Mulligatawny

Amanda picked this one out of February's Family Fun magazine and requested it for dinner. We tried it last night and really enjoyed it. (I'm sure it would rival the Soup Nazi's.) My favorite part of the whole experience was that even after reading the recipe, and seeing that it had apples in it, Amanda still wanted to try it -- that definitely would have turned me off as a kid.

Mulligatawny

4 T butter (or 2 T olive oil)
1 onion, chopped
2 carrots, chopped
1 celery stalk, chopped
1 green pepper, chopped
1 apple, cored, peeled, and chopped
1 1/2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breast, chopped
1/2 C flour
2 to 3 t curry powder
5 C chicken broth
1 (14 2/3-oz) can diced tomatoes, drained
salt and pepper
2 C hot cook rice

1. Melt the butter, or heat the oil, in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onion, carrots, celery, green pepper, apple, and chicken, and saute' for about 15 minutes. Turn the heat to low.
2. In a small bowl, mix together the flour and curry powder. Add the mixture to the pot, then stir and cook for 3 to 5 minutes. Add the chicken broth and tomatoes. Partially cover the pot and simmer the soup for about an hour, stirring occasionally. Add the salt and pepper to taste.
3. To serve, place about 1/4 C of rice in a bowl and ladle the soup over the rice. Makes about 8 cups.


The way I did it:

• I used olive oil (I always opt for olive oil when it's suggested, and even sometimes when it's not)
• I used the least amount of curry suggested -- I haven't thought I'm much of a curry fan, and when I mentioned during dinner last night that that was how I felt and that I was pleasantly surprised by how much I liked the soup despite the curry, Amanda reminded me how much I loved the curry chicken crepe at "Crepes de Paris" at Victoria Gardens in Rancho Cucamonga. (If you're ever in the area, treat yourself -- you won't regret it!) She was right. Maybe I'm a curry fan after all.
  
• I also doubled every ingredient in the recipe (so the kids could bring some to school today in their thermoses) besides the chicken -- I didn't even put as much chicken in as they called for in a regular recipe -- I'm cutting way back on meat these days.
• We used more rice than was called for, so I made some more today for tonight's leftovers, and we used one of the Royal Blend rice mixes (one of my favorites)
• We didn't add any additional salt and pepper which surprised me a bit -- we're big fans. There must have been enough salt in the rice to cover it.
  

Toasted bread, bean, and vegetable soup

This is on the cover of Sunset magazine this month, and the second it came in the mail I knew I had to try it. I did, just this evening, and it is as good as it looks.

Toasted bread, bean, and vegetable soup

serves 6 or 7 (makes 7 cups)
time: about 50 minutes

About 3 T olive oil, divided
1/2 white onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 medium carrots, chopped into 1/2-in. pieces
2 celery stalks, chopped into 1-in pieces
1 1/2 qts. chicken broth
1 can (15 oz) cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
4 whole canned tomatoes, quartered, plus some juice
2 C chopped Swiss chard
4 C rough-textured day-old bread (such as ciabatta), ripped into 1 1/2-in pieces
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 T. each chopped fresh basil and cilantro
wedge of parmesan cheese for grating (optional)

1. Heat 1 T olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add onion and garlic; cook until transparent, about 5 minutes. Add carrots and celery and cook, stirring often, 5 minutes. Stir in broth and beans, then bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer about 15 minutes. Add tomatoes and chard and simmer another 15 minutes, covered.
2. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lay bread pieces on a rimmed baking sheet in a single layer. Drizzle with remaining 2 T olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Toast in oven until slightly golden, about 10 minutes. Set croutons aside.
3. Just before serving, add basil and cilantro and season to taste with salt and pepper.
4. Divide soup among serving bowls and top each with a few warm croutons. Grate parmesan directly over soup if you like.


My notes:

• I used part vegetable broth and part chicken broth
• I used spinach, not chard
• I used La Brea bakery's whole grain bread (it was awesome) and toasted it longer than 10 minutes
  
• I opted out of the parmesan

Cuban Black Bean Soup

This recipe is one I tried for the first time on Wednesday. It came from the Jan/Feb 2008 issue of Cooking Light and everybody liked it. (The baby even helped me polish off the leftovers for lunch yesterday). I made it just how they printed it with the following exceptions:

• I omitted the ham (I didn't even tell the family it was supposed to have ham)
• I only used a quarter of one jalapeño (we're just not that hot)
• I couldn't find "pumkinseed kernals" (but I may order some off the internet for next time)
• After the soup was completed I let it simmer for a couple hours longer in order to get rid of some of the watery soup base and make it thicker like in the picture.
• Oh, and if you don't grow oregano (my herb garden is planned for this spring/summer!) I wouldn't use it in the soup. I usually buy it because I love fresh herbs, but it is quite pricey and unless you've got a palate like the judges on Iron Chef (who are pretty ridiculous if you ask me), it won't make that big of a difference.
  

Here it is!

Cuban Black Bean Soup

Chef Douglas Rodriguez of DeLaCosta restaurant in Chicago was born in America, but this recipe is inspired by his mother's black bean soup, which offered robust flavor for people who didn't have money to spnd on meat for stock. Here we use both fresh and dried oregano because each imparts a different flavor to the final dish.

2 bay leaves
1 lb dried black beans (2 1/3 C)
12 1/2 C water, divided
1 T canola oil
3 1/2 C chopped green bell pepper (about 3 med)
2 1/2 C coarsely chopped onion
1/3 C chopped shallots (about 2 small)
1 T ground cumin
2 T dried oregano
2 T chopped fresh oregano
1 1/2 T sugar
2 t kosher salt
2 C diced peeled avocado
2 T fresh lime juice
2 C thinly sliced red onion
1 1/2 C chopped smoked, fully cooked ham
1 C chopped fresh cilantro
1 C light sour cream
10 t unsalted pumpkinseed kernels, toasted
1/3 C finely chopped seeded jalapeño pepper (about 2 med)
lime wedges (optional)

1. Place bay leaves and beans in a Dutch oven. Add 12 C water to pan; bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer 2 1/2 hrs or until tender, stirring occasionally.
2. Heat oil in a large skillet over med heat. Add bell pepper, chopped onion, and shallots to pan; cook 10 min or until onion is tender, stirring frequently. Stir in cumin, dried oregano, and fresh oregano; cook 2 minutes, stirring frequently. Remove from heat; let stand 10 min.
3. Add vegetable mixture, sugar, and salt to beans; simmer 10 min, stirring occasionally. Discard bay leaves. Combine avocado and juice; toss gently. Ladle 3/4 C bean mixture into each of 10 bowls; top each serving with about 3 T avocado mixture, about 3 T red onion, 2 T ham, about 1 1/2 T cilantro, about 1 1/2 T sour cream, 1 t pumpkinseed kernels, and about 1/2 t jalapeño pepper. Serve with lime wedges, if desired. Yield: 10 servings.

Notes from Cooking Light:
Cuban cooking reflects the influence of Spain and Africa as well as other Caribbean islands. Spicy heat is not as pronounced in Cuban cuisine as in some other Latin fare. In keeping with this tradition, Cuban Black Bean Soup is a balance of earthy flavors from the black beans and cumin, pungent sofrito (onion, green bell pepper, garlic, and oregano), and citrus. Finally, Cubans don't usually soak the beans for soup before cooking; they simply cook the beans longer and relish the deep flavor of the cooking liquid.

For the most part my kids have always been good eaters. Really, they're the kind of kids that can eat very liberally at a dessert table then turn around and eat from the veggie tray with no encouragement. They also came with some pretty refined palates if you ask me. Tanner took his first taste of raw green onions when he was only 2. He thought about it for a minute than returned to the cutting board for more. It's definitely made my life easier when it comes to cooking because they're pretty willing to try anything.

With that, these may not be thought of as the most kid-friendly recipes, but then again, maybe all kids should be encouraged to try knew things.