Soup du Jour

I love soup. It's my favorite comfort food in all seasons. And I love making soup as much as I like to eat it. What I find fascinating is that no two soups are ever alike. Mixing vegetables is very much like mixing colors, except that, contrary to paint, the soups' flavor combinations are as interesting and varied as their hues.

I'm starting a little series, called "soup du jour", where I'll tell you what vegetables went in my soup that day. I hope this will give you some ideas. The process is almost always the same: I sauté some onions (and sometimes leeks) in butter; add whatever other vegetables I happen to have handy; cover with water; add salt, pepper, bay leaves and thyme; and simmer for about 30 minutes (or cook in a pressure cooker, like this one, for about 10 minutes). I usually mix blend my soups (that's how my kids like them best), but some soups are excellent when left chunky. Don't forget to remove the bay leaf and thyme before mixing blending.

Today's soup:

• 1 tsp butter
  
• 1/2 large yellow onion
• 1 bunch celery (stalks and leaves)
• 3 large carrots
• 3 Yukon gold potatoes
• 1 bay leaf, 2 sprigs thyme
• salt, freshly ground black pepper