I like the New Seasons butcher counter. It’s a shame, as my entire life in Portland, I lived biking distance to a New Seasons (Sellwood, then Concordia, then Arbor Lodge), but now that I live in Southwest there’s no longer a New Season super close-by. However, there is a Fantasy Video Adult Superstore.

I digress. New Seasons has a variety of ground meats and sausages of various derivations, sold by the pound, ground and prepared on the premises. They have a nice selection of ground chicken, including an excellent spicy Italian sausage. After seeing Je Mange La Ville’s take on Italian Wedding Soup, I decided to give it a shot using New Seasons spicy chicken sausage, rolled into meatball form, which added a nice undulating heat to the soup. And instead of a small Italian pasta, I used orzo, which is more associated with Greek cuisine. And I didn’t add the egg, which to me would remind me too much of egg drop soup. I also added other stuff. So think of this as…

Italian Divorce Soup (with a Pre-Nup)

• 3 quarts homemade chicken broth
• 1 pound ground, hot italian chicken sausage
• One tablespoon butter
• 1 onion, chopped
• 6 stalks of celery, leaves and ends trimmed, split lengthwise then sliced 1/4″ thick
• 3 or 4 decent sized carrots, peeled, sliced into coins
• 8 oz. sliced button mushroom
• Entire bunch of green kale or chard, chopped
• 1 garlic cloved, minced
• 3 sprigs of thyme
• 1/4 cup dry white wine
• 1 teaspoon dried Italian seasoning or marjoram
• 3 bay leaves
• 4 ounces dried orzo
• Salt and pepper

Roll those meatballs.

Melt butter in large pot or dutch oven over medium heat. Add onions, carrots, and celery, season with dried herbs and some salt and pepper. Sweat vegetables for a couple minutes. Raise heat to high, add white wine, and stir for a minute or two.

Add garlic, mushrooms, kale, and pour chicken broth over everything, and bring to a boil. Add meatballs, lower heat to low, and simmer for ten minutes. Add orzo, and continue to simmer for 20 minutes. Add salt and pepper to your tastes. I find soups much more pleasurable allow it to sit and “steep” for a while before eating. Your results may vary.

Enjoy it on a cold, rainy day, of which we have many in Portland. If you live in some place that’s perpetually sunny and warm, you can still enjoy a hot bowl of soup before your environment becomes inhabitable and your society eventually erodes.