiased." As I mentioned, it was a word used at times to show contrast, and "perhaps" from the weather use came the usage of "fair" in complexion or hair, contrasted to "swarthy" or dark. The 1300s saw the word also come to mean "not as usual;" thus, "above average," which gradually became our more modern "good, but not great;" "not bad, but not exceedingly good," as in, "How was your day?" "Oh, fair." Modern German has "fair," as in "play by the rules," and it is pronounced very similarly to the English form, from which it was borrowed in the 1800s, but German once had "fagar," meaning "beautiful," which later became "fager/vager," before dying out. German also has the related verb "fegen," originally meaning "to clean," but in modern times meaning the more specific "to sweep." Old Saxon, the Saxon dialect that remained on the Continent after part of the Saxons migrated to Britain and participated in the founding of England, had "fagar," which died out. Old Norse had "fagr," meaning "beautiful," and its descendants Swedish has "fager," meaning "beautiful," Norwegian has "vakkar," "beautiful," Icelandic has "fagur," "beautiful" and Danish has the now dated and high style "fager" meaning "wonderful." The English adverb "fairly," goes back to Old English "fægerlice," which meant "splendidly;" that is, "beautifully" in a figurative usage. As with the adjective form, the adverb has had some twists and turns, as it later meant "beautifully, handsomely," then "honestly, justly," then "totally," but then like with "fair," it became less decisive by meaning "somewhat, to some degree," as in, "you're fairly well off."  

 

South Tyrolean Creamy Herb Soup: Kräutersuppe

The South Tyrol (German: Südtirol) is a region of northern Italy with a complicated demographic history, as Germans settled in part of the region about 1500 years ago. The area later was part of the Holy Roman Empire, a confusing title that was really the name used for the Old German Empire (as French philosopher and writer Voltaire said in the mid 1700s, the Holy Roman Empire was "neither holy, Roman, nor an empire"). The area eventually became part of the Habsburg family lands (the Habsburgs were a German noble family), but after the defeat of Austria-Hungary in World War One, Italy received the South Tyrol for having fought on the Allied side during the war. The northern parts of the region were exclusively German for all practical purposes, but the population was more and more mixed (German and Italian) the further south in the region one went, with some areas having Italian majorities. The whole matter was very contentious, but eventually the region, known in Italian as "Trentino Alto Adige," was granted self-governing rights on local matters, but within Italy. German is the language of every day communication for much of the population, except of course in Italian areas, and the German dialect there is a part of Austro-Bavarian.

 

I love this soup and you can mix up the herbs however you choose. The South Tyroleans use local cheese of their own for garnishing the soup, but such cheeses are not readily available, so I substituted Parmigiano-Reggiano, but you can certainly use non-Italian made parmesan cheese.

 

Ingredients:

 

3 tablespoons butter

1/4 cup chopped onion

3 tablespoons flour

2 tablespoons chopped dill

2 tablespoon snipped chives

1/2 tablespoon thyme leaves

2 tablespoon basil

1/2 tablespoon majoram (or oregano)

2 tablespoon parsley

1/2 teaspoon nutmeg 

4 cups vegetable or chicken stock

1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup cream

grated cheese like Parmigiano-Reggiano or parmesan for garnish

mixed chopped herbs for garnish

In a heavy bottom pot or pan over medium heat, melt the butter and add the onion and saute until the onion is softened, then reduce the heat to low and quickly mix in the flour, stirring constantly, to make a roux. Slowly add one cup of the broth, stirring constantly, until the broth begins to thicken; then continue adding broth a little at a time, stirring constantly until the broth is gone. It is not supposed to be thick, just slightly thicker. Stir in the herbs and let the soup just begin to simmer. Pour the soup in a blender (or you could use a stick blender), blend until smooth. Return the soup to the pan mix in the nutmeg, ground black pepper, salt and cream. Let the soup heat up, but do not boil. Top with some grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese.

 

 

WORD HISTORY:

Fiddle-The origin of this word is unclear. There is a case for it being from Latin, but there is also a case that Latin got it from Germanic. First there is the Medieval Latin word for a stringed instument, "vitula," which is the source of the words "viola" and "violin." Latin already had a word "vitula," which meant "a female calf" (it is in the ancestral line of "veal"), but how a word for calf came to be a word for a stringed musical instrument is a major question ... although perhaps the Latin word of that meaning was borrowed, and the rendered spelling of the borrowed word coincidentally matched the other Latin word for "calf," and the ancestry of the Latin word for the musical instrument is uncertain, although some have attempted to tie it to Latin "vitularia," which meant, "to celebrate in a happy manner," apparently derived from, or related to, the Roman goddess "Vitula," supposedly a goddess of celebration and victory, but with a very sketchy history. On the other hand, forms of "fiddle" abound in the Germanic languages, with Old English having had "fiðele" (equivalent to "fithele"), which then became "fedele/fydyll/fydel," before the modern form. Old High German had "fidula," the ancestor of modern German "Fiedel;" Low German has "Fiddel," Dutch has "vedel," Old Norse had "fiðla" (=fithla), with Icelandic having that same word, Swedish has the contracted form "fela" and Norwegian has the contracted form "fele." (NOTE: Some suggest Old Germanic had a form like "fiþlo" (=fithlo), but that is far from agreed upon.)     

Hungarian Mushroom Soup

This Hungarian soup is loaded with pieces of mushrooms. Try to get a couple of types of fresh mushrooms, like some button mushrooms and some cremini (also called "baby bella mushrooms"), and perhaps you can get some mixed dried mushrooms. The varied tastes and textures of the mushrooms is great for this soup, and those eating it will likely not believe it if you tell them there is no meat in it. Just be sure not to include any tough mushroom stems. Generally the stems of the white button mushrooms are edible, but crimini and portobella muchroom stems can be tough, even like wood. By the way, these three mushrooms are all really the same mushroom, with the difference being in their age, color and texture. White button mushrooms are the youngest; thus, the stems have not toughened. The crimini are a little older and they have turned brown, and the portobella (some spell it 'portabella') is the large fully matured mushroom. 

Ingredients: 

8 ounces fresh mushrooms, chopped (no tough stems)

2 or 3 ounces dried mushrooms, soaked, then chopped (reserve strained soaking liquid, see further)

1 medium to large onion, chopped (red or white)

3 tablespoons butter + 1 tablespoon olive oil

2 tablespoons flour

1 cup liquid from soaked mushrooms

1 1/2 cups chicken broth

1 heaping tablespoon Hungarian sweet paprika

1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

1 can (12 ounces) evaporated milk (NOT canned condensed milk, which is sweetened)

1/2 cup sour cream

2 tablespoons lemon juice

1 teaspoon tamari soy sauce or other soy sauce

2 teaspoons Gravy Master or Kitchen Bouquet

1 tablespoon dried dill (or 3 tablespoons fresh chopped dill)

1/2 teaspoon salt (remember, the chicken broth likely has salt, so you may not even need to add salt)

In a bowl, soak the dried mushrooms for 20 to 25 minutes in about 1 1/4 cups water. In a heavy bottomed pan or pot over medium heat, add the olive oil and melt the butter. Add the chopped onion and saute for 3 or 4 minutes, then add the chopped mushrooms and cook, stirring often, until the onions soften and the mushroom pieces cook down somewhat (initially, you will have a mountain of mushroom pieces). Sprinkle the flour over the mushrooms, stir well to mix, then cook for another 2 minutes, then drain the soaked mushrooms and add the mushroom soaking liquid to the pan and stir well. Add the paprika, black pepper, soy sauce and Gravy Master or Kitchen Bouquet, then stir in the chicken broth and salt, if using, and mix well. Bring the soup to a simmer and adjust the heat to maintain that light simmer for 12 to 14 minutes. Stir in the milk, then after about just one minute add the lemon juice and stir in the sour cream. Keep the soup on the heat just for another 3 or 4 minutes. If you'd like, you can top each serving with a spoonful of sour cream dusted lightly with some Hungarian sweet paprika.

 

WORD HISTORY:

Avarice-This word is closely related to "avid," a Latin-derived word borrowed by English via French. "Avarice" goes back to Indo European "heweh," which had the notion "to enjoy, to enjoy immensely." This gave its Old Italic offspring "awe(o)," with the meaning, "to desire, to crave, to be eager (for)," a result of enjoying immensely. This gave Latin the verb "avere," meaning, "to be eager for, to crave," which produced the adjective "avarus," meaning, "greedy," and this gave Latin the noun "avaritia," meaning, "greed," also, "gluttony," in reference to food consumption. This passed into Latin-based Old French as "avarice," meaning "greed," and this was borrowed by English, circa 1300, meaning, "greed, excessive desire for money or wealth," also, "desire for power."     

Seafood Bisque

Nothing like a good seafood bisque.

 

 

Ingredients (about 4 servings):

 

1/3 cup lobster meat bite size pieces

1/3 cup crab meat bite size pieces

1/3 cup small shrimp, or larger shrimp cut in half (peeled and deveined)

2/3 cup onion, finely chopped

1/2 cup carrot, shredded

2 cups mild chicken broth (or vegetable stock)

3 tablespoons flour

4 tablespoons butter + 1 teaspoon regular olive oil

1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

1 teaspoon tarragon (if you use the leaves, crush them in your palm first)

1/3 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1/2 can evaporated milk (not condensed milk!)*

1/2 cup half and half

3 tablespoons brandy (+ 1 or 2 for yourself  hahaha)

1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

 

In a large heavy bottom pan or pot over low heat, add and melt the butter and mix in the teaspoon of oil. Add the onion and the carrot and stir frequently until the vegetables soften; this can take a little time, but it is important to continue cooking the vegetables until they are softened. Unless you're Bugs Bunny, you don't want to bite into a bunch of crunchy carrot and start going around saying, "What's up, Doc?" When the veggies are softened, sprinkle the flour over the veggies and stir it in. Adjust the heat upward to medium and add 1/2 cup of the broth, stirring to mix the broth with the flour coated vegetables, until the liquid just starts to bubble. Add another 1/2 cup of broth and stir again and repeat the process, allowing the liquid to heat up to nearly boiling, before adding another 1/2 cup of broth. The liquid should thicken somewhat by the time all of the broth is added and heated (I said "somewhat;" we're not making pie filling or cement). Stir in the Worcestershire sauce, tarragon and cayenne pepper (1/3 teaspoon of cayenne in this amount of ingredients will not cause you to dial 9-1-1 or seek treatment in your local emergency care facility; on the other hand, if you're a person who seeks your own personal Hell in spicy food, I personally don't think you should use a lot more than 1/3 or 1/2 a teaspoon of cayenne pepper, because seafood is mild in taste and you would be overdoing it in a great bisque.) Turn the heat back down to low, stir, and then add the evaporated milk and the half and half, stirring as you add the dairy products. Add the shrimp, the lobster meat and the crab meat. Add the brandy and the ground black pepper and gently mix them in. Let everything warm up completely, but do NOT let it boil at all and do not let the shrimp cook too long, or they'll become rubbery. (To test, you can take a piece of shrimp from the bisque and throw it at the wall, if it bounces back, you've got two problems: the shrimp is overcooked, plus you'll have to clean the wall  hahahahaha!)

 

 

* Evaporated milk is heated to kill bacteria and it has more than half of the water removed. It is similar in appearance to homogenized milk, with it typically being just slightly off white in color, although with some brand names it is more to a light tan color. Condensed milk also has more than half of the water removed, but then sugar is added, making the milk thick and sweet. It is typically kind of beige in color.

 

 

WORD HISTORY:

Bisque-English has two words of this spelling, with the least used word meaning "a type of unglazed ceramic," which is simply a shortened form of "biscuit," due to the material being baked. The more common form, meaning "a thick and creamy soup," is "seemingly" an altered form of "Biscay," a province of Spain that is the heart of the Basque part of Spain (in Spanish, the region is known as "Vizcaya"), with the bay between Spain and France also bearing the name. The soup may well have acquired the name from the bay, as it is often a soup of fish or other seafood, which would have been caught in the bay. On the French side of the border, in southwestern France, is the seaside resort of "Biscarrosse Plage," with the first part of the name obviously derived from the same ultimate source, presumed to be the Basque word "biskar," thought to mean "mountainous area, mountain ridge," which if true, would be a likely reference to the Pyrennes Mountains.

Corsican Vegetable Soup: Minestra

Corsica is an island located some 100+ miles southeast of the French coast (at its nearest point), about 60 miles west of the northwestern Italian coast, called "Liguria," and about 7 or so miles north of the Italian island of Sardinia. It was under the control of Genoa for a few hundred years (this was well before Italy was united as a modern nation) and there was a brief period of independence, followed by a takeover by France in the 1760s. The ethnic composition of the island was varied in those times, as many peoples traipsed across the island at one time or another, but "likely" the population was more tilted to Italian than any other one group, and Italian and a Corsican dialect/language (closely related to Italian) prevailed as the languages on the island until French was strongly pushed after the takeover by France, whereupon French became the dominant language during the mid 1800s, as it remains to this day. Napoleon Bonaparte was born to Italian parents in Ajaccio, Corsica in 1769, and his birth name, "Napoleone di Buonaparte," reflects his Italian heritage. Since France took control of Cosica in the 1760s, there has only been relatively weak interest by some Italians on the mainland, as well as by some highly vocal Italo-Corsicans, to reestablish Italian control over Corsica. This intensified during the fascist era of, "don't you want to go back to the Roman Empire; nothing like the past," but except for a brief period of less than one year of Italian military occupation, reinforced by some German military units, Corsica's control by France has remained intact, although with much debate about Corsican autonomy within France.      
This recipe is a version of Italian vegetable soup, called minestrone, but the Corsican version is made with smoked pork, like ham hocks, smoked pork shoulder or even bacon, and this imparts a smoky taste to the soup. Don't be intimidated by the rather lengthy list of ingredients, because many are vegetables, and I've never found any one vegetable added to the soup that makes it "Corsican." Both the Corsicans for minestra and the Italians for minestrone use the vegetables that are freshly available by season, so there really isn't a set recipe. Corsicans sometimes use Swiss chard, but cabbage is also common, and leek is another common ingredient, but if you don't use leeks much, you can leave them out, Napoleon won't get you, he's been dead for quite some time.   

Ingredients (8 to 12 servings, depending upon serving size):

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
6 cloves garlic, chopped
2 cups chopped onion
2 cups canned cannellini beans or about 2/3 cup dried cannellini beans soaked in water overnight
2 carrots, peeled and chopped
2 medium potatoes, peeled and diced
2 stalks celery, sliced into about 1/2 inch pieces
1/2 medium head of cabbage, cut into fairly large pieces, about 2 inch pieces (no thick stems)
2 small to medium smoked ham hocks
8 cups chicken broth (you may want to even add more later)
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 baseball size tomato, chopped
1 cup green beans cut in 1 inch pieces
1 zucchini (washed and skin on), chopped
1 1/2 cups chopped smoked pork shoulder (I chop the pork into about 1/2 inch pieces)
1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
1 teaspoon freshly chopped rosemary
2/3 cup macaroni
1/2 teaspoon salt (optional, remember, the broth and smoked pork likely have salt)
1 teaspoon black pepper
extra virgin olive oil for serving 

In a pot over medium heat, add the oil and let it heat up briefly, then add the onion and garlic, saute for a couple of minutes. If using dried beans, add them now along with the carrots, potatoes, celery, cabbage, ham hocks, chicken broth and oregano. (NOTE: I check the ham hocks to make sure no pieces of bone are loose and therefore likely to fall off into the soup. I've actually wrapped ham hocks in cheesecloth to prevent bits of bone from getting into the soup also.) Bring the soup to a simmer and keep the heat at that level to maintain a gentle simmer for about 75 minutes. (Note: if you use dried beans, they naturally will soak up lots of liquid, so you'll likely need to add more broth, or just water.) Now add the zucchini and tomato and simmer for another 10 minutes. Add the chopped smoked pork shoulder, thyme, rosemary, macaroni, black pepper, salt (if using), and if using canned beans, add them now (check the liquid level too and add more, if needed; to me, broth is better than plain water). Simmer the soup for about another 20 minutes, or until the macaroni is just tender. Take the soup from the heat, take the ham hocks from the soup, cut off the skin and remove the meat from the bones, and return the meat to the soup. Drizzle a little extra virgin olive oil on top of each serving.

WORD HISTORY:
Vend (Vendor)-This contracted compound is closely related to "venal," a Latin-derived word borrowed by English through Latin-based French. The very abbreviated ending is related to "donate," another Latin-derived word borrowed by English through French. "Vend" goes back to Indo European "wes," which had the meaning, "to buy, to sell." This gave Latin the noun "venum," meaning, "something for sale." The ending goes back to Indo European "do" (long 'o'), which meant, "to give;" thus also, "to present, to offer." This gave Latin "dare," meaning, "to give." Together Latin had "venumdare," meaning, "to give for sale, to offer for sale." This produced the Latin verb "vendare," meaning, "to sell," but with a secondary meaning, "to offer for a bribe." Old French had "vendre" ("to sell") from the Latin, and likely English borrowed "vend" from French, but with heavy reinforcement by Latin, although it could be the other way around, circa 1600. French also had the noun "vendeor," which was "vendor" ("seller") in the waning days of the French spoken in England (Anglo-French), and this was also borrowed circa 1600. French had the word from the Latin noun "venditor," "seller," but also, "one who sells for corrupt purpose."     

Spicy Mexican Corn Soup

This is a good and spicy soup with no actual meat, although I use chicken broth, and you could certainly use vegetable broth instead. Using 2 chipotle peppers will not likely bring smoke billowing from your ears, but if you like more heat, 4 chipotles will likely do the trick. Be sure to include some of the adobo sauce from the chipotle peppers; it will provide great flavor for the soup. Optionally, if you want to thicken the soup, you can add some cornmeal or corn flour. While both are ground corn, corn flour is finely ground. Queso blanco or other white cheese are great with this. I actually used "Chihuahua" cheese, and if you think this is a "dog cheese," you're barking up the wrong tree... It's a white cheese popular in Mexico which originated in the state of Chihuahua. The little dog of that name is simply named after that state. 

Ingredients (about 6 to 8 servings):

3 cups corn (fresh, but frozen corn is fine)
1 tablespoon ancho chili powder
2 to 4 chipotle peppers with adobo sauce
4 1/2 cups chicken broth
3 Roma tomatoes, chopped
1 tablespoon Mexican oregano
2/3 cup chopped onion
1 tablespoon butter + 2 tablespoons regular olive oil  
3 garlic cloves, minced
1/3 cup chopped cilantro
white cheese in small cubes (queso blanco, Chihuahua cheese, mozzarella or Monterey Jack)
3/4 teaspoon salt (if the broth has a high salt content, you can omit adding salt or just add a pinch)
(Optional) 3 to 4 tablespoons cornmeal or corn flour (or more to your own preference of thickness)

In a heavy-bottomed sauce pan over low heat, melt the butter and heat the olive oil. Add the chopped onion and saute for 4 to 5 minutes, then add the minced garlic and saute another 1 to 2 minutes. Increase the heat to medium and add the chopped tomatoes, oregano, chili powder, chipotle peppers with adobo sauce; saute further until the tomatoes soften. Empty the cooked ingredients into a blender of food processor and process until smooth. Return the smooth mixture to the sauce pan over medium heat and add the chicken broth, mix well and bring to a simmer. Add the corn, the cilantro and any salt you're using (if using corn flour or cornmeal, mix it with some water or broth and stir well to prevent lumps, then stir it into the soup). Maintain a steady simmer and cook for 6 to 8 minutes more. When serving, add 4 or 5 white cheese cubes to each bowl of soup. You can also add a dollop of sour cream to each serving (reduced fat sour cream is fine). Serve with tortilla chips and/or grilled corn cakes. 
     
With tortilla chips and a grilled corn cake on the side ... 

WORD HISTORY:
Gringo-This word is related to "Greek" (the word for the people of Greece and their language), a word of shaky origin that was passed to English from its parent language, Old Germanic, which had borrowed it from Latin. While there is no firm evidence as to why the "Hellenes," the previous name for the Greeks, began to be called the "Greeks," the Romans used the term "Graeci" as the word in Latin, seemingly as a borrowing from Greek "Grakoi." The Latin form was passed down to Latin-based Spanish as "griego," which spawned the Spanish word "gringo" (also passed on to Portuguese as such) with the meaning, "speaker of unintelligible words, speaker of gibberish, speaker of such poor Spanish, so as not to be understood;" thus also, "speaker of a foreign tongue." ^ Later in Spanish speaking Mexico, which had lots of contact with Americans, much of the contact being contentious, the word took on the meaning there of "foreigner, an Anglo-American," but often implying that in a less than flattering way. The word seemingly came into more English use during the "U.S.-Mexican War," in 1846-48.    

^ In English we say, "it's all Greek to me" to convey that we don't understand something written or said. This was either developed by Shakespeare for use in the play "Julius Caesar," or it was taken by him from some unknown source, but the saying remains with us to this day. Further, what is now the name for the country of "Wales," and for the people of Wales, the "Welsh," came from the Germanic words for "foreigners, (usually) Celts," and for, "gibberish, foreign (usually Celtic) speech." The Anglo-Saxon conquerors of Britain used their forms of the words (dialects in those times) for the Celtic speaking people of Britain, especially for those who survived the Germanic invasions in Cornwall and Wales.