Minestrone Soup

Tonight was all about the minestrone soup. Everyone in our little household is sick; the baby is startled by his dad's cough. The other day the baby was enormously shocked into stunned, open-mouthed silence after I sneezed. I suspect for all he knew, he was the only ever being in existence to have sneezed. He's also recently fascinated by the sight of us eating, particularly noodles. It's as though he can't wrap his mind around it.

What with all this sneezing and coughing, tonight we needed some steamy liquid with vegetables and protein. I cracked open my Mark Bittman cookbook, looked up some ingredients, and off baby and I went to pick up chickpeas and tiny fragments of strangely expensive pasta. We came back after some exploring, and between diaper changes and four feedings I managed to make minestrone soup. Here's how:

I sauteed one small onion, a carrot, and the one celery stalk retrieved from the vegetable crisper that hadn't mysteriously frozen. (5 minutes, on low, while feeding the baby).

I threw in about two cups of peeled and diced parsnips and stirred them around, then added another small chopped onion because I like onion and wanted more. (1 minute, on medium). I sprinkled on salt and pepper, and fed the baby some more.

I added a cup of diced tomato and its juice, 6 cups of vegetable broth, a rinsed can of chickpeas, and turned the flame to high until the pot of nascent soup boiled, at which point I turned it down to a gentle bubble, and left to feed the baby again indefinitely. (30 minutes, medium)

I added about two cups of chopped green beans and kale, along with three quarters of a cup of adorable tiny pasta squares, lots more water, more salt and cayenne pepper. Eventually, once the baby had fed himself to contented sleep while I spoke on the phone with a friend, I added a teaspoon of minced garlic, a touch of lime, and some dried basil and parsley. (20 minutes, medium)

The soup was hot, fragrant, fresh, colorful and steamy. I served it as per Bittman's instructions, with Parmesan cheese, which made it unexpectedly delicious. Adult members of the household ate it with lentil crackers and cheese sandwiches, breathing in the steam while fervently hoping for release from illness. The baby woke up after we'd eaten; he cuddled in my arms and eventually fell asleep again while looking up at me. I watched his eyes transition from wakefulness to sleep, open all the while, and marveled. He'll taste that soup in his milk tonight.