“Escarole Soup” For "Soupy Tuesday" & "Saint Nicholas Day"

“The love of our family soups, flows strong and deep, leaving us memories to treasure and keep.” by Campbell’s

Welcome to a delicious “Soupy Tuesday.” For those of you that are new to my blog…For the next few months I will be sharing a recipe for a delicious easy soup. As the days get cooler and eventually colder, everyone enjoys a hot bowl of soup. If you would like to see a special recipe for soup or have one that you want to share just email me at (angellite13 [at] optimum [dot] net) or post something in the comments below. I will be happy to give you a shout out. Hope this keeps you warm and cozy for the next few months…

We are in the second week of Advent already. Advent is the religious countdown to Christmas. It seems to be a magical time. During the Advent season, Christians all over the world start to prepare for the birth of Jesus. In celebration of His birth, there are many preparations, such as decorating your house, your tree, wrapping gifts, cards to write, meals to plan, and cook, plus baking cookies, gingerbread houses, and lastly who will be attending Midnight Mass. 

"San Nicola or St. Nick"

I noticed that this past Sunday was December 6th! That was the feast of St. Nicholas. Whether you call him, Kris Kringle, Father Christmas, Santa Claus, St. Nick, or any other names that are used for him, Santa is still the hero of millions of children in the whole world. He has a reputation for secret gift giving. Legend states that one of the old Christian traditions surrounding St. Nicholas’ feast day is for kids to leave their shoes out overnight in front of the fireplace, on the windowsill, or outside their bedroom door, so that St. Nicholas can fill their shoes with special fruits, candies, and other small gifts or treats. Another cute part of this tradition is for kids to leave carrots or hay in their shoes for St. Nicholas’ donkey to eat. St. Nicholas takes the hay and carrots for his donkey and replaces them with small gifts and treats for the children. That is how he became the model for our modern day Santa Claus, which also comes from the Dutch name called Sinterklaas. St. Nicholas (San Nicola) is the patron saint of Bari, in Italy, where his relics are buried in the Basilica di San Nicola (Basilica of St. Nicholas). Therefore, I hope that your shoes contain many goodies from St. Nicholas!

"Cooking With Nonna"

My recipe this week is “Escarole Soup” This recipe is a traditional dish that my mom used to make every year for St. Nicholas day when I was young. It’s origin is Italian and you can add white kidney beans and tortellini to the soup. I also posted this recipe on “Cooking With Nonna” a few years ago. If you log on to “Cooking With Nonna,” Rossella Rago who hosts the site, has this recipe listed under Soups and shares my recipe with all of her readers and followers. Thank you Rossella…(If you click on “Cooking With Nonna” it will bring you to the recipe)

                             “Escarole Soup”

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1 pound of escarole, chopped and washed
A pinch of salt
4 cups low-salt chicken broth
Freshly ground pepper
Grated Pecorino-Romano cheese

Directions:
Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a heavy large pot over medium heat. Add the garlic and sauté until fragrant, about 15 seconds. Add the escarole and sauté until wilted, about 3 minutes. Add a pinch of salt. Add the chicken broth, cover and simmer about 5 minutes. You can add a can of white kidney beans (washed and rinsed to get the salt off) plus/or cooked Tortellini. Serve with crusty Italian bread and top with grated Pecorino-Romano cheese. 

*********There will be no blog post on Friday of this week as I am starting my 12 days of "Christmas Around The World" on Sunday December 13th through December 24th (Christmas Eve) So make sure you come back on Sunday to see what country I post first...I can't wait! I love Christmas anywhere!!! 

 
*******Also I would like to wish our Jewish friends and readers a very “Happy Chanukah” The Festival of The Lights is when a traditional menorah or candelabra, is used to light each candle of the eight nights of the holiday! Enjoy!

Till Next Time……

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