Leeks, onions and garlic—any sautéed combination of these three is sure to start a soup recipe! October ushers in crisp evenings, calling for simmering pots and cozy mugs full of steaming soups. Grocery stores and farmer’s markets have ample supply of these Allium ingredients, yet growing your own yields a dimension of flavor you will find captivating. Wandering the Sinai Soup Recipe below welcomes this trio of God’s Word goodness to the Plant Guide.

I am still learning to cultivate these savory fruits of the land (actually roots of the land). O Lord, let me not fall into a pattern of complaining while my skills develop and I wait for the promise of sufficient produce from our own yard! Weeds seem to be growing faster than the seedlings and I fret over the definition of “full sun.” Does intense sunshine for 8 of the 12 shrinking hours of daylight do the trick? I will have to wait and see if the sunlight in the spot I chose sustains this savory bunch. The Israelites found the promise of a bountiful land too much to wait for, their dull, interim diet evoking frustration, irritation, and impatience, exposing hearts hesitant to believe God.

…the Israelites started wailing and said, “If only we had meat to eat! We remember the fish we ate in Egypt at no cost—also the cucumbers, melons, leeks, onions and garlic. But now we have lost our appetite; we never see anything but this manna!” Numbers 11:5-6 NIV

The wails of the Israelites set against leeks, onions and garlic have served as a chuckling reminder to me ever since looking at Numbers 11 from a gardener’s point of view:

We learn from the leeks that a complaining attitude about current circumstances will wither relationships instead of grow them. Let’s not indulge in the tears that chopped onions prompt, but be filled instead with the pleasing aroma of the Alliums being baked, boiled, braised and stuffed that whets our appetite and stirs in us the anticipation of a delicious meal to come, drawing all near to the kitchen.
—from “No Crying Over Onions,” NIV God’s Word for Gardeners Bible, page 177

May I not become a burden to my leaders and to those around me by wailing and grumbling! Perhaps a pot of pumpkin soup with its Numbers 11 ingredients will prompt my heart to curb complaints.

Wandering the Sinai Soup Recipe 

(normal people might call this Pumpkin Soup with Coriander)

Saute 5 minutes or so:

1/2 C.diced leeks
1/2 C. chopped onion
3 medium cloves pressed garlic
a few dashes salt to release liquids

Add and bring to boil:
3 C. chicken or vegetable stock
Juice squeezed from 1/2 lemon
1/2 C. chopped dandelion leaves (or bitter leaves such as arugula, escarole or frisee)

Reduce heat to simmer and blend in:
1 C. pureed pumpkin
2 tsp. ground coriander
Cracked black pepper & salt to taste

Garnish with:
Feta cheese

 Happy October!

Photo Credits:

©2014 Shelley S. Cramm  A still life of leeks, onions and garlic before being diced and chopped for the soup pot.

©2014 Shelley S. Cramm  Wandering the Sinai Soup includes leeks, onions, garlic and coriander as mentioned in Numbers 11:5-7

Find more information about leeks at www.gardenindelight.com/plant-guide/leeks/

Find more information about onions at www.gardenindelight.com/plant-guide/onions/

Find more information about garlic at www.gardenindelight.com/plant-guide/garlic/