Ribolitta

I'm still on a soup kick...

I just can't help it!! I LOVE soup, and I want to make it ALL THE TIME!!!

I wanted a delicious vegetable soup to follow up our hearty Chicken Marbella recipe, and found this delightful gem tucked away in a Family Fun magazine, of all places. It is an entirely attainable and fairly authentic recipe for Ribolitta...a Tuscan peasant soup.

Ribolitta literally means to "boil twice" in Italian...and that's exactly what you do. Heavy on the green, this is by no means a flimsy broth with a few veggies floating around. It's an almost eat-with-a-fork vegetable sensation that explodes with flavor and gives new meaning to "eating your greens". You can easily substitute different vegetables in and out if you don't have EXACTLY what the recipe calls for.

It requires a little time to prepare...but is worth the effort. No need to double...this soup makes 10+ cups.

This soup is especially good the day after it's made...so it's lucky that the recipe yields a generous amount...you'll want leftovers.

Hearty Ribolitta

Ribolitta

• 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 leeks, sliced (white stalks only)
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 celery stalks, chopped
• 4 carrots, peeled and chopped
• 1 (14.5 oz.) can diced tomatoes (I used the kind with basil and oregano added in)
• 1 (15.5 oz) can cannellini beans, drained
• 1 bunch kale, ribs removed and chopped
• 1 bunch spinach or swiss chard, chopped
• 1/4 head savoy cabbage, chopped
• 2 potatoes, peeled and chopped
• 2 zucchini, chopped
• 1 TBS salt
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• 1 tsp rosemary
• 1/2 tsp red pepper flakeswater
• 1 loaf stale (day old) French or Italian bread, sliced
• Grated Parmesan

 1. Heat the olive oil in a large pot over medium heat.

Onions, carrots, celery, leeks, and garlic...

Add the onion, leeks, garlic, celery, and carrots; saute until onion is softened, about 5 minutes.

Sauteed veggies with the canned veggies...

 Add the tomatoes with their juice, the beans, and the remaining vegetables...

Kale, spinach, cabbage, zucchini, and potatoes...

...then season with salt, pepper, rosemary, and red pepper flakes. Add enough water to cover the vegetables (about 10-12 cups) and bring soup to a boil. Reduce the heat, then cover and simmer the soup for 1-1/2 to 2 hours.

2. Add the slices of bread (I can hear you now..."You want me to do WHAT to the bread? Isn't it for dunking...or garnish?"...No...it's not. It's part of the soup. Now do as you're told and add it in!!), then raise the heat to medium high and bring the soup to a second boil, stirring occasionally, until the bread has fully broken down, about 10-15 minutes.

Just do it, already...geez...

3. Let soup stand about 10 minutes before serving. Ladle soup into bowls, then sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and drizzle with olive oil, if desired (I add the cheese, but not the extra oil...so I guess that makes me decidedly UN-Italian).

Ohhhh...yum, yum, yum...

4. If you just can't help it, serve with freshly sliced Italian or French bread...

courtesy Family Fun magazine

Cauliflower Soup

I have sung the praises of Pioneer Woman many many times. I love her web-site, I love her humor, I love that shes a fellow ginger, and I love love love her cooking. 

I love it because it calls for real ingredients like BUTTER and CREAM...

I love it beacuse unlike most recipes, I never have to double it...

And I love it because my family will always eat whatever it is.

I've been craving a lot of soups lately...I guess it's winter-withdrawals, since it's not actually cold in the Jungle. And Pioneer Woman has one I've been dying to try...her Cauliflower Soup.

I made it almost exactly as she asks, with a couple additions made out of necessity, not necessarily creativity. It came out delish and creamy and served up even better as leftovers. Here it is:

Cauliflower Soup

Cauliflower Soup

• 1 stick butter, divided
• 1/2 whole onion, finely diced
• 1 whole carrot, finely diced (I actually used 2)
• 1 stalk celery, finely diced (used 2 again)
• 1 to 2 whole cauliflower heads, roughly chopped (again...I used 2...sense a theme here?)
• 2 TBS fresh parsley, chopped
• 2 quarts (boxes) low-sodium chicken stock or broth
• 6 TBS all-purpose flour
• 2 cups whole milk
• 1 cup half-and-half
• 2 to 4 tsp salt, to taste (went with 2)
• 1 cup (heaping) sour cream, room temperature

 In a large saucepan or dutch oven, melt 4 TBS butter. Add onion and cook for a few minutes, or until it starts to turn brown.

Add carrots and celery and cook an additional couple minutes. Add cauliflower and parsley and stir to combine.

All the delicious veggies...

Cover and cook over low heat for 15 minutes. After 15 minutes, pour in chicken stock or broth. (Now...here's where I deviated. See, I used the Swanson Chicken Stock...but there's only about 3-1/2 cups per box, so I substituted what was missing with vegetable broth. Not a big substitution...but still....)

Good stuff, but a little short...

Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and allow to simmer.

In a medium saucepan, melt 4 TBS butter. Mix the flour with the milk and whisk to combine. Add flour-milk mixture slowly to butter, whisking constantly.

Oh my...all that butter and cream...

Remove from heat and stir in one cup of half-and-half. Add mixture to the remaining simmering soup. Allow to simmer for 15 to 20 minutes (I did 20).

Check seasoning and add more salt and pepper if necessary.

Just before serving, place sour cream  in a serving bowl or soup tureen. Add two to three ladles of hot soup into the tureen and stir to combine with the sour cream. Pour in remaining soup and stir.

When someone says "heaping"...I generally take their word for it...

Serve immediately. (Yes, ma'am!!)

It was hard to take this shot because all I wanted to do was EAT!!

This really is an amazing soup. We served it with Colombian bread from the latin bakery on the corner...it was delicious. 

Pioneer Woman recommends making it right away.

 

I second that.

It feels winter-y and warm...my happy place is sated...

courtesy www.thepioneerwoman.com

Carrot Coconut Soup

Today was a busy day...I spent all day at the Renaissance Festival with my little Daisy Scouts. We were there from 10am until 4pm...thats a LONG day in the hot sun with little 5- and 6-year-old girls.

We had a great time, but by time I got back, I was EXHAUSTED.

And, of course, as soon as I walked in the door, the kids that got left at home started clambering for dinner.

My first instinct was to go get pizza. I had my sunglasses on my head and my keys in my hand.

But then...I thought about what pizza would do to my diet. See...pizza is one of those "trigger foods" for me...if it's around...I HAVE to have it. And I can never stop at one slice...I can easily polish 4 or 5 slices in one sitting...sometimes more if it's really good and there's a big selection to choose from. Pizza isn't my only "tigger food"...but it is a MAJOR one...

I've done SO WELL on my eating since my Master Cleanse shock treatment...having pizza would just BLOW IT.

So...despite my exhaustion and my childrens' impatience, I came back inside and put my keys in the basket and my sunglasses on the desk, and went to my fridge to make a delicious and satisfying dinner.

I knew what it would be, too. Something delightful that was made at our December Iron Chef...where the secret ingredient was "coconut".

Sherrie McKenna made a Carrot Coconut Soup...and as far as I'm concerned, it should've won.

It didn't win, though...there were three winners that day...I won "Most Original" with THIS...

Coconut Chicken Avocado Bites

And Valerias friend, Sonja, was another winner in the "Best Taste" with THIS entry...

Coconut Candies dipped in sugar (note: DO NOT EAT CLOVE!!)

And Valeria herself won "Best Presentation" with THIS...

I don't remember what this is called...but it's a Brazilian dish made with coconut milk and cornstarch and served with stewed prunes...very very pretty...and Valerias favorite dessert from her childhood...but not my favorite...

Sherrie didn't win...but in my mind, she should have. Hers was my FAVORITE entry that month...and I've been DYING to make it myself.

Incidentally, this soup is completely vegan...so serve it with pride.

So here it is...

Be prepared to chop LOTS of carrots...

Carrot Coconut Soup

12 large carrots, peeled and chopped small
2 medium onions, chopped small
4 tsp fresh ginger, minced
4 and 1/2 tsp curry powder
6 cups vegetable broth (essentially a box and a half)
2 14 oz. cans coconut milk
sea salt, to taste
lime wedges

1. Simmer the carrots, onion, ginger, and curry powder in vegetable broth until carrots are SUPER soft...about 20-25 minutes

I hate the florescent lighting in my kitchen...everything looks yellow-er (is that a word?)

2. Allow to cool slightly, and then puree in blender, working in batches, if needed (you DO need to, by the way...so have an extra pot or bowl close by)

3. Return to heat and slowly add coconut milk, stirring constantly, until combined. Do NOT let boil again...just heat through.

4. Season with sea salt to taste

5. Serve warm with lime wedges to add extra kick, or chill and serve cold on hot summer days.

Yummy Yummy Yummy...

Note: Soup will thicken as it cools, so be prepared to add extra liquid if necessary.

This thick and creamy soup is excellent served with crusty bread...it's GREAT for dipping!!

Ya know...as a child I wouldn't eat carrots. My father told me they'd make my hair redder, and being that I was always teased in school for being a ginger, redder hair is the LAST thing I wanted. Had I not already been cured of this silly childhood phobia...I guaruntee this soup would've done the trick!!

courtesy Sherrie McKenna