Roasted Red Pepper Soup...Yummmm...

 

Despite what many think, soup IS NOT just for winter time.  Soup can be the most filling, comforting, nutritious and simple to whip up. For a long time, I couldn't stand tomatoes. Cooked, like in sauces (spaghetti, pizza, etc.) was fine, but raw or in your face tomato dishes like tomato soup, nope.  I was always jealous though, seeing others with a hot bowl of tomato soup and a grilled cheese sandwich. If you are one of those people, then this roasted red pepper may just be the ticket for you.  If you aren't one of those people, then this roasted red pepper may just be the ticket for you too.  

We have a cafe/wine shop/market here called The Gourmet Shop. Great chicken salad, beautiful sandwiches on fresh baguette, cheese plates and homemade soups. One of their periodic soups is a roasted red pepper bisque.  My daughter loves it paired with a half avocado for a light lunch. I've sought out and tried many recipes trying to duplicate that soup at home.  I have finally landed on one, with a few tweaks, that I think is the sure thing. And, insanely easy to make in your kitchen with not a lot of time on your hands. 

I credit this to a person named Judi who posted this to AllRecipes.com some years back.  I've changed a few things, but I still use her recipe for measurements.  She calls for roasting fresh red bell peppers, which I have done.  It's not hard, but it does take some time.  Her recipe calls for roasting and peeling 4 peppers.  I usually default to jarred, already-roasted peppers for time's sake and ease. Rather than using heavy cream, I turn to half & half, mainly because I rarely have whole cream on hand, but since I use half & half in my coffee, it's always in the fridge.  I also like to jazz the soup up at the end with a bit of cayenne pepper and chopped chives.  Once you make it, you'll discover all kinds of little details you may want to play with.

So here we go:  my version of Roasted Red Pepper Soup.

• 1 1/2 or 2 jars roasted red peppers (in the pickle section)
• 2 Tbs butter
• 1 onion, chopped
• 4-5 cloves garlic, chopped
• 3 c. chicken or vegetable broth **
• 1/2 cream or half & half
• 1/8 tsp black pepper
• 1/8 tsp cayenne pepper (to taste)
• salt to taste

**It's a good idea to keep bouillon cubes on hand in case you get into a recipe and realize you're out of broth; you can use these to make your own.  

Over medium, saute onions, garlic and peppers in butter until onions are getting tender. Pour in the broth, stirring well and reduce heat to low.  Simmer about 30 minutes.  Transfer to a blender (be careful; open the vent) and puree until nice and smooth. Return to saucepan and add your cream, pepper, salt and cayenne. Heat through for about 5 minutes or so. I top mine off with chives. A dollop of sour cream or Mexican crema is nice too.

We made this just a few days ago and served it with baked potatoes for our little supper.  The soup is delicious right off the bat, but it tastes even more awesome next day. 

Even if you are skeptical about bell peppers, I urge you to try this recipe.  It is smooth and satisfying, like a tomato soup, but a little more mellow because the peppers aren't quite as acidic as tomatoes. Even if you are a tomato lover, try this one too. You may be glad to have it in your repertoire for those days when you just need to shake it up.  Who knows?  Maybe you'll like this one even more than the usual!  

Mexican Street Corn: my latest addiction/obsession

 We all go through faves phases, right?  My latest food I think about all the time is Mexican Street Corn.  I like it on the cob, grilled and slathered with that delicious seasoned crema. But, I also like it off the cob, in the form of a salad. Certain restaurants around town offer their versions and many are quite good, but as is usually the case, I like it best when I make it myself.

A recent, super-quick dinner we made was lime shrimp and Street corn salad. I realize my photo is all yellow up in your face, but I've never claimed to be a master photographer. 

 Vivian was responsible for the salad and used a Weight Watchers recipe as a base.  If you've ever made this before, you know that you can vary it in all kinds of ways.  In this version, she used:

• 2 1/2 c. frozen corn (thawed, duh!)
• 2 Tbs light mayo (or Mexican crema, or a combo of them both)
• zest of 1 lime
• juice of that lime
• 3/4 tsp chili powder
• 1/4 tsp smoked paprika
• 1/4 tsp Kosher salt
• 1/4 c. sliced scallions (green onion)
• 2 Tbs chopped cilantro
• 1 med jalapeno, chopped
• 1/4 Cotija cheese, grated   

You mix it all up and that's all she wrote.  Obviously, you can use fresh corn.  Sometimes we grill it and give it a light char, sometimes we just use it raw.  Same thing with frozen. You can thaw it and then "grill" in a pan to give it that little bit of char too. Or, use it raw.  Corn is so naturally sweet that it really doesn't even need to be cooked. It's all up to you.

A word about Cotija. It's ridiculous how difficult it can be to find this stuff in a grocery store. If you do, most often, it's a solid block and being a hard, crumbly cheese, grating it can be messy.  Here's the shocker: I will actually force myself to enter a Wal-Mart because of this. 

It's a one pound bag of grated Cotija cheese.  Wal-Mart, God-forsaken Wal-Mart, is the only place I've ever seen this. Having it already grated makes it super convenient to work with, obviously. It's slightly salty, kind of like a version of Parmesan.  It's good sprinkled on just about anything.

Now, about the shrimp.  Shrimp is one my favorites things to have in my freezer for two reasons:  A) I love it. B) It is ridiculously easy to prepare and cook.  I can't remember where I came across this recipe, but I've been making it for years.  You can't ask for something quicker and easier and it's just simply delicious.

• 1 lb. shrimp, peeled, deveined, patted dry
• 4 Tbs butter, divided
• 1/4 chopped shallots (NOT green onions, shallots)
• 1/4 c. lime juice
• 1 tsp lime zest
• 1/4 tsp crushed red pepper
• 1/3 c. chopped cilantro

Season your shrimp with salt & pepper. Heat a large skillet to med-high; add 1/2 Tbs butter and shrimp. Cook about 1 1/2 to 2 minutes per side and transfer to a plate. 

Over med-low heat, melt another Tbs butter and add shallots, lime juice and crushed red pepper. Cook for about 2 minutes. Add remaining butter, zest, shrimp and cilantro and toss all together.  

This shrimp is fantastic because it's just different.  And, since some people find themselves intimidated by cooking seafood, this recipe demonstrates that it is quick and easy, just pay attention to your temps and timing.  If you don't already do this, have all your stuff measured out and waiting by the stove so you don't get distracted with ingredients and lose track of what you're doing. 😉  Buen provecho!

Thai Food: Simple and Quick

 Funny how so many of us think "ethnic" cooking must be difficult.  But, it's really not.  I think people can easily become overwhelmed when they see a long list of spices/herbs, but think about it.  We're talking about taking some small bottles out of the cabinet and employing a measuring spoon.  Piece of cake, right?

Thai food is one of my favorite cuisines of the world.  I have a fantastic cookbook entitled Quick and Easy Thai. 

Its author spent 3 years in Thailand as a Peace Corps volunteer.  Her book features an array of true Thai dishes but easy for American cooks.  One of my new favorites from her book is simply called "Chicken with fresh basil."  

Check how easy this is to prepare:

You saute some chopped onion and garlic in a bit of oil. As soon as it all starts smelling good, add in some chicken cut into bite sized pieces. I usually use about 12 oz of chicken breast. Get your meat browned then add some fish sauce, soy sauce, a bit of water and sugar, and a chopped up serrano or two.  Stir in about a cup of fresh basil leaves to wilt, then serve. Not sure, but I'd be willing to bet my vegetarian friends could do all this with firm tofu. 

It's great on its own, or over some jasmine rice.  In the photo above, you'll see that I accompanied mine with marinated edamame.  I warmed the edamame in some boiling water for a few minutes, then added it to a mixture of garlic and soy sauce to marinate for about an hour. 

Obviously, I had some prep work: chopping onion and garlic, cutting up chicken and chopping the pepper, but actual time to cook the dish was probably about 12 minutes.  If you want rice, remember to start it first, since you need to give it about 20 minutes to do its thing. 

If you're a fan of Thai food, go seek out this cookbook.  I freaking love it!  The recipes are literally quick and easy so that you can whip up great tasting Thai on the proverbial weeknight.  Here are a few of my other favorite recipes from this book: Pad Thai, Red Curry Shrimp with Pineapple, Mussamun Curry Beef with potatoes & peanut, Green Curry Chicken with zucchini, and Chiang Mai Curry Noodles. I could go on and on...

I hope you will seek out this book. It can give your everyday cooking repertoire a nice shot in the arm! 

Chicken and Waffles, My Way

 I've been away for quite some time.  Life since the pandemic has been hectic, chaotic, and sometimes just a pain in the ass. In the last year, we lost my mom, I've gotten divorced and my baby is now 18. There are too many adjustments to even count.  Through all this, I've never stopped cooking though. One major adjustment, along those lines, is learning to cook for two, or more often than not, just for myself. Now, I'm making the effort to commit to writing about my favorite subject again:  FOOD.

With it just being me and the kiddo most nights, we've gotten to where we just split meat. We share a chicken breast, tuna steak, a big ribeye; it's just enough for us.  Yesterday, I had some beautiful chicken thawed (I'll tell you another time about my newest meat source) and also had come Canadian bacon on hand. Time to work with what we've got.  

I still use, and love, my old GE waffle iron. My parents received this exact model as a wedding present in 1966. Thanks to thrift stores, I have two of them. They have removeable plates: waffle side and flip it over to flat side for killer grilled cheese or pressed sandwiches!  I made a simple waffle mix but added a bunch of cheddar.  Used a simple herbed, seasoned flour and fried up chicken breast, which I sliced into strips, of course.  Layered Canadian bacon on my hot, crispy waffle, chicken, a sprinkle of salt and then a drizzle of maple syrup.  What the what??  

Simple, easy and so yummy and most of this stuff, you probably already have.  If you're not a Canadian bacon person, use regular bacon, or sausage, or whatever you like.