October 17th Soup

To explain my inconsistency in posting lately: My 85-year-old mother was ill most of this year and recently passed away. She enjoyed her life until the very end, and was sharp as a tack. One of my last conversations with her was about recipes; in particular, pickle canning. I have had many memorable moments with her, especially in the last year, and I will miss her a lot. When I was thinking about how I was going to get back into my routine of food blogging, soup came to mind. It is one of my favorite things to make, because I can experiment in the kitchen. Sarah once told me that she thought we made too much soup when she was a kid. This is a soup which I started making one fall day many years ago on October 17th; hence, its name. Its primary ingredient is country style pork ribs. October 17th soup (don't remember this recipe's origin ) 1 large onion, chopped 1 medium carrots, chopped fine 2 stalks celery, chopped fine 1/4 cup olive oil 2 lb. country style pork spare ribs (boneless) 1/2 t. salt ground pepper 2 T. flour 1 1/2 - 2 cups dry wine 3 1/2 cups or more of beef stock 2 t. sage 2 t. rosemary 2 t. chili powder 2 garlic cloves, crushed 1 T. fresh coriander (cilantro) Optional: 1/4 small pasta or rice But first I thought I'd mention my fabulous new addition to our kitchen. In the photo, it's that magnet knife rack shown above my prep area. Tom hung it for me, now that he is retired, and willing to do such things. He's a peach. Another new addition to our kitchen is this frying pan. This is its debut. It will never look this shiny again. Got it at Wal-mart. I read in a review that their line upscale line called Tratamonia, or something close that, was equal to All-Clad for a fraction of the cost. So, I was willing to venture into Wal-mart to buy one, and I am glad I did. It's a surprisingly good pan. Saute carrots, onion, celery in 2 T. olive oil until soft, not brown (about 5 minutes.) Transfer to stockpot. Dredge ribs in flour, salt & pepper, and brown them in oil. About 4 - 5 minutes. Transfer to stockpot. De-glaze the pan, Boil down 1/2 of wine, stirring in meat bits. Pour over meat/vegetables in stock pot. Add the rest of the wine plus 2 1/4 cups of beef stock. It wasn't enough liquid in my case.If necessary, add more stock or water to cover the meat and veggies. Add seasonings and garlic. Bring to a boil and simmer for 1.5 to 3 hours. With about 20 minutes to go, add the 1/4 cup of small pasta or rice. If you goofed like I did and bought bone-in ribs, be extra careful to remove all the bones and serve. It's a good soup, but not my best soup. I am a little off my game. I added way too much rosemary and I know better. Rosemary is a strong herb. Use it gingerly. The next day we added our leftover roasted vegetables ---chunky potatoes, carrots and brussel sprouts. As we re-heated it, it became more of a stew.