Academy Award Winning Borscht

I always watch the Academy Award Show. I don't know why, because I don't go to the movies that often and don't really care what clothes anyone is wearing or which celebrity showed up with someone or no one.

But, as Tevye says, "it's tradition."

I watch because that's what I always do.

And usually with Ed, of course, and with Eileen and Jeff, who also don't go to the movies very often.

We will have dinner of course, and popcorn of one kind or another. 

I thought that for dinner I would make something representative of the one movie we did see: Bridge of Spies, about the negotiations for the return of Francis Gary Powers of the then-famous U2 spy incident.

The four of us are all old enough to remember Powers, whose plane "somehow accidentally got lost in USSR airspace" (so we were told back then when we were children). And of course we remember, when it was news, the spy exchange of Powers for Rudolf Abel (played, in my opinion, miraculously well by Mark Rylance).

So - borscht of course. So Russian. So delicious. 

This version is loaded with cabbage and other vegetables, so the beets don't overwhelm. You can make it with beef stock (and even add some meat), but also with vegetable stock (and then serve the soup topped with dairy sour cream or plain yogurt).

Academy Award Winning Borscht

• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 4 medium beets, peeled and shredded
• 3 tomatoes, chopped
• 2 parsnips, peeled and shredded
• 2 carrots, peeled and shredded
• 2 stalks celery, sliced
• 1/2 medium green cabbage, shredded
• 2 tablespoons chopped parsley
• 8 cups beef or vegetable stock
• 1 bay leaf
• 1-1/2 teaspoons salt or to taste
• freshly ground black pepper to taste
• 3 all-purpose potatoes, peeled and diced
• 6 tablespoons white vinegar, approximately
• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh dill
• dairy sour cream or plain Greek style yogurt, optional

Heat the vegetable oil in a soup pot over medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, for 2 minutes. Add the beets, tomatoes, parsnips, carrots, celery, cabbage and parsley and cook, stirring occasionally, for 5-6 minutes. Pour in the stock, add the bay leaf and salt and pepper to taste. Bring the liquid to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer, partially covered, one hour. Add the potatoes and cook for 45 minutes. Stir in the vinegar and dill and cook for 10 minutes. Taste for seasoning and add more salt, pepper or vinegar to taste. Remove the bay leaf. If the soup is cooked using vegetable stock, serve it garnished with a dollop of sour cream if desired.

 Makes 8-10 servings

The Easiest, Most Comforting Tomato Soup

Last week I was at my daughter Meredith's house and she had just finished cooking tomato soup. The fragrance -- warmth, security, satisfaction -- lingered in my memory into the next day.

I had to have some.

And so I did. I cooked a batch at home.

That enticing smell! I had it right there, in my own kitchen.

It was so easy too.

I separated the soup into packages for freezing, but they didn't last. We ate it all, a soup-plateful before dinner over the course of three evenings.

Now I will make some more.

Tomato Soup

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 3 large cloves garlic, chopped
• 2 28-ounce cans Italian style tomatoes, including juices
• 3 cups vegetable stock
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
• salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
• 1/3 cup uncooked white rice

Heat the olive oil in a soup pot over medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, for 2 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for about another minute. Add the tomatoes, stock, basil and salt and pepper. Break up the tomatoes coarsely with a wooden spoon. Bring the soup to a simmer, cover the pan and cook for 30 minutes. Add the rice, cover the pan and cook for another 25 minutes. Blend the soup in a blender or with an immersion blender. 

Makes 6-8 servings

Mushroom Barley Soup

The weather fooled me for a while. It was actually in the 60s last weekend. Now it's back to the usual for a January in Connecticut. 19 degrees when I woke up.

That's cold.

That's soup weather. Hearty, nourishing Mushroom Barley soup weather.

My mother-in-law, Pearl Fein, made fabulous Mushroom Barley soup, but I never got her recipe.

Alas.

Then I saw my friend Liz Rueven's recipe. Liz blogs at www.kosherlikeme.com, but she created her recipe for Mushroom Barley soup for The Nosher, where it was voted one of the Top Ten recipes on the site for 2015. 

It inspired me, but I was sans crockpot (mine is somewhere in my basement and I didn't feel like looking for it).

So I thought about what I remember loving in my mother-in-law's soup and what appealed to me about Liz's recipe and I came up with my very own version.

It was awesome. VERY similar to my mother-in-law's, except hers was made with chicken stock, mine with beef stock and water.

Either way, this is going into the "repeat" file.

Mushroom Barley Soup

• 8 dried shiitake mushrooms
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 pound chuck, cut into small chunks (or use flanken)
• 2 medium onions, chopped
• 3 carrots, sliced 1/2-inch thick
• 3 stalks celery, sliced 1/2-inch thick
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh dill
• 3/4 cup pearled barley
• 4 cups beef or chicken stock
• 4 cups water, approximately
• salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Place the mushrooms in a bowl, cover with hot water and soak for 8-10 minutes or until the caps are soft. Remove and discard the hard, inedible stems, if any, chop the caps and set aside. Heat the vegetable oil in a soup pot over medium heat. Add the meat and cook, turning the pieces occasionally, for 6-8 minutes or until lightly crispy. Add the onions and cook, stirring occasionally, for about 3 minutes, or until softened. Add the carrots, celery, reserved mushrooms, dill and barley and stir briefly. Pour in the stock and water, add salt and pepper to taste. Bring the soup to a simmer. Cook for about 45 minutes. Add more water if you prefer a thinner soup (or if you refrigerate the soup: the barley will absorb the liquid and soup will be very thick).

Make 8 servings

Warm Winter Soup

I guess the warm weather couldn't last. It was December, after all, and I do live in Connecticut.

I did appreciate it though, the unseasonal temperature in the 60s. And I suppose if I wanted that sort of thing all year round I could move to California or Arizona or Florida. 

But I never will. I am a Connecticut woman with a penchant for spending lots of time in New York City.

So I'll get used to the cold and, in addition to the silk undergarments I just bought to wear for when I'm outside and it's freezing, I'll make myself some soup to help keep me warm.

This is the kind of soup I make all the time. The ingredients depend on what I have in the house, but there's always a package or two of dried soup mix, plus onions and carrots and a few ingredients such as dried split peas and barley.

You can add lots to this recipe: parsnips, other whole grains, dried lima beans or red kidney beans. You can also add fresh vegetables at the end of the process (give them time to soften): peas, broccoli, cut up green beans. 

But this is one for cold winter weather, for sure. And look how easy it is to prepare!

Warm Winter Soup

• 1 6-ounce package dried soup mix (I used Manischewitz Lima Bean and Barley mix)
• 3 pounds marrow bones
• 3 carrots, chopped
• 2 onions, chopped
• 1/2 cup dried green split peas
• 1/2 cup pearled barley
• salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Place the soup mix, bones, carrots, onions, split peas, barley and salt and pepper to taste in a soup pot. Pour in enough water to cover the ingredients by at least one inch. Bring to a boil over high heat. Lower the heat to a simmer and cook for at least 2 hours, or until the soup is thick. 

Makes about 6 servings

Soup for When you are Sick

Everyone knows you're supposed to have chicken soup when you're sick. 

However, recently, when I had a cold that lingered and lingered and really needed soup I didn't feel like going out to buy a chicken. Or peel carrots. Or rinse the fresh dill.

I didn't feel like doing much of anything frankly, but I did want homemade soup.

So I made some from what I had in the house.

It was an amazing dish. Hearty, tasty, nourishing. Also EASY. 

I did feel much better the next day.

The recipe is extremely forgiving, so here it is with a bunch of ways you can vary the recipe depending on what you have in your house.

Freeze some for the next time you don't feel great and need some soup. Or want some wonderful, thick and filling dish for dinner.

Soup for When you are Sick

• 3-4 meaty marrow bones
• water
• one package of bean soup mix or vegetable soup mix (I used Manischewitz but any is fine)
• one large onion, chopped or sliced
• one cup of split peas (green or yellow)
• 3/4 cup lentils
• 1/2 cup any whole grain (such as farro, barley, wheatberries, kamut)
• salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Place the bones in a pot, cover with water (about 8-10 cups) and bring to a boil. Lower the heat to a simmer and skim the stuff that comes to the top for about 10 minutes. Add the whole package of soup mix, the onion, split peas, lentils and whole grain, plus salt and pepper to taste. Partially cover the pan and simmer for hours, stirring occasionally, until the dried vegetables are very soft. I sometimes add more water if the soup is too thick.

Additions:

• 3 carrots, sliced
• 3 stalks celery, sliced
• 4-6 soaked and chopped dried shiitake mushrooms, coarsely cut
• Frozen corn kernels and/or lima beans (add about 1/2 hour before soup is done)
• Whatever else you like (I sometimes add chicken bones in addition to meat bones)

Makes about 6 servings of soup (you have to fight over the bones or make it with 6 bones)

This Soup is Two Kinds of Hot

If winter comes, can spring be far behind?

It's the old question made famous by Percy Bysshe Shelley in his poem, Ode to the West Wind, which used to be required reading in high school.

It always seemed to me that people quote that line as if to soothe us through the cold and bitter days, to remind us that warm weather eventually comes and it won't be as long as it seems when you're bundled up in down coats and covered with scarves, hats, gloves and furry boots but still shivering because it feels like it's zero degrees out and the wind is blowing in your face.

But in actuality, my answer is, yes. Spring can be far behind. 66 days in fact. Well after the groundhog jumps back into his hole and whether or not he/she sees its shadow. 

That means lots of hot, warming, comforting food is required to help keep us warm and feel secure and cozy.

Soup, for example.

Like this one, which is hot in two ways. First, it's seasoned with spicy chipotle pepper and a lush garnish of toast croutes loaded up with Sincerely Brigitte Chipotle cheddar cheese. Second, it's served piping hot for lunch or as a first course for dinner.

Roasted Red Pepper Soup with Chipotle Cheese Croutes

• 6 medium red bell peppers

• 2 tablespoons olive oil

• 1 tablespoon butter

• 1 medium onion, chopped

• 2 stalks celery, chopped

• 2 medium cloves garlic, chopped

• 2 medium Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and chopped

• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

• 1/2 teaspoon ground chipotle powder

• 5 cups vegetable stock

• salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

• 1 cup half and half cream or coconut milk

• cheese croutes

Preheat the broiler. Place the peppers under the broiler, about 4-6" away from the heat. Broil for 2-3 minutes, until the skin has blistered. Turn the peppers and repeat this process until the entire surface is blistered and lightly charred. Remove the peppers and place them in a paper bag or wrap them in aluminum foil. Let rest at least 10 minutes. Remove the peppers from the bag, peel off the skin and discard the stem and the seeds. Cut the peppers into pieces and set aside. Heat the olive oil and butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. When the butter has melted and looks foamy, add the onion and celery and cook for about 4 minutes or until the vegetables have softened. Add the garlic and cook briefly. Add the red pepper pieces, potatoes, parsley, chipotle powder and stock. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, lower the heat and simmer for 25 minutes. Puree the ingredients in a food processor or with an immersion blender. Stir in the cream and cook for 3-4 minutes or until hot. Serve with the cheese croutes.

Makes 8 servings

Cheese Croutes:

• 16 (1/2-inch thick) slices French bread

• olive oil (about 2 tablespoons)

• 1 large clove garlic, cut in half

• 7 ounces Sincerely Brigitte Chipotle Cheese, grated

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Place the bread slices on a cookie sheet. Brush the bread tops with the olive oil and rub the surfaces with the cut side of the garlic. Bake for about 15 minutes, turning them over once about halfway through. Remove the bread slices from the oven. Just before serving, place equal amounts of the grated cheese on top of each bread slice. Bake for 5-6 minutes or until the cheese is bubbly. Place two croutes on top of each bowl of soup.

Yellow Split Pea Soup

Yellow Split Pea Soup

The best reason to freeze a smoked turkey carcass or buy a big smoked turkey drumstick.

So you can use it for this soup, and have a most comforting dish for dinner when it’s cold outside like today. Or when it’s rainy or snowy and you need something hot, filling, thick and nourishing, easy to prepare and good to eat.

Yellow Split Pea Soup

• 1 smoked turkey carcass (or use a smoked turkey drumstick)
• 10 cups water
• 1 pound dried yellow split peas
• 2 medium onions, chopped
• 2 large carrots, chopped
• 2 large stalks celery, including leaves, chopped
• 2 medium parsnips, chopped
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
• 3/4 teaspoon ground allspice
• salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Place the turkey in a soup pot and pour in the 10 cups of water. Bring to a boil over high heat. Turn the heat to a simmer and cook for 4-5 minutes, removing any scum as it rises to the surface. Add the peas, onions, carrots, celery, parsnips, parsley, allspice and some salt and pepper to taste. Cover the pan and cook for about 2-1/2 to 3 hours or until the peas are soft. Remove the turkey. Puree the soup in a food processor or with an immersion blender. If you wish, remove any meat from the turkey, chop it and add to the soup.

Makes 8-10 servings

Spinach Vichyssoise

I had a fancy dinner planned for Saturday evening, meaning drinks and hors d’oeuvres and a few courses, mostly experiment recipes, for our good friends Susan and Richard. They are among my “regular” tasters and every once in a while I invite them to “review” some of the latest creations.

They are good sports.

I cooked a couple of the do-ahead items, including Spinach Vichyssoise intended to be served as “shots” with our cocktails, and was ready to get in my car to shop for the other ingredients when, unfortunately, I realized I had done something to my knee and it felt weird and I had trouble walking. When I looked down at it, it was three times its usual size and my leg looked like there was a boulder attached.

So much for working out.

After a half day on the couch, ice-on, ice-off it wasn’t any better so Ed took me to the ER, where an orthopedist told me to stay on the couch, ice-on, ice-off for a few more days.

Dinner was cancelled, naturally. 

But Susan and Richard told us to come on over for dinner, which we did, me hobbling into the car with my ice pack wrapped in a towel and with my father’s cane, which Ed and I bought for him once, a long time ago in London, and has a cobra head for a handle.

Susan and Richard are good people. I am grateful to have them as friends.

I’ll do that dinner some other time, with different recipes. As for the food I prepared, my daughter Gillian, son-in-law Jesse and their three kids came for a visit Sunday and became the tasters. They ate the frittata that I was going to cut up and serve on baguette slices — more on that in a few days. They ate some carrot soup and also the Spinach Vichyssoise, not in aperitif glasses, but in bowls, like regular soup, because it’s good that way too.

It’s a good make-ahead dish and equally wonderful whether you serve it cold or hot.

Spinach Vichyssoise

2 tablespoons olive oil

3 large all-purpose potatoes, peeled and chopped

1 large yellow onion, chopped

2 large leeks, cleaned and chopped

2 carrots, chopped

1 small Serrano pepper, deseeded and chopped (or other chili pepper)

5 cups vegetable stock

1 medium bunch spinach, wash, drained and coarsely chopped

salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

1 cup coconut milk

Heat the olive oil in a soup pot. Add the potatoes, onion, leeks, carrots and Serrano pepper and cook them over medium heat for 5-6 minutes, stirring often, until the vegetables have softened. Add the stock. Bring the soup to a boil. Lower the heat, cover the pan and cook for about 15 minutes. Add the spinach, season to taste with salt and pepper, cover the pan and cook for another 10 minutes or until the potatoes are tender. Puree the soup in a blender or food processor and return the soup to the pan. Stir in the coconut milk and heat through. OR, refrigerate and serve chilled.

Makes 8 servings

Bean and Pasta Soup with Harissa

I have a cold, which means I need soup. Hot, thick, comforting soup.

But I don’t feel like going out, especially to a supermarket, to buy the stuff I need for soup.

Fortunately I have a well-stocked cupboard and fridge. I have everything I need to make Bean and Pasta Soup. I am adding Harissa because I want that extra kick of heat to help clear my head.

Here’s some advice to consider: keep certain items in your house so you can always make something delicious to eat when you can’t, or don’t want to shop. Canned or packaged tomatoes, beans, stock, pasta and crisper items such as onions, carrots, celery and lemons are just a few of the staples I stock.

If you don’t have fresh basil, substitute with about a teaspoon of dried oregano; if you don’t have Harissa, add a few drops of Sriracha or Tabasco sauce.

Bean and Pasta Soup with Harissa

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 medium onion, chopped

1 large garlic clove, minced

2 carrots, sliced 1/2 inch thick

2 stalks celery, sliced 1/2 inch thick

1 (28-ounce) can tomatoes, including liquid

4 cups vegetable stock

3 tablespoons minced fresh basil

2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley

Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

1/2 cup elbow macaroni

2 15-ounce cans red kidney beans, with liquid

1 teaspoon Harissa

Freshly grated Parmesan cheese, optional

Heat the olive oil in a soup pot over medium heat. Add the onion, garlic, carrots and celery and cook for 2 minutes or until softened slightly. Add the tomatoes, stock, basil, parsley and some salt and pepper to taste. Bring to a boil and simmer partially covered for 20 minutes. Add the pasta, beans and Harissa and cook for about 12 minutes or until the pasta is tender. Serve the soup sprinkled with freshly grated Parmesan cheese if desired. Makes 6 servings.

Kuri Squash Curry Soup

Mmmmmmm.

When I hear that from Ed and he doesn’t say anything else, I know I’ve cooked a winner. Like this soup. He just said Mmmmm a few times until he finished. He actually did then pronounce it “excellent,” which was redundant by that time. 

I used kuri squash to make this soup. Kuri comes around for only a short time. I’ve written about it before. It’s my favorite squash, drier flesh than most of the others and a sweeter, more intense flavor and velvety texture.

This is going to sound silly but I wanted to taste whether kuri and curry would go together. Hence, this soup.

They do.

Kuri Curry Soup

1 kuri squash, about 3 pounds

2-1/2 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 medium onion, chopped

2 teaspoons chopped fresh ginger

1 medium clove garlic, chopped

1-1/2 teaspoons curry powder

1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper

4 cups chicken or vegetable stock

2 cups coconut milk, approximately

salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Cut the squash into pieces and scoop out the seeds (roast the seeds separately). Brush the squash with about a half tablespoon of the vegetable oil, place the pieces on a cookie sheet and bake for 35-40 minutes, or until tender. When the squash is cool enough to be handled, remove the flesh and discard the rind. Mash the squash and set aside 2-1/2 cups for the soup (use any extra for muffins, quick breads and so on). Heat the remaining vegetable oil in a large saucepan. Add the onion, ginger and garlic and cook for 2-3 minutes or until softened. Stir in the squash. Add the curry powder and cayenne and blend them in. Pour in the stock and coconut milk, bring the soup to a simmer, cover the pan and cook for 30 minutes. Puree the soup in a blender or with a hand blender. Taste for seasoning and add salt and pepper to taste. Add more coconut milk if necessary to thin out the soup. Makes 6 servings