Soups, Stews, Chilis : Weeknight Gourmet

Category : Soups, Stews, Chilis

Sausage, Peppers & Onions Stoup (and a vocab lesson)

December 15 2010 | Leave a Comment

Brrr….it is frigid in New York City!

Here is a great stoup recipe to keep warm on a cold night. Rachael Ray uses the word stoup to refer to a dish that is heartier than a soup but not quite a stew. As is the case with all of her recipes, a stoup typically comes together in 30 minutes.

I love sausage and peppers! And, this recipe allowed me to enjoy the delicious taste of slow cooked sausage and peppers without all the work. The dish came together, with minimal chopping, in about 20 minutes.

Of course, since I love a little heat, I used hot Italian sausage. But, I am sure it would be tasty with sweet or mild sausage. The store didn’t have bulk sausage so I just bought links and removed the casings. I opted for crushed tomatoes over diced. And, I used three large peppers. Four peppers might have been too much.

YUM-O! Make sure to have some crusty bread for dipping!

As an aside, do you know the actual definition of stoup?

stoup
noun \ˈstüp\

1 a : a beverage container (as a glass or tankard)
b : flagon
2: a basin for holy water at the entrance of a church
3. Scots A bucket or pail.

Sausage, Peppers & Onions Stoup
Rachael Ray

3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 1/2 pounds hot or sweet bulk Italian sausage
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
3 to 4 cubanelle peppers, seeded and thinly sliced
2 medium-large onions, thinly sliced
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
2 cups chicken stock
2 (15-ounce) cans or 1 (28-ounce) can crushed or diced fire roasted tomatoes
1/4 cup finely chopped parsley leaves
1/2 cup basil leaves, torn
1 cup shredded Parmigiano-Reggiano

Heat extra-virgin olive oil in deep skillet, add sausage and brown a few minutes then add garlic, peppers, onions and cook until soft, 6 to 7 minutes more.

Deglaze pan with a little vinegar, stir in stock and tomatoes and reduce heat to simmer, cook 5 minutes more then stir in parsley and basil and serve with cheese on top

0 Comment

Categories : One-pot meal, Soups, Stews, Chilis

Classic Tomato Soup

November 23 2010 | Leave a Comment

As my readers know, I love tomatoes! I love a juicy Jersey tomato simply sliced in the summer. And I love all the wonderful things you can do with canned tomatoes in the fall and winter. A good marinara sauce and tomato soup are among my favorites.

I didn’t have a “go-to” tomato soup recipe but I think I do now. This super easy recipe from Everyday Food was just perfect. The only change I made was to add about 1/3 cup of grated parmesan cheese as I was using my immersion blender to puree the soup. The cheese added some delicious flavor and a great texture to the soup.

Also, make sure to use San Marzano tomatoes. I think they have much better flavor.

Sadly I don’t have a photo of this delicious tomato soup but I have a few portions frozen so hopefully I will add a photo in the future.

Classic Tomato Soup
Everyday Food

4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) butter
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
Coarse salt and ground pepper
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons tomato paste
2 sprigs fresh thyme (or 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme)
2 cans (14 1/2 ounces each) reduced-sodium chicken broth
2 cans (28 ounces each) whole peeled tomatoes in juice (with basil if available)

In a 5-quart saucepan or Dutch oven, melt butter over medium heat; add oil and onion, and season with salt and pepper. Cook until onion is translucent, about 5 minutes. Stir in flour and tomato paste; cook 1 minute.
To saucepan, add thyme, broth, and tomatoes, breaking up tomatoes with your fingers. Bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer, 30 minutes. (Remove thyme sprigs before blending.)
Using an immersion blender, puree soup in pot, leaving a fair amount of the tomatoes in chunks. Or, working in several batches, puree half (5 cups) of the soup in a conventional blender until smooth; return to pot. Season with salt and pepper. Serve immediately, or let cool to room temperature before dividing among airtight containers (leaving 1 inch of space at the top) and freezing.

0 Comment

Categories : Soups, Stews, Chilis

Beat the heat with gazpacho!

June 21 2010 | Leave a Comment

I am a soup lover and a tomato lover so there is nothing I like more on a hot day than a cold bowl of gazpacho! I just recently came across the Barefoot Contessa’s gazpacho recipe. It is simple and quick and relies only on tomatoes and veggies (some recipes have you add bread to them to create a thicker consistency).

To make a meal out of the gazpacho, I sauteed some shrimp in olive oil and garlic and served them on top of our cool bowls of soup. You could also serve with some crusty bread or a salad

The recipe made enough that I had the leftover gazpacho as an appetizer the next night and lunch two days later. It tastes even better the next day!

Gazpacho
Barefoot Contessa

1 hothouse cucumber, halved and seeded, but not peeled
2 red bell peppers, cored and seeded
4 plum tomatoes
1 red onion
3 garlic cloves, minced
23 ounces tomato juice (3 cups)
1/4 cup white wine vinegar
1/4 cup good olive oil
1/2 tablespoon kosher salt
1 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper

Roughly chop the cucumbers, bell peppers, tomatoes, and red onions into 1-inch cubes. Put each vegetable separately into a food processor fitted with a steel blade and pulse until it is coarsely chopped. Do not overprocess!

After each vegetable is processed, combine them in a large bowl and add the garlic, tomato juice, vinegar, olive oil, salt, and pepper. Mix well and chill before serving. The longer gazpacho sits, the more the flavors develop.

2 Comments

Categories : Soups, Stews, Chilis, Vegetarian entree

White Bean Soup with Roasted Red Pepper Crostini

February 25 2010 | Leave a Comment

I saw this soup and crostini recipe in a recent Williams-Sonoma catalog and knew I had to make it. I love all the ingredients involved in both the soup and crostini. The speed with which the soup comes together and the simplicity of the crostini make this a perfect weeknight meal! Plus, it was an opportunity to use the immersion blender that I received for Christmas!

The only change I would recommend is to let the soup simmer for a bit longer than the 10 minutes the recipe calls for.

It is a cold and snowy night in New York City — a perfect evening for the soup and crostini. The soup was delicious and I loved the simple but flavorful crostini. I’ll definitely make the soup again and plan to make the crostini as an hors d’œuvre next time we entertain.

White Bean Soup
Williams-Sonoma

1/4 cup olive oil, plus more for brushing
1/4 cup chopped pancetta
1/2 yellow onion, chopped
1 carrot, peeled and chopped
1 celery stalk, chopped
4 garlic cloves, minced
3 cans (each 15 oz.) cannellini beans, drained
5 cups chicken broth
3/4 tsp. finely chopped fresh thyme
1/2 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
12 baguette slices, each 4 inches long and 1/2 inch thick
1 cup jarred roasted red bell peppers
2 Tbs. finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1 tsp. sherry vinegar
1/8 tsp. red pepper flakes
1/2 tsp. honey

In a 3 1/2-quart Dutch oven over medium heat, warm 2 Tbs. of the olive oil. Add the pancetta and cook, stirring occasionally, until crispy, about 5 minutes. Add the onion, carrot and celery and cook, stirring occasionally, until beginning to soften, about 8 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute. Add the cannellini beans, broth and thyme and bring to a simmer. Reduce the heat to low, cover and cook until the vegetables are tender, about 10 minutes.

Remove the pan from the heat. Using an immersion blender, puree the soup until smooth. Stir in the cheese and season with salt and black pepper. Keep the soup warm.

Meanwhile, brush the baguette slices on both sides with olive oil and season lightly with salt. Heat a cast-iron grill pan over medium-high heat. Toast the bread, turning once, until nicely grill-marked, about 2 minutes per side. Set aside.

In the blending cup of an immersion blender, chop the roasted red bell peppers. Stir in 1/2 tsp. salt, the remaining 2 Tbs. olive oil, the parsley, vinegar, red pepper flakes, honey and black pepper. Top the baguette slices with the roasted red bell pepper tapenade, dividing evenly. Ladle the soup into warmed bowls and serve immediately with the crostini. Serves 6.

0 Comment

Categories : Soups, Stews, Chilis, Vegetarian entree

Chipotle Beef Chili

January 19 2010 | Leave a Comment

We’re still cooking our way through the ground beef from the steer. Here’s a tasty chili recipe that actually doesn’t even call for chili powder! The heat and flavor come from chipotle peppers in adobo sauce and ground cumin. The stewed tomatoes and beer also add some great flavor.

Chili always benefits from sitting for a while and allowing the flavors to meld. I cooked the chili on Monday afternoon in the Berkshires and we ate it that night when we arrived back in New York City. It was delicious!

Chipotle Beef Chili

Non-stick cooking spray
1 lb. lean ground beef
2 cups chopped onion (2 onions)
1 tablespoon cumin
2 28 oz. cans stewed tomatoes (original or Mexican flavor) with juice, cut up
3 to 4 coarsely chopped red and / or yellow bell peppers
1 cup beer
2 tablespoons chopped canned chipotle chile peppers in adobo sauce

Lightly coat a dutch oven with cooking spray and heat over medium heat. Add the ground beef and chopped onion. Break up with a wooden spoon and cook until beef is browned. Drain fat, if necessary.

Add cumin to meat mixture; stir. Cook for 1 minute.

Add tomatoes with their juices, beans, bell peppers, chipotle peppers, and the beer. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and cover. Simmer for 30 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Serve chili with your favorite toppings, such as grated cheese, avocado, sour cream, tortilla chips, and picked jalapenos.

0 Comment

Categories : Beef, One-pot meal, Soups, Stews, Chilis

Chipotle Beef Chili with Lime Crema

December 30 2009 | Leave a Comment

We have lots of ground beef from the half steer. I typically make turkey chili but figured beef chili was perfect for a frigid day in Becket (windchill was negative 15 degrees!) and a good use for the copious amounts of ground beef in our freezer.

We really enjoyed this chili recipe — lots of flavor and heat. But it definitely is a meatier chili than I typically make. Not a ton of liquid in the recipe. The lime crema was a nice touch to the dish. I don’t like sour cream on a standalone basis but enjoyed a touch of the lime flavored sour cream on the chili.

I was disappointed I halved the recipe otherwise I’d be having the leftover chili for lunch today.

Chipotle Beef Chili with Lime Crema
Bon Appetit

3 pounds ground beef
3 cups chopped onions
6 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1/2 cup chili powder
2 14 1/2-ounce cans beef broth
1 cup canned crushed tomatoes with added puree
1/2 cup stout or dark beer
2 tablespoons minced canned chipotle chilies

2 tablespoons yellow cornmeal
2 15 1/2-ounce cans black beans, drained, rinsed

1 1/2 cups sour cream
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
1 tablespoon grated lime peel

Corn tortilla chips

Heat heavy large pot over high heat. Add beef; sauté until cooked through, breaking up meat with spoon, about 8 minutes. Transfer to large bowl. Add onions and garlic to same pot. Sauté until onions are tender, 8 minutes. Add chili powder. Sauté until fragrant, 3 minutes. Add beef, broth, tomatoes, stout and chilies. Cover partially; simmer until chili is thick, stirring often, about 1 hour 10 minutes.

Gradually stir cornmeal into chili. Stir in beans. Simmer until heated through. Season generously with salt and pepper. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover and chill. Rewarm over medium heat.)

Whisk sour cream, lime juice and lime peel in small bowl. Season with salt.

Spoon chili into bowls. Spoon lime crema atop chili. Serve with chips.

0 Comment

Categories : Beef, One-pot meal, Soups, Stews, Chilis

Easy Weeknight Soup: Italian Chicken & Vegetable Soup

December 23 2009 | Leave a Comment

Here is a great weeknight soup recipe for a cold night. It is very flavorful, easy, and relatively kid-friendly!

This is my first Paula Deen recipe ever. Most of her recipes use LOTS of butter but this one is very healthy.

I added some ditalini pasta to the soup to give it a little more heft. Ditalini, which means “little thimbles” in Italian, is the pasta commonly found in pasta fagioli soup. If you don’t want to add pasta to the soup, try adding some beans.

Don’t forget to buy the diced tomatoes that are seasoned with basil, garlic, and oregano. These give a lot of the flavor to the soup. Using plain diced tomatoes would result in a relatively bland soup.

Don’t forget some parmesan cheese for sprinkling and some crusty bread for dunking!

Italian Chicken and Vegetable Soup
Paula Deen

2 tablespoons olive oil
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-sized pieces (about 1 3/4 pounds)
1 small onion, chopped
1 cup sliced carrots (about 3 small)
2 1/2 cups sliced zucchini (about 2 medium)
2 (14.5-ounce) cans diced tomatoes with basil, garlic, and oregano
2 (14.5-ounce) cans chicken broth
Grated Parmesan, optional

In a large Dutch oven, heat olive oil over medium-high heat. Add chicken, and cook for 10 minutes, stirring frequently.

Add onion and carrot, and cook for 5 minutes. Stir in zucchini, diced tomatoes, and chicken broth.

Bring to a boil; reduce heat, and simmer, uncovered, for 30 minutes. Top each serving with grated Parmesan, if desired.

0 Comment

Categories : One-pot meal, Soups, Stews, Chilis

Thanksgiving Leftovers: Dave Jewell's Turkey Soup!

November 29 2009 | Leave a Comment

My dad always cooked the Thanksgiving turkey and on the Friday after Thanksgiving he would make his famous turkey soup! We all loved the soup and the tradition. As with everything he did, my dad made a very big deal out of his soup and always believe it was the best ever.

I’ve never made the soup before but decided I would give it a whirl this year. My mom found the Fannie Farmer recipe that he roughly followed. I modified it slightly — below is the recipe I used.

1. Cut majority of leftover meat off the turkey carcass. Put carcass in stock pot and fill with water.
2. Slice 2 carrots, 2 celery stalks (including leaves) and 1 onion and add to stock pot. Crush 6 peppercorns and add to pot.
3. Bring pot to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, partially covered, for 3 hours.
4. Remove the carcass and any bones that may have fallen off.
5. Add rice, barley or noodles. Increase heat until the grain of your choosing is fully cooked.
6. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Despite the carcass appearing not to have much meat on it, the soup was chock full of meat. Feel free though to add additional leftover turkey to stock.

Soup can be enjoyed immediately or is even tastier a few hours later or the next day! We had some for dinner on Friday, I had a bowl for lunch on Saturday, and I froze the remainder. I think my dad would be very happy that I continued the turkey soup tradition!

19 Comments

Categories : Soups, Stews, Chilis, Turkey

My Go-To Turkey Chili

November 7 2009 | Leave a Comment

I made this on Monday night but haven’t had a chance to post.

This is my go-to chili recipe! I have made this recipe for and passed it along to countless people. Everyone loves it! It’s hard to believe you can get such flavor out of a 30-minute meal. Of course, it tastes even better the next day!

The key to recipe is the chipotle chili en adobo. It adds a great heat and smokiness to the dish. I usually add a bit more than the recipe calls for but it is spicy so if you want to tone down the heat use what the recipe calls for or a little less.

If you don’t have Mexican beer on hand, a Bud Light will do.

I usually serve with chips or tortillas, diced avocado, grated cheese, and sour cream for Tim. Often I double the recipe and freeze half of it.

I’ll be making a big pot of this chili several more times this fall and winter!

30-Minute Turkey Chili
Food Network Kitchens

3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
5 cloves garlic, chopped
1 tablespoon kosher salt
2 teaspoons chili powder
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 chipotle chile en adobo, coarsely chopped, with 1 tablespoon sauce
1 pound ground turkey
1 (12-ounce) Mexican lager-style beer
1 (14 1/2-ounce) can whole peeled tomatoes, with their juice
1 (15 1/2-ounce) can kidney beans, rinsed and drained
Sliced scallions, cilantro sprigs, avocado, sour cream, grated Monterey jack cheese, and/or tortilla chips, for garnish, optional

Heat the olive oil in a large, heavy skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onion, garlic, salt, chili powder, and oregano and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 3 minutes. Stir in the tomato paste and the chipotle chile and sauce; cook 1 minute more.

Add the turkey, breaking it up with a wooden spoon, and cook until the meat loses its raw color, about 3 minutes. Add the beer and simmer until reduced by about half, about 8 minutes.

Add the tomatoes–crushing them through your fingers into the skillet–along with their juices and the beans; bring to a boil. Cook, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until thick, about 10 minutes.

Ladle the chili into bowls and serve with the garnishes of your choice.

Cook’s Note: A skillet’s larger surface area reduces sauces faster than simmering in a saucepan.

1 Comment

Categories : Jess's Picks, One-pot meal, Soups, Stews, Chilis, Turkey

Recreating an Atticus Classic: Black Bean Soup with Cumin & Jalapeno

October 11 2009 | Leave a Comment

Tim and I are spending a quiet long weekend in the Berkshires. The cool mountain air inspired me to make soup. I asked Tim what kind of soup I should make. He answered (very definitively), “black bean soup, like Atticus.” Tim never demands particular foods or dishes so I decided I would try to recreate a classic from one of my all-time favorite spots in New Haven. I probably went to Atticus almost everyday my junior and senior years at Yale. It was conveniently located between where I lived, where most of my art history classes were, and the Yale Daily News where I spent countless hours. The had the most amazing soups, breads, and capuccino granitas!

I found the below recipe on Epicurous. The recipe looked too simple to be truly amazing but then I read the reviews. Everyone had the same reaction — wasn’t expecting much but the flavors came together beautifully. I have no idea if this recipe is remotely close to Atticus’s but it was delicious. I do know that Atticus uses a pork base. This recipe uses chicken broth. If you want to make the soup vegetarian, just use vegetable broth.

Instead of pureeing 3 cups of the soup in a blender, I used my immersion blender. I just pulsed the immersion blender 20 or 30 times to thicken the soup. The only other change was using petite diced tomatoes with jalapeno. I also added the fresh jalapeno but the spice really wasn’t overpowering.

I served the soup with feta cheese, avocado, and scallions. Plus, we had a simple cheese quesadilla. Overall a very delicious meal that I will be making again.

Black Bean Soup with Cumin and Jalapeño
Bon Appetit

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, chopped
1 carrot, chopped
4 garlic cloves, chopped
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 to 2 teaspoons chopped jalapeño chile with seeds, divided
2 15- to 16-ounce cans black beans, undrained
1 15-ounce can petite diced tomatoes in juice
1 1/2 cups low-salt chicken broth

for serving

Chopped fresh cilantro
Chopped green onions
Crumbled feta cheese

Heat oil in heavy large pot over medium-high heat. Add onion, carrot, and garlic; sauté until vegetables begin to soften, about 6 minutes. Mix in cumin and 1 teaspoon jalapeño. Add beans, tomatoes with juice, and broth; bring soup to boil. Reduce heat to medium, cover, and cook until carrots are tender, about 15 minutes. Transfer 3 cups of soup to blender and puree until smooth. Return puree to pot. Simmer soup until slightly thickened, about 15 minutes. Season to taste with salt, pepper, and remaining 1 teaspoon jalapeño, if desired.

Ladle soup into bowls. Pass cilantro, green onions, and feta cheese separately.

0 Comment

Categories : Soups, Stews, Chilis, Vegetarian entree