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I’m often accused of being a creature of comfort, and I own that. I am. I fear change, so giving up meat has been difficult.  Uncomfortable, even.  I’ve shelved my repertoire of soul-satisfying recipes featuring meat as the main attraction. No more bolognese, roasted chicken or (gulp) bacon.

Oh Bacon, I miss your bacony-ness!

All the rationale in the world won’t make the absence of bacon less unsettling. But what’s more unsettling is farm factory bacon’s story. Crowded into tight pens that prevent free movement, hogs become crazed and bite the tails of their penmates. To prevent this, factory farmers dock, or cut off, the tails using equipment like this without painkillers. Naturally clean animals, factory farm pigs are stacked in cages, and the top pigs excrete on those below them. Contrary to cliche, pigs aren’t happy wallowing in their waste.

I’ve already been a little on edge staying true to my new diet, and last weekend I hosted two friends in my studio apartment, so I was nervous how they would take to my request for a vegetarian “detox” menu (not to mention how they would handle the proximity of my refrigerator to my bed). Luckily, they were receptive, and we all agreed that we needed something warming. Something comforting. Soup was on all our minds. What is it about soup that can snap us back into our comfort zones with such ease? It’s magical really. Starting with vegetable broth steeped with ginger and garlic (an essential olfactory experience I think) we added whatever vegetables we wanted. No fuss. No stress. Pure comfort.

Though we may have looked like pent-up hogs in my little apartment, with bowls of soup in hand, we were happier than pigs in well, you know… open pastures.

Bacon-Free Noodle Soup or Happy Pig Soup
(Serves 3-4, leftovers likely)

2 T Ginger, minced
2 T Garlic, minced
1 bunch scallions, thinly sliced
64 oz. (2 boxes) vegetable stock
1/2 butternut squash, cut into 1/2″ pieces
4-6 ounces mushrooms (shiitake are nice; crimini are cheaper), thinly sliced
3 heads baby bok choy, leaves separated
Salt and Pepper
1/2 package (7 oz.) firm tofu
3 oz. Somen noodles (any long noodle will be fine)
Toasted Sesame Oil (optional)

1. Heat large stock pot over med-high heat. Add ginger and garlic and cook for 1 to 2 minutes, stirring frequently, until mixture is fragrant. Add scallion whites and cook for another minute. Add stock, squash, mushrooms and bok choy. Season generously with salt and pepper. Cover pot and let simmer for 30-45 minutes.
2. A few minutes before service, add tofu, scallion greens and noodles. Dinner is ready when the noodles are cooked to your liking. If desired, lightly drizzle each bowl of soup with toasted sesame oil.