Onion Soup with Apple Cider

4 tablespoons unsalted butter
3 tablespoons olive oil
6 large onions (about 3 1/2 pounds), halved, thinly sliced
3 cups low-salt chicken broth
2 1/2 cups bottled apple cider
12 large thyme sprigs
Chopped fresh thyme

***

Yeah, yeah, another soup.

Yeah, yeah, I know it's not the fall and this is a fall soup.

Yeah, yeah, I know there's no meat in it.

Just eat it.

Grade: 3 out of 4 cell blocks. NAAHHHH! It's a solid 7.8 out of 10.0.

Broccoli, Red Pepper, and Cheddar Chowder

1 small bunch broccoli (1/2 pound)
1 large boiling potato (1/2 pound)
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 large onion, chopped
1 red bell pepper, cored, seeded, and cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1 large garlic clove, finely chopped
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon dry mustard
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
3/4 cup heavy cream
1 1/2 cups coarsely grated sharp Cheddar (about 6 ounces) (CJ used Old Cheddar - is Sharp cheddar an American term?)

***

Well ladies and gentlemen, I've found my new favourite soup. I'm just going to throw out the grade right now: 9.0 out of 10.0. Yes, it's THAT good. It looks great, easy to make, creamy and that cheddar just adds a new level of flavour to it. Noooooo, I didn't add any Essence of Pure Flavour - I didn't have to.

I highly recommend you try out this recipe if you are into something simple (it will require 2 pots) and delicious.

Here's the photographic evidence: (notice the chunks o' broccoli?)

Red Pepper Soup with Toasted Cumin

2 tablespoons grape seed oil (CJ used vegetable oil)
1 small red onion, chopped
1 tablespoon chopped garlic (CJ used a little more than 1 tablespoon. maybe 1.5 or 2)
1 teaspoon mustard seeds
1 teaspoon coriander powder
1 teaspoon asafoetida
1/2 teaspoon Spanish paprika (CJ only had regular paprika at hand).
3 red peppers seeds removed and sliced
1/2 cup organic vegetable broth
1/2 cup white wine ( I used a 2008 Chardonnay - Le Fat Bastard) Où sont tous les hippopotames?
pinch salt and freshly ground pepper
3 tablespoons cumin seeds (for garnish)

Chef's Note: I would suggest doubling the recipe if you want to feed more than three people.

***

Well, I've been meaning to make this soup for a few weeks now. That Spice Goddess has some good stuff going down. The reason for the delay was the unavailability of asafoetida around these parts. I had to ask a kind female, east Indian shopper at the Superstore in Edmonton for some help in finding it. Let us all thank the "Big J" (that's what we/my family referred to him as for my cousin's wedding in Rio) for her help... Honestly I think the Thais and the Cariocas are the friendliest people on this planet - no question.

CJ has also received a lot of positive feedback about his ability to sexify the AIMCo black jacket in the IKEA cafeteria entry down below... but you will all just have to wait just a little bit longer for the Maître to make his appearance. Yes doesn't the beard look good? I'm sure the beard's appearance makes ALL females weak(er) in the knees. As the Count Halabuza (YESSS that's his beautiful main droit that holds the maple leaf) would say, it's very Bautista-esque...

This soup was probably the best tasting new/freshly cooked soup CJ has yet to blog about. No word of a lie.

Appearance-wise: it looked like that sauce covering buttermilk chicken, bright-red and full of promise.

Scent-wise: it was fantastic. I can't ever recall cooking with a Chardonnay before. As soon as it hit the saucepan, it tickled my olfactory glands like nothing else. It's a tempting mistress this scent!

Taste-wise: very heavy on the red pepper flavour. Not overly sweet at all. AND I was even more than generous with the salt and pepper during the seasoning as well.

What do the Sous-Chefs want? They have a photograph don't they? CJ is more than happy to oblige:

Those toasted cumin seeds are darn well near a genius idea. It adds to the viewing, tasting and smelling pleasure. CJ was REALLY  surprised how something so simple could add so much.

Grade: 8.9 out of 10 on a first night tasting!! The Chef will have a re-taste mañana...

Barley Sushi Salad with Nori

3/4 cup pearl barley
5 shiitake-mushroom caps, cut into strips
1/2 cup sliced smoked salmon
1/2 English cucumber, seeded and sliced into half moons (I used a non-English cucumber - I forget which type)
3 tbsp pickled ginger, coarsely chopped
2 tbsp rice vinegar
1 1/2 tsp granulated sugar
2 tsp dark sesame oil
1/2 tsp salt
1 sheet nori seaweed
1 tbsp toasted sesame seeds

***

Well, here is the Chatelaine recipe, Part Deux.

If I had to describe this salad in as few words as possible, while still maintaining it's "character" I would say: "Virgin Sushi Salad". Those three words is all it takes.

"Virgin": because it's close to raw fish, but not really, and the barley is a proxy to the rice

"Sushi": because it's still fish and there's the pickled ginger you will find accompanying said sushi.

"Salad": because it is indeed a salad.

In fact, I might even suggest this dish to someone who hasn't had the pleasure of tantalizing their palate with sushi before - a good "Virgin Sushi" dish... Like for that uncultured friend/relative of yours who has trouble trying something new. Nothing ventured, nothing gained.


I spent quite some time at my not-so-local Asian market to find the ingredients. My suggestion - find the Japanese section, and you'll find most of the necessary reagents there and not have to waste your time wading through the other sections.

In terms or preparation, this bad boy only takes about 30 minutes, most of which is spent waiting for the barley to cook.

Taste was pretty fresh. Not too overpowering, but I do like the combo between the pickled ginger and sesame oil/rice vinegar. It just reminds me of sushi.

Evidence:

It doesn't look fancy. I really should have spent more time separating the salmon, but, proper food presentation is a harsh mistress. I have yet to learn all she has to teach... Additionally, maybe a bit more barley to salmon/ginger ratio would be suggested too.

Overall, a solid if unspectacular grade of 7.6 out of 10.

Gingered Carrot Soup

1 tbsp butter
2 cups carrot
1 cup onion
1/2 cup celery
2 tbsp ginger
3 cups chicken stock
1/4 cup long grain brown rice (I used mixed rice)
1 tbsp liquid honey
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper

***
After you mix the reagents together, you say "An Nox" and BAM! you are cured of what ails you! Just kidding...

I obtained this piece palate-pleasing soup from one of my current co-workers. She had the recipe book in front of her during lunch hour, and I asked if I could quickly peruse through it. With my good looks and charm, she couldn't resist. Quickly I had found two recipes that tickled my fancy (and it would appear my co-worker's as well) - this ginger carrot soup and a goulash soup.

What are you going to do on a Saturday night after studying for your CASB final evaluation on the upcoming Friday? Well, what I did was cook some soup. I really wish I could have recorded the smell. When I added that ginger root to the onions, celery, carrots and butter, it was like ginger heaven - all that was missing was beer, a decent hockey game on tv and scantily-clad women. I would have added that smell to the website for all my little sous-chefs to enjoy.... ahhh technology, why have you forsaken us? Sure, you give us 3-D tvs, but when will smells come out?

Speaking of ginger, when I was younger one of my brother's friends was snooping through our refrigerator. He pulled out a ginger root and said, "What's this?". Either my brother or I helped the culturally-challenged individual and told him it was ginger. "Really?", he replied, and proceeded to bite it. He didn't take a bite out of it, he just bit it. Then he put it back in the fridge. Needless to say, this individual is depraved.

Back to the soup.

It has the usual vegetable-triad of carrots, onions and celery. After the cooking and the pureeing is done, it ends up being pretty thick. And tasty.  I actually added more ginger than the recipe asked for, and was worried that it would be too strong. But it wasn't at all. To my palate the ginger wasn't strong enough. Next time I'll have to up the ante.

Also, I didn't make enough to taste the soup the following day. Because, as everyone knows, soup is always better the second day. Well, I've made a mental note to double up the recipe for next time.

Final score: 7.0 out of 10.

Here is the photographic evidence:

Got ginger?

Drunkard's Noodles

4 oz. dried rice noodles
2 tablespoons oil
1 onion
1 clove garlic (Chef's note: I didn't have any garlic, so omitted this... :(   )
4 small red chilies
1 small red bell pepper
1 small green bell pepper
1 tomato
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon dark soy sauce
2 tablespoons light soy sauce
6 basil leaves (Chef's note: I used Hot Thai Basil - that's what the package read from Lucky 97)
4 kaffir lime leaves (Chef's note: I used 6 leaves)

***

Well, I hadn't made this dish since May or June of this year. Not because I don't like the dish, but because it's hard to get lime leaves. At least I haven't been able to locate any at any of the grocery stores here in Leduc. I doubt they'll have any in Camrose either... <hurrrrrrrrrrr>

So, after finally remembering to get to an Asian food market while in E-town yesterday, I picked up some groceries and made sure to get the lime leaves. They smell so good. I think I might bring some into work to freshen things up.

Back to the task at hand - The dish really doesn't take very long (cooking time is less than 5 minutes), most of the time is spent cutting up the vegetables. And waiting for the rice noodles to soak. I let them soak for 10 minutes in cool water. They were still a little hard when I threw them into the wok, but you just keep adding water tablespoons at a time until they are done. In hindsight, I may have let them soak for about 2 - 3 minutes longer.

The other problem with the noodles is that they didn't separate very well, so it was difficult to dish out.

As you can see below, the dish is quite colourful:

As for taste, I had forgotten how hot it was. I wasn't crying, but it was darn well near burning my lips. I wish I had one of these to cool my palate.

Overall a 7.5 out of 10. I suppose if you like hot food you'll be more inclined to rate it higher.

Hot and Honeyed Sweet Potato Soup with Lime

4 cups (2 L) water (Hey - I know that doesn't quite add up, but that's what the recipe says). I used 6 cups/1.5L water
2 lbs. (1 kg) sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed. I used Yams.
1 jalapeño pepper
juice and grated zest of 1 lime. I used 4 key limes.
1/4 cup (75ml) honey
1 teaspoon (5ml) curry powder
salt and pepper top taste (I know, it should be "to" not top - but that's what the recipe said. Poor editing on the Journal's part, that's for sure...). Actually, I forgot to add these!
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
sour cream, salsa, extra cilantro and lime wedges


***


Do you want to turn this:

into this?

I bet you do. That's what I did tonight.

This recipe was obtained from the Edmonton Journal food/bistro section about 7.5 years ago. It was on page 2, and on page 1, there's an article on Emeril, Jamie Oliver and Nigella Lawson with their photos. Have you ever watched Nigella's shows? The camera guy always, always pans in to her chest. No, no, I'm not complaining, as she has a very nice chest. She's very chesty. In fact, I quite like it. What's not to like? But you have to know your audience, don't you? How many guys actually watch her show? Besides me?

Hmm. What was I writing about? Chesty soup? Is there such a thing? Don't tell him...

French Lentil Soup

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 cups chopped onions
1 cup chopped celery stalks plus chopped celery leaves for garnish
1 cup chopped carrots
2 garlic cloves, chopped
4 cups (or more) vegetable broth
1 1/4 cups lentils, rinsed and drained
l 14.5 ounce can diced tomatoes in juice
Balsamic vinegar

***

Like I've mentioned before, I wasn't really a soup kinda guy. Still not. But my friend's wife (yes, she's a redheaded vegetarian) made some lentil soup for us one evening a few years ago. I have to admit, it did tickle my fancy.

The recipe above calls for some blender/food processor action. Makes it smooth like Camel cigarettes...

It looks like split pea soup. I really hated that stuff when I was a young lad... It's probably split pea soup that turned me off soup for 20 years. Disgusting.

Insalate - Giuggiolosa

Mixed Greens
Cambozola
Roasted Red Peppers
Black Olives
Pinenuts
Honey
Extra-virgin Olive Oil
Balsamic Vinegar

***

Well, I obtained this recipe from a restaurant in (mid-town?) Toronto a few years ago. I had located their menu online, printed it off and added it to my recipe/menu collection.

Unfortunately, menus don't always (actually, rarely) explain how they prepare their dishes in terms of proportions/measurements of their ingredients, so I just played around with it. You guys (my little 'sous chefs') will just have to experiment and find the right mix for yourselves.

Here's the photo:

The cambozola, pinenuts, olives all end up on the bottom, and the red peppers stuck together a little too much. Also, the olives were WAY too strong (Unico brand) - in fact, their taste was just too overpowering. I had to pull them out after my first serving of salad. I don't know if I picked the wrong olives or what - but it just didn't compare to the restaurant's dish. On the positive side of the ledger, I did manage to get my proportion of the dressing correct - honey, balsamic vinegar and olive oil - this left me pleased.

No need to worry - I didn't let the salad sit in the dressing while I prepared the other dish (risotto - see below). I added the dressing just before dinner. No soggy salad for my team. Without a doubt, this was the TSN turning point of the meal...


Final Score:
Chef Jeremiah 1
Soggy Salad 0

Risotto with Mozzarella and Sun-Dried Tomatoes

5 1/2 cups vegetable stock
1/3 cup oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes
1 yellow onion, chopped
2 cups Arborio rice
1 cup shredded fresh mozzarella cheese
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh basil, plus whole leaves for garnish
Salt and freshly ground pepper

***

I found this recipe in one of my mom's cookbooks that I was looking through yesterday, trying to figure out how to cook the acorn squash. I haven't had risotto for quite some time - probably over a year, so it was about time to give it another chance.

This dish was pretty good, although I should have chopped the basil a little more than I had. It was fairly tasty with the sun-dried tomatoes and all that cheese.

Here it is in the pan:

It certainly doesn't look very beautiful, does it? Maybe I should work a little more on the food's presentation?

Acorn Squash & Apple Soup

2 medium acorn squash, seeded & halved
3 cups degreased chicken stock or canned
2 tart green apples, cored, seeded & chopped (I used Granny Smith)
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 cup unsweetened apple juice
2 teaspoon fresh ginger root, peeled & grated
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
pepper

***

I have Chef Martin from Regina to thank for this recipe, bless his little french heart. Now, his recipes weren't always the best - often the directions would omit how to cook a certain ingredient, or even leaving out when to add a certain ingredient (both problems arose here), but he did have some pretty good ideas.

Now, I'm not much of a soup guy either. I've met tons of people who just love soups, but it's never been my thing. A few close friends just rave and rave about soups, so I decided to see what I've been missing out on....

Now this soup is nothing special. in fact, it was probably ready in about 1.5 hours total (YES, YES - I know the soup will be better tomorrow). Pretty simple and quick - with Mum's food processor that is. I'd hate to use a blender to get all this pureed. Taste was pretty tame (I added in some sour cream after a few spoonfuls), nothing fancy. The texture was, ummm... interesting. It was indeed like apple sauce. Not that I have a problem with apple sauce, but that's strictly reserved for pork chop night, at least in my world...

Net result? A little too thick for my liking. I'd rate it below the sweet potato soup that I sometimes make (another pureed soup).

***

Chef Jeremiah must send his props to both his Momma and MJC for their helpful guidance today.

(Chef's Update: I had the soup for lunch on Saturday, just about 24 hours after I had originally cooked the soup. Wow. Much, much more flavourful than I had expected. I think that ginger and lemon juice finally made an appearance. Very tasty, but still pretty thick.)