A Hot and Sour December Day

We're officially in the middle of December. It seems crazy to think that Christmas is a mere 12 days away. (And a partridge in a pear tree) I've gotten most of my holiday shopping done and am just picking away at the loose ends at this point. We've taken our Christmas photo for the year (though none of them really turned out well) and the tree is decorated and has presents under it (and the stockings are hung by the chimney with care) and my car radio is essentially permanently stuck on a non-stop Christmas music station. We're in full swing here, people!

But it's funny. You know, December in the great white north --- except it's not white. No, it's actually rainy. Not freezing rainy that poses potential threats with ice and heavy power lines. No it's a balmy 50 degrees and yesterday it didn't stop raining for even one minute. If it were snow, we'd have a foot on the ground right now. But it's rain and instead I have a puddle in my yard. I woke up this morning and the thermometer outside showed a warm 55 degrees. I cringe. I live in fear that we will have a winter without a good snow. It's ridiculous to think that, but I still worry.

This morning started off good. I was productive. Tossed some laundry in the washer and started some hot and sour soup (recipe to follow) that seemed too easy to be true. Things were going well. It was 10:30 and I had just settled down with a taste test of soup and I got a call from work. The cashier hadn't shown up. So I'm immediately tossed into scramble-mode. I switched my laundry to the drier, doled out the soup into to-go containers, got dressed, speed-straightened my hair, did my makeup, etc, etc. And out the door in 30 minutes flat! I find that somewhere between miraculous and phenomenal.

The soup was damn amazing, but the rest of the day has kind of been an exhausting drag. Believe me when I say I'm glad to have tomorrow off to get some nice R&R. I am contemplating trying to make another round of this soup using a vegetable stock or bouillon instead of the chicken stock. This hot and sour soup recipe was quick, easy, and really delicious! I felt like I was eating at a yummy Chinese restaurant and there wasn't even MSG!

For some reason, a good hot and sour soup recipe seems to be coveted. I've already had a few requests from work for this soup. I'm just glad I found an easy, authentic-tasting, not-from-a-packet recipe! Not to mention that it's low fat....

If you like your hot and sour soup with meat, replace 1/2 C. of mushrooms with 1/2 C. of pork or chicken.

Hot and Sour Soup

• 4 C. chicken broth or stock
  
• 3 Tbsp. soy sauce
• 1 c. mushrooms, diced
• 1/3 c. frozen or fresh peas
• 1/2 Tbsp. garlic chili sauce (Sriracha)
• 1/4 Tsp. ground pepper (Cracked pepper - regular powdered pepper will NOT give you the same taste)
• 1/4 C. white vinegar
• 1/3 C. canned bamboo shoots, julienned
• 3 oz firm tofu, cut into 1/4 inch cubes (I used Nasoya and had good results but be careful, a block of tofu is usually 14-16 oz and you only need 3 oz for this recipe)
• 2 Tbsp. corn starch
• 2 Tbsp. cold water
• 1 egg, beaten
• 2 green onions, including stalks, diced
• 1/2 Tsp. sesame oil

1. Bring the broth to a simmer, and add soy sauce, mushrooms and garlic chili sauce. Simmer for 5 minutes.
2. Add the pepper, vinegar, bamboo shoots, tofu and peas. Simmer for 5 minutes.
3. Combine the cornstarch and water until very smooth and milky, and then add to soup and stir well. Simmer for 5 minutes.
4. Stir in beaten egg in a slow stream. Don't dump it all at once.
5. Wait 30 seconds and add green onions and sesame oil. Remove from heat.
6. Serve!