Corn Chowder

We had so much grilled corn left over from Owen's birthday BBQ that I had to find a yummy way to use it all. Our local produce place, Lane Farms, had 6 ears for $2 so I got a little carried away and bought more than enough corn on the cob. Anyway, I decided to make a low fat version of Corn Chowder and it turned out really good!

Corn Chowder
Recipe adapted from Bon Appetit
4 cups fresh or frozen corn kernels, divided
2 cups chicken broth
3 Tb. butter
1 red bell pepper, chopped
2 Yukon gold potatoes, peeled, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
1 medium sweet potato, peeled, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
3 large shallots, chopped
1 cup black beans, drained and rinsed
1/2 tsp. ground cumin
1/2 tsp. dried thyme
salt and pepper to taste

Blend 2 cups corn and 1 cup of broth in a blender until almost smooth.
Melt butter in large saucepan over medium high heat.
Add next 4 ingredients; saute 5 minutes until shallots are clear.
Add 2 cups corn, 1 cup broth, black beans, cumin, thyme and salt and pepper and pureed corn mixture.
Bring to simmer.
Reduce heat to medium low, cover and simmer until potatoes are tender, about 10 minutes. Garnish each bowl full with fresh cilantro, or chopped green onions (optional).

Vegetable Lentil Soup

As you all know, we love soup in this family. Since we don't eat much meat, I am always happy to find a recipe that includes lentils. They contain high levels of protein, plenty of fiber, folate, vitamin B1, and minerals. They are also one of the best vegetarian sources for iron, which is important for growing kids and pregnant women, a win win in our house :) This soup also includes lots of veggies which we love as well. And the taste...well, you should try it, it's super hearty and full of flavor! A new favorite : ) Add some warm crusty bread and call it dinner!

Lentil Vegetable Soup
Recipe adapted by a recipe on babyfit.com

1 cup dried brown lentils
4 cups vegetable broth
1 (14 1/2 oz.) can diced tomatoes
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 garlic cloves, diced
2 leeks, sliced (or you can use 1 medium onion, diced)
4 large carrots, peeled and sliced
4 celery stalks (including leaves,)chopped
1 small bunch of kale, chopped
1 bay leaf
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
salt and pepper to taste


1. Pour lentils in a bowl, cover with water, and allow to sit overnight. (Alternatively, you can bring them to a boil in 2 cups of water or broth, then simmer with the lid on for 25 minutes until tender, but not mushy).

2. Over medium heat, cook leeks (or onions) in olive oil in a large soup pan. Add garlic and celery. Once celery begins to soften, add carrots, tomatoes, bay leaf and vegetable stock.

3. Pour in drained lentils.

4. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and allow the soup to
simmer for 30 minutes.

5. Remove and discard bay leaf and add vinegar. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Enjoy!

Carrot and Butternut Squash Soup

I had a butternut squash from my garden, and some carrots that were getting close to the end of their prime that were all waiting to be used. With the cold weather we have been having lately, I decided to put it all into a soup. This was SO Good! The white pepper made it warm and spicy, but not too much. I can't wait to make this again, it didn't stick around our house for very long! Sorry no picture...it's smooth and orange, use your imagination! ; )

Butternut Squash and Carrot Soup
Recipe adapted from Better Homes and Gardens
3 cups peeled, diced butternut squash (about 1 small squash)
2 cups thinly sliced carrot (4 medium)
3/4 cup thinly sliced leek or chopped onion
1 tablespoon butter or margarine
2 14-ounce cans reduced-sodium chicken broth
1/4 teaspoon ground white pepper
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 cup half-and-half or light cream
sour cream (optional)
Toasted pumpkin seeds (optional)
Fresh tarragon sprigs (optional)

Directions
1. In a large covered saucepan cook squash, carrot, and leek in hot butter over medium heat about 8 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add broth. Bring to boiling; reduce heat. Simmer, covered, for 25 to 35 minutes or until vegetables are very tender. Cool slightly.

2. Place one-third of the squash mixture in a food processor or blender. Cover and process or blend until almost smooth. Repeat with remaining squash mixture. Return all of mixture to saucepan. Add white pepper and nutmeg; bring just to boiling. Add half-and-half; heat through. If desired, garnish each serving with sour cream, pumpkin seeds, and/or fresh tarragon.

3. Makes 6 servings (6 cups)

Hearty Minestrone Soup

Wow, I can't belive it's been over a month since my last recipe posting! I haven't stopped cooking, I have just been very busy with the holidays and too tired at night to post anything. And honestly, a little too hungry to wait to take a picture before my dish doesn't look pretty anymore! : )

Adam and I took a four day cruise to Mexico 2 weeks ago and as expected, ate way too much on the ship as well (you have to eat your money's worth they say!). So after a month of eating too much which is usually inevitable with me during the holidays, I was in the mood for something healthy and full of vegetables. I miss them! Veggies are my favorite things to eat surprisingly, and I just haven't had enough of them lately...or at least not without some sort of rich sauce they have been drowned in.

One of Owen's favorite things to eat is soup, and I love to make it, so tonight I made a minestrone that used zero (additional) salt and was full of flavor! This was probably the best minestrone I have ever had, and will be making it again and again. Here is the recipe:

Hearty Minestrone Soup

Recipe by, Whole Foods Market

2 Tb Olive Oil

4 garlic cloves, finely chopped

1 medium onion, chopped

8 cups organic chicken broth, or Vegetable broth

2 cups shredded cabbage

1/4 cup tomato paste

1/4 cup parsley, chopped

1 Tb. basil, chopped (I used dried)

4 celery stalks, chopped

4 medium carrots, peeled and chopped

1 bay leaf

1 can (28 oz) of chopped tomatoes

1 can, 15 oz chickpeas

1 can white canelli beans

1 cup fusilli pasta, dried

Grated Parmesean for serving (optional)

Heat oil in a large stock pot on medium high heat. Add onions and garlic and sautee until onions are translucent. Add the rest of the ingredients up to the tomatoes and simmer for 30-40 minutes. Then add chickpeas, canelli beans and pasta. Simmer for another 20 minutes until vegetables are soft. Serve with freshly grated parmesean cheese on top. Enjoy!

I took lots of cute pictures of Owen scarfing this down, only to find out that I forgot to put a memory card in the camera...duh! He was looking so cute too! Oh well.

Corn and Sweet Potato Chowder

Out of my 35 cook books I have been collecting over the years, I decided to pull out one of my favorites; Vegetarian Planet by Didi Emmons. I wrote down every dish that I wanted to make in the next few months. I came up with 20 recipes! I LOVE this cookbook. Tonight I made a delicious corn and sweet potato chowder. Though I thought this was tasty, I think tomorrow it will be even better. I think it needed a bit of salt and possibly a little more spice, maybe thyme, or even a touch of ginger actually. Please let me know if you come up with a new addition for this hearty chowder.

Corn and Sweet Potato Chowder

Recipe by Vegetarian Planet, by Didi Emmons

2 Tb. butter

1 Tb. olive oil

2 cups onion, chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 tsp. cumin

1 tsp. paprika

2 1/2 Tb. unbleached white flour

6 cups whole or low fat milk

3 corn tortillas, cut into small pieces

2 cups corn (shaved from 3 ears preferably) and the shaved cobs

1 large or 2 small sweet potatoes

1 tsp. salt

fresh pepper to taste

squeeze of lime

2 Tb. chopped cilantro (optional)

In a stockpot or large saucepan, melt the butter with the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onions, garlic, cumin, and paprika. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring frequently.

Add the flour and stirring constantly with a whisk, cook for 30 seconds. Slowly add the milk, 1/2 cup at a time, while continuing to stir with a whisk so the flour doesn't lump. Add the tortillas, the shaved cobs, and the sweet potatoes, and simmer the mixture over low heat, stirring occasionally, for 20 minutes or until the sweet potatoes are tender.

Add the corn kernels, and let the soup simmer 2 minutes more. Add the salt, pepper, and lime. Remove the shaved cobs, then ladle the soup into bowls and sprinkle it with cilantro, if you like.

Serves 4 large bowls

Soothing Red Lentil and Tomato Soup

It's raining! I put on my bright pink rain boots, we got Owen dressed in his yellow rain gear and went puddle hunting this afternoon. I played for about 20 minutes or so before it was time to come in and get a warm dinner started for my boys.
I was just waiting for the first storm of the season to try this soup out. I tried it, loved it and will be making this again and again in the future. Forget that plain Campbell's sodium loaded tomato soup, this is a hearty easy meal that leaves you pondering all the flavors that marry in your mouth instantly! The lentils give this soup a nice texture, while adding a good source of protein. The coconut milk and cilantro add a refreshing twist to the regular tomato soup you are probably used to.

Soothing Red Lentil and Tomato Soup

Recipe adapted from www.sense-serendipity.blogspot.com

1 tbsp virgin coconut oil

1 large onion

1/8 tsp ground chipotle pepper (optional)

2 tsp garam masala (found in most super markets, Cost Plus has a great one)

1 cup red lentils,rinsed and drained

2 cans (400g) whole tomatoes, pureed

3 cups chicken or vegetables stock

unrefined sea salt, to taste

1/2 cup coconut milk

cilantro leaves

Process tomatoes in the blender or a food processor until roughly pureed. Then, quickly rinse the lentils and drain well.

To start the soup, first peel and finely dice the onion. Then heat a heavy-bottom soup pot over medium high heat. Add the oil, followed by the onions. Season the onions with sea salt and cook until the onions are soft and tender. Add the chipotle pepper and garam masala and cook for another one minute. Then add the red lentils, tomatoes and stock and bring to a simmer. Lower the heat, cover, lid slightly open and simmer the soup for about 20 to 30 minutes until the lentils are tender.

When the lentils are already tender, chop some cilantro leaves. If the soup is too thick, add more stock. Season the soup with sea salt to taste. To serve, ladle the soup onto soup bowls, then garnish with coconut milk and chopped cilantro.

La Ribollita

When I was in my mid 20's I back packed solo through Europe for 6 weeks. Italy was one of my absolute favorite places I visited. I spent some of my time in Tuscany and spent a wonderful day in the quaint little town, San Gimignano. It was pouring rain when I got there, so I found a local restaurant to wait out the storm. I sat down and wrote in my journal while I had one of the most incredible soups I have ever had! I made a note of it and came back to New York looking for the exact recipe of what I had. "La Ribollita" is Italian for reboiled and "refers to the fact that in the old days the soup was reheated and served day after day."

Though I call this a soup, it is very hearty and more like a thick stew just to warn you. I make this several times a year, and this recipe is as close as I have gotten to what I had on that rainy day in Tuscany. Tonight is a little chilly, so we have a fire going, sweaters on and I thought this would be the perfect soup for dinner tonight.

La Ribollita Adapted from Complete Italian, by Hamlyn

1 can cannellini beans (white kidney beans)

4 Tb. pureed Italian tomatoes

6 Tb. olive oil

1 large onion, roughly chopped

1 large leek, chopped

2 carrots, thickly sliced into rings

2 celery sticks, roughly chopped

2 potatoes roughly chopped

1/2 cup fresh corn (optional)

1 medium Savoy cabbage, finely shredded (I used Napa Cabbage, couldn't find Savoy)

4 cups water

1 tsp. dried thyme (or 1/2 Tb. fresh, chopped)

1/2 tsp. dried rosemary, (or 1 tsp. fresh, chopped)

4 slices stale white bread (I used 12 grain from La Brea bread company)

salt and pepper

Drain and rinse cannellini beans. Blend half of the beans and the tomatoes in a food processor.

Heat 4 Tb. olive oil in a large soup pot, add the vegetables and cook gently, stirring frequently for 10 minutes until soft.

Add the pureed tomatoes and beans and stir well to mix, then add the cabbage, water, rosemary, thyme, salt and pepper to taste. ring to a boil, then cover and simmer for 1 hour.

Tear the bread into the soup and add the whole beans. Stir well to mix, then simmer for 10 more minutes. Check the seasoning, serve hot, drizzled with the remaining oil.

Note: this is a pretty versatile recipe, feel free to add any other veggies you have lying around. Green beans would be a nice addition, or substitution as well.

PS, Owen absolutely LOVED this dish and it's full of good stuff which makes us both happy : )

Roasted Butternut Squash Soup

It's starting to feel like fall already, which means hearty warming foods have started coming out of my kitchen. We live close to the beach so we have had a lot of colder overcast mornings. The kind of mornings you want to pull up the covers and stay in bed, especially when your two year old is calling your name at 6:30 in the morning.

I LOVE fall and winter cuisine. Just in the past three days I have made pumpkin cranberry bread, spaghetti squash marinara, chicken soup, chicken and vegetable pot pie, dark chocolate cupcakes, rigatoni with butternut squash sauce (http://yummymummyfood.blogspot.com/2009/09/rigatoni-with-butternut-sauash-sauce.html that my friend Marina insisted everyone make) and roasted butternut squash soup. I wasn't kidding when I said I like to cook when it's cold out! This is an incredibly boring picture I know. I was too tired to get very creative. Next time.

Here is my recipe for:
Roasted Butternut Squash Soup
(serves 4)

1/2 butternut squash, seeded, roasted and peeled
3 Tb. butter
1/2 large onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup carrots, chopped
1 tsp. fresh thyme, chopped
1 tsp. fresh tarragon, chopped
1 box vegetable or chicken broth
1/4 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
salt and pepper to taste
2 Tb. cream or half and half (optional)

Melt butter in a large soup pot over medium heat. Saute onions 5-7 minutes. Add garlic carrots and herbs and saute 3 minutes more. Add broth and butternut squash and bring to a boil. Simmer for 10-20 minutes until carrots are tender. Add pumpkin pie spice, and blend with an immersion blender or put in a food processor or blender. Add salt and pepper, and cream to taste.

Mamma's Chicken Soup

Since Owen and I are fighting our first (and hopefully last) colds of the year, I decided to make chicken noodle soup. I wasn't too sure how this was going to work out since he had never really had broth type of food before. Turns out it was a hit! I pointed out all of the goods in the bowl and he was pretty excited to try it. He was REALLY happy when he learned that he could drink from the bowl. He had three bowls and was asking for more, I was shocked! Be aware, this can get messy! : )I didn't have enough time to make it all from scratch because, one, I was hungry and two, didn't have a whole chicken in the house. So, I used two boxes of organic chicken broth instead. I sent Adam to Costco to pick up a $5 whole roasted chicken to cut up and add to my soup. It wasn't organic, but it was cooked, cheap and close to home. I wasn't feeling good enough to care at this point. Here is the recipe:

Mamma's Chicken Soup

8 Cups organic Chicken stock
1 medium yellow onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 1/2 cups carrots, diced
3 ribs of celery, chopped
1/2 bulb of fennel, chopped
1 small zucchini, cut in half rounds
1-2 cups cut up pieces of roasted chicken breast.
3 sprigs of fresh thyme chopped (or 1/2 tsp. dried)
1 handful of parsley leaves chopped
1 Tb. fresh oregano chopped (use less if using dried)
1 tsp. fresh rosemary chopped
1/2 cup Israeli cous cous (or egg noodles) I used the Harvest Grains package from Trader Joes

On medium heat, cook onions in 1/4 cup of chicken stock for 5 minutes. Add a little more stock if you need to to keep from burning the onions and your pan. Add garlic and saute for 2 more minutes. Add carrots, celery, fennel, zucchini, herbs and the rest of the chicken stock and bring to a boil. Turn down heat and simmer for 15 minutes. Meanwhile cook the Israeli cous cous or egg noodles till done. Add the chicken and pasta to the soup base and enjoy.

Summery Zucchini-Lemon Soup

On Tuesday I received garden fresh summer squash and lemons from our friends, Suzanne and Andrew. So many things to do with both of these ingredients, it took me a bit to decide what to make. I tried making lemon chicken yesterday...not so good. I am better with vegetables. I remembered making this zucchini-lemon soup as a first course for some friends a few months ago, and it was good enough to make again. It's so easy and light with great flavors. Perfect for a hot summer night when chilled as well.
This recipe came from an awesome cookbook I got for my birthday this year from my mother-in-law, Anna. The Santa Monica Farmers' Market Cookbook. I have made quite a few yummy meals from this book.
Summery Zucchini-Lemon Soup

2 lbs. summer squash cut into 1/2 inch thick pieces
1 onion chopped
1 Tb. chopped fresh cilantro (optional)
kosher or sea salt to taste
1 Tsp. curry powder
1/2 tsp ground turmeric
1 TB canola or other mild cooking oil
4 cups chicken or vegetable broth
1 lemon
snipped fresh chives for garnish
*See note

In a deep wide pot, saute the squash, onion, cilantro, 1/2 tsp salt, curry powder and turmeric in the oil over medium heat until the vegetables are golden, tender and fragrant, 7-10 mins. Add 2 cups of the stock and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, for 10 minutes. Add the remaining 2 cups of stock and continue to cook until the vegetables are very tender, about 5 more minutes.

Puree the soup with an immersion or stand blender. Add the juice of one lemon. Taste and add more lemon or salt as needed until the soup has a refreshing tang. Serve hot, or chill well and serve cold. Garnish each serving with chives and or cilantro.

*I actually omitted the curry powder and used less turmeric. Instead, I used garlic, lemon thyme and parsley. It seemed more summery to me having those lighter cooler flavors than a warm curry spice. It was a good call I think.

Roasted Cauliflower and Potato Soup

Let me start off by saying the cauliflower is not one of my all time favorite vegetables.....until I discovered roasting it. Roasted cauliflower takes on a whole new flavor that is pretty tasty.

I had family coming to visit on Monday just in time for lunch. I had about 2 hours to figure out what I was going to do, AND go to the grocery store! I had a beautiful head cauliflower in the fridge that I had just bought at farmer's market the day before, and one potato that was just waiting to be used. So, cauliflower soup is now on the menu! I accompanied the soup with BLAT's (minus the bacon for moi) and some nice vino. Everyone loved this soup. It's one of my favorites : ) I must warn you, it is very filling. It could easily stand on it's own as a meal, so if you are serving more food with it, go easy on the serving size. I could only eat half of my sandwich.

You will be seeing many more thick soup recipes coming your way as the weather starts to get chilly. I LOVE SOUP!

Ingredients
2 Tb. olive oil
2 Tb butter
3 leeks cut into 1 inch pieces
1 head of cauliflower
1 scrubbed russet potato, cubed (you can peel them, but all the nutrients are in the skin and I like the texture and color you get from the skin. It all gets pureed anyway).
1/2 cup any white bean
3 cloves of garlic
6-7 cups of veggie broth depending on how thick you like your soup!
salt and pepper
1 Tb. chopped fresh herbs for garnish such as thyme, parsley, basil, chives or tarragon

Directions

Preheat oven to 400

Lightly coat cauliflower and potatoes with olive oil, salt and pepper. Place on a baking sheet and roast in the oven for 45 minutes.

Saute olive oil, butter, leeks and garlic on medium heat until soft (about 10 mins)

Add vegetables, beans and broth and bring to a boil. Cover and simmer for 45 minutes. (though I ran out of time and only boiled it for about 5-10 minutes before blending. It turned out fine, but I would have rather simmered the ingredients a bit longer.

When done, use a hand blender or transfer to a food processor or blender to puree the soup to desired consistency. I like mine just a little chunky to have some texture.

Garnish with your fresh herbs, and serve hot.