Soups

Chicken Noodle Soup

October 1, 2011

Chicken Noodle Soup

I was raised on good old fashioned Campbell’s Chicken Noodle Soup. Everyone knows that homemade is much better. A great prescription for any malady. If you’re ailing or not try this fabulous recipe for what warms the body and soul.

INGREDIENTS

2 ½ Cups Wide Egg Noodles

1 Teaspoon Olive Oil

12 Cups Chicken Broth

2 Teaspoons Salt

1 Teaspoon Freshly Ground Black Pepper

1 Teaspoon Poultry Seasoning

1 Cup Chopped Celery

1 Cup Chopped Carrots

1 Cup Chopped Onion

1/3 Cup Cornstarch

¼ Cup Water

3 ½ Cups Diced Cooked Chicken

In a large stock pot bring salted water to a boil. Add the egg noodles and olive oil. Boil for 9 minutes until tender. When done cooking drain. In a large saucepan combine the broth, salt and poultry seasoning. Bring to a boil and stir in the celery, carrots and onions. Reduce the heat and cover. Simmer for 20 minutes. In a small bowl mix the cornstarch and water together until the cornstarch is completely dissolved. Gradually add to the soup. Stir constantly. Stir in the noodles and chicken. Cook for 10 minutes on a medium heat. Serve with salad and French bread. Serves 10

Greek Fasolada

September 13, 2011

Greek Fasolada

I love making soups! The moment I feel Fall weather in the air I start making hearty soups. Greek Fasolada (Greek Navy Bean Soup) is so simple to make and quite a popular dish in Greece. Some say that it is, in fact, the Greek national dish. This soup can be made year round, but is popular during Lent. Tasty, nutritious and should be eaten with olives and warm bread.

INGREDIENTS

1 Cup Navy Beans

3 ½ Cups Water

1 Chopped Yellow Onion

3 Chopped Garlic Cloves

2 Peeled & Chopped Carrots

2 Peeled & Chopped Celery Stalks

1 Cup Diced Tomatoes

1 Tablespoon Tomato Paste

3 Cubes Vegetable Stock

1 Teaspoon Oregano

¼ Cup Chopped Parsley

½ Teaspoon Sea Salt

½ Teaspoon Freshly Ground Pepper

Soak the beans in the water overnight. Fill a soup pot with 3 quarts of water and add the soaked beans. Cook on medium for 30 minutes. Add the onion, garlic, celery and carrots. Cook for 1 hour. Next add the tomatoes, tomato paste, vegetable stock cubes, salt, pepper and oregano. Cook on low heat for an additional 1 hour. If the beans are not tender yet cook for longer. To serve add chopped parsley. Serves 4

Smoky Red Lentil Soup

September 10, 2011

Smoky Red Lentil Soup

INGREDIENTS

3 Slices Thick Cut Bacon

3 Tablespoons Olive Oil

1 Diced Yellow Onion

1 Peeled & Diced Carrot

1 Diced Celery Stalk

2 Teaspoons Minced Garlic

1 Tablespoon Tomato Paste

1 Teaspoon Smoked Paprika

¼ Cup Canned Diced Tomatoes (Drained)

¾ Cup Rinsed Red Lentils

4 Cups Chicken Broth

1 Teaspoon Kosher Salt

1 Teaspoon Freshly Ground Pepper

Sour Cream For Garnish

Heat a sauté pan over a medium high heat and add the bacon. Cook for 5 minutes until crisp. Drain on a paper towel. Chop bacon coarsely. In a soup pot heat over a medium heat the olive oil and add the onion, carrot, celery, garlic, tomato paste and paprika. Cover and cook for 25 minutes until the vegetables are just starting to soften. Open the lid occasionally to stir. Add the tomatoes, lentils and chicken broth. Cover and cook on high heat for 40 minutes until the lentils are tender. Turn off the heat and let cool for 10 minutes. Transfer to a food processor and pulse 5 times to lightly puree some of the soup mixture. Transfer back to the soup pot and season with salt and pepper. Heat to warm. Pour soup into warmed bowls. Garnish with sour cream and bacon. Serves 4

Borscht

August 26, 2011

I love beets and I love cabbage. This dish is easy to make and a real winner. If you want to make this borscht completely vegetarian then use vegetable stock instead of the beef stock

Borscht

INGREDIENTS

3 Tablespoons Butter

¼ (2 Pound) Sliced Head Green Cabbage

2 Sliced Carrots

2 Sliced Celery Stalks

1 Diced Onion

1 Pound Peeled & Cut Beets

15 Ounces Tomatoes In Puree

15 Ounces Beef Broth

1 Tablespoon Sugar

¼ Teaspoon Kosher Salt

¼ Teaspoon Freshly Ground Black Pepper

Celery Leaves For Garnish

In a large Dutch oven, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the cabbage, carrots, celery and onion. Cover and cook. Stir frequently until tender and browned. Cut the beats into small bits. Add the beets, tomatoes with the puree, broth, sugar, salt, pepper and 1 ½ cups of water. Heat to a boiling over a high heat. Reduce the heat to low and cover. Simmer for 50 minutes. Stir occasionally. Spoon 2 cups of the soup into a blender and blend at a low speed until smooth. You can also do this in a food processor. Return the mixture to the Dutch oven and heat through. Garnish with celery leaves and sour cream. You can serve hot or cold. Serve with pumpernickel bread. Serves 4

Cold Watermelon Soup

August 15, 2011

Cold Watermelon Soup

More and more farm stands and supermarkets have a variety of melons in the summer. Watermelon is one of the ultimate tastes of summer.

INGREDIENTS

4 Pounds Juicy Watermelon

½ Cup Chablis

1 Tablespoon Lime Juice

¼ Cup Chopped Fresh Mint

Lime Slices For Garnish – Optional

Cut off the watermelon rind. With a melon baller, but out 8 balls of watermelon fruit and reserve them for garnish. Remove all the seeds, cut the watermelon into rough chunks and spin them in a food processor. Add the wine, lime juice and chopped mint. Puree until smooth. Chill for several hours. Ladle into chilled bowls and garnish with reserved melon balls and lime slices. Serve 4

Lobster Chowder

August 7, 2011

Lobster Chowder

This Lobster Chowder is more like a Lobster Bisque. With the lobster meat and fresh corn added it is delicious!

INGREDIENTS

3 Lobster Shells

6 Cups Water

4 Tablespoons Butter

1 Celery Heart

1 Chopped Carrot

2 Sliced Leeks

1 Chopped Onion

2 Tablespoons Flour

1 ½ Cups Heavy Cream

½ Teaspoon Sea Salt

1/8 Teaspoon Cayenne

1 Cup Fresh Cooked Corn

½ Cup Lobster Meat

2 Tablespoons Chopped Flat Leaved Parsley

To make the lobster stock you will need to crack the lobster shells up a bit and throw them into a food processor a few pieces at a time. Pulse them until they break up into small pieces. Put the shells into a pot and cover with water. Cook over a medium heat for 30 minutes. Strain so that you have no remaining shells. This should give you about 4 ½ cups lobster stock.

In a heavy saucepan melt the butter and sauté the celery heart, carrot, leeks and onion for 5 minutes. Do not overcook these vegetables. Stir in the flour and cook for 1 minute constantly stirring. Now add the lobster broth and whisk until smooth. Gently cook for 20 minutes over a low heat until the vegetables are tender. Remove the mixture and put into the food processor and puree. Return to the saucepan and add the cream. Stir. Add the salt and cayenne and stir. Finally add the corn and lobster meat and cook for 1 minute longer. Remove from heat and ladle equal amounts into 4 warm bowls. Sprinkle with the chopped flat-leaved parsley. Serves 4

Corn Chowder

July 6, 2011

Corn Chowder

This corn chowder is a real summer treat!  Serve with warm buttermilk biscuits. 

INGREDIENTS

6 Medium Ears of Corn

5 Slices Diced Bacon

1 Medium Chopped Red Onion

1 Seeded and Chopped Jalapeno Chile

1 Chopped Garlic Clove

2 Tablespoons Unbleached Flour

½ Teaspoon Salt

¼ Teaspoon Freshly Ground Pepper

1 Pound Chopped Red Potatoes

15 Ounces Chicken Broth

2 Cups Half & Half

2 Peeled, Seeded & Chopped Ripe Tomatoes

5 Thinly Sliced Basil Leaves

Cut the corn kernels from the cobs.  This will yield about 3 cups.  Keep 3 of the cobs and throw the other 3 away.  In a 5 quart Dutch oven, cook the bacon over medium heat until browned.  Reserve the bacon drippings. Transfer the bacon to paper towels to drain.  Crumble the bacon and set aside.  In the Dutch oven add the onions and jalapeno to the bacon drippings.  Cook and stir for 5 minutes until the onion is tender. Add the garlic and cook 1 minute longer.  Stir in the flour, salt and pepper.  Cook and stir for 1 more minute.  Next, stir in the potatoes, the three reserved corncobs, the chicken broth and the half & half.  Heat to a boil over high heat.  Reduce the heat.  Cover and simmer for 15 minutes until the potatoes are tender.  Throw away the corncobs and stir in the reserved corn kernels.  Heat through.  Transfer the chowder to a warm soup tureen or a large serving bowl.  Stir in the tomatoes and sprinkle with the bacon and basil.  Serves 8

Cincinnati Chili

July 1, 2011

Cincinnati Chili

There are many variations on this dish all over Cincinnati.  A “three-way” is over spaghetti with shredded Cheddar on top.  Add chopped onion and it becomes a “four-way.”  For a “five-way” add cooked red kidney beans.

INGREDIENTS

3 Teaspoons Olive Oil

2 Medium Chopped Yellow Onions

4 Teaspoons Finely Chopped Garlic

2 Pounds Ground Sirloin

2 Tablespoons Chili Powder

1 Tablespoon Ground Cumin

1 Teaspoon Ground Cinnamon

1 Teaspoon Salt

½ Teaspoon Oregano

½ Teaspoon Cayenne Pepper

16 Ounces Canned Tomatoes

15 Ounces Beef Stock

1 ½ Cups Water

½ Ounce Chopped Unsweetened Chocolate

16 Ounces Spaghetti

Heat olive oil in a Dutch oven over medium heat.  Add the onions and cook for 5 minutes until tender.  Transfer to a small bowl and set aside.  Add the garlic to the Dutch oven and cook 1 minute longer.  Transfer to the bowl of cooked onions.  In the same Dutch oven, cook the ground sirloin over high heat.  Break up the meat and cook until the meat is browned.  Stir in the chili powder, cumin, cinnamon, salt, oregano and cayenne.  Cook 1 minute longer.  Next, add the tomatoes with the juice to the Dutch oven.  Break up the tomatoes.  Stir in the beef broth, water, chocolate, browned sirloin, onions and garlic.  Heat to a boil and then reduce the heat.  Cover and simmer for 3 hours.  Remove the cover and simmer another 30 minutes until thickened.  Meanwhile cook the spaghetti.  Drain and serve the chili over the pasta.  Serves 8

Gazpacho

June 4, 2011

Gazpacho

Often described as a liquid salad, gazpacho descends from ancient Roman concoction based on a combination of stale bread, garlic, olive oil, salt and vinegar.  As Romans labored to build roads and aqueducts across Spain in the scorching heat, this creamy soup replenished them with the necessary salt and vitamins lost through physical exertion.  Later, shepherds and farmers added vegetables to make it more hearty and satisfying.  Because tomatoes and bell peppers were not indigenous to Spain, these ingredients were not added to the soup until after Spain’s discovery of the New World.  Since that time, gazpacho has remained relatively unchanged.  We are grateful for such an unpretentious soup designed to quench the thirst evoked by the unrelenting Spanish sun. 

INGREDIENTS

1 Large Cucumber

2 Red Bell Peppers

1 Yellow Bell Pepper

4 Medium Tomatoes

1 Red Onion

3 Minced Garlic Cloves

3 Cups Tomato Juice

¼ Cup White Wine Vinegar

¼ Cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil

½ Tablespoon Kosher Salt

1 Teaspoon Freshly Ground Pepper

Halve and seed the cucumber, but do not peel it.  Core and seed the three bell peppers.  Roughly chop the cucumbers, bell peppers, tomatoes and red onion into 1 inch cubes.  Reserve a small bit of each vegetable to put in at the end so that the soup has some crunch.  Put each vegetable separately into a food processor fitted with a steel blade and pulse until it is coarsely chopped.  Do not over process.  After each vegetable is processed, combine them in a large bowl and add the garlic, tomato juice, vinegar, olive oil, salt and pepper.  Mix well and chill before serving.  The longer the gazpacho sits, the more the flavors develop.  Serve anytime, but especially on a hot summer day.  Serves 4

Egg Drop Soup

March 19, 2011

Egg Drop Soup

Egg drop soup is a traditional Chinese soup that literally means “egg flower soup.”  The basic recipe is very simple. 

INGREDIENTS

4 Cups Chicken Stock

2 Lightly Beaten Eggs

2 Minced Green Onions

¼ Teaspoon White Pepper

½ Teaspoon Sea Salt

1/8 Teaspoon Sesame Oil

In a saucepan, bring chicken stock to a boil.  Add the salt, pepper and sesame oil.  Cook for about a minute.  Very slowly pour in the beaten eggs in a steady stream.  Gently stir the eggs in a clockwise direction until shreds form.  Serve in individual bowls garnished with minced green onions.  Serves 4

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