soup

Chicken Tortilla Soup

~ lisaandfrancescook ~ Leave a comment

img_2423The weather this week has mostly been incredible – sunny, breezy and highs in the low 60s. It’s November – and this is Chicago! My husband and I took a 9 mile walk along the lakefront yesterday and ran into the New Zealand All Blacks and the Irish rugby team fans heading for a championship game at Soldier Field. Ireland won. Rugby. Who knew?

Today is another gorgeous day and I don’t want to spend a lot of time cooking, but I do want something to top off an incredible week. After a stunning win by the Cubs and an all-out citywide party something bland just wasn’t going to cut it. I decided to make a chicken tortilla soup. I had made one last week for the first time and while it showed promise, it just was lacking. So what follows is my version.

Chicken Tortilla Soup

Yield: 4 to 6 servings

Ingredients

2 Tablespoons neutral vegetable oil like a Canola oil

2 small or 1 medium onion, peeled and chopped into a small dice

2 Tablespoons minced garlic

2 large jalapenos (about 2 Tablespoons) , finely chopped

6 cups of chicken stock

14.5 ounce can of fire roasted diced tomatoes

26.5 ounce (or two 14.5 ounce cans) black beans, drained and rinsed well

15.5 ounce can corn kernels, preferably fire roasted or about 2 cups (you can use frozen or fresh corn if you prefer)

1.5 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts (3 medium size breasts)

1 teaspoon Kosher salt

2 teaspoons chili powder (I like the one from Rancho Gordo)

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon oregano leaves

Juice of 2 fresh limes

1 cup roughly chopped cilantro leaves

1 ripe avocado, peeled, pitted and sliced

1 cup Pepper Jack cheese, shredded

2 flour tortillas (I used whole wheat) cut into thin strips and fried in 2 Tablespoons of oil (I used Grapeseed oil because of its neutral taste and high burning point)

Lime wedges for garnish

Jalapeno slices from a jar or can (optional)

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Directions

  1. Heat the vegetable oil in a medium stockpot. Add the onions and cook until softened and just beginning to brown at the edges.
  2. Add the garlic and jalapenos and cook for another minute
  3. Add the tomatoes, spices and salt and stir through. Then add the beans and the stock.
  4. Bring to a boil and add the chicken. Reduce the heat to a simmer and cook uncovered for 25 minutes. Once the chicken is cooked, carefully remove it from the pot. Shred it using 2 forks to pull the meat apart. This is much easier to do if the meat is hot. Once the chicken cools, it becomes more firm and shredding is more difficult.
  5. Add the lime juice and corn to the pot and add back the chicken. The soup can be prepared ahead up to this point. When ready to serve, heat everything all the way through. Garnish with the avocado, cilantro, cheese, tortilla strips and lime wedges. If you want a bit more heat, you can add some sliced jalapenos from a jar or can. img_2422

Hot and Sour Soup

~ lisaandfrancescook ~ Leave a comment

img_2398This is the time of year when the question isn’t “should we have soup” but which soup should we have? I realized that I hadn’t made hot and sour soup in quite some time and since it has always been a favorite of ours, I was determined to remedy that asap. This recipe is from a very early Joyce Chen cookbook. Joyce Chen had a restaurant in Cambridge, MA back in the ’70s and she was an early example of introducing Americans to Chinese food that went beyond egg foo yung and chicken chow mein. There are a couple of ingredients that you would have to get that would not be in your standard non-Asian pantry, but they won’t break the bank and because they are dried, they will last quite some time. They really make or break the dish, in my opinion, so they are worth seeking out if you want hot and sour soup. Everything is available in a good Asian market or online. This can be thrown together pretty quickly and frankly, I have never had one from a restaurant that I have enjoyed more. The seasonings I have given below are for a well-balanced hot and sour soup. I don’t like food that set my hair on fire when I eat them. If you want it hotter, you can increase the amount of white pepper and you can use a “hot” sesame oil; however, you need to keep the balance of white pepper and cider vinegar pretty much the same so you don’t end up with a “hot” but not sour soup. Alot of this can be prepped ahead of time and the actual cooking takes only minutes.

Hot and Sour Soup by Joyce Chen and tweaked by me

Yield: 4 to 6 servings with other dishes

Ingredients

1/4 cup pork loin, thinly sliced and cut into strips

1 teaspoon dry sherry

3 Tablespoons corn starch

4 cups salted chicken stock (I used a lower sodium version)

1/2 teaspoon Kosher salt

1 Tablespoon lower sodium soy sauce

1/4 cup dried wood ears (black fungus)

1/4 cup dried golden needles (lily buds)

1/2 cup firm tofu, shredded

1 large egg, lightly beaten

4 Tablespoons apple cider vinegar

1/2 teaspoon white ground pepper

Toasted sesame oil (hot or regular) for serving

6 scallions, minced for serving

Directions

  1. Mix the shredded pork with the sherry and 1 teaspoon of the corn starch and set aside.
  2. Snap off any woody pieces from the wood ears and hard stems from the golden needles – better quality wood ears and golden needles won’t have this problem generally. Soak the wood ears and golden needles in separate bowls of boiling water, covered for at least 15 minutes and up to 30 minutes.  Rinse, drain and squeeze out excess water. Cut golden needles in half and cut the wood ears into smaller pieces. (This can be done ahead, drained and kept aside.)
  3. Mix the remaining corn starch (2 Tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons) with 1/2 cup of cold water. If this sits, the corn starch will harden and you will need to whisk it well just when you are ready to use it.
  4. Bring to a boil the chicken broth , salt and soy sauce. Add in the pork mixture and boil for 1 minute.
  5. Add the drained wood ears and golden needles and boil for another minute. Then add the tofu. As soon as the soup returns to a boil, whisk in the well-stirred corn starch mixture until the soup thickens, which happens pretty quickly. It will continue to thicken so as soon as it starts, whisk in the beaten egg and remove from the heat. The egg will form egg shreds, which is what you want. Stir in the white pepper and vinegar. Garnish with the scallions and sesame oil. Serve hot. This is best eaten fresh.

Chilled Persian Yogurt Soup

~ lisaandfrancescook ~ Leave a comment

While technically Autumn has started, it still feels warm and muggy in New York.  This soup was a nice antidote to the hot air outdoors, and was refreshing to eat.  While I’m not sure if I could taste the added flavor from them, the rose petals do add a flair of “fancy” and can be found at Kalustyans.com.

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Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup walnuts
  • 1/4 cup dried rose petals (optional)
  • 2 cups 2 percent plain Greek yogurt
  • 1 1/2 cups ice water
  • 1/2 cup golden raisins
  • 1/2 seedless cucumber, peeled and finely diced (1 cup)
  • 1/4 cup finely chopped mint
  • 1/4 cup finely chopped dill
  • 1/4 cup finely chopped chives
  • Salt and freshly ground pepper
  • Ground sumac, for garnish (optional)

Directions

  1. Preheat the oven to 350°. Spread the walnuts in a pie plate (or just a baking sheet lined with foil) and toast for about 10 minutes. Let cool, then finely chop.
  2. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, cover the rose petals with cold water and let stand until softened, about 20 minutes. Drain the petals and squeeze dry.
  3. In a large bowl, whisk the yogurt with the ice water. (You can add water if it seems too thick). Stir in the raisins, cucumber, mint, dill, chives, walnuts and rose petals and season with salt and pepper. Refrigerate until very cold, about 1 hour. Serve the soup in shallow bowls, sprinkled with sumac.

 

From Food and Wine

Vegetable Bean Pistou Soup

~ lisaandfrancescook ~ Leave a comment

img_2181I have been making this soup for years and it is always a favorite. Sometimes I cook my own beans and use the liquid as the basis for the soup stock and other times I’m lazy and use quality canned beans and vegetable stock and a bought pesto. Today I made my own pistou (or pesto). The main difference between pistou and pesto is that pistou doesn’t have nuts. Either way you make it, the soup works. While I will use real cheese in my pistou, there are vegan options if you wish to go that route.

This soup will keep but the vegetables will lose some of their vibrant color when you go to reheat it and the pasta will swell up the longer it sits in the soup. The taste is still wonderful and I find that the flavors actually intensify by the second day; however, if you wish to avoid some of that in your left-over soup, cook the pasta separately, instead of in the stock with the vegetables and only add it when you are ready to eat. Or you can cook the first part of the soup, if making this ahead of serving it, prep the additional veggies and add them only when you go to reheat things. This is a real peasant soup in the best sense of the word, so just enjoy it. Make sure you have a good crusty bread to sop up whatever you can’t scrape out of the bowl – it’s THAT good. An apple tart or crostata would make a perfect dessert.

Vegetable Bean Pistou Soup adapted from Jane Brody’s Good Food Book

Yield: about 8 to 10 servings as dinner

Ingredients

2 Tablespoons EVOO

1 medium onion, thinly sliced

2 large leeks (white and light green part only) well washed and thinly sliced

3 large carrots, peeled and sliced in 1/4 inch thick rounds

3 Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and diced

4 cups boiling water and up to 6 cups of stock (vegetable or chicken)

Kosher salt and pepper to taste

About 4 cups of coarsely chopped kale (any kind) or spinach or green cabbage (See note below)

1/2 pound green beans, cut in half (I prefer the French haricot verts for this because they stay crisper, but plain old green beans will work)

24 to 28 ounces of chopped tomatoes in their own juice

3 slim zucchini/summer squash (a mix of yellow and green is pretty), sliced in 1/2 inch rounds or half-rounds if you prefer smaller pieces

2 cups cooked white beans such as Great Northern, Cannellini or Navy)

1/2 cup of small macaroni or ditalini pasta

Pistou or pesto (about a cup or more, to taste)

Directions

  1. In a 5 or 6 quart Dutch oven or cocotte, heat the EVOO and add the onions, leeks and carrots. Saute the vegetables just until they soften and begin to be aromatic.
  2. Add the potato, the water and 4 cups of the stock and about 1 teaspoon of salt. Bring the soup to a boil. Then reduce the heat to a simmer and allow it to cook for 35 minutes, uncovered. Add the tomatoes. (If you are making the soup ahead of time, this is where you stop the cooking.)
  3. If you are making your own pistou and did not already make it, now is a good time to start.
  4. Prep your other vegetables. If you are not making the soup to eat immediately, you can place them in the fridge already prepped for at least a day. When you are ready to serve the soup, bring the liquid back to a simmer. Add the prepped vegetables and the beans and return the soup to a boil. Reduce the heat to an active simmer (or gentle boil) and cook for about 20 more minutes. Add the pasta and cook for 8-10 more minutes or until the pasta is done.  The vegetables will still have some crunch. If you prefer them softer, cook until desired doneness. NOTE: I like a very thick soup, but if you prefer more liquid either add less kale or 2 additional cups of stock at this point.
  5. Add the pistou and stir it through. Adjust your salt and pepper. Spoon into bowls and garnish with a spoonful of additional pistou (I like a lot) and some grated cheese, if using.

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Nana’s Gazpacho

~ lisaandfrancescook ~ 3 Comments

 

IMG_2105My mother, who recently died, was a wonderful cook and baker in her day. When I was growing up you never entertained at a restaurant, but always at home. It was a great treat to be invited to our house which was always warm and welcoming, where you got to engage in lively conversations and where the food was terrific. At the height of summer when the beefsteak tomatoes were big and red and ripe, my mother always made this gazpacho. She was way ahead of the curve since cooking at home in the 1950s and 60s was generally not so sophisticated. She would make this gazpacho (origins unknown I’m afraid, but I had a very similar one in Cordoba, Spain served with grilled prawns) and a delicious paella with flan for dessert. There are many wonderful and inventive versions of gazpacho that I enjoy, but this is still my favorite. You can get as fancy as you like with the garnishes or just go with some finely chopped cucumber and pepper and a sprinkling of cilantro.

Nana’s Gazpacho

Yield: 6 to 8 servings

Ingredients

3 medium sweet bell peppers ( I used orange and yellow but my mother used red and green)

1 small cucumber, peeled and seeded

1 large Spanish onion, peeled and diced

6 large, very ripe tomatoes, peeled and seeded

3 cloves of garlic, peeled

1 scant Tablespoon Kosher salt

1/2 teaspoon cracked black or Aleppo pepper

2 teaspoons Hungarian paprika or 1 teaspoon of smoked Spanish paprika and 1 teaspoon Hungarian paprika

1/3 cup EVOO

1/3 cup red wine vinegar

2 cups cold water

Directions

  1. To peel the tomatoes you can either plunge them into boiling water for 2 minutes and then into ice water OR you can cut out the core and using a sharp knife, grab the peel and start pulling/cutting it away from the tomato. It doesn’t have to look perfect since it will be pureed in any case.
  2. Coarsely chop the onion, cucumber, peppers and tomatoes and mince the garlic. Set aside.
  3. Mix your liquids with the salt, pepper and paprika.
  4. Working in batches, place about 1/3 of the ingredients in a blender and puree, leaving a little texture. In a large bowl, mix everything together so the mix is evenly distributed. Pour into containers and refrigerate.
  5. When ready to serve you can garnish it with finely diced cucumber, bell pepper and cilantro or use croutons.

 

Green Gazpacho

~ lisaandfrancescook ~ 1 Comment

Green GazpachoThis is such a refreshing soup. It is like eating a garden in a bowl! I first saw this on the Cooking Channel show Extra Virgin with Debi Mazar and Gabriele Corcos. I love gazpacho and make a wonderful version that I got from my mother that is tomato-based, but this one intrigued me since there is not a tomato in sight. It also, frankly, is much faster and easier to make. It now has become a staple in our house, particularly on those dog days of summer when the last thing you want to do is turn on the oven.

Green Gazpacho adapted from Gabriele Corcos and Debi Mazar

Yield: 4 to 6 servings

Ingredients

About 4 cups of green seedless grapes

1 bunch scallions, trimmed and roughly chopped

1.5 large seedless English cucumbers with the skin, roughly chopped

1 large clove garlic

1 avocado

about 2 cups of fresh baby spinach

3 Tablespoons white wine vinegar (I use either Rice Vinegar or Champagne Vinegar)

About 1.25 teaspoons Kosher Salt or to taste

1/3 cup EVOO

1/4 cup cold water

Juice of one lime (optional)

1/4 cup sliced almonds, lightly toasted in a dry pan

Directions

  1. Using a good blender or food processor, combine the grapes, scallions, cucumber, garlic, spinach, salt and avocado flesh. Add the vinegar and EVOO and blend until smooth. Add the water and blend again.
  2. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours. Serve with toasted almonds and crusty bread.

 

 

Vegan Red Curry Coconut Soup

~ lisaandfrancescook ~ 1 Comment

IMG_1748I tend to troll food sites – a LOT. I have a few favorites and then I just stumble onto others. Before I make something new, I always try to find mutiple versions of the same thing and pick and choose from the ones I like best. And then I “tweak.” I am an unrepentant tweaker. The soup below started out as one I read on thekitchn.com website. They got it from Heidi Swanson who wrote Super Natural Every Day. I admit that I had never heard of her or her cookbooks, but I liked the sound of the recipe.

I did a little prep for the soup earlier in the day and then we were gone on a very long, very lovely and VERY HOT walk arriving home – starving! Thankfully, we were able to sit down to dinner within 30 minutes of arriving home and it was wonderful. It may seeem counter-intuitive to eat hot soup on a hot day, but people from hot climates do it all the time. I used a mild Indian Red Curry Paste and it gave us all the spice we wanted. If you are really into spicy foods, you could use a hot red curry paste, but honestly I think you will be masking some of the wonderful flavors. This dish is very satsifying and only needed some naan or pita to go with it. Give it a try – it’s a keeper.

Vegan Red Curry Coconut Soup

Yield: 4 dinner portions

Ingredients

14 ounces extra-firm tofu, cut into 1/2 inch cubes

Kosher salt

2 Tablespoons Indian red curry paste

3 Tablespoons coconut oil (or EVOO) plus a little more for the eggplant and tofu

3 large shallots, peeled and chopped

2 medium zucchini, cut into 1/2 inch circles and then cut into quarters to form a triangular dice

1 Japanese eggplant, cut like the zucchini

4 medium Yukon Gold potatoes, with the skin, cut into small dice

4 large garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped

2 cups vegetable stock

1 can (13.5 or 14 ounce) of regular coconut milk

1/4 cup pumpkin seeds lightly toasted in a dry skillet

2 to 3 Tablespoons coarsely chopped cilantro

Directions

  1. I used a large cast-iron skillet for this. Season the tofu cubes with a little Kosher salt and drizzle it with EVOO. (You could use coconut oil but I used EVOO). Place in the skillet and on medium high heat, allow the tofu cubes to get nice and brown. When one side is brown (about 5 minutes) turn the cubes over and toast the other side until the tofu becomes firm and golden. Remove from the pan and set aside.
  2. In the same pan, brown the eggplant the same way (toss first with a little salt and EVOO) and set aside. Add the chopped zucchini to the eggplant.
  3. In a heavy soup pot ( I like ot use my Staub or Le Creuset for this) mix the red curry paste with the coconut oil and cook for about a minute, until fragrant. Add the chopped shallots. Cook, stirring until the shallots begin to soften.
  4. Stirin the zucchini, eggplant and potatoes and stir well. Cook for a few minutes until the zucchini begins to get tender. Stir in the garlic.
  5. Add the vegetable broth and coconut milk. Bring to a boil, cover and lower the heat to a gentle simmer. Stir occasionally for about 20 minutes or until the potatoes are tender. Because of the small dice 20 minutes was all I needed. Taste and adjust seasonings if necessary.
  6. To serve, dish out the soup and then toip with the tofu and sprinkle with the toasted pumpkin seeds and chopped cilantro.

NOTE: I toasted the tofu, the eggplant and the pumpkin seeds earlier in the day and set them covered on the counter (with the air conditioner going) until we returned home tonight to make dinner. I also chopped the other vegetables and had them ready although they took no time to chop. Then when I came home I started to cook and had dinner on the table within 30 minutes.

 

Yemenite Chicken Soup

~ lisaandfrancescook ~ 3 Comments

Yemenite chicken soup

Chicken soup, no matter the cuisine, is food for the soul. It can cure a cold or soothe you after a bad break-up (is there a good break-up?) I have made traditional Jewish chicken soup and Italian wedding soup and wonton soup and I love them all, but this time I wanted something with a bit more zing. I love well-seasoned foods but not overly spicy. This Yemenite soup has the ability to be very spicy, but you can also control the heat. The fresh herbs and spices smell so wonderful and while many of the individual pieces are familiar, when put together they make a dish that is surprising and incredibly satisfying. I have a good spice store near my house, but if you don’t, everything is available online. It is the spices that make this dish, so don’t skimp or substitute. And if you are into Middle Eastern and Indian cuisine as I am, you will use the spices in many other dishes. Don’t get scared off by the long list of ingredients. The dish itself is not complicated if you follow the steps. It is easiest if made over two days. There are no special techniques to learn or stressful timing. The result is incredibly delicious and totally satisfying. This is especially wonderful served with challah.  Frances made this challah last night and Matthew sent me a a photo. One day, I may even share my recipe which I developed over about 5 years. For now, only Frances and I have it. Warmed pita or na’an would also go well.

challah

Yemenite Chicken Soup adapted from Joan Nathan Yemenite Chicken Soup

Yield: 6-8 servings

Ingredients

One 4-4.5 pound chicken left whole and with giblets removed (you can use the gizzard, heart and neck if there is one, but save the liver for another use)

2-3 onions, peeled and coursely chopped

8 large garlic cloves, peeled and left whole

1 large tomato, cored and almost quartered but not cut all the way through at the bottom

3 stalks celery, cut in half

2 Tablespoons Kosher salt (yes, you read that correctly. It’s a big pot of soup.)

1-2 Tablespoons hawayij (see recipe below)

4-5 carrots, peeled and cut into rounds about 1/4 inch thick

3 medium potatoes like a red or Yukon Gold, peeled and cut into a medium dice

1/2 bunch flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped

1/2 bunch dill, finely chopped

1/2 bunch cilantro, finely chopped

z’hug or harissa to taste (I used red z’hug because I already had it, but there is also green z’hug, which is likely more what the Yemenites use. Moroccans use the red. This is the one place where I cheated!)

hilbe to taste (see recipe below) Start preparing the day before, but at least 3 hours before.

Directions

  1. Place the whole chicken in a large pot and cover with cold water by about 3 inches. Bring to a simmer and skim off the scum that rises to the top, cooking for about 30 minutes.
  2. Add the onions, garlic, tomato, celery, salt and hawayij. Simmer covered for another 45 minutes. In the meantime, you can make the hilbe.
  3. Add the carrots, cover and turn off the heat. Allow to cool.
  4. Once the pot is cool, remove the whole chicken, which should be falling apart as you lift it. Remove the skin and bones and return the chicken to the pot. For greatest ease, refrigerate overnight to allow the fat to rise to the top and solidify. You can then skim the fat and discard it. You can skim the soup without this step, but it is MUCH easier this way.
  5. Add the potatoes to the pot and bring to a simmer. Cook covered for about 15 -20 minutes. Now add the parsely, dill and cilantro and mix through. IMAG0972Cook for a few more minutes uncovered just to warm the herbs. Serve as is or over plain cooked rice and season each bowl (or let your family or guests do it) with the z’hug and hilbe.

Hawayij

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Yield: About 5 Tablespoons

2 Tablespoons black peppercorn

1 Tablespoon black caraway seed

1 teaspoon cumin seeds

1 teaspoon coriander seeds

1 teaspoon of the seeds from green cardamom

2 teaspoons turmeric

pinch of saffron (optional)

Either pound the spices with a mortar and pestle or use a coffee/spice grinder. This can also be purchased online. I made mine.

Hilbe

hilbe

Yield: About 3/4 cup

Hilbe is a creamy Yemenite sauce often added to soup. Fenugreek, which is mentioned in the Bible, is a medicial herb that the Yemenite Jews most likely learned to use from the Indians. Traditionally whole fenugreek seeds were ground with water into a paste. Fenugreek powder (also called “methi” is readily available and can easily be used here.) Hilbe can also be bought online but I made mine. Because I used a red z’hug, the hilbe is pinkish. With green z’hug, it will be green.

3 Tablespoons fenugreek powder

1/2 cup water

Juice of 1/2 lemon

1 teaspoon Kosher salt

1 generous teaspoon z’hug

  1. Soak the fenugreek powder in the water for at least 3 hours or overnight.
  2. Add the z’hug, lemon juice and salt to the fenugreek mixture and using a wire whisk, beat until smooth. Adjust the seasonings, This should be fairly spicy since it is a condiment.

 

Zucchini and Basil Soup

~ lisaandfrancescook ~ 2 Comments

Sometimes in the winter, you just want a warm soup that takes minimal effort.  After all, we’re spending so much energy just staying warm, it would be nice if the soup were easy to whip together!  I feel this way about soup particularly when I’m sick in the winter.  For some reason after making my own soups, I’ve spoiled myself and hate buying soups if I can help it to recover from illness (they just never taste the same!)  But of course when I’m sick the last thing I want to do is be hovering over the stove.  (I decided to solve this problem the last time this happened by making extra soup and storing it in the freezer for the next sick day: gold star for self.)

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In any event, I’ve been making lots of butternut squash and tomato soup, and finally decided to try this zucchini basil soup from an Ina Garten cookbook I’ve head on my shelf for some time.  I had been extremely wary of it, for no apparently reason, given that one of my favorite Korean soups includes warm cooked zucchini.

I sometimes wonder if my feelings on zucchini are related to back when my family grew them in the backyard, and there were just so many delicious zucchini flowers that turned into gigantic zucchinis that just never made it into my (non-existent) “favorite vegetable” list.

In any event, this with a drizzle of basil olive oil and a sprinkle of grated parmesan really warms the soul on a cold winter night.  It also has a nice spicy twang thanks to the red chili pepper flakes, which made for a wonderful pairing with a California Zinfandel.

Ingredients

  • 1/4 cup good olive oil
  • 1 1/2 cups chopped  yello onion
  • 2 tbsp minced garlic (about 6 cloves)
  • 3 lb zucchini (I used about 4 medium-large ones)
    1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
  • 1/8 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
  • kosher salt
  • 1 cup good dry white wine (I used a dry Sauvignon Blanc)
  • 4 cups unsalted chicken stock (Kitchen Basics has a nice one)
  • 1 cup chopped fresh basil leaves
  • grated parmesan cheese or serving

Directions

  1. Heat the olive oil in a large port over medium heat.  Add the onion and sauté over medium-low heat for 8-10 minutes or until translucent.  Add the garlic and cook for one minute.  Add the zucchini, nutmeg, red pepper flakes, 1 tbsp salt and 1 tsp black pepper and sauté for 5-10 minutes or until the zucchini is tender.
  2. Add the wine, chicken stock, and basil, bring it to a boil, lower the heat, and simmer uncovered for 30 minutes, until the zucchini is very tender.
  3. Using an immersion blender, puree the mixture.
  4. Serve with a grating of cheese and a drizzle of olive oil.

Adapted from Ina Garten’s Make it Ahead.

Tuscan Potato, Sausage and Kale Soup

~ lisaandfrancescook ~ Leave a comment

zuppa toscana1I am afraid to jinx things, but mostly Chicago has been insanely lucky this winter. We have had very little snow and it hasn’t even truly been that cold – certainly nothing that lasted for days on end. As a result, I have been slightly less moved to make all of the soups and stews that I normally relish as soon as the temperature drops. The last few days have been a bit colder and the next few are expected to be as well so I went searching for new soups I could try out. I checked out about five different versions of Zuppa Toscana and ended up with my adaptation of a few. Some used 1:1 ratio of whole milk to chicken broth and that just seemed like way too much. And because I used chicken Italian sausage, instead of pork, there was virtually no added fat. Don’t get scared off by the heavy cream; it’s only one cup for a big pot of soup. The soup is actually ridiculously easy to make and you can have it ready in under an hour. Just have some crusty bread on hand and a salad if you are feeling ambitious. There is lots of kale in here so you are getting your greens.

Zuppa Toscana adapted from Tuscan Recipes

Yield: 8-10 servings

Ingredients

1 pound fresh Italian sausage (hot or sweet) that has been removed from its casings

1 teaspoon smoked paprika

1 Tablespoon EVOO

3 large leeks, cleaned well and thinly sliced (white and light green part only)

4 large garlic cloves, crushed

1/2 teaspoon Kosher Salt

10 cups of chicken stock, preferably no salt

4 large Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled, halved lengthwise and sliced into half-moons

1 cup heavy cream

1 large bunch kale (I just used regular curly kale, but you can use Tuscan kale if you prefer)

Fresh cracked black pepper and more Kosher salt to taste

Parmesan or Pecorino cheese for serving

Directions

  1. In a large, heavy soup pot of Dutch Oven, saute the Italian sausage and paprika, breaking it up while it cooks. Cook until just browned. If you are using pork sausage you will need to drain off the fat. Otherwise just set aside in a separate bowl.
  2. In the same pot, add the EVOO and saute the leeks and garlic until softened and beginning to brown. I sprinkle them with the 1/2 teaspoon of salt at this point.
  3. Add the chicken stock and bring to a boil. Now addthe sliced potatoes, turn the heat to a simmer, cover and cook for 30 minutes.
  4. Add the heavy cream, kale and add back the cooked sausage and cook until heated through. You want to serve this hot! Garnish with freshly grated cheese and crispy bread.