Here are some things we ate recently

Mark Bittman's Salmon Burgers with roasted cauliflower. Tasty, and not too pricey because you're grinding it up anyway so you can buy cheap pieces of salmon instead of nice filets.



Cranberry curd tart! So amazing! The crust is made of hazelnuts!



My mom made this ham, swiss and pear strata for Christmas Day. It was EXCELLENT despite not being particularly pretty.



Christmas Eve was manicotti. I think Josie liked them.



She also apparently likes hot sauce on her faux-gogi.



Roasted tofu and vegetable (delicata squash and eggplant) banh mi sandwiches, plus avocado and cucumber salad, pickled carrot and daikon radish, cilantro.



A couple of quiches (mushroom, artichoke, goat cheese and tomato, broccoli, cheddar) plus two chocolate babkas for our New Year's Day brunch.



Dave Lieberman's Moroccan Spiced Chickpea Soup, a perennial favorite here. Josie learned to dip bread in soup!



Chicken with celery seed and salt from Zahav, roasted fennel and shallot, sweet potato. Not a pretty picture, but good. Tahini sauce to go with.



Leftover chicken from above reheated in its cooking juices, plus cukes and rice and various pickles, made into lettuce wraps. Romaine isn't the best choice but it is what we had that day.



Moules frites and champagne, because it was the only white wine we had in the house, so I had to open it to cook the mussels anyway. Herbed mayo for dipping the fries.



Oatmeal. Josie is learning how to use a "puun! puun! puun!"



And just a day or two ago, swiss chard pancakes, carrot salad and #putaneggonit.

Meal plan: pot roast, soup, veggie burgers

Monday: pot roast, pressure cooked in the instant pot while we were at the neighbor's cookie decorating party Sunday evening.
Tuesday: kale and cranberry bean soup (recipe from many moons ago!)
Wednesday: leftovers/freezer cleanout
Thursday: Dr. Praeger's veggie burgers on English muffins with balsamic-thyme roasted carrots
Friday: TBD/takeout. I've got a bao bao craving creeping up on me, but we'll see if there's room in the budget for takeout.

Pizza! Beef Stew! Takeout! (Last Week's Meal Plan)

Meal plan for the week of October 19th!

Sunday - pizza night, kale salad
Monday - beef stew (made Sunday)
Tuesday - takeout
Wednesday - sausage, greens (washed the greens on Sunday, added potato wedges because I had time to make them Tuesday night)
Thursday - tomato soup (made Sunday), roasted delicata squash (made Sunday), broiled zucchini and cheesy garlic bread
Friday - beans and egg sandwiches (slow cooker beans, Adam made the egg sandos)



Sunday was pizza night: I used the crust from Vegetarian Cooking for everyone that I make with 50% white whole wheat flour, but instead of making two thin crust pizzas I just put the whole blob of dough on a sheet pan and made a focaccia style pie with red sauce, mozz, and parm. Also kale salad. Delicious, but thick crust pizza doesn't reheat very well.



Beef stew: I made it on Sunday afternoon, we ate it over farro on Monday. Tasty. Provided lunches for most of the week. Here is a picture of Sad Josie Pondering Stew. She had a rough day.



Takeout! Adam had to go to North Carolina for work, so while he enjoyed BBQ (and then had to work overnight, poor guy), Josie and I ordered take out from the South American joint around the corner. I say South American because the menu is vaguely Brazilian, but also Salvadorean and Mexican. ANYWAY that horchata was so on point. I want to be drinking more of it right. now. Chipotle Milanesa (essentially a fried chicken) sandwich, YUM, Josie coveted but I foisted the mediocre tostones off on her instead (mean mommy!). Coxinhas (croquettes with chicken and cheese) were delicious but sat heavily in my tummy. Good beef empanada, meh vegetable side ordered out of guilt. I want to try the tamales.



Sausages, greens, and potato wedges: exactly what it sounds like. I made the potato wedges the night before and Adam just reheated them, plus TJ's chicken sausages and some sauteed broccoli raab. A solid and reliable meal.



Tomato soup, roasted delicata squash (surprising toddler hit!), broiled zucchini (sorry, mommy, still not interested in green foods). Last minute addition of cheesy garlic bread was appreciated by all. Tomato soup was approximately: 1 onion, sweated in butter, a couple garlic cloves, diced red pepper, and a can of tomatoes. Simmered for ten mins and blitzed with the immersion blender. Seasoned it with some Bragg's aminos, salt and pepper. It was fine, but if I had any cream it could have used a lick to round out the acidity some. I always forget how much red pepper comes forward in a soup.



Friday beans and egg sandos! True confessions: this was my second egg sandwich that day. I regret nothing.




On Sunday I also made this pasta "pie" in a greased springform pan: leftovers, layered into the pan with shredded mozz and topped with parm, baked at 375 till brown on top (like 20-30 mins). Fun to eat!

Leftovers Repurposed: Chicken Soup with Shitakes and Kale

Sometimes I end up with leftover chicken. I bet you do, too. In fact, here's a little secret: whenever I roast a chicken for just the two of us, while we're eating... I'm already thinking about what I'm going to do with the leftovers. This time, I made soup, but I wasn't in the mood for classic chicken noodle. I know it doesn't look like much, but it's earthy from the mushrooms with a little bit of heat from the ginger and scallions, plus it's basically a bowl of kale, so hippies love it. Next time you've got a chicken carcass, don't trash it: make soup!

Chicken Soup with Shitakes and Kale
serves 4, generously


The broth takes an hour or two, so get that started before you prep the soup, ok? I usually carve the rest of the serving pieces off a carcass, then start the broth, then dice or shred the meat while the broth comes up to a boil. This makes more broth than you need for the soup, and if you don't have immediate chicken broth needs you can freeze the extra or keep it in the fridge for up to a week.

For the broth:
1 roasted chicken carcass
one small onion
one stalk of celery, cut into big chunks
2 cloves garlic, peeled, smashed
4-5 slices ginger

For the shitakes:
about 10 dried shitake mushrooms (approximately 1.5 ounces)

For the soup:
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
4 scallions, white and light green parts finely chopped, dark greens sliced and reserved for garnish
3 small cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon minced ginger (about a one inch piece)
1 bunch lacinato kale, sliced crosswise into 1/4 inch (or thinner) strips*
about 2 cups cooked chicken, diced
soy sauce to taste
lime juice to taste
cooked white or brown rice
sliced scallion greens and sriracha for serving (optional, but tasty)

*Cutting the kale this way means you don't have to yank out the nice, nutritious stems - when you cut across the leaf the stems end up in small pieces that cook quickly and don't feel tough or fibrous in your mouth. 

First, start the broth: carve or pick all the serving pieces and remaining meaty chunks off the chicken carcass, then stick it in a 6-8 quart pot. Cut the hairy end off the onion, then cut it in quarters (I cut it through the root for ease of fishing-it-out-later) and stick that in the pot. Add a couple of smashed garlic cloves and a few thick slices of ginger. Add water just to cover the carcass - it shouldn't float, but it shouldn't stick out - and bring it up to a boil, then back it down to a simmer and let it go for about an hour, or two if you have time.

While the broth simmers, put the shitakes in a heat proof bowl and add 2.5 cups of very hot water. Weigh the mushrooms down with a plate, if need be, to keep them submerged. They'll need at least 30 minutes to soften. When they're soft, lift them from the liquid (but don't dump it!). Use a sharp knife to trim off the stems, then thinly slice the caps. Add the stems to the simmering broth. Let the soaking liquid sit so any grit settles to the bottom, then carefully pour it into a clean measuring cup, leaving the sediment behind (or strain it through a fine mesh filter, if you prefer). You should have about 2 cups. NB: while the mushrooms soak is a good time to start cooking some white or brown rice - I use a cheap-o rice cooker that I got about 6 weeks ago and I reeeally like it. So nice to have the rice cooking over on the counter across the room instead of taking up space on the stove.

Just before you make the soup, strain the broth, or just ladle 4 cups of broth through a strainer into a bowl and deal with the rest of the broth after you eat.

To make the soup, heat the oil in a large pot (I use a 5 quart dutch oven... and I just realized it's basically the only pot I ever use for making soup. Huh.) over medium high heat. Add the scallions, garlic and ginger and saute for a minute or two, until the scallions soften up a bit and it starts to smell really good. Add a good pinch of salt, then add the 2-ish cups of mushroom soaking liquid. Add 4 cups of chicken broth, then add the kale and stir/poke the kale down under the liquid. Let the kale cook for a couple of minutes, then taste it to see if it's soft enough for you. Let it go a little longer if need be, then add the shitakes and chicken. Let them warm up, then season the soup with a splash of soy sauce (start with a teaspoon or two). Stir, then taste again. It might need a squeeze of lime juice or more soy. Once it's seasoned to your liking, serve it ladled over rice and sprinkled with the scallion tops. If you like spicy, feel free to add sriracha.

Tomato Horseradish Soup

This soup is something that I've had a note on for about a year. I ate it for lunch once at my old job and yesterday I came across the note about it in my handy note taking app and decided it was time to revisit. I opted not to add any dairy (the original soup had yogurt in it) but if the flavor of your soup is a bit sharp and you think it needs to be smoothed out, feel free to add a dollop of yogurt or sour cream or even just cream at the end.

Tomato Horseradish Soup

Serves 2 generously or 4 as a first course

I served this for dinner with some cheesy croutons - slices of baguette with a thin layer of dijon mustard and a layer of swiss cheese (gruyere would be awesome here, I used deli sliced swiss because I had some) - on a sheet pan in a 350 oven for about ten minutes then under the broiler for 1 more minute.

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 Tablespoon butter
1 medium onion, diced
1 cup white wine
1 large can (32 oz) or jar (1 qt) crushed tomatoes
1 scant Tablespoon horseradish
1 Tablespoons dill, chopped
Salt and pepper

Heat the oil and butter in a pot over medium high heat and add the onion. Add a big pinch of salt and stir, and cook the onion until it's translucent or just starting to brown. When you just start to see brown bits on the bottom of the pan, it's time to add the wine. Let the wine simmer until it's almost gone (this will take a few minutes), then add the tomatoes, horseradish and dill. Bring to a simmer, then use an immersion blender to puree the soup (if you don't have an immersion blender you can do it in batches in a regular blender) right in the pot. Keep simmering until thickened to the point you like it, then taste and adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper and maybe more dill if you need it.

Serve with cheesy croutons or grilled cheese or just some crusty bread for wiping the bowl.

Sunchoke Soup

Adam and I were both out of town for our CSA spring share #2 (we had a friend pick it up and enjoy it instead) but here's #3 which I picked up on Wednesday. Check it: spinach, asparagus, eggs, radishes, shallots, scallions, chives, salad mix, sunchokes and yogurt!

(BTW, should you find yourself with an extra quart of yogurt around, perhaps because you bought one two days before your CSA pickup, this cake is a great way to use up a cup of it.)



Asparagus was a great reason to practice my hollandaise, shallots went into a pot of beans and some chicken stock, and I've been sprinkling chives on anything that finds its way into a bowl. Spinach and salad greens are easy enough to find uses for, and we go through eggs like nobody's business, but I was a little puzzled by the sunchokes. We got a few last year that we sauteed and put it an omelet, but with most of a pound kicking around I wanted to do something that would better show off their unique flavor.



Lucky for me, I remembered Olga's soup! I scrubbed the dirt off the little 'chokes and got to work.



I made quite a few changes based on what I had around, and I was really pleased with the results. I love foods that taste creamy without any cream, and the delicate sunchoke flavor comes through brilliantly. If you happen across these weird little tubers, pick up a pound and make some soup.



Sunchoke Soup with Caramelized Onions
adapted from Sassy Radish
serves 4

To my palate, artichokes taste expensive... probably because I know how much paring and peeling and dunking in lemon (that is, work) goes into harvesting the hearts! But sunchokes are so much easier to work with - just scrub and simmer - and the flavor is, if anything, even more refined. I can just imagine this soup passed through a fine sieve or tamis to filter out the skins and starchy bits, maybe with a little sweet butter blended in to bump this into fancy-dinner-party territory. 

3 cloves garlic, sliced or roughly chopped
scant 1 tsp fresh marjoram, chopped
3 Tbsp plus 2 Tbsp olive oil
3/4 lb sunchokes, scrubbed very well (a generous pint, if you're not weighing)
1/2 lb (about 2 baseball sized) potatoes (yukon gold or red bliss), peeled, cut in 1 inch chunks
4 cups chicken stock (or use vegetable stock for a vegetarian version)
salt and pepper
2 large yellow onions, sliced 1/4 inch thick
1/2 a lemon, juice only
1 tsp cider vinegar
extra virgin olive oil, to garnish
chopped chives, to garnish

Heat 3 Tbsp olive oil (I don't like to use extra virgin for this, why spend the money on flavors that are just going to disappear when heated?) in a medium pot over medium heat. Add the garlic and marjoram and a pinch of salt and sweat for a couple of minutes until it smells good. Add the sunchokes and potatoes and chicken stock, plus another pinch of salt and a few grinds of pepper. Bring up to a low boil over high heat, then reduce to medium low and cover the pot. Simmer for an hour or until the potatoes and sunchokes are falling apart.

Meanwhile, caramelize the onions. Heat a medium skillet (I love my cast iron skillet for this) over medium low heat and add 2 Tbsp olive oil. Add the onions, stir to coat them with oil and then let them cook slowly, stirring every 5 minutes or so, until evenly browned and sweet.

Use an immersion blender to puree the soup, then adjust the seasoning. You'll need several more big pinches of salt, plus the lemon juice and vinegar. You could also use just lemon juice, but I like the different notes of two acids.

Pile some onions in a bowl and ladle the soup around them, then garnish with some really good extra virgin olive oil and chopped chives.

Pink Lentil Soup

So March flew by, eh? We had our first CSA pickup of the year, yaaaay!



We also ate our first grilled hot dogs of the year on an absolutely gorgeous 70 degree day in MARCH, which was kind of a big deal.

And then it got cold again, so I made lentil soup.



Pink Lentil Soup
serves 4

2 tablespoons butter
1 large onion, diced
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1-2 tablespoons harissa, depending on how much heat you want
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1 pound crimson lentils (about 2 cups)
2 cups chicken stock
4 cups water
salt and pepper
lemon juice
kefir or yogurt for garnishing

Melt the butter in a medium pot over medium high heat. Sweat the onion until the onion is translucent, about 5 minutes, then add the garlic and continue to cook for 1-2 minutes. Add the cumin and harissa and stir, then add the lentils and a hearty pinch of salt. Keep stirring. Toast the lentils in the butter this way for just a minute, then add the chicken stock and half the water. Let the soup come almost to a boil, then turn the heat to medium low and simmer for 25 minutes, or until the lentils are tender. As they cook, add some water to keep it at your desired consistency; you may not use all 4 cups, but I didn't want a super thick soup.

Once the lentils are cooked, season the soup to taste with lemon juice and plenty of salt and pepper (and maybe another dab of harissa?). Garnish with a swirl of kefir or a dollop of yogurt, and enjoy. This soup will keep in the fridge for most of the week, so you might even get some lunches out of it, woo!

French Onion Soup

Are you chilly? It is winter, after all, and that makes it soup season. Let's get cozy.

First, slice 5 pounds of onions. Thin, but not too thin; you're going to cook them for quite some time. Your eyes may water.

Put half a stick of butter in a big, heavy pot. Turn on the flame, low. Stir every few minutes for two hours. After ninety minutes your onions will be sitting in a pool of oniony liquid and it will seem like they will never ever be done. Keep going! After two and a half hours your onions should be melty and dark golden brown, but if they're not, keep cooking.

Sprinkle the melty onions with a tablespoon or two of flour and stir it in. Add a cup of wine and simmer till it's all gone.

Add a cup or two of water and six cups of stock - chicken, beef, veal, duck, whatever you have. Homemade is great if you have it. If it's from a box, just make sure it's not crazy salty. Simmer the whole mess for another hour until it's silky and smooth.

Now the fun part: add a little blorp of dijon mustard, a splash of Worcestershire sauce and a bigger splash of soy sauce. Grind in a lot of black pepper. Taste your soup and put it in a bowl. Slice some bread and toast it up. Put it on top of your soup and cover it in a pile of sweet, nutty cheese, then stick the whole mess in the oven until the cheese is melted and bubbling brown. Dig in.

Three Bird Soup

Well here it is, folks. The end of the Thanksgiving leftovers. I know I just told you not to mess with them, but then this idea popped into my head and I just had to use the last bits of turkey to make soup. It's not the standard post-holiday turkey soup, I don't think. First of all, it's more vegetable than turkey: onion, celery, carrot, turnip, and garlic.



I didn't put any rice or noodles in, though I could have, I suppose. Here's the thing that I chuckled at. I used three different birds! I cooked the vegetables in duck fat, then added chicken stock, then at the end I added the chopped, cooked turkey. Duck, chicken, turkey. OMG, I think I made turducken soup.

Celery and Potato Soup with Tarragon Yogurt Swirl

Did you see Grey's Anatomy last week? One character is cooking for another and she says she's adding tarragon, even though she has no idea what tarragon tastes like, but that adding tarragon makes you sound like you know what you're doing.

[Aside: Yes, I still watch Grey's, and don't you judge me. Did you know that there are people out there writing Grey's fan fiction? I didn't know until I googled the tarragon quote.]

And that's the thing about tarragon; it's sort of a tricky herb to use. If you can figure it out, you will definitely look like you know what you're doing. It tastes a little licorice-y, like fennel, but not nearly as strong as a black jellybean. Floral, fragrant, interesting. Goes very well in chicken salad, and in this soup, specifically in that it makes potatoes and celery (cheap-o pantry staple type vegetables) taste like a million bucks.

Celery and Potato Soup with Tarragon Yogurt Swirl
Adapted from Bon Appetit
serves 4-6

6 green onions or scallions, chopped
1 tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons olive oil
1 lb celery, chopped, including leaves
1 lb white skinned potatoes, peeled, cut into 1 inch chunks
1/4 teaspoon celery seeds
1 - 2 teaspoons salt
1/8 teaspoon white or black pepper
4 cups chicken or vegetable broth
1 tablespoon lemon juice (you may only need a few drops, really)
1 cup cubed bread (sourdough or baguette or whatever you have)
2 tablespoons plain yogurt
1 teaspoon fresh tarragon, chopped as fine as you can

Heat a tablespoon of olive oil in a pot and saute the green onions over medium-high heat for a couple of minutes until they start to soften. Add the celery and celery leaves, potatoes and celery seeds, saute another minute, then add the chicken or vegetable broth. Bring soup to a boil then reduce heat to medium and simmer until all the veg is soft, 15 to 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, make the tarragon swirl: mix the yogurt and fresh tarragon in a small bowl, set aside. Toss the bread cubes with a teaspoon or two of olive oil, 1/2 teaspoon salt and a little fresh black pepper, then toast the cubes in a low (300 degree) oven or toaster oven until crispy, set aside.

When the potatoes and celery are tender, shut off the heat and puree the soup in the pot using an immersion blender, or puree it in batches in a traditional blender. Put it back on the heat to warm up if it's cooled down, and season with salt and pepper and a few drops of lemon juice. Taste and adjust seasoning. Serve topped with tarragon cream and croutons.

Stone Soup Farm CSA: Week Eleven (and Gazpacho!)

People keep talking about how summer is winding down, and folks, I'm not having any of it. Nope. Nosiree, not interested. Do not talk to me about back to school sales or beef stew or halloween, because I am not ready for summer to end. I mean, look at that pile of vegetables. Does that say "end of season" to you? We got: a bunch of huge scallions, six tomatoes, two pattypan squashes, spinach, basil, cucumbers, potatoes and some really gorgeous string beans in purple and yellow.

I'm not sure what possessed me to make gazpacho with this haul. I first had gazpacho in the eighth grade when I was intrigued by the name - say it with me. gazzzzPacho! throaty G, smooth Z, explosive P, and a nice long ooooo at the end -  However, I was at some chain restaurant (maybe Chili's?) when I ordered it and when I tasted it all I could think was ugh, runny salsa... and they're passing this off as soup? I spent the next fifteen years saying I didn't like cold soup.

Dudes, I was wrong. I do like cold soup. This is just exactly the ticket for those insanely humid days when just picking up a knife is enough to make you break a sweat, because even though it involves a fair bit of chopping, you let the blender do all the hard work.


 
Simple, Straightforward Gazpacho
serves 2-4

Because you blend the whole thing up till smooth, there's no need to peel the tomatoes, but you do want to peel the cucumbers because the skins can be waxy. You can use any kind of tomato you like, here. I used two CSA tomatoes, plus a few romas from our container garden. Imperfect tomatoes can be used in gazpacho, too, because there's no need for lovely presentation of whole slices, you just chop, blend, and chill. Easy and delicious! Oh, and if you want this soup to be vegetarian or vegan, skip the worcestershire sauce (it has anchovies) or use soy sauce instead. 

1 1/2 lbs tomatoes, roughly chopped
1 jalapeno, seeded, minced
1 huge or 2 regular cloves garlic, finely chopped or passed through a press
scant half an onion, roughly chopped
2 small cucumbers, peeled, roughly chopped
1 tbsp red wine vinegar
1 1/2 tsp worcestershire sauce
2 tablespoons olive oil, plus more for garnish
2 tablespoons chopped parsley, plus more for garnish
salt and pepper
1/2 an avocado, cubed, for garnish (optional)

Combine the tomatoes, jalapeno, garlic, onion, cucumbers, vinegar, worcestershire sauce (or soy sauce), parsley, olive oil, 3/4 teaspoon salt and several grinds of black pepper in a blender or food processor, or in a pot if using an immersion blender (that's what I did). Blend to desired consistency (but don't leave it too chunky or you'll end up with the cold runny salsa thing). Chill for at least an hour or up to overnight. Ladle into bowls, garnish with avocado if you like, drizzle with a little more olive oil, and serve. Garlicky toasted baguette makes a nice accompaniment.

Shrimp Gumbo

So you may have heard there's a big football game tonight. One of the teams has never actually made it to the Super Bowl, so it's a pretty big deal for them. I like that, the underdog story, and I guess I'm a little bit hoping the Saints take it home today. On the other hand, I think Peyton Manning is pretty hilarious -not on the field, then he's just sort of annoying, what with all the finger licking and beating the Patriots- but in those Sony ads with Justin Timberlake.

When my team's not playing, I usually watch the game anyway, but today happens to be my birthday (the big 2-7, whooop!) and we're going out to dinner. That's why I don't have a Super Bowl Snacks! post for you today. Instead, I bring you the humble gumbo. It starts with a proper roux, fat and flour cooked together to bring out the best of both, then the addition of the holy trinity of celery, bell pepper and onion. Add a little stock, some chopped tomatoes and a healthy dose of cayenne pepper, toss in a few quick-cooking shrimp at the end, and serve the whole thing over rice. Bam! (sorry) you've got yourself one heck of a meal.

Shrimp Gumbo
adapted from Mark Bittman in the New York Times
serves 4-6

Mr. Bittman made his gumbo this week with scallops, but I had shrimp in the freezer. I also used marjoram instead of oregano because (you guessed it) that's what I had.

1/4 cup olive oil
2 tablespoons butter
1/3 cup flour
1 onion, chopped
1 green bell pepper, chopped (I added half a red pepper because... I had one in the fridge)
2 celery stalks, chopped
2 tablespoons minced garlic
Salt and black pepper
2 to 3 cups vegetable or chicken stock, or water
2 cups chopped tomatoes with their juice (canned are fine)
1 tablespoon fresh thyme, or 1 teaspoon dried
1 tablespoon fresh marjoram, or 1 teaspoon dried (use oregano if that's what you have)
2 bay leaves
Cayenne to taste (start with a scant 1/4 teaspoon, go up from there)
1 pound shrimp, shelled and de-veined

In a dutch oven or other heavy pot, melt the butter and oil together over medium heat. When the butter is melted, add the flour by sprinkling or sifting it over the surface of the fat. Start stirring, and keep stirring for 15-20 minutes until it starts to smell nutty and darkens in color. There are those who would say it's not a true roux if it's not chestnut brown, but I say oh shush, this smells awesome. You may  have to adjust the heat a little lower to keep the roux from burning. Add the onions, celery, and bell pepper, season with salt and pepper and cook another ten minutes until the vegetables have softened.

Add the stock, tomatoes, thyme, marjoram, bay leaves and cayenne pepper, bring to a boil, then reduce the heat so the gumbo simmers. Allow to simmer, uncovered, stirring occasionally, for about 20 minutes until the gumbo thickens and reduces slightly. Taste for seasoning (you may need more cayenne). Add the shrimp, and give them a couple of minutes to cook through. Turn off the heat, remove the bay leaves, and serve the gumbo over rice.

Ack! It's Thanksgiving!

 Oh, hi there. I haven't forgotten you exist, blog friends. Really. AND I've been cooking! Look, soup!

And monster-enormo-giant carrots! (baby carrot and onion for scale)

And beautiful Borlotti beans!

In addition to actual cooking, I've been doing a TON of baking. My contribution to the Thanksgiving table consists of dill bread (my family would revolt if I show up without this for any holiday), parker house rolls, multigrain bread, compound butter, jam from my canning extravaganza (well, ok, that won't be ON the Thanksgiving table), and the turkey. Yep. My employer gives us a turkey from Bob's Turkey Farm every year on the Wednesday before The Big Day... and he's in a cooler in the hallway now, waiting for the trip up to Maine, which we'll be taking in a couple of hours. I'll be back on Sunday with Sweet Potato Latkes for Gourmet Unbound. Until then, I'll leave you with this awesome soup I learned about from The Wednesday Chef.

Cranberry Bean, Lacinato Kale and Pasta Soup
Makes 8 to 10 servings, seriously. This is a lot of soup. I sometimes halve the recipe. I soaked my beans for the eight hours I was at work, plus Rancho Gordo beans are super fresh, so my cooking time for the beans was a little shorter than what's noted here.

1/4 cup olive oil plus 2 1/2 tablespoons, divided
2 leeks, white part only, cleaned and sliced, about 2 cups
2 medium carrots, finely chopped, about 1 cup
1 onion, finely chopped, about 1 cup
3 cups dried cranberry beans (I used Rancho Gordo Borlotti beans)
Kosher salt
2 bunches lacinato kale (or one and a half bunches curly kale), cleaned, stemmed and coarsely chopped, about 10 cups
3 cups dried orecchiette pasta (about 9 ounces)
1 tablespoon fresh minced sage
1/2 cup fresh chopped parsley
1 1/2 tablespoons smoked paprika
1 1/2 teaspoons Hungarian paprika
1/8 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
Grated Parmesan cheese, for garnish

1. In a 4-quart soup pot or cast iron casserole, heat 1/4 cup of olive oil and cook the leeks, carrots and onions over medium-low heat until just softened, 8 to 10 minutes.

2. Add the dried beans and 12 cups of water. Bring to a simmer over high heat, then reduce the heat to low and cover the pot with the lid, stirring occasionally. After about 45 minutes, add 1 tablespoon of kosher salt. Continue to cook, covered, and again stirring occasionally, just until the beans are soft, 45 minutes to 1 hour or more (my beans only needed another half hour or so).

3. With a slotted spoon, remove 1 cup of the beans and, separately, 2 tablespoons of bean liquor and set both aside. Add the kale to the soup, stirring in a few cups at a time as the greens wilt. Cover, and continue to cook for 8 to 10 minutes more until the greens are tender, then remove from the heat.

4. Meanwhile, bring a pot of salted water to a rolling boil and cook the pasta until al dente; drain and reserve.

5. Combine in a food processor or blender: reserved beans and bean liquor, sage, parsley, paprikas and lemon juice, 2 1/2 tablespoons olive oil and a pinch of salt. Blend until smooth. Give it a taste, it may need salt or more liquid from the soup for ease of blending.

6. Right before you're ready to serve it, stir the cooked pasta into the soup. Ladle the soup into bowls and top each with 2 tablespoons of spiced bean purée (feel free to be generous, this stuff really makes the soup). Grate Parmesan over the top of each bowl to taste and serve immediately.

Restaurant Week Boston

Boston is a city of some truly excellent restaurants, and the twice yearly Restaurant Week comes in handy when there are visitors in town. Adam's parents are visiting from Oklahoma through Saturday and we've eaten quite well so far! Tomorrow I'll finally get to cook a whole meal for guests in the new kitchen, but until then, let me tell you my impressions from some of our out-and-about meals. Please be advised that I am not a restaurant review blogger in any way, shape, or form, and these are just recaps of meals I ate this week. I encourage you to get out and enjoy Restaurant week for yourselves!

We started with dinner at Taranta, a North End Italian restaurant with a Peruvian spin, on Sunday night. The small first floor dining room was pretty loud, but there was one (ahem) boisterous table of eight right near us. In particular, I liked that they had such an extensive Resto Week menu - six entree choices - since places I've been in the past for the prix fixe special had very limited options. I was sad to see that the espresso crusted filet mignon wasn't on the list, but at least it's still on the regular menu, so you can get it in a couple of weeks! Adam's dad ordered the skirt steak and yucca fries, which were just the right contrast of fluffy interior and crispy outside. Adam's corn crusted tilapia was butterific and tasted faintly of the tropics; perhaps they used cocounut in the preparation somehow. My orecchiette was served with a pleasantly zingy aji amarillo sausage and not enough broccoli rabe for my tastes, but I'm a green fiend. Desserts were solid but not standout. Guava and creamy ricotta cannolo, or tiramisu, both sauced with macerated berries. I could picture them in the back filling the cannolo, cutting a square of tiramisu and ladling the berries onto each plate... sadly this mental image made it feel sort of cafeteria-like, even though the desserts were pretty good. I wish dessert wasn't "required" as part of the Resto Week menu, that way people wouldn't phone it in. Regardless of the lackluster desserts, I'll go back to Taranta for sure.

Last night we got a big group together for dinner at Gargoyles on the Square in Davis. In the past, the service here has been great for couples and a little slow for groups, and that stood true last night as well. I understand they were swamped because it's restaurant week, but they took our forks with the entree dishes and didn't bring us any for dessert until I flagged someone down and asked. Not a huge big deal, but we were all sitting there, drooling on our chocolate tarts with no way to eat them... it seemed that there was only one waiter for the front room supported by lots of food runners, which could work under less hectic circumstances, but the poor guy was pretty overworked last night. So now that I've told you the tiny little negative, let's focus on how good the food was, shall we?

I must admit, I have eaten at Gargoyles before and loved it. I have eaten the duck confit with cashews and mango sticky rice before... and loved it. And that's exactly what I did last night. Our friend Ariana has ONLY ever ordered the duck confit at Gargoyles, and she's been there more than me! So it was not exactly shocking that I liked the duck last night (and the leftovers for breakfast, wee!). But the real knockout of the meal was the roasted zucchini soup with almond sour cream and shredded pork. Holy mother of flavors, Batman. This stuff was intense! Smoky from the roasting of the squash, a little sweet and spicy kick in the almond cream, and shredded pork so tender it should be illegal. I simply can't wait to try to recreate this bad boy at home.

Have you guys been enjoying restaurant week? Where have you been? What was the best dish? Where are you dying to go?

I know it's sort of a stupid holiday...

But at some point (maybe not today, but some time) you should make your sweetheart this soup. It's really tasty. Happy long weekend, everyone!

Creamy Sweet Potato Soup

It's finally starting to get chilly on the regular here in Boston, and I find myself craving the old standby soup and crusty bread dinner at least once a week. I had picked up a few sweet potatoes on a whim at the farmer's market last week so I browsed around the interwebs for some ideas and decided sweet potato soup was just the ticket.

Loosely based on Elise's sweet potato soup from an old issue of Bon Appetit and cut way down in proportions, this warm and faintly sweet bowl of yum was *almost* exactly what I was after. I didn't have any maple syrup, so I added a tiny bit of brown sugar, but I think I added too much. I'm leaving it off the ingredient list here, but if you taste yours and it's missing something, try sweetening it up a bit. Next time I think I will also add more aleppo pepper or red pepper flakes to up the spiciness, which I find myself enjoying more and more lately.

This was also my first attempt at using plain soy milk in cooking, but I thought it would work since soup is generally forgiving. The sweet potatoes add body and creaminess to the soup when blended anyway, so I didn't need to add much. As a result of that substitution, I find myself with one of the few truly vegan offerings in my humble vegetarian/vegan label. Sweet.

Sweet Potato Soup
adapted from Simply Recipes

2 tbsp olive oil
1/2 medium onion, chopped
1 lg celery stalk, chopped, leaves reserved for garnish
1 lg garlic clove, chopped
just over 1 lb sweet potatoes, peeled, cut into 1 inch chunks
2 cups vegetable broth or stock
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp aleppo pepper or crushed red pepper
1/8 tsp nutmeg
1/2 cup soy milk

Heat the olive oil in a medium sauce pot over medium-low heat. Add the onion, celery stalk, and garlic and saute until the onion is translucent, about 5 minutes. Adjust the heat down if necessary so the garlic doesn't brown. Add the sweet potato chunks, broth and spices and simmer over low heat, covered, until the sweet potato is tender all the way through, 15-20 minutes. Add the soy milk and taste, season with salt and pepper.

Turn off the soup and let it cool for 5-10 minutes before pureeing in batches in a blender. You could also use an immersion blender, if yours had not broken the second time you used it. Serve topped with chopped celery leaves

Serves 2-3

Impromptu Veggie Soup

Over the summer I took Kalyn's advice and pureed a lot of the bounty from my basil plant to stick in the freezer. It came in awfully handy last weekend when I made myself this tasty two-serving pot of soup for dinner. I realize it's sort of mean to tell you about that now since it's NOVEMBER OMG HOW'D THAT HAPPEN??, but the idea is if you have some tasty things around, soup is easy! Check your crisper for veggies. Saute said veggies. Add Some stock and maybe some canned tomatoes. Add beans. (Or leftover rice, or small pasta... you get the idea.) Taste and season and hey look! Soup!

Aside: Not that you could POSSIBLY forget what tomorrow is, unless you've been under the proverbial rock for the last two years, but DON'T forget to vote. Seriously. It's important.

Clean out the crisper veggie soup

2T olive oil
1 rib celery, chopped
1 small onion, chopped
2 small carrots, sliced into rounds
1 sprig of thyme, leaves only, minced if you like
1 14 oz can tomatoes, diced (I used fire roasted)
3/4 can white beans
1/3 c basil puree
2 c chicken stock

In a medium pot over medium heat, cook the celery, carrots and onion until the onion is translucent. Add the tomatoes and stock, turn heat to medium-low and simmer until the carrots are tender but not mushy 10-15 minutes. Add the thyme leaves, basil puree and white beans plus salt and pepper to taste and let simmer until heated through, about 2 minutes.

Serves 2-3 (or if you're home by yourself on a Sunday, 1 big dinner and 1 lunch.)

Moroccan Spiced Chickpea Soup

As you may recall, I have a thing for chickpeas. I eat them at least a few times a week (if not every day) in one form or another: in salads, as hummus, or during the cooler months, in this delicious spicy soup. The recipe comes from a show on the food network that I've only seen once, probably because according to the web site it airs Monday mornings at 9:30 am. Not terribly convenient.

I saw it years ago and I've been making it ever since. It makes a big pot, so if you're only feeding a few people there are usually leftovers. I often serve it with some sort of flat bread, and I like to make my own. This "naan" recipe by Emeril is NOT naan but it IS easy and this weekend I didn't have any plain yogurt in the house. If you decide to make a naan-like flatbread, I suggest a recipe that has yogurt like this one, but if you're in a hurry and out of yogurt, that first one will get the job done, anyway.

This time around I used some Rancho Gordo garbanzos I ordered a few weeks ago and they are FANTASTIC! But I had to soak and cook them before I could start the soup, which takes several extra hours, but you can use a good quality canned bean too. I have, and no matter what you serve it with, this is a winning combination of spices that makes for a very satisfying soup.



Moroccan Spice Chick Pea Soup
adapted from Dave Lieberman

Serves 4-6

3 Tbsp Olive Oil
1 Onion, diced
6-8 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
1 Tbsp cinnamon
1 Tbsp cumin
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper (I use a heaping 1/8 teaspoon; I like it spicy)
1 1/2 tsp sweet paprika
1 15 oz can diced tomatoes (fire roasted is good)
3 15 oz cans chickpeas (or equivalent in dried beans that have been soaked and cooked as you normally would)
1 quart low sodium chicken broth or vegetable broth
1 tsp sugar
salt & pepper
1 package baby spinach (5 oz or 9 oz package both work - spinach shrinks as it wilts)

Heat the olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and saute, stirring occasionally, about 5 minutes until the onion is translucent. Add the ground spices: cinnamon, cumin, cayenne and paprika and stir for 30 seconds or until spices are fragrant. Add the tomatoes, chickpeas, sugar and broth, season with salt and pepper. Chickpeas should be barely covered with liquid, if not, add a little water. Simmer over low heat for 30-45 minutes. Just before serving, add the spinach and stir for a minute or so until wilted. Taste and correct seasoning if necessary, serve hot with bread.

Chicken Tortilla Soup

Hi, friends! Did you have a good weekend? I spent most of this weekend enjoying the awesome weather, and I'll tell you all about it tomorrow, but today I wanted to show you the soup I made a few weeks ago. I was very, very bad while making it: I did NOT take enough pictures to show you a step by step, but it's easy and delicious and may be the perfect fall food, because it takes advantage of the hot peppers and end of season corn that are still kicking deliciously around the farmer's markets.




I used a combo of jalapeno and poblano peppers but I added cayenne and red pepper flakes in the cooking. Nex time, I'll probably add another hot pepper, though I like the mellow flavor of the poblano. You could make a delicious soup with whatever heat level you can handle.





There are tons and tons of tortilla soup recipes on the food blogs and on recipe sites like epicurious, so google away if you're looking for an option sans chicken or avec something else. Most of the recipes I read called for corn tortillas, but we didn't have any, so I used wheat and they were just delicious. I also made too many and snacked on crunchy tortilla strips all day.




Tortilla Soup

serves four

1 jalapeno pepper, diced as small as you can
1 poblano pepper, diced not quite as small as you can
1/2 onion, chopped
1 chicken breast, cut in strips or bite sized pieces
4-5 c. chicken broth
1 can roasted diced tomatoes
kernels from 2 cobs of fresh corn (see this removal method), or a generous cup of frozen corn
red pepper flakes or cayenne pepper to taste
salt to taste (start with half a teaspoon)
juice of one very juicy lime
1-2 handfuls cilantro (half a bunch)
1/2 an avocado per serving
tortilla strips (from 5 6-inch corn or four tortillas)

For garnish:
sour cream
shredded jack cheese

Heat a splash of olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the peppers and onion and sauté until they've softened a bit, about 3-5 minutes. Don't worry if they get a bit of color on them, but don't let them burn. Add the chicken and sauté until it is mostly cooked through - 5-7 minutes.

Now add the chicken broth, diced tomatoes, and a shake of the pepper flake of your choice. Let the soup come almost to boil, then knock the heat back to low and let it simmer uncovered for 15 minutes. Taste and add salt and more pepper flakes or cayenne if you need more heat - mine did. Simmer another ten minutes or so.

While soup is simmering, make tortilla strips: using a sharp knife or pizza wheel, cut the tortillas into strips about 3/8" wide. Toss with a little olive oil, spread on a sheet pan and bake in a 350 degree oven, tossing a couple of times for 10 - 15 minutes.

About a minute before soup is done (though really the timing is quite loose) add the corn kernels - give it a few minutes if you're using frozen corn. When it's done, turn off the heat and add the lime juice. Now build the soup: dice the avocado and place in a bowl. Add half a handful of chopped cilantro and some tortilla strips. Ladle soup into bowl, then garnish with shredded jack cheese and a dollop of sour cream.