Minty Pea Soup

I'm not a fan of cold soups. And yet, every time I see a recipe for one, I feel compelled to try it. Gazpacho, for example, has always tasted like tomato juice to me. I once found a great cold avocado soup recipe, but I decided it was better as a sauce for lamb than in a bowl by itself.

And so, when I found this recipe for minty pea soup, I obviously felt the urge to make it, especially considering how ridiculously easy it is to throw together. And of course, I wasn't crazy about it cold. So it's good to know that it's pretty good warmed up too :)

Minty Pea Soup
2 10-ounce packages frozen peas, thawed
3/4 cup mint leaves
4 scallions, roughly chopped
3 cups chicken broth
1 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp sugar

Combine all ingredients and puree until smooth. (Yes, that's it.)

*Yeah, no photo. There was a slight mishap with the bowl and the not-putting-it-on-something-level and the resulting spillage and the sheer frustration of having to clean green soup off the counter...

Vomit Soup

The other day, as I was reading about Ugly Soup over at The Best Bite, I was thinking that her soup wasn't really that ugly. It wasn't beautiful, no, but it wasn't something that should be hidden from view.

And then, last night, totally without meaning to, I one-upped Andrea in the ugly soup department. A simple name of Fresh Corn and Tomato Soup won't do for this one. No, all I can picture is my 10-year-old nephew playing some nasty practical jokes on his teachers, and now the name Vomit Soup has stuck in my head. It tastes fantastic, though, uses the late summer crops, and was ridiculously easy to make. It's wicked healthy, too. This recipe yielded about 6 cups of soup, or 3 big bowls-worth. I served the soup with Trader Joe's Southwest Style Gourmet Flatbreads, little flat breadstickets baked with chilis and cheese.

Perhaps next time, I'll serve it in the dark in front of the TV.

Fresh Corn and Tomato Soup (aka Vomit Soup)
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 red onion, chopped
1 tsp cayenne pepper (I think I used more, I didn't measure)
1/2 tsp salt (again, I didn't measure)
1/2 cup water
5-6 ears of corn, kernals cut off
fresh tomatoes (I used 3 small tomatoes and a pint of cherry tomatoes)
about 1/2 cup skim milk (you can also use whole milk or cream)

In a large pot, saute the onion in the oil. Add cayenne and salt. After 4-5 minutes, when the onion is tender, add water, corn and tomatoes. Bring to a boil, then lower heat and simmer, covered, for 30-45 minutes, until corn is tender. Remove from heat and puree using an immersion blender. Add milk as you puree. Serve with a sprinkle of chopped cilantro.

And no, I'm not going to give you pictures, because I like having readers.

Maca-don'ts

Day two of being home with a summer cold. I'm feeling much better, and I think I'll be 100% by tomorrow. So instead of napping all afternoon, I decided to try something I've been wanting to take a stab at for a while - macarons. My roommate had pointed out a bowl of leftover egg whites last night, so I figured it was the perfect time to make an attempt.

The recipe in my Williams-Sonoma Baking book looked easy enough. I subbed almonds for hazelnuts, since that's what I had around. The result? Not so hot. Is my apartment too humid? Were the eggs too old? Did I have too heavy a hand with the folding? Did I pipe them too big? Um, yes to all, probably. Leave it to me to make something with whipped egg whites on one of the hottest days of the year. I didn't even bother making the ganache filling... none of the cookies were the same shape or size, so making sandwiches out of them would have been futile. But as I say, at least they still tasted good.

Anyone have a good macaron recipe, or tips to help in my next try?



Macarons, my variations on a Williams-Sonoma recipe
4 large egg whites at room temperature
1/4 tsp cream of tartar
1/4 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup toasted, skinned and ground almonds
2 cups confectioners' sugar

In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine egg whites and cream of tartar. With the whip attachment, beat on medium-high speed until soft peaks form. Add the sugar slowly and continue to beat until stiff, shiny peaks form. Beat in the vanilla until blended. With a rubber spatula, fold in the almonds and confectioners' sugar until incorporated. Using a ziplock bag, pipe the batter onto a parchment sheet-lined baking sheet about an inch apart. Let the cookies sit, uncovered, at room temp for 30-40 minutes.

Heat oven to 350 degrees and position the rack in the center of the oven. Place an empty cookie sheet on the rack to insulate the baking cookies. Bake each sheet of cookies for about 10-13 minutes or until golden and firm.

Spaetzle with Arugula Pesto

The sun is out again here in Boston, and pesto sounded like a great idea... but basic basil pesto seemed a little too pedestrian for today. What better green to use than my favorite, arugula?

I was working off the cuff on this one, but I think it turned out pretty well. I also tried to cut down on the oil, so it's a little more pasty than a typical pesto.

Arugula, about 4 oz. or half a bag
Olive oil, about 1/3 cup
2 garlic cloves
Zest of half a lemon
Shaved Pecorino Romano, to taste

Combine ingredients in a food processor and pulse until blended. Add more of whichever ingredient seems lacking, especially oil if it's too dry or not moving around the blade. This made about 3/4 cup. Obviously, you can adjust the amounts to produce more.

I was very happy with this combination. Arugula, olive oil and Pecorino are naturals together. The lemon added a very sharp, fresh taste that intrigued me; it gave the whole recipe a different twist. (Ouch. No pun intended.)



Now, I needed something to put the pesto on. I really wanted fresh pasta, but I don't know where to buy it near me, and I didn't have the patience to make any tonight. Instead, I decided to try my hand at the spaetzle recipe I received a few weeks ago from Paul Turano.

1/4 cup water
2 eggs
3 T melted butter
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp pepper
1 cup flour

Mix all ingredients except flour together. Add flour once everything else is incorporated. Over a pot of heavily salted, boiling water, push spaetzle dough through the holes of a colander. Work in batches. As soon as the spaetzle float, transfer to cold water to halt the cooking.

I really wanted to take pictures of the spaetzle-making process, but I had to work so quickly, and the potential for bodily injury was growing by the second, so I had to pass. Instead, you get this amazing photo of my naked spaetzle.



I could never imagine the need for a spaetzle maker before. Now I understand. The holes in my colander were just too small, making it almost impossible to get the dough through. The pieces that did make their way through were tiny... almost a joke. And the way they were swimming around in the water was a little obscene... The steam was pouring up through the colander holes that weren't plugged up by dough, and I had to resort to awkwardly holding kitchen towels over my arm in order to keep all my skin intact.

But I soldiered on. After all the spaetzle was cooking, I heated some oil in a pan and sauteed some chopped peapods. Then I added the spaetzle and allowed the dumplings to brown slightly, tossing occasionally.

After cooking, I added a few chopped tomato pieces and a big spoonful of the arugula pesto (about 1/4 of what I had made). I had intended to keep some leftovers for lunch tomorrow, but the small amount of spaetzle didn't stretch as far as I thought it would.



Overall, this wasn't a total disaster. I mean, yes, the spaetzle was more difficult than I expected. So what if I almost scalded my hand off making it? And so what if said spaetzle looked like giant sperm? At least the pesto was great, and at least it still tasted good!