an exciting disaster

Oh readers, let me tell you a tale of two thirds fail. My second Boston Organics delivery was chock full of vegetables I'd never really cooked with before, and I was ready for the challenge. But some challenges remind you that life is full of setbacks, and the important thing is to keep on going.

So everything started okay. I had some potatoes from a shopping trip that needed to get used up, so I threw them on the boil. I mean the basics of mashed potatoes are pretty easy, right? Boil the potatoes until they're soft, with or without skin, then mash into a bowl with milk/cream, cheese maybe and salt & pepper.

From the Boston Organics order, I had a bunch of spinach, which I chopped and simmered in olive oil with an orange pepper and some onions. Then I sort of saw the eggplant of the corner of my eye and decided to throw that in. I skinned it, sort of squared it (cut the sides off some it was moderately rectangular), and then cubed it. I had done this for a nut loaf before, and liked the way it looked. But that wasn't where the fail came in -- because I hate dry/rubbery eggplant, I decided I should add some veggie stock to make it juicy. It did that, I guess. But mostly, it just made it taste like soup. The most boring soup you've ever had.

You may have noticed that I shied away from explaining further about the mashed potato, well, no, that was not the 1/3 win. I also had a beet handy. I've posted my beet salad before -- oh wait! i haven't! i must do that! -- but I wasn't ready for anything quite so sweet. So, yeah, I boiled up a beet and threw it in the mash, which made it this ludicrous pink. It didn't mash as well as the potato, probably need another twenty minutes longer if it would ever get that way. And THEN I ADDED HAZELNUTS. Le sigh. Awful idea. Great with potato salad, but there is nothing great about hard nuts in your mashed potato, because even though you know what's in there, every time you bite down on the nut you just get this idea that the potatoes didn't cook enough. Awful.

However, the meal was saved by the asparagus. It was beautiful, a great mix between thin and thick, and I copied a recipe Nicole told me over drinks -- brush them with olive oil, salt & pepper, then broil in the oven for 15 mins. I also took the liberty of adding some secret seasoning. I'm not gonna lie, they were AMAZING. Anyone baking asparagus instead of broiling or grilling is a fool. There, I said it.

Anyway, I look forward to righting the wrongs I inflicted on these innocent vegetables in the future. Thanks for listening.

Green Soup, Immersion Blenders, More Boston Organics, and Justin Bieber

First, Justin Bieber, who makes young girls apparently all Beatles-like riotous.



Really? Seriously? Do you get it? Cause I don't. And I actually LIKE pop music. I dunno, maybe I'm too old to understand. I did really like Joey Mac back in the day, so evs.

OK, matter at hand, GREEN SOUP!

Here is my picture of GREEN SOUP. Yes, I drank half of it before photographing, but I just couldn't help it. Soooo good.



This post is a kind of cousin to my last post, which involved a chowder recipe made from vegetables out of the Boston Organics Box. This weeks box contained asparagus, zucchini, and a basil plant. I still had broccoli(yuck) left from my last box and some onions, so I had all of the ingredients available to make Ellie's mom's famed GREEN SOUP that she served them in Mexico. I have been cautioned not to eat too much of this in one week because there apparently is so much chlorophyll in it that too much can affect your liver negatively. I cannot confirm this. Also, if I have to say - "How much is too much?" It's really good, I needed to be cautioned.

So ok, ingredients:

• 2 small onions or 1 large onion, thinly sliced
• olive oil
• 2 garlic cloves
• a large handful of asparagus, maybe 12-15 spears, with the tough ends broken off (reserve this for veggie stock later), cut into 2 inch pieces
• 2 cups of roughly chopped broccoli florets (you can keep the florets whole, just make sure they're off the stalk. Reserve the stalks for stock.)
• 2 small zucchinis, diced or sliced
• 1 large handful of swiss chard, about 2 cups, no need to chop
• salt
• pepper
• water as needed
• garlic powder, optional
• half a cup of fresh basil leaves, optional

NOTE: No need to precut veggies. Each step allows for time for you to chop the next vegetable before it goes into the pot.

Warm olive oil on low heat in a large pot. Add onions and salt and pepper, I added about a half a teaspoon of each. Stir and let it work itself out for a while. Crush the garlic cloves to remove skin, reserve skins for stock. Add the garlic to pot, no need to chop, mince, etc. Once onions are translucent, add asparagus to pot and stir. Cook for about 3 minutes and then add water to pot to just cover the vegetables. Turn heat up high and cover. Let boil for 4-5 minutes while preparing broccoli florets. Add to the pot and add more water to just cover the vegetables. Add another pinch of salt and pepper to the pot. Cover and let boil for 4-5 minutes while preparing zucchini. Add zuccini and enough water to just cover vegetables. Pinch of salt and pepper and let boil while you prepare the swiss chard and basil or any fresh herb. You can use a comparable amount of fresh parsley or nothing at all.

This soup should be simple! Once you add the chard and herbs, cover the pot and let boil for about 5 more minutes. You can add more water if it's looking low, but you want to make sure the level of water is always just covering the veggies. Once the 5 minutes are up, uncover and test your veggies. Stick a fork in the asparagus pieces, the asparagus should completely yield to the fork. All the veggies should be completely tender at this point. If not, let it boil for a little while longer. Now for the exciting part. Grab that amazing immersion blender that you gifted yourself prompted by self love...No? Ok, grab the immersion blender you stole from your ex-boyfriend. Evs. Just get yourself an immersion blender. Whatever it takes. Trust me. It will change your life. Like when Boston Organics sends you every root vegetable known to man all autumn and if you eat another fricken turnip mash you will die or kill someone but then you were saved by the immersion blender and now you can make turnip and chive soup, or potato leek soup, or curried sweet potato soup, or anything else wonderful like that because you have an immersion blender and you make your own veggie stock so you always have some on hand and is anyone else's life like this?

Ok, maybe not. So enough of a rant. You can use a regular old blender, but um beware. Wait for the liquid to cool so the blender won't explode and the top of your blender won't pop off and the hot liquid will squirt everywhere and burn you - this has happened to me and to others, please be careful. So when the soup is all blended, taste it. You will need to add salt and pepper and maybe even a few really good shakes of garlic powder like I did. Up to you...I like things with a little kick. Your soup will be creamy without any dairy products at all. It will be delicious and healthy - except for the chlorophyll thing, but I don't know. Internet research suggested that chlorophyll cures everything from cancer to bad breath. Here's a link about this that I cannot confirm the validity of and that Mad Tasty has no affiliation to.

But anyway, back to GREEN SOUP. GREEN! TASTY! SOUP!

You will thank me later.

Until next time,
A

Roasted Tomato and Rice Soup

If there was ever a soup to be described as Mmm Mmm Good, it is the New England Soup Factory's Roasted Tomato and Rice Soup. It is absolutely delicious and totally worth the 2 hours it takes to make!

If you enjoy it, get the cookbook! There is lots of goodness in there.

Roasted Tomato and Rice Soup (by Marjorie Druker and Clara Silverstein from the New England Soup Factory)
Makes 10 servings

Roasted Tomatoes

• 12 medium plum tomatoes
  
• 3 Tbsps olive oil
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Rice

• 3 cups of water
• 1 1/2 cups of white rice, uncooked
• 1 Tbsp of butter

Soup

• 3 Tbsps butter
• 3 whole cloves garlic, peeled
• 1 large Spanish onion, peeled and diced
• 5 carrots, peeled and chopped
• 2 ribs celery, sliced
• Roasted plum tomatoes
• 6 sun-dried tomatoes, packed in oil
• 6 cups vegetable or chicken stock
• 3 cups tomato juice
• 2 Tbsps chopped fresh basil
• 2 ½ cups cooked white rice
• 4 dashes Worcestershire sauce
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
• 1 ½ cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese

Directions for Roasted Tomatoes

1. Heat the oven to 425 degrees
2. Hull tomatoes and slice in half
3. Place the tomatoes in a large mixing bowl
4. Toss with olive oil, salt, and pepper
5. Place the tomatoes in a small roasting pan and roast in the oven for 50 minutes

Directions for rice

1. Bring water to a boil
2. Reduce heat and add rice
3. Simmer, covered, for 20 minutes
4. Remove from heat and let stand 5 minutes

Directions for soup

1. In a stockpot melt butter over medium-high heat
2. Add the garlic, onion, carrots, and celery
3. Sauté for 10 minutes stirring frequently
4. Add the roasted tomatoes and continue to sauté for 5 minutes
5. Add the sun-dried tomatoes, stock, and tomato juice
6. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium.
   
7. Simmer, covered, for 30 minutes
8. Add basil
9. Puree the soup in the pot using an immersion blender or working in batches with a regular blender until smooth
10. Place the soup back into the pot if using a regular blender
11. Add the rice and season with Worcestershire sauce, salt, and pepper
12. Stir so that the rice is evenly distributed throughout the soup
13. Sprinkle each serving with cheese

Mini Meatball Soup

The end of winter is almost upon us. Before we go completely, here is the recipe for my favorite soup, courtesy of Rachel Ray from The Food Network. Love her (I do) or hate her (lots of people do), the woman can cook.

Mini Meatball Soup

• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, 2 turns of the pan in a slow stream
• 2 carrots, peeled and chopped
• 2 ribs celery, chopped
• 1 medium onion, chopped
  
• 2 bay leaves, fresh or dried
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 pound ground beef, pork and veal combined
• 1 egg, beaten
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano or Romano, a couple of handfuls
• 1/2 cup plain bread crumbs, a couple of handfuls
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly grated or ground nutmeg
• 6 cups chicken stock or broth
• 2 cups water
• 1 1/2 cups dried pasta
  
• 1 pound triple washed fresh spinach, coarsely chopped

Directions

1. In a deep pot over medium heat add oil, chopped carrots, celery and onions and bay leaves. Season with salt and pepper. Cover pot and cook veggies 5 or 6 minutes, stirring occasionally.
2. While the veggies cook, combine meat, egg, garlic, grated cheese, bread crumbs, salt, pepper, nutmeg in a mixing bowl.
3. Uncover your soup pot and add broth and water to the pot. Increase heat to high and bring soup to a boil.
4. When soup boils, reduce heat a bit and start to roll meat mixture into small balls, dropping them straight into the pot. You are making meat dumplings that will cook in the broth.
5. When you are done rolling the meat, add pasta to the soup and stir.
6. Cover and simmer soup 10 minutes. When pasta is tender, stir in chopped spinach in batches.
7. When spinach has wilted into the soup, the soup is done and ready to serve.

Carrot and Ginger Soup

Ingredients:

• 2 potatoes
• 1 onion
• all the carrots you need to get rid of....!
• a chunk of ginger
• butter
• vegetable stock

1. Peel and chop all the vegetables

2. In a pot, saute the onion and potato in butter for 10 minutes. Cover with some paper towel while the vegetables are soaking in the butter.

3. After 10 minutes, add all the carrots and ginger to the pot, and stir. Heat in the butter for another few minutes.

4. Add in the vegetable stock. Cover the pot, and let the vegetables simmer for between 30 and 45 minutes.

5. Once the vegetables are cooked, use a mixer or blender to blend all the ingredients.

6. Serve and enjoy!

easiest homemade carrot soup

Carrots: good in so many ways. Good for eyes, even better for your skin. Super low calorie but dense and full of flavors. When columnists list superfoods, I'm always shocked why this isn't one of them. I could likely write all of my posts about the ways I use carrots, but I'll start here with something i think most of you would like. Extra easy, cheap, healthy and filling. All the taste comes from roasting.


Ingredients:

- 1/2 white onion, 1 clove garlic, 4 large carrots, all roughly chopped
- 1/2 tsp each curry, nutmeg and dried parsley; pinch of salt and pepper
- 1/2 cup of low sodium vegetable broth
- 1 tbl butter
- dollop of low fat sour cream and dried parsley



Directions: preheat oven to 450F.



In baking pan, pour 1/4 c of broth, vegetables, spices and butter. Cover with aluminum foil, bake for 30 min. Pour into blender, while hot, with remaining vegetable broth and puree until smooth. Top with sour cream. Makes 2 servings.

Adding parsnips is a great way to add spice.

1976 Leek Soup

My grandmother used to make this amazing potato leek soup. No one could perfect it quite like she could, so imaging my surprise when as an adult I learned that its a recipe cribbed from a thirty year old issue of Bon Appetit (Oct. 1976 to be exact). That explains all the butter and heavy cream in it. I once tried to make it a little healthier, using vegetable broth and 1% milk, and it just didn't work. This is a soup that needs to have no conscience.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cups minced leeks (include green stems)
• 1/2 cup minced onion
• 1 clove minced garlic
• 4 tbsp butter
• 1 qt "rich" chicken broth
• 1 1/2 cups diced potatoes
• 1 cup heavy cream (if you're feeling really guilty, you could get by with whole milk. A hint at the end of the recipe suggests substituting a large can of evaporated milk, so that could work too)
• salt and white pepper

Saute leeks, onions, and garlic in butter until transparent. Add chicken broth and potatoes and bring to a boil. Cover and simmer until potatoes are tender (about 15 minutes).

Puree in blender or food processor. (An immersion blender would be super helpful here, as this fills up my entire blender and inevitably makes a mess. The recipe also suggests using a "food mill", which apparently is something that existed in the 70s.) Add cream and salt & pepper to taste. If it's too thick, add more broth or cream (because, of course, you have a lot lying around in your fridge.)

Garnish with chopped green onion and serve with toast (rye is good with this). Serve during a snowstorm, or anytime you need some excellent comfort food.

Carrot-Butternut Squash Soup

You'd never believe that this one is vegan. It tastes—not unappealingly—like there might be a stick of butter in there, and in that respect will be a perfect addition to whatever you stuff your face with this weekend. For variety, you might want to add some roasted chestnuts before you puree the soup, or stir in some chopped greens like spinach, chard, or kale at the end.

Carrot-Butternut Squash Soup
Serves 4

• 1 small or 1/2 a large butternut squash, halved from the stem to the base
• 3 T olive oil
• 2 large shallots, diced
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 4 carrots, cut into thin discs, peeled or unpeeled
  
• 1 bay leaf
• 5-6 cups vegetable stock
  
• salt & pepper, to taste
• fresh lemon juice, to taste

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Roast the squash: Rub about a teaspoon of olive oil all over the skin and the flesh of the squash, then place it face down on a baking sheet (foil-lined, if you'd like). Roast for 15 minutes, flip it over and roast it for 10 minutes, and turn it face down for about another 15 minutes. It will be done when you can effortlessly skewer it with a knife. Cool until safe to handle, then scoop out the seeds, trim off the skin, and roughly chop.

Heat the oil in a soup pot over medium heat. Add the shallots and fry until almost translucent, then add the garlic, carrots, bay leaf, and squash, tossing to combine. Cover the pot for three minutes, which will allow everything to steam and sweat and release its goodness. Pour in the stock, covering by about 3/4". Bring to a boil, then simmer for 20 minutes or so, until everything is tender. REMOVE THE BAY LEAF and then puree the soup either with an immersion blender, in batches in a regular blender or food processor, or through a food mill (it best pureed, otherwise I'd list here an option to mush it up with a potato masher). Add salt, pepper, and lemon, adjusting seasonings however you see fit, and serve.

Spicy White Bean Soup with Broccoli

This is one of those on-the-fly soups that will probably never be fully replicated, but I am going to post the recipe anyway.

The stock I used for this soup had a fortifying tomato base, a result of frying a few tablespoons of tomato paste in the stockpot before adding the rest of the vegetables (which I almost always do because, because it’s good). I also added a dried, very hot pepper that would have stolen the show had I not removed it halfway through the simmering.

I cannot stress enough how much of an improvement homemade stock is. Not just in this recipe, but in life. A few months ago I wrote up a few recipes and guidelines here.

Dried beans are much better than canned. You lose the slime and the slightly fishy taste. To prepare dried beans for cooking, you need to rinse and pick through them for any stones or discolored beans, put them in a bowl and cover them with 2 inches of water, and let them soak in the refrigerator for at least eight hours or overnight. After drained, they are ready for use.

Some bright green herb might complement this recipe—cilantro or parsley, or even watercress or spinach whizzed up with the beans. Also, a few gratings of lemon zest or drops of lemon juice might be good.

Spicy White Bean Soup with Broccoli

Serves 2 really hungry people, or 4 not-so-hungry people

2 T olive oil
1 onion, chopped
1 medium carrot or two small, chopped
1 celery rib, chopped
1 bay leaf
2 T tomato paste
1/4 to 1/2 t red pepper flakes
1/2 cup dry red wine
3/4 cup white navy beans, soaked for 8 hours or overnight
12 cups vegetable stock
1 head broccoli, chopped into small florets, and the stem peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces
Salt and pepper to taste

Heat the oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onion, carrot, celery, and bay leaf. “Sweat” the vegetables—cook them until they are soft but not browned, 8-10 minutes. Add the tomato paste and red pepper flakes, stirring to coat, and cook for about a minute. Then add the wine, and cook until the wine is reduced by half. Then add the beans and the stock and bring everything to a boil. Turn the heat down, bringing the soup to a simmer, and cover the pot, cooking until the beans are tender; it may take anywhere from one to two hours, so taste as you go. Once they are ready, carefully puree the soup in a blender or food processor. Return the soup to the pot and bring it to a simmer. Add the broccoli. When the broccoli is fork tender, turn of the heat, adjust the seasonings, and serve.

mammy's home made soup

This soup is one my mother makes all the time, and for years I didn’t realise it was her special recipe. Recently various relatives and friends asked me how she makes it so tasty and I realised there was actually a little trick to it! Her special ingredient is butter. My mother always makes this soup with potato and leeks but my favourite is with red pepper, which is what I did today. Any veg goes really, apart from the basics. These quantities make four servings.

For this one I used:

• 1 potato
• 2 onions
• 1 red pepper
• 1 yellow pepper

You also need:

• Butter (not sure what amount, but a nice big chunk…add whatever you think yourself)
• Salt and pepper
• One vegetable stock cube
• 2 pints of water.
• And a blender (hand held)

Peel and chop the potatoes and onions. Melt the butter in a saucepan and when melted, throw in the potatoes and onions. Don’t have the heat too high, you don’t want the potatoes and onions to fry, you just want them to sweat in the butter to absorb all the buttery flavour. Make sure they are well covered in butter, add in LOTS of salt and pepper and mix around. Then, with the heat low, cover the veg with some paper kitchen towel and let it all sweat in the butter for about ten minutes. Stir it every now and then. (Ha! I was about to write ‘stirring occasionally’ there, and then realised I sound like a cookbook. We couldn’t have that!)



While this is cooking up, chop the other vegetables. And boil a kettle of water. When the water is boiled pour about two pints into a jug and mix in a vegetable stock cube. When the pototoes and onions have sweat in the butter for ten minutes, throw in all the other veg and mix around. Then pour in the veggie stock. You don’t need to bring it to the boil, but let the whole thing simmer for about fifteen minutes. After it has simmered, take the blender to it. I used a hand held one to liquidise the whole thing. I left it on the heat for another five minutes after that. Divide into bowls and serve with some cream poured in, and a little more black pepper dashed on top.

 

Mammy’s verdict:
"Hmmm. Nice with the red pepper, but I do prefer the leek soup myself. Not quite as flavourful as mine, maybe sweat it in the butter for a bit longer, and add another onion. Could do with a bit more salt and pepper as well."

(note: I adjusted the recipe above to take account of her comments)

Butternut Squash Soup

This is a Fall-time favorite. Our family has been having this every year on Thanksgiving for as long as I can remember.

Ingredients

• 1 large butternut squash (4-5 lbs)
  
• 1/4 cup of butter
• 1 cup of chopped onion
  
• 2 large, crushed, garlic cloves
  
• 3 cans of chicken broth
  
• 1 cup of half and half or light cream
  
• 1 tsp curry powder
  
• 1 tsp salt
  
• 1/8 tsp ground coriander
  
• 1/8 tsp crushed red pepper

Pre-heat oven to 380. Slice butternut squash down the center lengthwise. Scoop out all seeds. Place squash face down on large cookie sheet covered in tin foil. Pour enough water onto cookie sheet to completely cover the bottom of the squash and start to come up the sides (but not spill over). Let bake for 40-50 minutes or until squash is soft and easily scoopable (like soft ice cream), with a spoon. When cooked, I recommend you turn the squash over and let stand for 15-20 minutes before scooping. Squash should then be pureed, blended with a food processor, or hand mixer.

In a large sauce pan, combine butter, onion and crushed garlic on medium high heat until soft. Then add curry powder, salt, coriander, and red pepper (the red pepper gives this soup a nice zing to it, however, as always with red pepper, don't over do it). Let this cook for one minute and then add the chicken broth. Let this boil on medium high heat for 15 minutes.

After this has boiled, add 2 cups of blended butternut squash, along with the light cream. Stir and let cook for 5 minutes. Pour (about 2 cups at a time so as to not spill over) mixture into a blender and puree for 2 minutes. Transfer pureed soup to another large saucepan. Do this until all soup is blended. Let stand on low heat until ready to be served.

Bon appétit!