Soup

Roasted Butternut Squash and Red Apple Soup

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I have had a serious addiction to butternut squash lately. Literally, twice a week I roast about two butternut squash and, so far, I have yet to tire of it. Usually, I have every intention of creating soup using the roasted deliciousness; however, once I roast them, they rarely last longer than two hours. After buying butternut squash soup four days in a row (which I may or may not have garnished with roasted squash), I vowed to take the 15 extra minutes to make my own after I roasted my next batch. I make mine without butter, cream or other dairy, making this a perfect soup to deliver loads of nutrients for almost all dietary restrictions. The soup was fabulous and I saved myself about $13 in not buying it for three different meals.

You can garnish the soup with your pleasure of the moment  (fresh herbs, creme fraiche, crispy bacon, etc). Personally, I had planned on crisping up some thick cut bacon to crumble atop the soup – but was so excited to eat it I could not wait.

Roasted Butternut Squash and Red Apple Soup

Serves Two to Three

Ten Garlic Cloves (or more to taste), roughly minced
One large white onion (or six or seven medium shallots), roughly diced
One to two pounds butternut squash, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch dice
Two or three tablespoons Italian Seasoning or Herbs de Provence
One tablespoon black pepper
One teaspoon White Pepper (optional)
A couple good pinches of salt
Couple glugs good olive oil (regular, basil, garlic, or truffle)
Three red apples (I used Pink Lady), cut from the core in large sections and squeezed with lemon
Two tablespoons Thai Curry Blend or similar
Two to Three Cups of good-quality Vegetable (or Chicken) broth

Preheat oven to 350°F. Place garlic, butternut squash, and onions in a baking dish. Add oil and spices to taste, sprinkle with salt and pepper; toss to coat. Bake until golden brown and squash is tender, 30 minutes.  Taste and adjust for seasoning preferences. Remove pan and add apples; continue baking for about 15 minutes. Remove and transfer to a pot with about 2 cups of vegetable or Chicken broth. Working in batches, puree the mixture in a blender or food processor until smooth. Return to pan and taste (adding additional seasoning as necessary. Add two tablespoons of Thai Curry Blend or similar and let simmer for about five minutes.

Garnish with desired toppings ( slivered apples, crunchy bacon, shaved cheese, fresh herbs, etc). and serve with crusty bread. Can be eaten cold or hot, as soup or poured over chicken, fish or pasta for a nice sauce.

Pulled Duck, Lamb and White Bean Stew

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Recently (technically November 16th), we went to a lovely local bistro called Blue Dahlia for my dear friend Sarah’s birthday celebration. Their special for the evening was a play on Cassoulet (a classic french dish that can cure just about any ailment). It was a thick pulled duck, lamb sausage, white bean stew with a wonderfully spicy tomato-based stew pungent with fresh herbs (though had markedly less broth than my version). Even though I am dieting and trying to reduce the amount of food I eat, I at EVERY bite and then proceeded to lick the bowl. Clearly, I would have to replicate this dish (if possible). Luckily, they were gracious enough to tell me the main ingredients. Eventually, I will confit the duck and make an actual cassoulet, but right now I am changing jobs, preparing for the holidays, and trying to bang out my last papers of grad school so cassoulet will have to wait. Not that I mind much; the stew turned out quite amazing and I could smell it cooking down the hall from my apartment. It was so good in fact, I ate my first bowl with a few hard beans in it because I could not take the smell of it anymore.

Pulled Duck, Lamb and White Bean Stew

Serves at least Four

Two Duck Leg quarters
Half pound of Lamb shoulder, cut into one inch pieces (or one link Hot Italian lamb sausage)
Two Cups Great Northern or Navy Beans, soaked overnight
Three large tomatoes, quartered and roughly seeded
Three tablespoons crushed red pepper
Two Tablespoons Black Pepper
Salt to taste
Two tablespoons demi-glace du canard
One Large white onion, roughly diced
Bouquet garni of fresh Thyme Sprigs, Oregano, Sage, and Rosemary
One head garlic, roughly chopped
One cup dry white wine
Four cups Chicken Stock
One tablespoon tomato paste (more if desired)
Parmesan Rind (if you have one on hand)
Additionally garlic or garlic powder if desired

In a large dutch oven, sear the duck and lamb after seasoning it with salt and pepper. Remove from pan and heat onions and garlic until glassy. Pour in wine and just boil off. Return the meat to the pan and add crushed red pepper, bouquet garni, stock, tomato paste, demi glace, black pepper, a couple good pinches of salt, beans, and tomatoes. Let it hang out in the pan on a low heat for about 6 hours; it will start smelling all kinds of amazeballs. Taste test occasionally and add seasoning as desired. Serve with fresh herbs of choice and some crusty bread for soaking.

Spicy Veggie and Chicken Minestrone

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Recently, I made minestrone from a special diet cookbook. This was a first for me and, after making it, I cannot understand why. I sent that soup home with its intended eaters and immediately decided to make a large batch for myself for the week. This made a ton of food (I froze half) and was healthful and satisfying. Feel free to adjust depending on what you have to use up, after all the soup is designed to use up everything in season in an Italian’s kitchen. I wanted to use whole wheat Gemelli, but had regular Penne on hand so that was what went in. Feel free to use your favorite pasta, rice, grain or even gnocchi.

Spicy Veggie and Chicken Minestrone

serves 8-10

One Frozen Parmesan Cheese Rind
One-half pound pasta of choice
Three cups shredded chicken
One bunch Swiss Chard or Kale, washed, stemmed and cut into strips
Two Cups Zucchini, diced
Two cups Yellow Squash, diced
Three Cups Onion, diced
Two Cups Celery, roughly diced
Two Cups Carrot, peeled and roughly diced
One head garlic, minced
Four tablespoons crush red pepper
Two tablespoons each: oregano, fennel seed, black pepper, thyme (use more or less according to taste preference)
One Ham Hock
One can kidney or cannellini beans
Two quarts good quality chicken stock
Two boxes of crushed tomatoes with juice
Two cups frozen peas

Heat about two tablespoons olive oil in a large dutch oven. Once hot, add onions and garlic and saute until glassy (with a good pinch of salt). Add celery, zucchini, carrots, squash, crushed red pepper, and all spices cook for about 5 minutes until softened. Add ham hock, Parmesan rind, tomatoes and broth (adding additional broth as necessary). Simmer for about an hour, then add chard , peas, shredded chicken, cooked pasta, and beans. Adjust seasoning as necessary. Simmer another 10 minutes or so and serve with crusty bread and a sprinkling of Pecorino or Parmesan cheese.

Tom Kha Gai

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Last night, D and I had Thai night. I was happy he agreed because I was dead set on having Tom Kha (but did not want to go all the way north to Titaya’s to get it). Tom Kha Gai  is not a joking matter. If a Thai place has lackluster Tom Kha, I will never again eat there and you better hope you did not recommend it to me. This is hands down my favorite soup to eat and I would eat it everyday if I had my 18-year old body back  (pho, roasted tomato and traditional ramen/udon are close behind). I really hope, and think I rightfully suspect, that Heaven boasts a never-ending bowl of Tom Kha. My homemade Tom Kha, while close, is not quite on par with Titaya’s (FYI best Thai in Austin) – but it is a damn good comparison. The only real difference is that mine is a bit healthier: I use low fat coconut milk and only about three-quarters of a cup of regular fat to save about 400 calories.  This switch does affect the soup slightly – it will not be quite as thick and creamy and will be a tad less sweet, but really – it tastes pretty awesome!

The shopping: there are not a ton of ingredients in this, but some can be hard to track down (if you can buy large quantities and store appropriately for a pantry meal). Whole Foods, Central Market and specialty Thai stores will have the ingredients you need. If possible, try to get your Kaffir Limes either from your own plant or from a Thai store (who will generally have their own tree) because they have better and more potent flavor than store bought ones.  You can buy several extra stocks of lemon grass, cut into three-inch pieces, and store in a freezer bag for months. Do not sub dried lemon grass for fresh, it is far inferior. Coriander is cilantro; ergo coriander root is the root of the cilantro bunch you pick up at the store. I have never found this fresh in a non-Asian market – you can sub ground coriander or coriander seed with fresh cilantro. Additionally, try to find fresh galangal (it is also jarred in some specialty stores); if you cannot, sub ginger.

If you have a well-stocked pantry, this soup is a super quick way to have a delicious, flavorful, health fortifying meal (the ingredients are used in Asian countries to heal the body and stave off illness). The flavors are surprisingly complex. You can use chicken or shrimp, or leave them out altogether if you do not have any on hand.

Note:  I have been making this soup (I also use a smaller portion for sauce) for years. It may not come out right every time, but have patience, eventually you will learn the flavors and how to tweak them. Too sour or spicy: Add a bit of sugar. Too acidic: add some more coconut milk. Too Sweet: add some acid and fish sauce. Many times the outcome of the soup will be the victim of sub-par and commercialized ingredients (which is why if you can find an Asian market, it will be your best bet). All that said, you most likely will never have a terrible outcome and it sure is fun getting it just right!

Tom Kha Gai

Serves Three

One Can Light Coconut Milk, Plus a quarter to a half can Regular Coconut Milk
Two cups Good Chicken Stock (preferably homemade sub boxed if necessary), use more if needed
One teaspoon of brown sugar (or palm sugar), using more as necessary
Five lemongrass stalks, cut into three-inch pieces and brusied slightly (use more if the potency is a bit off)
One white onion, quartered and roughly chopped
Four cloves garlic, crushed
Two pieces coriander root (or good pinch seeds/powder with a decent handful of cilantro)
Five Thai chili peppers – can sub Habaneros (use less according to heat preference)
Two inch chuck of galanga or ginger
Ten Kaffir Lime Leaves
Sriracha, to taste
Pre-cooked chicken, cut into bite size pieces
Ten Cremini Mushrooms, quartered
Two tablespoons fish sauce
Fresh Lime Juice, to taste

Garnish

Chopped Basil (not traditional, I just needed to use it up)
Chopped Green Onion
Chopped Cilantro

Heat a small bit of oil in a large stock pan, add onions, garlic, peppers, galanga/ginger, lemongrass, sugar, salt, and coriander (root/seed/or powder) and saute until slightly fragrant. Add coconut milk and broth, bring to a boil, then simmer for twenty minutes or so. Strain solids and broth, then return to pan and taste the soup and add ingredients as necessary/desired. I usually add additional lemongrass stalks and kaffir lime leaves (in addition to the amount listed in ingredients) to the soup – this is sometimes not necessary depending on the quality of ingredient, but I always leave it as an option. Feel free to add some onions back into the soup. Add sriracha and allow to cook for about ten minutes, then add mushrooms and some fresh cilantro. After about five minutes, add chopped chicken and lime juice to taste. Laddle into bowls over steamed basmati rice and garnish with freshly chopped basil, cilantro, and green onion. Serve Hot.

Bonus: even better the next day!!

 

 

Sweet Corn Puree

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Another beauty of this insane heat (please do a rain dance everyone), is that it means that summer corn is in season and fabulous as always. Is there a bad way to serve corn? I honestly do not think so. This wonderful green-husked, annoyingly silky beauty has filled the bellies for centuries regardless of budget. Incidentally, corn goes into just about everything you eat, or ingest, and even into vehicles this day in age (I will spare you the rant), but I prefer to think of corn the way that mother earth (or nature) intended it to be…REAL, WHOLE, WONDERFULLY LUSCIOUS, Corn Kernels from a COB, and – just for a shout out to the south – this includes the creamy milk the cob renders. Summer stalks are a shining example of corn’s ability to make a silky sweet puree that can pair with a lovely dab of butter for a hint of richness. To me, summer is defined as: the simple luxury of a good quality ingredients shining in their element. Being that corn is in season, and I have the week off, this was my lunch today. I can promise this beats any Lean Cuisine you can imagine – it was a superb 35 minutes of cooking, eating, returning for seconds, and looking at the plate wishing for thirds. Perfect for my staycation and for this too-hot-to-handle-summer in Texas.

Notes: I used coconut milk as my “cream.”  I do not use much dairy and only had Soy Milk on hand, I decided that coconut milk would add a better richness and contribute more to texture than my alternative. If you use dairy and have it on hand fee free to sub whole milk, half and half, or cream for the coconut milk. Also, feel free to add as much butter as you like and season a bit less according to taste.

Sweet Corn Puree

One Cup Roasted Corn (use frozen in a pinch)
One-Third Cup Coconut Milk
Nice pinch of salt
Black Pepper To Taste
One Tablespoon Butter
One Teaspoon Cayenne Pepper

Boil Coconut Milk in a small sauce pan. Once bubbling, add corn, salt, pepper, and butter. Reduce heat and simmer for 4-6 minutes. Add Cayenne and any additional seasoning and spoon corn mixture into a food processor. Process until smooth. Serve chilled as a soup, or reserve to incorporate as a sauce for fish or chicken, or incorporate into sweet corn risotto.

Smoked Tortilla Soup

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You know those days that you just cannot decide what you want to eat? The days when nothing sounds good, but you have 95 percent of the components of four different dishes that desperately need to be used up. Yesterday was one of those days in Andiland. I finally decided that I would get the remaining 3 elements that I needed for a stir fry (basically just needed a protein) and to make tortilla soup, thinking that if I made both I could have the soup for lunch or just freeze it. Fast forward to actually getting home and cooking dinner and I was just too tired to cook both – so soup was on the menu. I have always thought that the name of tortilla soup is funny. For starters, I do not eat tortilla chips with my tortilla soup – at this point does it just become Mexican tomato soup with chicken? I guess tortilla soup stills sounds better. Then you have people claiming to have roasted tortilla soup. What is roasted? The tomatoes? The Chicken? Could be anything or nothing really. Then you have smoked tortilla soup – when can also be chicken or the peppers. In my case I suppose I made Smoked non-tortilla tortilla soup because I used smoked chipotle peppers in adobo. Good enough for me! The beauty of this soup is that it is flavorful, can be adapted any which way, is healthy (go light on the cheese), and can easily be a pantry meal when you cannot get to the store. Additionally, you can make this in 30 minutes or let it slow cook. It is also adaptable for vegetarian diets (leave out the chicken) and has no gluten or dairy (omit cheese) so it can be great for those sensitivities.

Note: I would have rather used fresh, roasted tomatoes but I only had one and a can of fire-roasted crushed tomatoes – so that is what went in. I think I should have used a little less as the end result was a bit too tomatoey (though I could have added more stock – just did not want to make a HUGE portion). Additionally, I used chipotle peppers in adobo as my main source of spice – feel free to use dried chipotle peppers, cayenne, jalapeno, or whatever your pleasure is. I used a little more than half a can, I think I could have used a bit less. The end result was quite spicy and smoky, not necessarily a bad thing as D and I like both elements very much, but cooking for others I would have reduced it.Also, I hate bell peppers. Normally you would put some in a tortilla soup, but given my aversion, I could only manage to put maybe a quarter in (it was pre-diced as well because I cannot stand the smell of bell peppers at any stage of their journey).

Tortilla Soup, Serves 3-4

One can Muir Glen Organic Fire-Roasted Tomatoes (Crushed, Diced, or Whole)
One Medium Tomato, roughly chopped
Four cups chicken broth
One White Onion, diced
Six cloves garlic, minced
Two tablespoons Cumin Seeds
One tablespoon Adobo
Two tablespoons Oregano
One Tablespoon Ground Coriander
One Tablespoon Tumeric powder
One Tablespoon Garlic powder (optional)
Nine Sprigs Fresh Thyme
One cup frozen sweet corn (optional)
One quarter green bell pepper, diced (use more if desired)
One Chicken breast, shredded (pre-cooked or cooked in soup, can also use dark meat with same method)
Juice of one lime
Salt and Pepper to taste

Garnish

Avocado Slices
Chopped Fresh Cilantro
Shredded Monterrey Jack Cheese
Fresh Fried Corn Tostadas
Lime Wedges

Heat a small amount of olive oil in a stock pot. Once heated, add the onions, cumin seeds, and garlic to the pan with a pinch of salt. If using chicken, place that in pan as well to brown the outsides.* Stir and allow to cook for a couple of minutes then add all ground spices. Add broth and tomatoes to pan, stir well. Add bell peppers (this should be done with the onions, but I cannot stand the smell of them cooking so I added them to the liquid) and thyme sprigs. Let the mixture simmer for about 30 to 40 minutes – you can actually make this a very quick meal or a slow-cooked meal if you prefer. The flavors will be more developed the longer it cooks so if you have the time to start it and let it sit for about two or three hours that will be fine. After about 30 minutes, add the lime juice and about a half cup to a cup of fresh chopped cilantro. Ladle soup into bowls and serve with a small garnish bowl of avocado, fresh cilantro, a lime wedge, shredded cheese and a freshly fried whole tortilla (heat a small amount of oil in a pan and fry corn tortilla one each side until it bubbles and curls).

*If using pre-cooked chicken, shred and add in about 10 minutes from when you will ladle soup out so that chicken does not over-cook. If using raw chicken, brown on all sides with onions, then allow chicken to slowly cook with the simmering stew (about 40 minutes). Remove from pan and shred if necessary, if using wings, legs, and thighs then remove bones from soup before serving.

Homemade Chicken Stock

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Chicken stock is a great way to use up leftover veggies and chicken parts. An additional plus is that it just smells so darn good simmering all day long. One of my favorite things to do is buy fresh bagel and have a lovely lunch of bagel and chicken stock before I strain and skim the stock. Fresh stock will last in the fridge for 4-5 days and can be frozen for months. My mom used to freeze stock in muffin tins and ice trays and pull what she needed when she needed it. I have yet to have a freezer with enough space for this, so I try to use mine up in soups and chicken and dumplings and such in the first week.

Note: I usually make stock after I have used two or three whole chickens (you can freeze after using until ready to make stock) and skip buying chicken backs, necks, and feet. You can certainly make it with anything that you choose – for me it has always just been a leftover, I don’t want to go to the store, throw in a pot and live my life kind of deal.

Homemade Stock – Should make a little under 2 quarts

Two to Three Whole Chicken Carcases, broken down, insides removed
Five Large Carrots, Cut into two inches pieces
Four or Five Celery Stalks, Cut into two inch pieces
One bunch Leeks, white parts only
One Bouquet Garni (Four Bay Leaves, 12 Thyme Sprigs, Five Parsley Sprigs, One Rosemary Sprig – optional)
Two heads of garlic, entire head cut into halves
One plus one half white onion
Three tablespoons black peppercorns
One cup White Wine (optional)
Two quarts Boxed Chicken Broth (you can also use water – making stock with stock develops a strong stock flavor that I love)

Roast the chicken bones and garlic halves for about 45 minutes to deepen their flavor (this step can be skipped if you choose).

In a large stock pot, heat a bit of olive oil then add the celery, carrots, leek, onions and garlic (all properly seasoned) and saute for a couple of minutes. Add white wine and allow to reduce slightly. Add chicken bones, pepper, and bouquet garni then cover with the chicken stock. Simmer for up to 12 hours. I generally wait to skim the fat, but you can do it at any time during the simmering process. Once you are done simmering, strain entire pot to remove all solid ingredients. Then, strain through a fine sieve to remove all small particles. Can be returned to a pot to make dish of choice or stored in jars in the fridge. If freezing, wait for the broth to cool before putting it into muffin tins to freeze.

Cucumber Avocado Soup

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D and I spent the weekend at my parent’s house in the Hill Country. They have thermometer that is located on an outside deck in the shade. Around 2:00 pm Sunday afternoon, it read 102 degrees. IN THE SHADE. Needless to say, the heat of Texas summers pleads for refreshing, cold, light meals and snacks. Short of sucking on a Popsicle incessantly, this can be tough to do as most people like their food hot. Texans understand the need for cold food – we know that it is almost as important as queso. We had about 6 avocados leftover from fourth of July that had finally softened enough to be eaten (and that needed to be eaten by Sunday). I had no desire to make guacamole or enchiladas or anything that required eating luke-warm to hot meals. This led me to think about a lovely avocado soup I had had on holiday in Mexico back in 2008. In this same meal, I thoroughly enjoyed a cucumber martini which was the best drink I have ever had to date. I could feel myself begin to pine for these two flavors, so I decided to combine them in a chilled soup to ease the pain of the hot day. The soup was a lovely lunch and shortly after enjoying it, a small storm came across the lake and the temperature dropped about twenty degrees! Maybe I should call this magic, rain dance soup?

Note: I added spinach for extra nutrition, feel free to omit it if you do not have any – the flavor is not affected as the mild spinach flavor will play second fiddle to the avocado and cucumber flavors. Secondly, had I had any, I would have added fresh cilantro to brighten the flavors even further. I left this out and used fresh basil instead, which was just fine, and probably made my vehemently anti-cilantro father very happy. Feel free to use either or both depending on your taste preference.

Serves 4-6 as a appetizer portion

Two Cucumbers, washed and roughly chopped (seeded)
Five avocados, seeded and skinned
One to two cups of baby Spinach
Five Green onion stalks, including white parts
One tablespoon Ground Coriander
Salt and Pepper to taste
Juice of One Lemon, plus more to taste
One bunch fresh basil, with a few leaves set aside to chiffonade for garnish
1/2 Jalapeno, seeded and minced
Five garlic cloves
Cayenne Pepper to taste
1/2 to 3/4 cup plain yogurt
One to 1.5 cups chicken stock or cold water (depending on thinness desired)

Place all ingredients in a food processor or blender and mix well. Adjust seasoning as desired, then transfer to the fridge and allow to chill for at least  half hour, preferably longer. Serve garnish with fresh basil.