By G. Daniela Galarza

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A family ritual

Hello, all. It’s Monday, Jan. 20. It is also both Martin Luther King Jr. Day and Inauguration Day. 

King was said to be a fan of collard greens, and it’s going to be quite cold in Washington today, so I thought a bowl of Andouille and Collard Greens Soup With Cornmeal Dumplings would be a nice way to warm up. It’s an Aaron Hutcherson original, so you know the flavor is going to pop. For a little extra heat, some might add a squirt of Tabasco.

As biographer Jonathan Eig noted last week in his piece for Post Opinions (gift link), “The Martin Luther King Jr. federal holiday has been observed now for 39 years — the same length as King’s life.” 

Eig’s piece also reminded me that, “until his death in 1968, King had never gained the approval of most White Americans. In 1966, even after he had won the Nobel Peace Prize, a Gallup survey showed that 63 percent of Americans viewed him negatively. Just prior to his assassination, 3 out of every 4 White Americans disapproved of him.”

Last year on the holiday, I was sitting next to the incubator that held my 5-day-old baby, born 11 weeks early, in the NICU at Children’s National Hospital. That afternoon, as dusk fell, my partner, Joe, and I took turns reading King’s “I Have a Dream” speech aloud to our son. 

“Maybe this will be a family ritual,” I said quietly, hopefully, after we finished. “Maybe,” Joe said.

This year, we’ll read “Letter From a Birmingham Jail” to our beautiful, happy 1-year-old. 

May we all remember King’s words from that letter about our essential interconnectedness: “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly.”

Photos by Scott Suchman; food styling by Lisa Cherkasky, both for The Washington Post

Andouille and Collard Greens Soup With Cornmeal Dumplings

Find substitution suggestions and other tips below the recipe.

Storage: Refrigerate for up to 3 days.

Where to buy: Andouille sausage can be found at well-stocked supermarkets, butcher or specialty shops, or online.

Servings: 4 to 6 (makes about 9 cups)
Active time: 30 mins
Total time: 1 hour 15 mins

Ingredients

For the soup

• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 12 ounces andouille sausage, diced
• 1 bunch (10 to 12 ounces) collard greens, washed, de-stemmed, if desired, and cut into 1/4-inch thick ribbons
• 1 small yellow onion (about 5 ounces), sliced
• 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon fine salt
• 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
• 4 cups low-sodium or no-salt added chicken stock
• One (14.5-ounce) can diced fire-roasted tomatoes
• 1 cup water

For the dumplings

• 3/4 cup cornmeal, preferably medium grind
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon fine salt
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

Steps

1. Make the soup: In a Dutch oven or other large pot over medium-high heat, heat the olive oil until shimmering. Add the sausage and cook, stirring occasionally, until it starts to brown, about 5 minutes. Add the collard greens, onion, paprika, garlic powder, black pepper, salt and red pepper flakes and cook, stirring regularly, until the vegetables soften and the onion starts to turn translucent, about 5 minutes.

2. Add the chicken stock, tomatoes and water to the pot, bring to a simmer, cover, and cook, stirring occasionally and adjusting the heat as needed to keep it at a simmer, until the collard greens are tender, anywhere from 45 minutes to 1 hour 30 minutes or more depending on the age of the greens and how much chew you want them to have. Scoop out 1/2 cup of the potlikker (cooking liquid) and set aside.

3. Make the dumplings: In a small bowl, combine the cornmeal, flour, sugar, baking powder and salt and give it a stir. Whisk the olive oil and reserved potlikker into the dry ingredients until evenly combined.

4. Carefully spoon 1 heaping tablespoon of the dumpling batter at a time into the simmering soup at least 1 inch apart to get 12 dumplings, cover and simmer until the dumplings are cooked through, about 10 minutes. Ladle the soup into bowls, dividing the dumplings evenly among them, and serve.

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From staff writer Aaron Hutcherson. Tested by Aaron Hutcherson and Jim Webster.

Nutrition information per serving (1 1/2 cups), based on 6: Calories: 299; Total Fat: 16 g; Saturated Fat: 4 g; Carbohydrates: 28 g; Sodium: 895 mg; Cholesterol: 35 mg; Protein: 14 g; Dietary Fiber: 5 g; Sugar: 5 g.

Substitution suggestions + other tips and ideas:

• Andouille >> another smoked sausage such as kielbasa.
• Collard greens >> kale.
• Fire-roasted diced tomatoes >> regular diced tomatoes, with a little extra smoked paprika.