While I was studying for another EMT test, I managed to catch Five Ingredient Fix on the Food Network this past weekend.  I like Claire Robinson’s show – she is entertaining, and the recipes are easy to pull together.  So when I saw her make this Creamy Broccoli Soup, I knew that I had to use up some broccoli in the fridge on this recipe.

It’s fantastic.  My husband had two bowls the first night, and we managed to share the leftovers.  I tasted the soup before the addition of the mascarpone, and the soup is delicious (and low fat) even if you leave it out.  I also added a dash of cayenne, and a bullion cube because I added a cup of water to the recipe to make up for the greater amount of broccoli that I was using in the recipe.

This soup will be making frequent appearances at my dinner table, that’s for sure!
continue reading "Claire Robinson’s Fabulous Creamy Broccoli Soup"

But don’t worry, everything turned out all right in the end. This month for Recipes to Rival,  Sara of I’m A Food Blog asked us to make Thomas Keller’s French Onion Soup. First, I couldn’t find enough bones to make the beef stock, so I used part chicken and part beef, too many carrots, and ended up with an oddly sweet stock.  No matter, though, I forged ahead. Next, I halved the recipe and cut up four pounds of onions.  FOUR POUNDS:

This month’s recipe was chosen by Meg of Joy Through Cooking and Lori of Lipsmacking Goodness, and they turned to Bravo’s Top Chef Chicago for this recipe, which you can find here, and on the R2R blog.  We had to make our own stock and then use it to whip up a squash soup, very appropriate for the cold weather that has now settled in our area.  This recipe made a huge amount of soup, so I halved it, and still had a huge amount of soup.

I ended up using all butternut squash, and while Master Chow LOVED this soup, I did not.  I had added a lot of mushrooms to the stock, and I think that flavor came through a bit too much for me.  Or was it the miso paste that the recipe called for?  I spooned a bit of vanilla whipped cream on top (no creme fraiche on hand), and I thought it made the dish more visually appealing and improved the flavor a bit.

To be honest, for all the pots and pans that I used to make this, I prefer other squash soups that I’ve made.  I really think it may have been the miso, so if I ever make another squash soup, I’m definitely not including it, even though I like miso soup).  Now, I’ve just re-read my post, and I sound like a grump.  Really, I’m not, and I welcomed making this recipe.  Like many others of you, I’m just swamped this time of year, and feeling the pressure!

To see how others did, be sure to check out the R2R blogroll.  There are some beautiful photos out there, and some great results!

Usually when I make oxtail soup for Master Chow, I do it Italian-style, meaning I use Italian herbs, tomatoes, etc. This time, I decided to shake things up a bit and throw in some Asian elements, and found inspiration over at Simply Recipes and The Scent of Green Bananas.

When it’s cold outside, (and inside – we keep the house at around 58 degrees F), a warm bowl of soup, a salad, and some nice crusty bread make a wonderful meal. This month’s Monthly Mingle’s topic is, appropriately, “comfort foods.” Oxtail soup is very popular in Hawaii, parts of Latin America, Spain, and Italy, and Master Chow is quite fond of it. Back in the old days, oxtails were quite inexpensive, but now they are pricey, indeed. When I find them on sale, which is hardly ever, I pounce, and whip up a big pot of soup for Master Chow.This recipe provides a rough guideline of what I do – every time I make the soup, I change things a bit, including the seasonings. It all depends upon what I have on hand, and my mood. The key is to taste as you go along, and adjust the flavorings to suit your palate.

Oxtail Soup

5-6 lbs oxtails
2 Tbsp. toasted sesame oil
kosher salt and pepper

Coat the oxtails in the sesame oil, plus some salt and pepper, and marinate for two hours.

1 large yellow onion, chopped (about the size of a softball)
2 large carrots, diced
2 large celery stalks, diced
5 lemongrass stalks, tender bottom part only, cut and crushed
1 piece fresh ginger (approx. 3-inches), thinly sliced
1/4 cup tomato paste
1 1/2 teaspoons Thai red chili paste
8 cloves of garlic, minced
2 cups of red wine
2 star anise
3 bay leaves
4 cups beef stock
2-4 cup water
kosher salt and pepper, to taste
Vegetable oil

To garnish: chopped green onions, mushrooms, lime wedges, cilantro.

This recipe takes two days, so plan ahead!
Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F.

Pour some vegetable oil into a large Dutch oven (I used a 12 qt.), enough to coat the bottom. Brown the oxtails in batches (don’t crowd the pan), and set aside. You want about 1/4 cup of oil in the bottom of the pan before you go on to the next step, so pour off any excess, or add some more oil if you need it.

On medium low heat, add the onion, carrots, celery, ginger, lemongrass, tomato paste, and Thai red chili paste. Cook until the onions are translucent, but watch the pot carefully – if things get too hot, turn down the heat. Add the garlic and saute briefly.

Deglaze the pan with the red wine, and cook for about 5-8 minutes, or until the wine is reduced by about half. Add the star anise, bay leaves, beef stock, salt and pepper, and enough water to just cover the oxtails.

Lay a piece of foil or parchment across the opening of the pan, then push down gently so that the parchment or foil is just about the surface of the stew, but does not touch it. Cover with the lid, place it in the oven, and cook for about 3-4 hours, or until the meat is falling off the bones.

Remove from oven, and place the meat in a separate container. Refrigerate the broth and meat overnight. The next day, skim the fat off the surface of the broth – it’s a lot easier to do this if you don’t have to work around all the chunks of meat. Return the meat to the broth, and heat through. Serve with chopped cilantro, mushrooms, lime wedges, and/or chopped green onions

Serves 8.