Finnish Salmon Soup

Through an order mishap, I had a spare serving of salmon from my online order at Coastal Seafoods, and not a lot of time to eat it in, what with already making oyster stew, gravlax, and lamb shanks in the coming days. So tonight I made a solo (plus) portion of this salmon soup. Because it is blizzarding, and I was already drinking Austrian mulled wine, so why not carry forth with more warm deliciousness?! 

This soup was really easy and perfect tonight - buttery broth, fresh dill, creamy potatoes and tender salmon - all while the wind howls and the snow falls, what is not to love? This soup is ready in about 30 minutes, and I made the fish broth as suggested, by boiling the salmon skin in water for 10 minutes. It totally works, though it is a pretty light broth. I thought I had some shrimp shells stashed in the freezer somewhere for just this sort of need, but I couldn't locate them if I do. If you have clam broth, or fish stock around, I think that would make things even tastier. But if not, this does the job.

The recipe is from a food blogger I had forgotten about; I made her nut and fruit paleo bread some years ago, and was thinking about making it again in recent days, which is what prompted me to revisit her blog and subsequently see this recipe. The only thing I did differently was to use onion instead of leeks, (I had no leek), and I had a red potato, not a russet. I am pasting her original recipe below. (It was easy to shrink to 1/3, though this would make excellent leftovers.)

Ingredients

• 1 lb skin-on salmon filet
• 4 Tbsp unsalted butter
• 1 large leek, trimmed, sliced, and well rinsed
• 5 cups water (you can also use fish stock)
• 1 lb russet potatoes, peeled and diced
• 1 large carrot, sliced
• 1 cup (10g) fresh dill for garnish, finely chopped, divided
• 1 cup (250ml) heavy cream
• 1/4 tsp allspice, use more to taste
• salt and pepper to taste 

• Remove the skin from the salmon and cut into largish chunks. Remove any small pin bones and discard. Reserve the skin.
• Melt the butter in a soup pot and saute the leeks for 10 minutes, or until nice and soft.
• While the leeks are cooking, put 5 cups of water and the reserved fish skin in a saucepan and bring to a boil, turn down the heat and simmer gently for 10 minutes. Note: if you are using fish stock you can skip this step.
• Strain the broth and add to the pan with the leeks, along with the potatoes, carrots, and half of the fresh dill. Cook for another 10 minutes, or until the potatoes are just tender.
• Add the salmon chunks to the soup along with the cream and allspice, and gently simmer on low heat until cooked through, just a few minutes. Add the remaining dill, and salt and pepper to taste.
   
  

Borscht

I've been making soup with my carrot and beet harvest to freeze for later consumption. This borscht turned out very tasty, especially with a little yogurt and kraut on top. Borscht is so easy and flexible! I should have made a double batch, but I wasn't thinking it through. I used this Ukranian recipe for inspiration, but you can really put in whatever you have. I opted to not use cabbage, but did have a bunch of beet greens that were really nice in there. I ate this soup for breakfast one morning with soft eggs and it was so warm and delicious. 

Serves 4-6

• 2 T butter
• 1 cup celery, diced (opt - I didn't have this so added a little more onion)
  
• 1 cup onions, diced
  
• 1 cup (or more) of cabbage or beet greens, chopped
  
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced
• Bay leaf
  
• 6-8 cups bone broth (I used beef)
• 1 can (or equivilant) diced tomatoes 
• 3 medium to large sized peeled beets, half grated and half diced
• 2 medium carrots, grated
• 1 medium potato, turnip, or 2 sunchokes, diced
• 1/2 cup of fresh dill weed
• Salt and pepper to taste

• Sauté the onions and celery in a large soup pot with the butter until soft and translucent (also saute cabbage here if using).
  
• Add the diced tomatoes, bay leaf, garlic, and broth. Bring to a boil over medium high heat and add the beets, carrots, and potato/turnip/sunchokes. Once soup is boiling again, reduce to medium heat and let simmer until beets and tubers are soft, 15-20 minutes. (Add beet greens about half way through the simmer time if using.)
  
• Remove soup from heat; stir in chopped fresh dill weed, salt and black pepper.
• Serve hot with a dollop of sour cream and sauerkraut.
  

   

Coconut Tilapia Chowder

This is another recipe courtesy of my pandemic podmate. She told me about this dish a few times over the years, and we finally made it (twice!) in the last several weeks. It's delicious, really easy, and very keto friendly. To me it is almost like an oyster stew - somehow the onions and the tilapia come together to be oyster-like. This soup is rich and delicious, with chunks of fish that sort of melt in your mouth.

I did my best to quantify these amounts. She says, "use enough paprika until it is the right amount of red" which you know, is less precise. 😂 See photo for redness - it is quite red!

 Ingredients (serves 3-4):

• 1/4-1/2 cup avocado or coconut oil
• 1 red onion, sliced thinly
• 2 roma (or other) tomatoes, chopped
• 2-3 T paprika
• 1 T chicken or beef boullion/stock flavoring
• 1 tsp "garlic and herb" seasoning 
• 1+ T black pepper
• 1 can coconut milk
• 3 tilapia fillets 
  
• salt to taste

Directions:

1. In a large pot, saute onions and spices in oil over medium heat. You are going for a saucy texture: you want plenty of oil, and will cook onions down 8-10 minutes. We started with about 1/4 c coconut oil and added some more as it cooked.

2. Add tomatoes. Cook until they soften, another 5 minutes.

3. Lay tilapia fillets in a single layer on top of onion sauce. Cover and cook for 5 minutes.

4. Add coconut milk and turn the heat to low. The tilapia will have broken apart in large chunks in the soup. Stir gently to mix the coconut milk with sauce. Heat through for flavors to blend, and add more paprika to get to the "right amount of red." Salt to taste (this soup can handle a lot of salt, so don't be shy!) and serve.

Wild Nettle Soup with Jeruslem Artichokes

This is the first time I have not had a spring boundary waters trip in 5 or 6 years. Prepping for those those trips is a time-consuming process - dehydrating food, making jerky, packing everything, planning routes, etc. Inevitably garden stuff got delayed some, and I was not always here for some of the markers of spring, including the time to harvest nettles. So this year I am here! I made two nettle foraging trips in the past week, and have been eating them every day, if not more. My vitamin, calcium, and iron levels are becoming extra robust. If you want to harvest nettles, see my older post here about what to look for.

Yesterday morning I gathered a bucket full of the prickly greens, and decided to try making pesto, and also a soup because this rainy, cool weather seems to call for it. I created the recipe from what I had around, including jerusalem artichokes from the garden (dug up as soon as the earth was diggable and now living in a bucket in my fridge), and chicken bone broth, made over the winter from all of my roasted chicken thigh bones. It turned out really nice and was a beautiful green. If it was just a bit earlier I'd have been able to use green onions from the garden, but they are already starting to produce their offspring, so I'm leaving what I have left to re-populate.

Wild Nettle Soup
5 c. chicken bone broth
1/2 lb. jerusalem artichokes, quartered (potatoes would also work)
1 large onion, chopped
4-5 cloves garlic, sliced
6+ c fresh nettles (use tongs!)
sea salt to taste

Jerusalem artichokes (also called sunchokes)

1. Bring broth to a boil in a large pot. Add jerusalem artichokes to broth to cook. They will impart a nice sweet, nutty flavor to the soup. Boil jerusalem artichokes until soft, 6-10 minutes.
2. As that is happening, saute onions and garlic in butter or olive oil until soft.
3. When jeruslem artichokes are tender, add onion/garlic, salt, and fresh nettles to the broth. Nettles will cook down (and will lose their stinging properties once they wilt). I had a hard time measuring the nettles, but you have some room here to use more or less than I've suggested.
4. Process the soup with a burr whip thing or in batches in your food processor.
5. Serve as is, or stir in some cream!

Easy Zucchini Noodle Bowl

It's been 4 months since I last posted, and for some reason after breakfast today, I thought - I think I'll post this one?! So here I am.

Mayday!

Since the last posting, Mayday happened, I went to the boundary waters, attended several lovely wedding/love festivities, visited Colorado, and watched a lot of Lynx basketball! And did garden tending and cooking in there too...some of which I may post about if I get back into the swing of things on the blog.

Boulder mountains

My gardening got a late start due to the late spring and being up north, but things are looking alright as we head into fall. The cucumbers and green beans are bountiful, with zucchini and eggplant not far behind. I'm hoping the fall lasts long enough for at least a few good winter squash, but we'll see!


I made a pork roast in the crockpot yesterday, and had some leftover broth from all the juices in there. I inevitably freeze that cup of pork broth and it gets lost in my freezer, so this morning I decided to just use it right away in an easy breakfast soup: zucchini noodles (or "zoodles"), some arugula, eggs and a bit of left over pork belly. It was super delicious, and in aftermath I realized it was partly inspired by a zucchini noodle bowl recipe I saw on a blog called Studio Snacks. All of the recipes are free of major allergins (wheat, dairy, soy and grains) and Cherry (the blogger) calls them "vegatable-forward" meals, which I find charming. Many are also Cantonese recipes since she grew up in Hong Kong. It's a new fave recipe checkout spot. My version is way simplified though.

Easy zucchini noodle bowl (for one!)
1 small zucchini
handful arugula (or spinach or swiss chard)
1/2 -1c. pork or chicken bone broth
fish sauce
coconut aminos
salt
slice of pork belly (opt)
egg or two
basil, chopped (opt)

1. Make zucchini noodles via mandoline and set aside.
2. Heat broth in a pot and keep on a low simmer. Add a dash of fish sauce, aminos, and salt if your broth is unsalted.
3. Cook pork and egg! I had pork belly left overs in the fridge, so I just cut a slice and re-heated it. If yours is raw, cook your slice/s longer. I fried my egg in the same pan as the pork belly.
4. While everything is cooking, get your bowl and fill it with the raw zucchini noodles and arugula. Pour the hot broth over the top (that will wilt the veggies to a nice texture) and top with fried egg and pork belly.
5. Serve with sriracha and chopped fresh basil on top! Cut green onions or garlic scapes would also be delicious here if you've got them.

Carrot Soup with Dukkah Spice

It is light out until 6pm! I think the longer days, plus the occasions of snow melting (before more falls again) is giving me some excitement for spring. I really notice the increase in daylight - and even though I still go to bed around 9:30, I feel a little more ambitious in the evenings. You know, I work on my rug braiding or cook rather than just getting into bed shortly after I get home! Which, btw, I've been listening to lots of This American Life lately, and I have several faves, including one about relationships and Gottman's research about successful couples. It references how gay couples outshine their heterosexual counterparts in communication and positive relational skills. In his limited study, he says that the best straight couples are almost as good as the worst gay couples. What!? More research I say!

Anyway. I made a big pot of chicken bone broth over the last 30 hours or so (in the crock pot), only to realize when I got home that I am totally out of containers to freeze the stock in. I used to use cream containers, but now I don't drink cream, and my supply of old yogurt containers is also maxed out. I need to find a new stock container system. After ransacking the cupboards, I found a couple of things to use, and then just decided to make a batch of soup with the last quart. I also drank a mug full because I was sick last week and the healing properties of bone broth seemed like they would be helpful. Gut health, anti-inflammatory and tons of nutrients! I have some stockpiles of both chicken and venison broth in the freezer and I want to start being more intentional about eating it more often. Plus it is so delicious.

So I decided to make a carrot soup, except I actually made it with a combo of carrots, sweet potatoes and squash. This is the 2nd time I've made this soup and the first version of straight up carrots was equally good. Really, the best part of the soup is the dukkah spice. I've never heard of it before, but the original recipe comes from Bon Appetit, and an internet search finds that dukkah is an Egyptian spice blend of nuts and seeds. In this case pistachios, sesame seeds, fennel, cumin, and coriander. Yum. I actually did not have cumin or coriander seeds, so had to use powder, which turned out fine but I think the seeds would be even better. It makes a delicious topping for the otherwise very simple soup - giving it a flavor punch and also a nice crunchy texture. I loved the dukkah and it would also be great on chicken or fish or cauliflower mashed potatoes. Mmmm.

Carrot Soup with Dukkah Spice
2 pounds carrots, chopped into 1-2" pieces*
1 onion 
2 T ghee/lard/etc
1/2 cup unsalted, shelled raw natural pistachios 
2 T sesame seeds 
2 tsps coriander seeds 
2 tsps cumin seeds 
1/2 tsp fennel seeds 
1/4 tsp whole black peppercorns 
1 tsp kosher salt plus more
Freshly ground black pepper 
1 quart chicken bone broth
*Or substitute sweet potatoes or winter squash for some of the carrots.

1. Toast pistachios in a dry skillet over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, until golden brown, about 6 minutes. Transfer to a small plate and let cool. Add sesame seeds, coriander seeds, cumin seeds, fennel seeds, and peppercorns to same skillet. Toast, stirring often, until fragrant, 1-2 minutes. Transfer spices to plate with nuts and let cool. Transfer nut and spice mixture and 1 teaspoon salt to a food processor or a mortar and pestle and coarsely grind. *I ground mine up in a coffee mill, and it ground everything up pretty small. I think a rougher grind would be nice, but the coffee grinder seemed easiest. (This can be done ahead and stored in a container for a week or so.)
2. Preheat oven to 425°. Place the carrots and onion on a rimmed baking sheet. Drizzle with melted ghee/fat or olive oil, season to taste with salt and pepper, and toss to coat. Roast until the carrots are tender and just beginning to brown, about 25-30 minutes. Let the carrots cool slightly. 
3. Transfer the carrot mixture to a blender or food processor. Add the vegetable broth. Blend mixture until soup is very smooth, 1-2 minutes. (I had to do this in a few batches.) Pour the soup into a medium saucepan and bring to a gentle simmer over medium heat, stirring occasionally. Add water by 1/4-cupfuls to soup for a thinner consistency, if desired. Season soup to taste with salt and pepper. 
4. Divide hot soup among bowls. Spoon a dollop of coconut cream/milk into center of each. Sprinkle with dukkah. (I think sprinkle is an understatement, I sort of doused it!)

Cauliflower soup

Cauliflower soup recipe

Ingredients:

• 2 tbsp vegan margarine or coconut oil or bacon grease
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 onion, diced
• 3 potato, diced
• 1 head cauliflower, chopped
• 4  cups vegetable broth
• 2 bay leaves
• salt and pepper to taste
• dash nutmeg

Preparation:

If you would like to use bacon: first make bacon, then eat it, or save it to crumble on top later :)

In a large soup or stock pot, sautee the onion and garlic in the oil of choice for 3 to 5 minutes, or until onions are soft.

Add the chopped potato and cauliflower and cook for a few more minutes, stirring frequently.

Add the vegetable broth and bay leaves and bring to a simmer. Cover and allow to cook for 25 - 30 minutes.

(bet you could add ham or something here Megan?)

Remove the bay leaves, then transfer soup to a blender and puree. Season with salt, pepper

Hmong Squirrel Stew

Squirrels get a bit of a bad rap in the city. I think they seem varmint-like. I myself have been known to be a bit squeamish about squirrels - they seem ferocious in a small, toothsome kind of way. One time when I worked at the Hub Bike Co-op (in the VERY early days when it was still in its first tiny location), it was my day to "empty" the squirrel trap. We had some squirrels that would get in and tear things up, so we set a trap out and would then bike the squirrels to the river. The squirrel was terrified of course, and I had taped up the cage in cardboard, and stuck the whole thing in my messenger bag. The bike ride was only a mile or two, but I was sweating the whole way because the squirrel was screeching the whole time - on my back - and I kept envisioning it jumping out of the cage and onto me in some kind of self-protective attack mode. It released into the woods just fine, but I've harbored a small squirrel fear ever since.

Hmong Squirrel Stew! So delicious!

The first time I ate squirrel was a year or two ago, and I was a bit squeamish and preferred to refer to it as a "tree chicken." But they tasted great - like dark meat chicken - and this time I was not the least bit hesitant to cook them up. Two had appeared as roadkill right at the corner where My Charming Companion lives, and a third was somewhere on a drive he was taking last week. He was excited to skin them because I guess squirrel hides are really, really strong and make excellent rope when you dry the skin and twist it together. Strong enough that it is the preferred traditional material for stringing a bow. Woah. So he skinned them and I took the little bodies to cook.

I'd come across this Hmong Squirrel Stew recipe in the Hunter, Angler, Gardener, Cook blog awhile ago, and had immediately ordered the cookbook the recipe was based on from the library: Cooking from the Heart: The Hmong Kitchen in America. It looks like a great cookbook and had some beautiful stories. This recipe is based on theirs, and it was AMAZING. The broth was delicious. If you prefer not to use squirrel, chicken would also be good, or shrimp. Really just make this tasty broth and eat it. I found that I actually thought the taste was best just after all the seasoning went in, rather than waiting a couple of hours. I am posting my revised recipe below, but click on the recipe title above for the original variation.

Squirrel meat off the bone - this is 3 squirrels

One thing to note: squirrels are tiny and have lots of bones. The ribs are more like a fish! The amount of meat on each squirrel varies of course, but it seems about 3/4 pound each. Be prepared for some tedious cleaning of the meat off the bone after you cook them. The cooking of the squirrel meat takes an hour or two, but once that is done, the soup will be ready in about 25 minutes. I made a couple of substitutions, but some key things: I think the lime leaves are important. You can get them at the co-op. I also think the lemongrass was key. I had fresh stuff in the garden, but you could use frozen/dried too. These really made the flavor unique. I didn't get galangal but upped the ginger instead.

Hmong Squirrel Stew
2-3 squirrels
2-3 T lard/ghee/bacon fat
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 stalk of lemongrass, minced (white part only)
3 to 5 red chiles, chopped (I used a large jalepeno)
1 tablespoon minced galangal (optional)
2 tablespoon minced ginger, peeled
1 pint/2 c chicken stock
6 lime leaves, or 1 tablespoon lime juice
1 tablespoon fish sauce
1 pound bok choy or chard, chopped
1/4 pound snow peas (carrots work too)
1 teaspoon ground Sichuan peppercorns (optional)
Salt

Garnish
1/2 cup chopped cilantro (I used parsley)
1/2 cup chopped green onion
1/2 cup chopped mint

1. Put squirrels in a large pot and add enough water to cover the meat by an inch or so. Add a good amount of salt (1-2 T), bring to a boil, cover and cook for 1-2 hours, until the meat easily comes off the bone. Make sure to reserve the liquid (this is good stock for the soup), and when the squirrels are cool, pull the meat off the bones. Discard the bones and set meat aside.
2. Heat fat in a large soup pot. Add garlic, lemongrass, chiles, ginger and galangal and stir fry for 1-2 minutes. Add broth from squirrel cooking, plus another pint of chicken broth. You want the total broth to come out to over a quart. Also add the lime leaves and fish sauce. I love fish sauce, so I added a wee bit extra. Bring to a boil and turn heat down to simmer about 10 minutes.

Garnish plate - more mint!

3. Chop chard or bok choy (I used tyfon holland greens from the garden). I also did not have any peas, so I diced up a few carrots nice and small. Add greens and carrots/peas to soup, along with reserved squirrel meat. Cook for another 10 minutes or so.
4. Serve with garnish! The mint was delicious in here! Who would have thought - but I wanted lots of mint. I used parsley instead of cilantro and was quite content. This was so good, and so thick and yummy.

Paleo Pho

Well, I ended up going up north for a super spontaneous drive last weekend, including a little hiking at gooseberry falls and some gazing at the surfers on Lake Superior. The winds were CRAZY on Saturday and the lake had some mega-waves. I guess it is pretty great surfing when the conditions are right?! The fall colors were totally stunning once I got past Two Harbors. I spent a night at my parent's cabin outside of Silver Bay, and was surround by fire-y orange trees. The misty rain weather made the colors even more vibrant. If you want to check out the fall colors, I think this week is the time to go - it was amazing. I (again!) stopped at the Northland Smokehaus for lunch, and got more corned beef to take home for dinner. Which I ate and it was as delicious as last time. Sunday was a day spent smoking lots of spice rubbed meat (mostly deer necks (3), but also a pork roast), reading, and picking and freezing tomatoes. But - this post is about the Pho I made before leaving town, at the start of the recent cold spell...

I had the recipe for Paleo Pho marked to try for awhile, and when the weather started to cool off and the forecast predicted days of rain, it seemed that pho time was here. I actually haven't had a proper bowl of pho ever, I think. I was vegetarian for so long, and most places used meat broth in their pho. When I started eating meat, it wasn't long before I also started eating paleo, and that meant no grand opportunity for the pho with meat and rice noodle experience. In any case, I'm creating my own grand opportunity - sans any memory of what it should taste like! All of the interesting spices: star anise, cinnamon, lemongrass and ginger, plus a good amount of fish sauce promise something good.

My camera is missing, so this is the photo from the original recipe!

I used some different meat than the original recipe calls for - in lieu of marrow bones, chuck roast and short ribs, I used oxtail and 4 pounds of venison stew meat. The quantity of meat came out the same, but a bit less bones and marrow-y goodness. I added in some extra broth (including some venison bone broth) so I think any difference was negligible. I found that I wanted noodles in this soup. Pho is, afterall, a noodle soup. So I tried adding wakame, and it worked out great. I'm sorry I have no photo to post, my camera is on the lamb. (Is that how you spell lamb used in that context?) Anyway - the pho was good, if a tiny bit on the fussy side. You could definitely decrease the fuss with still good results, so I encourage that (why brown the meat? just throw everything in a crock pot with some already made bone broth). Soup season is upon us! Hurray!

Coconut Oyster Soup

I've been experimenting with less heavy cream in my life, mostly just to see if I have any adverse reactions to eating it (or full fat dairy). I have not been able to detect any - even after doing the pulse test to see if I had any internal inflammation from it (under the assumptions that any internal inflammation impacts health and wellness and disease and all that). I learned about the pulse test from a friend, but you can read Dr. Coca's book for free online - the pulse test is on page 17. He has all kinds of interesting things to say about allergens and disease or chronic pain. I actually did a simplified pulse test, where I took my pulse rate several times over the coarse of a day. I then ate some cream (I had not had any dairy for over a week) and tested my pulse. If it had risen more than 6 beats per minute, it would have indicated some kind of allergic reaction. It didn't - but it did raise some and I am curious to try some of the longer term pulse tests to gather more info.

Anyway - this soup recipe is modeled from one by Terry Wahls, the doctor who treated her MS by diet and had really dramatic results. It is a perfectly good soup - however, the recipe does not highlight the oysters. And if I am going to have oysters, I want them to be the center of attention! So, certainly go for this if you are wanting a dairy free soup, but I might try it with shrimp or fish instead. Incidentally, now is the time to be eating oysters - at least for a just a bit longer (scallops too) - they are in prime deliciousness. Perhaps a ceviche recipe?!

Coconut Oyster Soup
1 lb of shucked oysters
2 T coconut oil
1 1/2 onion, chopped
1-2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 1/2 cups mushrooms
2-inch piece galangal, sliced in discs
3-inch piece lemongrass
2-3 cups fish broth, clam juice or chicken broth
1 can coconut milk
1 T fish sauce (Red Boat is the GF brand)
Salt to taste
1-2 tbsp lemon juice
2 basil leaves, minced
½ bunch of cilantro, minced

Heat coconut oil in a large pot. Add onions and garlic, and saute several minutes. Add mushrooms, galangal, lemongrass, broth, coconut milk and fish sauce and simmer 10 minutes. Salt to taste. Add oysters with any liquid and lemon juice and simmer for 2 minutes. Turn off the heat, add cilantro and basil and serve.

Adding the lovely oysters!

Cauliflower Soup w/Lamb

This is another one of my favorite soups.  I had never tried cauliflower soup, but somehow it sounded like something I would really like.  I put together this simple recipe based on some of my other standby soup recipes.  Roasting veggies before putting them in the broth helps the over-all flavor.  Roasted cauliflower is really good on it's own, and the taste transfers to a soup very easily.  The prep time is short and the end product is satisfying and filling.

Ingredients:
1/4 pound ground lamb
1 head cauliflower, chopped
1/2 cup onion, chopped
2-3 cups broth (chicken, beef, your choice)
big bunch of parsley, chopped
sea salt
pepper
coconut oil

Chop and roast the cauliflower at 350 for 20-25 minutes.  In the meantime sweat the onions in a bit of coconut oil in a big pot.  Once the cauliflower is roasted add the broth, cauliflower, salt and pepper to the pot and bring to a boil.  Simmer for 10-15 until the cauliflower softens.  Then, blend with an immersion blender or whatever type of blender you have available.  The lamb can either be sautéed in a separate pan or boiled in the blended soup.  Either way, lamb is a terrific addition to this soup.  It would also be excellent with coconut milk as well.  I actually think the soup has a coconut-like flavor as it is.

I think I may be obsessed with soup these days.  It's my favorite nourishing and fulfilling food at any meal.

Kimchi Jjigae take 2

I have made Kimchi Jjigae 3 or 4 times since I posted the original recipe in November. I am almost out of my big kimchi batch from last summer, so it appears that I will never get to year old kimchi (which would be best in this recipe) - at least not until next year when I will have to make a really big batch. Since my original post, I have switched over from using nori seaweed as a garnish and instead just put in a bunch of wakame. The wakame is delicious! I want to try making a salad out of it sometime - maybe when there are more fresh veggies around. It is a pretty mild seaweed with a silky texture. I bought mine from United Noodle in a 5 oz bag that I think will last a year because one handful = a lot of seaweed once you hydrate it in water.

It tastes amazing in the kimchi jjigae - it sort of mellows the sour from the kimchi. I love to slurp this soup up on the weekend - I don't know if it is all the bacon, or what, but it's sort of delectable and weekend-ish. I have modified this recipe a bit from the original to include the wakame, and I also added in some broth to make a slightly thinner soup. I recently discovered that the Wedge carries Red Boat fish sauce, which is GF and is made only from fermented anchovies with no other added stuff. It is REALLY good, and I put that in the soup too.

Kimchi Jjiage with wakame (serves 6)
Large handful dried wakame
2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil
1 pound bacon, cut into 1/4" pieces
Freshly ground black pepper
Medium yellow onion, coarsely chopped
3-4 cups coarsely chopped kimchi with its liquid (use the most pungent, sour kimchi you have)
1 T Red Boat fish sauce
5 scallions, thinly sliced (opt)
2 c. chicken broth (opt)

Put large handful of wakame in a bowl and cover with water to soak.

Heat the sesame oil in a large soup pot over medium heat. Add the pork belly/bacon, season with pepper, and cook, stirring now and then, until rendered, browned, and crispy, about 10 minutes.

Add the onion and kimchi and stir to combine. Add enough water to nearly cover the pork mixture (5 or 6 cups), cover, and bring to a boil. Immediately reduce the heat and simmer until the onion and kimchi are softened and the soup is quite thick, about 20 minutes.

Stir in the fish sauce, broth and scallions. Drain the wakame, chop it up and add to the soup. Cover the pot and simmer for 10 minutes to combine the flavors. Serve steaming hot.

Butternut Squash Khoresh

Khoresh # 2! This is another recipe from A Taste of Persia. I used venison in this one too, and it tasted great. This recipe is a little on the sweet side - something I am less used to in meat dishes, and it is also a bit more broth-y than other stews. The broth was delicious though.

I am posting the original recipe below, however I changed the recipe some: I used way less prunes (maybe 5 of them) and 1/2 c. of apple cider in place of sugar; I used 2 c. chicken broth in lieu of water; and I added an extra 1/2 lb of meat. I found it plenty sweet and will maybe forgo the apple cider all together next time. The prunes break down, and I found that even the handful of them (chopped up) gave a really nice hint of dried plum flavor without the extra fructose. 

Butternut Squash Khoresh
5 T ghee, butter or coconut oil
2 small onions peeled and thinly sliced
1 lb. skinless boneless chicken or meat (lamb, venison, beef) cut into thin strips
1 t salt
1/2 t freshly ground pepper
1 t cinnamon
1 1/2 c pitted prunes
2 lbs butternut squash
4 T sugar
1/4 c fresh lime juice
1/4 t saffron threads dissolved in 1 T hot water (opt)

1. In a medium pot, heat 3 T butter/ghee over medium heat. Add the onions and fry for 5 minutes, until translucent. Add the meat and stir-fry 15 minutes longer, stirring occasionally until browned. Add salt, cinnamon, prunes, pepper, and 2 1/2 cups water and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
2. Meanwhile, peel the squash and cut into 2-inch cubes. In a large skillet, heat 2 T butter/ghee over medium heat. Add the squash and stir-fry for 10 minutes, until all sides are golden brown.
3. Add sugar, lime juice, saffron water, and butternut squash cubes to the meat. Cover and simmer for 40 minutes over low heat.
4. Taste the khoresh and adjust the seasoning for salt and lime juice. Serve!

Cream of Mushroom soup

There are some really beautiful (local) crimini mushrooms at the co-op right now: I was checking out at the Wedge last week, and the check-out person, who was jovial and chatty, joked that they were nearly portobella sized.

Later, as I was packing them up in my bag, I overheard the check-out person greeting the next customer: "Wow. You look just like the person who plays with Bon Iver - do you know Bon Iver?" I did not hear the reply, except that clearly the person behind me WAS indeed that person because then the checker-outer got really excited, saying "Oh wow, I just really love your music. This is really exciting to meet you..." and sort of continued on in a very endearing, fan sort of way. I figured the checker outer must be a pretty big Bon Iver fan, because I would guess that Bon Iver's band members don't usually get recognized in public outside of their home towns.

So. These crimini mushrooms had sighting of fame - not the big lead singer kind, but a behind-the-scenes, less recognized-but-still-so-important fame. So really, that is how I will describe this soup: not flashy, but good and wholesome!

Cream of Mushroom soup (serves 3-4)
1 lb. crimini mushrooms, chopped or sliced
1 medium onion, chopped
4 T butter or ghee
1 t thyme
2 c. chicken bone broth
1/2 c. dry wine
1/2 c. heavy cream (coconut cream/milk would work too)
salt to taste
parsley

1. Heat butter in a large, heavy pot. Add onions and saute 5 minutes, until slightly translucent. Add mushrooms and thyme and continue sauteing another 10 minutes or so, until juices are released from mushrooms. 
2. Add wine and simmer for a few minutes before adding the broth. Bring to a boil, lower heat and simmer for 5 more minutes.
3. Add cream and salt. Taste to check salt amount until it is to your liking. Top with chopped parsley and serve.
*I am thinking that this soup would also be nice blended up - it might get a bit thicker and be a little more Campbell's-soup-like that way (you know, with all the minced up mushroom bits...)

5 Ingredient French Onion Soup (paleo)

The local onions have been very nice at the co-op lately - most notably that they are very LARGE! One of my staples of late is French Onion soup. I posted a GF version about two years ago (my first FO soup ever) and I have since simplified things down to this very basic, but delicious recipe.  I do think that part of why this soup tastes so good is due to the venison Bone Broth. I have not done a post about bone broth, but fellow Minneapolitan blogger at Sustainable Paleo has, and really, bone broth tastes about 10 times better than anything you can buy (and is really good for you and your bod). So, I cannot vouch for this soup if you are having it with store bought broth, but with bone broth, it is super good and very easy and you don't need any other herbs/spicing.

5 Ingredient French Onion Soup (serves 4)
4 T. butter or ghee
3 large onions
2-3 pints Venison/Beef Bone Broth
3/4 c. dry wine (either white or red seems to work fine - but dryer is better)
celtic sea salt (in my experience this salt makes soup more flavorful than any other)

1. Slice onions as thinly as you feel motivated to go for - the thinner the better to carmelize and be silky in your soup.
2. In a heavy pot, turn heat on medium heat and melt the butter. Add onions. Stir every so often and keep your eye on the onions. This is the carmelizing stage, and it takes a bit of time. You want the onions to turn nice and brown, so keep plodding along until they get there.
3. Pour in wine and stir/scrape the bottom of the pan to deglaze any buttery-onion bits that might have stuck there. Add broth (2 pints will be a thicker soup, 3 will be more broth-y! Both are good). Bring to a boil and let simmer for a few-10 minutes.
4. Salt to taste - it generally takes more than I think - a Tablespoon or two. Serve!
(Sometimes, depending on the wine, I do want a little acid in there, in which case it becomes 6 ingredients and I add a splash of cider vinegar...)

Oyster Stew!

This recipe is so simple, and so incredibly delicious. Really, how can you go wrong with oysters, butter, and cream - which comprise the bulk of this recipe. The original recipe (from an internet search seeking something flour-free) was modified just a bit - primarily by trading half and half for chicken stock and heavy cream. The oysters I got were huge, and this soup was pretty much to. die. for. Swoon.

Oyster Stew serves 4 and takes about 20 minutes total!
1 stick of butter
1 c minced celery
1/4 c minced shallots (onions worked great for me, I added a bit extra)
1 pint chicken stock
1 pint heavy cream (I ended up not using all of it - a little less was plenty)
24 oz or 1 1/2 lbs fresh, shucked oysters with the juice
Sea salt and fresh ground pepper to taste
Pinch of cayenne pepper to taste

1. Melt the butter in a large heavy pot. Add onions/shallots and celery, and cook until onions are tender (about 5 minutes).
2. Add broth to pot and let heat a minute or two over medium high heat. Add cream and stir continuously to heat. Just before boiling (you will see lots of little bubbles start to rise), pour the oysters and their liquid into the pot. Season with salt, pepper, and cayenne. Stir continuously until the "oysters curl at the ends." My Charming Companion and I determined this to be after just a few minutes or so, maybe 4. When the ends are "curled" the stew is done and you can turn off the heat. Taste the soup to check your salt and pepper, adjust if needed.
3. Serve immediately! You could garnish with parsley if you had some.
*This was also very tasty when I reheated leftovers the following day. OMG. so good. It was also nice with the crackers from my previous post...you can break them up like oyster crackers!

Kimchi Jjigae

Early this fall I got several Korean cookbooks out of the library and copied out a few tasty looking recipes. One of my favorite cookbooks is called The Kimchi Chronicles, which it turns out is also a show on PBS! I am particularly excited because I made a (double) batch of kimchi last month, and I have 4 jars to use in some new recipes.

The show and the food look amazing, as you can see in the clip below. This clip includes the kimchi jjigae, as well as another kimchi soup with seaweed in it (I happened to copy that recipe out before returning the library book too). I love PBS. There are several recipes on the site, including the Kimchi Jjigae that I modified slightly, below, as well as a Grilled Steak with Kimchi Butter that I want to make soon.

 

This soup tasted AMAZING, and it is super simple. The seaweed "garnish" is really good - I ended up using twice as much because it was such a nice taste combo. My soup ended up being a bit too salty due to my lack of salt calculation for bacon vs. pork belly + my extra salty kimchi, so I added in some chicken broth. That was great too and made a slightly thinner soup.

 

From the Kimchi Chronicles

Kimchi Jjiage:

• 2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil
• 1 pound bacon, cut into 1/4" pieces
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 1/2 large yellow onion, coarsely chopped
• 3 cups coarsely chopped kimchi with a bit of its liquid (use the most pungent, sour kimchi available)
• 1 t. anchovy paste due to my gluten intolerance
• 5 scallions, thinly sliced
• About 1/2 cup thinly sliced nori for garnish

Heat the sesame oil in a large soup pot over medium heat. Add the pork belly/bacon, season with pepper, and cook, stirring now and then, until rendered, browned, and crispy, about 10 minutes.

Add the onion and kimchi and stir to combine. Add enough water to nearly cover the pork mixture (5 or 6 cups), cover, and bring to a boil. Immediately reduce the heat and simmer until the onion and kimchi are softened and the soup is quite thick, about 20 minutes.

Stir in the anchovy paste and scallions. If it’s too thick for your liking, thin the stew with water or broth. Cover the pot and simmer for 10 minutes to combine the flavors. Serve steaming hot sprinkled with gim/nori.

Chicken Tomatillo Stew

Oh the market is filling up with tomatillos!  I actually still had some frozen ones in my freezer from last summer, so I thought I'd use them up in this stew. The recipe is from Paleo Comfort Foods, and it is pretty simple and makes a big batch - which means good freezing for lunches later. And I got to use the first green pepper out of the garden, and poblanos from the farmer's market!

The flavor in the stew is nice and spicy - not too hot, and your kitchen will smell like a good taqueria. The tomatillo sauce I had in my freezer did have some jalepeno blended in, so that added a little extra heat to mine. For the chicken, I just got some large chicken breasts, coated them in oil and a little flavored salt rub, and stuck it under the broiler for 15 minutes (flip halfway through). Then I shredded it up and added it to the pot.

Chicken Tomatillo Stew
1-2 T coconut oil
1-3 poblanos, chopped
2 yellow onions, chopped
2 garlics, minced (opt)
2-3 green or red peppers, chopped (opt)
1 cubanelle pepper, minced (opt - I used a habenero from my garden instead)
2 t chipotle pepper
2 t chili pepper
1 T cumin
2 t smoked paprika
1 1/2 lbs fresh tomatillos, husked and chopped small/crushed in food processor
1 24 oz can tomatoes (or fresh ones!)
4 c chicken broth
2 lbs cooked chicken, shredded (pulled pork would work too)

1. Heat oil in a large pot.
2. Add onions, poblanos, peppers, and garlic and saute until onions turn translucent.
3. Add spices and minced hot pepper if using. Stir to mix.
4. Add tomatillos, tomatoes, broth, and chicken. Bring to a boil, then simmer for 1-2 hours.
(I opted to move everything to the crock pot to simmer - and I left it in there for a bit longer.)

Carrot Cashew Soup

I have been on the hunt for a new soup recipe that will help me use some of the chicken stock I have been accumulating lately.  I stumbled upon this carrot cashew soup recipe today and decided to give it a try.  I am huge fan of cashews because they are so creamy when pureed and make a great dairy substitute.  The recipe author says she loved this soup so much that she wanted to drink it with a straw, and I have to agree.  I haven't had very many carrot soups, but this one is really good.

I had a hard time deciding how many carrots to use.  The recipe calls for 1 lb. but when I had them peeled it just didn't look like very many carrots, so I did 2 lbs.  It turned out to be a good choice because 1 1/2 cups of cashews is a lot and I needed more carrots and stock in order to off-set them.  If you want to use 1 lb. of carrots I would recommend doing only 3/4 cup of cashews.  I think this is a good way to go because I ended up making a huge batch of soup.  Although, I put a lot of it in the freezer and will be able to pop it out for heat ups, which is super awesome.

I found the recipe here.  The recipe includes roasting the carrots, onion, and garlic, which I think is one of the main secrets to the tastiness of the recipe (that and the cashews).  It took extra time and effort, but I think it was well worth it.

Beef (or Venison) Stew

Summer and hot kitchens = the joy of crock pot cooking. I tried making stew with an actual recipe recently, and it turned out really delicious. The recipe is slightly modified from Paleo Comfort Foods (which I now returned to the library, so I guess that wraps up the recipes I have posted from there).  It's a slightly higher maintenance stew recipe than my usual (little more than me putting stew meat, tomatoes, broth, wine and carrots in a pot and cooking for a long time) - though it seems like the increased prep worked in equal ratio to increased enjoyment! So I determine it was worth it.

Mmm...this photo (not mine) is sans green beans.

4 anchovies (or anchovy paste)
1 T tomato paste
2 T coconut oil
3-4 lbs chuck roast, cubed
3-4 pieces thick bacon, cut in small pieces
2 large onions, chopped
4 med. carrots, cut in 1" pieces
fresh tomatoes (however many you want!)
2 c. red wine
3 c. chicken broth
2 bay leaves
4 sprigs fresh thyme
2 c. green beans (optional)

1. Mash anchovies and stir together with tomato paste; set aside.

2. Heat oil in a large dutch oven over med-high heat. Working in batches, add meat and brown 5-6 minutes on each side and flip with tongs. Set aside.
3. Fry bacon in same dutch oven pan.
4. Add onions and stir to get any bits off the bottom of the pan. Add in tomato/anchovy mix.
5. Stir in wine and cook until it is reduced some.
6. Add broth, tomatoes, thyme, and bay leaves and bring to a boil.
7. Transfer to crock pot and add meat and carrots to the whole thing. Turn crock pot on high for 4 hours. (If this is not summer and you want things to move faster, you can also cover the dutch oven pot and put in a 300 degree oven for about 2 hours.)
8. Add green beans in at the end, and cook with the stew for 5-10 minutes.