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• Add 1 teaspoon ground ginger (or 1 tablespoon finely minced peeled fresh ginger) or 1 teaspoon curry powder (and, if you have it, ½ teaspoon ground turmeric) to the simmering soup.

• Add ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon, ¼ teaspoon ground allspice, and a small grating of nutmeg to the simmering soup.

• Garnish each bowl of soup with 3 or 4 grilled, sautéed, or roasted shrimp; or about ¼ cup crabmeat or lobster meat per serving.

• Garnish the soup with chopped fresh chervil, chives, parsley, or dill.

• Stir 2 tablespoons to 1 cup crème fraîche, sweet cream, sour cream, or yogurt into the pureed soup as you are reheating it.

• Stir about 1 cup cooked long-grain rice into the pureed soup as you are reheating it.

Or make a variation on the main soup:

Pumpkin and Apple Soup

This screams autumn: Add ½ teaspoon ground ginger or 1 teaspoon minced peeled fresh ginger to the soup. Peel, core, and thinly slice 2 apples; cook them in 2 tablespoons butter until lightly browned, turning occasionally. Garnish the soup with the apple slices.

Creamy and Chunky Pumpkin Soup

Measure about 1 cup pumpkin or squash (you will almost always have extra), cut into ¼-inch dice, steam until tender, and stir into the soup about 2 minutes before removing from the heat.

Pumpkin and Mushroom Soup

Sauté about 1 cup sliced mushrooms—chanterelles are best, but shiitakes (stems discarded) or button mushrooms are good—in 2 tablespoons butter or extra virgin olive oil until they give up their liquid and begin to get crisp. Garnish the soup with them.

BLACK-EYED PEA SOUP WITH HAM AND GREENS

MAKES 4 SERVINGS

TIME: 45 MINUTES

THE SOUP DRAWS its main flavors from olive oil, cured meat, and watercress. It gains substance and supporting flavors from the peas and a little onion. The combination is delicious, warming, and celebratory in a rustic way. I like to serve with a bottle of Tabasco or any vinegar hot sauce at the table.

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

2 ounces ham, prosciutto, or bacon, chopped

1 medium onion, chopped

2 cups cooked, canned, or frozen

black-eyed peas (see Note)

2 cups watercress, trimmed and chopped

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1. Put half the olive oil in a deep skillet or casserole over medium-high heat. Add the meat and cook, stirring, for a minute; then add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until it softens and begins to brown, about 10 minutes. Add the peas and 1 quart of water and bring to a boil; turn the heat to medium-low and simmer, uncovered, until the peas are completely tender—10 minutes for cooked or canned, about 30 minutes for frozen.

2. Stir in the watercress and cook, stirring occasionally, for just a couple of minutes, or until it wilts. Add more water if the soup is very thick. Taste and adjust the seasoning, stir in the remaining olive oil, and serve.

NOTE

Frozen black-eyed peas (and white beans, chickpeas, and others) can be found in the supermarket freezer, and their convenience and quality are unparalleled; they’re faster and easier to use than dried beans or peas and far better tasting than canned ones. In the case of black-eyed peas, they need about half an hour to become fully tender. If you use precooked peas or those from a can (please rinse them first), that time will be reduced to almost nothing.

CARROT, SPINACH, AND RICE STEW

MAKES 4 SERVINGS

TIME: 45 MINUTES

THIS IS A stew of carrots, spinach, and rice cooked, you might say, to death. I first ate it at a Turkish lunch counter and was taken by its depth of flavor. The whole is definitely greater than the sum of its parts.

½ pound carrots, cut into ¼-inch dice

¾ cup long-grain rice, preferably basmati

Salt and freshly ground pepper

1 pound fresh spinach, thick stems removed, roughly chopped

3 garlic loves, minced (optional)

2 tablespoons butter (optional)

1. Combine the carrots with 3 cups of water in a saucepan over high heat. Bring to a boil, then stir in the rice and a large pinch of salt.