Potato and Leek Bisque

This is a gem of a recipe from our very new Eating Well Cookbook!  It's a great velvety smooth, thick, rich creamy potato soup ( think delicious mashed potatoes!)- next time we'll keep some potatoes chunky and add some peas and lean ham to give it more stew texture and mix this up a bit.

Potato-Leek Bisque
8 servings, about 1 cup each

adapted from Eating Well

Bisque
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
3 pounds leeks, white and light green parts only, sliced
3 cloves garlic, minced
3/4 teaspoon salt, divided
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 1/2 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and diced
3 cups nonfat milk
2 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth
3 tablespoons lemon juice
1 teaspoon ground white pepper, or to taste
2 ounces grated Parmesan
Thinly sliced fresh chives for garnish

Croutons
1/4 cup minced pitted Kalamata olives
3 anchovies, minced
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
8 slices baguette, toasted


Preparation

1.To prepare bisque: Heat oil in a Dutch oven over medium heat. Add leeks and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, until very tender but not brown, 20 to 30 minutes. Adjust heat as necessary and add a bit of water if needed to prevent sticking. Set aside 1/3 cup of the leeks in a small bowl.

2.Add garlic and red pepper flakes, stir for a minute then add potatoes, milk and broth to the pot. Bring to a simmer (do not boil) and cook, stirring occasionally, until the potatoes are very tender, 15 minutes.

3.To prepare croutons: Meanwhile, add olives, anchovies and black pepper to the reserved leeks; mix well. Divide evenly among the toasted baguette slices.

4.When the potatoes are tender, remove from the heat. Puree the soup with an immersion blender or in batches in a regular blender. (Use caution when pureeing hot liquids.) Season with the remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt, lemon juice and white pepper. Divide among 8 soup bowls and float a crouton on top of each. Garnish with chives and Parmesan, if desired.

44 clove garlic soup

Fall has arrived, and with it some busy schedules and some terrible allergies!  So, apologies for not blogging more this month.  Hopefully this unique recipe perks you up, fights off any colds, and allows you to forgive us our slacking ways...?  I read about this recipe earlier over the summer and had it tucked away for a rainy, cold autumn day such as this, to pull it out and give it a try.  We LOVE garlic, and go through more then 4 full heads a month ( that's a slow one...) so after reading the reviews on this, I just had to find out for myself if it really was yummy- I mean, how can you go wrong with roasted garlic and Parmesan and cream?  There are 2 things I wish we'd known that the directions did not include- so that's where this helpful blog comes in to the rescue!  First, when you buy your garlic, use LARGE heads that have large cloves ( you'll need between 2-3 heads of garlic).  More importantly you need to use those larger cloves for the roasted garlic portion.  We used the whole head including those tiny cloves and they got too golden and gave our soup a slight ( but not terrible) sharp flavor.  Second, this soup really only serves four and it is a thin broth consistency after blending.  The Parmesan and lemon are integral components as they add a really bright and complementary flavor to the garlicy goodness in your bowl.  Now, as for the taste- it was really really garlicy fantastic!  You can certainly taste the roasted garlic flavors up front and then you get that sweeter garlic flavor and Parmesan to finish.  We mopped this up with fresh French bread hot out of the oven.  If we make this again, I'd roast the garlic for 35 minutes, then add some diced veggies like parsnips, carrots or corn and white beans or diced potatoes to really bulk up the soup and thicken the broth ( after it's blended) and top with fresh parsley. 

44-Clove Garlic Soup with Parmesan Cheese

Adapted from Bon Appetit, February 1999

Serves 4


26 garlic cloves (unpeeled, large cloves)

1-2 tablespoons olive oil

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

2 1/4 cups sliced onions ( about 1.5 regular size onions)

1 1/2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme ( we used dried)

18 garlic cloves, peeled

3 1/2 cups chicken stock or canned low-salt chicken or vegetable broth

1/2 cup half and half

1/2 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese (about 2 ounces)

4 lemon wedges



Preheat oven to 350°F. Place 26 garlic cloves in small glass baking dish. Add 2 tablespoons olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper; toss to coat. Cover baking dish tightly with foil and bake until garlic is golden brown and tender, about 35-45 minutes ( check them!). Cool. Squeeze garlic between fingertips to release cloves. Transfer cloves to small bowl.

Melt butter in heavy large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add onions and thyme and cook until onions are translucent, about 6 minutes. Add roasted garlic and 18 raw garlic cloves and cook 3 minutes. Add chicken stock; cover and simmer until garlic is very tender, about 20 minutes. Working in batches, puree soup in blender until smooth. Return soup to saucepan; add cream and bring to simmer. Season with salt and pepper.

Divide grated cheese among 4 bowls and ladle soup over. Squeeze juice of 1 lemon wedge into each bowl and serve.

Do ahead: Can be prepared 1 day ahead. Cover and refrigerate. Rewarm over medium heat, stirring occasionally.


*** A recent camping trip to New Glarus was an inspiration for an exciting new post, stay tuned for yummy fall HEALTHY apple recipes... 

Cool Red Pepper Soup with homemade Garlicy Croutons

Red Pepper Soup

Tis the season for fantastic Red Peppers!  I know it is summer and technically speaking 'soup' is not preferred to keep you cool... but this soup tastes fantastic served COLD.  The simple flavor of red pepper- fresh and in season- is highlighted completely in this very simple fresh recipe.  Crushed red pepper flakes give it a subtle kick, the cool marscopone cheese add a creamy buttery layer and crunchy homemade garlicy croutons give this soup a crunch as well as fill you up.  We used our homemade chicken stock that we keep in the freezer, after making a whole roasted chicken, you can find the recipe here. 

Red Pepper Soup
Adapted from the New York Times 9/21/05
found here 

Makes 4 servings
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 large yellow onion, sliced
3 large cloves garlic, crushed
1/4 cup dry white wine
6 large red bell peppers, cut into 1-inch pieces
2 cups chicken broth
2 tablespoons chopped fresh thyme
1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon hot red pepper flakes
Salt and white or black pepper
Marscapone for garnish
Thyme sprigs for garnish.

Put oil in large pot. Add onion when oil is hot. Cook onions until they begin to soften and take on color. Add garlic and cook another minute. Add wine and cook down quickly and on high heat, until only one tablespoon is left. Add peppers, stock, thyme and red pepper flakes. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Cover and simmer until peppers are tender, about 30 minutes. In food processor or with an immersion blender, puree mixture in until smooth (if a food processor, in batches). Adjust seasonings to taste.
Soup can be served warm or chilled. Serve in demitasse cups or soup bowls, topped with a dab of marscapone and a tiny sprig of thyme and your homemade croutons.

Do ahead:  cover and chill overnight or for as long as 2 days or freeze (whisk well before serving if thawed).

Homemade Garlic Croutons

8 ounces day old french baguette, cute in to 1 inch cubes
1 cloves garlic, chopped
2-3 Tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Salt and Pepper

In a pan over medium heat, add about 2T of the oil.  When hot add in the bread cubse and toss well to coat with oil, add more if necessary- you want eat to have a bit of oil on them without being completely saturated.  Toss in pan for a few minutes then add the garlic, salt and pepper to your liking- toss some more. The bread will start to dry out and get crispy, continue tossing them till they reach your desired toastiness- about 5-8 minutes total.  Serve with the soup

Tortellini, Tomato and Spinach Soup

Most weekends, you'll find us on a Sunday morning perusing recipes and creating a grocery list over coffee and breakfast.... ooo glorious weekends!  We had made a trip Saturday to our favorite Italian grocer on Taylor Street- Conti Di Savoia, for a quick Italian sub for lunch ( aka, the best sandwich EVER no joke).  While were there, we decided to pick up some fresh cheese and porcini tortellinis to have on hand to make a quick dinner.  Well, Sunday we added the ingredients to the following recipe to our grocery list and were happily surprised at how wonderful and satisfying tortellini can be in a soup- who knew?  Normally you'd be prone to tossing a jar of red sauce on them and calling it a night, but this recipe is oh so much better.  You can actually taste the fresh tortelli flavor and a nice bite of fresh veggies plus a kick from teh crushed red pepper flakes, all balanced with a bit of fresh parmesan cheese... this is what you need:

Ingredients:

1 teaspoon olive oil

1 medium onion, diced

2 clove garlic, sliced

1 carrot, peeled and sliced

2 stalks celery, trimmed and chopped

1 teaspoon dried Thyme

1 teaspoon dried Oregano

1/2 teaspoon Red Pepper Flakes

6 cups low sodium chicken or vegetable broth

1 (14-ounce) can low sodium diced tomatoes, with juices

1lb fresh tortellini, cheese or spinach or mushroom

4 ounces fresh baby spinach, sliced in ribbons

Coarse grained salt and cracked black pepper

1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan, very loosely packed

 

  In a 3-quart soup pot, heat olive oil over medium high heat. Saute the onion and garlic, stirring often until onions are translucent, about 5 to 7 minutes. Add the carrot, celery, thyme, oregano, and red pepper flakes, stir well for a couple minutes.  Add broth and tomatoes, turn heat up to high, and bring to a boil. Cook for 15 minutes.  Next, add the tortellini and spinach, cook 6 minutes more. Taste, adjusting seasonings with salt and pepper.  Garnish each serving with a sprinkling of Parmesan.

Roasted Tomato and Black Bean Soup with Avocado Cream

Roasted Tomato and Black Bean Soup Ingredients

7 medium tomatoes, quartered

1 large onion, cut into large pieces

3 cloves garlic, peeled

2 tbsp Cilantro and Roasted Onion Olive Oil or regular olive oil

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper

5 cups low-sodium chicken or vegetable broth

2 (15.5-oz) cans black beans (preferably low sodium), drained and rinsed

1 1/2 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp chili powder

1/4 tsp hot sauce

1/4 cup reduced-fat sour cream
1/2 ripe avocado, mashed

1/4 cup chopped cilantro

Directions 
Preheat the oven to 375 deg F. Toss the tomatoes, onion and garlic with the oil, salt and pepper in a large bowl, then transfer to baking sheet. Roast until the garlic cloves have softened, the edges of the onions are browned, and the tomatoes have collapsed, 35-40 minutes, stirring once after the first 20 minutes.


Transfer the roasted vegetable mixture to a 4-quart saucepan. Add the borth, beans, cumin, chili powder and the remaining 1/2 teaspoon of salt and 1/4 tsp of pepper. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat, and simmer for 10 minutes. Remove from the heat and blend until smooth with an immersion blender or in batches in a regular blender. Stir in the hot sauce.  Mix the avocado and sour cream in a small bowl. Divide soup among 4 bowls and garnish with a dollop of avocado cream and a sprinkle of cilantro.

Chicken, Chipotle and Avocado Soup

As the warm summer air slowly fades away, cool shorter days begin their take over. This recipe is for those of us stuck between mourning summer's end, and anticipating the crisp fall colors. The fresh ingredients in this simple soup will keep you locked in to the summer, while the richness and wamth of homemade broth ease you into the cool fall nights. Since the ingredients and this recipe are so simple, the broth takes center stage. Making your own broth is the only way to ensure it can stand up for this task. We reserve our chicken carcass from recipes such as our "Whole Roasted Chicken Tacos", and store it in an airtight bag in our freezer.


BROTH
Ingredients:
1 chicken carcass
10 cups water
1 cup carrots, chopped
1 cup celery, chopped (see note*)
1 cup onions, chopped
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 teaspoon thyme leaves
1/2 teaspoon salt and pepper
1 bay leaf

Combine all ingredients in a large heavy bottom pot. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to simmer, place lid on the pot, and set your timer for 90 minutes. Strain the contents through a mesh sieve into a large bowl, reserve the carcass, toss the veggies and any skin. When the carcass cools, you can pick off the bits of chicken to use in the soup, usually about 1 cup.
* NOTE: For the veggies, you don't need to carefully chop up each piece in uniform shape or size, these are only used for flavor in the broth and are dicarded. For the celery, we like to use the discarded top and core that aren't what you would want to snack on with your peanut butter.

Chicken, Chipotle and Avocado Soup
Ingredients:
6 1/2 cups chicken broth
1 chipotle chili pepper in Adobo sauce, seeded and sliced thinly (see note**)
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups cooked chicken, diced
1 teaspoon Paprika
1/2 teaspoon each Salt/ Pepper
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 avocados, pitted and diced
3 green onions, chopped
1 cup cilantro, chopped
2 limes

Bring the broth, chipotle chili, and garlic to a boil in a large pot. Meanwhile, you will need to cook up 1-2 chicken breasts to add in on top of the reserved chicken from the carcass. We seasoned ours with 1/2 the Olive Oil, Paprika, Garlic, Salt and Pepper. Pour the other 1/2 of the olive oil in a medium pan over medium/ high heat, cook the chicken for 4-5 minutes per side, until cooked through. Set aside under foil for 5 minutes before chopping it up. In four bowls, divide the avocado, green onions, chicken, and cilantro. Ladle the broth mixture over each bowl, and squeeze some lime juice over the top. Serve with tortilla chips and sour cream if desired.
** NOTE: Chipotle Chilis in Adobo come in a small can at the store with about 10 chilis, we divide them in to separate zipper baggies and keep them in our freezer to use whenever a recipe calls for it. Usually a recipe will only call for 1-2 chilis, as they are very potent in flavor (and heat if you leave those seeds in!).