Once upon a time, there was a cozy little wine bar on Henderson Avenue called La Cave. I worked in the kitchen there in 1977. It wasn’t really a kitchen, it was a small area behind the bar with a hot plate, toaster oven, a small refrigerator, and a dish washer. There was enough space for one person.
Every morning I would go down to the Dallas Farmers Market and buy ingredients and head to the tiny kitchen to make the soup of the day. This was my favorite job ever. Customers would come in and I could chat with them as I toiled behind the bar.
I made some bitchin’ soup. Cabbage and cauliflower was the most popular, probably because I used about 100 pounds of butter. One day a week I made onion soup, but I got tired of spending the late afternoons trying to scrub the Gruyere baked on the bowls.
I still love soup. And I love to make it. But I confess: I am lazy. My friend and chef, Joanne Bondy, has given me—and all of you—the gift of good soup. I make a weekly trek to Stocks & Bondy at the Dallas Farmers Market to buy quarts of soup. Ginger carrot and pork posole with tomatillos and hominy.
That is what I ate all week—soup. Perhaps a peanut butter sandwich and a couple salads. And you? What did you do? Did you eat soup? If you didn’t, where would you?
P.S. Talking about La Cave reminded me of a post I wrote five years ago: “Confession: I am Guilty of a Heinous Wine Crime.” (Those bottles are still under my desk!)
