As we continue to acknowledge the anniversary of the pandemic's chokehold on Canada, it feels fitting to embrace the art that is home cooking. Regina-based food writer and personality CJ Katz released a duo of cookbooks in fall 2020 to encourage people to make the most of their time at home in their own kitchens.

The two books–One Loaf at a Time and One Bowl at a Time–are collections of approoachable recipes utilizing easily accessible ingredients. At a time where so much in one's day-to-day life can feel cumbersome, simplicity is key in the kitchen.

"I’m part of a group of Regina-based entrepreneurs called ‘Five4Five’. We provide food boxes for families that consist of enough meals for a family of five for five weeks. We distributed our first two installments–every installment feeds 20 families–during the fall and winter of [2020]," says Katz. "My role was to create the recipes for the families [and] this is one of them...One common ingredient is pulses–which is also perfect for Saskatchewan, where we grow so many of the world’s legumes. This soup is incredibly economical, yet so satisfying."

As Katz mentions, this soup recipe is as easy as they come so feel free to use it as a foundation and add some extra spices or aromatics that are to your liking. The sky is the limit and those dried spices in your pantry are beggin to be used!