Culinary
Secrets with The Hills
Stirring Up the Pot
By Maralyn Hill & Brenda Hill ‘The Tandem Tasters’
Traditionally, soups express the character of the
culture. While in France, we devoured bouillabaisse,
after a long walk through falling snow. Recently, we
savored Northeast chowder, while traveling along the
foggy coast between Maine to Boston. Because of the
range of fresh ingredients available, soups are
simple to adapt to your individual choice. This way,
the same basic recipe can be tweaked to a new taste
sensation every time you make it.
We have several sumptuous soups to share. However,
we are starting with a basic vegetable stock. This
stock is perfect for all soup lovers, vegetarians
and those who want to remain slim and healthy. With
this basic knowledge and some stock in the freezer,
you can create a delicious supper anytime you are
snowed in or unexpected guests arrive.
We often make a hearty hot soup, suitable for Autumn
to Springtime dinners. Warm some crusty French style
bread and serve with a hunk of cheese and a salad.
If you have never tasted your own homemade stock,
you will be hooked on it. The trick is to make
enough in large quantities and store it in pint or
quart containers in the freezer, so it is always on
hand.
When our families were young, we would dine early on
Sunday evenings during cold winter months. These
meals were named "Souper Sunday Suppers." They
became so popular that we sometimes had soup parties
by including the neighbors for "Superbowl Souper
Sunday." When my daughter, Robin, opened her bakery
and restaurant in Vermont, she carried on the
tradition of Souper Sunday night suppers for family
style dining. Maralyn frequently entertains with
chili suppers or another one of her favorites.
We’ll start with our cider drink, as it is nice to
be sipping something warm when making any type of
soup.
Apricot Cider
Vegetable Stock
Tomato Soup
New
England Style White Fish Stock
82 Queen
Street She Crab Soup
|
Apricot Cider
Pour
1-1/2 oz. of apricot brandy and 1-1/2 oz. hot apple cider (or apple
juice) in a warm mug.
Optional:
garnish with a cinnamon stick.
Sip and savor the colors and flavors of Fall.
Vegetable Stock
Basic
ingredients for vegetable stock:
5
quarts of water
10 mushrooms, any variety, or mixed
10 celery stalks
6 onions
2-3 carrots
3 tomatoes
3 leeks
3 parsnips (important)
5-6 scallions
a bunch of parsley
vegetable scraps if you saved them during the week
1-2 tbsp of unsalted butter
Method:
Preheat
oven to 350 degrees.
Wash and slice vegetables and parsley.
Melt butter and combine with vegetables in a casserole or pan that can
be used in the oven and on top of the stove.
Bake uncovered for 30 minutes.
Remove from oven, partially cover and simmer on low on stove top for 3-5
hours.
Strain, use in soup, refrigerate or freeze.
Tips:
To
clean mushrooms, wipe them clean with a paper towel. Wet mushrooms
become soggy.
The above basic stock ingredients can be varied by taste, and what you
have on hand, such as less onion, more carrots. You can also add or
substitute some basil, dill, thyme, and pepper.
You could skip the oven baking part and simply simmer all on top of the
stove, partially covered for an extra hour. Yet, the baking step imparts
a richer flavor and lovely aroma in the winter kitchen.
Straining the stock is basic, but we sometimes skip straining when we
prefer a chunkier base for making a rich and hearty soup with stew like
consistency. Rachael Ray calls that a stoop, between a soup and a stew.
For chicken stock, we often substitute some chicken broth (the one in
the box is great) and/or some white wine in place of some of the water
for this stock.
Sometimes. we’ll purchase a pre-roasted chicken at the store and, after
eating the chicken, toss the carcass in the pot for our own broth. It is
quite favorable.
We feel that parsnips should not be substituted if you can buy them.
They add a sweet richness, even more than carrots that make people ask,
"What is that delicious flavor?"
In addition to freezing in cup, pint or quart size containers, it is
great to freeze in muffin tins. When frozen, remove and wrap in cling
wrap. When you need a base for a sauce, you have it on hand. |
|
Tomato
Soup
Remember those Saturdays growing up as children? Some of us
were treated to the most simple of lunches, whether we lived
in Illinois, Connecticut, or California. Maralyn, Norm and
Brenda loved canned tomato soup (Campbell’s) and grilled
cheese on Wonder Bread.
We still do. Only now, we step it up a notch with fancier
ham from Italy, homemade or multi-grain breads and a variety
of cheeses such as goat, brie and Dubliner, our new taste
sensation from Ireland. Incidentally, Don Reha, executive
Winemaker of
Orfila Vineyards
in Escondido, California, introduced us to this delectable
cheese while we tasted a 2006 Merlot. We adapted this recipe
from an old book found in a London used book store. The
author, Sarah Gates, was a food writer living in France.
Ingredients:
About 2 lbs or 10-12 medium fresh tomatoes
1 tbsp olive oil
1 garlic clove, crushed
1 large onion chopped
1 tbsp tomato paste
1 tsp sugar (our grandmothers’ secret addition to all tomato
dishes.)
1 potato, chopped (the surprise ingredient)
Dash of salt and pepper
4 tbsp sour cream
Sprigs of chervil or basil, to garnish
Serves 4
Method:
Place tomatoes in large heatproof bowl, cover with
boiling water and let stand for about 2 minutes.
In a large fry pan, heat olive oil and onion, garlic and
potato. Fry gently for about 5 minutes until potato is
softened.
Meanwhile, drain tomatoes, peal off skin and core by cutting
in half. Chop tomato flesh and add to pan with seeds, juice
and tomato paste.
Pour 1-1/4 cups of boiling water over top and simmer gently
until potato is soft, about l5 more minutes.
We like our soups chunky and rustic, but some prefer to
puree in a blender or processor until smooth.
Season well and serve hot in bowls with a dollop of sour
cream and sprigs of chervil or basil.
Tips:
You could substitute the whole canned variety of Italian
style tomatoes, if fresh are out of season.
Crème Fresh is a good substitute for sour cream.
Other additions for serving with a crunch are chopped
scallions or croutons.
We serve this soup as a Sunday Night Supper with grilled
cheese or a Monte Cristo with a simple, light Italian red
wine.
We love to serve hot soup outdoors for a party or a picnic.
Simply substitute mugs for bowls, no table or spoon needed.
New England
Style White Fish Stock
When writing a column about soups, we must mention a special
chef we were honored to meet this summer in Rockland, Maine.
Our Team had heard about and read articles featuring Chef
Melissa Kelly for years in Gourmet and Coastal
Living. Melissa is known for cooking delicious and
unpretentious food straight from her garden, filled with
fresh vegetables, herbs and flowers. Melissa learned from
the best, one of our favorite chefs, Alice Waters. Melissa
looks exactly as she did a decade ago when she won the l999
James Beard Best Chef Northeast award. You will soon be
reading an in depth article about Melissa, her gardens, her
husband, Price, a pastry chef, and more recipes in Where
and What in the World from their Primo restaurant.
Her classic, New England style white fish stock recipe, is
the basis for many tantalizing soups, such as Fish Soup at
Primo. We have used this often, taking advantage of local
white fish as the ideal soup base. On its own, the broth is
delicious, with anise and onion flavors wafting throughout
the fresh fish stock.
This stock makes about 1 1/2 quarts.
Ingredients:
2 lb bone trimmings of white fish - halibut,
flounder, bass or snapper, chopped
1 large onion sliced - we like the local sweet ones, but any
onions taste great in this stock
1 medium fennel bulb, stalks trimmed and coarsely chopped
About two dozen parsley sprigs with long stems
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1 tsp salt
7 cups cold water
1 cup dry white wine
Method:
Cook fish bones and trimmings in a well buttered 4-6
quart pot, covered, over medium heat for 5 minutes.
Add water and wine and bring to a boil, skimming froth from
the top. Simmer, uncovered, 20 minutes.
Then pour through a very fine sieve into a large bowl,
discarding solids.
This stock keeps for 2 days. Cool uncovered, then chill,
covered.
Melissa and her husband, Price Kushner, a renowned pastry
chef, have succeeded in their dream, "To have a little
restaurant that makes people happy."
The Hill Team will be happy and grateful to return to Primo
on their next visit, if they can get a reservation. Primo is
booked far ahead in all seasons.
82 Queen Street She
Crab Soup
We tasted this award winning delicious rich soup on our
first visit to Charleston when we dined at 82 Queen Street.
We try others, but always go back for another serving on
every trip to Charleston, SC. Chef Stephen Kish has many
awards and passion and we’re delighted he was willing to
share. When Our Love Affairs with Food & Travel was
released, during our radio interview, the host asked, “How
in the world did you get that great recipe?” We answered
that Chef Stephen was gracious enough to provide it.
Serves 12
Roux:
¼ pound butter
¼ pound flour
Method:
Melt butter, stir in flour to make roux.
Stock:
1 cup heavy cream
3 cups milk
2 cups fish stock or water & fish base
¼ pound crab roe
1 pound white crabmeat (special)
Method:
After you have made the roux, add milk and cream and bring
to a boil.
Add stock, crab roe and crabmeat.
Additional ingredients:
1 cup chopped celery, lightly sautéed
¼ cup chopped carrots, lightly sautéed
¼ cup chopped onion, lightly sautéed
¼ cup sherry wine
1 tablespoon Tabasco sauce
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
Method:
Add the remaining ingredients and simmer for 20 minutes.
Garnish with sherried whipped cream.
We hope you will savor our sumptuous soups. Look for more
in
The Daily Blend.
