A French Soup for Christmas Eve

Here’s a wonderful French soup that’s perfect or those of you who eat humbly on Christmas Eve, and feast joyously on Christmas Day.

I know many families who traditionally enjoy a great feast on Christmas Eve—in celebration of the birth of the Christ child. Others dine humbly on Christmas Eve—as a nod to the humbleness of the manger—and save their feast for Christmas Day.

Soup, of course, is the go-to meal for many who follow the latter tradition. Back when my family celebrated Christmas Eve on an Iowa farm, oyster stew was the soup of choice. For the kids who didn’t love oysters, a homemade tomato soup—made from home-canned tomatoes from the previous summer’s crop—was also on the table.

For those who eat soup on Christmas Eve, not just any soup will do. It’s still a holiday, after all. That’s why my French Scallop Chowder is a great pick for a French Christmas Eve Soup.

French Scallop Chowder. From my book, Everyday French Cooking: Modern French Cuisine Made Simple

French Scallop Soup

It’s true that the French generally feast on New Year’s Eve, with a grand, multi-hour, multi-course feast called the réveillon. But if your Christmas Eve is more humble in nature, you can still enjoy a great French dish—this luscious scallop chowder.

1 tablespoon unsalted butter
2 medium-size leeks (white and pale green parts only), halved lengthwise, rinsed, and sliced
crosswise (about 1 cup)
1 large shallot, finely chopped (about 1⁄4 cup)
1 garlic clove, minced
1⁄2 cup dry white wine
1 cup low-sodium chicken broth
1 cup fish stock or bottled clam juice
1 pound red-skinned potatoes, scrubbed and cut in half if 1 inch in diameter or smaller, in
quarters if larger than 1 inch
1 bay leaf
1 tablespoon snipped fresh fines herbes or 1 teaspoon dried fines herbes, crushed
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1⁄2 cup heavy cream
1 pound sea scallops, quartered, or bay scallops
2 tablespoons snipped fresh parsley

1. Melt the butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the leeks and shallot and cook,
stirring, until the leeks are tender but not brown, 4 to 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the wine and cook until reduced by half, 1 to 2 minutes. Add the broth and the clam juice, taking care not to let them spatter. Add the potatoes,
bay leaf, fines herbes, and salt and pepper. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat, cover the pan, and simmer until the potatoes are tender, 15 to 20 minutes. Remove and discard the bay leaf.

2. Add the cream to the pot and bring to a simmer. Add the scallops, return to a gentle simmer, and cook the scallops until they are opaque throughout, 2 to 4 minutes. Take
care not to overcook them.

3. Remove the pan from the heat; season the soup with additional salt and pepper if needed. To serve, ladle the soup into shallow bowls and sprinkle each serving with snipped fresh parsley. Makes four main-dish servings.

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