Parsnip Soup (for a Soup Swap!)

Sunday was so much fun!! I was inspired by my sister's story on NPR and decided to host a soup swap here where nearly 100 quarts of soup were on hand to be shared and traded. In a nutshell, a soup swap is when everyone makes a big pot of soup, freezes it into one quart portions, then meets up to tell stories and take turns selecting different soups to bring home. Knowing our freezers would soon be filled with yummy homemade soups, we also pulled some canned good out of our pantries and collectively filled three boxes which are being donated to a local food pantry.

I spent some time thinking about what I would bring to the party, and ultimately decided to make parsnip soup because it is a favorite of mine and the kids, and I like telling the story of the first time I tried it.

The story: Five years ago Jim and I escaped (without toddler Spencer) to Vegas for a few days in December. We were having dinner at Wolfgang Puck's restaurant in the Venetian, and shortly after we were seated, the table next to us received their food which included a bowl of delicious-looking soup. My mind was decided in that instant I wanted a bowl of soup too. I scanned the menu for their different soups, and noticed there was exactly one listed: parsnip soup. Parsnip soup? I had never had parsnip soup before. Actually, I had never even eaten parsnips before. I went back and forth in my head for a bit - really wanting a bowl of soup, and being wholly unsure of parnsips. Ultimately, I decided that this was a great restaurant and I trusted that they would be serving me a great bowl of (parsnip!) soup.

Guess what - the soup totally rocked! After returning home, I wanted to make it myself and couldn't find the recipe online. Luckily, the nice folks at wolfgangpuck.com replied to my email and sent it to me.

So, my hope is that making this soup for the swap and sharing this story might help someone else discover the awesomeness of parsnip soup!

Parnsip Soup
from Wolfgang Puck's Postrio Restaurant

INGREDIENTS:
3 Tbsp olive oil
2 medium yellow onions, peeled and rough diced (or one large onion)
2 stalks celery, cut to 1” lengths
6 cups parsnips, peeled and cut to 1” cubes (will be rough)
1 ea potato, peeled and cut into four quarters
1 ½ ea granny smith apples, peeled and diced to 1” (rough)
8-12 cups chicken stock
1 ½ cups heavy cream
12 sprigs fresh thyme, tied together tightly with string
2 tsp lemon juice
salt
white pepper

DIRECTIONS:
- In a medium sized soup pot, heat the olive oil. Add the onion, season well with salt, and sweat on medium heat until translucent (about 5 minutes). Do not brown the onion. Add the celery and cook for 3 more minutes.

- In a separate pot, bring the chicken stock to a boil and reduce heat to just a high simmer.

- Add the parsnips to the onions and stir well. Continue to cook for two minutes. Add enough hot chicken stock to cover the vegetables. Add the potato, apples, and thyme.

- Bring to a boil, reduce heat to a low boil, and cook uncovered until vegetables are very soft, about 50 minutes. You may need to add stock during the cooking time, but do so just that the vegetables are covered. Season lightly with salt and pepper.

- Add the cream and cook for 5 minutes. Remove the thyme. Puree the soup in batches in a blender. ALWAYS BE EXTREMELY CAREFUL WHEN PUREEING HOT LIQUIDS. Use the lid on the blender. When pureeing, fill the blender cup only 2/3 full, as the soup will be thick and you will need room to add more stock. If the soup is very thick in the blender, turn it off, add a little hot stock, cover and puree.

- Position a strainer over a clean soup pot and pour directly from the blender into the strainer. Push the soup through the strainer with a ladle.

- Place soup back over very low heat on the stove. Adjust consistency of the soup with chicken stock. Add the lemon juice and season finally to taste with salt and pepper. The soup is ready to serve, or can be chilled in an icebath and kept for up to 3 days.

- Serve soup in warm bowls. Drizzle lightly with lemon thyme oil, and sprinkle with thyme leaves.


Lemon-Thyme Oil
2/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
zest of half a lemon
12 sprigs fresh thyme
- Combine ingredients in a small saucepan. Heat to just hot to the touch (DO NOT BOIL), remove from heat and allow to steep for 1 hour. Strain and reserve oil. Allow to cool completely before serving.

Black Bean Soup

OK, I've confessed before that sometimes menu planning is driven by what is on sale at the grocery store, and when I see the price drop on red bell peppers I am reminded how much the kids and I enjoy black bean soup. It's the red bell pepper which seems to be the trigger, because the rest of the ingredients are almost always on hand. Another part of the delight is that it is a meal which encourages condiments - always a hit with little kids.

This is not a dish I had ever ordered at a restaurant before, nor had I ever even eaten it before trying it at mom's house a couple years back. Who knew that black bean soup was so delicious? OK, so maybe others out there already knew this, but it was news to me. Topped with shredded cheese, diced avocado, a squeeze of fresh lime juice and soy-flaxseed tortilla chips (another item I would have never tried on my own ) and it's true comfort food that is healthy and easy. So easy I had made the whole pot before realizing I hadn't taken any pictures. Oops.

Black Bean Soup
Closely followed from "Black Bean Stoup"

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
3 ribs celery with greens, chopped
2 cloves garlic, pressed
1 bay leaf
1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
3 (15-ounce) cans black beans
2 tablespoons ground cumin
1 1/2 teaspoons ground coriander
Salt and pepper
1 (15-ounce) can diced tomatoes
2 cups chicken stock (or vegetable to make vegetarian)


Heat a medium soup pot over medium high heat. Add 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil to the hot pot, then onion, celery, and garlic. Cook 3 to 4 minutes, then add red peppers and continue to cook. Drain and rinse 2 cans of beans, transfer to a flat-bottomed dish and mash with a potato masher (or fork.) Add mashed beans, plus one can of whole beans (with liquid) to the pot. Season with cumin, coriander, salt and pepper. Add tomatoes, then stock to achieve desired consistency (maybe be more or less than 2 cups.) Add bay leaf and bring soup to a bubble. Reduce heat and simmer 15 minutes over low heat. Remove and discard the bay leaf. Serve into bowls and add favorite toppings - fresh lime juice, diced avocado or guac, shredded cheese, torilla chips, sour cream...

Chicken Soup

Ah, Jewish penicillin, as they say. Nothing tastes better than home-made chicken soup when one is feeling under the weather. This crazy TX weather (snow on Friday!) has snuck up on us, and now my husband is sick, too. Plus, it seems I can't get enough soup these days since the weather turned cooler - as I look back and realize that I've made one, after another, after another.

Making chicken soup isn't very difficult at all, but it does take time, and a few tips make the difference. These I've learned from various sources over the years. Of course, starting with the boiler plate from my mom and grandma, and going from there.

Tip #1 - you must use chicken with bones. Any chef will tell you that bones have flavor, but equally important in the case of making soup, is that cooking the bones & cartilage releases the natural gelatin. Note: This also means that the soup will 'set' after it cools down in the frdige. You can either start with a whole chicken, and/or use parts that have a higher bone-meat ratio like legs and wings. Bonus - these parts are usually less costly than boneless breasts. I made this soup yesterday with a few pounds of organic drumsticks and only paid $6.

Tip #2 - throw everything in and worry about making it pretty later on. I picked up a tip a few years ago to use onions with the skin (I searched the web just now to try and give proper credit, but have no idea where this came from originally,) which helps impart a beautiful golden color. At the very end, use a strainer or chinois, with cheesecloth if you want a totally clear broth, but this is unnecessary in my opinion. I'm too frugal for this next tip, but I've seen recipes that discard everything used to make the broth after it is strained and add in new veggies, if desired. I was going to take a picture of the straining process, but the collection of bones and mushed veggies was wholly unappetizing.

Tip #3 - while the soup needs to cook on the stove for hours, the chicken meat will definitely be over-cooked if it remains in the pot that long. But, the bones need to remain in for hours in order to give up their goodness to create a flavorful broth. Solution - after an hour or so, remove the meat from the bones, set aside, and return the bones to the pot.

Tip #4 - if you are making chicken noodle soup, boil the noodles in a separate pot and add the cooked noodles in at the end. Putting uncooked noodles in the soup pot uses up good broth.

Chicken Soup

Inspired by mom and grandma

2-3 pounds of chicken, with lots of bones

2-3 large carrots, sliced in 1" rounds

2-3 stalks celery, cut in 3" sections

1 onion, cut in half

1-2 parsnips, cut in 3" sections

1 bunch dill

1 bunch parsley

salt (be generous) & pepper

water

Throw everything in the pot and add enough water to cover. Place a lid on the pot and simmer; try to avoid a rapid boil, as this will encourage scum to form on the surface. After an hour take the chicken pieces out, remove the meat and set aside, and return bones to the pot. Taste broth and add more salt and/or pepper if needed. Continue to simmer, covered, for another 2-3 hours.

When soup is done, remove carrots and set aside with chicken meat. You can also retrieve celery and parsnip, if desired. Pour all contents of the pot through a strainer or chinois (with cheesecloth, if desired.) Return broth to the pot, add in chicken meat and carrots. Serve with egg noodles (boiled in a separate pot) or matzoh balls.

Artichoke & Jerusalem Artichoke Soup

I really like soup. And it's actually cold here (30s!) which is all the inspiration needed to start making soup this week. A few days ago I made some beef vegetable barley soup. Yesterday I made a pot of this soup, and as I type, I'm having leftovers for breakfast. Soup for breakfast is the perfect way to start a chilly day! (Well, maybe not the beef vegetable barley first thing in the morning.)

I've made this soup several times before using only regular (globe) artichokes. But, I noticed that my favorite grocery store sells Jerusalem artichokes too, and I was so excited to make it with both! Actually, I had never purchased (or even eaten) Jerusalem artichokes, so I was anxious to see how it would be different that what I had made in the past.

Plus, it's always fun to use an immersion blender. Though, some words of advice when making this at home. Artichokes are very fibrous. Even after then are trimmed and sautéed and simmered. You will likely need to pause and clean the blades a few times when blending the soup.

And, even after it looks nice & smooth, it needs to be run through some kind of strainer or chinois to remove the rest of the fibers because having any of those remain in your finished soup is not good. Trust me. It's not a fun process, but the results are well worth it. Note: Do not use the inside of a salad spinner as shown above. This was not nearly fine enough and too many shreds of fibrous material made their way into the finished soup.

Artichoke & Jerusalem Artichoke Soup
Adapted from Gourmet

1 lb Jerusalem artichokes (sunchokes)
2 globe artichokes (or use 3-4 if not using Jerusalem artichokes)
1 lemon
1 onion
olive oil
2 Tablespoons butter
1/2 Cup white wine
2 1/2 Cups chicken broth

1. Prepare vegetables:

• Jerusalem artichokes by peeling and cutting into large (1/2") dice/slices
• Prepare globe artichokes by snapping back outer leaves until they break. Cut off the rest of the leaves, within 1" of the base. Peel the stem and trim off the end. Quarter the artichoke and remove the fuzzy choke with a grapefruit spoon. Split the section again to make eighths. Drop the cleaned & trimmed pieces into a large bowl of water with juice from one lemon squeezed in to prevent browning.
• Dice one onion

2. Melt butter and olive oil in the bottom of a soup pot. Drain globe artichokes, and add them along with onion and Jerusalem artichokes to the pan. Sautee for 8-10 minutes until onions are translucent and veggies are crisp-tender. Add white wine and simmer until most of the liquid has evaporated. Add chicken broth, bring to boil then cover and reduce heat to low and simmer for 30 minutes.

3. Turn off heat and allow soup to cool in the pot for 15 minutes or so. Use an immersion blender to puree the mix. Clean the blade frequently as it may become clogged with fibers. The soup can also be pureed in batches in a blender or food processor. Strain the pureed soup through a strainer or chinois. This will be a real workout on the arms pressing it through. Make sure to scrape down the goodness will adhere to the back of the strainer.

4. You can make this a cream soup by finishing with up to 1/2 Cup of heavy cream, but it's not required. And I'm not really sure it needs any garnish either, but am open to suggestions!

Vegetable Beef Barley Soup

I confess, when writing the title above, I had to spend some time thinking about in what order I should put the words. More often than not, I would make a soup that has a combination of two of the three: Beef Vegetable Soup, Vegetable/Mushroom Barley Soup, Beef Barley Soup, etc. This week, I didn't want to have to choose so I put everything in the pot together. Good move - it totally rocked!

The inspiration for making this soup came from a posting to our neighborhood message board that read "We purchased the side of a cow just under a year ago and have several parts that we will not use. This cow was grass fed with no hormones or antibiotics." Below, where there was a list of parts available for the taking, a few items above "9 packages of beef fat" was written "soup bones." Sign me up! Coincidentally, the vegetable co-op resumed delivery for the fall that same week so there were fresh veggies, green beans and corn, to add in the pot as well.

My mom tells the story about taking me to the pediatrician when I was a toddler, and being quizzed about what she fed me. She said he raised an eyebrow when she told him that she often gave me soup for dinner. A can of Campbell's wouldn't qualify, but a bowl of this soup definitely counts as a complete meal. Fresh veggies, barley, grass-fed beef (ok, not the leanest cut out there) but this is a very satisfying meal. Usually we would first eat a bowl of soup with just the veggies, and have the meat afterwards with horseradish. Mmmm.

Plus, making this soup and using the fresh corn gave me a opportunity to use the bundt pan for a different reason. I'm pretty sure that genius Alton Brown is probably the one who gets props to introducing me to this idea. It works really, really well. Even better if you can keep one hand on the cob, one on the knife and let someone else take the photo for you. Getting out the bundt pan made me want to have something sweet while the savory soup was simmering on the stove. Note to self: make more desserts for the blog!

Vegetable Beef Barley Soup
Inspired from my childhood


A few beef bones for soup (2-3 pounds)
1 onion, diced
2 stalks celery, diced
2 carrots, peeled & diced
2 ears of corn, kernels removed
1/2 lb fresh green beans, trimmed & cut into 3/4" length
1 15oz can diced tomatoes
1 32oz container beef broth (4C)
4 Cup water
3/4 Cup pearled barley, rinsed


Heat soup pot over medium-high heat, brown beef bones for about 5 minutes on each side then remove from pot. Add onions, celery and carrots and sautee for about 5 minutes. Add corn, green beans and tomatoes. Add all of the liquid - broth and water, the barley and stir to combine. Return beef to the pot, along with any juices that may have accumulated on the plate. Cover the pot, reduce heat to maintain gentle simmer, and cook for three hours.

Butternut Squash Soup

Last week we had a brief tease of fall weather. I miss not having that season here in Houston. During these momentary cool temperatures I was inspired to make a 'classic autumn' recipe. Ironically, butternut squash soup was not something we ever ate growing up in NY, but it seemed like the right place to turn, and I bought a beautiful 2 1/2 pound squash on impulse at the grocery store.

After flipping around for recipe inspiration, I concluded that there aren't really radical differences. So, I closed the computer and made up my own by drawing on whatever information had remained in my brain. The ones that recommended roasting squash first definitely sounded tastier, so I started with that. And peeling a whole squash was something I'd never done so I thought it was be good to mark that off my culinary checklist. I would have simply roasted the halves, which some recipes recommended, and I'm sure would be just fine.

The amount of other veggies are simply based on what was on hand. I mean, seriously, does anyone ever measure out "1/2 Cup diced onion?" I never do. Just cut it up and throw it all in. Unless, it seems to be in gross excess, then I'll still chop up the whole onion and put half in the fridge for something else. Though, I must confess, this approach of 'use what you have' ended up bitting me in the rear. I had half of a (4 C) container of chicken broth in the fridge which I discovered was not enough for a proper vegetable:liquid ratio to yield what one would call a 'soup.' It was more like a vegetable puree. It still tasted amazing, even if it the consistency reminded me of something I spooned into Charlotte's mouth as a baby.

Butternut Squash Soup
Adapted from an assortment of recipes

1 butternut squash (2 lbs)
1 onion, diced
1 carrot, diced
1 rib of celery, diced
1/2 teaspoon rubbed sage (or 1 Tablespoon fresh sage)
4 C chicken broth
salt & pepper
olive oil

1. Heat oven to 400. Peel squash and cut into 1" cubes. Toss with olive oil and roast for 30-40 minutes, until carmelized.

2. Sautee onion, carrot and celery in a pot on the stove over medium heat until softened, 8-10 minutes. Add roasted squash, sage, salt & pepper and stir. Add 3 C chicken broth and simmer for 30 minutes.

3. Use immersion blender to puree until smooth. Adding additional 1C chicken broth as needed to yield desired consistency.