Minestrone & Shortbread for All Soul's
by Cindi Sutter, Founder & Editor Spirited Table®—All Content provided by Beth & Kip Dooley
Good morning, home cooks:
Today is All Soul's Day, a time to honor the dead, welcoming the wise and well spirits into our homes, and setting out gifts and prayers for those who are not yet well. All Soul's is one manifestation of countless traditions worldwide that honor the dead as the earth turns to winter.
Here at Bare Bones, we're still early in our process of reclaiming the older ways of our ancestors lost over centuries of colonization and migration. There's no one way to honor the dead. Cooking a deceased loved one's favorite meal is a good place to start.
Over the next few weeks, we'll be sharing highlights from our Fall Bare Bones Cooking Class. Today, enjoy an essay from Beth on how she's celebrating Halloween and All Soul's, along with a recipe for the Minestrone and Short Bread she's setting out for her dad, grandmother, and all the souls out there in need of a little nourishment.
A jack-o-lantern at the Bynum Bridge in Pittsboro, N.C. / Kip Dooley
As the lake turns the color of a fox’s coat, reflecting the fading red and gold trees, I scurry to plant bulbs and restock the woodpile. After a Sunday of yard and kitchen work, my appetites surge. It’s a night for candlelight and fire -- and oh, right, trick-or-treating.
Little monsters, fairies and Batmen show up in droves, back in full force after a year’s worth of fun was lost to COVID. After a while, Daisy gives up on barking at each ring of the doorbell. When I run out of candy, I have to give the final goblin a mere apple, which he accepts graciously, if quietly. As the last of the little ones scurries away, I prepare to welcome different, older spirits through the door.
I set out a spirit plate to hold the favorite foods of my remembered ancestors: minestrone for my dad, Mark; buttery shortbread for my Grandma Flower; anchovies on saltines for my father-in-law Vince (an odd taste he and I bonded over); cold, seedless red grapes for his wife, Betty. I’m reminded that these were the same foods we set out for them when they visited Kevin and I from New Jersey during our early years in Minneapolis. Through this ritual of return, I get to reflect on all that has changed over the years: the births, deaths, relationships, jobs, rituals, and homes.
Throughout this week, starting tonight, I’ll stoke my relationship with those who once walked with us, asking what they need from me, and what I need to know from them on the other side of the veil.
In Ireland, many families sweep and clean and ready the hearth on All Soul's Day, setting out a bowl of spring water and a place setting at the dinner table for each deceased relative, along with each of their favorite foods. It's a sign of welcome and an opportunity to reconnect. There is nothing “scary” about these visits, no ghoulish images, no weird noises or ear-piercing screams. Halloween, an evolution of the pre-Christian, Celtic celebration of Samhain, has by now scared off the malevolent spirits. Rather, in cultures that actively stoke their connections with the dead, the dead who are well in spirit are welcomed into the home; their presence is considered a gift.
The minestrone pot of tomatoes, white beans, and lots of young garlic is now steaming up the kitchen windows as it simmers on the back of the stove, and I pull the shortbread from the oven. When Kevin gets home, I’ll crack a beer and open that can of anchovies, some for me, the rest for Vince. I’ll go to bed early, dream journal at my bedside, leaving the fireplace embers to burn low, so our ancestors will have a warm hearth to sit by tonight, sharing their blessings, stories and visions.
Poppop's Minestrone
Serves 4 to 6
Mette Nielsen
Ingredients
2 links Italian sausage or vegetarian sausage, cut into 1-inch chunks (optional)
1 large white onion, chopped
2 celery ribs, chopped
1 medium carrot, chopped
1 small bunch Swiss chard
3 cloves garlic, smashed
1 tablespoon tomato paste
4 cups canned tomatoes with juice
Pinch red pepper flakes
1 cup white wine
4 cups water
5 cups chopped cabbage
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 small piece Parmesan cheese rind
1 cup cooked white beans
Olive oil and grated parmesan cheese for garnish
Instructions
In a large soup pot set over medium heat, sizzle the sausage until brown and cooked through. Remove with slotted spoon and set aside. In the same pot, add a swirl of olive oil and cook the onions, celery carrots, chard, and garlic until the vegetables are limp, about 3 minutes. Stir in the tomato paste and cook until just starting to brown, about 1 minute. Stir in the tomatoes with their juices, wine, water, and cabbage, scraping up any of the bits that stick to the bottom of the pot. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Stir in the parmesan rind, reduce the heat, and simmer until the vegetables are tender. Taste and adjust the seasonings. Serve with a swirl of olive oil and grated cheese as a garnish.
Gram Flower’s Shortbread
Makes 16 pieces
Ingredients
16 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
¾ cups confectioners’s sugar
¾ teaspoon salt
1 cup rolled oats
1-1/2 cups unbleached all purpose flour
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease an 8-inch round cake pan. Put the ingredients into a food processor fitted with a steel blade and process to make a smooth, sticky dough. Turn the dough into the prepared pan and score into 16 wedges. Bake until the shortbread is firm, about 35 to 40 minutes. Remove from the oven, and after 5 minutes turn it out onto a piece of parchment paper and cut all the way through the score marks to make wedges. Place on a rack to cool completely.
Thanks for reading, friends. We'll be back next week with some recipes and highlights from our Fall Bare Bones Cooking Class.
May you and your people be nourished,
Beth & Kip
Bare Bones features weekly-ish essays on food, family and what nourishes us from Beth Dooley and Kip Dooley.