From the nineteenth century on, vegetable soup was the typical dish to begin the evening meal in modest and middle-class French homes. Leeks, potatoes, celery, carrots, turnips, and squash made it a dish for winter. Among the peasants it sometimes constituted the entire meal, perhaps embellished with a plain piece of bacon or a sliver of butter, depending on the custom of the region. This contemporary version is lighter and more refined, but what it loses in substance it gains in delicacy of taste and texture.
