Deliciously tangy and easy to make, you can serve this soup as a vegetarian dish – or add spicy sausage to satisfy your inner carnivore.

When I first met Jack, we were living in two different states. As our relationship grew, we spent more and more time together in each of our locations. After months of dating, it was going to be Jack’s birthday. Being the clever girl that I am, I hid his birthday present behind his refrigerator as I wasn’t planning to be in town for his big day. My genius idea was to call him on his birthday and surprise him from afar. Only a few days later, I get a call from Jack. You see, he had found his birthday present. The man I would eventually marry, I learned, had a penchant for cleaning – really cleaning. He had pulled out the fridge and was cleaning behind it when he came across my hidden surprise.

Fast forward to the present time… earlier this school year, we had a lovely houseguest named Isabel. She eagerly went on Mongolian adventures with us and shared our joy in sharing food. Isabel made a creation for us that we dubbed “Isabel’s Turkish Stoup.” She explained that it has Turkish seasonings and could be served as a stew or could be a soup. Her recipe was vegetarian, which of course, could be altered to satisfy our carnivorous tendencies. But we decided to taste Isabel’s recipe as she created it before making adjustments. We really enjoyed this recipe. The lemon juice adds a delightful tartness that brings all the elements together. We couldn’t get enough. We asked Isabel for the recipe, but as end-of-visits are usually busy, she left our home forgetting to give us the recipe.

Or so we thought…

Isabel is a clever girl, too. After hearing the story of Jack’s penchant for cleaning, she hid the recipe with a letter at the back of the top of the refrigerator. Who looks there, right? Sure enough, Jack decided to clean the kitchen and found Isabel’s recipe as well as a lovely thank you letter from her stay with us.

I was happy to have found the recipe. I whipped up a version of Isabel’s stoup. It was just as delicious as her version. Now, I will share with you, the internationally acclaimed (Isabel is German, we are American, the dish was made in Mongolia) Isabel’s Turkish Stoup. Thank you for sharing, Isabel!

Isabel’s Turkish Stoup

Ingredients

• 2 cups chopped onions
• 2 cups chopped carrots
• 1 tbsp chopped garlic
• olive oil for sauté
• 1 cube bouillon
• 2 tbsp tomato paste
• 1 cup water
• 4 cups white beans
• 4 14-oz cans of tomatoes (about 56 oz total)
• 2 tsp smoked paprika
• 3 tsp cumin
• 2 tsp marjoram
• 4 tbsp lemon juice

Directions

1. Sauté onions in a few tablespoons of olive oil in a large pot. Cook until onions are slightly translucent.
2. Add carrots. Continue to cook until the carrots begin to soften.
3. Add garlic and cook for 2-3 more minutes.
4. Mix bouillon and tomato paste with water. Add to pot.
5. Add white beans and tomatoes. Mix well.
6. Add paprika, cumin, marjoram and lemon juice. Mix well.
7. Allow mixture to simmer for about 15 minutes.
8. Serve hot with delicious bread, like pesto mozzarella muffins.