tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-41854897332585984752024-03-19T02:34:47.774-07:00SouperlatifWho can be This Souperlatifhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16107087107778558733noreply@blogger.comBlogger26125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4185489733258598475.post-46371813769068622822011-03-11T17:25:00.000-08:002011-03-30T20:54:15.964-07:00Taking Stock, and Making It, too!Souperlatif has not been busy in the kitchen for many a past week. Those of you who follow, will have missed the weekly excursions on soup roads less traveled. I, too, and am eager to be back with something new. What could be a better return than a return to the basics - taking stock, and making it, too! Almost every soup needs it, almost every cook never has it (the fresh homemade, that is), what's more, the making of it is a bit of a chore. And in my house, not everyone is addicted to stock aroma therapy.<br /><br />Enter the pressure cooker. A bit dusty on a back shelf, seal ring and pressure gauge still looking serviceable, I think its time to revisit speeding up stock by intensifying the cooking, which is what pressure cookers do best. Not an original notion, pressure cooker stock seems to have quite a following on the blogs. While its no surprise to find a <a href="http://www.kuhnrikon.com/products/pressure_cookers/tip.php3?id=7">howto from Kuhn Rikon</a>, the Swiss manufacturer of the worlds most high-end pressure cooker, Saveur, too, has an online article in their Test Kitchen series by <a href="http://www.saveur.com/article/Recipes/From-the-Test-Kitchen-Perfect-Pressure-Cooker-Chicken-Stock">Kyle Connaughten</a>. Much more surprising, I found a discussion and instructions for making stock in the new 6 volume compendium, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Modernist-Cuisine-Art-Science-Cooking/dp/0982761007">Modernist Cuisine: The Art and Science of Cooking,</a> by Nathan Myhrvold et al.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNm8SUmNXwI980ZE7H5Y87iux4vFzcGDxdyUTOQWjB9cxy_yLF5KjTNKddsR4-JS4Drd6Kn4jsECgOj61vGk8KU-M_pblo5NIF3-_BElvMzKOtg8amF4iKF4S_fJw89mklFHfZeVd8Pxc/s1600/myhrvold.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNm8SUmNXwI980ZE7H5Y87iux4vFzcGDxdyUTOQWjB9cxy_yLF5KjTNKddsR4-JS4Drd6Kn4jsECgOj61vGk8KU-M_pblo5NIF3-_BElvMzKOtg8amF4iKF4S_fJw89mklFHfZeVd8Pxc/s320/myhrvold.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5589982387232170770" border="0" /></a>In this astonishing work, which details cooking with liquid nitrogen, has pictures from within the inside of covered pots while the cooking is happening, and describes using ultrasound to "cavitate" ingredients in a liquid bath (I still do not have my head around this one), the old-fashioned pressure cooker takes center stage for meat stock. From the author who advocates cooking pastrami for 72 hours in a sous vide bath at 120 degrees, he gets the stock done in under 45 minutes!<br /><br />Well, could it be good? I'm curious! I've always had a healthy distaste for pressure cooker chicken dishes - closest thing in a homemade kitchen to canned chicken stew. And what about clarity? How could all that heat not cause the minute particles to be irremediably suspended in the broth? I adapted the stock discussion to beef stock, using chopped up bones, browned meat, typical stock vegetables and spices. I roughly followed the cooking directions - heat to 15 psi, lower heat and cook for 45 minutes to an hour. When I turned off the heat and allowed the cooker to come to normal pressure, the result was just what I thought. The stock smelled anything but aromalicious, and the broth looked almost milky. Could the food scientists be lacking in discrimination after all?<br /><br />I re-read the manual and I have to admit, it was User Error. The most important point, and I didn't pay attention the first time around, is to allow the vessel to reach full pressure, but then to reduce the heat to low, just about a simmer.<br /><br />When I repeated the procedure, both for beef and for a chicken stock, I got a really fine result. I don't think the broths would be clear enough for Thomas Keller, but they were definitely workably clear, even before straining. The key is low temp, the pressure provides process intensification, and the not insignificant benefit, significantly foreshortened cooking time.<br /><br />This stock doesn't need a recipe. Whatever you normally do, you achieve the usual result, only sooner. My chicken stock was what I typically do for light soup base. I used the following - all the freshest, especially this beautiful organic half breast:<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimz2SUehisn2pl22FlLqwZDjBfnSXrBFkK2asWelaF8EjiRTmhWjdzA67_tMMtgwbeWMGgySk41PftBjYwyBZ982EQRrWAlGkCWrdO_K8xHGSqU-dnYbOw45-nRQx7BGa3EdZ1B582IEU/s1600/chicken+stock.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 264px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimz2SUehisn2pl22FlLqwZDjBfnSXrBFkK2asWelaF8EjiRTmhWjdzA67_tMMtgwbeWMGgySk41PftBjYwyBZ982EQRrWAlGkCWrdO_K8xHGSqU-dnYbOw45-nRQx7BGa3EdZ1B582IEU/s400/chicken+stock.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5589986238664774018" border="0" /></a><br />One proviso, making stock in the pressure cooker is not for big yields. It is never advisable to fill the cooker with water more than 2/3 full, or 3/4 at most. And therefore, the half breast was just the right amount for 4-6 cups of water.<br /><br />So next time you think stock, think Presto - there's more to your mother-in-laws' old tool-of-choice!Who can be This Souperlatifhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16107087107778558733noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4185489733258598475.post-35361169377829320422010-10-11T09:38:00.000-07:002010-10-11T22:24:56.521-07:00An Accidental Chowder, or, the Pleasures of Fish and Cream<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiipV2vltHXLInfzqoZmVI6ktVkLVRNjcmnFZPqlKpb3mzkcZtpsMgQmsbIwvJGpawI4_3CkClatXp0rx1NoYY5xD7NAvGcokcyOI_4qfXnhHFkgWzRKrrKQJnZdEM34CLxHsTgNjWJA6w/s1600/fish_chowder2.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 233px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiipV2vltHXLInfzqoZmVI6ktVkLVRNjcmnFZPqlKpb3mzkcZtpsMgQmsbIwvJGpawI4_3CkClatXp0rx1NoYY5xD7NAvGcokcyOI_4qfXnhHFkgWzRKrrKQJnZdEM34CLxHsTgNjWJA6w/s320/fish_chowder2.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5526848545099926626" border="0" /></a>I was recently thumbing through a group of cookbooks, all excellent soup cookbooks featuring soups of New England and chowders. The idea was to test and compare approaches to "authentic" clam chowder. I had a huge batch of fresh clams, potatoes and cream, fresh thyme, onions, and some good fresh cod - in short, all the essentials every one of these authentic recipes required. But as I was ready to go, one item was missing, the salt pork. The salt pork is key: the saltiness, a bit of the smoky, and fat to render with the onions. Clam chowder was suddenly out, at least the New England variety. I did end up making a Manhattan-style clam chowder, and the clams were gainfully deployed, but the recipe I developed was unfortunately not a winner.<br /><br />Next morning, still without salt pork, I decided to use the nice fresh chunks of cod in a delicate creamy concoction that turned out just perfectly. As New England fish chowder, it wasn't authentic at all, and I borrowed little from the recipes I thought I would feature. But it was definitely worth writing about - quick and simple, too.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWCnbMHWD-gsTb0eE90ubCe1m87ILWJX-CauRWcZCTyENIZbwofQ6-O5k8jw4ROhtoUovmZj0xf4BzRkGOJQeVLlC_YQr6nfgdS0V2SVF2nWX2ld4Bycy6rp-iucwa5qMHkpXBRGgTaJQ/s1600/Fish_chowder1.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWCnbMHWD-gsTb0eE90ubCe1m87ILWJX-CauRWcZCTyENIZbwofQ6-O5k8jw4ROhtoUovmZj0xf4BzRkGOJQeVLlC_YQr6nfgdS0V2SVF2nWX2ld4Bycy6rp-iucwa5qMHkpXBRGgTaJQ/s400/Fish_chowder1.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5526844172857160498" border="0" /></a><br />I had a short pint of fish stock stored in the freezer, and this with a bottle of store bought bottled clam juice was my stock. I sauteed the onions in butter with a little light olive oil, then let them express with some good white wine. Added broth and potatoes, seasonings, then brought to a simmer until the potatoes were soft. Meanwhile, I heated the cream with a little tarragon - very important step! The cream should be steamy, slightly foamy, but not at a full boil. If the cream is not heated first, it will curdle in the soup! After the cream is added, the cubed fish need only poach in the broth for 5 minutes or so - just until they are opaque and flake easily. Recheck seasonings, especially pepper, then serve immediately. A perfectly delicate chowdery "accident", in just 20 minutes!<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Fish Chowder with a French Accent!</span><br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Ingredients</span><br />2 tbspn butter + 1 tbspn light olive oil<br />3/4 pound fresh cod or haddock, in bite-size chunks<br />1 medium onion, diced fine<br />1/2 cup good white wine<br />2 cups diced Yukon Gold potatoes<br />2 cups fish broth or clam juice<br />1 cup water or light chicken broth<br />1 cup heavy cream<br />sprig of fresh tarragon, or pinch of dried<br />1 tsp. dried thyme<br />1 bay leaf<br />pinch of cayenne pepper<br />salt<br />freshly ground pepper<br /><br />As above, start with the onions, and when translucent, add the wine, simmering off the the alcohol. Season with the thyme, stirring for a minute or so, then add all the liquids except the cream, the potatoes, the bay leaf and salt, pepper, and cayenne, and continue to cook until the potatoes are soft. Heat the cream with the sprig of tarragon in a separate pot as described above. Add in a 1/2 cup of the broth from the soup, and slowly pour the cream mixture back into the soup pot. Remove the tarragon sprig, add the fish cubes and allow the fish to poach in the broth for about 5 minutes. The fish should be opaque, tender, and easy to flake with a fork. Check the seasonings, adding salt and pepper if needed. Serve immediately with a garnish of parsley. New England style chowder crackers are allowed!Who can be This Souperlatifhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16107087107778558733noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4185489733258598475.post-83833763297205847102010-09-17T13:55:00.000-07:002010-09-19T21:12:49.681-07:00Simple Pleasures - A Sunday Soup of Chickpeas from the Greek Island of Sifnos<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEid_3zL9FvW1s0COBttc8GaPUcMfwa7LkMEKMh69sD4k2-krx05EBjgmFNbyQ4dpgC4CXmycWVNJeDI7KlVKRMtjNO2Xf__4vKmFZ8gAOIvtTqJSysNwiq7pj4wSsM70HMlHA2kNXVEvK8/s1600/23813752.outsideterraceSifnos.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 267px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEid_3zL9FvW1s0COBttc8GaPUcMfwa7LkMEKMh69sD4k2-krx05EBjgmFNbyQ4dpgC4CXmycWVNJeDI7KlVKRMtjNO2Xf__4vKmFZ8gAOIvtTqJSysNwiq7pj4wSsM70HMlHA2kNXVEvK8/s400/23813752.outsideterraceSifnos.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5518755926791434338" border="0" /></a>On the Cycladian island of Sifnos, Sunday's dinner is in the oven the night before: a gloriously mellow soup of only chickpeas and onions, sparingly spiced, it simmers all night in a special clay vessel. <span style="visibility: visible;" id="search"> In the smaller villages, the vessels are brought to the town bakers' on Saturday night, and next day, it is often the men who solemnly attend to the carrying of the pot back home for Sunday lunch. The island is known for its <a href="http://sifnos.e-sifnos.com/Pottery_EN.htm">potters and pottery</a> - no surprise that its most famous dish has its own dedicated piece of crockery - the skepastaria, pictured at the right. <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjefnXlxj_rm6f1GwR2_3ynnU0ALhMpDerUAStzjS9-w_drChow3Ps1YIPk8l3W-JQjc4_QTQKywfbFE5-j7LYz9BxwxUv2Ue6dF1id2PB8Bj1S7Wo9Wb8dpVb2_tcDU-_1KdJVE8sByEY/s1600/skepastaria.jpg"><img style="float: right; margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer; width: 217px; height: 121px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjefnXlxj_rm6f1GwR2_3ynnU0ALhMpDerUAStzjS9-w_drChow3Ps1YIPk8l3W-JQjc4_QTQKywfbFE5-j7LYz9BxwxUv2Ue6dF1id2PB8Bj1S7Wo9Wb8dpVb2_tcDU-_1KdJVE8sByEY/s400/skepastaria.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5518002687302520402" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Along with the unique clay pot, villagers insist that the specialness of their soup comes from using the purest rainwater, the freshest onions, and the tangy unfiltered olive oil from their own orchards. Not to mention the somewhat idiosynchratic mensural technique for guaranteeing the right amount of water! A local recipe source says that you add water to the crock pot and cant the vessel. When the water reaches the rim of the tilted vessel, the beans should be completely covered by the water. As it turns out, not all chickpeas are alike, some swell in the soaking more than others. So, the Sifnos cooks have an approximate starting measure of chickpeas (usually a kilogram), and then the amount of water depends on how they respond to the soak. The trick of adding water until the beans are covered in a tilted vessel works perfectly!<br /><br />I first discovered this soup in a recipe from Paula Wolfert. She calls it <span style="font-style: italic;">Clay Pot Chickpea Soup</span> in her book, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Slow-Mediterranean-Kitchen-Recipes-Passionate/dp/0471262889">The Slow Mediterrenean Kitchen</a>. While acknowledging the Sifnian tradition of overnight cooking, Wolfert develops a somewhat quicker cooking version. This is a bit of a delicious irony: for her slow cooking bible, Wolfert speeds up the original recipe! The soup is very good just as she designs it, and I loved it enough to repeat it often, always promising myself to try out the longer slower cooking method next time.<br /><br />And I eventually did. With utterly marvelous results:<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvJWK3Uh-THq9z_T0mGP26yMEWD6NeFX0AwxGvpviCFkb0rHm0sV_MXj1TsiPfTeyKFGvCDpDtNkp8_pi4gKmYJLdpPhSdDAr9CIUhZLWp-yVZnJMGwoUKpUK2zZpxV51cPl8oJIn4JzU/s1600/Chickpea_Soup_Served.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvJWK3Uh-THq9z_T0mGP26yMEWD6NeFX0AwxGvpviCFkb0rHm0sV_MXj1TsiPfTeyKFGvCDpDtNkp8_pi4gKmYJLdpPhSdDAr9CIUhZLWp-yVZnJMGwoUKpUK2zZpxV51cPl8oJIn4JzU/s400/Chickpea_Soup_Served.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5518843562824005938" border="0" /></a><br />The chickpeas, which never really got soft enough by the Wolfert method, were meltingly tender. The broth, too, was darker and richer. I'd like to think it was the perfectly imprecise measurement of the water! As for rainwater, I passed. Bottled water will do, if tap is not fine enough in your area. A clay pot to my mind is essential. I used a thinly glazed Amnion clay pot - they don't make this artisinal crockery any longer, but mine has been my bean pot of choice for almost 30 years. And instead of slow cooking all night, started mine in the morning and had it ready for for dinner.<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0SA2kJIqkq-W-mGZFw_pD5Oq6TfpcO7cKeZlRBrZzj9HtDOAyCGICveE6ksd5zKsPs8DoM9m4sgxyBXOxOHSyJWouvalDT-my58b7S6TF8r9wSE3P4CWJeVKoZKpH5cn2v0J5UHJ4FI0/s1600/ingredients.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0SA2kJIqkq-W-mGZFw_pD5Oq6TfpcO7cKeZlRBrZzj9HtDOAyCGICveE6ksd5zKsPs8DoM9m4sgxyBXOxOHSyJWouvalDT-my58b7S6TF8r9wSE3P4CWJeVKoZKpH5cn2v0J5UHJ4FI0/s400/ingredients.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5518023864625400482" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;">The Ingredients:</span><br />2 cups chickpeas, soaked overnight.<br />2 tsp. baking soda<br />1/2 cup best olive oil<br />2 medium red onions, chopped in a food processor<br />1-1/2 tsp. kosher salt, bay leaf optional<br />flour and water to make paste seal for the clay pot.<br /><br />Serve with:<br />freshly ground pepper<br />plenty of lemon quarters<br />finely minced parsely<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">A note about soaking.</span> Best to begin the night before. In the AM, rinse and drain, then store in the refrigerator covered with water until you prepare the soup. One hour before you are ready to assemble the soup, remove from the refrigerator and add the baking soda. Then rinse and drain once more before cooking.<br /><br />Assembling the soup:<br />Using a processor (a mini is just perfect) chop the onions very fine. <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhI7QlyH4U3TBOVYcJN-WG3gX2DrOKxTJqKvpU1jOSP7NA_QLcmJRrPvDk4o0Rv7aXnl5RHPHXaWPe_FBDtW2vg5sqCaYtebSdrylMXyHPA957j6N64gKCYf9FJp0m1-CkUckCM-4U7cRM/s1600/P1040177.jpg"><img style="float: right; margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer; width: 150px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhI7QlyH4U3TBOVYcJN-WG3gX2DrOKxTJqKvpU1jOSP7NA_QLcmJRrPvDk4o0Rv7aXnl5RHPHXaWPe_FBDtW2vg5sqCaYtebSdrylMXyHPA957j6N64gKCYf9FJp0m1-CkUckCM-4U7cRM/s200/P1040177.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5518030363110642482" border="0" /></a>Put the </span><span style="visibility: visible;" id="search">rinsed chickpeas </span><span style="visibility: visible;" id="search">into the pot, then add the onions, salt and optional bay leaf.<br />Pour in the olive oil and mix gently with a wooden spoon. Add water as described above: pour in enough to cover, then tilt the pot and continue to add water until water reaches the lowered rim and still well covers the beans.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUdm_IXqeVDS0HAI_0Zxdv9l6Ed5P9TP5sn8-PmTUnhk5_sZwbaCy6CnpToN_MosWShlxNzmjfxnp6znV6a0ecMmqLle8G8Ze2EE7PfuMP4d9dbLWhM_YnNolHGgUGlvPpJHPGLr_oxWc/s1600/Seal+ring.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 138px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUdm_IXqeVDS0HAI_0Zxdv9l6Ed5P9TP5sn8-PmTUnhk5_sZwbaCy6CnpToN_MosWShlxNzmjfxnp6znV6a0ecMmqLle8G8Ze2EE7PfuMP4d9dbLWhM_YnNolHGgUGlvPpJHPGLr_oxWc/s200/Seal+ring.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5518031587857148274" border="0" /></a>Cover your pot and make a seal out of flour and water. Start with a cup of flour, adding water and more flour until you have enough to make a seal ring between the pot and cover.<br />Here is how the prepped Amnionware looks - pot sealed tight with the ring of moist dough.<br /><br />Place the pot in a cold oven. Turn the dial to 425, and when the temperature is reached, about 15 minutes depending on the oven, reduce the temperature to 150 to 200 degrees and cook all day - six to seven hours will be fine. Then turn the oven off and count the minutes until dinner. The aromas will surely test your will power, and the sight of the finished dish with its handsome collar will definitely work for eye candy:<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkbZX8dCYQbB891vkRdpYyR0AVM8o_7O10cEfFmCO1U7emERnq380L0RAWsMzpl_40Ow-rp7YjYaU3x2TRGzjpvBMttHgOkjdFmNwnUUeJ0XGsQhstt8v3bGZbe0j_-2j71h1aEquO4cM/s1600/collared+crock.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 342px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkbZX8dCYQbB891vkRdpYyR0AVM8o_7O10cEfFmCO1U7emERnq380L0RAWsMzpl_40Ow-rp7YjYaU3x2TRGzjpvBMttHgOkjdFmNwnUUeJ0XGsQhstt8v3bGZbe0j_-2j71h1aEquO4cM/s400/collared+crock.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5518035695226689458" border="0" /></a><br /><br /></span>Who can be This Souperlatifhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16107087107778558733noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4185489733258598475.post-30963817041495266832010-08-02T12:06:00.000-07:002010-08-02T17:46:23.093-07:00Gazpacho Rediscovered - A Soup with a History to Match its Bold Flavors<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiqoNK1B2YCSvurw4vPPfeHS2niMuiL15lrMt_fJGyw3377zoXefAWC8N0Sdn93G6-gQW977WQsgiyVbfYXb1XxFapAlP3ZFOaS1MoGPU1sXBiCTyIeMZHmExniBjyZU-LnZfkJLj8KW4/s1600/P1040027.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiqoNK1B2YCSvurw4vPPfeHS2niMuiL15lrMt_fJGyw3377zoXefAWC8N0Sdn93G6-gQW977WQsgiyVbfYXb1XxFapAlP3ZFOaS1MoGPU1sXBiCTyIeMZHmExniBjyZU-LnZfkJLj8KW4/s400/P1040027.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5500910965116753954" border="0" /></a><br />Gazpacho, or what is sometimes referred to as "liquid salad", couldn't be a more perfect choice for the tomatoes, peppers and cucumbers ripening right now in gardens across the nation. With spice and flavoring variations to meet the tastes of every palate, not to mention a long list of garnish options, gazpacho can be everyone's "go to" summer soup. (Sorry, couldn't resist the Rachel Ray-ism).<br /><br />An impressive history, this gazpacho: even the derivations of the word make great reading - do check out the post from the blog <a href="http://whatholtandbarbarahadfordinner.blogspot.com/2007/08/gaz.html">What Holt and Barbara Had for Dinner</a>. To summarize, the word gazpacho may be of Mozarabic origin, similar to the Spanish caspicias, meaning crumbs, worthless things. Maybe, too, it has to do with the ancient Greek word, gaza, meaning treasure.<br />As a thing to eat, the "soup" probably had its origins as almonds, stale bread and garlic worked laboriously in a mortar, and then mixed with olive oil and a little vinegar - food for peasants working in the fields, perhaps. Most definitely, a tasty way to use up stale bread. And not only did the medieval Spanish have their ways with dry bread: the Greeks had their <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skordalia">skordalia</a>, the Arabs dipped dry bread in oil and vinegar, and the Italians made panzanella: juicy vegetables and olive oil set to steep over dried bread.<br />One thing is certain, the earliest gazpachos had no tomatoes. Tomatoes were first brought to Spain from the gardens of Montezuma by the early explorers and colonizers. Even then, it took some time for the Europeans to trust that the tomato, a member of the nightshade family, wasn't poisonous. So, tomato-based preparations don't show up in cookbooks until much before the mid-17th century. (This from <a href="http://www.cliffordawright.com/caw/food/entries/display.php/topic_id/5/id/64/">Clifford Wright</a>, who has a a beautifully researched write-up on gazpacho in the Food History section of his website.)<br /><br />I like how gazpacho even appears in an early American cookbook! Imagine that: Mary Randolph, whose cookbook, <a style="font-style: italic;" href="http://books.google.com/books?id=UvglT3-R7l0C&vq=gaspacho&source=gbs_navlinks_s">The Virginia Housewife, or Methodical Cook,</a> was first published 1824, has a <a href="http://books.google.com/books?id=UvglT3-R7l0C&lpg=PA1&ots=FDz9T3dTo4&dq=The%20Virginia%20House-wife&pg=PA68%23v=onepage&q=gaspacho&f=false#v=snippet&q=gaspacho&f=false">Spanish Gaspacho</a> in her recipe collection. Nothing boring about the early American kitchen!<br /><br />What's agreed about gazpacho is that it is a mix of pureed vegetables, usually tomatoes, peppers and cukes, and these are added to a base of moistened stale bread, garlic and salt, all flavored with olive oil and and vinegar. The mortar and pestle was the tool of choice long before the blender or food processor came into use, and there's definitely something to be gained by re-introducing this implement into the mechanics of the recipe (more about this later in the post). Gazpachos can be made with grapes and almonds, with watermelon and chili peppers, even with fish - I once made Paula Wolfert's wonderful Fava Bean Gazpacho with Sherry, White Raisins and Green Grapes (from <a style="font-style: italic;" href="http://www.amazon.com/Slow-Mediterranean-Kitchen-Recipes-Passionate/dp/0471262889/ref=cm_syf_dtl_pop_22">The Slow Mediterranean Kitchen</a>) - an exquisitely rich and savory gazpacho. But today, with a basket of season fresh tomatoes, I wanted to work out a more typical version. The ingredients were to be "traditional", but I wanted to try working the soup with mortar and pestle, food mill, and no blender. I had a hunch that the old fashioned grinding and pounding of the garlic and especially the peppers with the pestle would do wonders for the texture, and I think I am right. The cells of the vegetables are worked to break down their essentials, including oils and starches, and you can actually see the silkiness develop as you work the peppers against the side of the mortar - well worth the considerable extra effort. In the blender, the blade just minces through the food, cut/slicing the fibers but not breaking them down. To economize, I used a food mill to puree the seeded tomatoes (I didn't have to skin them), and I did finally use the immersion blender to blend the moistened bread with the garlic and peppers once they had been "pestled". I had read about using a raw egg yolk to add richness, and this turned out to be a great idea - I added some olive oil and cumin as I beat the yolk for extra depth, too.<br /><br />Lots of folks have special hints, provisos and family secrets for their great gazpachos. Clifford Wright cautions that no one ingredient should ever predominate - gazpacho should be "<a href="http://www.cliffordawright.com/caw/recipes/display/bycountry.php/recipe_id/807/id/7/">a completely harmonic result of an orchestra of flavors</a>" , others say that while the list of potential toppings is long, never use more than two or three per serving. As for famous family secrets, I have a few from a charming story by way of a friend who is lucky enough to have an actual Andalusian mother-in-law, who made what I always imagined must have been the most luscious and refreshing gazpacho (and my friend said it indeed was!)<br /><br />When my fellow foodie friend Liddy, first visited her husband's family back home in Spain, she was eager to learn all about gazpachos and ollas from the source. So, she sat coyly in the kitchen with her new mother-in-law and asked leading question after leading question, hoping to get to her cooking magic. She asked, do you peel the peppers or grill them to remove the skin. The answer, with a smile, was, "it depends". When she asked, can you use canned tomatoes for your gazpacho, again, it was "it depends." What liquid do you use to soak the bread? "Ah, well, that depends"... For every ingredient and step of the recipe it seemed, there was, "it depends." Just before poor Liddy was totally exasperated, and still feeling too new in the family to ask about all those dependancies, her mother-in-law turned teary, walked over to her, gave her a melting hug, and said, "I have waited years to finally have a daughter-in-law to share with all my secrets." Of course, over the years of wonderfully heartwarming visits, most of the secrets were eventually revealed:<br />You use a peeler to peel the peppers if they have been in the refrigerator and are no longer sweet because there's no sugar left to carmelize when you singe the skins! You grill and scrape away the skin only if the peppers are at their freshest and sweetest!<br />What liquid is best? If you have enough stale bread you can use the juice of the tomatoes after they are pureed. But, if you have only a little piece of dry bread, you seed all the tomatoes, scraping the gelatinous seed clusters into a dish and then squeeze the juice onto the bread - the almost jellied seed liquid adds more body to less bread!<br />My all time favorite nugget of gazpacho wisdom has to with using canned versus fresh tomatoes. According to the Andalusian mama, after you cut up the tomatoes, you take a deep whiff of their fragrance. If the smell reminds you of watermelon (as tomatoes sometimes do when not their freshest), use canned tomatoes for the gazpacho, and the ones you just cut up should be put to another use.<br /><br />So much for the anecdotal. I finish with the recipe which pretty fairly matches what I worked on today:<br /><br />2 lbs freshest Roma tomatoes, seeded<br />2 to 3 mini bell peppers, any color<br />or<br />1 long thin pepper, more sweet than hot<br />1 small cucumber, seeded<br />2 large cloves garlic<br />2 to 3 stale slices from a long french bread<br />1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil<br />2 tablespoons good quality sherry vinegar<br />1 egg yolk + 1 tsp olive oil + heaping 1/4 tsp cumin, whipped<br />salt and freshly ground pepper to taste<br /><br />For my version, I make no apologies for the rather involved and tedious methods applied - this was definitely a labor of love on a morning when I had plenty of time!<br />I started by seeding all tomatoes, saving seeds and seed liquid, squeezing the liquid through a cheesecloth onto the broken up bread pieces for a good 20 minute soak. While the bread softened, I cut up all the tomatoes, salted them and let them sit in the sun to sweeten further - 1 hour, and probably not an essential step. While tomatoes steeped, I removed the skins from the little peppers by singing them over the gas burners, slipping off their skins under cool water. I liquified the garlic with a scant teaspoon of salt using the mortar and pestle, then worked the peppers to a smooth silky paste in the same way. (The flavor and texture of the garlic and peppers was a major taste moment.) I also used the mortar and pestle to grind up the cucumbers with a dash of salt - this was actually pretty quick and easy. The bread was now soft, so I used the stick blender to blend together the bread with all the "ground" vegetables (no tomatoes yet!), then folded in about 2 tablespoons of the olive oil. I blended until I had a very smooth paste - this by choice; some might prefer a grainier texture in the finished soup. The tomatoes I pureed using the medium disk of a food mill - that gave me some pulp for body, but no skins. Next I stirred the tomatoes into the bread-vegetable base, seasoned with just a little more salt, more olive oil, pepper, the vinegar, and chilled by stirring in a glassful of crushed ice. So far, I had a very bright tasting, refreshing and rich gazpacho. I served this plain, with some toasts with chopped egg, olives, parsley and a drizzle of olive oil. Very good.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXw3cmZjgmhtVPHtbriMbrYt0twyLDEGY4GOAGuI0gfqdpYQVVOoDm7-ivc_moRUK-FNfL_MNgFvWSH1yfz_ZVlbPpnIPYn1CENcvP3WPZli1TPKYeQJ9lajFiUgrS72P10Tj09vSly2o/s1600/P1040034.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXw3cmZjgmhtVPHtbriMbrYt0twyLDEGY4GOAGuI0gfqdpYQVVOoDm7-ivc_moRUK-FNfL_MNgFvWSH1yfz_ZVlbPpnIPYn1CENcvP3WPZli1TPKYeQJ9lajFiUgrS72P10Tj09vSly2o/s400/P1040034.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5500967301811183026" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Better, however, was the reserved half of the broth that I mixed with a raw egg whipped with the teaspoon of olive oil and cumin! This version was creamy without being mellow, had depth, but still really tasted just as fresh as the vegetables themselves. Here below, topped with some chopped olives and white of egg.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilF8-IvaoVnREfbTavZef6zAOxZb3Z-HXmqDLVKTW0b_L5tDZfy-MQrICRMvXVdco-LnTZT89DtL9rC7oHZ2royI77L681vZkUD7Lzk0V0oc6WC1VMox_ctFzHJhMKgjjriYCgLsDtNvE/s1600/P1040039.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilF8-IvaoVnREfbTavZef6zAOxZb3Z-HXmqDLVKTW0b_L5tDZfy-MQrICRMvXVdco-LnTZT89DtL9rC7oHZ2royI77L681vZkUD7Lzk0V0oc6WC1VMox_ctFzHJhMKgjjriYCgLsDtNvE/s400/P1040039.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5500967931170515218" border="0" /></a>Who can be This Souperlatifhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16107087107778558733noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4185489733258598475.post-32251758963749761432010-07-08T15:41:00.000-07:002010-07-12T17:50:14.660-07:00A Postcard from Cucumber CountryA friend sent me this very cheery postcard from a trip to Europe: armfuls of cucumbers surrounded by the reigning prince and princess of the cucumber capital of Germany - <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spreewald">Spreewald</a>, about an hours ride south of Berlin. <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHukZWlTVVq_gYS40mAl4fDm8g8Lm7C_I14O8FlTMupTJOFc4iJOToF2tD3ZUDiZkP2EY0W8IdCRR0RxlSAmKQf5M9YuuCVXYxSB6G2m-Gh8gq7-BmZ-Nu1A2-Xfq3vq71hegXDgQfKSQ/s1600/gherkins.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 220px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHukZWlTVVq_gYS40mAl4fDm8g8Lm7C_I14O8FlTMupTJOFc4iJOToF2tD3ZUDiZkP2EY0W8IdCRR0RxlSAmKQf5M9YuuCVXYxSB6G2m-Gh8gq7-BmZ-Nu1A2-Xfq3vq71hegXDgQfKSQ/s320/gherkins.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5493103336090760930" border="0" /></a> It sounds like an idyllic area: a protected biosphere where the cultivation of mostly cucumbers conforms to carefully controlled sustainable agricultural practices and acres of forest land are protected from all but eco-friendly tourism. Miles of bike paths course through fairytale villages, along the banks of the river Spree (Berlin's main river) and alongside even more acres of rolling farm fields.<br /><br />The cucumbers are prized in Europe; they are smaller and a bit more flavorful than the long English or Holland variety. Compared to American varieties, they would be somewhat between a Kirby and the Persian cucumbers in texture and flavor, just a little larger. Spreewald Gherkins, pickled, <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgaTygQVw-tzlCwnLKJIeNMXD2JfMN7sS_GPAxkxVKQnOLxfw4BoRrpN6LC6galQpMGa4B5h7MhjV0C1bYi43q76plMg0RKyBhjSoZ2YAWFD_HUR2MWzapUqamQTk5Z6Y7Q7DIRtgyjKQ/s1600/spreewaldgurke.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 114px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgaTygQVw-tzlCwnLKJIeNMXD2JfMN7sS_GPAxkxVKQnOLxfw4BoRrpN6LC6galQpMGa4B5h7MhjV0C1bYi43q76plMg0RKyBhjSoZ2YAWFD_HUR2MWzapUqamQTk5Z6Y7Q7DIRtgyjKQ/s320/spreewaldgurke.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5493120039419586866" border="0" /></a> are a protected trademark throughout the EU. (They achieved international renown in the 2006 foreign comedy, Goodbye Lenin, in which they were featured as one of the best loved food tastes from the former East Germany.) And the recipe for the pickles is of course a closely guarded secret among the 20 or so registered growers: ingredients such as basil, lemon balm, grape leaves, cherry leaves or walnut leaves give Spreewald gherkins their special sour, spicy taste.<br /><br />Spreewald cucumbers are now in season, so my traveling friends report, and everywhere they went cucumber soups were featured on local menus. While no one would divulge the secret of the special local pickling brine in the Spreewald preserves, everyone seemed happy to share their recipes for the soups made from the fresh cukes! And my good friends knew that Souperlatif was ready to try them all, albeit with American-grown varieties.<br /><br />Just in time for the super fresh local cucumbers I found at the market here is a basic cucumber preparation, a soup starter as it were, which serves for any number of variations of chilled, creamy soups. Good news is that this kind of soup needs no cooking - the cucumbers steep with salt and sugar to soften, and are ready to season and serve in under an hour.<br /><br />You will need a box grater and the following ingredients:<br />- 3/4 lb of cucumbers<br />- 1 medium onion -<br />- 1 whole garlic clover<br />- 1 Tbsp salt<br />- 1 tsp sugar<br /><br />Peel and half the cucumbers lengthwise and scoop out seeds. Using the middle grade of the grater, grate the cucumbers into a bowl. Peel, halve and grate the onions as well. (Even if the onion makes you teary, resist the food processor: the blade action won't break down the cells of the onion as well as the grater, and will leave you with the wrong texture.) Drop in a whole garlic clove into the mix, and sprinkle on the salt and sugar. I used a cotton, non-terry dish towel to line the bottom of a colander and poured in the cucumber puree, setting the colander above a bowl to drain. (Several layers of cheese cloth will also do.) The salt and sugar leaches out water from the cucumber and sweetens or cures the onion. After 4o minutes or so, quite a bit of juice will have gathered in the catch bowl, along with most of the dissolved salt and sugar - you won't need this for the soup, and it can be discarded or saved for veggie broth. Use the towel or cheese cloth to squeeze out as much water as possible, and the remaining puree, minus the garlic clove, is ready for a soup.<br /><br />Simple is always best: mix the puree with 1-1/2 cups of light, very clear and degreased chicken broth, chilled, and 1-1/2 cups of Greek style yogurt or creme fraiche. Among the variations my friends described, pretty classic, are the following:<br />1. Mix in some zest of a lime, fresh ground pepper and serve just with finely minced parsley.<br />2. Same as above, but use lemon zest and minced dill.<br />3. Puree the yogurt or creme fraiche with a diced avocado before folding into the cucumber and broth, mix in a teaspoon of lemon juice and top with chives or cilantro.<br />4. Season puree with 1 tsp or less of curry powder, top with finely sliced green onions, and serve with toasted pitas and chutney.<br />OR, as in the picture below, serve with a drizzle of flaxseed oil (the traditional flavoring in Spreewald country!), a spritz of fresh squeezed lemon juice and fresh herbs.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuwOh62o1Y0NGGfR5MeWvxU250dY1lFGnANwetMmvaIQ4QEZ4GXmR2svBiigu_nnryWWbwDKWz_h-3VjcER_YbkFqZBhEOhj2oEmlSyvxlyyOWDJhVBHyaZ705KfO52wolKMQIgT8scmc/s1600/P1030998.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 299px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuwOh62o1Y0NGGfR5MeWvxU250dY1lFGnANwetMmvaIQ4QEZ4GXmR2svBiigu_nnryWWbwDKWz_h-3VjcER_YbkFqZBhEOhj2oEmlSyvxlyyOWDJhVBHyaZ705KfO52wolKMQIgT8scmc/s400/P1030998.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5493118141438879410" border="0" /></a>Who can be This Souperlatifhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16107087107778558733noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4185489733258598475.post-29897616757423792592010-07-03T16:48:00.000-07:002010-07-04T13:20:33.206-07:00Red, White and Blue Soup<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglLurSUM1MTdwEfW6xdS3RXhLhcjaL6VVbxiiOSIvHZN7UtN_ZRnPD3K8qzHlMiOI2PYkEBK1ueEodWMv8hGAygJPfZxVdqX7LaasJ-yyUr1qYuz9DKdmcz28iZr1YUJaV6pYsRm66klM/s1600/P1030977.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 294px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglLurSUM1MTdwEfW6xdS3RXhLhcjaL6VVbxiiOSIvHZN7UtN_ZRnPD3K8qzHlMiOI2PYkEBK1ueEodWMv8hGAygJPfZxVdqX7LaasJ-yyUr1qYuz9DKdmcz28iZr1YUJaV6pYsRm66klM/s320/P1030977.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5489802744900796770" border="0" /></a>While everyone is firing up the grill for the Fourth, Souperlatif is in the kitchen whipping up dessert soups: a great idea to bring along to the Fireworks; one, a spiced blue blueberry potion travels hot in the thermos for a warmer-upper, and a chilled red berry creamy soup for a warmer weather cooler.<br /><br />Fruit soups are ever popular in Europe, either for dessert, or sometimes as breakfast for the kids. Thinking "blue" for the red, white and blue, I remembered a hot fruit soup they have in Sweden (and if you live near an <a style="font-style: italic;" href="http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/40111497">IKEA</a>, you can even get it local!). The Swedes call it <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bl%C3%A5b%C3%A4rssoppa">blåbärsoppa</a>, soup of the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bilberry">bilberry</a> (not <span style="font-style: italic;">exactly </span>our American blueberry, but close in appearance and taste), and the spiced quaff is often served to skiers just in from a run, as a warm- up beverage. In summer, they drink it cold, and the bit of corn or potato starch makes it wholesomely thick.<br /><br />For my red soup I needed only a fresh idea for red berries - not a smoothy kind of thing, and not cloyingly sweet red pudding either. I experimented and came up with a lovely pale red straw-raspberry soup, flavored with lemon grass, vanilla and a spike of ice wine (a moscato would also do.) The lemongrass is softer than lemon peel and is becoming my favorite way to add a little lemon to a dish, especially that it is now so easy to find.<br /><br />Both these fruit soups are definitely not just pureed fresh fruit - they are, as soups should be, a blend of flavors that can only be achieved through cooking. But both are only gently cooked, and thereby avoid the scorched taste of stewed fruit preparations.<br /><br />For a true white soup, I just plain ran out of time! A dollop of cream as garnish will have to do (and not bad, at that). So on with the Red, (White) and Blue.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvBveQmEp-9TsjDsxXH8IT6Mtx7qy7M1lCy-Eg56UZpAgW4maFAifgOMVa-gim4fK0zY3zJbOTiqBHLi7qkEV02GNrs5I7zqdlP3Pn56sCdODY_n65B-DIAFTywa53W9ZMawzpaLmaIq8/s1600/P1030993.jpg"><br /></a><br /><br />The Straw-Raspberry Soup<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEqNw5gO_GlPAaGGduVqE-De9WgLg-MG0Ki1xtzfXaTdQ2REP5YdwynATqvqljyF8napTN0CLa3yogMM8L3ceT5mH1NIeyejF6CKT2YSWhjMmqRCjnd4l1tbp_EcVYCo2Z65lbLKcrECw/s1600/P1030991.jpg"><img style="float: right; margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 192px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEqNw5gO_GlPAaGGduVqE-De9WgLg-MG0Ki1xtzfXaTdQ2REP5YdwynATqvqljyF8napTN0CLa3yogMM8L3ceT5mH1NIeyejF6CKT2YSWhjMmqRCjnd4l1tbp_EcVYCo2Z65lbLKcrECw/s200/P1030991.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5489824524800283554" border="0" /></a><br />2 quarts cut up stawberries and raspberries<br />1/2 vanilla bean<br />2 stalks of lemon grass, each snipped into 4" lengths<br />1/4 cup or less brown sugar<br />1/4 cup ice wine<br />1/4 cup creme fraiche<br /><br />Place berries, lemongrass, vanilla bean and sugar in a saucepan and allow the sugar to draw out some of the juices - 30 minutes to an hour. Bring to a boil and gently simmer until the strawberries are soft. Remove the vanilla bean and the pieces of lemongrass. Stir in the sweet wine and cook just until the alcohol is burned off. Remove from the heat and puree using an immersion blender. Heat the creme fraiche in the microwave (15 seconds) and fold into the soup. Test the consistency: you may add a little water or more a splash of wine to thin out a too thick puree. Serve lemon peel curls and/or a decorative basil leaf.<br /><br /><br />For the Blueberry Soup (Blåbärsoppa)<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTZqvASH_I6rCsA2Ry05WI9bQKdLEpV0OtZVNxzRzlsUav2X-6mAKPq2Oh1ee2bniEDSFSdX91gmvggyrHDsG8QS2iUhIEXbmyl0CjiELH47VeY5DytOY584Ca2WKZmvXW_4ZfpGaDNng/s1600/P1030992.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 187px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTZqvASH_I6rCsA2Ry05WI9bQKdLEpV0OtZVNxzRzlsUav2X-6mAKPq2Oh1ee2bniEDSFSdX91gmvggyrHDsG8QS2iUhIEXbmyl0CjiELH47VeY5DytOY584Ca2WKZmvXW_4ZfpGaDNng/s200/P1030992.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5489825291893182050" border="0" /></a><br />6 cups blueberries*<br />3 cardamon pods<br />1 cinnamon stick<br />zest of small lemon<br />1/3 cup sugar<br />1 cup apple juice<br />1 cup cold water<br />2 tablespoons corn starch<br />for garnish:<br />1 cup whipping cream and<br />1/2 cup creme fraiche<br /><br />Bring the blueberries, sugar, spices, lemon zest and apple juice to a boil and simmer until the fresh berries have popped, the sugar is dissolved and the mixture is fragrant and bubbly - 5 minutes. Strain through the fine mesh screen of a food mill - a food mill will trap more of the tiny seeds from the blueberries than a blender - and return the liquidy puree to the saucepan. In a separate cup, dissolve the corn starch in the cup of water. Over medium heat, add the corn starch mixture into the blueberry puree and continue cooking until the broth begins to thicken - this occurs just as it comes to a boil. Remove immediately, cool, and chill at least 5 hours at least 4 hours if serving cold. For warm soup, heat gently to a sip-able warmth, not hot. Serve either the hot or cold with a dollop of whipped cream. An especially nice touch is a mix of whipped cream and creme fraiche: whip 1 cup of cream and fold in 1/2 cup of creme fraiche, then whip together until cream peaks.<br /><br />* I like to add at least a cup of thawed frozen berries as part of the 6 cups. The frozen are usually darker and add a deeper flavor as well - more like the actual bilberries.Who can be This Souperlatifhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16107087107778558733noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4185489733258598475.post-77289202773200234482010-06-25T11:16:00.000-07:002010-06-25T13:12:24.600-07:00Diet Soup with a Pistou SplurgeSummer is time for slimming down - watching out for the body beautiful. Remember the Cabbage Soup Diet? Not too much enthusiasm from the foodie crowd. But in this post, I give it a rethink. There's no denying that a combination of fresh vegetables simmered til just done is a refreshing thought for summer, and when the calorie count is as low as <span style="font-weight:bold;">267</span>, even with a swirl of Paula Wolfert's scrumptious version of Pistou, well, perhaps you want to read on...<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnSCB44F2wxkLFEB5ZjnnGBp_G_FUP8oz7rZqbPl72iQHOQncfYfnAjVu84G3y1l7Ha-1-Mv1RksIboJvNadtjhyphenhyphenOEgFLDBfxuqGdDBAfaHn9EJFrzJphAszr33xbpOa_q3ZnwPBMQ2yg/s1600/ingredients1.jpg"><img style="float: right; margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer; width: 249px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnSCB44F2wxkLFEB5ZjnnGBp_G_FUP8oz7rZqbPl72iQHOQncfYfnAjVu84G3y1l7Ha-1-Mv1RksIboJvNadtjhyphenhyphenOEgFLDBfxuqGdDBAfaHn9EJFrzJphAszr33xbpOa_q3ZnwPBMQ2yg/s320/ingredients1.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5486792186912128642" border="0" /></a><br />Here’s a Provencal-inspired update to the old somewhat fearful diet cabbage soup. This version is still full of high fiber, low-carb vegetables, and makes an excellent fat burner meal. But the undeniable best part is the splurge of Pistou, a traditional Provencal sauce very similar to an Italian pesto, but without the nuts to add unwanted calories. I don't dare call this soup a Soup au Pistou - no beans of any kind to challenge the diet discipline here! But this soup, even before the dollop of Pistou goes on, has real flavor merit: lots of baby bell peppers, fresh fennel and savory savoy, cooked in a light vegetable broth and flavored with fresh thyme and dried orange peel. Let the calories disappear with the sip of the spoon!<br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Diet Soup with Pistou</span><br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">The Light Vegetable Stock</span><br />(make more or even double - this stock is wonderful for poaching fish, too!)<br />1 large shallot, or small onion, sliced<br />handful of celery leaves and stem parts<br />handful of parsley with stems<br />1 small carrot, rough diced<br />salt and pepper to taste<br />large pinch of tarragon<br />4 cups of water<br />1/4 cup white wine<br /><br />Simmer all the vegetables in the water for 10 minutes, then add the wine and continue to simmer 5 to 8 minutes more.<br />Strain out the vegetables and set aside for the soup.<br /><span style="font-style:italic;"><br />The Ingredients</span><br />Do get all the vegetables and spices ready before getting started with the soup!<br /><br />1 onion, diced fine<br />2 garlic cloves, diced<br />1 small whole celery heart, chopped or 4 -5 stalks<br />1 small fennel bulb, diced<br />1 package mixed color mini bell peppers, sliced in 1/4 inch rounds<br />1/2 savoy cabbage, cut in 1/2 inch ribbons<br />2 roma tomatoes, peeled, seeded and chopped<br />1 to 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil (the less you use, the more you lose!)<br />few sprigs of fresh thyme<br />2 -3 peels of orange rind, with as little pith as possible<br />pinch of bouquet garni<br />salt and pepper to taste<br />4 cups of broth<br />1 cup of water<br /><br />For the Pistou<br />recipe courtesy of Paul Wolfert, Food and Wine, Aug 2006<br />2-1/2 cups of rough torn fresh basil leaves<br />1 large tomato, seeded and grated<br />1 scant teaspoon sea salt or kosher salt<br />4 cloves of garlic, rough chopped<br />1/4 cup olive oil<br />1/4 cup grated cheese - Paula Wolfert suggests a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mimolette">Mimolette</a> or aged Gouda.<br /><br />(with deference to Paula's unerring great taste, I suggest a mix of aged Parma and gruyere as more accessible substitues)<br /><span style="font-style:italic;"><br />The Preparation</span><br />Start the soup by heating the oil. Add in onions and garlic, celery and fennel and simmer, covered, 5 to 8 minutes minutes. Add in bell peppers and cabbage, and just when the cabbage begins to wilt, stir in the broth and water and all the seasonings. <br /><br />Here's how fresh the veggies look after the initial simmer:<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi54FXAG8z2zU_AVa6K3N3UUJzFN1GGXoAbx_aorYt-B7csP1ikE3Nh2LvkvuR_jCflj5Oz19o4EQJ5XWyvah6LDCW-AKCg3lPfFtixvxzkV6MlUralWYl4cVF_LTSPwSBWF2Q9peoZ5yQ/s1600/in+pot.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi54FXAG8z2zU_AVa6K3N3UUJzFN1GGXoAbx_aorYt-B7csP1ikE3Nh2LvkvuR_jCflj5Oz19o4EQJ5XWyvah6LDCW-AKCg3lPfFtixvxzkV6MlUralWYl4cVF_LTSPwSBWF2Q9peoZ5yQ/s400/in+pot.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5486804820224763826" /></a><br />Bring to a boil and simmer, uncovered, 15 minutes. Add in the tomatoes and continue to cook another 10 minutes, or until vegetables are tender but not mushy. Cabbage should still be bright green, not brown!<br /><br />While the soup is simmering, prepare the Pistou. You will need a mortar and pestle: the basil, garlic and salt, smashed against the sides of the mortar will truly be much silkier than the results from a food processor - and its really not much work. That said, start with the salt and garlic, and work with the pestle until you have a smooth paste. Add in basil, working by handfuls, and smash against the sides until well integrated into the paste. Add in the grated tomato and continue to work with the pestle. Gradually stir in the oil until well incorporated, and finally, fold in the grated cheese. Pistou can be made somewhat ahead and refrigerated until ready to serve.<br /><br />To serve, ladle the soup generously into wide soup plates, and garnish with a good spoonful full of Pistou.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1JOCCgEKmrL6AnwZBh2Q5zSd7OZYU4sP4BDaoWZ9guOwFMNmZ872-IvNfhH9XoQvDz1iZDOJckMhKE-sH0fpDh2iv73VKLS6k0J3fKhzCVE_42mnEwe33eLOKG1mNVyyUwVdkvetX-eA/s1600/in+bowl.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1JOCCgEKmrL6AnwZBh2Q5zSd7OZYU4sP4BDaoWZ9guOwFMNmZ872-IvNfhH9XoQvDz1iZDOJckMhKE-sH0fpDh2iv73VKLS6k0J3fKhzCVE_42mnEwe33eLOKG1mNVyyUwVdkvetX-eA/s400/in+bowl.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5486799922505644978" border="0" /></a><br />And if noone is dieting, don't hold the country fresh bread. There's bound to be extra pistou to for dipping.<br /><br />And for those watching their curves, here's the nutritional breakdown, per serving with 1 tablespoon of Pistou. Enjoy!<br /><br />Calories 267<br />Protein 7 grams<br />Fat 14 grams<br />Effective carbs 21 gramsWho can be This Souperlatifhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16107087107778558733noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4185489733258598475.post-82808182125403285522010-06-14T11:26:00.000-07:002010-06-15T22:49:39.130-07:00Pedaling for Soup with the Soup Peddler, and a taste of his wonderful Armenian Apricot SoupPeddling soup for the love of it AND making money from it, too, has to be one of the best ways to spend your life - I know, I do it, at least in part: the "for the love of it" part.<br />But then there's David Ansel from Austin, who has one of of my favorite soup stories. His business is called <a href="http://www.souppeddler.com/SearchResults.asp?Cat=21">The Soup Peddler</a>, and he started out, literally, pedaling his liquid gold cargo in and around Austin, Texas, at $10 a quart, on a beat up yellow bike. He tells his heart-warming, aroma-rousing story in his off-beat, up-beat memoir,<span style="text-decoration: underline;"><span style="font-style: italic;"><br /></span></span><a style="font-style: italic;" href="http://www.amazon.com/Soup-Peddlers-Slow-Difficult-Soups/dp/1580086519?&camp=212361&linkCode=wey&tag=souperlatif-20&creative=380725">The Soup Peddlers Slow and Difficult Soups.</a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxPmYHz1xbH31CcneUMWzViBqHhm1LZkiC58h-WdVw2LBpy7dTulMgp2L_NCyO6X95VnGpE2L5G9QMxrkE7Z_Pk28Y0BnNgXeu4r3ghA2APysPNKOlE1NLZCLKarcz89kkAYOY62FlUoU/s1600/souppeddler.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 236px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxPmYHz1xbH31CcneUMWzViBqHhm1LZkiC58h-WdVw2LBpy7dTulMgp2L_NCyO6X95VnGpE2L5G9QMxrkE7Z_Pk28Y0BnNgXeu4r3ghA2APysPNKOlE1NLZCLKarcz89kkAYOY62FlUoU/s320/souppeddler.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5482715605692290610" border="0" /></a><br />A <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">degreed</span> software engineer, experiencing diminishing satisfaction from his job at a software development firm, David Ansel decides one day to up and quit the buzz-word culture of hip-tech, and with alarmingly little in the bank and few ideas as to what exactly he did want to do, he did just that.<span style=""><br /><br />The next part of his story I love:<br /><br />"Finally, I had the idea that changed the course of my life. What can I do? I thought to myself.<span style="">Well, I can cook alright.<span style="">What can I cook? Well, I can cook soup pretty good.<br /><br />So with all that financial desperation and valuable experience behind me, I sent out an email message to friends and neighbors, saying “I’ll bring you some soup next Sunday for ten bucks. Plus, I’ll bring it to you on my bike."<br /><br />He goes on to tell about dragging hundreds of pounds of soup around on the hilly streets of Austin, and despite the odds, the business grew.<span style=""> That was 2004.<span style=""> Countless stories later, he's got a thriving grassroots catering business, with imaginative weekly soup offerings, and in 2005, even a book. (see above).<br /><br />One of my favorite recipes from the Soup Peddler is the Armenian Apricot Soup.<span style=""> David Ansel features the recipe in his Fall food section, and uses dried apricots.<span style=""> But its June now, and apricots are very much in season, so I thought I'd give his recipe a try with fresh.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxKTTOqI4jvnLTcK_4l_X1NUYSjkbTpZcmlvrdwULCs3S_kXy-XTqvKaF17ZP5kRztIRJk0rYPh1c39eFutAqh8doA_eWNyfafs7v2_R27vCeJHfDi_AhlfYhoR-4F__9lViE3YLotmvU/s1600/P1030927_2.jpg"><img style="float: right; margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 263px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxKTTOqI4jvnLTcK_4l_X1NUYSjkbTpZcmlvrdwULCs3S_kXy-XTqvKaF17ZP5kRztIRJk0rYPh1c39eFutAqh8doA_eWNyfafs7v2_R27vCeJHfDi_AhlfYhoR-4F__9lViE3YLotmvU/s400/P1030927_2.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5483134294379968050" border="0" /></a><br />How to describe the soup?<br />Well, David himself does it best, and I quote from his book:<br /><br />“I sat down at the computer and gave it a shot:<br /><br />Dear <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Soupies</span>,<br />This week’s soup is Armenian Apricot Soup. Now I know you all know how great Armenian soups can be, and I assure you that this one will live up to your loftiest expectations.<br />No good. I set my finger down on the delete key and tried again.<br /><br />Dear <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Soupies</span>,<br />This week, in your very bowl, the downy soft velvet of the apricot meets the turgid <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">assuredness</span> of the carrot.<br />Alright. One more time.<br /><br />Dear <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Soupies</span>,<br />Armenians are finally in season!<span style=""> We slice them extra thin so they stay tender and juicy.”<br /><br />Indeed they are, and here's the soup, with quantities slightly cut down from the large kettle version in the book!<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Armenian Apricot Soup</span><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiydNbmB1yHJUORLXDOqtoRLVTXbGGwT6buzrgEdT52SH1qtbE34nExUhQdVXZ8JgSWJ9ciU_e1ygA-7zb9iqjYiRFyoaQfmILljEQqY6aGZXzlwwOsuMAEap6vksE97kyP4Tkt0buzY5M/s1600/P1030920.jpg"><img style="float: right; margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer; width: 277px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiydNbmB1yHJUORLXDOqtoRLVTXbGGwT6buzrgEdT52SH1qtbE34nExUhQdVXZ8JgSWJ9ciU_e1ygA-7zb9iqjYiRFyoaQfmILljEQqY6aGZXzlwwOsuMAEap6vksE97kyP4Tkt0buzY5M/s320/P1030920.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5483116501869765154" border="0" /></a><br />Ingredients<br />2 small onions, chopped<br />2 medium carrots, diced<br />1 <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">tbspn</span>. olive oil<br />1 <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">tbspn</span>. cumin<br />2 cups red lentils, rinsed<br />6 cups water<br />8 - 10 apricots; washed, halved, pitted and large diced<br />salt<br />parsley and lemon for garnish<br /><br />Heat the oil in heavy bottom soup pot. Add in the onions and carrots. As soon as they soften, add the cumin, cover, and continue to sweat the vegetables with the cumin, 10 minutes.<br /><br />Add the lentils and water and bring to a boil. Cook 20 minutes, until the lentils are just tender. Stir in the apricots and continue to cook for about 5 minutes until the flavors are blended.<br /><br />Using an immersion blender, puree the soup until smooth - a few little bites of apricot won't hurt the presentation. Salt once blended - just enough to tone down the acidic in the apricots. Server immediately with a garnish of parsley and a dash of lemon.<br /><br /></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><i>The Soup Peddler's Slow & Difficult Soups by David Ansel (Ten Speed Press, 2005)</i><br /><span style=""><span style=""><span style=""><span style=""><span style=""><span style=""><span style=""><span style=""><br />Looking for another version?<br />Anya <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">von</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">Bremzen</span> offers one in her nicely illustrated and funny Russian cookbook: <a style="font-style: italic;" href="http://www.amazon.com/Please-Table-Anya-von-Bremzen/dp/0894807536">Please to the Table. </a><br />This recipe calls for potato as a thickener and chopped tomatoes for extra flavor.<br /></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span>Who can be This Souperlatifhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16107087107778558733noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4185489733258598475.post-56030853901606807822010-06-11T15:31:00.001-07:002010-06-11T17:08:36.034-07:00Overture to Summer - A Fruity Celery Cream SoupEnglish peas were gone from the market this week. Boo!<br />And with the departure of the peas came steadily increasing temperatures. No mistaking it's summer in southern California.<br />But I’m not quite ready for the arrival of tomatoes, corn and peppers, the grilling and the pies. I was thinking about what I could make that’s fresh but not so clearly summer. And then I saw the celery – beautiful thick stalks of a delicate green – tall and refreshing. Almost like a cool drink.<br /><br />So I went home with my celery and made that cool drink (not with celery, I might add). Then I made this soup: a fruity celery cream soup – very light on the cream and the green, but very bright on flavor with the “sweet” addition of a tart green apple.<br /><br />This soup is very low on drama - just look at the finished picture - and the soup is really quick and easy. Always a summertime plus.<br /> <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqN8TdB7t4yqKiGvjDmROOryIwZZ29ssPYscJO3adM21aV95HmlGwsOCDjR7uQHkfNhS-j1j8krGPZZX3Tk_X7kup_79VMDJAcDNcu-KfCQ4UFbocq0JzMwvABIOfX4F-JxmpFr51n5GQ/s1600/P1030661.jpg"><img style="float: right; margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqN8TdB7t4yqKiGvjDmROOryIwZZ29ssPYscJO3adM21aV95HmlGwsOCDjR7uQHkfNhS-j1j8krGPZZX3Tk_X7kup_79VMDJAcDNcu-KfCQ4UFbocq0JzMwvABIOfX4F-JxmpFr51n5GQ/s320/P1030661.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5481655718268111778" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">The Broth</span><br />This soup would love a light chicken broth - the kind made at home with some fresh chicken and clove studded onion. If you use best store-bought, try thinning by half and heating for 15 minutes with that clove-studded onion. Vegetable stock can also work, but take care to avoid an overly spiced brand.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">The Ingredients</span><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGAcwtOfOu0fYQ_W3wQEOuESrbOtuDNvtBuBRaEczLcLhqIQRe-aaHRfwIf6le4JX2xpuoS3b3cQZ3GqR2Il9EwRN4jkp4E9JdWea2eT1mzyqomcdPcqTNRgJKh2wQPebtf9wEfr6b1tE/s1600/P1030642.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGAcwtOfOu0fYQ_W3wQEOuESrbOtuDNvtBuBRaEczLcLhqIQRe-aaHRfwIf6le4JX2xpuoS3b3cQZ3GqR2Il9EwRN4jkp4E9JdWea2eT1mzyqomcdPcqTNRgJKh2wQPebtf9wEfr6b1tE/s320/P1030642.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5481657696887258354" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />1 small head of celery<br />2 onions<br />2 green apples<br />2 - 3 med. Yukon Gold potatoes<br />1-2 cloves garlic<br />1 tsp. dried tarragon<br />3 cups chicken or vegetable stock<br />1 cup whole milk<br />2 tbsp butter or olive oil<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Making the Soup</span><br /><br />Prep all the vegetables. The celery stalk can be cut whole, on a slight diagonal, into 3/4 inch chunks. Everything else is fine in small pieces: the soup will be pureed, so the shapes don't matter to begin.<br /><br />Saute the onion and garlic in the olive oil/butter just until they are softened and begin to scent. Then add all the vegetables, stirring to coat nicely. Sprinkle on a little salt and pepper, finishing with the tarragon. Let the vegetable simmer 3 minutes to develop flavor.<br /><br />Don't deny the senses - the aromas are heaven, and the veggies look pretty good, too:<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEit4VZuS0hUNelgeiqyawue4uKFAEG8XpbsqKJLrNOxIP2zVOurPrbimOBu-UifgpEC-16TiTeb79JnLmr73WfAJj7TwKtqHel0SxFRqJ4cCdd_6PSrB3QN2krLdUV6sMJH0fg63UaSYts/s1600/P1030657.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEit4VZuS0hUNelgeiqyawue4uKFAEG8XpbsqKJLrNOxIP2zVOurPrbimOBu-UifgpEC-16TiTeb79JnLmr73WfAJj7TwKtqHel0SxFRqJ4cCdd_6PSrB3QN2krLdUV6sMJH0fg63UaSYts/s320/P1030657.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5481660932660957938" border="0" /></a><br />Now add the broth and bring to boil. Allow to simmer 25 minutes and check potatoes and celery for doneness - soft but not mushy is the rule - and check the salt and pepper. Off the heat, puree with the soup, but not too much. A few small chunks help to separate the flavors as you're eating - then return to the pot. While still off the heat, stir in the cup of milk.<br /><br />This soup is best served not quite hot, with a few pretty leaves from the top of the stalk and and a side of apples:<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwnwA30olaAylqWynSHkXL9MT0iEAcWs-fGmGcInSKZoPYmdZajICEyrqtzybJdRxgOfxysT3Yt8CliHEBN1PLUxsGvJL0q1TGdlSSApscQVGgnIyINfZwqRy5pTLDgtowmYlMJywVA7s/s1600/P1030665.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 520px; height: 440px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwnwA30olaAylqWynSHkXL9MT0iEAcWs-fGmGcInSKZoPYmdZajICEyrqtzybJdRxgOfxysT3Yt8CliHEBN1PLUxsGvJL0q1TGdlSSApscQVGgnIyINfZwqRy5pTLDgtowmYlMJywVA7s/s400/P1030665.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5481665098354004530" border="0" /></a>Who can be This Souperlatifhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16107087107778558733noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4185489733258598475.post-59753369306217195032010-06-07T12:43:00.000-07:002010-06-15T16:09:49.357-07:00A Borscht of a MealThere is no such thing as a light borscht. Once that dollop of sour cream goes on, all pretensions of a simple soup supper are totally undermined. So, lets go with it - the chunky hearty kind of borscht that's not only a meal in itself, but an inspiration to embellish: I am thinking now about another Eastern European delicacy - the pierogi, or little noodle dumplings, usually served as a meal or appetizer on their own.<br />So I thought about a nice chunky borscht with wedges of the rubiest little fresh beets, baby new potatoes and carrots, and crinkly ribbons of young savoy cabbage, cooked til just tender in a sweet-sour tomatoey broth - almost perfect. But wait, little pierogis filled with a cinnamon spiced meat filling served on the side or to mix in would be a wonderful texture surprise - a perfect contrast to the vegetables - think of the soft noodle and warm richness of the filling. The pierogis were a great idea, and, as it turned out, very easy to make - with a little help from some ready made wonton wrappers and on-hand leftovers! Just before serving, I sauteed the dumplings in a little bubbling butter to lightly brown them - an extra touch well worth the extra pan!<br /><br />A grandmother's flavors re-dressed! - The Borscht with Little (wanton) Pierogi Pockets<br /><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgb__YjGvSjVdMMpKX5DLg1TG91zPctFXZZ2coved84TqrbI6LbXaAu4Cr77hc7x5jHo3JtLVm7ZWBlbqcnfGlAXlAtMaA0MkvM4JkakJrsMd2po9MtJIosxrIjx1NtIuf3AEFBFjt6SMg/s1600/P1030908.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 282px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgb__YjGvSjVdMMpKX5DLg1TG91zPctFXZZ2coved84TqrbI6LbXaAu4Cr77hc7x5jHo3JtLVm7ZWBlbqcnfGlAXlAtMaA0MkvM4JkakJrsMd2po9MtJIosxrIjx1NtIuf3AEFBFjt6SMg/s320/P1030908.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5480136116563124370" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Let's get started, none too early - the beets need a little pre-cooking, so its best to prepare for this borscht bash well ahead: from a bunch of 4 beets, take three and remove the root tail. Set in a steamer and steam 15 - 20 minutes until just tender.<br />Cooking the beets ahead is a great way to avoid the unwelcome flat taste of overcooked beets in traditional deli borscht.<br /><br />Soup Ingredients<br />1 bunch of 4 medium or 6 small beets, steamed (leave one medium or 2 small beets to grate into the soup near the end - peel first!)<br />1 large soup carrot, peeled and cut lengthwise, then diagonally into chunks<br />4 - 5 small new potatoes, peeled and quartered<br />1/2 a small savoy cabbage, cut into 1/4-inch ribbons<br />1 medium onion, diced<br />1 14-oz can diced tomatoes with juice<br />2-3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar (best, but white wine vinegar is okay too)<br />1-1/2 tablespoons sugar<br />1 bayleaf<br />pinch of marjoram or savory<br />salt and fresh ground pepper<br />4 - 5 cups good vegetable broth<br />handful of fresh dill<br />sour cream for garnish<br /><br />For the Dumplings:<br />1 generous cup minced leftover hamburger, brisket or pot roast<br />1 medium onion, finely diced<br />chicken fat or vegetable oil to saute onions<br />1 clove garlic, pressed<br />1/2 tsp cinnamon<br />pinch of nutmeg<br />salt and pepper<br />16 wonton wrappers (available in most supermarkets)<br />2 tablespoons butter<br /><br />Note on timing: The soup needs about 35 to 40 minutes to cook, and with vegetable prep, soup can be ready in just well under an hour. To have the pierogis ready to serve as well, be sure to start dumpling prep just as soon as the soup goes up.<br /><br />The Method:<br />Have all vegetables prepped including pre-cooked beets, all except beet(s) reserved for grating.<br />For the pre-cooked beets, which should now be cool, slip off the skins, half lenghtwise and cut in quarter or third crescents. Put potatoes, carrots, onions, tomatoes, cabbage and bay leaf in a soup pot, add broth and bring to a boil. Allow to simmer 15 minutes; potatoes will be almost tender. Add beets, and grate the reserved beet fresh into the soup (not good to let the grated beet sit around!). Season to taste with salt and pepper, and optionally, the marjoram and/or savory. Continue to simmer another 10 minutes. Then add in vinegar and sugar, 2 tablespoons to one. Taste, then correct by adding more vinegar or sugar. Let the soup continue to cook 5 to 10 minutes to absorb and fully integrate the sweet-sour. Serve each plate with a sprinkling of chopped dill and the proverbial dollop of sour cream.<br /><br />And voila! Here's how pretty it will look:<br /><div style="text-align: center;"><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQ6T1GTxn4Wi22Sq-PZ0Vy35EWirEBP-z_XYCnOCgjFOrdzegUdQQlfqQc4DKLqMieThZQ1hQJV-6L_ss3omGk-ds_SGiZeSsaSFNk56Wq_Tj5ysDAD-4Ljq8eCM7BXzb-pPf6xxrC-sM/s1600/P1030906.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQ6T1GTxn4Wi22Sq-PZ0Vy35EWirEBP-z_XYCnOCgjFOrdzegUdQQlfqQc4DKLqMieThZQ1hQJV-6L_ss3omGk-ds_SGiZeSsaSFNk56Wq_Tj5ysDAD-4Ljq8eCM7BXzb-pPf6xxrC-sM/s320/P1030906.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5480154336734381618" border="0" /></a></div><br />For the Dumplings, start sauteeing the onion as soon as the vegetables are in the soup pot. My favorite onion method is borrowed from Elizabeth Ehrlich's poignant food and family memoir, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Miriams-Kitchen-Memoir-Elizabeth-Ehrlich/dp/014026759X">In Miriam's Kitchen</a>: heat up a heavy saute pan, sprinkle in fresh ground pepper and shake to heat up, then put in the onions and stir til they sizzle and begin to turn to a golden translucent - they'll start to release some of their liquid. Then add the oil or rendered chicken fat, lower heat, and continue to saute until soft and more golden.<br />While onions simmer to softness, mince the meat, warm the meat in the microwave so its not refrigerator cold, and top with the spices. Remove the wontons from the package and lay them out on a lightly dusted large cookie sheet or marble. Put up a large pot of salted water to boil.<br /><br />When the onions are soft, add in the pressed garlic and stir until the garlic becomes fragrant. Add the onions into meat mixture and press together to combine into a loose paste. Using a teaspoon or melon baller, measure a small amount into the center of each wonton. Fold over diagonally and press the edges edges together, using a moistened finger or fork to make a tight seal all the way around. Seal tightly around all the filling - any extra loose edges can be trimmed - not a good idea to leave the filling with any empty space. Drop the dumplings into rapidly boiling water, 6 at a time, and cook 2 to 3 minutes, max. Drain on a piece of parchment and finish the remaining batches in same way. Once ready to serve, heat a saute pan, then drop in the butter to sizzle (just like for an omelet). Quickly lift in the dumplings in two batches - don't crowd. Turn to coat and lightly brown on both sides and remove to serving plate.<br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzYTXp6XMieLyDLv2FA9ztt_b9aVrO9XZ4dSMJSXjuhhjBjcwIVr5zkxyXkFfP1x1ZTUtrgiPFE4dtdV0XmI2osbBbp3SrGzJeEtCTjkuNrAR8c41DBw_VRvM8ANl0Mj4ECkM09efTsVo/s1600/P1030909.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzYTXp6XMieLyDLv2FA9ztt_b9aVrO9XZ4dSMJSXjuhhjBjcwIVr5zkxyXkFfP1x1ZTUtrgiPFE4dtdV0XmI2osbBbp3SrGzJeEtCTjkuNrAR8c41DBw_VRvM8ANl0Mj4ECkM09efTsVo/s320/P1030909.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5480160437911298322" border="0" /></a><br /></div>Serve immediately with a garnish of parsley, with 16 dumplings, there even might be seconds!Who can be This Souperlatifhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16107087107778558733noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4185489733258598475.post-65547029026953041842010-06-03T10:30:00.000-07:002010-06-15T16:09:12.565-07:00If soup is the broth of life, soup proverbs are the words to live by!I came upon a proverb the other day, particularly apt: "too many recipes spoil the soup." <br /><br />And it reminded me of another, "too many cooks spoil the broth." And then another came to mind; you know, the one that says "the more chefs, the better the soup."<br /><br />I started digging and I found pages of words to live by from every corner of the world. Nothing is more basic nourishment than soup, and nothing nourishes the expression of basic truths like soup metaphors, so it seems! In the following proverbs, soup becomes a vehicle to drive home, often with emotional intensity, at other times with wry detachment, lessons learned from collective experience. These are some of my favorites:<br /><br />Drink a glass of wine after your soup and you steal a ruble from the doctor. (Russian)<br />Of soup and love, the first is best. (English, Spanish, Portuguese, etc...)<br />Between the hand and mouth, the soup is spilt. (Italian and others)<br />Beauty does not season soup. (Polish and Russian)<br />You can't sup soup with a fork. (German, Irish, etc.)<br /><br />Often you'll find the same sentiment, but the expression is culturally specific:<br />Troubles are easier to take with soup than without. (Yiddish)<br />Headaches need soup. (Sicilian)<br /><br />And then you come across the proverbs so arch you can't but smile, even if the sayings come from the bitterest of places:<br /><br />The less soup, the more spoons. (Malawian)<br />In your neighbors soup, there's always one fatty morsel. (Persian)<br />Soup must be hot, insults cold. (Spanish)<br />If it were ever to rain soup, the poor would only have forks. (Brazilian)<br />One who has been burned by the soup learns to blow on the yoghurt. (Arab)<br />Better no soup than no spoon. (German)<br /><br />A spoon does not know the taste of soup, nor a learned fool the taste of wisdom. (Welsh)<br /><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman";"></span>One bee makes no honey, one grain makes no rice soup. (Chinese)<br />He's not an honest man who burns his mouth on soup and doesn't tell his guest. (Italian)<br /><br />Last but not least, a few from Nigeria, a land whose Igbo people have proverbs and idioms for everything. Their language, with over a million proverbs and sayings, is one of the richest for linguistic color. Here are a very few, all refer to soup:<br /><ul><li>The chicken always blames the soup pot for his tragic circumstances, not the one who slit his throat.</li><li>When the soup is unpalatable, and the yam paste that goes in it is not smooth, then its time to know a man who likes pounded yam.</li><li>If a man makes soup of tears, ask him not for the broth.</li><li>He who eats the egg forgoes the future chicken soup.</li><li>Chickens don't praise their own soup.</li><li>If the soup is sweet, it is money that cooks it.</li></ul>And with this soul nourishment, Souperlatif is back, after many months of no posting, bemoaning the fact that my food photos just didn't sparkle. I am full of admiration for all the bloggers who take such beautiful photos of their best efforts - I've been working on it, and have been building up a little stock of soups to share. More to come.Who can be This Souperlatifhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16107087107778558733noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4185489733258598475.post-2320772490631802152009-10-21T14:26:00.000-07:002010-05-28T10:54:53.146-07:00Velvety Lentil Soup with Cherry Tomato Couli<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHw3LfMxoL0aFZYMUZdQL8_80dKxh9R1zNSlY7QVGOiCAbo75gsSZ2xEbVfCuv20bDA-L9bJYMo4DTNpSMvjh33y2c78RDfFRx0F4Eb5UdOK0lQ2QustsOkniYuRTUnx791jae64RGHyU/s1600-h/soup.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHw3LfMxoL0aFZYMUZdQL8_80dKxh9R1zNSlY7QVGOiCAbo75gsSZ2xEbVfCuv20bDA-L9bJYMo4DTNpSMvjh33y2c78RDfFRx0F4Eb5UdOK0lQ2QustsOkniYuRTUnx791jae64RGHyU/s400/soup.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5259751860071518738" border="0" /></a> <span style="font-family: georgia;font-family:arial;font-size:85%;" >Yet again, another lentil soup from Souperlatif.<br /><br />This soup is rich and smooth, and quite different from either the lemony middle eastern lentil soups (eg, <a href="http://souperlatif.blogspot.com/2008/09/spicy-red-lentil.html">Spicy Red Lentil Soup</a>), or the more European vegetable lentil soups with meat (eg, <a href="http://souperlatif.blogspot.com/2007/12/winter-lentils.html">Winter Lentil Soup</a>). There are just four ingredients to the soup - water, lentils, garlic and olive oil - a perfect meal idea when there's literally almost nothing in the pantry!<br /><br />The soup couldn't be simpler, but simple doesn't mean quick - the lentils will need some soaking time, so do plan ahead. I loved this soup with the French Puy lentils, a petite dark green variety popular in France, which you can read about in my recent post about all kinds of <a href="http://souperlatif.blogspot.com/2008/09/fall-toned-lentils-all-earth-tones-of.html">lentils</a>. For the garlic, I have tried using both smashed cloves of fresh garlic as well as a head's worth of slow roasted garlic cloves. The softened garlic sounds like it would be very yummy, but I found it a bit too overwhelming. I'd love feedback - the roasted garlic paste does have the advantage of making the finished texture of the soup more creamy, but the flavor, for my taste, was almost too much. I garnish the velvety broth with a a toasted half slice of country bread slathered with a quick tomato <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coulis">couli</a>. For the couli, I use cherry tomatoes for greater intensity, a little white wine and fresh basil and thyme. Just a delicious way to start off a dinner evening of soup, salad, crusty bread and cheese.<br /><br />The Soup<br />1-1/4 cups Puy lentils<br />1 head of garlic, cloves smashed and skins removed<br />or<br />1 head of garlic, slow roasted with olive oil in foil<br />1/4 cup good quality olive oil<br />6 cups water, brought to a boil<br />1 imported bay leaf<br />salt and pepper to taste<br /><br />A couple of hours ahead, soak the lentils in plenty of cold water. Drain and rinse.<br />If you elect to use roasted garlic, preheat oven to 300˚. Separate all cloves in a head of garlic, toss cloves well in 1 to 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Using a rectangle of foil, seal the cloves and as much oil as reasonably works into foil by folding together all edges, like a pocket. Roast 1 hour, or until cloves are as soft as thick cream. Once done, open the foil carefully and allow cloves to cool slightly. Squeeze the soft garlic and any oil into a dish and set aside for the soup. When adding the softened garlic to the lentils and water, reduce the amount of olive oil by half.<br /><br />To start the soup, put lentils in a medium soup pot (cast iron, earthenware or stainless steel). Cover generously with water, and bring to a rapid boil. Remove from heat, and drain/rinse the lentils again. The removal of the soak and precook liquids helps to reduce the gas producing chemicals in the lentils! Meanwhile, prepare the garlic cloves by cutting the root end and smashing the clove with the side of a wide knife blade to remove the skins. Put all the olive oil, the smashed garlic cloves and bay leaf into the soup pot. Add the lentils and 6 cups of boiling water. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat, and allow to simmer partially covered for 45 minutes. Season to taste with salt - don't over do, otherwise the lentils will absorb too much. If using fresh garlic, test the garlic - if they are not soft enough to puree, continue to simmer another 15 or 20 minutes and test again. If using roasted garlic puree, test the lentils for softness after 45 minutes - add a little more simmer time if needed to reach the right consistency. Remove bay leaf!<br /><br />Using a food mill, blender or immersion blender stick, puree the lentil mixture until creamy and smooth. Return to very low heat to keep warm until serving.<br /><br />The Garnish<br /><br />For the Couli<br />1 small basket cherry tomatoes<br />2 or 3 fresh basil leaves, cut in thin strips<br />1 tsp. fresh thyme leaves<br />kosher salt<br />2 to 3 T. olive oil<br />1/4 cup dry white wine<br /><br />Heat olive oil in a saute pan. Add tomatoes, coating them well with the oil. Salt the tomatoes and simmer, covered until the skins burst - about 10 minutes. Raise the heat to medium high and mash down the tomatoes to release as much juice, seeds and pulp as possible. Add the wine, allow the alcohol to dissipate, then reduce the heat. Add basil and thyme, simmer uncovered at least another 15 to 20 minutes - oil should begin to separate from the wine and the pulp should be a rich red. Using a food mill or medium fine strainer, force through the tomato mixture, discarding tough skins and seeds. Set aside on a corner of the stove to keep warm for serving.<br /><br />Toast thick slices of country bread, preferably not sourdough. Rub with a cut clove of garlic, then drizzle some olive oil on each slice.<br /><br />To serve, place a half slice of bread in each bowl. Ladle soup over the bread, and top each slice with a generous drizzle or spoonful of the tomato couli. Serve immediately, passing around the pepper mill.</span>Who can be This Souperlatifhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16107087107778558733noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4185489733258598475.post-32340249892718469572008-09-28T13:07:00.000-07:002010-06-15T16:09:27.436-07:00Fall-toned Lentils – All the Earth Tones of Fall, and Protein, Too<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiplsA5aRzhS2fLt2vqfaPFpCPmCVHhpkfbfu5egOti7wsqw4rsxGbmr8Zw6lL1hv-VHfVvguzuxNsuYd_CPDsiBcC3nCsOK9nL4VM9PcXxKntKxdzwMSl01QcRJVORVVzYHVmD1n_nZ-k/s1600-h/Lentils.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiplsA5aRzhS2fLt2vqfaPFpCPmCVHhpkfbfu5egOti7wsqw4rsxGbmr8Zw6lL1hv-VHfVvguzuxNsuYd_CPDsiBcC3nCsOK9nL4VM9PcXxKntKxdzwMSl01QcRJVORVVzYHVmD1n_nZ-k/s400/Lentils.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5251169606705709698" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-family:lucida grande;">I've not been blogging for a while, but I was inspired by a lentil soup meal we shared during a recent visit from one of our kids, Rachel, who I love to feed almost as much as I enjoy her earnest and honest intellect, her enthusiasm for her work as a media artist, and her crazy sense of fun. She loved the lentil soup and asked for the recipe (also posted on this site), but being new to lentils and newer to cooking, I couldn't resist putting together some food gab to add to the soup!<br /><br />So now, all about lentils - colors and kinds, cooking tips, recipes and anecdotes for spice.<br /><br />Lentils may be one of the most perfect foods, plenty of serviceable protein, high in fiber, and no significant fat. Also mineral rich, they have a fair amount of calcium, vitamins A and B, and are a good source of iron and phosphorus. In India, which is also the largest producer of lentils and home to more vegetarians than any other region of the world, they’re a star staple. Lentils have been nourishing folk, especially poor folk, even in Biblical times. Remember Esau selling his birthright for red porridge? That was porridge of red lentils, native to Egypt.<br /><br />Today lentils are found the world over, particularly popular in Europe and the Middle East for spicy soups, health salads and stews rich with meat. </span><span style="font-family:lucida grande;">In Ancient Greece, a lentil soup called Pitisane fed the men of iron that fought the wars - and famously, at least one fine philosopher as well:</span> <span style="font-family:lucida grande;">There is the oft-told story of Diogenes and Aristippus, two philosophers at the court of the Syracusian tyrant, Dionysus. Aristippus, the Hedonist, and as such, quite a bit more successful at court, one day sought to counsel his colleague. Musing as he watched </span> <span style="font-family:lucida grande;">Diogenes preparing some lentils for a meager meal, Aristippus quipped:</span></span><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-family:lucida grande;"><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">"If you would only learn to flatter Dionysius more, you wouldn't have to live on lentils."</span></span></span><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-family:lucida grande;"><br /><span style="font-style: italic;"> "And if you would only learn to live on lentils, you wouldn't have to flatter Dionysius,"</span> retorted Diogenes.</span> <span style="font-family:lucida grande;"><br /><br />The Romans, too, developed a taste for lentils, and apparently a voracious need: Lentils fed the masses, and the crop at home wasn’t enough. Through the reign of Caligula, it is documented that Rome imported lentils from Egypt on a scale unequaled by any other food stuff trade up to that time.</span> <span style="font-family:lucida grande;">The long and important history of lentils in the development of man yields many a choice anecdote. <a href="http://www.cliffordawright.com/caw/food/entries/display.php/id/61/">Clifford Wright</a>, the food historian and expert on all foods Mediterranean, has more interesting info on his website.<br /><br />The lentil food gab makes for great tableside chatter, but without the main course – lentils, of course - there’s no reason to be at the table! There’s more info below about the palette of lentil varieties, especially how to handle the cooking and soaking, if any.</span> <span style="font-family:lucida grande;">Some quick lentil sides are described below, and a few special soups have their own posts – see the links or the list of recipes on the side panel.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:lucida grande;">One important proviso with lentil cooking, save the salting until the end of the cooking. Lentils cook more slowly if they're combined with salt or acidic ingredients, so add these last. Also, never cook lentils with baking soda – an old housewives trick that does soften them faster, but destroys the vitamin B1 in the process. And worried about the after dinner gases? The soaking water contains most of the chemicals that adversely react with bacteria in your system, producing flatulence: Discard the soak water, and there’s little to fear.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:lucida grande;">The Colors of Lentils </span><br /><span style="font-family:lucida grande;"><br />LENTIL LENTILS (brownish): The most common of lentils are the brown variety found everywhere in the dried bean aisle of all groceries. They are sold in two sizes – small and larger (but still smaller than peas). Mass produced, processed and often very dried, the larger regular lentils do require soaking – overnight is too much, but 4 hours at room temperature works; or, pour over boiling water and let rest for 1 hour before rinsing and using in your recipe. Longer simmering is required to completely cook the larger browns – not a good choice for a 30 minute meal! The smaller brown lentils need no soaking and cook up in soups and stews in 30 minutes for al dente. Both large and small brown lentils are great with meat-based lentil soups. A ham hock or diced pancetta are common broth basics. Sausages or franks also taste great in Euro-style lentil soups, with lots of diced veggies to balance franks and beans! And of course, there's a <a href="http://souperlatif.blogspot.com/2007/12/winter-lentils.html">recipe</a> on this blog.<br /><br /></span><span style="font-family:lucida grande;">RED LENTILS: The red split, lentils, native to Egypt are my favorite for soups and sides. Because they have no hull, they take the shortest time to cook and require no pre-soaking whatsoever. This type of lentil is usually found in everyday meals and make a quick and healthy (high protein) starch side. For a tasty salmon go-with, bring 2 cups water to a boil. Add an unpeeled clove of garlic, a sprig of rosemary, a shave of lemon peel and a few whole peppercorns. Simmer 10 minutes. Strain to remove rosemary, lemon and peppercorns, then simmer a cup of red lentils in the broth for about 10 to 15 minutes. Drain and serve with chopped cilantro or parsley – tastes great with simple salmon. There's a soup to try as well - see the <a href="http://souperlatif.blogspot.com/2008/09/spicy-red-lentil.html">Spicy Red Lentil</a> from the Recipe List.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:lucida grande;">PUY LENTILS (tiny and dark green): Prized in French cooking, <span style="font-style: italic;">lentiles du puy</span> are available in Whole Foods and better supermarkets. Because of their petit size, they also need little soaking, if any. Diners often remark that puy lentils taste almost like a fresh vegetable, and therefore, they’re great cold in salads. My favorite is a heart-friendly cold dish</span>. <span style="font-family:lucida grande;">Puys are not to be ignored for soups, either. The <a href="http://souperlatif.blogspot.com/2008/10/velvety-lentil-soup-with-cherry-tomato.html">Velvety Lentil Soup</a> made with puy lentils makes a great mini-meal, especially when temperatures start to climb. (Yes, heat cools!)</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:lucida grande;">BELUGA BLACK (quite black!): These specialty lentils, so-called to conjure up the more luxurious caviar, were featured for a while back at Trader Joe’s, and are certainly a standout. With their novelty came a spate of recipes and recipe gab on the internet, too. Black lentils need no soak, and cook almost as quickly as puy lentils. They, too, work well in salads. I’ve seen some tempting recipes with diced red peppers (hot and sweet!), green onions, lime juice vinaigrette and cilantro, and, with a red wine vinaigrette, shallots, parsely and goat cheese or feta.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:lucida grande;">TOOR/ARHAR (yellow lentils): The Toor Dal, is dull yellow in color and is most often the base for many South Indian specialties like Sambhar. Other than in specialty Middle Eastern or Indian groceries, yellow lentils are not easy to find. They need to soak for a few hours before cooking, and take longer to boil down to a soft edible center. They cook up perfectly, however in a slow cooker – real comfort food carbs without the high glycemic index.</span></span>Who can be This Souperlatifhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16107087107778558733noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4185489733258598475.post-47067350957255855832008-09-28T12:57:00.000-07:002008-09-28T14:05:00.969-07:00Spicy Red Lentil<span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:85%;" >Lentils scented with aromatic cumin and flavored with tangy lemon and garlic, garnished with golden crisp sautéed onions and a little cilantro: a mid-eastern style lentil soup that is both delicious and attractive, and best of all, quite quick and easy and to prepare. Since the soup is water based, no special broths are needed. And the ingredients, except the cilantro, are all pretty much kitchen staples.<br /><br />I’ve adapted this recipe fusing approaches from several Middle Eastern style lentil soups. The spiciness is most common with the soup flavorings of the Gulf states or North Africa, while the red lentils are more Egyptian. Another recipe on this site, Lebanese Style Lentil Soup, has a much milder flavoring. I’ve come to love these middle eastern lentil soups, and for this I owe thanks to David Scott, author of <span style="font-style: italic;">Recipes for and Arabian Night</span> (Pantheon 1983). His was the first cookbook of Arab recipes I acquired, and I’ve made many of his recipes my own through years of repeating and experimenting.<br /><br />The Ingredients<br />1 cup red lentils<br />5 cups water<br />1 onion, sliced thin<br />4 Tbsp Olive Oil, or other good quality oil<br />2 garlic cloves, minced<br />1 bunch fresh spinach or 8 oz. pkge frozen leaf spinach<br />juice of 1 large lemon, and quarters to server<br />½ tsp cumin<br />¼ tsp cayenne pepper (optional)<br />salt and pepper<br />¼ cup loosely chopped cilantro leaves (also called coriander)<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Notes on the ingredients</span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Frozen spinach works as well as fresh, but completely thaw the spinach and squeeze out as much of water as possible. Otherwise the spinach will turn to mush when you sauté it with the garlic!</span><br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Slicing the onion: Not easy without a high end slicer, or professional experience. But, you will find the onion is much easier to handle if you cut in half from the root to the stem end (vertically). With the cut side down, you can slice thin with greater control.</span><br /><br />Getting Started<br />The lentils cook quite quickly, so it is important to have all other ingredients fully prepped or started. The onions take a good 15 or 20 minutes to simmer and caramelize, so they should go first. Heat 2 tablespoons of the oil, then add the sliced onions and allow to simmer over medium low heat, stirring as needed to prevent uneven cooking.<br /><br />The spinach leaves, if fresh, should be thoroughly washed, stems removed, and if large, sliced horizontally in two inch ribbons. Baby spinach doesn’t seem to work as well, but sometimes its the only fresh available. If frozen, thaw in the microwave and remove as much water as you can, as in the above note.<br /><br />Bring the lentils to boil in the five cups of water, cover and reduce heat. Allow the lentils to simmer for no more than 20 minutes.<br /><br />Heat the remaining oil in a skillet type pan to medium, add the garlic and gently sauté until it begins to soften (not color). Add the spinach, stirring to coat evenly until all wilted. Set aside until lentils are ready. Next, check the onions – they are done once they have reached a golden crispness. Drain on paper towels and set aside.<br /><br />Assembling the Soup<br /><br />When lentils are cooked, add the cumin, salt and either cayenne or freshly ground pepper. Swirl in the spinach and let the soup simmer for a good five minutes to blend the flavors. Just before serving and off the heat, swirl in the lemon juice. Serve, garnishing each plate coriander leaves, caramelized onions and a squeeze of fresh lemon.<br /><br />Lots of pita, lightly sprinkled with water and warmed to a gently crisp in the oven is great with the soup. Homemade hummus makes the meal divine.</span>Who can be This Souperlatifhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16107087107778558733noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4185489733258598475.post-79956266233132632692008-04-26T18:14:00.000-07:002008-08-29T14:41:10.818-07:00Cauliflower Cress Soup<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixi6AYWPQk7er6WeWpMp-1bAlN-2gUj1pLWuRjb_o4t2Upp5MPyG_hiSRiuRQFLxPdDOYcvp49N_qm5oA3KeN3XRBtD9nr3yfSK9LMQpRqfoLtGUd_0xRLO5AQiqh8xKD2GFis0NwqiLA/s1600-h/cauliflower2.jpeg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixi6AYWPQk7er6WeWpMp-1bAlN-2gUj1pLWuRjb_o4t2Upp5MPyG_hiSRiuRQFLxPdDOYcvp49N_qm5oA3KeN3XRBtD9nr3yfSK9LMQpRqfoLtGUd_0xRLO5AQiqh8xKD2GFis0NwqiLA/s400/cauliflower2.jpeg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5193735250792062066" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Like the Zucchini soup in the preceding post, Cauliflower Cress Soup is a really aromatic but light puree, ideal for slimming lunches, or a starter for a warm weather salad supper. There's the nuttiness of the cauliflower and the stronger flavor bite from the fresh watercress, which makes it soothing and interesting at the same time. This recipe is an even lighter version of a recipe with the same ingredients, courtesy of Martha Stewart Living. Martha Stewart uses double the butter, and suggests a chicken broth – her version is also excellent, if not as diet perfect. Don't substitute with oil or spray, though. The butter is both for flavor and texture, and doing without altogether doesn't seem to get the flavor richness for this soup.</span><br /><br />The Broth</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">I like to start with a vegetable broth – here is a suggestion:</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">4 to 6 cups water</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">½ onion studded with 2 cloves</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">6 sprigs Italian parsley with stems.</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">½ carrot, cut into chunks</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">1 small celery stalk with leaves</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">1 bunch watercress, stems only (leaves are for the puree, see below!)</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">1 sprig fresh tarragon, if available</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">½ teaspoon salt</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">Bring all ingredients to a boil and simmer 30 minutes. Remove from heat, strain out all vegetables and reserve the broth for the recipe. Freeze any extra broth for another use.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">The Soup</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">1 tablespoon unsalted butter</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">1 small onion, diced - or use onion and shallot mixed</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">1 small head of cauliflower, separated into florets</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">1 bunch watercress, leaves only</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">4 cups vegetable stock (see above)</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">1 cup water</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">2 thinly sliced radishes and parsley leaves for garnish</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">Melt butter and add diced onions in a saucepan large enough to accommodate all the soup. Sautee, covered, over low heat to for 10 minutes. Steaming under cover allows the onions to simmer using less fat!</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">Add the broth and water and cauliflower, and bring to a boil. Simmer until the cauliflower is soft. Stir in the watercress leaves, but do not cook. Puree the soup in batches, or, using a stick blender, blend right in the saucepan. Season with additional salt and freshly ground pepper to taste</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">Pour soup into serving bowls, and garnish with thin radish slices and a few leaves of parsley.</span><br /></span>Who can be This Souperlatifhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16107087107778558733noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4185489733258598475.post-40965623381083994262008-04-10T23:46:00.000-07:002008-04-26T18:50:46.758-07:00Zucchini Soup<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuRltpie0tug37BjEy5NFQkgm4BgiC6bsZWr2fMsTq0w5yNIlljg52IAVxVGPxFzNFKEUO19ORxJYQ709Jd_oOD3Bn8bFcy61xmf7-bKmsGVykYbdBr51LZbWP1FSg4KHED0iw7lyff6o/s1600-h/zucchini2.jpeg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 255px; height: 155px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuRltpie0tug37BjEy5NFQkgm4BgiC6bsZWr2fMsTq0w5yNIlljg52IAVxVGPxFzNFKEUO19ORxJYQ709Jd_oOD3Bn8bFcy61xmf7-bKmsGVykYbdBr51LZbWP1FSg4KHED0iw7lyff6o/s400/zucchini2.jpeg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5187880232734697410" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-size:100%;">A delicate but satisfying vegetable puree to enjoy as a springtime lunch. Follow with slices of chilled fresh pears.</span><br /><br />The Broth – Chicken or Vegetable</span><br />Use 1 cup of a light chicken broth, like the one following<br />5 cups water<br />1 whole chicken breast, with bones but with skin removed<br />1/2 onion, studded with 2 cloves<br />1 medium leek, sliced in 1 inch rings<br />1 carrot, cut in chunks<br />1 celery stalks and some celery leaves, cut into 2 inch pieces<br />4 parsley stems, whole<br />1/2 tsp salt<br />Simmer all ingredients together for 40 minutes. Remove the chicken and set aside for another dish. Strain the broth and discard the vegetables.<br /><br />Or, for a light veggie broth, omit the chicken, double the celery and add in a teaspoon of minced tarragon.<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">The Vegetables</span><br />4 cups diced zucchini<br />1/4 cup chopped parsley<br />2 T minced parsley and freshly ground pepper for garnish<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">For the Soup</span><br />2 tablespoons of chopped onion<br />2 tablespoons of butter<br />1 cup of broth (see above)<br />1/4 teaspoon of salt<br />or, subsitute for the broth and salt<br />1 cup water with 1 chicken bouillon cube<br /><br />Dice zucchini and soak in ice cold water with a dash of salt for 20 minutes, then drain in a colander. While zucchini is soaking, chop the onion and parsley.<br />Sauté onion and butter in saucepan. When onion is translucent, add broth, zucchini, and salt; mix well. Cook until zucchini is tender –no more than 10 minutes. Combine the zucchini mixture with parsley and process in batches in a blender until smooth. Serve immediately garnished with fresh parsley and pepper.<br /><br />4 servings; 2 carb grams per serving.<br /></span><br /></span>Who can be This Souperlatifhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16107087107778558733noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4185489733258598475.post-41346792130382006372008-02-07T17:51:00.000-08:002008-02-08T20:54:01.023-08:00Mexican Meatball Soup - from the lighter side of Mexican Cooking<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhM27ZSFOl_FpqEz7YPFuWBpIsN-9nN9-6yyjDedv0-U3LZwRMyk5p1PAIXwX0xpHUZz4vJg-UUscp0v4SifwT_4c8DOEcPblfy8kMLyAoYAnveNuqMDve0ZTuRZGLFXXq2Os1t5lOutR8/s1600-h/sopa+de+albondigas.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhM27ZSFOl_FpqEz7YPFuWBpIsN-9nN9-6yyjDedv0-U3LZwRMyk5p1PAIXwX0xpHUZz4vJg-UUscp0v4SifwT_4c8DOEcPblfy8kMLyAoYAnveNuqMDve0ZTuRZGLFXXq2Os1t5lOutR8/s400/sopa+de+albondigas.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5164422432369312098" border="0" /></a><br />In Southern California the weeks between Winter and Spring aren't very inspiring for fresh vegetable soups. Even the open air markets are looking boring this time of year. But the other day, while shopping at Trader Joe's, I got a tickler as I spied a wonderful little window sill planter with baby fresh herbs - thyme, oregano and mint, appropriately labeled the 'Mexican Meatball Soup' assortment. Now this is a great idea - a very light broth soup, with lots of vegetables which are happily almost always in season, and savory soft meatballs. The herbs are essential for the meatballs and the broth, the chunky vegetables, like carrots, squash, zucchini and potatoes are garnished with cilantro and fresh lime. This soup is definitely both fresh and hearty.<br /><br />Sopa de <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alb%C3%B3ndigas">Albóndigas</a>, like all good ethnic dishes, is made so many different ways in Mexico - variations reflecting regional ingredients and tastes, family traditions and just plain widely different approaches. I found recipes that had corn and coyote squash with lots of tomatoes and spices, while other recipes used tomato paste and chopped green chiles in a stronger beef broth.<br /><br />My direct influences were delicious versions I had in local family style Mexican cafes. Really excellent, if you're ever in the area of Half Moon Bay, is the soup on the menu at La Famiglia Mexican, on the Cabrillo Hwy just south of the town. The broth was light but flavorful, the vegetables just right, even if the meatballs were a bit too large. Another favorite is the Vallarta Restaurant in Fillmore, California, where the meatballs are soft and smaller, and again, the soup features an ungreasy light and spicy broth.<br /><br />I also checked the recipe in <a href="http://books.google.com/books?id=hIJoX5gOliAC">Encarnacion's Kitchen</a>, the wonderful historical cookbook documenting Mexican recipes from nineteenth century California. I found that Encarnacion's meatballs were a little too rich - she adds minced green onions, garlic and some chopped up tomatoes, with some lard or butter, more egg and breadcrumbs along with the cornmeal paste. While almost all recipes I came across used oregano in the meatballs, Encarnacion just has parsley, and parsley only for the soup garnish as well. In general, Encarnacion's recipes are less spiced that cooking south of the border. She clearly had already adopted many of the gentler seasoning predilections of the Europeans in her community around San Jose.<br /><br />And here is the recipe for <a href="http://souperlatif.blogspot.com/2008/02/sopa-de-albondigas-recipe.html"><span style="font-style: italic;">Sopa de Albondigas or Meatball Soup</span></a>:Who can be This Souperlatifhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16107087107778558733noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4185489733258598475.post-91417985470527276952008-02-07T17:04:00.000-08:002008-02-08T20:51:57.381-08:00Sopa de Albondigas - The Recipe<span style="font-family:arial;"><a href="http://souperlatif.blogspot.com/2008/02/mexican-meatball-soup-from-lighter-side_07.html">Mexican Meatball Soup</a> is a very light broth soup, with lots of vegetables that are happily almost always in season, and savory soft meatballs. Herbs are essential for the meatballs and the broth - fresh oregano or dried, some tarragon, mint and thyme for the broth. The vegetables, cut larger than usual, like carrots, squash, zucchini and potatoes, and the soup is garnished at serving with cilantro and fresh lime. This soup is definitely both fresh and hearty.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Getting Started:</span><br />As always, broth is key. I started early in the day with a light chicken broth - a whole small chicken simmered with celery, carrot chunks, a medium onion studded with clove, lots of parsely, a couple of pinches of dried tarragon and a tsp. of salt. You can always add more salt and pepper later.</span><span style="font-family:arial;"><br /><br />While the broth is simmering, cook up a cup of rice, part of which will be used in the meatballs, and the rest will go into the soup</span><span style="font-family:arial;">.<br /><br />Still not ready to make soup: the meatballs should be started a good hour before the soup is assembled. This gives the meat and spices a chance to bond. The meatballs loosely covered can rest in a cool place or in the refrigerator for an hour or two. </span><span style="font-family:arial;"> Once the broth and meatballs are prepped and ready, the vegetables take little time to prepare. The soup itself, with vegetables and meatballs, doesn't need more than a 30 minute simmer. While this soup tastes wonderful the second day (just like a minestrone), longer initial cooking won't add a thing. This soup needs to showcase the freshness of the vegetables and herbs, and with overcooking, the root vegetables get too sweet and the herbs turn bitter.</span><span style="font-family:arial;"><br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">The Broth</span></span><span style="font-family:arial;"><br />1 small soup chicken, washed and trimmed of excess skin and fat</span><span style="font-family:arial;"><br />2-3 qts water</span> <span style="font-family:arial;"><br />1 medium onion, studded with 2 or 3 cloves</span><span style="font-family:arial;"><br />2 carrots, cut in chunks</span><span style="font-family:arial;"><br />2 celery stalks and some celery leaves, cut into 2 inch pieces</span><span style="font-family:arial;"><br />8 - 10 parsley stems</span><span style="font-family:arial;"><br />2 stalks of fresh tarragon, or 1 heaping teaspoon of dried</span><span style="font-family:arial;"><br />1 tsp salt</span><span style="font-family:arial;"><br /><br />Put the chicken in a stock pot, add water and bring to a boil. Salt water, and as foam forms, skim as much as you can. When foam subsides, add vegetables and herbs, lower heat to a bare simmer and continue cooking 1-1/2 hrs, or until chicken is well poached, with meat falling of the bone. Remove chicken to a plate to cool, then strain the broth through a fine strainer.</span><span style="font-family:arial;"><br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">The Meatballs</span></span><span style="font-family:arial;"><br />1/2 lb good ground beef. Sirloin is great - avoid very lean chopped beef.</span><span style="font-family:arial;"><br />1/2 lb good ground pork or turkey. Pork + sirloin is a great flavor combo - turkey is 2nd best.</span><span style="font-family:arial;"><br />1/4 cup yellow corn meal</span><span style="font-family:arial;"><br />1/4 cup milk</span><span style="font-family:arial;"><br />1/3 cup cooked rice</span><span style="font-family:arial;"><br />1 egg</span><span style="font-family:arial;"><br />1 tsp. cumin</span><span style="font-family:arial;"><br />1 Tbsp. finely chopped fresh oregano (use less dry)</span><span style="font-family:arial;"><br />1 Tbsp. minced parsley</span><span style="font-family:arial;"><br />Salt and freshly ground pepper</span><span style="font-family:arial;"><br /><br />Mix the corn meal and milk. Let stand 5 minutes. Beat the egg and add to the corn meal and milk. Put the meats in a bowl and work with a fork to break down the meat into a fine mash. Add the seasonings, rice and herbs and continue to work with a fork. Add the egg-cornmeal mixture and continue to work meat into a uniform mass. Form meat into 1 inch balls - you should have about 20. Arrange on a plate, covering loosely with plastic wrap and set aside in a cool place for a goo hour or two.</span><span style="font-family:arial;"><br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">The Vegetables</span></span><span style="font-family:arial;"><br />2 Mexican zucchini squash, halved lengthwise and thick sliced</span><span style="font-family:arial;"><br />2 Carrots, peeled and sliced on the diagonal into 1/4 inch slices</span><span style="font-family:arial;"><br />1/2 Butternut squash, peeled, seeded and cut into 1 inch dice</span><span style="font-family:arial;"><br />2 - 3 medium potatoes - California whites or reds are best - peeled and cut into 1 inch dice</span><span style="font-family:arial;"><br />1 medium onion, sliced in 1/4 inch thick rounds</span><span style="font-family:arial;"><br />1 cup cooked rice</span><span style="font-family:arial;"><br />1 cup canned diced tomatoes with some juice</span><span style="font-family:arial;"><br />1 sprig fresh spearmint</span><span style="font-family:arial;"><br />2 sprigs fresh thyme</span><span style="font-family:arial;"><br />2 - 3 sprigs fresh oregano</span><span style="font-family:arial;"><br />Chopped Cilantro and lime to garnish</span><span style="font-family:arial;"><br /><br />Heat broth to boiling, add the onions and carrots, and once the water comes back to a boil, add the potatoes, squash, zucchini, tomatoes and herbs. Drop in the meatballs and simmer at gentle rolling boil for about 25 minutes. Stir in cook rice.</span> <span style="font-family:arial;"> Serve the soup with the chopped cilantro and squeeze fresh lime into each bowl.</span>Who can be This Souperlatifhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16107087107778558733noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4185489733258598475.post-68058616777570542852008-02-07T15:50:00.000-08:002008-02-07T16:56:32.611-08:00Soyer's Soup - Soup for the Poor, or Poor Soup<span style="font-family:arial;"><a href="http://souperlatif.blogspot.com/2007/12/famine-soup-alexis-soyer-and-soup.html">Alexis Soyer</a> claimed that a meal of his soup once a day, together with a biscuit was sufficient to sustain the strength of a strong healthy man. Not everyone agreed. He was somewhat ridiculed in Punch, where it was said that Soyer's soup was not Soup for the Poor, but rather, Poor Soup!</span> <span style="font-family:arial;"><br /><br />Here is the recipe he published:<br /><br /></span><span style="font-family:arial;">12-1⁄2 lbs leg of beef</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">100 gallons of water</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">6-1/4 lbs drippings</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">100 onions and other vegetables</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">25 lbs each of flour (seconds) and pearl barley</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">1-1/2 lbs brown sugar</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">9 lbs salt</span> <span style="font-family:arial;"><br /><br />So, lets see. If you divide the ingredients by 50 to put things in a more graspable framework, you'll quickly say, "<span style="font-style: italic;">where's the BEEF?</span>"</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">4 oz. or 1/2 cup Beef</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">8 quarts water</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">2 oz. or 1/4 cup drippings</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">2 onions</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">8 oz. or 1 cup flour</span> <span style="font-family:arial;">8 oz. or 1 cup barley</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">1/2 oz. or 1 tsp. brown sugar</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">3 oz or 1/3 cup salt<br /><br />I have tried this soup recipe two ways: The first interpreted the soup as a beef and barley soup, with nicely browned sliced onions in the thickened broth. I added a diced carrot, an enhancement, but rather modest. Bay leaf and pepper would have helped, but I refrained. The soup was a bit thin in flavor, but not what I would call "poor" at all. Browning the onions and meat with the sugar actually did bring out more flavor than I thought possible. A second version was faithful to the ingredients list, but the presentation was a bit different. Instead of thickening the soup with a flour-drippings roux, I used the flour, some drippings. a bit of the broth and an egg to make little flour dumplings. The soup was a broth made from the browned onions and meat, thickened slightly by the barley, with lots of small dumplings in each serving. Both versions were better than Campbells!<br /></span>Who can be This Souperlatifhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16107087107778558733noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4185489733258598475.post-19270597562786614642007-12-12T14:37:00.000-08:002008-02-08T20:53:45.303-08:00Famine Soup: Alexis Soyer and the Soup Kitchen<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7vj2blSlTGYzEgRYxsgfUD4IjrTopPzFrziGb9ccKLma39wS69iMbL7twfTI3X_llWs0xxvYvTl_SRGMD1-1KeKqXIRNLrBCG5-evwAZkq16G64zSsJdDxlvebXWRu6Ng_xWPLnYqJoY/s1600-h/Soyer.jpeg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7vj2blSlTGYzEgRYxsgfUD4IjrTopPzFrziGb9ccKLma39wS69iMbL7twfTI3X_llWs0xxvYvTl_SRGMD1-1KeKqXIRNLrBCG5-evwAZkq16G64zSsJdDxlvebXWRu6Ng_xWPLnYqJoY/s400/Soyer.jpeg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5143657093112778642" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:arial;">In the rich and often fanciful world of food and foodies, Famine Soup hardly sounds like a an inspiration for tonight's dinner. It isn't. But it does provide some food for thought and a window into the political world of food and famine.<br /><br />The soup kitchen, which thankfully multiplied across America during the Depression Era helping to feed the legions of unemployed and destitute, was actually first introduced as a relief effort in Dublin during the Great Potato Famine of the mid-1840's. After the potato blight ruined three consecutive harvests in Ireland between 1845 and 1847, the British Prime Minister, Robert Peel, introduced the Soup Kitchen Act in January of 1847 which mandated the setup of soup kitchens throughout all the voting districts of Ireland. By the end of the year, there were over 1200 such kitchens operating, serving a bowl of soup for 1 penny.<br /><br />And the effort did have its celebrity chef participation:<br />Alexis Soyer, certainly the most fabled chef and restauranteur in England during the middle of the 19th century, was a Frenchman by birth, trained in some of the best establishments in Paris. By the time he was 17, he was already a master chef with 12 assistants! At the ripe age of 21 (in 1831), he came to London, and quickly built a reputation as a flamboyant and gifted chef among the nobles and landed gentry. In 1837, he was recruited by the new Reform Club, which was to be the most elite gentlemens club in all of London, to help design the kitchen and be the chef de cuisine. He had a knack for innovation and introduced countless gadgets and cooking equipment. So, when he heard about the plight of the Irish in the winter of 1847, he asked for a leave of absence from the Reform club and went to Dublin to lend his talents and expertise to the cause. His soup kitchen became a model for all others. It was designed as a state of the art facility, which at its peak, served 5000 or more bowls of soup a day!<br /><br />His signature dish? <a href="http://souperlatif.blogspot.com/2008/02/soyers-soup-soup-for-poor-or-poor-soup.html"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Famine Soup</span></a> - yes, it was actually called that.<br /><br />Soyer is one of my favorite characters in the history of Food. I hope to have more about him in future posts. And there will be more about soup kitchens, too, an important chapter in the history of food, relief and politics of charity. </span></span><span style=";font-family:Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:85%;" ><span style="font-size:100%;"></span></span><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family:arial;"><br /></span></span>Who can be This Souperlatifhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16107087107778558733noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4185489733258598475.post-53691497373999304602007-12-09T14:34:00.000-08:002009-05-11T12:49:54.687-07:00Celery Root - In Season, and in the Soup<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvMcr6nwhVlOtU1UemrRkG33ixLhIgTPgrkUuXvb4wrcVdALmUpOkBX-LjRGXBrGHS_uXzs5pSLEhvtD4eKBXf_cV6d4KNGzPhelGDGKrz6PscWyfpZiqjdmt-0OpxlOgecHGYJxWiVzo/s1600-h/images.jpeg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvMcr6nwhVlOtU1UemrRkG33ixLhIgTPgrkUuXvb4wrcVdALmUpOkBX-LjRGXBrGHS_uXzs5pSLEhvtD4eKBXf_cV6d4KNGzPhelGDGKrz6PscWyfpZiqjdmt-0OpxlOgecHGYJxWiVzo/s320/images.jpeg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5142076274564910946" border="0" /></a><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><span style="color: rgb(0, 153, 0);"><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(102, 0, 0);">Celery Root or Celeriac...</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51);">is a gnarly old thing easily passed up in the veggie display on account of its formidable ugliness and its often relatively steep sticker price. Definitely don't demur - take it home and you'll have enough to transform some of your everyday favorites into elegantly flavored new dishes.<br /><br />Celery root is nutty and slightly sweet with a hint of celery flavor. The tough outer skin peels with a strong vegetable peeler to reveal a white turnip-like interior. Cooking time is similar to other root vegetables like turnip and sweet potato, though shorter than beets and white potatoes. The French love their <a href="http://www.a-taste-of-france.com./celeriac-au-gratin.html">celeriac au gratin</a>, in addition to making a rich and creamy potato and celery soup. Northern Europeans make a delicious celery root salad by boiling and slicing the root, then dressing with onions, parsley and a sweet sour sauce.<br /><br />For American palates, using less goes a long way. So, if you encounter celeriac in a recipe, try halving the amount until you know what you like!<br /><br />And now that you've bought this thing, here are a few suggestions:<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">New Mashed Potatoes</span><br />Add a diced quarter of a celery root to your usual amount of potatoes. Potatoes take 20 minutes after water boils, so add the celery root 5 minutes into the cooking. Drain, steam, then mash using a hand mixer or ricer with 2 tbspns butter and up to a 1/4 cup milk or half n half until fluffy. Season with a few fresh gratings of nutmeg and server hot.<br />Wonderful with Swedish meatballs, roast chicken or duck, or perhaps roast beef.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Celery Surprise Roasted Root Vegetables</span><br />Half or quarter 4 small red potatoes with skins on, peel and cut a white turnip into 1/8 (slices look like half moons) and large dice half a celery root. Also slice a large carrot into 1 inch rings. Melt a tablespoon of butter with 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Toss vegetables with 4 whole cloves of garlic, with skins on, with the oil/butter mixture, salt, and pepper. Put into a baking dish (higher than wide so flavors mix), and drizzle with juice of 1/2 a lemon. Bake 30 to 45 minutes, until vegetables are slightly crisp on the outside and tender.<span style="font-weight: bold;"><br /></span>Serve with roast chicken.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Soups with just a hint of nutty celeriac</span><br />Now you have a quarter of the root left. Just enough for either the Smoky Split Pea Soup posted earlier or, saving best for last, a delicious creamy <a href="http://souperlatif.blogspot.com/2007/12/potato-veloute.html">Potato Veloute</a>. Click on the link for this wonderful luncheon soup, best served only with a light salad of baby lettuces with a delicate lemony raspberry dressing and fresh pepper.<br /><br /></span></span></span><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;"><span style="color: rgb(0, 153, 0);"><span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51);"><br /><br /><br /><br /></span><br /><br /></span></span>Who can be This Souperlatifhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16107087107778558733noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4185489733258598475.post-18636966535033188842007-12-09T14:11:00.000-08:002007-12-10T16:11:25.743-08:00Potato Veloute<span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;"><br />The Broth<br />2 cups whole milk (or 2%)<br />2 cups water<br />1/4 whole onion, studded with a clove<br />1 Bay Leaf<br />Warm the milk and water in a saucepan with the onion and bay leaf. Just before it starts to boil and foam, turn off heat and allow the mixture to steep.<br /><br />Vegetables<br /></span><span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;"><span style="color: rgb(0, 153, 0);"><span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51);">1/2 lb potatoes, peeled and diced<br />1/2 leek, slice lengthwise and diced (white and tender green parts only)<br />1/4 <a href="http://souperlatif.blogspot.com/2007/12/celery-root-in-season-and-in-soup.html">celery root</a>, diced<br />1 to 2 tbsp butter<br />Prep vegetables. Melt butter in a medium soup pot, and sautee</span></span></span><span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;"><span style="color: rgb(0, 153, 0);"><span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51);"></span></span></span><span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;"><span style="color: rgb(0, 153, 0);"><span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 51);"> leek 10 minutes until slightly softened over medium to low heat - leek will finish cooking in the broth. Add potato and celery root and toss to coat. Sprinkle with salt and a dash of white pepper.<br /><br />Ingredients to finish the soup<br />Have ready<br />1/4 cup creme fraiche<br />or<br />1/4 cup heavy cream<br />1/4 cup minced parsley<br /><br />To make the soup, remove bay leaf and onion from the steeped broth and add the warm broth to the sauteed vegetables. Bring to a boil. Simmer gently on low heat for 30 to 40 minutes, or until vegetables are very tender when pieced with a fork. Using a hand blender, puree the soup until completely smooth and creamy. (Alternatively, blend in a blender in several batches and return to the the soup pot).<br /><br />Reheat the soup, being careful not to boil. Taste for seasoning. Slowly add in the creme fresh or cream, stirring constantly. Re-taste and correct pepper, if needed. Serve warm, not piping hot, with minced parsley.<br /><br />A light salad of baby greens is best. Try a fruity dressing of raspberry vinaigrette with a dash of lemon.<br /><br /><br /></span></span></span>Who can be This Souperlatifhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16107087107778558733noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4185489733258598475.post-46839006630849531042007-12-08T16:23:00.000-08:002008-02-11T22:32:36.726-08:00Smoky Split Pea Soup with Butter Toasted Croutons<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhI7YeU-zRY2RskzzJZjp2UQYGLh2aNC-CVgFG_eRMpOJiXz_aNxYcGvU2MSbmbTe3f5FTCbxwppsVx79CSWZv43vzT1T7YPB8_AVlO7JD7izkZLUhOsahUXmUYaPutylUZyFGuNoURNSA/s1600-h/Soup1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhI7YeU-zRY2RskzzJZjp2UQYGLh2aNC-CVgFG_eRMpOJiXz_aNxYcGvU2MSbmbTe3f5FTCbxwppsVx79CSWZv43vzT1T7YPB8_AVlO7JD7izkZLUhOsahUXmUYaPutylUZyFGuNoURNSA/s320/Soup1.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5142504972430593906" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:85%;"><br /></span><span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:85%;" >Even in the southern California where I live, there are crispy Fall days when you can't get enough of being outside. For us, it was leaf raking and Fall tree pruning, and after a few hours I sneaked away to make a soup for ruddy cheeks and chapped hands!<br /><br />Tonight's menu was a split pea soup with gently smoked pork chops, served with a garnish of fresh parsley and buttery toasted croutons, accompanied by a glass of ice cold Kirsch. Since I <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">lightened</span> the soup considerably from the traditional recipe, we could <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">guiltlessly</span> enjoy a dessert of sauteed apples and vanilla ice cream, with Lenotre's incomparable caramel sauce!<br /><br />How the soup was lightened? The secret to avoid that thick as pea soup grog, which tires the tummies with all the mushy starch, was to use fewer split peas, proportionally more vegetables, and smoked pork chops instead of the usual ham bone, gelatinous pork hocks and smoked sausage. For meat, I chose a small amount of salt pork to help season the vegetables as they sauteed, then gently browned the diced pork chops before adding to the soup to help maximize their flavor. A 1/2 glass of white wine towards the end also helped to <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">enrich</span> the flavor without adding heaviness.<br /><br />And, here is the recipe, for 4:<br /><br />The Broth<br />6 cups water<br />1/2 onion studded with 2 cloves<br />Generous tsp of salt<br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">Bay leaf</span><br />In a small saucepan, bring the water to boil with the half onion, cloves, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">bay leaf</span> and salt. Simmer a few minutes, turn off and set aside for later.<br /><br />Vegetables<br />1 cup Green Split Peas<br />1 cup diced onions<br />3/4 cup diced carrots (~ 2 carrots)<br />3/4 cup diced celery (1 to 2 stalks)<br />3/4 cup diced leek (1 leek)<br />3/4 cup diced celery root (1/4 the root)<br />Wash and pick over split peas. (Though rare nowadays, dried beans can have a stone or two mixed into the package!) Put beans with double the amount of water in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Simmer two minutes and turn off heat. Let stand stand for at least 30 minutes while the rest of the ingredients are prepped.<br />Dice onions and reserve separately from other vegetables. Next, dice and set aside altogether the leek, celery and carrots. Large dice the celery root (see my separate posting about this marvelous vegetable!) and keep apart from the other vegetables.<br /><br />Meat<br />1/4 cup salt pork, diced<br />3 smoked pork chops<br />In a medium soup pot, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_11">sautee</span> the diced salt pork over low to medium heat to render as much of the fat as possible. Add a little light oil if the pork starts to stick. The rendering can take a good 15 minutes, so its good to start this before once the peas are up and before the veggies are prepped.<br />The smoked pork chops can be lightly browned once the soup is constituted.<br /><br />Garnish<br />3-4 thick slices good crusty bread, 1/2 inch cubes<br />2 <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_12">tbspns</span> butter - 1 <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_13">tbspn</span> light olive oil<br />1/4 cup minced curly <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_14">parsely</span><br />Croutons can be made while the soup is simmering. Don't wait to the last minute - they take a good 15 minutes to toast up. A heavy cast iron skillet is great for toasting croutons. Ready the pan early by heating with a coat of good Start with a cooking spray is fine.<br /><br />Miscellaneous<br />light olive oil, as needed<br />1/2 cup white wine<br />salt and freshly ground pepper<br /><br />Assembling the soup<br />Add onions to the rendered salt pork and continue cooking over medium heat until the onions are translucent. Lower heat slightly, add the leeks-carrots-celery and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_15">sautee</span> 8 minutes. Season with a sprinkle of salt. Remove and discard the studded onion from the seasoned water, rain and rinse the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_16">pre</span>-soaked split peas, and add peas and broth to the vegetables along with the celery root. Bring the soup to a boil, partially cover and reduce heat to a lively simmer. Soup should cook at 30 to 40 minutes.<br /><br />While the soup is cooking lightly brown over moderate heat the diced smoked pork chops in a pan coated with a little cooking spray. Immediately add the meat to continue cooking with with the soup.<br /><br />Once the meat is in, begin preparing the toasted croutons. Melt butter and oil together in the microwave. Toss the cubed bread in a preheated seasoned iron skillet. As the bread begins to get dry and color, drizzle on some of the oil-butter, and toss to coat. Continue to add drizzle, turning and tossing the bread cubes so that all sides get brown and crusty. Once bread is golden brown, lower heat or set pan to the back of the stove while the soup is finished.<br /><br />Raise the heat on the soup to a rapid boil, add 1/2 a glass of white wine or more. Let the soup bubble while you finely chop the parsley.<br /><br />To serve, ladle a good helping of mostly meat and vegetables into each bowl, season with fresh pepper and parsley and then add a ladle of broth. Bring the skillet of toasted bread to the table and spoon a handful onto each bowl - croutons should sizzle as they land! Don't forget the kirsch!</span>Who can be This Souperlatifhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16107087107778558733noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4185489733258598475.post-2380556524904183972007-12-03T08:21:00.000-08:002008-02-06T17:59:45.564-08:00About this Soup Blog!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEil6VB-RHj3HBPmQ0hT4qTGKV9NC9MT2klP0NDvPdh1LETdKal2OQqt1IXycVXlca3CFtx8ftqaMHEZk-um1AkQYDiQ3OOnfdXVuol8DQwwncfrEROpy9CpNZyTlnZOAL6QpCjAFE4I0nw/s1600-h/images.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEil6VB-RHj3HBPmQ0hT4qTGKV9NC9MT2klP0NDvPdh1LETdKal2OQqt1IXycVXlca3CFtx8ftqaMHEZk-um1AkQYDiQ3OOnfdXVuol8DQwwncfrEROpy9CpNZyTlnZOAL6QpCjAFE4I0nw/s200/images.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5141454900171362114" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-family: lucida grande;">This blog is brand new. I'm hoping the content steadily increases, and that eventually a team of soupers gathers to keep the content fresh and the excitement rich. For the start of the blog, building content with recipes will be my main focus. Recipes are important, and I feel strongly about how the printed recipe is structured. I often take issue with the standard format in today's books: ingredient lists in order of use, usually with prep instructions imbedded in the list. Instructions follow, but while cooking, the chef is reading back and forth from the top and bottom, gathering and prepping while managing the cooking. A bit of a visual juggle!, and one that puts the energy emphasis on cooking as a series of sequential operations, instead of giving us the time to sharpen our sensory skills so we can actually improve our dishes.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: lucida grande;">Every once in a while, a cookbook author will exhort the users to first read the whole recipe through to pre-master the cooking event, and lots of magazine articles around the holidays attempt to comfort the daunted hostess with minute by minute stepped programs. But the typical sequence still doesn't allow time to test and sample ingredient choices along the way, and most often the endproduct is artless.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: lucida grande;">A case in point: the instuctions say, 'saute vegetables 5 to 8 minutes then add broth'. If broth is frozen (like so many of the homemade stocks we love to use), the 5 to 8 minutes doesn't give enough time to thaw, heat and sample, deciding whether, say, to add a little chicken stock or water to the beef!</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: lucida grande;">So, I like to see a printed recipe as a tool to help the chef manage the quality of the finished dish, not necessarily just steps to completing the dish. Preparing a dish successfully is managing the ingredient selection and prep, then devoting all energy to the actual cooking. The printed recipe should clarify and assist this process.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: lucida grande;">With soups, it's particularly apt to adopt this approach. Soups are made of solids, liquids and garnishes. I always like to start with the liquids. Choose your broths or water, then heat, season and taste so they are ready when you need to add them. Recipes calling for water often benefit from a studded clove and bayleaf, or a bit of celery, onion, peppercorns and bayleaf poached in the water for flavor and fragrance, but then removed before using the water. A few sprigs of parsley and a small sliver of lemon zest can also really sparkle the water for other fish and dellicate vegetable soups, where a stronger vegetable broth just wouldn't do. Vegetables are easy to prep as a group, using separate small bowls to gather different ingredients to be added at the same time. Once done, all the messy skins and shavings can be shoveled together into the pre-compost tin, and the workspace remains clean and orderly. Garnishes, too, have their own process. Beginning early will give you the time to lavish on decorative or time-intensive special touches. Even meats and beans will benefit from separate preparation, and the final combining of flavors is more controlled.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: lucida grande;">Hope you can look at the recipes here with these ideas in mind. I'd love to hear some feedback from chefs or home cooks who have thoughts or advice on how to structure recipe.</span></span>Who can be This Souperlatifhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16107087107778558733noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4185489733258598475.post-30381282769322688222007-12-02T21:22:00.000-08:002007-12-07T20:33:15.127-08:00No Tears Diced OnionsThere's rarely a soup without the onion - so its best to perfect the dicing of one of soups most frequent starters.<br /><br />Slice off the stem end, then clean any loose strands from the root end. Don't cut the root end off. <br />(Instructional videos on YouTube show chefs coring the stem and root ends with a paring knife - not necessary to dirty a second implement - just cleanly slice both ends.)<br /><br />Half the onion through the two cut ends.<br />Now the peeling is easiest - peel the outer brown skin and the first inner layer together - they both come off easily with the help of the tip of a knife.<br /><br />With the onion face down on your cutting board, make thin slices from the stem end almost the whole length of the onion to the root. Don't cut through the root end, though, or your onion will fall apart.<br /><br />Last, make thin even slices perpendicular to the first cuts to achieve a fine dice.<br /><br />Perfect, fast; no tears!Who can be This Souperlatifhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16107087107778558733noreply@blogger.com0