Thank you all, so very much, for helping to get this project off the ground. We are hoping to have books in hand by the second week of December, and a book release party is in the works.

Stay tuned for detailed information on that, and more than you ever wanted to know about how, when, and where you can procure your very own copy. But, in the meantime THANK YOU VERY MUCH. This would not have been possible without your generous support.

Martha

OK, so the book is looking HOT.

But our bank account is not.

Happily, we did hit our Kickstarter goal at some point last week. Hooray! And a big, early, wet and sloppy thank you to everyone who helped get us to that $3,000 goal.

But it turns out that in order to do this up right we're going to need a bit more than 3 grand. A big bit. So, I am channelling my inner pledge drive host and sending out one last shameless plea to remind the wafflers, procrastinators, and just generally forgetful out there that you have just FIVE DAYS LEFT to get your pledge in and secure your place in soup history.

Operators are standing by.

And here, to stimulate your imagination, is another beautiful layout. Check out those sexy sausages!

Yours, in soup and bread,

Martha

I had a stupid accident yesterday that left me with a big bump on the head, a bum arm, and a prescription for some strong painkillers. But even the meds can't soothe the pain I felt this morning when I opened up the revised quote from the printer. Yikes!

Let's just say it's a lot more than $3,000.

To back up ... the cookbook is progressing nicely. Paul's almost done with the illos and Sheila is busily plugging recipes into her beautiful design scheme. But some things have changed since September: the page count is up to 130 (or 65 "leaves"), we've decided to go with two colors on every page (because damn, it looks pretty), and we're considering bumping the print run up to 1,500 to meet what appears (at least anecdotally) to be higher than expected demand.

We're going to have to reassess some of this, but in the meantime ....we are SO CLOSE to meeting our $3,000 goal. If you have a sec, please consider urging a soup-minded friend to get in on the cookbook action. If just 26 people pledge $20 apiece we are IN.

For inspiration, I provide this screen shot of the spread for Chicken Noodle Soup.

It's rainy and grey and the drugs are wearing off. I think it may be time to go defrost some stock.

Hey, check out this cover design Sheila just whipped up!

Not final, for several reasons ... but should give you a good idea of where we're going with this.

I just finished editing the last of the soup recipes (hurray!) and thought I would give you all a li'l taste of things to come. If memory serves, this soup, made by ace pastry chef Celeste Dolan, was the first one to turn up on our very first soup night, aka the night of the gas leak, and the night of two beans-and-greens based soups -- the other being Anastasia's white bean, kale, and tortellini special. Which was great because the only thing better than one hearty soup is two at the same winter table. Where Anastasia relied on kielbasa to give her soup a meaty kick, Celeste went with delicately flavored turkey meatballs. As the wind whips the leaves falling ever-faster outside into little leafy eddies, it seemed like a good time to trot it out again.

Enjoy.

Escarole and White Bean Soup With Turkey-Parmesan Meatballs

Celeste Dolan

Serves 6

Ingredients
Beans
3/4 cup cannellini beans
10 cups water
5 sage leaves
3 cloves garlic, peeled and left whole
2 bay leaves
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon salt

Meatballs
1 egg
2 tablespoon water
1/4 cup bread crumbs
12 ounces ground turkey
1/4 cup grated Parmesan
2 tablespoons flat leaf parsley, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
6 tablespoons olive oil

Soup
1/2 pound escarole
1 1/2 cups carrots, cut into 1/4-inch dice
1 tablespoon olive oil
8 cups homemade chicken stock or canned low-sodium chicken broth
Salt and pepper

Preparation
Beans: Pick through beans to remove stray grit. Place in large bowl and cover with water. Soak overnight. Next day, in large pot, combine beans, 10 cups water, sage, garlic, bay leaves, and oil. Bring to a boil and add salt. Reduce heat to bring beans to a simmer. Simmer for about 1 hour or until beans are tender, but not mushy. Strain beans, discard garlic, sage, and bay leaves. Set beans aside.

Meatballs: In medium-sized bowl whisk together egg and water. Mix in bread crumbs until just moist. Add ground turkey, Parmesan, parsley, garlic, 3 tablespoons olive oil, salt, and pepper. Stir until ingredients are combined. With wet hands, shape turkey mixture into 3/4 inch diameter meatballs. Place on a cookie sheet or some such and chill 30 minutes.

In large frying pan, heat 1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil over moderate heat. Add half the meatballs to pan and cook, making sure all sides are browned, about 2-3 minutes. Remove the meatballs from pan and drain on paper towels. Repeat with remaining oil and meatballs.

Soup: Trim ends of escarole. Separate leaves and wash thoroughly. Cut crosswise in 1-inch strips. In stockpot over moderate heat add oil and carrots. Sauté until carrots are almost tender. Add the escarole, 1 teaspoon salt, and stock. Bring to a simmer over moderate heat, stirring occasionally. Add meatballs and bring back to a simmer. (Meatballs should be done once broth comes back to a simmer.) Add beans and return to simmer. Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper. Serve warm with Parmesan shavings.