I don't really know what that means, "here's mud in yer eye", but it's some sort of toast or something, right? Anyway, I took Julia's advice (and The Southerner, who agrees with her) and didn't mention to any of the guests that I thought the soup looked...well...less than appetizing, and they all dished it up and many of them had seconds and I think you could call it a success. I ended up making a peach and onion chutney to go on the homemade bread that I toasted on the panini grill. That was VERY popular. And two of our guests brought these nifty crackers - pumpkin seed and cranberry - along with a round of Brie. And Carol donated truffles to the cause, so all in all, it was a very lovely Sunday Soup.
Nathan brought his friends from Dawson (Yukon) and a bouquet of beans from his garden. Later we examined the map and marveled over how far north Dawson is and that anyone can survive in minus forty degree weather, but there they were, living proof that it can be done. There were a few Sunday Soup virgins too, and the "regulars", although Calvin missed since it was raining and we were all inside. He'll be wondering about his catnip fix. I should've sent some home with Carol.
I spent most of yesterday and a lot of today in the kitchen. Besides the soup, I cooked a lot of other things, put up ten pounds of peaches (I sliced them for the freezer, but "put up" makes me sound like Suzie Homemaker and there's something appealing about that!) and a whole bunch of zucchini too, and did a lot of cleaning to boot. You'd think I would've earned a well-needed rest by now, being that it's nine-thirty pm, but alas...there's still a hungry Southerner in the house. Soup is just an appetizer after all. Luckily, I planned ahead and turned some of that squash into a cheesy-mushroomy-squashy- pasta casserole. It should be done just about...NOW!
Today was joyfully loud, the conversation fun, and the food good. All in all, a very pleasing, rainy afternoon. See y'all next week.
Sunday, August 24, 2008
Saturday, August 23, 2008
It's Got Great Personality
Truth be told, I'm a little worried about Sunday Soup tomorrow. I made the soup today and well...has anyone ever tried to set you up on a blind date and when you asked what the guy (girl) looked like your friend said, "He has a nice personality"?
Well...as The Southerner would say, "I'll tell you what's the truth." Tomorrow's soup tastes great, but it ain't pretty.
It was super labour intensive too. And ironically, it was one of the labour intensive steps that turned it the colour of mud. If you are a Harry Potter fan, you might remember when they made polyjuice potion to make themselves look like Crabbe & Goyle? Well, that's about what my soup looks like. But it tastes great, I swear! Maybe we can have a theme day tomorrow...like...how about Blindfold Sunday? Or Eat With Your Eyes Closed Cuisine. Oh, I know! I'll have The Southerner get the first big bowl and once they see him eating, they'll know it's okay. No...that won't work. Everyone knows he'll eat anything. After all, his other nickname is No Dog.
Julia Child would be so disappointed in me if she were reading this. She would say that I should just serve it and never admit that it doesn't look exactly the way I meant for it to look. And I suppose she's right. But she has the advantage that instead of calling it Black Bean Soup with Roasted Vegetable Stock, it would have the fancy name: Soupe aux fèves noir avec les actions végétales rôties. That sounds so much better! Even if they do both look like le dirt.
I'm going to go for humour (here) and distraction (tomorrow - bruschetta with spicy peach topping) to complement it. And if all else fails...maybe I'll break out the biscotti I made tonight too.
Well...as The Southerner would say, "I'll tell you what's the truth." Tomorrow's soup tastes great, but it ain't pretty.
It was super labour intensive too. And ironically, it was one of the labour intensive steps that turned it the colour of mud. If you are a Harry Potter fan, you might remember when they made polyjuice potion to make themselves look like Crabbe & Goyle? Well, that's about what my soup looks like. But it tastes great, I swear! Maybe we can have a theme day tomorrow...like...how about Blindfold Sunday? Or Eat With Your Eyes Closed Cuisine. Oh, I know! I'll have The Southerner get the first big bowl and once they see him eating, they'll know it's okay. No...that won't work. Everyone knows he'll eat anything. After all, his other nickname is No Dog.
Julia Child would be so disappointed in me if she were reading this. She would say that I should just serve it and never admit that it doesn't look exactly the way I meant for it to look. And I suppose she's right. But she has the advantage that instead of calling it Black Bean Soup with Roasted Vegetable Stock, it would have the fancy name: Soupe aux fèves noir avec les actions végétales rôties. That sounds so much better! Even if they do both look like le dirt.
I'm going to go for humour (here) and distraction (tomorrow - bruschetta with spicy peach topping) to complement it. And if all else fails...maybe I'll break out the biscotti I made tonight too.
Sunday, August 17, 2008
Cheesy Chowder
Today I made a cheesy potato chowder. It was distantly related to a recipe my mother uses to make a cheese and sausage soup, but by now there are so many degrees of separation, not even Kevin Bacon could connect it back to the original recipe. Okay...I know...lame joke, degrees of separation, sausage, bacon...so sue me.
Anyway, I used a very sharp cheddar and there were red potatoes, carrots from one of The Southerner's gardening pals, onions from The Southerner himself, and a few other secret ingredients. It was a big hit, despite the fact that it was a pretty warm day today.
Nary a Steve to be seen this week, but the crowd that was here is beginning to resemble "regulars" which is kind of neat. And there was plenty of soup with just a little left over for me and The Southerner to have for lunch tomorrow. We had a moment of panic when it looked like Calvin's perfect record had come to an end. It was way after six before he showed up for his dose of catnip, although Carol showed up on time, keeping her flawless attendance record intact.
The bread was an Irish Whole Wheat Herb Soda bread, made from a recipe; one I was a bit wary of following, actually, because it had herbs like basil, thyme, and sage, but also a bit of brown sugar and dried currants. It was like it couldn't decide if it wanted to be sweet or savoury. In the end, it was just delicious and everyone agreed it was a hit.
The only problem with the bread is the name. I'm still having trouble with the word "herb" because when I lived in England after college, one of my friends teased me relentlessly about pronouncing it the American way with a silent "h". So, being the conformist that I am, I quickly started pronouncing it the British way. And then, years later, I married The Southerner and he would not STOP harassing me about being all hoity-toity and fake British, so I switched back to the American silent "h". And now, here we are in Canada, and they say it the British way! I cannot win! I am going with the voiced "h". When in B.C., do as the British Columbians do, I say. Don't even get me started on the word "scone".
It's actually raining now that everyone's gone home. In the four months that we've done Sunday Soup, we've only ever had to eat it inside once, so if you run into any locals, don't let them fool you into thinking it rains here all the time. The clouds are way too high for that.
Anyway, I used a very sharp cheddar and there were red potatoes, carrots from one of The Southerner's gardening pals, onions from The Southerner himself, and a few other secret ingredients. It was a big hit, despite the fact that it was a pretty warm day today.
Nary a Steve to be seen this week, but the crowd that was here is beginning to resemble "regulars" which is kind of neat. And there was plenty of soup with just a little left over for me and The Southerner to have for lunch tomorrow. We had a moment of panic when it looked like Calvin's perfect record had come to an end. It was way after six before he showed up for his dose of catnip, although Carol showed up on time, keeping her flawless attendance record intact.
The bread was an Irish Whole Wheat Herb Soda bread, made from a recipe; one I was a bit wary of following, actually, because it had herbs like basil, thyme, and sage, but also a bit of brown sugar and dried currants. It was like it couldn't decide if it wanted to be sweet or savoury. In the end, it was just delicious and everyone agreed it was a hit.
The only problem with the bread is the name. I'm still having trouble with the word "herb" because when I lived in England after college, one of my friends teased me relentlessly about pronouncing it the American way with a silent "h". So, being the conformist that I am, I quickly started pronouncing it the British way. And then, years later, I married The Southerner and he would not STOP harassing me about being all hoity-toity and fake British, so I switched back to the American silent "h". And now, here we are in Canada, and they say it the British way! I cannot win! I am going with the voiced "h". When in B.C., do as the British Columbians do, I say. Don't even get me started on the word "scone".
It's actually raining now that everyone's gone home. In the four months that we've done Sunday Soup, we've only ever had to eat it inside once, so if you run into any locals, don't let them fool you into thinking it rains here all the time. The clouds are way too high for that.
Saturday, August 16, 2008
August 16th
Yesterday I took Miss Southerner down to the ferry in Victoria so she could head back home. We had a fabulous visit and I will miss her loads (and not just because she did the dishes so willingly...although I do feel spoilt!). Anyway, while I was there, I dropped in on one of my favorite restaurants, Soup Etc. on Douglas Street. I was in a big hurry to catch my bus back home, so I was not able to enjoy any of their fabulous soups, but instead had to grab one of their fantastic paninis (the "etc." in their name). While I was waiting, I perused the soup menu longingly and saw a butternut squash with green apple. That piqued my interest immediately, because, as you know, The Southerner is growing squash, squash, and more squash!
I asked the man working the counter if it was his own recipe and he said that they have a chef who makes up the soup recipes for them. I was so intrigued though that as I hurried to the bus depot with my lovely fresh mozz sandwich, I started wondering if maybe I should just go back for the soup and take a later bus, but I was hot and tired and so I kept going. However...
When I got home, I put "butternut squash and green apple soup recipe" into google and found a bunch of recipes! Yowza! I may not have gotten to try it yesterday, but I will in the future. And no, it is not this week's soup because while zucchini and yellow squash are showing up in every corner of the kitchen like hard boiled eggs the day after Easter, we're still waiting on the butternut squash. Stay tuned for more when its ripe though because we will be trying this soup for sure! And if you're in Victoria, do stop by Soup Etc. for a bowl of soup or an outstanding panini. Tell the guy behind the counter that the crazy lady who made him take her Sunday Soup business card sent you!
I asked the man working the counter if it was his own recipe and he said that they have a chef who makes up the soup recipes for them. I was so intrigued though that as I hurried to the bus depot with my lovely fresh mozz sandwich, I started wondering if maybe I should just go back for the soup and take a later bus, but I was hot and tired and so I kept going. However...
When I got home, I put "butternut squash and green apple soup recipe" into google and found a bunch of recipes! Yowza! I may not have gotten to try it yesterday, but I will in the future. And no, it is not this week's soup because while zucchini and yellow squash are showing up in every corner of the kitchen like hard boiled eggs the day after Easter, we're still waiting on the butternut squash. Stay tuned for more when its ripe though because we will be trying this soup for sure! And if you're in Victoria, do stop by Soup Etc. for a bowl of soup or an outstanding panini. Tell the guy behind the counter that the crazy lady who made him take her Sunday Soup business card sent you!
Monday, August 11, 2008
A Plethora of Steves
Yesterday all the men at Sunday Soup, except for The Southerner, were named Steve. No kidding! That wold be four guys named Steve packed onto our tiny deck (one Steve was missing or we would've had five). While it was somewhat confusing for them, it did make it very easy for Miss Southerner to keep track of her new acquaintances.
The soup was most excellent. Again, I can say that without being all "ain't I hot stuff" because I generally followed the recipe, so it was more my ability to follow directions than my culinary expertise. The zucchini and basil muffins were a big hit too. I took a risk and made a double batch, even though I hadn't tried them before, but it paid off because everyone had plenty and there is still a lot left over. I might've added a little extra basil, but for the most part I followed this recipe. Oh, and I added some fresh ground black pepper too.
One of the Steves brought an apple pie, and two of the Steves were too late for it because we'd already cut it into eight pieces and were eating it when they arrived. SS may go from 4pm - 7pm, but if you want pie, you better come early. Or bring your own!
For a while, it seemed that everyone working at our library was named Susan. I would've liked to invite them all and see if they could outnumber the Steves, but alas, I've waited too long and most of them have moved on. We're down to one Susan and a Suzanne there now. They could've come and taken on the Steves in a soup eating contest!
Oh, well...even without all the Susans, it was a very nice Sunday Soup and it didn't rain, but it was cool enough that my white bean soup was warming and soothing, just as it should be. Have a great week!
Y'all come back, ya hear?
The soup was most excellent. Again, I can say that without being all "ain't I hot stuff" because I generally followed the recipe, so it was more my ability to follow directions than my culinary expertise. The zucchini and basil muffins were a big hit too. I took a risk and made a double batch, even though I hadn't tried them before, but it paid off because everyone had plenty and there is still a lot left over. I might've added a little extra basil, but for the most part I followed this recipe. Oh, and I added some fresh ground black pepper too.
One of the Steves brought an apple pie, and two of the Steves were too late for it because we'd already cut it into eight pieces and were eating it when they arrived. SS may go from 4pm - 7pm, but if you want pie, you better come early. Or bring your own!
For a while, it seemed that everyone working at our library was named Susan. I would've liked to invite them all and see if they could outnumber the Steves, but alas, I've waited too long and most of them have moved on. We're down to one Susan and a Suzanne there now. They could've come and taken on the Steves in a soup eating contest!
Oh, well...even without all the Susans, it was a very nice Sunday Soup and it didn't rain, but it was cool enough that my white bean soup was warming and soothing, just as it should be. Have a great week!
Y'all come back, ya hear?
Saturday, August 9, 2008
Rainy Day Soup
After a nice, warm week, we did get some rain today. Okay...not rain, but a few drops. As my friend Ralph the farmer says when they get some rain, but not enough, "one drop per acre". It wasn't a lot more than that, but it was enough rain for me to make a white bean and garlic soup for Sunday Soup even though all the recipe comments said, "a wonderful soup for a cold winter evening". It's kind of light though, flavoured with sage and a little bit of cream. Velvety smooth! I think it's just fine for summer. At least around here where mild is the best way to describe what the locals call "hot weather".
The Southerner still has this weird phobia about rain. I think it's probably because in the South, dangerous weather often accompanies rain. Like tornadoes, thunder storms with ground lightning, trees and small animals flying through the air sideways. That sort of thing. It doesn't just rain down south, it RAINS! Here you can tell the tourists...they're the ones with the umbrellas and rain gear. The rest of us west coasters just muddle on through the puddles. The Southerner wants to be one of us, but he also thinks his rain gear is way cool, and since he never got to actually wear it in Tennessee because it was always too dangerous to go outside in the rain, he breaks it out at every opportunity. Actually, what he does is carry it in his backpack "just in case". I find it very endearing, but frankly I'd rather he carried food in his backpack as I'm much more likely to want that if we get lost on a hike!
Anyway, along with our rainy day soup, we are having zucchini and basil muffins (we have a LOT of zucchini, surprise, surprise! See the Squash co-op post further down if you don't know WHY we've got so much) We're having the muffins assuming they turn out. I usually like to make a test batch of anything I've never tried beforehand, but Miss Southerner is still here visiting us and so I've been sort of slacking off in the kitchen (despite the fact that she does the dishes! Did I mention we're trying to figure out how to adopt her?). Just in case the muffins turn out "only fit for No Dog", we're making a loaf of our usual bread tonight as back up.
And because you should never really have a nice dinner without a little music, check out this link to see The Southerner and Miss Southerner sing for their supper last night.
The Southerner still has this weird phobia about rain. I think it's probably because in the South, dangerous weather often accompanies rain. Like tornadoes, thunder storms with ground lightning, trees and small animals flying through the air sideways. That sort of thing. It doesn't just rain down south, it RAINS! Here you can tell the tourists...they're the ones with the umbrellas and rain gear. The rest of us west coasters just muddle on through the puddles. The Southerner wants to be one of us, but he also thinks his rain gear is way cool, and since he never got to actually wear it in Tennessee because it was always too dangerous to go outside in the rain, he breaks it out at every opportunity. Actually, what he does is carry it in his backpack "just in case". I find it very endearing, but frankly I'd rather he carried food in his backpack as I'm much more likely to want that if we get lost on a hike!
Anyway, along with our rainy day soup, we are having zucchini and basil muffins (we have a LOT of zucchini, surprise, surprise! See the Squash co-op post further down if you don't know WHY we've got so much) We're having the muffins assuming they turn out. I usually like to make a test batch of anything I've never tried beforehand, but Miss Southerner is still here visiting us and so I've been sort of slacking off in the kitchen (despite the fact that she does the dishes! Did I mention we're trying to figure out how to adopt her?). Just in case the muffins turn out "only fit for No Dog", we're making a loaf of our usual bread tonight as back up.
And because you should never really have a nice dinner without a little music, check out this link to see The Southerner and Miss Southerner sing for their supper last night.
Monday, August 4, 2008
August 4th
After a week of much needed rain, the sun came back out, proving to the locals that summer was not over yet despite their certainty that "fall was in the air". In fact, it's supposed to be 30 degrees this week (mid-eighties). Wahoo! When I started Sunday Soup, I thought that on the really hot summer days I might make salad instead of soup, but that was before I spent a summer in our new locale (western Canada). Down south, I can see why this idea might've made sense, but even with the warm and sunny weather yesterday, by 6pm, we were lending our guests fleece shirts to keep them warm in the shade on the porch. So the soup pot is still on and I expect it will continue through the summer.
One of the many Steves that we know came yesterday (we know a lot of them, but they're all special in their own way) and brought his entire family. We've had some of his family here at different times, but never all four of them here at the same time. That was a very nice surprise!
One of the nice things about living here is that people don't bring you hostess gifts like flowers (not that I'm opposed to flowers)...they bring you produce! Brenda brought The Southerner some beets! I'm not sure if they read my post last week and knew that because I had come around to zucchini (I'm eating zucchini bread as I type this) that The Southerner was going to try beets now, or if it was just coincidence, but either way, we have a beautiful bunch of beets with the greens, which is like getting two veggies for the price of one because the greens are delicious too! I expect we'll eat them before the weekend, so no borscht in The Southerner's immediate future. I think that might be too much to ask of him this early in his introduction to beets!
Oh, and just so you know, our house guest, Miss Southerner, who he brought with him from Tennessee is fantastic to have around the kitchen. If you're not careful, she'll do ALL the prep work and the dishes too. Gosh, hate that... :-) In fact, she's making French toast now out of leftover bread.
The Southerner, our friend Kathy (who was also here yesterday), and Miss Southerner are going to do a gig this weekend at Steve's theatre (along with another pal who was absent yesterday), so at the end of SS, they broke out the guitar and did some rehearsing. Oh, boy! This is going to be one good show! I can hardly wait! All I do is listen (and provide pre-show food, and after-show food, and rehearsal snacks, and...well, you get the idea...I'm the caterer), but I am a really good listener, and I'm looking forward to this week of music in our kitchen.
And speaking of music, we know about a zillion musicians and we've told them all that next week is going to be a music oriented Sunday Soup in honor of Miss Southerner's visit, so I'm expecting a lot of people next week (you know...offer a musician a free meal and the soup pot better be deep!). Not sure what the soup will be, but I have a whole week to think on it. Send your suggestions and remember, it's got to feed a lot of hungry musicians, so cheesy & creamy soups are out unless I want to take a loan out to buy the ingredients. I guess I could leave The Southerner's guitar case open in the kitchen and see if anyone throws in money!
The late great Mr. Fatboy and Elizabeth the guitar!
One of the many Steves that we know came yesterday (we know a lot of them, but they're all special in their own way) and brought his entire family. We've had some of his family here at different times, but never all four of them here at the same time. That was a very nice surprise!
One of the nice things about living here is that people don't bring you hostess gifts like flowers (not that I'm opposed to flowers)...they bring you produce! Brenda brought The Southerner some beets! I'm not sure if they read my post last week and knew that because I had come around to zucchini (I'm eating zucchini bread as I type this) that The Southerner was going to try beets now, or if it was just coincidence, but either way, we have a beautiful bunch of beets with the greens, which is like getting two veggies for the price of one because the greens are delicious too! I expect we'll eat them before the weekend, so no borscht in The Southerner's immediate future. I think that might be too much to ask of him this early in his introduction to beets!
Oh, and just so you know, our house guest, Miss Southerner, who he brought with him from Tennessee is fantastic to have around the kitchen. If you're not careful, she'll do ALL the prep work and the dishes too. Gosh, hate that... :-) In fact, she's making French toast now out of leftover bread.
The Southerner, our friend Kathy (who was also here yesterday), and Miss Southerner are going to do a gig this weekend at Steve's theatre (along with another pal who was absent yesterday), so at the end of SS, they broke out the guitar and did some rehearsing. Oh, boy! This is going to be one good show! I can hardly wait! All I do is listen (and provide pre-show food, and after-show food, and rehearsal snacks, and...well, you get the idea...I'm the caterer), but I am a really good listener, and I'm looking forward to this week of music in our kitchen.
And speaking of music, we know about a zillion musicians and we've told them all that next week is going to be a music oriented Sunday Soup in honor of Miss Southerner's visit, so I'm expecting a lot of people next week (you know...offer a musician a free meal and the soup pot better be deep!). Not sure what the soup will be, but I have a whole week to think on it. Send your suggestions and remember, it's got to feed a lot of hungry musicians, so cheesy & creamy soups are out unless I want to take a loan out to buy the ingredients. I guess I could leave The Southerner's guitar case open in the kitchen and see if anyone throws in money!
The late great Mr. Fatboy and Elizabeth the guitar!
Saturday, August 2, 2008
August 2nd
Sunday Scoop - 2 August 2008
Photo copyright Victor Anthony 2008
I know I generally try to go for an aura of suspense on Saturdays...keep you coming back for more on Sunday, but The Southerner is about to return home after ten days away, and he's bringing a Miss Southerner with him to visit, so I'm not sure how much time I'll have to post tomorrow. She's no relation, but she did play his daughter in the Smoke on the Mountain plays at the Cumberland County Playhouse last year. Also, Sunday Soup will be competing with a wedding and reception tomorrow. We're invited to the reception, which starts right when SS ends, and it's just down the street, so we'll be wandering over there afterwards. Should be fun.
Okay...this week's soup was inspired by all the fabulous (although somewhat expensive) Walla Walla onions available here, locally grown and organic. The Southerner is growing some too, but he had to grow them in the ground, as opposed to the greenhouse, so the ones from the farm are softball size, while his are still maturing (just like him...one can hope, anyway). So today, I tackled French Onion Soup.
I know that this is normally a cold-winter-warm-you-up soup, but when you make it with fresh summer onions and use vegetable stock instead of beef consomme, it's actually quite light. I had been wanting to try it for ages, but didn't have any oven-proof bowls (or at least not enough for all the guests at SS). However, then I learned this nifty trick for serving FOS to guests! A party trick, if you will. You make the soup as usual on the stove, and then just before you're ready to serve it, you put all the bread slices on a cookie sheet, broil them until they're toasted, flip them over and place some Swiss cheese on them, and then return them to the broiler until they're hot and bubbly. When you serve the soup, you simply lay a slice or two of cheesy toast right in the bowl and cover with the soup! Voila! I tried it today and it worked. Boy, did it ever work! Yummm!
I was doubly glad too because earlier in the day I'd been at a garage sale and they had a bunch of the exact kind of bowls you see in all the magazine spreads for French Onion Soup, but you know, they were so ugly and as The Southerner says, "Ugly hurts my eyeballs" and so I couldn't bring myself to buy them. Glad to know I don't need them! At least not for FOS.
And now for a few words about the recipe. I used Tyler Florence's recipe from foodtv.com, but I made some changes. He uses red wine, which seems interesting if you're using beef broth or consomme, but with vegetable stock, it seemed like it would be too heavy, so I went with the queen of French cooking, The divine Ms. Julia, and used white wine. I'm actually thinking that even the white wine sort of overpowers the sweetness of the onions and I might just skip the wine entirely next time. Since I don't drink, Carol donated a few bottles of her homemade wine. Thanks, Carol!
When I was reading the reviews of TF's recipe, a lot of people said they had trouble getting the onions to caramelize and I thought smugly to myself, "Ha! It just takes a while...you have to be patient." Well, after an hour I was no longer patient and my onions were more golden than caramel coloured, which I found annoying. Especially since I caramelize onions all the time. But they were also starting to fall apart and I was in danger of onion paste, so I just went on to the wine step. I think that it might have been because the onions were sooooo fresh that they just had a lot of liquid in them. Who knows? Do you? Any tips? They were plenty sweet...and it all turned out just fine.
A lot of the reviewers complained about this soup taking too much time, much longer than the recipe said it would, and it really did. I think it took me about two or three hours to make this soup! However, I was busy cooking a zillion other things because
I didn't want to spend every minute cooking while Miss Southerner is here, so I planned ahead. Over the last two days I have made:
Granola
Rhubarb Bread
Zucchini Bread
No Knead Bread (two loaves)
Zucchini bake (a Julia recipe given to me by a reader of this blog!)
Two kinds of enchiladas
A tortellini salad
Onion and cherry chutney
A pot of Chili
A bunch of pizza crusts (now in the freezer)
Black beans
Rice
Fresh pesto
Onion soup
Cornbread
and I have Swiss Chard from The Southerner's garden ready to sautee the minute they walk in the door.
I probably made a few other things I've forgotten about since I'm sort of wiped out after all this cooking! Are you hungry yet? What are you cooking this week? I will blog about the actual SS at some point, but maybe not tomorrow! Have a good week, and eat your soup!
Sunday, July 27, 2008
Locally Grown Soup
First things first, Carol and Calvin brought an excellent angel food cake with fresh strawberries and whipped cream! It was all we could do not to have dessert first! Thanks C&C...you're welcome here any time!
And now...about the soup...
The Southerner and I are trying hard to eat locally grown food. Despite his well-earned nickname, Black Thumb, he decided to become a gardener this year. In turn, I agreed to cook anything he grew and to actually taste it too, even if I was already positive that I hated it. Naturally, like most people, there are things I hated as a child that I love to eat now. Mushrooms come to mind. Also avocados. And onions. And even leafy greens. However, as my mother is quick to attest to, I have NEVER, EVER liked zucchini and there is a time I would've bet my life on the fact that I would NEVER eat it voluntarily. But did that stop The Southerner? Not even!
He joined the community gardens and has his very own plot. That sounded good. But then he did something rash! He joined the Squash Co-op. Now let me tell you something about squash, just in case you don't know. No offense to The Southerner, but even Black Thumb could grow squash. They're like those pods in the body snatchers movies. They just keep growing and growing. And let me tell you, things are starting to come in fast! By "things" I mostly mean zucchini. If you've ever had a garden, you know that even one zucchini plant (let alone twenty hills of them shared among only SIX people crazy enough to join a squash co-op) can quickly overwhelm a person as they go from small and edible to the size of a sumo wrestler's thigh practically overnight. Yellow squash are not far behind in the productivity category either. That's how I found myself the proud owner of about eight zucchini and yellow squashes (is squashes a word? And yes, I had to learn to spell zucchini just for this blog) and desperately in need of a way toget rid of them fast prepare them in a delicious and wholesome manner.
I found a recipe that sounded good (if you left out the squash) and that's what we had at Sunday Soup today (no, I didn't leave it out). And I am here to tell you that I was wrong and The Southerner is right. Zucchini is not the scourge of the earth. In fact, it's quite tasty. I am sure this is because ofmy fabulous cooking abilities the fact that The Southerner grew this squash.
Oh, and might I add that the Walla Walla onions came from the farm just down the road, the stock was homemade, and the sour cream came from somewhere local-ish. So all in all, it was a pretty local soup.
I'm way too lazy to go get the cookbook and type up the recipe correctly, but since Carol thinks this is in the running for the best soup so far (carrot being a contender) I'll give you the gist of it here.
A large onion, chopped, sauteed in butter until translucent.
Add a teaspoon or two of curry powder and some salt.
Add a couple of pounds of sliced zucchini and/or yellow squash.
Just cover with vegetable stock.
Bring to a boil.
Reduce to a simmer.
Cook half an hour or so, mash with a potato masher and then blend with a hand blender.
Just before serving, add 1/2 cup of sour cream and stir until dissolved.
Season with salt and eat up!
Yumm!
When I met The Southerner, I was amazed at the sheer amount of food he can put away (especially considering he's so skinny!). In fact, one of his other nicknames is No Dog (short for No Need For a Dog) and his motto is, "Another empty bowl." That said, there were two things he would not eat. Meats and beets. So...I was just wondering if anyone has a good recipe for borscht?
And now...about the soup...
The Southerner and I are trying hard to eat locally grown food. Despite his well-earned nickname, Black Thumb, he decided to become a gardener this year. In turn, I agreed to cook anything he grew and to actually taste it too, even if I was already positive that I hated it. Naturally, like most people, there are things I hated as a child that I love to eat now. Mushrooms come to mind. Also avocados. And onions. And even leafy greens. However, as my mother is quick to attest to, I have NEVER, EVER liked zucchini and there is a time I would've bet my life on the fact that I would NEVER eat it voluntarily. But did that stop The Southerner? Not even!
He joined the community gardens and has his very own plot. That sounded good. But then he did something rash! He joined the Squash Co-op. Now let me tell you something about squash, just in case you don't know. No offense to The Southerner, but even Black Thumb could grow squash. They're like those pods in the body snatchers movies. They just keep growing and growing. And let me tell you, things are starting to come in fast! By "things" I mostly mean zucchini. If you've ever had a garden, you know that even one zucchini plant (let alone twenty hills of them shared among only SIX people crazy enough to join a squash co-op) can quickly overwhelm a person as they go from small and edible to the size of a sumo wrestler's thigh practically overnight. Yellow squash are not far behind in the productivity category either. That's how I found myself the proud owner of about eight zucchini and yellow squashes (is squashes a word? And yes, I had to learn to spell zucchini just for this blog) and desperately in need of a way to
I found a recipe that sounded good (if you left out the squash) and that's what we had at Sunday Soup today (no, I didn't leave it out). And I am here to tell you that I was wrong and The Southerner is right. Zucchini is not the scourge of the earth. In fact, it's quite tasty. I am sure this is because of
Oh, and might I add that the Walla Walla onions came from the farm just down the road, the stock was homemade, and the sour cream came from somewhere local-ish. So all in all, it was a pretty local soup.
I'm way too lazy to go get the cookbook and type up the recipe correctly, but since Carol thinks this is in the running for the best soup so far (carrot being a contender) I'll give you the gist of it here.
A large onion, chopped, sauteed in butter until translucent.
Add a teaspoon or two of curry powder and some salt.
Add a couple of pounds of sliced zucchini and/or yellow squash.
Just cover with vegetable stock.
Bring to a boil.
Reduce to a simmer.
Cook half an hour or so, mash with a potato masher and then blend with a hand blender.
Just before serving, add 1/2 cup of sour cream and stir until dissolved.
Season with salt and eat up!
Yumm!
When I met The Southerner, I was amazed at the sheer amount of food he can put away (especially considering he's so skinny!). In fact, one of his other nicknames is No Dog (short for No Need For a Dog) and his motto is, "Another empty bowl." That said, there were two things he would not eat. Meats and beets. So...I was just wondering if anyone has a good recipe for borscht?
Saturday, July 26, 2008
A Bathtub of Soup?
A bathtub of soup? Saturday 26 July 2008
I
Now you're probably wondering why I wanted a photo of a bathtub anyway, right? Is it because I'm expecting so many people tomorrow that I made a bathtub of soup? Hardly. Quite the opposite. Tomorrow is the famous Nanaimo Bathtub Races and more than one person informed me that they won't be at Sunday Soup this week because they will be visiting friends who have waterfront property so they can watch the bathtub races. Waterfront-schmoterfront. I'm sorry, but WHATEVER. I mean, this is our view!
AND we have soup. Do they have soup at the bathtub races? I doubt it! Oh, and did I mention that Calvin Carol is bringing dessert? So now I say, so what if she and her cats are the only ones that come! More dessert for me!
P.S. The soup is really lovely too...I made it today and will reveal tomorrow. But here's a clue. The Southerner is involved in a squash co-op at the Community Gardens.
P.P.S. Today is my grandmother's 86th birthday! Happy Birthday, Grandma. We love you!
Monday, July 21, 2008
Egg Drop & Kick
Sunday Soup was really fun yesterday! The some-assembly-required soup was a big hit, and also worked out perfectly as we only had four guests (plus me and The Southerner) and they came in stages, so I was able to make three batches of fresh soup, as needed.
I made a Spinach Egg Drop Soup. I got the recipe from Southern Living, but I highly doubt it is a southern recipe! I think it's more likely a Japanese recipe. I think this, not because I am a culinary expert, but because I once had soup a lot like it in a Japanese restaurant.
Here's the recipe:
Now, as promised, I did not use chickens or chicken stock. On Saturday I made a big pot of lovely vegetable stock and I kept it simmering on the stove during SS yesterday and then just ladled stock into another saucepan and made small batches. I just realized, as I was looking at the recipe, that the first batch only had half as much stock in it as it was supposed to! I used my ladle and put in six ladles and it's only half a cup ladle! Oh, well. The Southerner and Carol and I ate it and it still tasted great. I wonder if Carol noticed that the second bowl she had was different? I know The Southerner didn't!
The Drop Kick in the subject line refers to the cats' activities. Carol and I looked on with dismay, but The Southerner found the whole thing very amusing! I guess since no one was hurt, he probably has the right idea. At one point, Calvin wandered into the house where Grinder was hiding from him. Carol and I only heard the yowls, but The Southerner watched the whole thing...the whole thing being Grinder flying into the kitchen backwards as if someone (that someone would be grey and large) had drop kicked him. We figure Calvin was simply inspired by my soup and couldn't help himself. Just for the record, we have never seen Calvin or Grinder touch each other! It's just a bit of a stand-off with a few growls. Calvin is ALWAYS welcome at our house and we like that he comes to SS with his mama!
I hope y'all had a wonderful Sunday. And if anyone decides to add Sunday Soup to their own itineraries or start a SS co-op with friends, do let me know! I've adjusted the comments so anyone can leave one now and you don't have to have an LJ identity. Also, if anyone knows how to add a counter to this site (I know it can be done, but no one can explain it to me in understandable English), I'll pay you in soup!
Cheers and happy eating!
I made a Spinach Egg Drop Soup. I got the recipe from Southern Living, but I highly doubt it is a southern recipe! I think it's more likely a Japanese recipe. I think this, not because I am a culinary expert, but because I once had soup a lot like it in a Japanese restaurant.
Here's the recipe:
6 cups fat-free reduced-sodium chicken broth
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon sugar
2 green onions, chopped
2 cups fresh spinach
Bring broth to a boil; reduce heat to a simmer. Slowly add egg, stirring constantly, until egg forms lacy strands. Immediately remove from heat. Let stand 1 minute. Stir in soy sauce, sugar, and green onions. Place spinach in bowls; ladle soup over spinach. Serve immediately.
Now, as promised, I did not use chickens or chicken stock. On Saturday I made a big pot of lovely vegetable stock and I kept it simmering on the stove during SS yesterday and then just ladled stock into another saucepan and made small batches. I just realized, as I was looking at the recipe, that the first batch only had half as much stock in it as it was supposed to! I used my ladle and put in six ladles and it's only half a cup ladle! Oh, well. The Southerner and Carol and I ate it and it still tasted great. I wonder if Carol noticed that the second bowl she had was different? I know The Southerner didn't!
The Drop Kick in the subject line refers to the cats' activities. Carol and I looked on with dismay, but The Southerner found the whole thing very amusing! I guess since no one was hurt, he probably has the right idea. At one point, Calvin wandered into the house where Grinder was hiding from him. Carol and I only heard the yowls, but The Southerner watched the whole thing...the whole thing being Grinder flying into the kitchen backwards as if someone (that someone would be grey and large) had drop kicked him. We figure Calvin was simply inspired by my soup and couldn't help himself. Just for the record, we have never seen Calvin or Grinder touch each other! It's just a bit of a stand-off with a few growls. Calvin is ALWAYS welcome at our house and we like that he comes to SS with his mama!
I hope y'all had a wonderful Sunday. And if anyone decides to add Sunday Soup to their own itineraries or start a SS co-op with friends, do let me know! I've adjusted the comments so anyone can leave one now and you don't have to have an LJ identity. Also, if anyone knows how to add a counter to this site (I know it can be done, but no one can explain it to me in understandable English), I'll pay you in soup!
Cheers and happy eating!
Saturday, July 19, 2008
Benihana Soup
I suppose that if everyone we invited to Sunday Soup over the last few months actually showed up, we might have fifty people. Our record is about twenty and with the lovely weather and zillions of summer activities here, our average is about eight to ten. I have decided to take advantage of this (now, watch...we'll get thirty people tomorrow) and make a very simple soup, but one that has to be made, or I should say "assembled" right before you serve it. I will be assembling it about four bowls at a time, which I think will work fine as it only takes about 2 minutes to put it all together. Now I know you're wondering what in the world it could be, right? Well, I hate to give it away on a Saturday, so I'll just give you some hints.
Spinach is involved.
I am going to make a Japanese cucumber salad because I have a large English cucumber that needs to be eaten and that salad complements the soup.
I'm serving bread, but I don't think that bread really goes with it...but people like The Southerner who already think that soup is "just an appetizer" will want bread.
No
will be injured (or cooked) in the making of this soup, despite the fact that they make the ingredient list. However, I will be including the fruits of their labours.
Okay, enough hints for now! See you tomorrow.
Spinach is involved.
I am going to make a Japanese cucumber salad because I have a large English cucumber that needs to be eaten and that salad complements the soup.
I'm serving bread, but I don't think that bread really goes with it...but people like The Southerner who already think that soup is "just an appetizer" will want bread.
No
will be injured (or cooked) in the making of this soup, despite the fact that they make the ingredient list. However, I will be including the fruits of their labours.
Okay, enough hints for now! See you tomorrow.
Sunday, July 13, 2008
This Soup Rocks!
Before:
This soup rocks. I can say that it's really delicious because I mostly followed a recipe. I mean, if I make it up, I try to be more modest and wait for everyone else's opinion, but this is kind of like the tomato-orange soup in that I already know it's just really good, So there you have it.
My mum got me a tiny cookbook a few years ago called SOUP. I glanced through it a bit, but not too much as there seemed to be a lot of meat recipes in it. I discovered the other day though that the Vegetable Soups at the front are not the only vegetarian soups, but many of the Bean & Grain soups, as well as the Special Occasion Soups are also vegetarian. I feel like I just got a new cookbook. Thanks, Mum!
It's been fairly warm here. The locals are complaining that it's HOT, but The Southerner and I just laugh and zip up our fleeces...I mean, really! Hot? Haha! It's been in the low 80s F on its warmest days and a lot cooler than that here in the trees! And no humidity! None! Anyway, to appease the locals, I decided to make a Chilled Cucumber and Walnut Soup from the Special Occasion section of this book. I'm really glad I tested this because let me tell you, while it's quite tasty, NO ONE could eat a bowl of it! It tastes like tatziki! You know, that cucumber yogurt dip for pita bread? Well, that's how we're eating it, thank you very much. It's quite good with roasted Walla Walla onions dipped in it too. Anyway...
Today's soup comes from this book too and is called Green Vegetable Soup, but while I was making it, I was listening to that novel, GODS BEHAVING BADLY, and so I have goddesses on the brain, so I'm calling it Green Goddess Soup. As you can imagine, it has a lot of green vegetables in it: green onions (calls for leeks, but I had these beautiful fresh-from-the-farm green onions so I used those instead), green beans, spinach, basil pesto, edamame, fresh shelled peas, and a few not so green veggies like potatoes, carrots, and kohlrabi (also from the farm). I think the most exciting part of today's soup is that all soups, but vegetable ones in particular, get better if you let them sit in the fridge overnight. The Green Goddess soup was yummy yesterday, but I think it will be really delicious today. And if no one likes it, we're buying a freezer later this week, so I'll just freeze it and eat it all myself.
The bread is a surprise still as I have to make a test batch to find out if my recipe is any good. More on that tonight. Oh, and Carol, if you're reading this, Calvin just showed up for soup seven hours early, so I gave him some catnip and he rolled around on the patio for a while and then wandered off. Probably to get you a snake from the snake pit (apparently, the gully in the front of our yard is a haven for snakes and Calvin brings Carol one most days - but don't worry, I have no intention of making snake soup, even if he does start bringing them to me!).
AFTER:
Apparently Calvin was listening this morning when he arrived seven hours early and I sent him home and told him to come back at 4pm, because at 4pm, he started biting Carol on the elbow. When she went in to see if he needed food, the bowls were full...He wanted to come to Sunday Soup! We know this because as soon as she headed this way, he trotted along behind her. Obviously, he has added SS to his calendar. Cats lead very busy lives, thus making a palm pilot desirable to those with opposable thumbs like Grinder. Cats like Calvin who have cool tails, but just normal paws, have to keep the whole thing in their heads, which makes them very tired. I believe Cal's entries look something like this:
8am Nap
8:30 Check in next door to make sure it's Sunday and the catnip supply is still good
9am Get in a few zzzzzs
10am Eat
11am Get petted
11:30 am Rest up for lunch
12pm Lunch
1pm Nap
2 pm Eat
3pm Sleep in the sun
4pm Sunday Soup
4:05pm Get a hit of catnip
4:06pm crash out on the picnic table until it's time to go home
We had a lovely turnout and some newcomers, including a new person to our little community, which is always nice! The soup was even better today (if I do say so myself, and I do because it's my blog after all) and all I had to do was add some fresh parsley and a little more salt. We put a pretty big dent in about eight quarts.
The "bread" was cheese scones with chives. The recipe came from another little cookbook that my mum gave me (Do you see a pattern? She must love tiny cookbooks!) of English recipes for teas (as in high tea, not Earl Grey variations). So far I've mostly used this book to make English Rock Cakes which are basically a lot of butter, some dried fruit, an egg and flour, but today I tried the Lancashire Cheese Scones (with cheddar from Toronto - I know...how many cows do they have in Toronto? But cheese is expensive here in Canada and this cheese is reasonably good and The Southerner likes cheese so I have to buy the big blocks of it and so that's what I had the most of and in it went despite the small population of cows in Toronto).
Anyway, the scones turned out lovely and two of our friends who blatantly ignore the "you don't have to bring anything" suggestion and always brings LOVELY, FABULOUS, TASTY things and then leave the leftovers, (and is therefore always welcome at Sunday Soup) brought clotted cream and cherry jam, which went very well with cheese scones, although, I wouldn't have really thought of it myself because of the chives. But they were dried chives (I forgot to request that The Southerner bring some fresh ones home from the community garden), so they weren't that strong anyway.
As my Irish friend told me last week when she brought us peaches, "I was raised in Ireland and there you never go to someone's house with your arms the same length. One hand should be carrying something." Just for the record here, the "You don't need to bring anything guideline" is for one reason only. It is so that our friends never say, "Oh, today is Sunday Soup, but I don't have anything to bring. I guess I'll go next week." We want y'all to feel free to drop in even if you're walking down the street and hear the laughter from our porch and suddenly remember it's Sunday.
Finally, I would be remiss if I didn't mention our guests who came at the very last minute. They weren't interested in soup. In fact, the two youngest ones only wanted milk, and the older one wanted carrots. Yes! The mama deer brought her two fawns right into the yard and not only did she let them nurse (which she doesn't do that much anymore), but she stood around with them as if she was showing them off for us. This is the first time she's done that. Then one of the bucks came into the yard, and usually the mama runs off with her babies when the males come, but this time she just ignored him. He wanted carrots though and so I gave him bits and pieces from all the carrot ends from last week's soup (by hand) and one of the fawns got within about fifteen of us and watched, wanting carrots, but not really quite that brave. Unfortunately, we were all too excited to run for the camera, so you'll just have to use your imagination. It was a very exciting end to Sunday Soup. So exciting in fact that after they left, everyone packed up and went home too. Even Calvin.
This soup rocks. I can say that it's really delicious because I mostly followed a recipe. I mean, if I make it up, I try to be more modest and wait for everyone else's opinion, but this is kind of like the tomato-orange soup in that I already know it's just really good, So there you have it.
My mum got me a tiny cookbook a few years ago called SOUP. I glanced through it a bit, but not too much as there seemed to be a lot of meat recipes in it. I discovered the other day though that the Vegetable Soups at the front are not the only vegetarian soups, but many of the Bean & Grain soups, as well as the Special Occasion Soups are also vegetarian. I feel like I just got a new cookbook. Thanks, Mum!
It's been fairly warm here. The locals are complaining that it's HOT, but The Southerner and I just laugh and zip up our fleeces...I mean, really! Hot? Haha! It's been in the low 80s F on its warmest days and a lot cooler than that here in the trees! And no humidity! None! Anyway, to appease the locals, I decided to make a Chilled Cucumber and Walnut Soup from the Special Occasion section of this book. I'm really glad I tested this because let me tell you, while it's quite tasty, NO ONE could eat a bowl of it! It tastes like tatziki! You know, that cucumber yogurt dip for pita bread? Well, that's how we're eating it, thank you very much. It's quite good with roasted Walla Walla onions dipped in it too. Anyway...
Today's soup comes from this book too and is called Green Vegetable Soup, but while I was making it, I was listening to that novel, GODS BEHAVING BADLY, and so I have goddesses on the brain, so I'm calling it Green Goddess Soup. As you can imagine, it has a lot of green vegetables in it: green onions (calls for leeks, but I had these beautiful fresh-from-the-farm green onions so I used those instead), green beans, spinach, basil pesto, edamame, fresh shelled peas, and a few not so green veggies like potatoes, carrots, and kohlrabi (also from the farm). I think the most exciting part of today's soup is that all soups, but vegetable ones in particular, get better if you let them sit in the fridge overnight. The Green Goddess soup was yummy yesterday, but I think it will be really delicious today. And if no one likes it, we're buying a freezer later this week, so I'll just freeze it and eat it all myself.
The bread is a surprise still as I have to make a test batch to find out if my recipe is any good. More on that tonight. Oh, and Carol, if you're reading this, Calvin just showed up for soup seven hours early, so I gave him some catnip and he rolled around on the patio for a while and then wandered off. Probably to get you a snake from the snake pit (apparently, the gully in the front of our yard is a haven for snakes and Calvin brings Carol one most days - but don't worry, I have no intention of making snake soup, even if he does start bringing them to me!).
AFTER:
Apparently Calvin was listening this morning when he arrived seven hours early and I sent him home and told him to come back at 4pm, because at 4pm, he started biting Carol on the elbow. When she went in to see if he needed food, the bowls were full...He wanted to come to Sunday Soup! We know this because as soon as she headed this way, he trotted along behind her. Obviously, he has added SS to his calendar. Cats lead very busy lives, thus making a palm pilot desirable to those with opposable thumbs like Grinder. Cats like Calvin who have cool tails, but just normal paws, have to keep the whole thing in their heads, which makes them very tired. I believe Cal's entries look something like this:
8am Nap
8:30 Check in next door to make sure it's Sunday and the catnip supply is still good
9am Get in a few zzzzzs
10am Eat
11am Get petted
11:30 am Rest up for lunch
12pm Lunch
1pm Nap
2 pm Eat
3pm Sleep in the sun
4pm Sunday Soup
4:05pm Get a hit of catnip
4:06pm crash out on the picnic table until it's time to go home
We had a lovely turnout and some newcomers, including a new person to our little community, which is always nice! The soup was even better today (if I do say so myself, and I do because it's my blog after all) and all I had to do was add some fresh parsley and a little more salt. We put a pretty big dent in about eight quarts.
The "bread" was cheese scones with chives. The recipe came from another little cookbook that my mum gave me (Do you see a pattern? She must love tiny cookbooks!) of English recipes for teas (as in high tea, not Earl Grey variations). So far I've mostly used this book to make English Rock Cakes which are basically a lot of butter, some dried fruit, an egg and flour, but today I tried the Lancashire Cheese Scones (with cheddar from Toronto - I know...how many cows do they have in Toronto? But cheese is expensive here in Canada and this cheese is reasonably good and The Southerner likes cheese so I have to buy the big blocks of it and so that's what I had the most of and in it went despite the small population of cows in Toronto).
Anyway, the scones turned out lovely and two of our friends who blatantly ignore the "you don't have to bring anything" suggestion and always brings LOVELY, FABULOUS, TASTY things and then leave the leftovers, (and is therefore always welcome at Sunday Soup) brought clotted cream and cherry jam, which went very well with cheese scones, although, I wouldn't have really thought of it myself because of the chives. But they were dried chives (I forgot to request that The Southerner bring some fresh ones home from the community garden), so they weren't that strong anyway.
As my Irish friend told me last week when she brought us peaches, "I was raised in Ireland and there you never go to someone's house with your arms the same length. One hand should be carrying something." Just for the record here, the "You don't need to bring anything guideline" is for one reason only. It is so that our friends never say, "Oh, today is Sunday Soup, but I don't have anything to bring. I guess I'll go next week." We want y'all to feel free to drop in even if you're walking down the street and hear the laughter from our porch and suddenly remember it's Sunday.
Finally, I would be remiss if I didn't mention our guests who came at the very last minute. They weren't interested in soup. In fact, the two youngest ones only wanted milk, and the older one wanted carrots. Yes! The mama deer brought her two fawns right into the yard and not only did she let them nurse (which she doesn't do that much anymore), but she stood around with them as if she was showing them off for us. This is the first time she's done that. Then one of the bucks came into the yard, and usually the mama runs off with her babies when the males come, but this time she just ignored him. He wanted carrots though and so I gave him bits and pieces from all the carrot ends from last week's soup (by hand) and one of the fawns got within about fifteen of us and watched, wanting carrots, but not really quite that brave. Unfortunately, we were all too excited to run for the camera, so you'll just have to use your imagination. It was a very exciting end to Sunday Soup. So exciting in fact that after they left, everyone packed up and went home too. Even Calvin.
Sunday, July 6, 2008
The verdict
I think this carrot with coriander soup turned out pretty tasty. I ended up thinning it a bit with more vegetable stock and I added some lemon pepper at the end because it seemed to be missing something. I, of course, deviated slightly from the recipe, using ground coriander because I did not have whole (you're supposed to toast the whole and then smash it with a mortar and pestle), using a little half & half rather than creme fraiche, and putting in a little shredded ginger root (which you could not taste at all).
The bread was the regular stuff, but I kneaded in some fresh chives (from The Southerner's garden!), garlic, black pepper, and Parmesan. It was a BIG hit.
We had a small turnout this week, but it was nice, as always. Everyone seemed to like the soup (either that or they didn't want to hurt my feelings) and I sent some home with a couple of people. The Southerner is not that fond of carrots, so he finally admitted, after pressing, that it wasn't his favorite soup. He was sitting to one side of me, kind of behind me, his spoon clinking against his bowl like he was really enjoying it and when I turned I saw that he was eating it out of one of my tiny ramekins! He didn't even like it enough to have a regular bowl! Haha! He thinks that hurts my feelings somehow, but not at all. Not everyone can like every soup. There are tons of soups I don't make because they sound yucky to me!
While I always say that dessert is NOT on the menu, Carol pointed out that I have come up with three special occasions in a row to justify dessert. This week it was my one year anniversary of being a landed immigrant in Canada. Once The Southerner comes in from playing...I mean, working...on his bike...and downloads the picture of my cake, I'll add it to the post. It was an orange cake made with olive oil for the fat, instead of butter. Quite interesting. I topped it with an orange soak (half a cup of sugar, half a cup of o.j., two tablespoons of butter, a dash of vanilla - simmered for ten minutes, cooled, and then poured over the cake while it's still in the pan). I actually made up the recipe for the orange soak, based on a vanilla one. It turned out really, really lovely.
Oh, here is the photo...I guess it's too dark to work on the bike outside. Undoubtedly, he'll move into the kitchen as unless I'm actually in there cooking, he thinks it's a great bike workshop (but I'm not complaining because he finally built me my own fixed gear bike this week)!
Calvin and Tigre came for a visit, as usual and while Sophie didn't mind, there was a moment where Calvin, hopped up on catnip, chased Grinder through the yard at full speed. It was just a stand-off though and no blows were thrown, which is good because Calvin's big, but Grinder has extra toes and enormous feet! Judging from the photos, it's probably hard to believe there was any kind of altercation going at all though.
Grinder Calvin
I'm not sure what next week's soup will be, but if you have any vegetarian soup recipes (or great bread ideas), feel free to leave them in the comments or drop me a line! And if you can think of anything we should celebrate next Sunday so we can have cake, I'm taking note of holidays...real or made-up.
Eat well...
The bread was the regular stuff, but I kneaded in some fresh chives (from The Southerner's garden!), garlic, black pepper, and Parmesan. It was a BIG hit.
We had a small turnout this week, but it was nice, as always. Everyone seemed to like the soup (either that or they didn't want to hurt my feelings) and I sent some home with a couple of people. The Southerner is not that fond of carrots, so he finally admitted, after pressing, that it wasn't his favorite soup. He was sitting to one side of me, kind of behind me, his spoon clinking against his bowl like he was really enjoying it and when I turned I saw that he was eating it out of one of my tiny ramekins! He didn't even like it enough to have a regular bowl! Haha! He thinks that hurts my feelings somehow, but not at all. Not everyone can like every soup. There are tons of soups I don't make because they sound yucky to me!
While I always say that dessert is NOT on the menu, Carol pointed out that I have come up with three special occasions in a row to justify dessert. This week it was my one year anniversary of being a landed immigrant in Canada. Once The Southerner comes in from playing...I mean, working...on his bike...and downloads the picture of my cake, I'll add it to the post. It was an orange cake made with olive oil for the fat, instead of butter. Quite interesting. I topped it with an orange soak (half a cup of sugar, half a cup of o.j., two tablespoons of butter, a dash of vanilla - simmered for ten minutes, cooled, and then poured over the cake while it's still in the pan). I actually made up the recipe for the orange soak, based on a vanilla one. It turned out really, really lovely.
Oh, here is the photo...I guess it's too dark to work on the bike outside. Undoubtedly, he'll move into the kitchen as unless I'm actually in there cooking, he thinks it's a great bike workshop (but I'm not complaining because he finally built me my own fixed gear bike this week)!
Calvin and Tigre came for a visit, as usual and while Sophie didn't mind, there was a moment where Calvin, hopped up on catnip, chased Grinder through the yard at full speed. It was just a stand-off though and no blows were thrown, which is good because Calvin's big, but Grinder has extra toes and enormous feet! Judging from the photos, it's probably hard to believe there was any kind of altercation going at all though.
Grinder Calvin
I'm not sure what next week's soup will be, but if you have any vegetarian soup recipes (or great bread ideas), feel free to leave them in the comments or drop me a line! And if you can think of anything we should celebrate next Sunday so we can have cake, I'm taking note of holidays...real or made-up.
Eat well...
Saturday, July 5, 2008
What's Up Doc
Growing up, I didn't really eat vegetables. Okay, truth be told, I didn't really eat them much until I became a full-time vegetarian which was about five years ago. At that point I decided it was probably time to give in. I mean, I knew vegetarians who lived on French fries and beer, but I'm not that fond of beer and after last week's killer potato attack, well...let's just say I'm not a huge potato fan either.
When I was living in England after college, a friend of mine won an award for showing her horse and she invited me to go the fancy schmancy awards dinner. At the dinner they served the most delicious cream of carrot soup! I was hooked. Of course, I didn't cook then, so you know, that one bowl was it. But I've had fond memories of it ever since.
Several years ago when I had no idea how to cook, but I was learning (thanks Emeril, Rachel Ray, Jamie Oliver!), I decided to try and recreate that fantastic soup. How hard could it be? It was mashed carrots after all with maybe a little cream or something. So what I did was peel a whole bunch of carrots and chop them up. I might've actually shredded them, I don't remember. Anyway, I put a little water over them and boiled the tar out of them and then I pureed them and added some cream. Guess what I ended up with? Nope, not delicious soup worthy of a fancy schmancy awards dinner. Basically I had baby food. And like any baby, I spit it out and threw it away.
Over the years I have had other creamy carrot soups and they've been delicious, but after that first attempt, I really just couldn't face trying it again, even though I now know what I did wrong (ever heard of stock? or seasonings?). However, this week, organic carrots were on sale and I came across what looked like a tasty recipe by Delia Smith, chef extraordinaire, and British to boot. For all I know, she made that soup I ate so many years ago! Mine is simmering now and while I'm not sure how it will taste in the end, it smells fabulous.
And as you can see by the photo, the deer is especially appreciative of my efforts. He just ate peelings from six POUNDS of carrots! Did you know deer teeth are not very sharp? Good thing since he mistook my hand for a carrot a few times.
In case you're wondering about the bread, I think I will go with the old stand-by NY Times no knead bread. It just seems like the perfect bread for this soup, all crusty and chewy (and really easy to make so I can be lazy!).
More tomorrow!
When I was living in England after college, a friend of mine won an award for showing her horse and she invited me to go the fancy schmancy awards dinner. At the dinner they served the most delicious cream of carrot soup! I was hooked. Of course, I didn't cook then, so you know, that one bowl was it. But I've had fond memories of it ever since.
Several years ago when I had no idea how to cook, but I was learning (thanks Emeril, Rachel Ray, Jamie Oliver!), I decided to try and recreate that fantastic soup. How hard could it be? It was mashed carrots after all with maybe a little cream or something. So what I did was peel a whole bunch of carrots and chop them up. I might've actually shredded them, I don't remember. Anyway, I put a little water over them and boiled the tar out of them and then I pureed them and added some cream. Guess what I ended up with? Nope, not delicious soup worthy of a fancy schmancy awards dinner. Basically I had baby food. And like any baby, I spit it out and threw it away.
Over the years I have had other creamy carrot soups and they've been delicious, but after that first attempt, I really just couldn't face trying it again, even though I now know what I did wrong (ever heard of stock? or seasonings?). However, this week, organic carrots were on sale and I came across what looked like a tasty recipe by Delia Smith, chef extraordinaire, and British to boot. For all I know, she made that soup I ate so many years ago! Mine is simmering now and while I'm not sure how it will taste in the end, it smells fabulous.
And as you can see by the photo, the deer is especially appreciative of my efforts. He just ate peelings from six POUNDS of carrots! Did you know deer teeth are not very sharp? Good thing since he mistook my hand for a carrot a few times.
In case you're wondering about the bread, I think I will go with the old stand-by NY Times no knead bread. It just seems like the perfect bread for this soup, all crusty and chewy (and really easy to make so I can be lazy!).
More tomorrow!
Sunday, June 29, 2008
The Aftermath of the Killer Potatoes
Nearly eleven p.m. and the allergies have not subsided. Potatoes are my own personal kryptonite.
What was so strange about this Sunday Soup is that I had to serve soup that I couldn't taste! My taste buds are completely out of whack due to the allergy attack, and a half hour before it was time to serve, I was panicking because the soup tasted...well...I'm not sure what it tasted like, but not like something delicious to serve to guests. The Southerner had a bowl though and said it was great. And he never lies. Not even to spare my feelings. Trust me, he can't even lie when it might behoove him to! Most everyone had seconds and since they didn't know that I had no idea how it tasted, I think they actually liked it and didn't do it just to save my feelings. Since I made up the recipe, I guess I better write it down. I froze some so I can taste it myself when the allergies go away.
I didn't make a lot of soup since it's Canada Day Weekend and lots of our friends had plans or guests or both. Plus it was gorgeous and 30 degrees today, so that's pretty much sweltering around here (mid-eighties Fahrenheit, Yankees!) and doesn't really get the masses thinking about a nice hot bowl of soup. As it turned out, most of the regulars showed up anyway (including Calvin, the cat itching for a catnip fix). None of the three Steves from last week were here, but Steve O. finally took a day off from selling houses and showed up to represent the Steve contingent of the town (and to eat lots of Canada Bars).
Canada Bars were my surprise. They are actually pumpkin bars dyed red with food coloring and frosted with white cream cheese frosting. Very popular, I must say!
Last week when I told Carol that The Southerner considers "soup an appetizer" and that he actually expects me to make dinner after everyone leaves, she thought I was kidding. Tonight, when I put the casserole in the oven while they were still sitting around, she realized I wasn't. I told her that next time someone asks me, "What can I bring to Sunday Soup?" I'm going to say, "Bring a vegetarian casserole so I don't have to cook The Southerner dinner after y'all go home!" The Southerner did not find that amusing, so whatever you do, if you're reading this, DO NOT BRING A VEGETARIAN CASSEROLE. I mean it. Don't do it. ;-) ;-)
What was so strange about this Sunday Soup is that I had to serve soup that I couldn't taste! My taste buds are completely out of whack due to the allergy attack, and a half hour before it was time to serve, I was panicking because the soup tasted...well...I'm not sure what it tasted like, but not like something delicious to serve to guests. The Southerner had a bowl though and said it was great. And he never lies. Not even to spare my feelings. Trust me, he can't even lie when it might behoove him to! Most everyone had seconds and since they didn't know that I had no idea how it tasted, I think they actually liked it and didn't do it just to save my feelings. Since I made up the recipe, I guess I better write it down. I froze some so I can taste it myself when the allergies go away.
I didn't make a lot of soup since it's Canada Day Weekend and lots of our friends had plans or guests or both. Plus it was gorgeous and 30 degrees today, so that's pretty much sweltering around here (mid-eighties Fahrenheit, Yankees!) and doesn't really get the masses thinking about a nice hot bowl of soup. As it turned out, most of the regulars showed up anyway (including Calvin, the cat itching for a catnip fix). None of the three Steves from last week were here, but Steve O. finally took a day off from selling houses and showed up to represent the Steve contingent of the town (and to eat lots of Canada Bars).
Canada Bars were my surprise. They are actually pumpkin bars dyed red with food coloring and frosted with white cream cheese frosting. Very popular, I must say!
Last week when I told Carol that The Southerner considers "soup an appetizer" and that he actually expects me to make dinner after everyone leaves, she thought I was kidding. Tonight, when I put the casserole in the oven while they were still sitting around, she realized I wasn't. I told her that next time someone asks me, "What can I bring to Sunday Soup?" I'm going to say, "Bring a vegetarian casserole so I don't have to cook The Southerner dinner after y'all go home!" The Southerner did not find that amusing, so whatever you do, if you're reading this, DO NOT BRING A VEGETARIAN CASSEROLE. I mean it. Don't do it. ;-) ;-)
Happy Canada Day, y'all!
(I bet you thought I was going to say "eh?" didn't you?)
(I bet you thought I was going to say "eh?" didn't you?)
Attack of the Killer Potatoes
I have always had a slight allergy to raw potatoes. When I cook them (often), it usually makes me sneeze once or twice when I cut them up (don't worry, I never sneeze on the potatoes and I wash my hands afterwards!). I rarely peel potatoes, mostly because I buy red or white and like the peelings, but also because of the sneezles!
Well, yesterday I threw caution to the wind (okay...I forgot all about it) and peeled six white potatoes for my Roasted Garlic, Potato and Red Pepper Soup (original recipe!). By the time I was done peeling, I had a full-on allergy attack. It was almost as bad as spring in The South (which, since I'm married to The Southerner, you might've guessed is where we came from before settling here). This allergy attack was the whole thing, the real deal and it didn't go away either. In fact, for the first time in twenty-four hours I'm starting to feel the effects subsiding! So what is the lesson for the future here? All potato peelings, and even cutting up potatoes, from now own will be delegated to my fabulous sous chef, The Southerner. He already does the onions because I bought him a food chopper thingie which is kind of like a toy because you get to pound it up and down and it slices and dices very effectively while making a loud boy-noise. The reason it is not like a toy is because it has really sharp bits, so I always wash it afterwards since he cut his finger the time he tried to wash it.
For bread, we're having the braided challah bread. I think I mentioned making it once before, but that was just for practice, not for Sunday Soup. I think it looks very impressive and since my soup is fairly simple, I thought the bread should really stand out. It's on its second rise now, and I'll pop it in the oven as soon as I've done the egg wash, which will make it all shiny and then it will look like one of those pictures in food magazines.
P.S. It is almost Canada Day and so I made something special, but I'm not telling what it is here because some of you read this before coming over and I don't want to spoil the surprise!
Well, yesterday I threw caution to the wind (okay...I forgot all about it) and peeled six white potatoes for my Roasted Garlic, Potato and Red Pepper Soup (original recipe!). By the time I was done peeling, I had a full-on allergy attack. It was almost as bad as spring in The South (which, since I'm married to The Southerner, you might've guessed is where we came from before settling here). This allergy attack was the whole thing, the real deal and it didn't go away either. In fact, for the first time in twenty-four hours I'm starting to feel the effects subsiding! So what is the lesson for the future here? All potato peelings, and even cutting up potatoes, from now own will be delegated to my fabulous sous chef, The Southerner. He already does the onions because I bought him a food chopper thingie which is kind of like a toy because you get to pound it up and down and it slices and dices very effectively while making a loud boy-noise. The reason it is not like a toy is because it has really sharp bits, so I always wash it afterwards since he cut his finger the time he tried to wash it.
For bread, we're having the braided challah bread. I think I mentioned making it once before, but that was just for practice, not for Sunday Soup. I think it looks very impressive and since my soup is fairly simple, I thought the bread should really stand out. It's on its second rise now, and I'll pop it in the oven as soon as I've done the egg wash, which will make it all shiny and then it will look like one of those pictures in food magazines.
P.S. It is almost Canada Day and so I made something special, but I'm not telling what it is here because some of you read this before coming over and I don't want to spoil the surprise!
Sunday, June 22, 2008
Corn Bread Recipe
Ha! Actually, I'm not buried in dishes due to the fact that The Southerner and one of the many Steves who come to Sunday Soup washed a whole bunch of them, more than once, during the festivities. That was because they're nice guys AND because we had so many people AND we were celebrating Carol's birthday so we needed to re-use the bowls and plates for dessert. It was a successful surprise, in fact, so successful that she was singing happy birthday along with us before she even realized we were singing to her! Granted, she thought no one knew it was coming up on Tuesday, but if you tell me once when your birthday is, I remember.
That reminds me, something I've never mentioned here before is that when we started this whole thing, we decided to make it as low-impact on the environment as we could. This means we use real dishes, real silverware, glass glasses, and cloth napkins. This also means that if we get a ton of people, like we did today (they heard that there was going to be cake!), then dish washing is a must. We also bought some extra bowls at the recycle centre (thrift store) and today we actually needed them for the first time.
The Southerner did the cornbread today which meant that he really never left the kitchen. Beforehand, I mixed up three batches of his dry ingredients for him, and while everyone was eating, I mixed up two more while he whipped out cornbread like a pro! But he was not fast enough for this hungry hoard. It is approximately ten feet from the oven to the deck and he was not two steps out onto the deck with a fresh plate of cornbread before he looked down and saw the plate was empty. As promised, the recipe will be included at the bottom of this post.
The soup was quite well loved today too, and while I'd been a bit worried that we'd have tomato orange soup coming out of our ears for the next week (I made nearly 9 quarts), there's hardly any left and I can honestly say that if there hadn't been dessert, I don't think there'd be any soup left at all.
For dessert I made a chocolate rhubarb cake, served warm, with hot English custard. Yeah...yummmm! The cake was my own concoction, but I had tested it out last week to make sure it worked. Everyone who tried it said, "Chocolate Rhubarb? I've never heard of that." Yep...that's because I made it up. Just in case you're thinking of trying it, don't forget to stew or roast the rhubarb with some water and sugar (and drain) beforehand, or I don't think it will work out very well. The cake recipe I tweaked is supposed to have sauerkraut in it, which I left out and replaced with rhubarb. While you might not believe me, it's excellent with sauerkraut too. We also had a towering apple pie that one of the other Steves brought. When someone asked him if he made it he said, "I don't make pies, I eat them." It looked delicious and I managed to sneak a piece when no one was looking into the cupboard for later tonight.
Anyway, thanks to all of you came today! It was lots of fun to have so many people, and don't forget to come early next Sunday to help clean out the gutters. Every week, as things are winding down, the subject seems to turn to things that might need to be done around our house...luckily for me, most of these jobs seemed aimed at The Southerner. Tonight it was brought to his attention that the gutters have plants growing in them. We're so glad to have made so many friends in our new home that are willing to give up their Sunday afternoon to help deforest the gutters. Y'all are really too kind!
And now for the famous cornbread recipe:
That reminds me, something I've never mentioned here before is that when we started this whole thing, we decided to make it as low-impact on the environment as we could. This means we use real dishes, real silverware, glass glasses, and cloth napkins. This also means that if we get a ton of people, like we did today (they heard that there was going to be cake!), then dish washing is a must. We also bought some extra bowls at the recycle centre (thrift store) and today we actually needed them for the first time.
The Southerner did the cornbread today which meant that he really never left the kitchen. Beforehand, I mixed up three batches of his dry ingredients for him, and while everyone was eating, I mixed up two more while he whipped out cornbread like a pro! But he was not fast enough for this hungry hoard. It is approximately ten feet from the oven to the deck and he was not two steps out onto the deck with a fresh plate of cornbread before he looked down and saw the plate was empty. As promised, the recipe will be included at the bottom of this post.
The soup was quite well loved today too, and while I'd been a bit worried that we'd have tomato orange soup coming out of our ears for the next week (I made nearly 9 quarts), there's hardly any left and I can honestly say that if there hadn't been dessert, I don't think there'd be any soup left at all.
For dessert I made a chocolate rhubarb cake, served warm, with hot English custard. Yeah...yummmm! The cake was my own concoction, but I had tested it out last week to make sure it worked. Everyone who tried it said, "Chocolate Rhubarb? I've never heard of that." Yep...that's because I made it up. Just in case you're thinking of trying it, don't forget to stew or roast the rhubarb with some water and sugar (and drain) beforehand, or I don't think it will work out very well. The cake recipe I tweaked is supposed to have sauerkraut in it, which I left out and replaced with rhubarb. While you might not believe me, it's excellent with sauerkraut too. We also had a towering apple pie that one of the other Steves brought. When someone asked him if he made it he said, "I don't make pies, I eat them." It looked delicious and I managed to sneak a piece when no one was looking into the cupboard for later tonight.
Anyway, thanks to all of you came today! It was lots of fun to have so many people, and don't forget to come early next Sunday to help clean out the gutters. Every week, as things are winding down, the subject seems to turn to things that might need to be done around our house...luckily for me, most of these jobs seemed aimed at The Southerner. Tonight it was brought to his attention that the gutters have plants growing in them. We're so glad to have made so many friends in our new home that are willing to give up their Sunday afternoon to help deforest the gutters. Y'all are really too kind!
And now for the famous cornbread recipe:
From Cook's Illustrated "The Best Recipe".
4 teaspoons butter
1 cup stoned ground yellow cornmeal
2 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/3 cup boiling water
3/4 cup buttermilk
1 large egg, lightly beaten
Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Place the drippings in a 8-inch cast iron skillet and set on the oven rack.
Measure 1/3 cup of the cornmeal in a bowl. Whisk the remaining cornmeal, sugar, salt, baking powder and baking soda together in another bowl.
Pour the boiling water all at once into the 1/3 cup cornmeal and stir to make a stiff mush. Whisk in the buttermilk in a stream. Whisk to remove lumps until the mixture is smooth.
Whisk in the egg.
Stir in the dry ingredients until just mixed. Do not overmix.
Pour into the preheated skillet.
Bake for about 20 minutes.
You would probably bake it the same amount as you did for your smaller skillet.
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