zucchini soup

It is hot. We do not have air conditioning in this house. I do not want to be in the kitchen. But then the new issue of Food & Wine shows up so here I go, into the kitchen. 

I had picked up a few zucchini from Hearty Fork Farm last weekend which I did not use during the last TK dinner event. And then today my neighbor left another bag of zucchini on my porch. 

How cute are my neighbors?

I've made a few recipes out of this issue already (for last weekends TK event) But decided I would share this soup recipe first. I know. I just said it is HOT and here I am making soup. Welcome to my addled little brain.

I imagine you can add whatever additional ingredients you love with your zucchini. I added lots of pepper, a dollop of sour cream and some fresh dill. I had a moment where I thought it should have a little cream in it and maybe some more spices, but then decided no, I enjoyed the purity of flavor and the uncomplicated ingredients list (and did I mention it is HOT in my house?)
And then a friend of mine said "it NEEDS bacon!" 
Noted...next time.

recipe below adapted from July 2014 Food & Wine magazine


you will need:

tablespoon butter
couple tablespoons olive oil
1 sweet onion - diced
2 garlic cloves - thinly sliced
4 medium zucchini - washed, halved lengthwise and sliced into moons
2/3 cup vegetable stock
1 cup of water
salt
pepper

for garnish:
julienned raw zucchini
sour cream
chopped fresh dill

to do:

In a medium soup pot, heat the butter and olive oil.
Add the onions and garlic.
Add 1 1/2 teaspoons of salt and 1 teaspoon of pepper.
Cook until the onions are translucent.
Add the zucchini moons (see below)

Cook about ten minutes.
Add the vegetable stock and water.
Bring to a boil for five minutes.
Turn heat down to medium and simmer another ten minutes or so.

Remove from the heat.
Puree the entire thing - I used my immersion blender, but you can use a regular blender and just do it in batches.
Taste, then add more salt and pepper as desired.

Ladle into bowls, garnish and serve.
Enjoy!

spring salad with Cacio e Pepe dressing

Cacio e Pepe dressing? This is basically cheese and pepper - and in this case a few other ingredients - and it is delicious! This was Food and Wine magazine's salad of the month with fava beans and fresh peas. I didn't have fava beans and only had a bag of frozen peas (gasp!...frozen?...) but I imagine you could use most any spring vegetable you like and it will be great.
This was the salad I served for the March dinner @Tate's. After collecting all the plates from the table husband came back and told me to not bother washing them because they were spotless!

I hope you can try this soon.

I am posting the recipe here as I made it the other night.
The original recipe is in the April issue of Food and Wine.

My daughter said "that's a mess of a salad mom?!"

I guess it does look like that - but it was fantastic!

I used asparagus and the aforementioned bag of frozen peas 

Doesn't everyone always keep bags of frozen peas available? I do! Who has time to shell enough peas for a serving? No thank you!

For this salad I used mixed herb greens and added a lot of arugula.

Also added white kidney beans (rinsed first) and soft boiled eggs. Grated more Parmesan cheese on top and more fresh pepper then served.

YOU WILL NEED:

greens

1 bunch of asparagus - ends trimmed - cut into large chunks

1/2 a bag of frozen peas

avocado

soft boiled eggs - if desired

white kidney beans

buttermilk dressing - recipe follows

salt

pepper

parmesan cheese

dressing:

1 large egg yolk

3 tablespoons buttermilk

1 garlic clove - finely grated

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

3 tablespoons parmesan cheese - finely grated

(plus more for garnish)

fresh black pepper

TO DO:

in a food processor, pulse the egg with the buttermilk and garlic until creamy.

with the machine running - slowly drizzle in the olive oil until mixture is fully incorporated.

add the cheese and several turns of fresh pepper.

puree until smooth.

taste for seasoning.

add salt as needed.

That's it. Your dressing is done. This will keep in the refrigerator for several days. But leave it on your counter top for 10 minutes or so before adding to your salad. Makes it easier to pour out.

for the vegetables:

bring a large pot of water to boil.

add salt then gently add the cut asparagus.

cook 2 or 3 minutes.

remove and run under cold water or immerse in an ice bath.

back to the pot of boiling water - gently add the peas.

cook 1 minute.

remove and give cold water treatment.

done.

rinse the beans.

slice the eggs in half.

slice the avocado into thin planks.

lay 4 or 5 slices of avocado on a plate

(do this step first because you really want the avocado to soak up the dressing that inevitably goes straight to the bottom)

add the greens.

add a couple spoonfuls of the vegetables.

sprinkle some of the beans all around.

drizzle dressing all over the top of this mound of greenery.

garnish with the egg, fresh pepper and more parmesan cheese.

serve immediately.

spicy chicken with coconut caramel sauce

Main course at the last dinner@Tate's.
Chicken.....again.....I'm kind of tired of making chicken. But looking for a meat that everyone eats? Quite often I find myself making chicken.....again.....Maybe we can make it a little differently? Maybe the last issue of Food and Wine was a life saver in the "let's spice it up a bit" category? This was delicious. I was a little concerned it might be too spicy, but when my daughter asked for more I knew it was going to be the entree for the next dinner party.

original recipe in Food and Wine - March issue.

YOU WILL NEED:

1/4 cup + 2 teaspoons sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons ground coriander

1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin

1/2 teaspoon turmeric

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

Cayenne pepper

4 skin-on boneless chicken breasts

2 tablespoons water

1/2 cup unsweetened coconut milk

2 tablespoons Asian fish sauce

1 red jalapeno - minced

1 red grapefruit

1 lime 

1 cup fresh diced pineapple

extra virgin olive oil

fresh cilantro

salt

pepper

TO DO:

in a bowl, mix 2 tablespoons of sugar with the coriander, cumin, turmeric, pepper and a pinch of cayenne.

rub the spices all over the chicken - use all of it.

cover and refrigerate for at least an hour.

in a saucepan, mix remaining 1/4 cup of sugar with the water and bring to a gentle boil.

simmer until an amber caramel forms - about 10 minutes.

turn off the heat and add the coconut milk.

return to a low heat and stir until sauce is smooth and no chunks remain.

add the fish sauce and red jalapeno.

let stand 5 to 10 minutes.

strain.

then season with salt.

set aside.

light a grill.

spray the chicken with olive oil and season with salt.

grill over moderate heat.

turn once.

skin should be charred and chicken cooked through.

about 15 minutes total for both sides.

let rest before slicing.

in a medium bowl, gently toss the fruits with a pinch of salt and cayenne.

slice the chicken breasts and plate.

drizzle with the coconut sauce.

add the fruit salad to the top then garnish with fresh cilantro and a sprinkling of salt.

serve immediately.