This is a simple soup that everyone loves.  It is easy to make if you have the chicken stock ready – I make it for my family using the leftover soup from Shabbat dinner.  You can use any vegetables you like – try bell peppers, baby corn, water chestnuts, or various types of Chinese mushrooms.  The vegetables stay crunchy and fresh-tasting as they are not cooked or boiled in the soup and, because they are divided among each soup bowl, you can give each person (child!) exactly the vegetables they like.  This recipe is for a crowd and makes 12 large bowls of soup – for smaller servings, use 12 cups of stock and reduce the seasonings accordingly.

This recipe is an adaptation of one I found years ago in an old cookbook of the Sisterhood of Congregation Mishkan Tefila in Newton. It is pure comfort food to me and my favorite chili recipe. It is easy to make (you don’t have to chop chili peppers!), easy to serve, and will satisfy a hungry crowd. This version is medium spicy, but you can use more chili powder or cayenne pepper to add more zip!

Our debut feature recipe is classic chicken soup. I wanted our inaugural recipe to be something traditional, something special, something memorable. But chicken soup? Doesn't everyone know how to make chicken soup? Maybe. But here is the version that my husband calls "the elixir of life." I make this stock every Thursday evening (for Shabbat dinner the next night), before every Jewish holiday, when a family member is sick, and whenever I have a good excuse. I use the stock as is, with noodles or other starch additives, or doctor it up to make a Chinese-style soup or a vegetable soup. I have a secret, though, that keeps me from being tied to my stovetop for hours, a secret passed down from my grandmother to my mother to me: Use a pressure cooker! My pressure cooker is probably the pot used most in my kitchen. I have three sizes for year-round use (the inexpensive Presto brand), and another set for Passover. Once the pot is put on the burner, the stock is done in about 30 minutes. If you insist, you can use a regular stockpot, but be prepared to stick around for two or three hours. Here it is: my easy, quick version of the Jewish penicillin.

Club soda is the secret ingredient to make these knaidlach (matzo balls) light and fluffy! This recipe can be doubled easily, but be sure to use a large pot and don't peek during cooking!

Food Editor’s Note: I’m always wary of low-fat versions of anything, because often taste is compromised. Not so with these matzo balls! They are just the right consistency (not too hard, not too soft) and quite flavorful. The dill adds a nice touch that complements the chicken soup, both in taste and color.

This recipe is from Norene’s cookbook MealLeaniYumm! Norene is also the author of one of my all-time favorite cookbooks, The Pleasures of Your Processor, which she has recently updated and retitled The Food Processor Bible (see footer for more information). All her cookbooks are kosher, provide practical details (about freezing, for example), and are generally informative and easy-to-use.

Food Editor's Notes:  This is a delicious, healthful, and hearty soup that is easy to make.  Aside from a few basics that are identified with minestrone, such as tomatoes, beans, and Italian spices (basil, oregano, parsley), you can add whatever vegetables, pasta, and cooking liquids you have available in your refrigerator or pantry or whatever strikes your fancy.  This is also a versatile dish for the kosher kitchen, as it can be made pareve to serve with any meal, with no loss of flavor.  Sprinkling with parmigiana cheese just before serving is a dairy option, and using beef or chicken stock, or adding meat, makes a fleishig version that is even heartier and could easily serve as a main course.  Julie makes her minestrone with beef stock and hamburger meat.  Others use soup bones or pieces of chuck.  The amount of liquids used is also discretionary, depending on whether you like your minestrone thicker or soupier.  Add other vegetables if you wish, such as broccoli, cabbage, chick peas, or frozen corn or peas.  The assortment of ingredients adds not just flavor, but texture and color.  The recipe below is the version I made most recently and is totally pareve.  I could have used vegetable broth for part of the liquid, but I used just water and some red wine.  The flavor will of course vary with the specific ingredients used, but it is very hard to produce a less-than-delicious end-product.  The soup will usually thicken more when refrigerated, but just add more water, stock, or tomato juice or sauce, if you'd like to thin it out.  The recipe below can easily be doubled or tripled.

This mushroom and barley soup has a rich, thick texture and gives new meaning to the definition of comfort food! I think using fresh leeks instead of onions enhances the taste immeasurably. And, as is the case with most soups, the flavors intensify when refrigerated overnight.