Soup is one of the great meals students learn to make in cooking club. Soup is healthy, flavorful, inexpensive and easy to prepare. It is also is a food that comes in endless varieties. It can be creamy or clear, use vegetables or meat, or be spicy or sweet. It also can be made with fresh ingredients or leftovers, and is a way for families to make the most of the food they have in the refrigerator and never waste a thing.

Some of our students had eaten homemade soup at at home, and they were eager to see what kind we would be making in our Week 5 class. The choice was Abruzze Lentil Soup, with a side serving of homemade Corn Muffins. This soup is an Italian version from the Abruzze region of Italy and used Italian parmesan cheese for extra flavor.

It was an all-vegetable dish, but got protein usually provided by meat from the lentils and chick peas it contained. The base of the soup is made from onions, carrots and celery, and our chefs jumped right in to chop those vegetables into diced, bite-size cubes. Jairo Hernandez took on the green stalks of celery, while Omari Upshur and Milton Sanders learned a new technique for carrots, cutting them cross-wise into thin, round “coins.” Jairo and Milton handled the weekly challenge of onions.

John Negron, meanwhile, was working with Ms. Linda to start the batter for the Corn Muffins, and was soon joined by Jairo. When the batter turned a smooth and creamy yellow, Jairo spooned it into the muffin tin we had set up with liners to prevent sticking and make them easier to clean.

As the muffins cooked, Omari and Milton finished sautéing the onions, carrots and celery, added chicken stock for liquid and mixed in the lentils, chick peas and tomatoes.

Christian Estevez-Reyes grated the hard parmesan cheese for topping the soup.

And how did this hot and hearty meal turn out?

When the muffins came out of the oven our chefs quickly circled around and chose which ones they wanted for themselves.

We then brought the soup to the table in its big round pot and served steaming bowls for each student.

Jairo didn’t like the flavor of the lentils and tomatoes in the soup (he doesn’t like tomatoes) but declared that the muffins were “delicious.”

John said the soup tasted “sweet and sour” to him, explaining that “the sour was the bad part and the sweet was the good part.”

Omari announced that “I loved the food, and I got some to go” — even though the soup “could have used fewer lentils.”

Perhaps the best reaction came from Christian, because it showed how cooking club can change minds and make students open to new foods. When he got his serving, he made a face when he smelled it and pushed it away. Told he had to take three bites under the rules of cooking class, he changed his mind.

“It’s good,” he admitted. “I liked the cheese and the parsley on top.” Best of all, he asked for a second serving later.