The Man Behind Conlan's Soups Finally Steps Up...Kinda
Jeff
6/30/20264 min read
And here we go again, people. No two Soup Club meetings are ever the same, and I'm not talking about the soup.
Last week we had Josephine's debut. This week it was Nathan's turn. You know, Nathan...the guy who apparently spoon-feeds Conlan soup recipes. The man behind the curtain. The Wizard of Soup-Oz. The Dude.
That's a lot of pressure for a rookie, but Nathan seems perfectly comfortable carrying it around. We were also expecting some fancy desserts since he's apparently a former head baker or something like that. No pressure.
At 7:20am, Nathan walks in carrying the smaller of the two official Soup Club crockpots. I catch a quick glance as he walks by and immediately notice something concerning…It isn't full.
Let's do some quick Soup Club math…We've got eight solid members. Then there's Yavello, in case he's off break. Noah could always magically reappear. Habanero Harman remains a possibility. What if Harman brings his wife? Then there's Felton. Each Soup Club mug holds roughly 24 ounces to the tippy top. Figure 20 ounces of actual soup after accounting for Topper and Bottomer™ space.
Worst-case scenario, we could have 13 people. That's 260 ounces minimum, and that's before seconds. Nathan brought a five-quart crockpot. Five quarts equals 160 ounces…and it wasn't full. We had ourselves a situation.
Fortunately, Nathan is apparently a problem solver. First, he added water. Then he somehow convinced Yavello to stay on PTO. Marketing Mike conveniently loaned his car to his daughter and couldn't make it. And who knows what kind of negotiations happened with Nathan and Habanero Harman. Bottom line: we ended up with seven people. Nathan also sweet-talked Tam and Josephine into taking smaller portions…crisis averted.
Fast forward to 11:00am. I'm stuck in a meeting daydreaming about soup while my Teams chat is absolutely blowing up with Soup Club banter. Unfortunately, I'm sharing my screen and can't look. Meeting adjourns at 11:25am…Panic in the office.
Nathan's message simply read: "My 11:00am today got shifted to Noon." Okay, fine. Meetings move around. That happens. I asked the obvious question: "How did that happen?" I expected something like, "The earlier meeting ran long." Nope. Turns out Rookie Souper Nathan is also Rookie Sales Guy Nathan and mixed up Eastern and Central time zones. Ugh.
So we did what Soup Club always does. We adapted. We force-fed the meeting at 11:30am and made it happen.
So at this point we're officially 0-for-1 on quantity and 0-for-1 on timing.
Stirring and serving update…negotiations continue with Hunter regarding his potential role in Soup Club. He's okay being called Robert (Rho-Bear), but he's still not thrilled with the term "stirrer boy." He would apparently prefer a title with "garçon" in it and wants official ladling duties rather than simple stirring responsibilities…Stay tuned…
Nathan presented us with what he called Fresh Onion Loot, a French onion-inspired soup complete with homemade spicy green sauce, cheese, and homemade croutons. Everything looked edible, which is always encouraging. What it did not include was the sweet cannoli-type pastries we had mentally prepared ourselves for…Maybe next time.
Soup Clubbers Speak
Kevin: Finished his second bowl before dropping an 8.5 without Habanero Harman's sauce and a 9.0 with it.
Conlan: Refused to be on video or this absolutely would've gone viral. He proceeded to list several critiques and possible improvements before delivering a "solid" 8.75.
Josephine: Opened with, "This is the best French onion I've ever had!" She then pulled a Kevin and scored it twice: 9.0 without the green sauce and 10.0 with it. I thing the other French onion was Progresso?
Tam: Declared, "Amazing! This is also the best French onion ever!" before handing out a generous 9.25.
Adam: This should've been recorded. He said, "Usually I need a couple bites to get to know the soup...with this, I knew it was a 10.0 on the first scoop." Enough said.
Jeff: I agreed with everyone. Great without sauce. Great with the green sauce. Great with Habanero Harman's sauce. Loved the first spoonful and every spoonful after. Final score: 9.0.
Soup Club Average: 9.17
Another fantastic rookie effort. A few final notes: Nathan's noon meeting ended up getting cancelled - Rookie. Then, while scheduling next week's meeting, guess who suddenly had another conflict? Yep. Nathan - Rookie.
We moved next week's meeting to 11:30 a.m. I'll update the countdown thingy on the website to July 7, but I'm not changing the time. So Harmon...11:30am next week, buddy.
And finally, next week is my turn. There will be rhubarb. There will be cherries…Stay tuned.
Nathan's Notes:
"This recipe takes inspiration from the famous French onion soup, putting a forager's spin on a classic dish. I have always enjoyed French onion soup but wished for better texture, more depth of flavor, and tastier toppings without compromising the bones of the soup itself.
Traditional French onion soup typically features toast and cheese broiled on top. This version pays homage to original recipes from 1600s French kitchens, where bread was placed in the bottom of the bowl and soup was ladled over it.
Onion soup has a fascinating history, finding its way into both the highest French courts and the humblest home kitchens. It's approachable, simple, and when done right, elevates a short list of ingredients into something much greater than the sum of its parts.
I loved making this soup, the spicy green sauce, and the croutons alongside my loving partner Reese, who helped ensure everything went according to plan and that I didn't burn down the kitchen.
I was incredibly nervous making my first Soup Club entry. I turned on the wrong burners, nearly burned myself, and almost lost the entire soup while packing it up at the end of the night.
Don't be afraid to ask for help in the kitchen. I'm grateful I had my own home chef there to help get this dish across the finish line.
So grab a bowl, add some croutons and cheese, ladle in some soup, and know that you're enjoying something special.
Here's to many more soups to come!"
