Homemade Gumbo in the Freezer is like Money in the Bank!

             This has been a bit of a crappy week.  I have felt horrible: headache, sore throat, weak.  See- sawing between being hot, being cold and both at the same time.  Pretty much like the outdoor temperature,  although today is quite nice. We have had the darkest April on record which may have something to do with the general failure of my seedlings.  Germination and death or germination and stunted growth seems to be the theme.  I may have to scrap starting my plants by seeds this year.  Sure, I will be able to find herbs, coleus, marigolds even an heirloom tomato or two.  Will I be able to find purple okra, red corn, strawberry spinach etc?  I think not.

My pants that I ordered on line did not fit, even though I have ordered the same size from the same company for years.  The morning paper was not on my porch this morning, or anywhere to be seen. I just killed a bee inside my house and now I worry that I have upset the whole ecosystem.  And I just found out that Johnny Depp was just across the street from me and didn't even bother to visit. Really Johnny? 


I am the biggest baby when it comes to feeling poorly.  Everything is so difficult.  Decisions are nearly  impossible to make.  What color socks to wear today?  What should I have for dinner? 


It is great to open the freezer and find a container of homemade soup just waiting for a day like this.  Pop in the fridge in the morning, whip up a quick cornbread in the evening and presto- Bob's your uncle- you have a bowl of cheer. Brilliant! Suddenly the day is not rainy it's a little bit soft.  Well tuck in!   Hmm...maybe I've watched too much BBC this week.  

The soup I had in the freezer was a gumbo with andouille sausage left over from Marti Gras dinner.  The first time we had the soup I also added some left-over chicken.  This time I am having it with the andouille only for me and the addition of shrimp for Bean.   


Gumbo Soup with Andouille Sausage

• 2 links of Andouille sausage
• 2 small onions, chopped
• 2 ribs of celery, chopped
• 2 bell peppers, green and yellow (sometimes I use all green or green and red)
• 3/4 lb of okra, sliced about 1/2 inch thick
• 15 oz of canned tomatoes, chopped and with juice
• 4 cups of chicken broth
• 2 cloves of garlic
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 Tbl creole seasoning ( I made a mix based on Emeril's Essence)
• 1Tbl of Worcestershire sauce 
• vegetable oil - 2T then an additional 1/3 of a cup
• 2/3 cup of flour
• salt and pepper to taste
• green onions, sliced

Heat 2T of oil in the bottom of large heavy saucepan and add the links of andouille sausage to brown about 5 minutes. Remove the sausage and add an additional 1/3 cup of oil and the flour to make the roux.  Creole recipes call for the roux to be cooked until it is the color of peanut butter and Cajun recipes, the color of dark chocolate.  This process takes a while, so you can use the time to cut up the vegetables. Then sit down with a cup of tea.

The word gumbo comes from the West African word for okra, so I always like to include some.  Some people think the texture is too gelatinous, but I've never had a problem with it.  Bell peppers, onion and celery are often referred to as the "holy trinity" of Creole and Cajun cooking.

After 30 minutes the roux went from very pale to peanut butter color very quickly.  I cooked it for an additional ten minutes, but it did not get much darker.  I decided to use it as is and added the vegetables.

The vegetables (minus the tomatoes) and garlic were sauted in the roux for about 10 minutes. Yes I know- it looks weird!  The tomatoes, chicken stock and spices were then added to the pot and the mixture was simmered for about 40 minutes.  The sliced andouille and green onions were added to the mix and cooked for 30 minutes more.  Serve over rice.


If the soup looks too thick at any point, you can add some "water sauce".  I remember a couple of pointers from my Uncle Tony when he made his delicious spaghetti sauce: Always saute the tomato paste and the importance of water sauce if it's too thick. 

A little effort on a day when you are feeling chipper will serve you well on a future day when you are decidedly not.

Mushroom Soup for a Cold March Day

The calendar may say it's spring, but it is still raw and cold even with the sunshine.  For me, March is the month full of cruelty and deception.  I have a bad case of cabin fever though, and since the house no longer feels as warm and cozy as it did during the winter, I decided that I might as well step outside.  The sap is still rising and I wouldn't want to miss that!

In the middle of the city is a 46 acre nature preserve and Bean and I went there for the Maple Syrup Festival.  The first picnic of the year!  Dozens of hardy/foolish people sitting outside in the cold eating pancakes with maple syrup, hot dogs and hot cocoa.

The trees around here are still pretty bleak looking and you must search the ground for  signs of life.

Lichen and moss covered some of the fallen timbers with their gorgeous colors and textures. 

Some of the maples are tapped.  It takes 40 gallons of sap to make one gallon of maple syrup. The sap runs clear and must be boiled down to get the beautiful amber color.

 The sap is filtered and heated until about 7 degrees above boiling point.  I wonder if anyone would notice if I put taps on a few trees on my street?  Maybe next year's project!


Bean and I headed home feeling pleasantly tired from all the fresh air.

A great day to make soup- but what kind?  I opened the refrigerator and zoned out a bit. Decisions, decisions - so many options.  You don't need a lot of ingredients to make soup and unless my fridge is completely bare  there is something there to make a tasty soup. I spy a brown bag filled with oyster mushrooms, courtesy of Bean's trip to the Oriental market.  Perfect.  Mushrooms are wonderfully earthy and definitely tie in with our little walk in the woods.

I am keeping the soup pretty simple: fresh oyster mushrooms, a little dried shitake, leeks, beef broth, butter, a splash of port, fresh thyme, salt and pepper. I was really excited by the fresh thyme!  As cold as it is, there is a bit of life in my herb garden.  The chives which are the first herbs to come alive are already six inches high! 




Mushroom Soup

• 4 oz leeks, chopped
• 5 oz oyster mushrooms, roughly chopped
• 1/2 oz dried shitake mushrooms
• 2oz (about 2Tbl of port wine)
• 3 Tbl butter
• 3 1/2 cup beef broth
• fresh thyme, salt, pepper

Soak the dried  shitake in 2/3 cup of boiling water for 30 minutes
On low/medium heat, cook the chopped leeks in 1 1/2 Tbl of butter for about 10 minutes until soft, but not browned. Add another 1 1/2 Tbl of butter, a little fresh thyme, the oyster mushrooms and the  shitakes, (but not the soaking water) and let the mixture sweat for an additional 8 minutes. Do not brown. Strain the mushroom soaking water through a coffee filter lined sieve and add to the pot with the beef broth, and port wine.  I wanted the alcohol to cook out, but you can add it at the end if you prefer.  Cook for one hour. Season with salt and pepper. Transfer the contents to a blender and Carefully process until smooth, while holding the lid of the blender with a towel.  You might want to do this in two batches and/or wait until the mixture cools a bit. Make the rookie mistake of dumping it in and hitting the button and you just might end up with hot bits in your face and hair and splatters on your cabinet doors.  Just saying.

This recipe is very rich and smooth even though it does not have any cream in it. The recipe is very adaptable as well.  You can use onions instead of the leeks and chicken or vegetable broth instead of the beef broth. The beef broth adds an extra rich, earthy flavor. You can use white wine, sherry, or no wine at all. You can substitute the mushrooms as well; brown mushrooms, button mushrooms, porcini mushrooms... Well you get the picture. It will be a little different each time, but all good. Earthy, rich and comforting.  Since it is full flavored, a little bowl goes a long way 

 I garnished the soup with a goat cheese crouton and a sprig of thyme.

Roasted Beet Soup

Happy Valentine's Day!!


I am a firm believer in enjoying  collective culinary experiences.  I know next to nothing about football, but I am quite happy on Superbowl Sunday  to eat wings, chili, chips and dips. I do take a pass on the beer though.  A taste for which I have never acquired.  So even though my sweetie and I have opted to stay in for dinner, rather than go to a restaurant,  I want our dinner to somewhat reflect  the spirit of the day.  Given a little love, the single lonely and dowdy beet in the fridge was turned into a colorful borscht.  Salmon for the entree will continue the valentine color scheme with a demure pink.  Loaded with omega 3-fatty acids salmon is heart healthy as well. For dessert?  Why chocolates of course.

I am not a cutesy, heart and ruffle kind of gal, but I decided to take a look around the house for hearts.  I was sure to find some in my collection of folk art. 

Graceful twining grape leaves adorn the center of a colorful hooked rug filled with a beautiful design of cottage flowers.  This is one of my Claire Murray rugs which I love.  The black background gives the design a strong modern edge.  The overall look is graphic and vibrant, without looking too sweet and cutesy. 

This cottage flower rug features a cherub carrying a bow and arrow.  Aww... it's cupid!  Okay... maybe this borders on cutesy!

Papercuttings.  The heart in hand motif was popular in many types of folk art symbolizing love, friendship, generosity and truth.  The papercutting on the right also has embossed hearts around it.

This is a reproduction red-ware pedestal dish. The design is a Pennsylvania Dutch sgraffito,  which involves layering colors and scratching away layers to make the design.

This is a fairly large wooden plaque,carved and painted and framed in rustically carved wood.  This piece adorned the door of a millinery shop in my neighborhood.


                                               ~ Peace and Love~

Roasted Beet Soup                                                               

• 1 large beet, roasted and chopped ( for a large beet. roasting will take an hour or more)
• 1 stalk of celery, chopped
• 1/2 of small onion, chopped
• 1/3 of cup of chopped canned tomatoes
• 1clove of garlic, chopped
•  small apple,cored,pared and chopped
• 1Tbl of butter
• 1Tbl of vegetable oil
• 4 cups of beef stock (or chicken or vegetable)
• bay leaf
• thyme
• lemon juice
• salt and pepper
• 1 Tbl of prepared horseradish
• sour cream for garnish

Heat butter and oil in pan and add chopped vegetables, apple and a couple of tablespoons of the beef stock.  Stir and cook  with the pot lid on for about 15 minutes, on med/low heat. Shake the pan occasionally, so the vegetables won't stick to the bottom of the pan. Add the rest of the beef stock, a bay leaf, sprinkling of thyme, a little lemon juice and salt and pepper. Bring the mixture to a boil and then lower the heat and gently simmer for 30 minutes. Add the horseradish and  puree the soup until it is creamy and smooth.  Ladle the soup into bowls and garnish with sour cream.  You can change the soup and add whatever vegetables you like: tomatoes, carrots, potatoes etc.

Patti Smith and Lettuce Soup

Patti Smith; Poet, singer- songwriter, author, visual artist and the godmother of punk. She was inspiration for my morning breakfast.


Woke up early on my day off to a gloomy day and the perennial breakfast question - sweet or savory?

I decided that it was a good day to try something different, something a bit off- the-wall. 


Breakfast soup!  A Caesar salad soup if you will, with lettuce, egg, parmesan cheese, Worcestershire sauce, olive oil and garlic croutons.  Bean was snug as a bug in bed, so I did not have to justify my odd breakfast fare. My bohemian repast.

It gave me the excuse to practice poaching an egg.  In the past year I have had a sudden re-appreciation of eggs.  It's not that easy to make a pretty poached egg.  I broke the egg so that the yolk would run into the broth.


Now you may be wondering- what possible connection is there between Patti Smith and my soup? During lean financial times lettuce soup was a specialty of hers.  Perhaps she was not acquainted with packages of  ramen noodles.  Those 10 for a dollar noodle packs were the center of many students'  meals when I was in my twenties.


I learned about her lettuce soups and anchovy sandwiches during a reading of her book Just Kids which is a memoir of her friendship with Robert Mapplethorpe. Last February, spurred on by a bit of cabin fever Bean and I attended her reading.  I know pathetically little about rock and roll or punk music.  The only groups whose music I can identify, with any degree of success are the Beatles and Rolling Stones.  Bean on the other hand, can not only identify the group, he can name all the members, the producer of the album, any other groups the musicians were involved in etc. A spew of information that usually makes my eyes water and my brain go numb.

I love biographies, autobiographies, memoirs, compilations of letters and it is for this reason I went to the reading.  I hadn't read her book yet; we were on the library's waiting list. Bean grabbed a book for her to sign, The Melodious Mystic. How apropos!  Surely Ms. Smith would not be offended by our lack of her book.  She read, played the guitar, sang, answered  questions and took pictures of the audience. She looked happy.  She seemed relaxed.

                                                                      

                                                                          

Patti Smith scribbled a drawing which she said was Pinocchio, because she always aspired to write a book that was as good as Pinocchio.                                                                                          

 

Black- Eyed Pea Soup for the New Year

Happy belated New Year! 

Although my soup making efforts were fairly substantial, my blogging was patchy at best! 

I don't remember any food related traditions in my family for New Year's day, although for New Year's Eve I must have Chinese food.  Black -eyed peas and collard greens are a must for my husband to start the New Year. Eating a bowl of black- eyed peas and collard greens insures a year of luck and prosperity.  I was about to write "If that's true, I hate to think of what our life would have been like without the BEPs & CGs of the last few years", when I realized that we have much to be grateful for. 

What will be the first soup of the new year? I sat around in my new cowboy pajamas, perusing my new cookbook on soups and knocking back a glass of pot liquor. My new pj's were a gift from Johnny Depp. Seriously - that's what the card said!  Thanks Johnny!  The cookbook was from my sister Ann. 400 Soups  edited by Ann Sheasby. The book contains a great collection of recipes and lovely photographs.  The pot liquor was courtesy of Bean and his pot of collard greens.  I wanted to use the rest of the fresh peas for soup that would have a flavor profile that was different than the smoky southern flavor of the dish that we made for New Year's Day.  


 The following soup was based on a recipe in 400 Soups.  The changes I made were to accommodate what I already had available in  my fridge and cupboard.  The soup was very satisfying without being heavy.  I poured the soup into a pretty Japanese bowl that Bean gave me.   My favorite way  to eat soup is sitting on the couch watching TV or a movie with a bowl cupped in my hand and for that a smallish Chinese or Japanese bowl is the way to go. A large rimmed bowl just doesn't work.  I learned that the hard way.  Ouch.

 Black-Eyed Peas with Tomato Broth
  Serves 3- 4

• 1 cup of fresh black-eyed peas  (or canned peas)
• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 3 garlic cloves, chopped
• fresh chilies, chopped   ( I used 1 red Fresno and 1 Thai chile)
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1 tsp ground turmeric
• 1 1/4 cup of crushed tomatoes
• 2 1/2 cups of vegetable stock (or chicken)
• couple of cilantro stems chopped
• cilantro leaves, roughly chopped
• juice of 1 small lime (or lemon )

Heat oil in soup pan and add the onion and hot peppers and cook for about 8 minutes until the onions are soft.  Add the cumin and turmeric and cook for 2 minutes. Stir in the peas, crushed tomatoes, stock and cilantro stems and simmer for 30-40 minutes, or until the peas are tender. If canned peas are used they may take less time than the fresh peas. Before serving, stir in the lime or lemon juice and the chopped cilantro.  I added a little chopped chilies on top, for additional heat.