Down the Rabbit Hole Soup (vegetarian)

Christina sat on the other side of the kitchen counter, her pointy boots rested on the chair opposite her. She looked like a lanky teenager, and she was telling goofy stories trying to lighten my mood. I was chopping my way through a thick cloud of post holiday depression. My knife was too dull, causing me to have to work hard to get through the springy outer skin of the potatoes. I looked up just as the knife came down to miss its mark and slice my left thumb. The pain throbbed instantly. I looked up at Christina, who had a worried look on her face. "Is it bad?" she said. "No" I said, but the pain in my thumb just bubbled up all the emotion that I have been keeping inside. The feelings that lay beneath the surface, the distance I feel from my family, the fear of being a disappointment, the resentment for expectations unmet, the friends that have moved on. I tried to freeze over, but the cap had been cracked and the emotion began to ooze.

My pity party was interrupted by a message of divine inspiration.

"I saw that coming"

"What?" I said to Christina.

"I swear, I just saw you cut yourself..and then, you did"

"weird" I said, although I was not one bit surprised.

"and remember how we both were oddly struck by the look of that one woman last night, and then she told us that she was pregnant"

"yeah, that was strange" I said, feeling lifted by the notion that the universe is guided by some sort of intelligence which can be accessed by keeping an open heart.

The stock

water

1/2 white onion

1/2 bunch celery, diced

2 bay leaves

1 tsp peppercorns

1 Tbsp salt

1 large parsnip, peeled and diced

2 carrots, peeled and diced

3 large purple cloves of garlic

the carrot tops

Simmer the onion in 1 cup of cold water while you prepare the remaining ingredients. Add the rest of the ingredients as they are prepared and 8 cups of cold water. Simmer uncovered for 1 hour. Strain.

While the soup stock is simmering, cook 1 1/2 cups black eyed peas in 3 cups of water. (throw the peas and the water in cold and bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer until tender. Do not add salt or seasonings at this point, because the beans will take longer to cook.

The soup

4 oz cippolini onions, diced

3 medium Yukon gold potatoes, diced

1/2 bunch celery, diced

4 cloves garlic, minced

1 head fennel, diced

4-5 carrots, peeled and diced

the black eyed peas (the food not the band)

some salt and pepper for seasoning

In a soup pot, heat 2 Tbsp grapeseed oil. Add 4 oz cippolini onions, diced, and a little salt. Add the potatoes, cook on high until the onions are caramelized. Add 1 cup of water and the garlic and celery and cook for 5 min. Add the fennel and cook for 5 min. Add the soup stock, carrots and black eyed peas. Season and serve.