Archive for ◊ January, 2010 ◊

24 Jan 2010 (Cream of) Celery Soup
 |  Category: Soups, Veggies  | Tags: ,  | One Comment

I love celery. I love the crunch of it, I love the smell of it, I love the taste of it…and I love how it works with other ingredients rather than overpowering them. As a kid I even liked that Cream of Celery Soup in the red and white can. Imagine! My Sunset magazine arrived this morning with a recipe for Celery Soup, and it even had a “Staff Favorite” star. Can you imagine what happened next? Yep, quick drive to the store for a fresh bunch of celery. I was a bit concerned about how good the soup would be, as the only seasonings are salt and pepper, but it works! The soup is great, very mild. I like it even without the caramelized apples and sprinkle of crumbled blue cheese. I do wish I had made some crispy croutons or some crusty bread to have on the side, so I will also post a recipe my friend gave me for Rustic Rosemary Bread. I think I just might serve this as a starter for my next Dinner party. It’s perfect, light, tasty, pretty, and won’t interfere with the main course at all. Until then though, I will enjoy this as a light lunch.

(Cream of) Celery Soup

1 bunch of celery, roughly chopped into chunks about 1″ wide (1 1/2 lbs)
1 small onion, chopped (about 3/4 cup)
1 qt. (4 cups) chicken broth or vegetable broth (I used homemade chicken stock)
2 Tablespoons butter
1 Granny Smith apple, peeled and finely chopped
1/2 cup half-and-half
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. black pepper
1/4 cup crumbled blue cheese

Combine celery, onion and broth/stock in a medium pan and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 20-25 minutes or until celery is cooked. Meanwhile, melt butter in a small frying pan and add chopped apple. Cook apple, stirring occasionally, for about 10 minutes or until apple is caramelized. Let broth-celery mixture cool for a bit, then whirl in a blender until smooth (do this in batches, and if soup is still hot, do it in small batches). Return soup to pan, stir in half-and-half, salt and pepper. Heat gently. Ladle soup into bowls, sprinkle with caramelized apples and blue cheese. Makes 4 servings.

Based on a recipe from Sunset Magazine, Feb. 2010
Nutritional Analysis (from Sunset)

204 calories, 9 g protein, 13 g fat, 14 g. carbo, 2.8 g fiber, 515 mg sodium, 37 mg chol.

Thank you for being a fan,

Polly

22 Jan 2010 Spicy Glazed Bacon
 |  Category: Breakfast & Brunch  | Tags: ,  | 2 Comments

It’s sweet, it’s salty, it’s spicy….we’re talking some serious yumminess here. Take a good quality, thick-sliced bacon, sprinkle it with light brown sugar, cayenne and black pepper, bake until sizzling hot, crispy and sticky…ohmyYYY. My friend Jamie said, “It was like candy in bacon form. I thought I was dreamin’ ….”

Spicy Glazed Bacon

8 slices thick-sliced good quality bacon (I use the Applewood smoked bacon from Costco)
3 T. light brown sugar
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper (or more, I use a heaping 1/4 tsp)
1/4 tsp black pepper (or more)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lay bacon on a rack on a baking sheet. Bake for 10 minutes. While bacon is baking, mix brown sugar with cayenne and black pepper. Make sure peppers are evenly distributed in the brown sugar. Remove bacon from oven. Sprinkle each slice with 2 tsp of the brown sugar/peppers mix. Bake for an additional 10 minutes. Turn bacon over, sprinkle with any leftover sugar mixture (if desired) and bake for an additional 3-5 minutes, or until crisp. Watch bacon carefully–the bacon can quickly overheat and burn. Cooking times are all approximate…the thickness of your bacon will make a big difference in the cooking times…use your best judgment and keep your eye on it for the last few minutes.

This recipe was adapted from a one published in “The 150 Best American Recipes”

Thank you for being a fan,

Polly

22 Jan 2010 Pear Berry Pie
 |  Category: Fruits, Pies & Tarts  | Tags: ,  | 2 Comments


I love pie…, but I am not very good at making the baked-in-the-oven kind. The crust causes me the most trouble. Something always seems to go wrong. I under-cook the bottom crust on a regular basis. When my food processor died a few years back I started using the red box of Pillsbury rolled pie crusts. I have a new food processor now, but I haven’t gone back to making my own crust yet. It’s the filling that makes a pie for me, mmmmmm… warm, sweet, dreamy, fruity pie filling… Is there any better dessert for the cold winter months? Fortunately, I have a lot of recipes for GREAT pies that focus on fabulous fillings. This is one of my favorites. Make it quick while pears are still in season! If you have a great pie crust recipe, use it. If not, unroll some of those Pillsbury pie crusts and master the pie filling, which is the best part of the pie anyway…

Pear Berry Pie

Single pie crust, baked in a 9 inch pie pan and cooled

For Filling
3 lbs. firm but ripe pears (I use a variety-usually 2 each of 3 varieties)
1/2 cup sugar (divided use)
2 Tablespoons freshly squeezed orange juice (have used lemon before, too…just up the sugar by a tablespoonful or so)
1/4 tsp. salt
2 cups fresh blueberries or raspberries or combination (can use frozen, but fresh results in a less mushy product)
1/3 cup plus 1 T. flour

Peel, core and chop pears into 3/4 inch chunks. Combine pear chunks, orange juice salt, and 1/4 cup of the sugar in a large frying pan. Saute until pears are tender, stirring often, about 6 minutes. Transfer pears to a large bowl and let cool. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. While the pie crust and the pears are cooling, prepare the streusel. Stir berries, flour, and remaining 1/4 cup sugar into pear mixture. Toss to blend. Pour filing into cooled crust and then sprinkle with streusel topping. Press down slightly. Place pie in preheated 350 degree oven and bake for an hour. If streusel gets too brown, cover lightly with foil. Cool pie on rack until lukewarm. Cut into wedges and serve, which I like to do with a blog of freshly whipped cream. Serves 8.

For Streusel
1 cup flour
1/2 cup brown sugar (dark is best)
1/2 cup walnuts or pecans
1/2 cup cold butter
1/4 tsp salt

Put all ingredients into a food processor and using on/off turns process until coarse crumbs form. Alternately, using a pastry blender (or fingers) work cold butter (grated or cut into small chunks) into flour, salt and brown sugar. Stir in chopped nuts. OR, melt the butter, pour over flour, sugar, salt and chopped nuts. Stir with fork until large crumbs form. (texture is a bit different on finished pie, but I enjoy it)

Original recipe is from epicurious.com

Thanks for stopping by the kitchen today!

Polly

21 Jan 2010 Polly’s Seafood Chowder
 |  Category: Main Dish, Seafood, Soups  | Tags: ,  | 2 Comments


It was my turn to host book club tonight. The book was “Ahab’s Wife”, which I knew we had to discuss over a bowl of chowder and a slice of pie. Not having made Seafood Chowder before, I began a search for a great recipe. I found one in the book “The Book Club Cookbook” by Judy Gelman and Vicki Levy Krupp (which actually had a whole chapter on “Ahab’s Wife”) and another I found on “Laura’s Best Recipes” attributed to Chef David Wells. I made one, which was good, but not great, then I made that one again, took some stuff out, added parts of the second recipe plus some crab and creamed corn, adjusted the method…and “Voilà!” a GREAT Seafood Chowder! Really, it is good. Everyone at book club said so!!! I am quite proud of it. This recipe makes a vat of chowder, and the leftovers reheat very well in the microwave-the seafood doesn’t get overcooked and rubbery.  LOVE this recipe.

Polly’s Seafood Chowder

6 slices of bacon, cooked crisply and crumbled (apple smoked if possible)
2-3 Tablespoons fat from cooked bacon (if you can’t bear it, use olive oil)
1 cup diced onions (can sub some shallots for the onions-I used one and then made up a cup with the onion)
1 cup diced celery
2 cloves minced garlic
2 bay leaves
4 cups chicken broth
1 bottle clam juice (or seafood stock)
1 cup white wine
1.5 lbs (total) of Yukon Gold and Red potatoes, diced (I used half of each)
1 cup diced carrots
2 bay leaves
½ tsp. dried thyme
1/2 tsp. dried tarragon
1 ½ tsp. Kosher salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
3 – 4 green onions, diced
1 lb. firm white fish, cut into small cubes (snapper, halibut, cod-I used cod)
1 lb. raw scallops, cut into small pieces, if large
1 lb. raw shelled shrimp, cut into halves or thirds
3 cups frozen corn (can substitute 1 can creamed corn for 1 cup of frozen corn)
16 oz. lump crab meat (found in the refrigerated section of grocery stores…Lucky and Costco carry it in San Jose)
2 cups half and half or whipping cream (I used the whipping cream. Bad Polly, bad Polly)

Set aside cooked and crumbled bacon. (I save only the meaty parts and discard all the fat) In bacon grease left in pan (remove excess if you have more than 3T) sauté onions, shallots and celery for about 7 minutes. Stir in garlic, bay leaves, chicken broth, clam juice, white wine, finely diced potatoes and diced carrots. Simmer uncovered for 10 minutes or until potatoes are cooked. Remove bay leaves. Remove one-half of mixture (4 -5 cups) and blend or puree until smooth. Return puree to pan with non-pureed mixture. Stir in thyme, tarragon, salt, pepper, corn, and creamed corn (if using). Can be made up to this point and refrigerated overnight (Which I recommend because it gives the flavors a chance to meld, and gives you the chance to skim excess hardened fat of surface before continuing). Bring base to a simmer and then continue. Stir in green onions, diced fish, scallops, shrimp, corn and half-and-half or whipping cream. Bring to boil and then reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes. Remove from heat, stir in crab and reserved cooked and crumbled bacon. Let chowder sit for 10 minutes before serving.

This makes a whole heck of a lot of chowder…3 qts…which is 24 cups. If you have seafood lovers in your circle, then it’s about 12 hearty servings. I have found that leftovers reheat very well in the MW. YUM!

Thanks for visiting!