All That Glitters Is Soup in 2026!

The new year is here, and with it comes many new Soup’r Club meetings with many new soups. A soup today is a soup to set the tone for the new year, to set the goals and ambitions, to not only feed us, but to keep us warm as the winter still carries on (sort of… Michigan has been deciding to go from below freezing to 40-50 degrees on a whim). I was also told by a teacher long ago that the first 12 days of a year are a forecast of what the year has to bring, and if that is true, I think this day was telling. I almost fell and spilled all of the soup on some ice this morning, I got stuck in traffic and was late to work, but the workday has been prosperous and the soup an absolute delight amidst it all. Ups and downs altogether, but then again, c’est la vie.

To contrast the dark and gloomy weather lately I thought it a good idea to base today around a soup my fiancé remembers fondly from their childhood, one their mother made several times over: Golden Soup. The “original” Golden Soup is relatively simple: onion, garlic, squash, broth, coconut milk, and minimal spices (turmeric, ginger, cumin, salt, pepper). While this is still plenty warm, refreshing, and filling, I decided to add a little extra. The addition of potatoes, chickpeas, carrot and quinoa helped to make it a little more filling, while the curry powder added the slightest kick of heat and flavor to really bring it all together.

Overall, the office was buzzing today with anticipation for the first soup of the new year. I had Jeff rhetorically ask me several times today “Big day today, right?” or “She all stirred and ready?”, Adam took a premature whiff early on in the morning, and several people were asking me what it was. The time came, we all sat down, took our first bites, and you could hear a calm wash over the conference room. The broth was rich, warm, spiced just right, and the squash, chickpeas, and potatoes were filling and oh so delicious. We weren’t even 2 bites in when Jeff gave me the first rating: 8.9, which includes a few lost points due to no topper. (I thought it didn’t need it, much like the rest of the club, but oh well). A couple of us enjoyed second bowls, and the ratings came in: 9.4 from Kevin, 9.2 from Tam, 9 from Adam and Andy. Overall, this got a whopping 9.1 average score, potentially the highest in Soup Club history. This Soup Club is certainly one for the books, and if this is the way the new year starts? Things may turn out just fine.