Broccoli and Cheddar Soup

Day 25: Copy Cat

I admit it, this is kinda a rip off of a recipe that I already posted. BUT, its my birthday, and while I wanted to cook some soup, I really put most of my effort into sitting on the couch eating chocolates and watching romantic comedies. So I used my old recipe for cream of broccoli soup and added a brilliant melted cheese topper to create tonight's soup:

Broccoli Cheddar Soup

2 tbsp olive oil

1 medium onion, diced

3 celery stalks, diced

3 cloves garlic, minced

2 tbsp dijon mustard

2 small white skinned potatoes

1 lb broccoli, chopped

6 cups vegetable broth

1 cup lowfat milk

salt and pepper to taste

6 slices cheddar cheese

Heat oil in a large soup pot. Cook onion, celery and potatoes over medium high heat 5 minutes till lightly cooked. Add 2/3 of the broccoli and all of the garlic and cook until broccoli is bright and green. Add broth and mustard and bring to a boil. Simmer over low heat until the vegetables are cooked and soft (about 20-30 minutes). Using an immersion blender, blend until smooth and return to pot. Add milk and heat thoroughly. In the meantime steam remaining broccoli until soft. Add to soup and salt and pepper to taste. To serve ladle into a soup bowl and lay cheese slices on top. Place under a broiler until cheese is bubbling.

Jay's review:

3.5 yums (out of 5). Not as good as it sounded...

Garlic Broth with Poached Eggs

Day 23: Asceticism is for Ascetics

I thought that the Potato Soup was simple, but this recipe has set a new bar for simplicity for the month. Jay wanted to try a soup that involved poached eggs and I found a tempting recipe on Epicurious for eggs poached in a garlic broth. The thing is, poaching eggs is harder than it sounds. All conditions have to be ideal and the slightest variation in the freshness of eggs, temperature of the water, or the temperature of the eggs can mess the whole process up and the recipe I found had this elaborate precess for poaching the eggs in the broth in a small 6 inch circle created by a round of bread. This sounded unnecessarily complicated to me. Jay practiced all weekend to be able to achieve the perfect poached egg and introducing new obstacles seemed like a bad idea. In addition the recipe sounded a little on the plain side. So I adjusted technique and recipe slightly to achieve something with a little more "interest". Despite these adjustments Jay still felt like it was a soup for ascetics, granted a tasty soup for ascetics. I recommend you serve it as a first course or along side a substantial side unless you want a very light meal. Strain the leftover broth and use for your next soup!

Garlic Broth with Poached Eggs

3 tbsp olive oil

3 heads garlic, cloves separated and peeled

8 cups water

2 tsp + red pepper flakes

1 cup kale or other green, sliced thin

8 slices of a baguette, stale is fine

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

4 fresh eggs

water

2 tsp white vinegar

salt and pepper to taste

In a large soup pot heat 1 tbsp olive oil over low heat. Cook garlic cloves slowly until the garlic is lightly browned and softened. Add water and bring to a boil. Lower heat and simmer 40 minutes until the garlic is very soft. Remove cooked garlic with a slotted spoon. With a fork mash garlic into a paste. Add 1 tsp of red pepper flakes, salt to taste, and set aside. Season broth with remaining red pepper flakes and salt and pepper to taste. Bring to a boil again and add kale. Cook for 2 minutes until kale is just soft. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside. Keep broth warm but not boiling.

Heat a skillet over medium high heat. Brush both sides of bread with olive oil and place in the pan. Cook each side until just toasted. Remove from pan and spread one side with a bit of garlic mash. Place on an ungreased baking sheet and sprinkle with cheese. Cook under a broiler until the cheese is melted and bubbling. Remove and set aside.

Crack eggs into separate small glasses and bring to room temperature. In a deep skillet heat 3-4 inches of water to a boil. Add vinegar. Lower to a slight simmer. Dip cup into the water allowing the water into the cup but not allowing the egg out. Slowly drop egg into the water and draw errant edges together. Cook for 3 minutes and remove with a slotted spoon. Place in the warm broth while you prepare the rest of the eggs. It is difficult to cook more than two eggs at the same time as the water cools with each addition. It is easiest to cook 2 at a time and reheat water in between.

To serve, split the kale between two bowls. Add two eggs each on top of kale. Pour broth over to fully cover and top with two pieces of bread.

Jay's review:

3.5 yums (out of 5)!. I'm hungry already!

On the Brighter Side

Day 4:

After the heaviness of yesterday's chicken and dumplings we were both craving something light and full of bright vegetables. We thought instantly of carrot soup. There are a myriad of carrot soups out there - I will surely be experimenting with many of them over the next few months. Today, I decided to follow Deborah Madison's (of Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone) advice and combine the sweetness of carrot with some spice. She also recommends adding a small amount of white rice to the soup to add body and prevent the soup from separating. I did this and it did in fact keep the soup from separating in the bowl, but it also added an almost fluffy consistency to my pureed soup. I combined a few recipes to come up with this south-of-the-border inspired carrot soup. I served with simple corn quesadillas. Overall it was a very easy and quick soup to prepare, but not my favorite so far:

Spicy Carrot and Red Pepper Soup

2 tbsp olive oil

1 med onion, diced

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp ground coriander

2 tsp sweet paprika

a pinch of cayenne

2 dried bay leaves

2 tbsp white rice

1 lb carrots, peeled and diced

1 red pepper, diced

4 cups vegetable stock

salt and pepper to taste

juice of one lime

good quality pepper sauce such as cholula (optional)

Saute onion and garlic in olive oil till onions are soft. Add spices, bay leaves, and rice and cook two or three minutes more. Add chopped vegetables and stock. Bring to a boil and simmer until carrots are very soft and rice is cooked. Using an immersion blender or food processor blend the soup and add lime juice. Salt and pepper to taste. Serve with a garnish of cholula or tabasco if a spicier soup is desired.

Jay's review:

3.5 yums (out of 5)! Cholula made this a winner. :) 3.0 yums without Guadalajara Goodness.