White bean and Pasta Soup

Thanks to the October ‘09 Bon Appetit for this one. Use some of your white beans with garlic and sage for this recipe; save the rest for Tuna and White Bean salad.

• 3 TBS olive oil
• I large onion, chopped
• 3/4 cup chopped carrot
• 3/4 cup chopped celery
• 3 1/2 cups (or more) water
• 2 to  cups white beans with garlic and sage with 3/4 cup  cooking liquid
• 4 small tomatoes, seeded, finely chopped
• 1 cup small pasta

Heat olive oil in soup pot over medium heat. Add onions, carrot, and celery. Sauté until all vegetables are soft, about 12 minutes. Add 3 1/2 cups water, cooking liquid, and tomato and bring to simmer. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer 25 minutes to blend flavors, stirring occasionally. Mix in beans and pasta; bring to boil. Cook until pasta is just tender but still firm to bite, adding more water to soup by 1/2 cupfuls if very thick, about 10 minutes.(I had to add a one half cup of water) Add salt and pepper to taste.

Bavarian Sausage Hot Pot

Bavarian Sausage Hot Pot

Originally uploaded by ted_major

Mmmm, I love sausage. Here’s a quick pot o’ food featuring sausage and some vegetables. Takes about 40 minutes, start to finish, and there’s plenty left for lunch tomorrow.

10 oz bag, shredded cabbage
2 carrots, peeled and cut into chunks
1 lb green beans
1 lb potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch dice
2 cups frozen tiny peas
3 cups beef stock
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1/8 tsp freshly ground nutmeg
1 tsp carraway seeds
1 lb kielbases, sliced
1/4 cup chopped flat leaf parsley

Put broth, carrots potatoes, salt pepper, nutmeg and carraway in a large heavy kettle and bring to a boil Reduce to a simmer, cover, and cook 20 mins. Add sausage, peas, and green beans and simmer 10 more minutes. Stir in parsley and serve with fresh bread.

Kale & Sausage Stew

Kale & Sausage Stew

Originally uploaded by ted_major

• 2 tbs butter
• 2 leeks, sliced & cleaned
• 6 parsnips, peeled & sliced
• 1 lb sausage, sliced (I used chicken habanero)
• 1 qt chicken stock
• 2 cups water
• 2 baking potatoes, peeled & diced
• 1 large bunch kale, cleaned & torn

Sautee leeks in butter over medium-low heat until wilted. Turn up heat to medium and add parsnips. When parsnips start to soften, add sausage. When sausage starts to brown, add stock & water, then bring to boil. Add potatoes, and cook 20 mins or until potatoes are soft. Stir kale into stew, and heat until wilted.

Pork and Clam Stew

I haven’t made this one yet, but it looks tasty, and the video instructions are entertaining:

Oddcast Cooking Course

Thanks to The Invisible Workshop for the photo and link.

Red Beans and Rice

• 2 lbs small red beans, soaked overnight, rinsed, and drained
• 2 cups chopped onion
• 1 cup green pepper, chopped
• 1 cup celery, chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• Olive oil
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 1/4 tsp white pepper
• 1/8 tsp cayenne
• 1/8 tsp cayenne
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 tsp dried thyme
• 1/2 tsp dried basil
• 1 lb sausage, sliced
• 1 quart chicken stock
• 1 1/2 tsp liquid smoke
• 1/2 tsp Worcestershire suace

Sautee vegetables in olive oil until tender and translucent. Add to slow cooker and add beans, stock and herbs & spices. Let cook all day, then remove lid for an hour or 2 to thicken if needed. Just before serving, stir in Worcestershire and liquid smoke. Serve over long grain white rice with hot sauce to taste. As usual, I like a good habanero sauce, but YMMV.
For vegetarian red beans, omit sausage and Worcestershire and substitute vegetable stock.

Brunswick Stew

• 1 1/3 lbs boneless, skinless chicken thighs cut into bite-sized pieces
• 2 Tbs flour
• 2 Tbs Canola oil
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 ribs celery, chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 cups chicken broth
• 1 (28 oz) can fire-roasted diced tomatoes (or 2 [14.5] oz cans)
• 2 cups frozen corn
• 2 cups frozen butter beans
• 2 cups frozen sliced okra
• 1 tsp liquid smoke
• 6 dashes Worcestershire sauce
• 2 dashes Tobasco sauce

Sautee chicken in oil over medium high heat in a non-stick soup pot. When it begins to brown (8-10 mins), sprinkle flour into the pot and sautee, stirring, 2 to 3 more minutes. Add onion, garlic, and celery and sautee another 8 mins.

Add tomatoes (including juice), broth, and bay leaf, and simmer covered for 50 minutes.

Stir in corn, okra, and butter beans, and add liquid smoke, Worcestershire, and Tobasco. Bring to a simmer and simmer uncovered 20 to 30 minutes more.

Chicken Stew with Leeks & Kale

• 1.5 lbs boneless, skinless chicken thighs cut in to bite-size pieces
• 3 leeks, sliced and cleaned
• 8 oz. kale
• 2 Tbs butter
• 1 Tbs olive oil
• 3 Tbs flour, divided
• 4 cups chicken stock, divided
• 1.5 cups water
• 1 cup white wine
• 1 large baking potato, peeled and diced (1/2 inch)
• salt & pepper to taste

In a large, non-stick soup pot, saute leeks in butter over medium heat. Meanwhile, in a large non-stick skillet or ditch oven, saute chicken and sprinkle with 2 Tbs flour and salt and pepper to taste. When chicken is browned (about 8 minutes), add to leeks, then deglaze pan with wine. Whisk remaining Tbs of flour into 1 cup stock, add to wine, and bring to a boil. Add to chicken and leek mixture, then add remaining liquids. Bring to a boil, add potatoes, cover, reduce heat, and simmer for 30 minutes. Add kale and simmer another 5 to 10 minutes.

Black Bean & Corn Soup

• 3 ribs celery, chopped
• 1 red bell pepper, chopped
• 1 sweet onion, chopped
• 1 Tbs olive oil
• 2 links chile-lime chicken sausage, cooked and sliced
• 2 cups chicken stock
• 3 cans black beans, rinsed and drained
• 2 tsp ground cumin
• 1 tsp chipotle chile poweder
• 1 tsp smoked paprika
• 1 tsp ground coriander
• salt, to taste (1/2 to 1 tsp)
• 2 cups frozen silver queen corn

Saute celery, pepper, and onion in olive oil. Add stock, black beans, sausage, and seasonings, and bring to a simmer. Cook 30 mins, then add corn and bring back to a simmer for another 5 mins.

Serve with yellow rice. As usual, I like it with habanero pepper sauce, but YMMV (Claire thinks it’s plenty hot as-is).

Ginger Chicken-Noodle Soup

• 3 quarts organic, natural chicken stock
• 2 ribs celery, chopped
• 1 onion, chopped
• 5 oz Matchstick carrots (half a bag)
• Olive oil
• 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-size pieces
• Grated ginger to taste (I use a piece about twice the size of my thumb)
• 8 oz. medium egg noodles

Put stock in a large soup pot and bring to a boil.

While stock boils, saute the celery, carrots, and onion in olive oil. When the vegetables are done, add to the stock.

Saute the chicken in olive oil until it browns, then add to the stock. Deglaze the pan with a few ladles of stock, and cook the stock down to a syrup. (Remember, kids, the Maillard reaction is your friend!)

When the soup comes back to a boil, add the grated ginger and noodles and cook until the noodles are done, about 10 mins. Total time for the recipe should be around 30-45 minutes depending on how much you cook the vegetables and brown the chicken.

I like it served with a good dose of habanero pepper sauce (such as Sontava) ; YMMV.

This recipe is also good with fresh thyme instead of ginger (in which case I don’t usually add the habanero sauce).