Four-Day Vegetable Soup By James Beard, Chef

1 lg Onion; peeled; fine chopped

3 ea Garlic cloves; peeled and

-finely chopped 2 c Cabbage; cooked and finely

-chopped 2 ea Carrots; peeled; shredded

1 sm Turnip; peeled; fine diced

1 ea Mushrooms; chopped

4 ea Swiss chard leaves & stems

2 sm Zucchini; finely diced

4 ea Rosemary leaves; fresh, or

1 ts Rosemary; dried; crushed

1 md Tomato; peeled; seeded and

-chopped 1 tb Salt; to taste

1 ts Pepper, black; ground fresh

-to taste Put all the vegetables and the rosemary in a deep pan. Cover with water and add salt and pepper to taste -- about 1 tblspn salt and 1 tspn pepper. Bring to a boil gradually over low heat. Cover pot and simmer the soup gently for 1-1/2 to 2 hours, or until all the flavors are well blended. Taste and correct the seasoning. Serve with crackers, cheese, or whatever you`d like. * Examples of variations * First day: Enough soup for four people. Serve as described above. Second day: Add to the remainder another couple of peeled and chopped tomatoes, a few leaves of finely chopped spinach, another zucchini, and a few leftover cooked chickpeas. Add a bit of grated lemon rind and a touch of onion about 10 minutes before serving. Third day: For lunch, the soup is good cold with a dollop of creme frai`che. Fourth day: Add 2 or 3 peeled and diced beets, another cup of finely chopped, cooked cabbage, 3 or 4 more mushrooms, and if any, a little left over vegetable broth cooked from another day. NOTE: Of course, if you have some chicken or vegetable broth you can add it to the soup. The secret is to have variations of color, texture and flavor.