here comes winter
As the weather changes here, we're getting excited to pull out some of our favorite seasonal recipes again. Once it starts to get cold, soup comprises a significant part of our diet. As the primary cook around here these days, I'm a fan of soup for a few reasons: it's adaptable to the ingredients you have on hand, it's relatively easy to make (there's some prep at the beginning, but then it's usually just a matter of giving yourself enough time for it to cook and stirring occasionally), it warms you up, and (hopefully) it's delicious. I thought I'd share 3 of our favorite soups here, for some "heading into winter" inspiration:
4 strips of bacon
1 large onion
1/2 teaspoon celery seed (the recipe calls for celery, but I'm not a big fan)
2 medium beets, quartered
2 cloves garlic, halved
2 cups tomatoes (fresh or canned)
1 cup potatoes, peeled and chopped
1 quart stock
2 cups water
3 peppercorns
salt to taste
2 cups beets, julienned/grated (I like to do this in the food processor - it saves a lot of time and effort)
1 cup carrots, julienned/grated (see above)
4 tablespoons butter
3 cups cabbage, shredded
lemon juice, to taste
sour cream
Fry bacon until crisp, then set aside (I like to chop it first, but it's not necessary). Chop onion, sprinkle on celery seed, and cook in bacon fat until softened. Add bacon, chopped beets, garlic, tomatoes, potatoes, stock, water, peppercorns, and salt. Bring to a boil, then lower to a simmer and cook, uncovered, for 45 minutes. Remove vegetables (I like to pour everything through a colander placed in a large bowl - be careful, it's hot!) and puree them in a food processor or with a food mill (an immersion blender - in which case you don't have to do any draining - or a blender - in which case you will need to let the vegetables cool first, trust me on this one - will work too). Add the puree back to the broth and keep warm over low heat. Melt 2 tablespoons of butter in a pan and saute grated carrots and beets for 5 minutes. Add to soup base. Melt remaining 2 tablespoons of butter and braise cabbage for 5 minutes, until wilted and slightly browned. Add to soup base and simmer for another 5 minutes. Add lemon juice until it has a slightly tart, but not sour, taste - start with a splash and keep splashing until you get the flavor you like. Serve with crusty bread and garnish each bowl with sour cream.
Sauerkraut Soup with Dumplings (adapted from William I. Kaufman's The Wonderful World of Cooking: Recipes from Northern Europe and the British Isles and Marcia Adams' Cooking from Quilt Country )
1 large onion
1/2 teaspoon celery seed (the recipe calls for celery, but I'm not a big fan)
2 medium beets, quartered
2 cloves garlic, halved
2 cups tomatoes (fresh or canned)
1 cup potatoes, peeled and chopped
1 quart stock
2 cups water
3 peppercorns
salt to taste
2 cups beets, julienned/grated (I like to do this in the food processor - it saves a lot of time and effort)
1 cup carrots, julienned/grated (see above)
4 tablespoons butter
3 cups cabbage, shredded
lemon juice, to taste
sour cream
Fry bacon until crisp, then set aside (I like to chop it first, but it's not necessary). Chop onion, sprinkle on celery seed, and cook in bacon fat until softened. Add bacon, chopped beets, garlic, tomatoes, potatoes, stock, water, peppercorns, and salt. Bring to a boil, then lower to a simmer and cook, uncovered, for 45 minutes. Remove vegetables (I like to pour everything through a colander placed in a large bowl - be careful, it's hot!) and puree them in a food processor or with a food mill (an immersion blender - in which case you don't have to do any draining - or a blender - in which case you will need to let the vegetables cool first, trust me on this one - will work too). Add the puree back to the broth and keep warm over low heat. Melt 2 tablespoons of butter in a pan and saute grated carrots and beets for 5 minutes. Add to soup base. Melt remaining 2 tablespoons of butter and braise cabbage for 5 minutes, until wilted and slightly browned. Add to soup base and simmer for another 5 minutes. Add lemon juice until it has a slightly tart, but not sour, taste - start with a splash and keep splashing until you get the flavor you like. Serve with crusty bread and garnish each bowl with sour cream.
simmering borscht
1 tablespoon butter
1 onion, chopped
2 tablespoons flour
1 quart tomatoes
1 1/2 pounds sauerkraut
8 cups stock
sour cream
Brown onion in butter. Stir in flour. Add tomatoes, sauerkraut, and stock. Bring to a boil, then lower to a simmer and cook, covered, for 2 hours.
1 cup flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon cold butter
1 egg, beaten
6 tablespoons milk
Combine dry ingredients. Cut in butter until the mixture looks like oatmeal. Add egg and milk. Blend until just combined. Drop in large tablespoonfuls onto simmering soup. Cover and cook for 20 minutes. Garnish each bowl with sour cream.
Saffron Carrot Soup (adapted from Monica Bhide's Soup of Carrot, Bellpepper, and Saffron)
1 onion, chopped
2 tablespoons flour
1 quart tomatoes
1 1/2 pounds sauerkraut
8 cups stock
sour cream
Brown onion in butter. Stir in flour. Add tomatoes, sauerkraut, and stock. Bring to a boil, then lower to a simmer and cook, covered, for 2 hours.
1 cup flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon cold butter
1 egg, beaten
6 tablespoons milk
Combine dry ingredients. Cut in butter until the mixture looks like oatmeal. Add egg and milk. Blend until just combined. Drop in large tablespoonfuls onto simmering soup. Cover and cook for 20 minutes. Garnish each bowl with sour cream.
2 tablespoons butter
1 medium onion
1 pound carrots, peeled and chopped
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1 pinch cayenne pepper
1/2 tablespoon ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon saffron
4 cups stock (I like it with chicken best)
1/2 cup sour cream
salt and pepper to taste
saffron garnish
Melt the butter in a medium pot and cook onion until soft and golden. Add carrots and cook until softened. Mix in the turmeric, cayenne, coriander, and saffron and cook for one minute. Add stock and bring to a boil. Lower to a simmer and cook covered about 20 minutes; vegetables should be very soft. Puree vegetables (see my suggestions for pureeing in the borscht recipe) and add back to broth. Stir in sour cream, salt, and pepper. Garnish with a few strands of saffron per bowl.
1 medium onion
1 pound carrots, peeled and chopped
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1 pinch cayenne pepper
1/2 tablespoon ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon saffron
4 cups stock (I like it with chicken best)
1/2 cup sour cream
salt and pepper to taste
saffron garnish
Melt the butter in a medium pot and cook onion until soft and golden. Add carrots and cook until softened. Mix in the turmeric, cayenne, coriander, and saffron and cook for one minute. Add stock and bring to a boil. Lower to a simmer and cook covered about 20 minutes; vegetables should be very soft. Puree vegetables (see my suggestions for pureeing in the borscht recipe) and add back to broth. Stir in sour cream, salt, and pepper. Garnish with a few strands of saffron per bowl.
In my next entry, I'll write about some of our favorite soup accompaniments (accessories? I don't know, stuff that goes with soup). Happy souping!
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