Curried Mussel Chowder

There's a couple inches of snow outside.  It's cold.  And I hate it.

I've never been a fan of this type of weather.  Even growing up in upstate New York.  I hated it.  Andy even says I have a permanent scowl on my face when the temperature drops below 32 F.  I guess I just like my sunshine and warm weather.  Can you blame me?

One thing I do like during this time, though, is curling up to a nice warm bowl of chowder.  There's just something so comforting about it.  I decided to switch up the normal clam for some mussels and a healthy dash of curry powder.  The result?  Andy thinks it's the best bowl of soup I've made to date.  Right on!

Ingredients:

3 slices of thick-cut bacon, cut into thin strips
1 carrot, peeled and diced
1 shallot, diced
1 celery stalk, diced
1 lb. new potatoes, diced
2 tablespoons flour
1 cup white wine
3 parsley stems
1 bay leaf
pinch of dried thyme
pinch of black pepper
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 tablespoon curry powder
pinch of dried fennel
3 garlic cloves, smashed
pinch of saffron
5 cups of milk
1 cup of heavy cream
1 cup frozen corn
1 lb. shucked mussels (I bought them this way because it was easier, but you could certainly steam them and take them out of the shell on your own)
salt, to taste
chopped parsley, for garnish
baked naan, for serving

I love this because it's also a one pot meal.  Most soups are, right?  Right.  The less dishes I/Andy have to wash, the better.

Heat a large stockpot under medium high heat.  Add bacon strips and render until all of the fat is released and bacon is crispy.  With a slotted spoon, remove bacon to a paper towel-lined plate.  Reserve for garnish.

Add carrot, shallot, celery, and potatoes to the bacon fat.  Coat well and sweat for about 2-3 minutes.  Sprinkle vegetables with flour and cook for another minute.  Add wine and bring to a boil, stirring constantly to prevent lumps.  When mixture is thick, add in parsley stems, bay leaf, thyme, black pepper, butter, curry powder, fennel, garlic, saffron, milk, and heavy cream.  Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer for about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.

About 2-3 minutes before serving, add your mussels (if they're already shucked, they should already be cooked, so you're only warming them) and your frozen corn.  Cook until warmed through.  Season with salt and pepper, to taste.

Ladle soup into bowls and garnish with reserved bacon and chopped parsley.  Serve with naan bread.

This seriously hit the spot!  We've got leftovers and I don't foresee them lasting much longer than 48 hours!  Hope you guys are staying warm =)

Indian-Spiced Lentils

This fall weather is a bit crazy.  It was a nice fall chill all last week, and now we're back to being in the 80's this week.  I just want my nice fall weather!

My half marathon is going to be here before I know it, and I've been a bad trainee.  I did something to my shoulder last weekend and it's ached all week, but starting to feel better.  So hopefully I can get back to running this upcoming weekend because I'm not going to have a very good time come October 30th if I don't!

Anyway, it's another soup-type recipe.  I've been working on slowly cleaning out my pantry for the past couple of weeks (it's nuts in there!) and noticed I had an abundance of lentils - so what better to do than make a quick curry or soup!  So I did a quick Google search and I was led to an Honest Cooking recipe that helped use up some of my CSA vegetables too!


Ingredients:
Adapted from an Honest Cooking recipe

1/2 cup french green lentils, washed
1 onion, finely chopped
1 tomato, chopped
1/4 teaspoon turmeric
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
juice from 1 lemon
salt and pepper, to taste
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon garam masala
1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
1 white/yellow bell pepper, seeded and chopped
1 cup chicken stock 

In a medium pot, add lentils and cover with water.  Stir in tomatoes and tumeric.  Bring to a rolling boil and simmer until the lentils are soft and cooked, about 30 minutes. 

Heat olive oil in a large skillet under medium high heat until hot.  Add bell peppers and onions.  Cook until starting to soften, about 5 minutes.  Add garam masala and stir until fragrant, about 1 minute. Season with salt, cayenne pepper, and lemon juice.  Add lentil mixture and chicken stock. Bring to a slow boil and simmer for about 10 mins.

Serve with steamed rice.




Have a great Thursday guys!

Creamy Carrot Soup

Today, in most parts of the U.S., is just another Friday.  But here, in Louisville, KY (and well, most parts of Kentucky in general) it's more like a holiday!  What "holiday" you ask?!  Why it's Kentucky Derby weekend!  Louisville seriously gets their party on.  Most places of employment have a 4 day weekend (or others just make sure to ask for the days off!).  Celebrities come into town and all that jazz.  All for a couple of horse races that take maybe 2 minutes to finish!  But you know, I don't think it's really all about the horse races (although it is tradition) more than it is about getting all dressed up and drinking.

And the hats!  When most people think of the Kentucky Derby, I think a Derby hat is one of the first things that come to mind! 

While I won't be donning a Derby hat this year (nor have I ever) I'll be spending today at Churchill Downs for the Oaks - sipping Mint Juleps and looking as good as I can (seriously, my dress is hella cute!) and hopefully meeting up with some friends!  My sister has offered to give us a ride down there (she's freakin' awesome!) and hopefully we'll end up finding a ride back home, too - so no worries of being unsafe!

Anyway, we've got a Derby party to attend to on Saturday and I need to bring something with me!  So help me out and vote in this week's poll!



This is not really a Derby recipe, but I was really in the mood for soup, so soup it is!


Ingredients:
Adapted from The Meaning of Pie's recipe

1 small onion, diced
2 ribs of celery, chopped
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
5 large carrots, peeled and sliced
1 white potato, cubed
4 cups chicken broth
1 to 2 teaspoons hot sauce (like Tabasco or Sriracha) 
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
3 bay leaves
1 teaspoon sugar
Salt and Pepper
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 cup milk

In a large Dutch oven, melt the butter under medium high heat.  Add onions and celery and cook until softened, about 5 minutes.

Add in carrots, potatoes, and chicken broth.  Simmer for about 5 minutes or so.

Stir in Tabasco, Worcestershire sauce, bay leaves, sugar, salt, pepper, and cayenne.  Let simmer on medium to medium low for about 30 minutes.

Remove bay leaves and blend up soup with an immersion blender until you reach your desired consistency.  Slowly stir in the milk until incorporated.  Ladle soup into bowls and serve with a drizzle of olive oil and garnish with croutons.

This was a quick one-pot meal that was a really tasty lunch!  Now, if you'll excuse me - I'm heading to the Oaks!  Have a great weekend guys!

Lazy Day

Okay, well, it's 11 pm... and I finally got to take a look at today's post's pictures... and they're well... blurry. Too blurry to even make out how awesome this soup was. And I'm tired. I've just finished a 10 page paper on MRSA, which I don't want to see MRSA or anything to do with MRSA for a long time because this paper has driven me insane... I've played volleyball, our first game of the season, and we lost all 3 matches, so not a good start, but it was first game jitters... and I'm just worn out. So go to Kalyn's Kitchen's blog and try this soup!

P.S. I'm sorry for the no post today, but I'm exhausted! I promise I'll have something tasty and delicious to look at on Friday!

Spicy Chicken Fiesta Soup

Now, American Idol usually isn't the kind of show that I'd watch. I don't watch that much TV period. But for some reason, the past couple of seasons, I've just been sucked into it. This season is no exception, and I just have to vent how frustrated I am with these people. I think it's going to be a no-brainer for the actual winner. There's only a couple people out of the 20 or whatever that are left that actually have talent, in my opinion. I'm a harsh critic. And what irks me the most is that girl with the red hair who totally butchered "Landslide" by Fleetwood Mac the first week, and still pretty much sucked this week, IS STILL THERE! What is wrong with America.

Ok, now that my venting is done, I'll give you a recipe, haha...


Ingredients:

4-5 cups chicken stock
1 jalapeno, halfway seeded and minced
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 roma tomatoes, seeded and diced
small handful of cilantro, chopped
2 chicken breasts, cooked and shredded (I seasoned mine with cumin, chili powder, and chipotle pepper)
juice from 1 lime
avocado, shredded sharp cheddar cheese, sour cream, for topping

In a dutch oven under medium high heat, add all ingredients except topping and heat for about 15 minutes. You can go longer to develop the flavor.

Ladle into bowls and top with whatever you desire!

Easy right?! This makes for a quick and delicious weeknight meal. There was subtle heat from the jalapenos which was just right, in my opinion. I found the longer I let the soup simmer, the more the spiciness melded with the other flavors and wasn't so overpowering. Enjoy!

Buffalo Chicken Soup

I apologize in advance, this was supposed to be posted yesterday and in my whirlwind of studying/homework/procrastination, it seemed to have slipped my mind. Trust me, I've been banking on Friday since Sunday. This is a week I've been dreading, and it's mostly my fault. I had plenty of time to do these things, but no, I had to procrastinate. I cleaned the pantry, the fridge, the spice cabinet, the living room... all to avoid homework. Who does that?!?! That's insanity. I hate cleaning... but I dread homework. Anyway... here's a somewhat lazy soup... that I have to warn you... is pretty darn spicy, so I'd cut the hot sauce by a bit if you're not the spicy lover we are (and even we could only eat half of our bowls because of the heat).

Ingredients:

2 large chicken breasts, cut into chunks
1/4 cup whole wheat flour
salt and pepper to taste
2 tablespoons butter, divided
1 onion, diced
2 carrots, peeled and sliced
2 stalks of celery, sliced
4 cups chicken broth
1/4 to 1 cup Frank's Red Hot Sauce (depending on your taste)
1 cup shell pasta
blue cheese for topping

In a medium bowl, add flour, salt, and pepper. Dredge the chicken chunks and set aside.

In a dutch oven over medium heat, melt 1 tablespoon of butter. Add the chicken and cook until browned on all sides. Remove the chicken and set aside again.

Add remaining tablespoon of butter to pot and add vegetables. Cook until soft and translucent, about 10 to 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Add back in the chicken, chicken stock, hot sauce, and shells. Cook until noodles becomes soft. The longer you let it sit, the spicier it will get!

Top with blue cheese and dig on in!

This was definitely delicious, just incredible spicy. If I made it again, I would definitely only use about 1/4 to 1/2 cup of hot sauce as opposed to the 1 cup. I mean, I like really spicy things, but this was sinus cleansing spicy. I did have a cold still and it did have my nose running for about 30 minutes. So if you're into that, be my guest and add the full cup! Enjoy!

Poblano Meatball Soup

I was once again snowed in this week. Still sick. Still cold. Still cleaning instead of catching up on homework. What's perfect for a situation like that? Soup, of course! And this soup was great! The meatballs really added a depth of smokey, delicious flavor!

Wedding planning has sort of come to a stand still. I'm in the process of brainstorming theme ideas. I picked out bridesmaid dresses. One of my sisters gave me her approval and the color is just great... it's Pewter... not Pewtrid. For some reason, when I was explaining these bridesmaid dress colors at work, I said Pewtrid, instead of Pewter... and they all got a quick laugh out of that. Of course, I didn't get it at first, and then realized I didn't memorize my Crayola colors before I came in and Pewtrid definitely was NOT the color I wanted.

Anywho... onto the soup...


Ingredients:
Adapted from Bon Appetit's Jan 2010 issue - "Poblano Albondigas w/ Ancho Chile Soup"

2 large poblano chiles
1 lb. ground beef
2 zucchini, 1 grated and 1 roughly chopped
1 onion, 1/2 grated and 1/2 diced
1/4 cup panko bread crumbs
1 egg, beaten
4 garlic cloves, 2 pressed and 2 minced
1 tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon plus 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
salt and pepper to taste
1 tablespoon olive oil
3 tablespoons chili powder
5 cups beef broth
2 cups water
1/2 cup basmati rice
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
juice from 1 lime
4 corn tortillas, cut into thin strips

To make the meatballs, line a baking sheet with some wax or parchment paper. Take the poblanos and put them under the broiler in the oven for about 10-15 minutes, or as long as they have some good charring on all sides. Place the pepper in a paper bag and let steam for about 10 minutes. This allows the skin to separate from the flesh of the pepper, and makes it easier to peel. Stem, seed, and peel the poblanos once cooled. Chop them up real good and place in a large bowl.

Add in beef, grated zucchini, grated onion, panko breadcrumbs, egg, pressed garlic, 1 tablespoon cumin, 1 teaspoon oregano, and a big pinch of salt. Form into 1-inch diameter meatballs and place on baking sheet.

In a dutch oven, heat oil under medium heat. Add diced onion and minced garlic. Saute for about 5 minutes, or until onion is soft. Add chili powder and remaining cumin and stir for about 1 minute. Add the beef broth, water, and remaining oregano. Bring to a rolling boil and them reduce the heat to a simmer. Let cook for about 10 minutes.

Mix in the chopped zucchini and rice. Increase the heat to medium high and drop the meatballs in one at a time. Then lower heat to a simmer again and cook for about 20 minutes, covered, until meatballs are cooked through. Stir in cilantro and lime juice. Season with salt and pepper as needed.

To make tortilla strip topping, heat a 1/2 inch layer of vegetable oil in a heavy pan. Fry the strips for about 1 minute, until starting to turn golden brown. Ladle soup into bowls and top with fried tortilla strips.

This was definitely a great way to warm up and truly it made me feel a little bit better considering my cold! Enjoy!

Corn & Bacon Chowder W/ Seared Jumbo Scallops

Chowder or Chowdah. However you say it, it's delicious. Most of you know the version of clam chowder that New Englander's love, but few know about the corn chowder, which is my personal fave. The sweetness of the corn just tickles your senses and the savory bits of bacon throughout don't hurt either. Plus, I've never met a bacon I didn't like! The seared scallops were pretty to look at, and quite amazing. It's now September, so these hearty soups need to help keep us warm, because before you know it, the dreaded bitch of a winter will be here.

Ingredients: (adapted from Food & Wine May 2003 issue)

5 slices, thick cut Black Forest bacon
1 medium sized onion, finely diced
2 celery ribs, finely diced
1 15 oz. bag frozen corn (3 cups)
3 cups milk
1 lb red potatoes, diced
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/2 handful of chives, minced
salt and freshly ground black pepper
Frank's Red Hot Sauce to taste
6 jumbo sea scallops

Cook bacon in a large saucepan until crisp, about 10 minutes. With a slotted spoon, take out bacon and place on paper-towel lined plate and reserve. Save 2 tablespoons on the bacon fat for searing the scallops. Then add celery and onion to saucepan and wilt down for about 12 minutes.

While onion and celery are softening, puree 1 cup of the frozen corn with 1 cup of the milk. Add puree to saucepan along with remaining corn and milk. Also add in potatoes. Simmer until the potatoes are tender, about 25-30 minutes on low to medium heat. Then stir in chives, bacon, salt, pepper, and hot sauce. Keep warm on low temperature.

Heat bacon fat in separate pan on high heat.

Season scallops with salt and pepper and sear both sides for about 1 & 1/2 minutes per side.



Put soup in bowls and top with nicely browned scallops. Enjoy!


This was tasty and hit the spot!