Albondigas Soup for the Blocked Writer’s Soul

It's not that I don't like you. It's not that I don't care. But most of the time, after doing things such as working and cooking, cleaning the house, paying bills, and gazing out the window for what seems like hours on end, I find that I simply cannot blog once a week. I have a problem—a big problem. You see . . . how can I put this: I have a writer's block the size of a boulder in the brain.

What to do? What to do?

I have searched high and low, looking for the best recipe to get your and my creative juices flowing, to help send us into wondrous flights of fancy. One that by its mere smell conjures up sweet memories that you thought you had forgotten for all time. The kind of food that makes you witty, intelligent and wise, and if not, then at least sound like you are.

Well, I have just one thing to say:

Albóndigas Soup.

Ah, let the inspiration begin . . .

The perfect soup to warm the heart and stomach of many a Mexican on a crisp fall evening. Once there is the slightest snap in the air, I can't look at another cold salad in the face until spring starts. Besides being one of my most favorite soups, it costs so little to make--how great is that? Since this is a complete meal, just add some cut limes and corn tortillas, and you are done. Most measurements are approximate, so you can fiddle with the recipe, making it as plain or as gussied up as you like. This soup is in many ways a blank canvas so feel free to improvise and add more or different vegetables. May I suggest thin sliced zucchini, julienned pasilla chilies or even red bell pepper for a bit of color? Just saute them along with the the garlic, celery, carrots and onion as instructed. Add a bit of red chili salsa for some heat, or even green tomatillo salsa (as I did here) to the finished soup.

Of course, food is more than just fuel--it is so much more: for some it is a drug, or others it means love, and for some of us, like Marcel Proust's madeleine cookie, it is the stuff of memory, imagination, and yes, amigos mios, inspiration.

Albóndigas Soup for the Blocked Writer's Soul

Ingredients:
Soup:
2 tablespoons olive or vegetable oil.
1 celery stalk, cut crosswise
½ or more white onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, smashed with the flat end of a knife
2 or 3 white, thin-skinned potatoes, chopped into bite-sized chunks (optional)
8 cups or more beef broth (homemade is best, but canned broth will do)
2 juicy tomatoes, diced; or, approximately 1 16 oz. can of Mexican-style stewed tomatoes
Approximately 1 cup of carrots, sliced crosswise into thin disks
1 bay leaf
Pinch of cumin or to taste
Salt (or garlic salt) and pepper to taste

Meatballs:
Approximately 1 lb of lean (about 7% fat) ground beef
½ bunch of cilantro, chopped
1½ cups of cooked white long-grain rice
1 large egg
1 heaping tablespoon of "Menudo Mix" or dried oregano
Directions:
Chop, slice, or dice all vegetables. In a large pot, sauté onion, garlic, celery and carrots in the vegetable oil until the onion is golden brown in color. Add tomatoes and continue sautéing over medium flame until the tomatoes are melted and the inside edge of the pot is a nice golden brown.
Next, add chicken broth, cumin, and bay leaf and potatoes. Bring to a boil. Lower heat and simmer for approximately 30 minutes, covered.
While soup is simmering, prepare meatballs as follows: In a large mixing bowl, mix ground beef, rice, egg, "menudo mix" or oregano, and cilantro by hand. Add salt and pepper to taste. Using a light touch (you do not want tough meatballs), roll mixture into balls a little less than 1 inch in diameter.
After 30 minutes, check soup and make sure that all the vegetables are tender, especially the carrots and celery. If not, continue cooking until they are done. Bring up to the heat and boil meatballs in soup for approximately 6 to 8 minutes. Check by taking out a meatball and splitting it in half to make sure there is no pink. Adjust salt and pepper to taste.
Serve with cut limes and hot corn tortillas, beans or whatever you want.
This soup tastes best the next day.
Variation: For the meatballs, omit cilantro. Use chopped fresh basil instead. ¡Ay, ay, ay!