Sunday, December 5, 2010
When the weather turns cold, my palette turns to soup--the ultimate comfort food! (Unfortunately, when my palette turns to soup, my waist and hips turn to . . .well, not muscle.) But impending weight gain notwithstanding, nothing beats a good pot of soup. Am I right? (Yes, I'm right.) And I've lately been experimenting with some great recipes that are just WAY TOO GOOD not to share! So here are some of my new favs, in case you want to try them, too!
Mimi's Cafe Corn Chowder (YUM. YUM. YUM. YUM.)
Note: I left out the onions (James is allergic) and the celery (James is not a fan) and added a can of Hormel Chunk Ham instead. A triumph! Make it. Eat it. Love it.
Ingredients:
¼-cup butter, (½-stick)
6 tablespoons chopped onion
¾-cup diced celery
2-½ cups water
2 cups cubed peeled red or russet potatoes, (½-inch)
2 cups frozen corn kernels, thawed
1 can creamed corn (14 oz)
2 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons salt
1 dash of white pepper
3 tablespoons flour
3 cups half and half cream
Instructions
1. Melt butter in saucepan over medium heat.
2. Add in the flour and whisk until smooth and a roux forms (2 minutes).
3. Add onions and celery and saute 5 minutes until soft but not brown.
4. Add water, potatoes, corn kernels, creamed corn, sugar, salt and pepper. Using a wire whisk, whisk until smooth.
5. Cover and simmer until potatoes are barely tender, about 30 minutes.
6. Add half and half and simmer uncovered until soup has thickened to a creamy consistency, about 15 minutes.
7. Season to taste with additional salt and pepper if needed.
Cafe Zupa's Wisconsin Cauliflower Soup (this is kind of a knock-off, but WAY good)
Ingredients:
2 Tbsp. butter
1 med. onion, chopped (again, I just leave this out--substitute onion powder)
1/4 cup flour
1/2 tsp. salt
2 cups milk
1 can (14 oz) chicken broth
1 head cauliflower, cut into 1" pieces
1 tsp. Dijon mustard
1 cup sharp cheddar cheese
1 cup pepper-jack cheese
Instructions:
In a 4 quart saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Add onion and cook until golden. Stir in flour and salt--cook 2 minutes, stirring frequently. Gradually stir in milk, chicken broth and 1 1/2 cups water. Add cauliflower and heat to boiling over high heat. Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer until cauliflower is tender (about 10 minutes). In blender, remove center for steam and blend cauliflower at low speed in small batches until very smooth. Return mixture to saucepan; heat over medium heat until hot, stirring occasionally. Remove pan from heat; stir in mustard and 1 1/2 cups cheese until melted and smooth. Garnish soup with remaining cheese.
And now, ladies and gentlemen, we know why my waist thickens (right along with the soup) during the winter. But oh, so good and oh, so comforting on cold winter's nights that are so deep!
Enjoy!
