Yesterday at work I was chatting with one of our photographers on the merits of soup as a meal. He argued soup can never be filling, but I disagree. Seinfeld jokes aside, I love having soup for dinner, especially chilled soups during the summer. Cold borscht, gazpacho, vichyssoise – they may not be hearty, but when it’s 90° and humid, the last thing I want to do is sit down to a huge piece of roasted meat and potatoes. Especially when I have air conditioning in only one room of my apartment.

I got excited when I saw this recipe in the latest issue of Bon Appetit because it has all my favorite things. Thai curry paste, squash, cilantro… to me, those are incredibly refreshing flavors and ideal for a chilled summer soup. This recipe makes a nice big batch and is actually quite satisfying by stirring in some thick and creamy Greek yogurt plus an extra little sprinkle of cilantro. If you wanted to bulk it up you could easily keep some of the squash from being pureed and stir it in once you chill it, but I think the puree itself is just perfect.

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Chilled Thai Squash Soup

Based on the recipe from Bon Appetit.

Makes 4 servings.

I accidentally poured in the entire can of coconut milk as I made my soup, but it turned out delicious regardless. I just upped the spices to balance everything.

Ingredients

• 2 TBL canola oil
• 2 cups chopped yellow (not sweet) onions
• 2 large garlic cloves, minced
• 1 TBL Thai red curry paste
• 1 tsp curry powder
• 1 pound yellow squash and green zucchini (total)
• 2 cups vegetable broth
• 1 can light coconut milk
• 2 TBL chopped fresh cilantro, plus more to garnish
• salt and pepper to taste
• Greek yogurt or plain yogurt to garnish

Directions

1.) Heat the oil in a large dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the onions and saute about 5 minutes, until soft. Add the garlic and stir until fragrant, about a minute. Add the curry paste and curry powder and stir until slightly toasted, about 20 seconds. Add squash and saute another 60 seconds.

2.) Stir in the broth and coconut milk and bring to a boil. Reduce hit and simmer on low 10-15 minutes or until the squash is soft.

3.) Remove from the heat and working in batches, puree the soup in a blender with the cilantro, being sure to leave the lid off or vented so your blender doesn’t explode from steam (ouch!).

4.) Season to taste before the soup cools down. Add the soup to a large, wide bowl (the wider the bowl, the faster and more evenly it will cool). Chill until very cold, at least 5 hours.

5.) When ready to serve, thin the soup with more stock if desired. Garnish with yogurt and more cilantro.

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Post tags: soup, spicy, summer

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I’m feeling much better, but haven’t quite graduated to chewing yet, so I whipped this up tonight for dinner. Although I desperately wished I could have some crunchy toasts with it (oh, crunchy food… how I miss you…), it was still incredibly delicious and smooth as silk.

All you do is warm frozen peas in stock, blend them with some balsamic vinegar, season, and eat. A bit of fresh goat cheese adds a rich touch without being too aggressive, and the whole thing comes together in 15 minutes. It may sound too simple to be delicious, but so many great soups are as simple as this, so just embrace it! Now excuse me while I retreat to the couch and my glorious prescription pain killers once more.

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Easiest Pea Soup

Based on the recipe by Nigella Lawson via Cheap, Healthy, Good.

Makes 2 servings.

Ingredients

• 2 cups vegetable stock
• 3 cups frozen peas
• 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
• 1 ounce fresh soft goat cheese plus more for garnish
• Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste

Directions

1.) In a large saucepan, bring the vegetable stock to a low boil and add the peas. Cook until just tender, about 5-6 minutes. Pour the entire contents of the pot into a blender with the goat cheese and blend until smooth. Alternatively, use an immersion blender and puree.

2.) Stir in the balsamic vinegar and taste for seasoning. Portion into bowls and sprinkle with more goat cheese if desired. Enjoy with or without wisdom teeth.

© Jessica J. for jonesing for..., 2010. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: savory, soup, vegetables

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Okay, it’s not the most photogenic thing in the world, but trust me – the ugliest foods always taste the best.

My buddy Clif recently asked me about making green chile chili and ever since I gave my tips, I couldn’t get it out of my head. And then as I was cleaning out the seemingly bottomless cabinet of appliances I have under my sink, my crock pot was staring me in the face, practically glowing with the suggestion to use it.

So here is quite possibly the easiest recipe I have on the site so far – even easier than the 2-ingredient ‘ice cream’! Only one step! This is the greatest set it and forget it kind of meal, and it reheats superbly, which is exactly what I need right now. Thick and rich from the beans and their natural starch, plus packed with flavor from all the spices – it could be served on a cold winter’s day with hot cornbread, or a warm summer afternoon with chips and guacamole.

Freshly ground white pepper.

Cannelini beans.

Mise.

It just needs 8 hours of love.

One hearty spoonful.

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White Bean Chicken Chili

Makes 6 servings

I prefer thigh meat for anything like this because it just has so much more flavor than breast. Since there really isn’t any fat in the dish anyway, you don’t need to fret about the calories, but feel free to use white meat if you just don’t like the flavor. Also, I’ve recommended it before, but using your bulk bin spices (if available) for recipes like this is divine. I just don’t need green chile powder or celery salt that often, so only having to buy a teaspoon at a time is so wallet-friendly.

Ingredients

• 1 lb boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into pieces, trimmed of excess fat
• 4 cups low-sodium chicken stock or broth (or even water)
• 3 15-ounce cans cannelini or white beans of your choice, drained and rinsed
• ½ cup chopped freshly smoked green chile (or 1 4-oz can chopped green chiles)
• 1 large yellow onion (not sweet), roughly chopped
• 1 jalapeno, seeded and membrane removed, but not sliced
• 4 gloves garlic, minced
• 1 tsp Mexican oregano (or regular oregano)
• 2 tsp green chile powder (or regular chili powder)
• 1 tablespoon ground cumin (or 2 tsp cumin leaves if you have them)
• 2½ tsp kosher salt
• ½ tsp celery salt
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 tsp honey
• 2 tsp freshly ground white pepper

Directions

1.) Add everything to the crock pot, give it a stir, and set to low. Cook for 8-9 hours on low (5-6 on high), skimming fat occasionally (if you can) and towards the end, mash everything up a bit with a potato masher to thicken the chili. Taste for seasoning before serving.

© Jessica J. for jonesing for..., 2010. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: chicken, crock pot, soup

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Back in August I was feeling a little on the sniffly, sore-throat, swollen-gland side, so naturally I wanted some soothing comfort food. I emailed my mom asking for her chicken noodle soup recipe I loved growing up, expecting it to be an easy, throw-together kind of recipe.

Oh how wrong I was.

I had no idea my mom’s (well, grandma’s) recipe entailed making your own stock, cooling it overnight, cooking more vegetables the next day, cooking the egg noodles, etc. For an average weekend this would be no big deal, but the idea of doing all that work feverish and sick was just a big no. So the email sat dormant, until I realized I would be cooking my favorite roast chicken and thus have the carcass to make stock (bing!). Since I usually eat a leg and a little breast when I roast a whole chicken, and then do whatever with the leftovers, it felt like the perfect opportunity to eat a bit of roast chicken, and then use the rest of the delicious meat (plus the carcass) to make the ultimate chicken noodle soup.

Some people would call the list of ingredients and recipe pretty pedestrian – but as the saying goes, simplicity is the sign of perfection. The flavor of the stock is superb, and cooking the vegetables separately the next day really adds a nice layer. Although my mom has always served egg noodles with her soup, you can really use any short pasta. Either way, this dish is simple, but time consuming – something I find in most soups I love.

Stock veg!

About to simmer…

Many, many hours later.

Lifeblood.

Mirepoix, sauteed.

Eat your heart out, Campbells.

Grandma would be proud.

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Grandma Esther’s Chicken Noodle Soup

People find making chicken stock very daunting, but trust me – it’s one of the easiest things you’ll ever do.

Serves 6-7

Ingredients

To make the stock:

• One 3-4 lb roaster/fryer chicken carcass, including the skin (or one 3-4 lb whole roaster/fryer chicken, rinsed)
• 1 large yellow (not sweet) onion, cut into quarters
• 2-3 celery stalks with tops left on, roughly chopped
• 1 large carrot, roughly chopped
• 3 bay leaves
• 10 whole peppercorns
• 1 tablespoon kosher salt

To make the soup:

• 3 stalks celery, chopped
• 1 medium yellow (not sweet) onion, chopped
• 3 large carrots, peeled and sliced fairly thin
• 1 tablespoon butter
• salt
• pepper
• a dash of dried thyme
• 8 oz egg noodles

Directions

1.) The day before you want to enjoy the soup, make the stock. In a large stock pot or Dutch oven, combine all the stock ingredients and pour about 10-12 cups water to cover (add a little more if your chicken isn’t submerged completely). Bring to a boil and skim off the scum (floating fat raft – whee!) and then turn down to a very low simmer (either low or 1-2 on your stove knob). Cook for 4-5 hours. You want the flavor to really develop, but you don’t want it to boil and reduce too much. Once ready, remove from the heat, and strain the stock. Discard the veggies, and if you cooked a whole chicken, set the chicken aside to cool.

2.) Let the stock cool covered overnight or for at least 8 hours. If you used a whole chicken, pull all the meat from the bird in bite-size pieces, and store in the fridge until the next day. Save and freeze the carcass to make your next batch of stock. (Note: my mom uses almost only white meat for the soup, but I love dark meat and happily add it to mine.)

3.) Make your noodles the night before as well. Bring a large pot of salted water to boil and cook the egg noodles until very al dente – they will cook a little more in the broth, trust me. Drain and rinse with cold water (to stop the cooking process) and store in a container, refrigerated, until the next day.

4.) Once the stock has cooled overnight, skim most of the accumulated fat from the top (leaving a little for flavor). Return to the stove and heat over medium-high heat.

5.) While the stock heats up, cook the vegetables. In a large saute pan, melt the butter over medium heat and then add the onion, carrot, and celery. Season to taste and sprinkle with a bit of dried thyme. Saute the veggies over medium heat for 8-10 minutes until they’re cooked, but still have a bit of a bite to them (al dente).

6.) Once the stock is hot, add the veggies and pulled chicken meat. Let everything come up to an almost-simmer. We always leave the noodles out and let everyone add as much (or little) noodles as they like. Keeping the noodles out also prevents them from becoming mushy from sitting in the broth too long.

© Jessica J. for jonesing for..., 2010. | Permalink | 3 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: chicken, family recipe, savory, soup, vegetables

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Cooking for one can be tricky.  Most people I know who live by themselves end up snacking for dinner simply because the idea of making a recipe that serves four is either too expensive, time-consuming, or they worry about having leftovers.

I’m not afraid to have a week’s worth of a certain dish around or spend hours making something, but more than often I like to whip things together for dinner 3 out of 5 weeknights, usually fitting the breakfast taco or wedge salad bill. But then you can find recipes like this which gives us singular cooks all hope.

I’ve had this recipe sitting around a bit because not only was it sold as a 15-minute soup, it was designated a “Cooking for One” recipe in Everyday Food, which naturally caught my eye. Throw in the fact I’ve eaten conference food, Lunchables, and far too much Diet Coke in the past few days… well, let’s just say I was craving something vegetable-packed, healthy, and satisfying.

One last thing – I’m in the running at Bon Appetit’s Blog Envy Bake Off for my chocolate pumpkin cheesecake squares and would send thousands of hugs and kisses out if you could take a few seconds to go vote for me and all the other fantastic blogs and recipes listed. It’s a really fun contest with so many great entries, I’m just excited to see my blog amongst them. You do have to register to vote, but trust me – it’s worth it!

Vote Vote Vote!

Quick Lentil Soup for One

Based on the recipe by Martha Stewart.

Ingredients

• 1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil
• ½ small yellow (not sweet) onion, chopped
• ¼ cup thinly sliced carrots, from about 1½ small carrots
• 1 medium celery stalk, split lengthwise, then sliced thin
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1 sprig fresh thyme, leaves removed and stem discarded
• Kosher salt and ground pepper
• 14.5 ounces (1 can) broth (chicken, beef, or veggie all work great here) or about 1½ cups homemade if you have it.
• ¾ cup cooked or prepared lentils (I used canned, which you need to drain and rinse before using)
• 2 teaspoons red-wine vinegar

Directions

1. In a medium saucepan, heat oil over medium. Add onion, carrot, celery, thyme, and garlic; season with salt and pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until onion softens, 3 to 5 minutes.
2. Add broth; bring to a boil and cook 5 minutes.
3. Add lentils and cook until soup thickens slightly, 3 to 5 minutes. Stir in vinegar and season with salt and pepper to taste.

© Jessica J. for jonesing for..., 2009. | Permalink | One comment | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: autumn, fast and easy, soup, vegetables

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