Here’s a master recipe for a vegetable soup that you can make just for yourself when you have the urge, on a cold day, or when garden greens are in abundance in the summer.

　　

Ingredients

2 teaspoons butter, plus more as optional finish

　　1 smallish onion, peeled and chopped

　　1 smallish new potato, peeled and chopped, or more if needed

　　2 1/2 cups chicken stock (page 81) or water or a combination

　　A large handful of greens (spinach, Swiss chard, beet greens, turnip greens), tough stems removed, shredded

　　Salt and freshly ground pepper

　　About 1 tablespoon heavy cream (optional)

　　

Step 1

Melt the butter in a 1-quart pot, and sauté the onion gently for a few minutes. Add the potato, sweat that with the onion another minute, then pour the stock or water over it. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat, and simmer, partially covered, for about 25 minutes, until the potato is very soft. Stir in the greens; spinach will take less than 5 minutes, other greens may need longer, depending on how young they are. Taste and determine for yourself. At this point, add just enough salt to your liking and a few grindings of the pepper mill. You may need more you want a really smooth soup, spin everything in the food processor, put it through a vegetable mill, or use an immersion blender. Reheat if necessary, pour into a bowl, and swirl a little butter or cream on top.

　　

Variations

Step 2

The possibilities are limitless. Here are a few suggestions:

　　

Step 3

1. For nonleafy vegetables, such as zucchini, asparagus, peas, string beans, broccoli, and carrots, eliminate the potato and sauté the vegetable you’re using along with the onion. If you decide to purée the soup when cooked, you might want to add 3–4 tablespoons of heavy cream.

　　

Step 4

2. To create a more substantial soup that can make a meal, top your bowl with one or two croutons, and grate some Parmesan or other aged cheese on top. You might also garnish with some slivers of ham or dried sausage or any leftover meat, shredded.

　　

Step 5

3. Use about 1/4 cup cooked dried beans instead of the potato (canned are fine as long as you drain and rinse them to get rid of the canned taste of the liquid).

　　

Step 6

4. Thicken the soup with 3 or 4 tablespoons of white sauce or cooked rice, and purée.

　　

Step 7

5. Swirl some heavy cream on top, and scatter some fresh herbs over it—marjoram, tarragon, dill, chives, and basil are all good.

　　The Pleasures of Cooking for One by Judith Jones. Copyright © 2009 by Judith Jones. Published by Knopf. All Rights Reserved.Judith Jones is senior editor and vice president at Alfred A. Knopf. She is the author of The Tenth Muse: My Life in Food and the coauthor with Evan Jones (her late husband) of three books: The Book of Bread; Knead It, Punch It, Bake It!; and The Book of New New England Cookery. She also collaborated with Angus Cameron on The L. L. Bean Game and Fish Cookbook, and has contributed to Vogue, Saveur, and Gourmet magazines. In 2006, she was awarded the James Beard Foundation Lifetime Achievement Award. She lives in New York City and Vermont.