My Most Hobbit-like Tradition
The annual soup tradition that brings warmth and cheer as winter first begins to bite.
Ever since I can remember Thanksgiving and Christmas in my grandmother’s house was marked by the 2-day event that was making Mock Turtle Soup. The smell and taste instantly sends me back to my warmest memories of cozy childhood winters. Sometimes we are called to adventres and sometimes we can enjoy the quiet life in peace. Hopefully this will be a bit of that peace to you as it is to me! A true taste of my own Shire in the midst of the wide world about us.
Mock Turtle Soup Recipe
Produces about 25 servings
(Updated by Alexander Savage Campbell II November, 2022. Original from Hope Savage Circa 1870)
Ingredients
2 lbs. Bacon
1 x Beef Soup Bone
3 lb. Chuck Roast
2 x Handfuls of parsley
3 x Handfuls celery tops
1 Large Onion
6 x 14.5 oz. cans of Tomato Puree/Sauce
4 x 14.5 oz. cans of Petite Diced Tomatoes
4 cups flour (can use Gluten Free)
Salt and Pepper to taste
4 x Bay Leaf
3 Teaspoons Cloves
3 Teaspoons Mace
3 Teaspoons Allspice
Cut the Chuck Roast into 2-4 pieces and place it and the Beef Soup Bone in cold salted water in your large soup pot. Simmer for 8-10 hours. Remove from heat and pull meat/bones out of the pot, remove all bones and excess fat. Place the pot in the sink and fill the sink with water and Ice. Reduce temperature to 70°F within 2 hours then put in the Refrigerator (or freezer) and reduce to 40°F within 4 hours. (I usually transfer to a smaller pot for this step) Allow to chill all night. Once chilled, skim off all the hard fat that is on the surface.
Return to a large soup pot and bring back to a simmer(you can remove any other fatty bits that float to the surface at this point). Cut your bacon into 1” pieces and cook in a frying pan on a low temp to make sure it does not burn, remove bacon and add to stock pot. While the bacon is cooking, dice your onion and finely chop the celery. I get 2 Celery heads with lots of leaves and chop about about 6” off of each, chop parsley until you get 2 good handfuls. Once bacon is removed place onion in bacon fat to brown on low heat. If you do it right and gently cook the onion down, this could take 10 min. Once the onions are clear and cooked down, add celery and parsley to the frying pan. Cook until celery is clear and falling apart then add to stock. Add bay leaves to stock. Add pureed and diced tomatoes to stock.
Brown flour (either microwave or oven). Place browned flour in a large mixing bowl, add pepper, allspice, Mace and Cloves. Mix well. Add warm water to the bowl and mix until a paste is formed and is free of lumps. Add paste to stock and mix thoroughly.
Cook slowly for at least an hour, being sure it does not boil over, also stir regularly to make sure that the flour does not sink to the bottom and burn. Taste and add salt if needed
Cool (using the same process as before), set in the refrigerator to ripen for several days (2 is best). Reheat and serve with a slice of lemon, a sliced hard boiled egg and a dash of dry sherry in each bowl.
Alternatively store in Freezer for up to 6 months. Soup can be extended by adding more tomatoes, beef stock and spices.