“What’s for dinner?” asked Ryley.
“I’m inventing a soup.”
Ryley has a gift for asking questions I never anticipate: “Is it going to be ugly?”
“You can bet on it.”
He wandered off. I spent the next 20 minutes fielding questions from all the other kids about my invented soup. What’s in it? Why? Why are you inventing a soup? Do I have to try it?
Why?
Eventually I declared the soup done enough to scoop into bowls. I passed them out. Skepticism was in the air.
Aidan cheerfully offered, “Sometimes foods that look disgusting taste good!” Later she said it was like eating baby food soup—which everyone knows is crazy.
We dove in. It was okay. I wouldn’t recommend this recipe to anyone, however. Still, I am compelled to share in case someone has suggestions on how to improve this soup. It seemed like it had so many possiblities last night. Something got lost in translation, though.
2 boxes Campbell’s Select Gold Label Butternut Squash soup
1 can cannellini, rinsed and drained (in retrospect I would have used two cans)
1 package of Archer Farms Garlic and Spinach Chicken Sausage links
1 Hostess Twinkie
Ground pepper to taste.Pour the soup into a large pot and begin simmering according to package directions. Cook the sausage using the proper utensils in case your nine-year-old daughter is watching and comments that she didn’t know you could turn sausages like that. Rinse and drain the beans. Stir them into the soup. Simmer.
Take out your Hostess Twinkie and slowly eat it as you consider Plan B. Stir.
It needs pepper. Trust me. Add it. Stir.
Once the sausage is thoroughly heated, slice it into bite-sized pieces and add it to the soup. Stir.
You can stir a soup or a soul until it’s dizzy, but if the right ingredients aren’t there to begin with nothing will help.
Were there leftovers of the “Ugly Soup”? I have had a few “lose that recipe” dinners myself. Oh, at least there were Twinkes!
I think the key ingredient there is the Twinkie. I would recommend adding it to every recipe. Then if the recipe bombs, at least you had a little snack.
Love it! This made me smile. Oh how I can relate!
Beautiful! Love the twinkie. I admit you had me worried when I read it up in the ingredients. It reminds me a bit of that cajun chef who had to have a swig of the Sherry he cooked with.
In New Mexico they would add chili 🙂
The only question would be “Red or Green.”
(It’s the NM “state question”)
We’ve had a lot of ugly dinners here, soup and otherwise. I agree that it sounds full of possibilities…but I’d rather be full of twinkie cream.
I recently started visiting your blog and laughed hard as a fellow dinner inventor and parent of a 9 yr old girl. I was born in CO, so #1 my answer to DaddyBob’s question would have to be green chile-yum! and #2 My first job EVER was at Casa Bonita, so next time I’m in town I’ll take you up on the offer for auce sopapillas-double yum!
So I am not the only chef who sneaks wicked snacks in the midst of cooking? My specialty is Brach’s caramels hidden behind the baking soda and the Cream of Wheat.
I must say I’m greatly relieved the twinkie was for you. I was retroactively hurling until you revealed its purpose.
I think a second Twinkie would really perk things up.
LOL at the term “Ugly Soup.” Sounds like something my kids would say.
Maybe some cayenne pepper?
I’m with Suzanne–you definitely needed more Twinkies.
Oh my goodness – when I saw the twinky I laughed (my hubby looked at me from the corner of his eye). I have to try it just because…