Poetry from the Kitchen

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Veggie Soup

Outside the day is cold and wet.
The trees and flowers droop.
Mom says the weather’s perfect
for making veggie soup.

We chop the bright orange carrots.
We core the red tomatoes.
We trim the ends off all the beans
and dice the sweet potatoes.

We put it all in a big black pot,
along with some water and rice.
We stir and wait and watch and taste,
adding a dash of spice.

Outside, everything is cold and wet,
huddled against the storm.
Inside, we’re eating veggie soup,
perfectly cozy and warm.

Yesterday was the first nasty day we’ve had this fall. Just looking out the window chilled my bones. Thus it was also the first perfect day to make soup. Of course I couldn’t start cooking the soup, until I wrote a poem about it. (That should give you some sense of my priorities.) I confess I don’t really enjoy cooking. I can’t seem to get in touch with the feeling that cooking is a form of caretaking. To me it just feels like a chore. But since I like eating soup, I have to cook it.

My favorite soup is Gypsy Soup from the Moosewood Cookbook.  As you can see the recipe is well loved. You can also see I took some poetic license with my poem, which is, of course, to be expected.

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For more Poetry Friday, visit Laura Purdie Salas at Writing the World for Kids.

25 replies
  1. jama
    jama says:

    Now that’s my kind of poem! It certainly was cold, nasty, and raw yesterday, the perfect day for making soup — both kinds, poetic and real. Guess which one lasts longer? 🙂

    Reply
  2. Bridget Magee
    Bridget Magee says:

    I’m looking forward to a cool weather day to make a pot of veggie soup. Maybe in January? I love all the colors sprinkled into your poem, adding a rainbow of flavor. Sending you warm vibes from the desert. = )

    Reply
  3. Laura Purdie Salas
    Laura Purdie Salas says:

    I am also someone who doesn’t love to cook, Liz! If I could afford it, financially and health-wise, I would always choose to eat food other people cooked! Ah, well. I like your soup poem, especially the way the last stanza circles back to the beginning. Nice. And…now I have a craving for soup.

    Reply
  4. Robyn Hood Black
    Robyn Hood Black says:

    I think your priorities are exactly right! And we still have our old Moosewood cookbook.
    Yummy way to tackle a dreary day – brought to my mind the wonderful Lois Ehlert book, GROWING VEGETABLE SOUP. :0)

    Reply
  5. Buffy Silverman
    Buffy Silverman says:

    Your Moosewood cookbook looks almost as tattered as mine! And your poem does not seem like it was written by someone who doesn’t like to cook–it’s as cozy and warm as making a pot of soup. BTW, I like your blog’s facelift.

    Reply
  6. Linda Baie
    Linda Baie says:

    I have the Moosewood Cookbook, but haven’t been inspired for soup yet. We had that one cold weekend-chili time for me, but since then, back to summer temps. I like the way your poem fits the picture, both yummy!

    Reply
  7. Michelle Heidenrich Barnes
    Michelle Heidenrich Barnes says:

    Just this week my son said to me with sweet anticipation, “We’re heading into soup season!” In his mind, it never arrives soon enough or lasts long enough in Florida. I see his point, but I guess I missed out on that cooking is caretaking gene too.

    Reply
  8. maryleehahn
    maryleehahn says:

    Yum! (both poem and soup recipe!!!) It is almost soup weather here, and I’ll have to try that one from Moosewood. My copy’s pesto page is the most well-loved, but I made nary a batch of pesto this year!

    Reply

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