Nobody wants to be the person with the facebook addiction that is obsessed with airing their narcissistic crap in their status updates. You know them: they put something out there about the unfairness of their ex boyfriend/ girlfriend/ husband/ wife, something so numbingly cliched and oversimplified that it garners passionate responses from overly enthusiastic “friends” that have no real insight into the situation? You know what I’m talking about.

I was that person earlier this week and I am not too embarrassed to admit it. Well, I did erase all evidence of my self-satisfying rant, so maybe I’m a little ashamed of my middle school need to pull as many poor suckers as possible into my completely pedestrian, completely mundane drama. But OK, I had a moment.

Once upon a time there was a girl who dated a guy. The guy (we’ll call him Vanilli Willie) and the girl lived coasts and sometimes countries apart. It was not ideal, but Vanilli Willie and our girl had some real laughs, but then it was just time to say adios. Unfortunately, the pair never really had the conversation where it was officially over and a pretty big debt that Vanilli Willie owed the girl wasn’t settled. And our girl, ever the non-confrontational pushover, let Vanilli Willie get away with this douchey behavior and let it be a source of deep seeded resentment to herself, which is pretty silly on her part, no?

There’s this famous chef who is a tad portly and has been known to wear orange clogs (let’s just call him Mario). He has also been known to say “soup sucks.” And while it may be true that I have a somewhat fragile sensibility, and it may also be true that this “Let’s Just Call Him Mario” guy is most definitely one of the greatest living chefs, I have to fervently disagree with him on this point. It might actually be the one thing I could ever go croc to croc with him about.

I mean, really, what kind of culinary scrooge do you have to be to hate soup?

Soup is universal. Every culture makes it in some form or fashion.

Soup is communal. What other dish is served from a single pot around a table?

Soup is economical. You can feed a lot of people with few fresh ingredients.

Soup can be a whole meal onto itself. What other course of dining is so all-encompassing?

Soup is humble but can be a full expression of subtle (or bold) flavor.

Soup is patient, soup is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast (unless it wins a Beard Award and then watch out, it turns into a real douche), it is not proud (unless it gets a shout-out in Bon Appetit). It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs (unless it’s name is Bourdain; well, not really-- I’m IN LOVE with that guy). Soup does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

Not to be grandiose or anything.

brandied onion soup with croque monsieur croutons: Vanilli Willie, scorpacciata and making peace with getting burned

pasta e fagioli with homemade pesto: who says "soup sucks?"

Why? Because soup is cheap, delicious and easy. Kind of like me.

a weekly attempt to eat well and to savor life. or to see how much food I can get on my clothes.