Soups, Salads & Sauces

Roasted Tomato Soup

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A couple years ago we purchased a small raised garden. We would love to have a large garden, but we live in the woods with little room for the sun to shine through. The first year we planted tomatoes, peppers, and a few herbs in our small raised garden. The operative word is small…the tomato plants took over and nothing else did well. This year we only planted tomatoes, and they’ve done really well! Not enough tomatoes for me to can, but more than enough for eating. I see soup recipe reels online all the time that have you roast squash and peppers and onions, etc and then, using an immersion blender, turn them into soup. I decided to put the roasted vegetable concept to work with our heirloom tomato bounty, and it resulted in a really delicious pot of soup. Soup is true comfort food. No guarantees, but using this recipe in the middle of winter might even make those flavorless grocery store tomatoes taste good.

Ingredients:

3-4 pounds of tomatoes

1 large onion quartered

10-12 cloves of garlic unpeeled

1/4 cup of good olive oil

2 cups of chicken stock or broth

1/4 cup of fresh basil

1/2 cup half and half or heavy cream (optional)

1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

Preheat your oven to 400°. Line a large rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. Depending on the size of your tomatoes cut them in halves or quarters. Separate the onion quarters and scatter them among the tomatoes along with the garlic cloves. Trimming the ends of the garlic a tad will make it easier to squeeze out the roasted garlic.

Pour the olive oil over the vegetables and roast for 50-60 minutes. The edges of the tomatoes and onions should be browning and blistering.

Dump all the veggies, including the juices, into a Dutch oven or large pot.

Remove the garlic cloves and squeeze the roasted garlic into the pot. Add the basil and chicken broth.

Hit the pot with an immersion blender and blend until smooth. Add salt and pepper to taste. Bring to a simmer over medium heat and simmer for 10-15 minutes. If you don’t have a blender you could purée the soup in a blender or food processsor.

Add the half and half or heavy cream (if using) and the cheese.

Ladle hot soup into bowls and top with additional cheese, wonton strips, croutons, chiffonade of basil, or bacon. Whatever suits your fancy on tomato soup. Of course, tomato soup is delicious paired with a grilled cheese sandwich or a piece of crusty bread. If you have extra tomatoes I hope that you’ll give this a try.

NOTES: I used better than bouillon chicken broth but vegetable broth would also be excellent. Cream or half and half or cream cheese would make a little richer soup but are totally optional. Absolutely no need to peel the tomatoes…no hint of tomato skin after roasting and the immersion blender! As with any savory recipe, ingredients can be modified based on personal taste.

Edamame Crunch Salad

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I’m sharing another recipe I found scrolling reels on the internet. One of my favorite pastimes. This one comes from Crowded Kitchen. I am always looking for new passing dishes to take to our Saturday Nighter get togethers. This chopped salad contains all ingredients I love, and it is so colorful. Because all the ingredients are finely diced the chopping is a little time consuming, but worth the effort. The edamame, mandarins, purple cabbage, miso, and sriracha give you Asian flavors. Miso is a savory, umami rich fermented paste made primarily from soybeans. It gives the dressing a slightly salty, savory, earthy flavor. This beautiful salad has it all…vegetables, fruit, and protein.

SALAD Ingredients:

12 oz of cooked edamame

3 cups finely chopped purple cabbage

2 bell peppers finely diced

1 cup shredded carrots

1 cup finely diced cucumber

1 cup diced mandarines

1/3 cup chopped scallions

1/4 cup finely chopped cilantro

salt and pepper to taste

DRESSING Ingredients:

1/3 cup neutral oil (avocado, vegetable, sesame)

3 T freshly squeezed lime juice

2 T white miso

2 T sriracha

4 tsp honey

1 1/2 tsp garlic powder

3/4 tsp ginger

PEANUTS;

1 cup lightly salted, roasted peanuts

2 tsp oil

1 tsp honey

1/2 tsp kosher salt

1/8 tsp cayenne

2 tsp granulated sugar, divided

I used frozen, shelled edamame and steamed it in the microwave. Allow your edamame to cool completely before adding to the other ingredients. Once you’ve completed all of your peeling and chopping toss all of the salad ingredients together in a large bowl.

I combined all of the dressing ingredients in my small food processor and pulsed it a couple times to thoroughly blend. A wire whisk will also do the trick. Dress the salad and add salt and pepper to taste.

For the peanuts combine the oil, honey, salt, cayenne, and 1 tsp of sugar in a small sauce pan. Over medium heat whisk together and add the peanuts. Cook the peanuts, stirring often, for about 5 minutes. Cool on parchment paper. Once cool, toss with the remaining tsp of sugar. Add the peanuts to the salad for extra crunch.

Refrigerate for a couple hours before serving to allow all of the flavors to marry. Enjoy!!

NOTE: I only used 1 T of sriracha for those folks who are a little sensitive to heat, like me. However, I think 2 T would have been fine. Canned mandarins would probably work fine, but fresh is best. As with most recipes you can make adjustments based on personal tastes and availability of ingredients.

Bean and Sausage Soup

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Another “it’s soup weather” recipe, and I do love soup weather. I’ve been making this soup for years, and I’m pretty sure it was a recipe I found on a jar of Randall’s beans. I must tell you, a jar of Randall’s beans is a great grocery find. They are perfect for soup, refried beans, and baked beans. Randalls do the soaking and cooking for us…so easy to use and delicious to eat. Beans are a great source of plant protein, fiber, vitamins, and minerals and they’re low in fat. As an added benefit, beans are great colon cleansers. 🙂 All beans are considered legumes, but not all legumes are considered beans. For instance peanuts are not really nuts, they are actually legumes…edible seeds that grow in pods. Personally, beans and nuts are more appetizing words than legumes, so bean soup it is.

Ingredients:

1/2 pound smoked sausage of your choice

6 cups of chicken broth

1 cup of diced onion

1 cup of diced celery

2-3 cloves of garlic minced

1 tsp thyme

salt and pepper to taste

28 oz of diced tomatoes

48 oz jar Randall’s mixed beans

kale or spinach (optional)

Prep all of the veggies and cut the sausage into half moons.

Add a tablespoon of vegetable oil to a large Dutch oven and sweat the veggies for a couple minutes. Season with salt and pepper and add the thyme.

Add the sausage, the tomatoes, and the broth. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer, partially covered, for 30-45 minutes. Drain the jar of beans and add them to the soup pot.

If desired, add a few handfuls of chopped kale or spinach.

Continue to simmer for 10 minutes or so until the greens are wilted, and the beans are heated.

Ladle into bowls and enjoy. Delicious!

NOTE: Great served with some crusty bread and a bit of fresh grated parmigiana. I used Michigan smoked sausage from Dearborn, but feel free to use your favorite. You can also add additional vegetables like diced carrots or potatoes.

If you want to kick up the flavor a bit, add some red pepper flakes.

Beef Barley Soup

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Fall is here and that means it’s soup weather in Michigan and, I’m sure, all over the Midwest. Last week I made beef barley, one of my husband’s favorites. I used my pressure cooker because I think the cooking process intensifies the flavors and definitely makes the meat melt in your mouth tender. An insta-pot also functions as a pressure cooker and a Dutch oven on top of the stove would work also. This is the kind of soup that most of us have all the ingredients for in our kitchens. I used a package of cubed chuck and, after searing, I cut it into even smaller pieces. The thing about soup is there are guidelines but no hard and fast rules. Make it your own. Don’t like some of the veggies, substitute. We have a good friend who won’t eat anything with bay leaves, so leave the bay leaves out. Whatever adjustments you make, when it’s done you’ll be enjoying a nice, hot bowl of soup with a hunk of crusty bread or some croutons, and you’ll be happy you made it!

Ingredients:

2 pounds (give or take) of cubed beef

olive oil for searing

1 large onion diced

1 or 2 russet potatoes peeled and diced

3 medium carrots diced

1 cup of diced baby portabellos

3 ribs of celery diced

6 garlic cloves minced

2 bay leaves

Bundle of fresh thyme

2 T tomato paste

2 pints of diced tomatoes

4 cups of beef or mushroom stock (or a combination of both)

1 T soy sauce

3/4 cup of barley

Wash and dice all of your vegetables.

Set your pressure cooker to browning. Season your beef with salt and pepper. Add some olive oil to the pan and sear the meat in batches. Once all of the meat has been seared cut it into smaller pieces and set aside along with all the meat juices.

Add all of the veggies to the pot and sauté for 4-5 minutes stirring occasionally.

Turn the pressure cooker off. Return the beef and the juices to the pan. Add the bay leaves, tomato paste, tomatoes, broth, and the soy sauce. Use kitchen twine to secure the thyme and add to the pot. Secure the cover and process on high pressure for 15 minutes. Allow the pot to naturally release for 15 minutes, and then carefully release the remainder of the steam.

Because I had quick barley I added it after releasing the pressure. Set the pot to simmer and simmer for 15-20 minutes until the barley is tender.

Ladle into bowls and enjoy.

The soup will taste even better on day two!

NOTES: Frequently recipes will call for 1 T of tomato paste and you’re left with the majority of a can. I put the remainder of the tomato paste in an ice tray and when it’s frozen I transfer the cubes to a freezer bag. Each cube is approximately 1 T of tomato paste. No waste and handy for your next recipe.

Seven Layer Salad with Pasta, Fancified

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I’m kind’a embarrassed to blog this recipe because everyone is familiar with this salad. But every time I plan to make a 7-Layer Salad I start counting ingredients on my fingers, and am always missing an ingredient (fingers are all still there). Since I just made this salad for our Saturday night group I decided to save my version of the recipe so the next time I can skip the finger counting. This is a salad I like to make for potlucks because it comes together quickly, and is best when it sits overnight and is tossed just before serving. As with most recipes this can be modified based on personal taste, or what’s in your fridge, and there is an endless array of 7 (or more) possible ingredients. I called this salad fancified because I made it in my not-just-for-dessert trifle bowl. I also added pasta which is not a standard ingredient, but works very well in this salad. And who doesn’t like carbs?

Salad Ingredients:

3 cups of cooked short cut pasta

Romaine lettuce chopped or torn

1 red bell pepper diced

1 bag of frozen peas

1 red onion chopped

1 cup of celery chopped

1 pound of ham cubed

10 oz of shredded cheese

Dressing:

3/4 cup sour cream

3/4 cup mayonnaise

2 T granulated sugar

2 T white wine or cider vinegar

Whisk together your dressing ingredients. Cook your pasta according to package instructions, drain, rinse with cold water to stop the cooking, and allow to cool to room temperature. In this salad the pasta is the first layer down.

While your pasta is cooking chop/dice your vegetables.

Next layer down is the lettuce.

Followed by diced red onion, celery, and red bell pepper.

Next add your peas, and top with your dressing.

Next add the cubed ham and cover with shredded cheese.

Cover with Saran Wrap and refrigerate until you’re ready to serve. Once the salad is tossed it isn’t nearly as pretty, but it tastes delicious. Enjoy, no matter the vessel it is served in. With or without the carbs.

NOTES: Traditional 7-Layer Salad calls for iceberg lettuce. Iceberg or Romaine hold up best in this salad, and either works. Also, the traditional salad calls for bacon rather than ham. I did recently discover that Hormel pre-cooked bacon works really well here.

You can also change things up by using cauliflower or broccoli, using sweet or spring onions, and the shredded cheese of your choosing.

Cowboy Caviar

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It’s been way too long since I’ve attended to my blog, and not because I haven’t been cooking. I’ve come to the realization that part of the reason I blog, in addition to wanting to share food with friends, is because I often have to search through my archives to find recipes that I’ve made, and want to make again. Like this recipe for Cowboy Caviar. This works great as a dip with corn chips or just on it’s own as a side salad. The fresh squeezed citrus gives it a bright, fresh taste. And it is SO colorful. I brought this to our Saturday Nighters group as my passing dish last weekend. As snack foods go I think it’s pretty healthy, and except for the chips, pretty low calorie! Lots of chopping is involved, but it comes together pretty quickly.

Cowboy (or Texas) Caviar was actually invented in the 1950s by Helen Corbitt. She was the food director for Neiman Marcus, and she first served this on New Years Eve at the Houston Country Club. Apparently the very humble ingredients are what inspired the name “Cowboy Caviar.” Regardless of what you call it, it is delicious.

Ingredients:

1 cup tomatoes diced

1/3 cup red onion diced

1 can black beans

1 can black eyed peas

1 1/2 cups frozen sweet corn

2 bell peppers diced

1 jalapeño diced

1/2 cup cilantro

1/3 cup olive oil

3 T fresh squeezed lime juice

2 T red wine vinegar

1 T sugar

1/2 tsp garlic powder

salt and pepper to taste

Dice the tomatoes, red onion, bell peppers, and jalapeño into pieces about the size of the beans and corn kernels.

Drain and rinse the black eyed peas and black beans.

Remove most of the stems (a personal preference) and chop the cilantro.

Add all of the beans and diced ingredients into a large bowl. Make your dressing.

Whisk together the olive oil, lime juice, vinegar, sugar, and garlic powder. Pour over the beans and vegetables and toss. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Enjoy! With or without chips.

NOTE: I chose to use a red and a yellow bell pepper but any color will do. If you want a little more kick do not remove the jalapeño seeds or use the jarred pickled jalapeños. You can also add diced avocado.

Cowboy caviar tastes best if prepared a few hours before eating.

Roasted Tomato Soup

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It’s tomato season in Michigan. The time of year when, instead of being an ornamental addition to a salad or sandwich, tomatoes actually have flavor. Even better when eaten right out of the garden. Unfortunately we live in a heavily wooded area with inadequate sun for gardening so I have to rely on friends and farmers markets for fresh tomatoes. My friend Jane has a small raised garden, and she shared some of her bounty with me. It’s what I used to make this delicious roasted tomato soup. I had also visited a local farm the morning I made the soup, and I bought Roma tomatoes for canning, some gorgeous onions, and garlic. I used one of the very large, sweet onions and an entire head of garlic for the soup. The soup is easy to make, comes together in no time, and is easily modified based on personal preference. A great way to not only enjoy something delicious, but also to get your Vitamin C, potassium, and antioxidants in. And your kitchen will smell great!

Ingredients:

20-25 Roma tomatoes halved

4 T olive oil divided

1 large onion chopped (1 to 1 1/2 cups)

1 head of garlic unpeeled but separated into cloves

1/2 cup packed fresh basil

2 T fresh thyme

2 cups vegetable or chicken broth (I use Better than Boullion)

1/2 cup half-n-half (optional, but a nice addition)

1 cup fresh shredded Parmesan cheese

salt and pepper to taste

Instructions:

Preheat your oven to 400 and line a sheet pan with parchment paper. Place the tomatoes, cut side up, on the baking sheet and nestle the garlic cloves in among the tomatoes. Drizzle with 2 T of olive oil.

Sprinkle with a little salt and roast for 45-50 minutes. While the tomatoes are roasting caramelize the chopped onion in 2 T of olive oil on your stovetop over medium heat, low and slow until they are tender and a light golden brown.

Once the onions have caramelized and the tomatoes are roasted, combine them in a large bowl or Dutch oven. Squeeze the garlic from the cloves and add the basil and thyme to the tomatoes and onions.

Using an immersion blender purée until you have a nice smooth consistency. Add the broth and return to the stove over medium heat. Stir in the Parmesan cheese (and half-n-half if using).

Time for a little sample. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Lunch is ready.

I garnished ours with additional Parmesan cheese and croutons for crunch. Enjoy!

NOTES: I used Romas, but any kind of tomato would work. The amount of onion and garlic is based on personal taste.

Garnishes can include a dollop of pesto or crème fraiche, toasted pumpkin seeds, and cheddar cheese if you’re not a fan of parm.

The soup freezes well and can also serve as a sauce over vegetable crepes or baked chicken. Happy tomato season.

Cucumber and Daikon Radish Salad

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When I was in the grocery this week I spotted some daikon radishes and picked one up. I was impressed that the young man who rang up my groceries recognized every item of produce in my cart, including the radish. He went on to tell me he collects fruit and vegetable seeds from around the world and attempts to grow new, interesting varieties in his own garden. Daikon, in Japanese, means “big root” and that’s just what it looks like. The greens had already been trimmed away but I understand they are also good eating. Unlike the red bulbous radishes we are all familiar with, these are white and their shape resembles a large carrot. They are high in potassium and vitamin C and very low in calories. My husband just read a book that talked about the health benefits of turmeric so good to know this recipe also calls for turmeric. There are countless recipes for both cooked and raw daikons but I wanted them for a salad. I used my spiralizer to make the salad but you can also thin slice the vegetables on a mandolin. Basically what you are doing is pickling the vegetables. It’s a refreshing salad with a nice crunch.

Vegetables:

1 daikon radish (12-16 oz)

1 English cucumber

1-2 carrots

Medium size sweet onion

1/4 cup pickling salt

Pickling Ingredients:

1 cup sugar

1 cup water

1 cup rice vinegar

1/2 tsp turmeric

Combine the sugar, vinegar, water, and turmeric in a sauce pan and cook over medium heat until all of the sugar has dissolved. Set aside and allow to cool completely. While the pickling mixture cools prepare your vegetables.

Use a spiralizer or a mandolin to prepare your vegetables. The spiralizer is so much fun!

Once all of the vegetables are prepared put them in a mesh colander and sprinkle with the salt. Allow the vegetables to sit for about an hour, tossing occasionally.

Give them a couple of thorough rinses to remove the salt before putting them in a sterile glass jar.

Pour the cooled pickling liquid over the vegetables. The vegetables should all be submerged.

Refrigerate several hours or overnight before serving.

Now all you have to do is dish some up and enjoy. We each had a plate for lunch today.

NOTE: You can use more cucumber, red radishes, more carrot. Whatever appeals to you. I used half rice vinegar and half brown rice vinegar because that is what I had on hand. Be sure to allow the salt ample time to draw out the liquid in the vegetables so they have a nice crunch to them after brining.

Butternut Squash Soup

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There was a restaurant that my friend Jane and I used to go to for lunch on Tuesdays when we felt like splurging a little on ourselves.  On those occasional Tuesdays when we wanted to enjoy a nice cocktail or glass of wine with our lunch, and have consistently good food and service we would go there.   The atmosphere reminded me of an upper class, members only men’s club from another era.  Beautiful table settings and good wine and top shelf liquor behind the bar.  Lots of dark wood, big stone fireplace, dim lighting, comfortable chairs…a very formal appearance.  You expect to look around the corner and see a billiard table or library, and men in suits smoking big cigars with a snifter of bourbon to cap off their meal.  Obviously my only experience involving “men’s clubs” is from novels or movies, but I think the friends who have joined us there for lunch would agree with my observations and know exactly the place I’m talking about.  One of the things that we frequently enjoyed there was their butternut squash soup.  It was served with a few salted and chopped pistachios and a small dollop of sour cream or creme fraiche in the center.  It always tasted so good!  Everything we ate there was excellent but I really liked the soup.  I looked through a lot of recipes and came up with an amalgam of two or three recipes.  It doesn’t taste quite the same but it was good.  The leftovers actually tasted even better.  Fresh squash is plentiful right not so it’s a perfect time to make it.

Ingredients:

1 butternut squash peeled and cubed

1 medium sweet onion diced

1 cup of celery diced

1 russet potato diced

3-4 cloves of garlic minced

2 T butter

3-4 cups of broth (vegetable or chicken)

1 T fresh ginger minced

2 cinnamon sticks

8 oz package of cream cheese

Salt and pepper to taste

Dice the potato, onion, and celery and mince the garlic.  Peel, seed, and dice the squash.

In a dutch oven, melt the butter and sweat the onion, celery, and potato.

Add the garlic and sauté until fragrant.  Add in the butternut squash, the cinnamon sticks and ginger, and the broth.  Add salt and pepper to taste.  Bring to a boil.  Once it starts to boil reduce the heat and simmer for about an hour.

You want the squash and other vegetables to be nice and soft.  At this point you’ll want to remove and discard the cinnamon sticks.

Cube up the cream cheese and stir in.

Use an immersion blender to get a nice, smooth consistency.

If you feel the soup is too thick add additional broth.

Now you’re ready to dish it up.  I didn’t have any pistachios or creme fraiche so I used some homemade garlic croutons.  Enjoy!

NOTE:  After eating this soup I’ve decided the potato didn’t add anything significant so I will not use that component next time.  I did add another cup or so of broth to mine after blending.

My friend Jane and I decided that the soup we enjoyed at the “men’s club” had a little brown sugar or maple syrup and was sweeter than this recipe.  Also, the flavor of ginger is more pronounced in this recipe.  Adjust to suit your palate.

It’s not for everyone.  For some people the consistency would be off-putting.  My husband did not like it at all, but I didn’t expect that he would.  And I actually liked it best the second day which is frequently true of soups.  If you like butternut squash and if you like puréed soups I think you’ll really enjoy this recipe.

Pizza Sauce

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It’s once again canning season.  I was really excited to find Roma tomatoes this year.  I had already canned two bushels for 90 pints of stewed tomatoes and diced tomatoes.  We love dishes with tomatoes and I go through a LOT of them every year.  But Romas make really good sauce so I had to buy another peck.  A bushel and a peck and a hug around the neck.  Does anyone else remember that??  It’s from a very corny Doris Day song.   I’ve made pizza sauce in prior years, but my friend Jane adds carrots to hers  for natural sweetness and a nice consistency, and imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.  I’m a little more heavy handed on seasoning than she is, but I really liked the addition of the carrots.  If you’re fortunate enough to find Romas I’d recommend using those but, if not, regular tomatoes will also make a fine sauce.

Ingredients:

16-18 cups of peeled, cored, and diced tomatoes

2 cups of finely diced carrots

1 large onion diced

6-8 cloves of garlic

3 T olive oil

3 T oregano

3 T basil

1 T garlic powder

1 T pepper flakes

1 T fennel seed

3 T kosher salt

1/8th tsp citric acid per cup of sauce

The first thing you have to do is core, peel and dice all the tomatoes.  One peck made two batches of sauce.

Peel and dice the carrots, dice the onion and mince the garlic.

Add the olive oil to a deep heavy kettle.  Sweat the onion, garlic, and tomatoes for a couple minutes.

Add the tomatoes and bring them to a boil.  Reduce the heat and simmer until the sauce reduces and begins to thicken.

Add the spices and the salt.

Continue simmering, stirring occasionally, until the sauce has reached your desired consistency.  It’s not a fast process so you have to be patient.  My sauce simmered for a couple of hours. I used an immersion blender during the simmering process.

Once the sauce has reached the desired consistency you can start filling your hot jars and getting them ready for the water bath.  I used some cup and a half jars as well as some one cup jars.  Add 1/8th tsp of citric acid per each cup of sauce as you jar it.  Carefully wipe the rims of the jars before putting the lids and rings on.  Process in a water bath for 30 minutes. Allow your jars to cool on a towel or mat for at least 12 hours before storing them.

I saved a little more than a cup of sauce from the last batch and made us a pizza for dinner.

NOTE:  Let your own palate be your guide with the seasonings.  Taste while your sauce is cooking.  You can use pint jars if you prefer but I think the smaller jars are perfect for a single pizza.  If you do use pint jars increase the processing time to 40 minutes. This sauce is also good to use on pasta, a meatball sub, for dipping cheese bread, or on a veggie crepe.  Unlimited possibilities!