Posole is a terrific party dish. Serve decorative bowls brimming with add-ons and watch your guests happily customize their dish. I’ve developed this recipe over the years and most often serve it the first week of the New Year.

Developed for the Molesini Wine Club

Paired with a robust red wine, this hearty soup will warm your soul on a dark winter’s night. Leftovers are welcome, and the soup tastes even better the next day. It can be prepared up to four days in advance. You will likely need additional stock as the beans and pasta absorb liquid.

Toward the end of summer, the carrots are ready to be pulled from the garden. I grow Danvers, Nantes, Chantenay, Purple Haze, and Rainbow carrots, to name a few—each has its own shape and deep color, but all taste of sweet earth and stored sunshine. Carrots are great straight from the ground, blanched and finished with a glaze, roasted over the grill with a brush of marinade and sprinkling of salt, or made into a soup such as this one. Dearest ate this soup hot or cold for lunch as it is filling yet low in calories.

Molesini Wine Club

From my cookbook