It’s the season for soup, and Jayni Carey will prepare three favorites. On the menu: Oven Simmered Bean Soup with Tomato and Herbs, Shellfish Soup with Coconut and Lime, and French Onion Soup. Jayni also prepares Marguerite’s Cucumber Dip as a tribute to Marguerite Lockwood, a former Lawrence Memorial Hospital volunteer.

A new show airs at 6:30 p.m. each Tuesday on Sunflower Broadband Channel 6. The show also is broadcast at 9:30 p.m. Tuesday; 9 a.m., 5:30 p.m. and 9 p.m. Wednesday; 9:30 a.m. and 7 p.m. Thursday; 10 a.m. and 7:30 p.m. Friday; 9:30 a.m. Saturday; 10:30 p.m. Sunday; and 10 a.m. and 8:30 p.m. Monday.

Oven Simmered Bean Soup with Tomato and Herbs

1 pound dried pinto beans

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 cup onion, finely chopped

1 medium celery rib, finely chopped

1 medium carrot, peeled and finely chopped

3 garlic cloves, finely chopped

1 14-ounce can tomatoes, small dice

1 tablespoon fresh thyme, chopped

1 teaspoon fresh rosemary, chopped

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

1 teaspoon salt, or to taste

Rinse and sort the pinto beans and place them in a large bowl. Cover with cold water and let stand overnight, or quick-soak the beans according to the package directions. To cook the beans, drain, rinse and place them in a Dutch oven. Add 4 1/2 cups of cold water, then cover and cook the beans in a 350-degree oven for 1 1/2 hours, or until fairly tender.

When the time is nearly up, heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium-low heat. Add the onion, celery, carrot and garlic. Cook until tender, stirring frequently. Add the tomatoes and simmer for 2 to 3 minutes. Pour the mixture into the bean pot. Stir in the thyme, rosemary and pepper. Cover tightly and return to the oven for 30 to 45 minutes more, until the beans are tender. Season the soup with salt. Serves 6.

Shellfish Soup with Coconut Milk and Lime

2 tablespoons butter

1/2 cup shallot, finely chopped

3/4 cup dry white wine

1 pound medium shrimp

8 ounces bay scallops or small sea scallops

1 pound mussels

1 cup chicken broth

1 cup clam juice

1 14-ounce can tomatoes, small dice

1 cup unsweetened coconut milk

1/4 cup heavy whipping cream

juice of 1/2 lime, or to taste

1/3 cup fresh cilantro, snipped

Heat the butter over medium-low heat in a large pot or Dutch oven. Add the chopped shallot and cook until tender but not browned, about 5 minutes. Stir in the wine, raise the heat to medium, and simmer until reduced by one-third.

To prepare the shellfish, shell and devein the shrimp. Rinse the scallops and drain well. Remove the beards from the mussels. Scrub the shells and rinse them in several changes of water to remove sand and grit. Discard any open mussels or ones with broken shells. When the wine is reduced, add the mussels, cover the pot and cook them for 2 to 3 minutes, until the shells open. Using a slotted spoon, transfer them to a bowl to cool. Remove the mussels from the shells and reserve. Add the chicken broth and clam juice to the pot and boil over medium-high heat until reduced by one-third, about 5 minutes. Pour the broth through a strainer to remove the shallots.

Return the broth to a clean pot and stir in the tomatoes, coconut milk and cream. Simmer the broth over medium heat for about 10 minutes. Add the shrimp and scallops and simmer for about 3 minutes, just until cooked. Add the cooked mussels and remove the pot from the heat. Stir in the lime juice. Ladle the soup into bowls and garnish with fresh cilantro. Serves 4 to 6.

French Onion Soup

3 14-ounce cans (5 cups) beef broth

3 14-ounce cans (5 cups) chicken broth

3 sprigs fresh parsley

2 sprigs fresh thyme

1 bay leaf

1/4 cup unsalted butter

2 1/2 to 3 pounds onions, cut in half and thinly sliced (9 to 10 cups sliced)

1/4 cup all-purpose flour

2 tablespoons Madeira or port wine

Toasted Baguette Slices:

1 baguette

olive oil

1 large garlic clove, peeled

1/2 to 1 cup GruyÃre cheese, shredded

In a large pot, heat the beef and chicken broth over medium-high heat. Prepare a bouquet garni by tying the parsley, thyme and a bay leaf together with a string and add it to the broth. Boil the broth for 8 to 10 minutes to reduce to about 8 cups.

Melt the unsalted butter over medium-low heat in a Dutch oven and add the sliced onions. Cover the pan and cook the onions until fairly tender, 15 to 20 minutes. Stir occasionally to prevent burning. Uncover and continue cooking until the onions are lightly browned, 10 to 15 minute more. Lower the heat if the onions begin to burn. Sprinkle the flour over the onions and cook for 2 minutes, stirring often. Slowly stir in the broth and simmer the soup over low heat for 20 to 30 minutes more. Stir in the Madeira or port. Remove the bouquet garni and discard.

Toasted Baguette Slices: Slice a baguette into 1/2-inch thick slices. Brush both sides of the bread slices with olive oil and place them on a baking sheet. Toast the bread in 350-degree oven for 8 minutes, turn over and continue baking for 8 to 10 minutes more, until light gold. Rub each slice with a garlic clove and cool on a wire rack.

When ready to serve, ladle the onion soup into oven-proof soup bowls and place them on a heavy-duty baking sheet or broiler pan. Float 2 or 3 baguette slices on top of each bowl of soup. Sprinkle each generously with shredded cheese. Place the bowls about 6 inches under the oven broiler and broil until the cheese is melted and lightly browned, 2 to 3 minutes. Serves 4 to 6.

Marguerite’s Cucumber Dip

2 medium cucumbers

1/2 teaspoon salt

3 tablespoons white vinegar

1 8-ounce package cream cheese, softened

2 tablespoons mayonnaise

onion or garlic powder, to taste

butter-flavored crackers

Peel the cucumbers, slice them into lengthwise quarters and remove the seeds. Puree them in a food processor or blender. Pour the pureed cucumber into a bowl and stir in the salt and vinegar. Cover and refrigerate for several hours, or overnight.

Line a wire-mesh strainer with a double thickness of cheesecloth. Hold the strainer over the sink and pour the cucumber mixture through the strainer to drain off most of the liquid. Set the strainer over a bowl and press the cucumber puree gently with a rubber spatula to extract most of the remaining liquid. The puree should be very well-drained. Using the spatula, scrape the cucumber puree from the cheesecloth into a small bowl.

Place the cream cheese, mayonnaise and onion or garlic powder in a large mixing bowl. Using a mixer, blend until smooth. Mix in the cucumber puree. Cover the dip and chill for several hours before serving.

Spoon the cucumber dip into a decorative bowl. Serve with butter-flavored crackers. Makes 1 1/2 cups of dip.

Tip: The recipe can be doubled for a large group.

– Recipes for Oven Simmered Bean Soup with Tomato and Fresh Herbs, Shellfish Soup with Coconut and Lime and French Onion Soup by Jayni Carey. Recipe for Marguerite’s Cucumber Dip by Marguerite Lockwood.