i'll take any excuse

two wednesdays ago,

i fell victim to

a common problem

i like to call:

forgot to watch the weather

channel.

a sin amidst the global

warming crisis,

which demands - in addition

to caring more about our 

environment - constantly

staying closely acquainted

with the local meteorologist.

i was wearing a zip-up

hoodie, which the day

before would have been fine,

but that day, so warm that

even sitting inside was 

unbearable, made

me want to 

unzip and remove

the hot and oppressive

shirt (at work) and

spend the rest of the 

day in a tank top.

it was horrible. 

but as i drove home -

the offending straitjacket

thankfully strewn on the 

passenger seat beside me -

i thought,

spring is here.

but i was wrong.

as much as we want to 

fight it and get excited

when we wake up to birds

chirping, as they occasionally

have been, or see gorgeous

yellow daffodils in the store,

or slip on our 

faithful flip-flops,

we can't. 

because there are still days

like today, when it is cold,

raining and so foggy,

we can barely see the building

across the street.

and while i'm unbelievably

anxious to stop wearing my

coat, i'm thankful for one

thing that this prolonged

winter gives us: soup.

i love big pots of

soups,

stews,

chilis,

anything that comes

together to be warm and

comforting and is even 

better when made a day

ahead - perfect in my book.

african peanut soup

is one of my favorites,

one of the few recipes that

i've repeated year after year,

shared container-fulls 

with my mom,

and frozen into perfect

one-person servings

for easy lunches.

straight-forward

and very familiar,

onion and red pepper

provide the base for 

this tomato soup.

it is fortified with

a large handful

of brown rice,

which adds some

needed heft.

and just when you

start to think,

this is thinner

than i would prefer,

you stir in 

the secret weapon,

chunky peanut butter.

the peanut butter

helps thicken

the soup.

but it also

gives the tomatoes 

an underlying

nuttiness,

that while may

sound odd,

is entirely welcome.

i'm sure

you could use smooth peanut 

butter

to just as good

results,

but i like the crunch

and texture that the

bits of nuts 

add to the mixture.

together the tomatoes and 

peanut butter

fuse into an unexpectedly

successful meal - 

a real meal, not just

an appetizer or first

course - that i often

taste and day-dream

about in the days before

simmering up a new batch.  

and that, i believe is the hallmark

of a good recipe, and why i return

to this faithful standby

time and time again.

sure, you can hold onto

the recipe until

next year.

wait until it is truly

winter,

not spring hiding

behind the cold.

but i really believe

that a few spoonfuls of this

soup

will make you feel

better about the 

fact that, in this house 

at least, we're all 

still wearing

heavy socks.

and 

winter coats.

on top of our

zipped-up hoodies.

african peanut soup

over the years, i've tinkered with this recipe, originally found here. that's the great thing about soups, you can easily adapt them to whatever you have in your kitchen or to better suit your tastes. i've made batches without the red peppers, added sweet potatoes and once, pureed the whole thing before adding the rice and peanut butter. also like most soups, the flavor thrives when prepared a day or two ahead of when you plan to enjoy it.

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 large onions, peeled and chopped

1 large red bell pepper, cored, seeded and chopped

6 cloves garlic, peeled and finely chopped

1 tablespoon tomato paste

1 can (28 ounce) crushed tomatoes, with liquid

8 cups chicken stock

15 grinds fresh black pepper

3/4 teaspoon chili powder

1/4 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper

1/2 cup brown rice

2/3 cup crunchy peanut butter

in large saucepot over medium heat, warm olive oil. add onion and red pepper and cook 15 minutes, or until slightly caramelized, stirring often. add garlic and cook 2 minutes. season with kosher salt. add tomato paste; increase heat to high. cook 1 minute, or until tomato paste has deepened to rust color, the vegetables are coated and you can smell the paste. add crushed tomatoes, chicken stock, pepper, chili powder and cayenne pepper. over high heat, bring mixture to a boil. reduce heat to low and simmer uncovered 30 minutes.  

stir in brown rice; cover and simmer 30-45 minutes, or until rice is tender. whisk in peanut butter until completely blended (it may take some vigorous whisking). season with salt and pepper. when ready to serve, divide soup among bowls and top with dry roasted peanuts.