Soup Recipes...
For some reason, we don't make as many soups as we ought to, though we all love a good soup. They usually preserve well as leftovers too. Today, I'm starting the soup page as I sit indoors in June of 2011 and watch a heavy rain. Unusual for Northern California. It's cold too--perfect soup weather!
French Onion Soup
May as well start with the classics. We love good French Onion Soup, but I should warn that not overyone is enamored of the Cognac, particularly the young. I understand French Onion Soup in France, and particularly Paris, is regarded largely as a hangover remedy to be served at perhaps 2 or 3 am as the last thing before you go to bed. Works for me, but we traditionally have it as a dinner meal. Ours requires a little preparation and it is worth it. Don't be in too much of a hurry. The onions will be sweeter the slower they're cooked and the flavors more intense the more they're layered.
4 servings:
6 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoon olive oil
3 pounds of
yellow onions, peeled and sliced thin
Large pinch of sugar
4 tablespoons of flour
8 cups of Beef Stock
1 cup of dry white wine
Cheesecloth herb bag with
2 teaspoons dried thyme, 24 parsley sprigs, 16 peppercorns, and 2 bay leafs. Or thereabouts!
12 slices of day old very cursty French baguette cut 1 inch thick. The dryer the better, but we will be baking it to make it crusty
2 large garlic cloves, halved
1 cup finely minced onion
4 tablespoons Cognac
12 ounces of Gruyere cheese, shaved into thin slices to melt easily
2/3 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
Place the butter and olive oil in a large saucepan over moderately low heat. Add the onions, and toss them with the sugar. Cook them uncovered over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until golden brown and carmelized. Usually about 30 minutes, but don't be afraid to keep going until you get the color.
Add the flour and cook, stirring, for another 30 to 60 seconds. Add the stock, wine, and cheesecloth herb bag. Salt and pepper to taste, and cook, partially covered, skimming off the fat occasionally, for 40 minutes.
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Arrange the slices of bread on a baking sheet, brush both sides with melted butter, season with salt and pepper, and bake for 15 minutes. Turn once while baking or until golden. Rub with garlic at the end.
Transfer the soup to ovenproof crocks. Stir the minced onion and cognac into each crock. Cover the soup with bread slices, covering as much of the surface as possible. Lay the Gruyere slices over each crock, and let the cheese hang an inch or so over the sides. Sprinkle Parmigiano-Reggiano over the top and drizzle with melted butter. Bake for 15 minutes, until the cheese has melted.
Switch to preheated broiler and cook until the cheese is bubbly and slightly brown.
Serve immediately.
Chicken and Smoked Sausage Gumbo
When we lived in Houston, Texas, gumbo was easy to come by. It was comfort food we took for granted. Out here in Northern California, it's pretty hard to come by good gumbo, so we make it ourselves. This is a great starter gumbo. Serve it with some boiled shrimp as an appetizer, a pan of cornbread, and maybe a green salad and you've got your own little slice of Lousiana cooking.
4 servings:
1 cup vegetable oil
1 cup flour
1 1/2 cups chopped onions
1 cup chopped celery
1 cup chopped bell peppers
1 pound smoked sausage cut crosswise into 1/2 inch slices. Andouille is authentic, but Kielbasa is good too!
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/4 teaspoon cayenne
3 bay leaves
6 cups water
1 pound boneless chicken meat, cut into 1-inch chunks. Dark meat has more flavor!
1 teaspoon Rusic Rub
2 tablespoons chopped parsley
1/2 cup chopped green onions
1 tablespoon file powder
Combine the oil and flour in a large cast-iron Dutch oven over medium heat. Stir slowly and constantly for 20 to 25 minutes to make a dark brown roux, the color of chocolate.
Add the onions, celery, and bell peppers and continue to stir for 4 or 5 minutes or until wilted. Add the sausage, salt, cayenne, and bay leaves.
Stir for 3 or 4 minutes. Add the water and stir until the roux and water are well combined. Bring to a boil then reduce heat to medium-low. Cook, uncovered and stirring occassionally for 1 hour.
Season the chicken with the rub and add to the pot. Simmer for 2 hours.
Skim off any fat from the surface. Remove from the heat, stir in the parsley, green onions, and file powder.
Serve in deep bowls, optionally with right rice that can be added to the gumbo.