Sip Lula's steamy soups

Soup weather is still with us, and I have found a wonderful trio of velvety textured soups for you to try: Potato Leek Soup, Creamy Portobello Portabella Mushroom Soup and Roasted Red Pepper Soup.

Lula's Cafe Soups are a collaboration of sister-and-brother team Lula Poulos and Chef John Poulos. John created the soups, and Lula serves them at her restaurant, Lula's Cafe, in downtown Southern Pines.

Two of the soups can also be used as sauces. Use the mushroom soup as a gravy over steak or chicken and the red pepper soup as a sauce for seafood and pasta dishes.

I had a friend over on a Sunday afternoon for a meal of salad and a bowl of Creamy Portabella Mushroom Soup. My friend Pauletta described the soup "as having the full-bodiness of the mushroom" and at the same time being "smooth, delicate and refreshing."

I agree. The soups have a lovely texture, which makes it easy to get to the bottom of the bowl and want more. It is perfect year-round for a quick lunch or dinner.

The soups last for 14 days and can be stored in the freezer longer.

Get them in 16-ounce containers for $5.99 at the Fresh Market in Raleigh and Cary and at A Southern Season in Chapel Hill. Or order larger quantities through the Web site: lulascafesoups.com

A different pickle

If you are looking to take something different to your next potluck, consider a jar of Bamboo Ladies' Bamboo Pickles.

Don't wrinkle your nose until you try one. Some of my co-workers were pleasantly surprised once they tasted them. These crunchy ribbons of bamboo would be perfect on a relish tray or on a cold-cut sandwich.

"Nice and spicy ... my favorite thing is the crunch," one taster wrote.

Carla Faw Squires, owner of Bamboo Ladies, is originally from North Wilkesboro in the western corner of the state. She says the pickles would be great -- well really she says "bamboolicious" -- in a Bloody Mary.

Squires has been eating these all her life. Generations of women in her family have been making these tall-grass pickles. The story goes like this: Someone who served in the Women's Army Corps brought bamboo from Panama back to Wilkes County. Squires explains that people were trying to figure out what to do with it since this was not a native food to the folks in Wilkes County and yet the bamboo was abundant -- some of these plants were taller than real people. Squires says both her grandmother and mother made the pickles and she has now created a business from this hobby.

The 8-ounce jar of pickles sells for $10. They are sold at Whole Foods Markets in the Triangle, A Southern Season in Chapel Hill and NOFO at the Pig in Raleigh.

If you want more information about this product, check out www.bambooladies.com.