This is the perfect soup for a cold, snowy evening. Chock full of nourishing, grounding ingredients (and bacon!), this soup might just become a winter staple.
2 cups broccoli florets (I used frozen)
1 large onion, finely chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
3 large Russet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1” cubes
1 bunch green onions, sliced
½ pound bacon, cut into 1” pieces
3 tablespoons flour
1 8-oz pack Cheddar cheese, shredded
6 cups chicken stock
2 cups whole milk
Sour cream to serve
In a large soup pot, cook the bacon until crisp. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside. Cook the onion and garlic in the bacon fat until the onions are tender, about 7 minutes. Sprinkle the flour over the onions and garlic. Stir together to make a roux. Cook for 3-4 minutes.
Add the potatoes to the pot and cover with the stock. Cover and simmer until potatoes are very tender. Remove from heat. Puree the soup, leaving some chunks of potato.
Return the soup to the stove. Add the broccoli and cook until tender (or heated through, if using frozen broccoli).
Lower the heat and add the milk. Add the cheese and stir to melt. Return the bacon to the soup and add the green onions.
Serve the soup with dollops of sour cream, plus extra bacon and green onions for garnish if desired.
You can also replace the green onions with crispy fried onions. That's also delicious.
Showing posts with label potato. Show all posts
Showing posts with label potato. Show all posts
Saturday, January 14, 2012
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
Let's Talk Potatoes
Who doesn't love potatoes? Many Americans, when asked to name their number 1 comfort food, will name mashed potatoes. French fries/chips are the most popular "vegetable" side dish in many restaurants and homes. The Potato Famine in Ireland drove a couple million people from their homeland and into America to avoid starvation. Clearly this is an important crop. But what do we know about it?
Potatoes are from South America, specifically Peru. People in Peru first began cultivating this plant around 34000 B.C.E. That's a long damn time! The potato didn't make it to Europe until the 1500s.
Like the tomato, it is a member of the nightshade family. Also like the tomato (which we know is a fruit), the potato is used for protection. Potatoes are ruled by the moon and their element is earth.
Potatoes are an excellent full-moon food and also good for grounding. Potatoes eaten for protection should be seasoned with onions, chives, rosemary, parsley, or dill for maximum effect. Potato dishes are good to eat after energy has been raised, in order to help ground the participants. I have served potato soup after meditation workshops to help people ground themselves.
If you're looking for a warm, comforting soup to serve this autumn, here is a recipe for maximum comfort: Loaded Baked Potato Soup. Who doesn't love a loaded baked potato, with cheese, sour cream, bacon and green onions or chives? My mouth is watering just thinking about it!
Ingredients:
8 ounces bacon, chopped into small pieces
2 1/2- 3 lbs potatoes, scrubbed, peeled and cut into cubes
1 large onion, diced
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons AP (all-purpose) flour
4 cups low-salt chicken broth
1 cup whole milk
2 cups shredded cheese - Colby, Cheddar, what you will
3-4 green onions, sliced thin, for garnish
sour cream, for garnish
salt and pepper to taste
Cook the bacon in your soup pot until crisp. Remove with a slotted spoon but reserve the drippings. Cook the onion in the bacon drippings until soft. Add the garlic and cook 1-2 minutes. Stir in the flour and cook about 1 minute. Whisk in the broth and milk. Add the cubed potatoes and bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium and cover Cook until the potatoes fork-tender, 7-10 minutes. (Cut the cubes fairly small so they will cook more quickly.)
Remove about 2 cups of cooked potato cubes and set aside. Puree the rest of the soup in a blender or using a stick blender. Reheat the soup over low heat. Remove from heat and stir in the cheese to melt. Return the reserved pieces of potato to the pot. Season with salt and pepper.
To serve, ladle soup into bowls and garnish with crispy bacon, sliced green onions, and dollops of sour cream.
I think I'll be making this over the weekend. A friend of mine returned to the United States yesterday and gave me some bacon before leaving. Woo hoo!
Potatoes are from South America, specifically Peru. People in Peru first began cultivating this plant around 34000 B.C.E. That's a long damn time! The potato didn't make it to Europe until the 1500s.
Like the tomato, it is a member of the nightshade family. Also like the tomato (which we know is a fruit), the potato is used for protection. Potatoes are ruled by the moon and their element is earth.
Potatoes are an excellent full-moon food and also good for grounding. Potatoes eaten for protection should be seasoned with onions, chives, rosemary, parsley, or dill for maximum effect. Potato dishes are good to eat after energy has been raised, in order to help ground the participants. I have served potato soup after meditation workshops to help people ground themselves.
If you're looking for a warm, comforting soup to serve this autumn, here is a recipe for maximum comfort: Loaded Baked Potato Soup. Who doesn't love a loaded baked potato, with cheese, sour cream, bacon and green onions or chives? My mouth is watering just thinking about it!
Ingredients:
8 ounces bacon, chopped into small pieces
2 1/2- 3 lbs potatoes, scrubbed, peeled and cut into cubes
1 large onion, diced
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons AP (all-purpose) flour
4 cups low-salt chicken broth
1 cup whole milk
2 cups shredded cheese - Colby, Cheddar, what you will
3-4 green onions, sliced thin, for garnish
sour cream, for garnish
salt and pepper to taste
Cook the bacon in your soup pot until crisp. Remove with a slotted spoon but reserve the drippings. Cook the onion in the bacon drippings until soft. Add the garlic and cook 1-2 minutes. Stir in the flour and cook about 1 minute. Whisk in the broth and milk. Add the cubed potatoes and bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium and cover Cook until the potatoes fork-tender, 7-10 minutes. (Cut the cubes fairly small so they will cook more quickly.)
Remove about 2 cups of cooked potato cubes and set aside. Puree the rest of the soup in a blender or using a stick blender. Reheat the soup over low heat. Remove from heat and stir in the cheese to melt. Return the reserved pieces of potato to the pot. Season with salt and pepper.
To serve, ladle soup into bowls and garnish with crispy bacon, sliced green onions, and dollops of sour cream.
I think I'll be making this over the weekend. A friend of mine returned to the United States yesterday and gave me some bacon before leaving. Woo hoo!
Sunday, May 17, 2009
Cooking by Days of the Week - Monday
This comes from Patricia Telesco's book, A Kitchen Witch's Cookbook.
Monday - Originally known as Moon's Day. Cooking on Monday will improve magicks for creativity, insight, maternal nature and Goddess-related efforts.
Good foods to eat are mushrooms, for moon magick, and potatoes, for grounding. Here, then, is a recipe for potato-mushroom gratin, courtesy of epicurious.com
Potato-Mushroom Gratin
Ingredients:
5 Tbsp olive oil, divided
2 1/2 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and cut length-wise into 1/8"-thick slices
1 1/2 tsp coarse Kosher salt, plus extra for the mushrooms
3/4 tsp ground black pepper, plus additional for mushrooms
1 1/4 cups heavy whipping cream, divided
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese (approx. 3 oz), divided
2 Tbsp chopped fresh thyme
6 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
12 oz fresh crimini mushrooms, sliced
Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 F. Oil a 13x9x2 glass baking dish with 2 Tbsp oil. Arrange 1/3 of the potatoes so they overlap. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Pour 1/3 cream over; sprinkle with 1/4 cup cheese. Repeat layering 2 more times. Bake uncovered until potatoes are tender, adding additional cream by tablespoonfuls if dry, about 45 minutes. Remove from oven; maintain oven temperature.
Sprinkle thyme and garlic slices over gratin. Toss mushrooms in a medium bowl with 3 Tbsp oil; sprinkle on salt and pepper. Arrange mushroom slices atop gratin around the edge of the dish. Drizzle with 1/4 cup cream; sprinkle with 1/4 cup cheese. Continue to bake uncovered until mushrooms are tender and potato edges are golden brown, about 20 minutes longer.
Monday - Originally known as Moon's Day. Cooking on Monday will improve magicks for creativity, insight, maternal nature and Goddess-related efforts.
Good foods to eat are mushrooms, for moon magick, and potatoes, for grounding. Here, then, is a recipe for potato-mushroom gratin, courtesy of epicurious.com
Potato-Mushroom Gratin
Ingredients:
5 Tbsp olive oil, divided
2 1/2 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and cut length-wise into 1/8"-thick slices
1 1/2 tsp coarse Kosher salt, plus extra for the mushrooms
3/4 tsp ground black pepper, plus additional for mushrooms
1 1/4 cups heavy whipping cream, divided
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese (approx. 3 oz), divided
2 Tbsp chopped fresh thyme
6 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
12 oz fresh crimini mushrooms, sliced
Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 F. Oil a 13x9x2 glass baking dish with 2 Tbsp oil. Arrange 1/3 of the potatoes so they overlap. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Pour 1/3 cream over; sprinkle with 1/4 cup cheese. Repeat layering 2 more times. Bake uncovered until potatoes are tender, adding additional cream by tablespoonfuls if dry, about 45 minutes. Remove from oven; maintain oven temperature.
Sprinkle thyme and garlic slices over gratin. Toss mushrooms in a medium bowl with 3 Tbsp oil; sprinkle on salt and pepper. Arrange mushroom slices atop gratin around the edge of the dish. Drizzle with 1/4 cup cream; sprinkle with 1/4 cup cheese. Continue to bake uncovered until mushrooms are tender and potato edges are golden brown, about 20 minutes longer.
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