Pumpkin Curry Soup

This Pumpkin Curry Soup has been a winter favorite of ours and went great with lighter red wines at our most recent Holiday Open House & wine tasting at The Boulevard Market!! 30 minutes is all you need to make this soup! It can also easily be vegan by replacing the heavy cream with coconut milk (sold in cans at the grocery store, unsweetened)and olive oil. I garnish it with crushed amaretti cookies or crumbled Maytag Blue depending on if you're feeling sweet or salty! Enjoy!

PUMPKIN CURRY SOUP

1 Tablespoon Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 Tablespoon butter
1 teaspoon fresh Madras Curry powder
1/2 cup onions, chopped
2 cups pumpkin or squash puree
3 cups chicken or vegetable stock
1 cup heavy cream or coconut milk

In a large pot over medium-low heat, combine butter and olive oil and saute onions until soft but not browned. When onions are soft, add curry powder and saute 1 minute to release spices. Add stock & pumpkin puree and bring to a simmer. Cover pot and simmer 15 minutes. Add heavy cream and simmer until soup has thickened. (You may add more or less stock depending upon desired thickness of soup) Garnish with crumbled blue cheese or crushed amaretti cookies; a lightly sweet, crunchy Italian cookie that has a distinct toasted almond flavor)

Cauliflower Soup

Last week I hosted an Open House and a Wine/Beer Tasting and served this Cauliflower Soup. It was a huge hit! For the wine tasting folks, I added a handful of chopped Keen's Farmhouse Cheddar too! I did omit the spinach....just wasn't feeling it ;) Isn't that the great thing about recipes? You can do what you like to make them yours. This is also a perfect way to use up the traditional holiday veggie/dip plate! Substitute the parsnips for celery and even add some broccoli if you've got it!

Fried Proscuitto makes a lovely garnish for this soup. Cut slices of Proscuitto in strips and saute or broil until crispy. We loved the soup with white wine! Enjoy!

CAULIFLOWER SOUP

1 head cauliflower, cleaned and trimmed into ½ inch florets
1 diced carrot
½ medium onion, diced
1 stalk diced parsnip
3 small red or Yukon gold potatoes, diced
2 handfuls of fresh baby spinach leaves
¾ teaspoon ground coriander
3 Tablespoons butter
5 cups chicken or vegetable stock or broth
½ cup heavy cream
Salt & pepper to taste

In large stock pot over medium heat, melt butter and sauté carrots, onions, parsnip and cauliflower until softened and slightly browned.

Add stock, and stir, scraping up all browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Add potatoes and lower heat and simmer about 15-20 minutes. Add spinach, cook about 3 minutes and add heavy cream. Stir to combine and adjust seasonings to taste.

Remove from heat and serve.

Pumpkin Soup Concentrate for freezing

It's fall y'all!
Every year about this time, our rural roads are full of pumpkins sitting on wagons and in wooden crates for mere pennies. I coerce John into pulling over and picking up at least 15 pie pumpkins that leave our hands dirty and filled with those weird little slivers that pumpkin stems give you. Maybe a little sticky thrown in.
But they're homegrown and only $5. I proceed to put them in the garage and slowly use them until it freezes here permanently and they are ruined....until a couple years ago. I now process the buggers right away. Procrastination is never my friend.
I thought you might like an easy freezer recipe to deal with pumpkins and winter squash in a creative and useable way!
I begin by cutting my PIE pumpkins (or any winter squash) in half and roasting them until tender. I then scoop flesh into a suspended jelly bag or cheesecloth and allow to drain at least 6 hours. This keeps the puree drier and less likely to hold water during freezing. Once drained I mash and make this recipe:

Pumpkin Soup Concentrate

2 cups pumpkin or squash puree
4 ounces blue cheese (I used Maytag)
4 ounces Mascarpone cheese
1 cup chopped onions
2 Tablespoons olive oil
2 Tablespoons fresh sage, chopped
Salt & Pepper

Saute onions in olive oil until softened but not browned. Stir in remaining ingredients and pack into freezer containers.

For soup add: 2 cups heavy cream, coconut milk (unsweetened) + 1 cup stock of choice or 3 cups stock

For flatbreads: Using already baked flatbreads: top with pumpkin and bake 375 degrees for 10-15 minutes. Top with prosciutto crumbles and greens that have been lightly dressed with balsamic vinegar

I have been working on a souffle recipe as well and will update when the exact proportions are complete!

posted from Bloggeroid

Cheddar Ale Soup

The winter that won't let go....honestly it's exhausting. At least we have fabulous soup to keep us going! I used a hearty English ale called "Hobgoblin", but feel free to use what you like according to your tastes!

CHEDDAR ALE SOUP

2 leeks, sliced
2 medium carrots, chopped
2 stalks celery, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
4 Tablespoons butter
1/3 cup flour
2 cups milk
2 cups chicken stock
12 ounces of beer
1 Tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon dry mustard
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper
1 pound sharp cheddar (I used Welsh) grated

In a large saucepan over medium heat, melt butter and add leeks, carrots and celery. Stir occasionally until vegetables have browned and softened. Add garlic and cook 2 minutes. Add flour and stir to coat, cook 1 minute until flour has browned slightly. Add all liquids and stirring until smooth. Reduce heat to simmer adding seasonings. Begin adding cheese by the handful and allowing to melt before adding the next. Cooking about 5 minutes. Do not allow to boil.

Serve immediately, fabulous garnished with a few bits of bacon!

Chestnut Soup

If you happened to stop at The Market's wine tasting last week, we paired up Le Grand Noir Cabernet/Shiraz wine with the Chestnut Soup. I love chestnuts and can't wait for them to arrive every autumn. I always seem to eat all of the freshly roasted, so I rely on canned chestnuts for my recipes! I've made several chestnut soups and this BY FAR is my favorite. The earthy-ness of the chestnuts is tempered by the wine and the sweetness of the wine really brings the chestnut flavor to life! I served the soup at The Market sans heavy cream, but if you'd like to lighten the flavors a bit, by all means add the cream.

CHESTNUT SOUP

4 tablespoons butter
1 medium carrot, finely chopped
1 celery rib, finely chopped
1/2 medium onion, finely chopped
2 cups cooked chestnuts or 1 can approx. 15 ounces
1 cup Banyuls fortified wine or Ruby Port ( I have also used Pedro Ximenez Sherry successfully!)
1 fresh thyme sprig
3 cups chicken or vegetable stock
1/2 cup heavy cream
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

2 slices Proscuitto, sliced into ribbons and fried until crispy

In a large saucepan over medium heat, melt butter and add carrot, celery and onion. Cook until softened about 10 minutes. Add chestnuts and cook another 5 minutes. Turn heat to high and add wine and thyme. Cook until wine has reduced by half and then add stock and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a low simmer, cover pan and allow to cook about 30 minutes. Remove from heat, add heavy cream and puree using an immersion or traditional blender. Warm through if necessary and season to taste.

Garnish with strip of proscuitto.

Empty Bowls

Is your bowl full?

I am always so grateful that my bowl is usually full...or at least never empty.

An "Empty Bowls" event was held today in our community of Tecumseh, Michigan.  Empty Bowls is an International grassroots movement to fight hunger.  Many artists, students and craftspeople created bowls (mainly pottery) and donated them to be sold for $10, $20 or $30 each.  Our local fine dining establishment, and bakery donated soup to fill these bowls once you have purchased said bowls and also donated use of their facility and staff.

You end up going home with a bowl (or 3) a lovely lunch under your belt, a sense of amazement and pride at all of the community that has participated in this event and a warmth that your community raised over $3500 to fight hunger.  What more could you possibly want out of a Monday?  

Since John and I didn't get there until nearly 2pm, I kept my soup until suppertime, washed my new bowl and Taa-daa!  Beautiful!

 

If you'd like more info about the "Empty Bowls" movement or to start your own event, you can find it here:
www.emptybowls.net

Brie Soup for the Soul

The beautiful bout of Indian Summer here has kept me raking leaves, grilling and enjoying the season's last garden flowers. It saved me from the most hated task of changing the closets and bureaus over to winter!

I did however, have the most lovely weather for The Market's ,Soups and Sandwiches, cooking class. It was windy, drizzle-y and just plain nasty! Thanks Mother Nature! Fall soups aren't as tasty if the weather is beautiful and 80!

It's no surprise I had to throw in a cheese soup recipe but I wanted something a bit unusual. After scouring many recipes, I put together my own! I think it turned out great! It's quick, takes little prep, velvety and not too rich. Elegant enough for a dinner party, yet pleases your palate when you are wanting something more home-style.

A couple notes on the brie cheese; cooking with cheese is like cooking with wine...if you don't like the cheese, it won't taste any better in your cooked dish. Choose a brie that you love, the flavors will be enhanced by the other ingredients! You can purchase brie and it will last about 2 weeks in your fridge, after that, you may not be thrilled with the flavors depending on where you bought it. The bland stuff you get at the grocery will garner a bland soup. You do not have to remove every little bit of the rind, it won't melt and it will strain out at the end!

While I garnished with fresh basil, I can't help but think some pear slices, sauteed in butter, salt and peppered, would be lovely on top of this soup! Enjoy.

BRIE SOUP

3/4 cups Chicken Stock
1/2 cup Dry White Wine
2 Tablespoons Balsamic or Sherry Vinegar
4 cups heavy cream
12 ounces Brie cheese, rind removed cut in 1 inch pieces
1 clove garlic, minced
Sprig of fresh thyme
Sprig of fresh basil
Salt and pepper to taste
Additional basil or thyme for garnish

In a saucepan over high heat, bring stock and vinegar to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer about 15 minutes until liquid is reduced to about 1 cup. Keeping on low heat, add rest of ingredients and cook and stir about 8 minutes until cheese is completely melted. Strain using a fine mesh sieve and serve immediately.


If you are interested in joining one of The Market's cooking classes, feel free to contact me via email erika@boulevardmar.com or call 517-423-6000. We have 5 Ingredient Appetizers, Holiday Feast, Gifts from your Kitchen and Easy & Elegant Entertaining coming up! We demo some techniques, talk about wine pairing, enjoy sampling every recipe and more!

Late Summer Corn Chowder

Pisum sativum; Sweet Corn

Born and raised in a farming family, there are 2 types of sweet corn; "not enough" and "too much"! Every year, we wait for the first glossy kernels to ripen and explode in your mouth with the first bite! We are impatient and eat them a bit too young, but it matters not, because they are so delicious! At the end of the season, we are taking those golden stalks for granted and we're PICKY! "This is overripe", "this is too chewy", "are we having sweet corn again?!", "not as sweet as last weeks'" and on it goes. We are cutting the stuff off of the cobs like no tomorrow and running out of ziploc bags and vacuum sealer bags. The counters are sticky, and you can't seem to get every little cut kernel swept off the floor. However, those fat little bags of steamy corn will remind us of summer come January...and you can't just throw it away!

With a rain storm brewing last evening, I made my favorite corn chowder. Rich, thick, packed with flavor and garnished with cheese! It was a masterpiece that I'd like to share with you! I actually saved about 3 days worth of leftover sweet corn just for the soup, so no waste! I hope you enjoy as much as we did! I served my soup with toasted bagels layered with a bit of cream cheese and a thick slice of fresh tomato! Late Summer....

10 ears of sweet corn blanched and cut from cob
1 1/2 medium sweet white onions, chopped
1 pound baby red potatoes, washed and cut into 1/2 inch cubes
1/2 pound of bacon, cut into 1 inch pieces
3 Tablespoons good quality olive oil
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/4 cup butter
8 cups chicken stock
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
1 Tablespoon fresh snipped chives
1 teaspoon fresh thyme, snipped
1 teaspoon fresh parsley, snipped
1/2 pound of good quality cheddar cheese

In a large dutch oven, brown bacon in olive oil until crispy. Remove bacon and add fresh onions and saute over medium heat until translucent and soft. Add flour and butter and cook about 3 minutes, stirring constantly. Add stock and potatoes and let cook about 15 minutes until potatoes are fork tender. Add sweet corn, herbs and heavy cream and reduce heat to simmer about 10 minutes or until soup has thickened. Garnish with shredded Irish cheddar cheese from The Boulevard Market and bacon.

This is a rather large batch, but you can share with a friend or have leftovers! I have also thrown in a small container of leftover cooked rice and that was fabulous! All of my produce is compliments of Prochaska Farms...we trade cheese and labor for vegetables and pick up truck usage!

Roasted Tomato Soup

Sometimes I just don't know what to make for supper! The nights when nothing sounds good and you just can't get up the energy to think about one more thing...it's tomato soup and grilled cheese! Our daughter, Julia is 17 and vegetarian, and this is one of her personal favorites! Late summer in Michigan has us wallowing in tomatoes so I use fresh now, but the canned are great for this recipe too! I like to puree mine, but if you prefer chunky soup...feel free! Like most soups, this tastes better the next day for lunch and freezes well for about 3 months. This is a smallish batch that feeds 4 comfortably or you can double it easily.

Grilled cheese is interesting for us...we make them from every kind of cheese we have in the fridge (American slices are not real cheese!) and add whatever we want. The beauty and downfall of owning a cheese shop is that just what you need you don't have at home, so improvise! We like to sprinkle the cheese with herbs, add roasted peppers, mustard or jam before frying. Melted cheese is somehow magical and comforting! I am fine with any sort of bread we have around.

1 14 oz can chopped tomatoes, drained or 4 large fresh tomatoes, peeled and chopped
1/4 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Salt & Pepper
Heat oven to 450 degrees, pour tomatoes into 13X9 pan, drizzle with EVOO and season with salt and pepper. Roast about 15 minutes (20 for fresh) until caramelized.

1 carrot, chopped
1 stalk celery, chopped
1 small onion, chopped
1 clove garlic minced
1/2 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 1/2 cups vegetable or chicken stock
2 Tablespoons butter
1/2 cup heavy cream (optional)
1/4 cup fresh basil, chopped

While tomatoes are roasting, in a large saucepan over medium heat, saute vegetables in EVOO until softened about 10 minutes. Add tomatoes, butter and stock and simmer 15 minutes until vegetables are very soft. Remove from heat and add cream and basil and blend with immersion blender until desired consistency. You can garnish with extra chopped basil, croutons or some crumbled blue cheese (Roquefort is delicious!) You can also substitute about 1/4 cup blue cheese for 1/4 cup of heavy cream for a different spin! Enjoy!