A great meal for a cold, rainy winter day...

Smoked turkey noodle soup and some toasted homemade Cuban bread slices. The soup was based off of a recipe I had seen Mario Batali make. First I broke up a box of angel hair pasta into small pieces, about a fourth of their original length, and browned the pasta in a mix of butter and olive oil. I learned that this is easier done in small batches, about a third of the box at a time, because if you try to do the whole box at once, pasta starts going everywhere when you try to stir it. Mrs. JP had to help me a little at this point, because I had pasta going everywhere and dogs sneaking through the kitchen to try and pick up the pieces. Once the pasta was slightly browned, I set it aside. I chopped an onion and a couple cloves of garlic. I sauteed the onion in some olive oil, added the garlic and sauteed a little longer, added two bay leaves and about a tablespoon of oregano, stirred, and added two teaspoons of smoked paprika. Then I added one 28 oz. can of chopped tomatoes, about three to four teaspoons of kosher salt and a good grind of black pepper. At this point, Mario used some leftover chicken and some chicken broth, but we had something better on hand. When we have our annual smoked turkey at Thanksgiving, we use the leftover carcass to make some delicious smoked turkey broth and freeze it with some of the leftover smoked turkey in it to be used for soups, etc. So I put that smoked turkey and turkey broth in the soup, added some store bought chicken broth, some water and about a cup or so of some white wine. I brought the whole mixture to a boil, added more salt and pepper to taste, tasted it to make sure it was tasting good, and added the browned angel hair pasta. I simmered it for about ten more minutes while my dearly beloved wife sliced, buttered and toasted a few slices of Cuban bread. Let me tell you, it turned out sooooo delicious. The only problem is, like always when I cook, we could have fed a small army, so we will be enjoying leftovers for a few days. We really should entertain more, with the quantities of food that I cook.

Now I'm warm in the tummy and ready to enjoy some more football on TV.

By the way, I just have to mention, I read Spurgeon's devotional for this morning and it was so uplifting and filled me with so much hope. For a reason I am not at liberty to discuss here, this is a bit of an emotional weekend for our family, but I was reminded of God's mercy, his mighty hand of protection in my son's life and in all of our lives, and of the wonderful hope which is ours in our Lord Jesus for a great reunion after we pass through death to life everlasting. I hope you will read the devotional, dear reader, and be uplifted as well.