It has been a tradition in my family to have sopas every New Year. We usually sit on the couch doing movie marathon while sipping some sopas, sometimes after a clean game of cards, scrabble or word factory. That's how we usually pass the last few hours of the year.
Sopas, as in the title, is just macaroni (or any pasta) in milky soup. Although my lactose intolerant vegan mom would have ginger and/or celery in her soup instead of milk.
Ingredients
macaroni
cabbage
carrot
soy ham (optional)
milk
seasonings
salt and pepper
Procedure
Cook your pasta according to package instructions. Add a bit of salt and black pepper.
Chop cabbage into squares or strips, and the carrots and soy ham into small cubes.
Stir fry all cut ingredients in butter, starting off with soy ham and carrot then cabbage.
Sprinkle with salt, pepper and flavoring (I usually use mushroom powder or vegetarian chicken powder).
A minute or two before your pasta gets fully cooked, mix the stir-fried veggies with the pasta in the pot and pour in your milk. (Don't forget to consider the amount of your soup stock). It's best to taste and adjust soup flavor at this time.
Cook for another two or three minutes. (It tastes better if the pasta is a little softer than recommended because it is, after all, a soup.)
Tips and tricks Use macaroni or other small (not long) kind of pasta. If you're using long pasta (like cannelloni, spaghetti, lasagna ribbons, etc), break them to shorter pieces, ideally enough to spoon them when cooked. It would be better if there were more cabbage and carrot (but I didn't have much when I cooked this one that's why they were barely visible and tasted). This is perfect on a rainy day!
Add more black pepper if you want it a bit more peppery-spicy to match the rainy/cold season. I love it when I'm sick too, makes me feel like I'm home and being taken cared of by my sweet grandmother. For the vegan version, try the Vegan Sopas.