Hearty Peasant Soups

Peasant soups sometimes contain so much meat and so many vegetables that a spoon plunged into the soup will stand straight on end- One of the best things about making these hearty soups is that the next day you can spread the leftover soup in a casserole and bake it for lunch.

These full-meal soups are usually made by first preparing a rich broth with meat—usually pork but sometimes other meats—and then simmering vegetables in the broth along with the meat. These are winter dishes, and the vegetables most likely to find their way into the pot are cabbage, dried beans, and root vegetables such as turnips, potatoes, beets, and carrots.