Tag Archives: soup

Hungarian Mushroom Soup

Posted on by

Last week I wrote how we were treated to a teaser of spring and how it probably won’t last long. It didn’t. It’s been brutal this week, especially Tuesday. Dangerously cold with March definitely coming in like a lion. I got my first dose of the vaccine yesterday which is done outside and I was so impressed with the set up, though one of them said it took about 4 hours to warm up after Tuesday, the worse day this week. They really are stepping up in difficult circumstances and doing an incredible job getting this country safe. I’m sure tons of soup like this Hungarian Mushroom Soup were eaten to ward off the bitter cold.

The National Guardsman who checked me in had a bit of a chuckle. He asked how I was doing and I replied “I’m so excited!” And I was. It’s been a long 12 months of anxiety for so many of us, it’s good to see that the rollout of the vaccine is being successful and people are queueing up to get the jab. It will be nice to get back to some type of normalcy. I do think it won’t get back completely pre-COVID but I’m looking forward to traveling and enjoying live music again.

Until then, I’m enjoying cooking again and being creative. Global anxiety is such a creativity killer. Hungarian Mushroom Soup is one of my husband’s favourite soups. It goes so well with homebaked ciabatta so he baked up some fresh ciabatta to go this soup.

Technique for Hungarian Mushroom Soup

There are loads of variations of this soup and this is mine.

Coarsely chop the mushrooms and slice the scallions/spring onions. In a saucepan, melt the butter and add the mushrooms.

Once they start browning, add the scallions/spring onions, paprika and fresh dill. Sauté for a few minutes to bring out the fragrant flavour of the dill and paprika.

Add the broth and soy sauce and bring to a simmer.

Simmer on low for several minutes to allow the ingredients to come together with their flavours. Add the flour to the milk and stir well. Every time I do this step for soups or gravy, I’m always taken back to a silly advert in the ’80’s selling gravy and saying “just like homemade, but no lumps!” My mum never made lumpy gravy so I had absolutely no idea what they were on about. I did once I started making gravy. You need to mix it well enough that there are no lumps before putting into the soup.

Bring to a high simmer to cook the flour and thicken the soup for a couple of minutes. Cook for several more minutes at a low simmer. Add the lemon juice, chopped parsley, sea salt and freshly ground pepper. Once it simmers for a bit adjust the seasoning as needed. I sometimes add more paprika at this stage. There isn’t any wrong way, as long as you like it, it’s good! The last step is to add the sour cream, again don’t boil but make sure it’s all heated through.

Once the sour cream is incorporated (it won’t incorporate 100%) and is heated through, it is ready to serve.

Add a dollop of sour cream and garnish with parsley. Fresh ciabatta and butter is perfect for dipping into this soup. Pair with a Belgian Trappist Ale and life is good.

Print

Hungarian Mushroom Soup

A delicious warming mushroom soup

Course Soup
Keyword Hungarian Mushroom Soup
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 35 minutes
Servings 4
Author Our Growing Paynes

Ingredients

  • 2-3 tbsp butter
  • 1/2 cup scallions/spring onions sliced
  • 1 1/2 cup coarsely chopped shiitake mushrooms
  • 2 tbsp chopped fresh dill (if using dried, 1-2 teaspoons)
  • 3 tsp paprika
  • 2 tsp soy sauce
  • 3 cups vegtable broth
  • 1/2 cup milk
  • 2 tbsp flour
  • sea salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
  • 1 tbsp lemon juice
  • 3 tbsp chopped fresh parsley
  • 1/2 cup sour cream

Instructions

  1. Melt the butter in a saucepan. Add the mushrooms and cook until they start to brown. Then add the scallions/spring onions, paprika and dill. Sautè for a few minutes.

  2. Add the broth and soy sauce and bring to a simmer. Simmer on low for several minutes. While this is simmering, mix the flour and milk and work out all the lumps.

  3. Add the milk mixture to the saucepan and cook it on a high simmer until the flour is cooked. Add the salt and pepper with the lemon juice and parsley. Cook for a few minutes on a low simmer and then adjust the seasonings if need be.

  4. Just before serving add the sour cream and cook on a low simmer until it's heated through.

  5. Serve in bowls with a dollop of sour cream and garnish with fresh parsley.

Minestrone Soup

Posted on by

We seem to be in a continuous cycle of warm temperature to bitter cold temperature and back again. Germs everywhere! Minestrone soup is a great antidote to fighting off all the stuff going round. As remedies go, it’s a delicious comfort food.

My husband had sent me an article from the Guardian about Ultra Processed Food. For those that follow this blog, you know we’re big on cooking from scratch and keeping overly processed food out of our diet. I found it interesting when the article mentioned that it’s a good sign to see a container of sugar in the kitchen. The reason is, it’s a sign that home cooking from fresh ingredients occurs. Which is so much better than buying boxed goods.

Technique for Minestrone Soup

While this is a very easy soup to make on a busy night, I do recommend to make it a day or so ahead for the flavours to really come out.

Heat up the olive oil in a large saucepan. Sautè the onions until they soften. Add the garlic, carrots and celery. Cook for a few minutes.

Add the mushrooms and peas. The beauty of this soup is you can add whatever veg you want. I don’t like zucchini/courgettes and the like, especially in soup, so I left those out even though they are more traditional.

For the diced tomatoes I like to use fire roasted for a deeper flavour. Continue to cook for a few minutes before adding the veg bouillon. Bring to a simmer.

Season with the herbs, sea salt and pepper. Add the pasta and bring to a boil until the pasta starts to soften. Turn back down to a simmer.

Years ago, on our honeymoon in Italy, we had taken a cooking lesson and the woman gave us a tip on how to use up the parmesan ends. Throw in the piece into the soup and simmer. It gives a really lovely cheesy balance to the soup.

Serve with fresh bread and butter. Perfect for the whacky winter evenings.

Print

Minestrone Soup

A hearty delicous soup

Course Soup
Cuisine Italian
Keyword Minestrone Soup
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Author Our Growing Paynes

Ingredients

  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 small onion, coarsely chopped
  • 2-3 cloves of garlic, coarsely chopped
  • 1-2 stalks of celery, chopped
  • 1 small carrot, chopped
  • 1-2 mushrooms, coarsely chopped
  • 1 cup frozen peas
  • 2 14oz cans diced tomatoes
  • 3 cups vegetable bouillon
  • 1 tbsp fresh thyme
  • 1 tbsp fresh oregano, chopped
  • sea salt and pepper to taste
  • parmesan cheese end
  • 1 cup rotini pasta, dry

Instructions

  1. Heat up the olive oil in a large saucepan. Sautè the onions until they begin to soften. Add the garlic, celery and carrots to the pan. Cook for a few minutes before adding the mushrooms and peas. After cooking for a few more minutes add the diced tomatoes.

  2. Add the bouillon and the pasta. Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer. Add the herbs and season with the sea salt and pepper. Toss in the cheese end. Once the pasta is cooked, it is ready to serve.

New England Clam Chowder Brings Back Memories

Posted on by

New England Clam Chowder, or Chowdah if you want to get it right, brings me back to our family trips to the seashore in New England.  There is nothing like the sound of the sea and the smell of the ocean.  We would spend a day wandering round and it would invariably include a lobster meal with New England clam chowder.  Back when a lobster dinner didn’t require a mortgage to get!

With my in-laws visiting, I try to make meals that are a treat for them so when my father-in-law mentioned how much he loves New England clam chowder I knew I had to make it for him.  It’s been years since I had it so it was a treat for me as well.

Technique for New England Clam Chowder

As this doesn’t take long to cook, prep the ingredients up front.  Finely dice the potatoes and onions.  If you can find a large onion, you only need one.  For some reason we’re still getting tiny onions.

Coarsely chop the salt pork and brown in a saucepan.  Do this on medium heat as you want to render the fat a bit but don’t want to burn the meat.  After a few minutes add the chopped onion with the butter and bay leaves.

Cook until the onions start to become translucent.  Then add the flour to make a bit of a roux.  The goal is to have a hearty soup, not a watery soup.  Then add the potatoes and sautè for a minute.

Add 2 cups/16oz of chicken stock and 10oz of clam juice.  Bring to a simmer.  Add the fresh thyme and season with sea salt and pepper.  Add the clams.

At this point, if the soup is still watery, make a slurry of flour and water and add that to the pot.  Later when you add the cream and white wine it will thin it back out so it’s ok to go thick here.  Allow this to simmer for about a half hour to reduce a bit and to get the flavours going.  Just before you serve remove the bay leaves and add a cup/8oz of heavy/double cream and a third of a cup/3oz of dry white wine.  Don’t bring it to a boil but rather allow it to simmer.

Perfect with crusty bread

Serve it with some fresh baked bread.  Not surprisingly this was even better the next day.  It was very much enjoyed and it did bring back some lovely memories of when I was a child.

 

Print

New England Clam Chowder

A delicious stick to your ribs soup for the cool nights.

Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour
Total Time 1 hour 10 minutes
Servings 6 people
Author Our Growing Paynes

Ingredients

  • 2/3 cup salt pork, coarsely chopped
  • 1 large onion, coarsely chopped or two small onions
  • 5 tbsp butter
  • 2-3 bay leaves
  • 3 tbsp flour
  • 1 large potato, cubed
  • 2 cups chicken stock
  • 10 oz clam juice
  • 28 oz clams
  • 2 tsp fresh thyme
  • sea salt
  • white pepper
  • 2 cups heavy/double cream
  • 1/3 cup dry white wine

Instructions

  1. In a sauce pan, brown the salt pork on medium heat.  Add the butter, onions, and bay leaves.  Cook until the onions are translucent.  Add the flour to create a roux.  

  2. Add the potatoes and cook for a minute then add the stock and clam juice.  Bring to a simmer.  Add the thyme and season with the sea salt and white pepper.  Add the clams.  Cook for a half hour.   Add a slurry of flour and water if the soup needs to be thicker.

  3. Just before serving add the cream and wine.  Bring to a simmer but don't boil.  Serve with crusty bread.  

Bacon and Chicken White Bean Soup and We Have a Houdini

Posted on by

Our puppy boys aren’t actually puppies, they are 11 and 8. We call them puppies as they like to act like that and occasionally they teach themselves new tricks. Guinness, our 11 year old, decided to channel Houdini this morning. Because we’re still having work done on the house we put the dogs safely in a room. It usually works. Only this morning Guinness figured out how to open our sliding doors. It got a little hairy as we corralled him. It was bit bit like a comedy of people going in and out of rooms but no one could see anyone else.

Murphy has been taking this in stride but Guinness has taken to muttering at the intrusions. Definitely put out! Fortunately it will be over soon and he’ll soon get his room back. Silly sausage.

With the cacophony going on, comfort food hits the spot. Bacon chicken white bean soup fits the bill. I added bacon and chicken to this soup because they needed to be used up. Necessity being the mother of invention and all that.

In a saucepan add a half chicken breast that has been cubed and 3-4 rashers of streaky bacon that has been chopped. Sauté on medium heat.

Slice 2-3 mushrooms and chop 4-6 cloves of garlic. Once the bacon has rendered a bit add the veg to the saucepan.

Add 3 cups/24 ounces of chicken stock and bring to a simmer. Next add 2 cans of 15 ounce cans of white beans after rinsing them. Continue to simmer until the beans are cooked through. Season with se salt and pepper. A healthy splash of white wine, ahandful of fresh parsley and 4 ounces of freshly grated Parmesan finishes off the soup.

Fresh baked crusty bread with butter is a perfect companion to this soup.

I really enjoyed this hearty soup. A nice break from all the upheaval.

Parsnip and Roasted Mushroom Soup

Posted on by

I have to hand it to our son, he had his wisdom teeth removed yesterday and he did really well. Me?  Didn’t sleep the night before.  It’s so much easier when stuff is done to you rather than your kids.  Now he gets to hear his parents telling him to eat his ice cream.  Think he’ll be ok.  😊

Woke up being very happy for fuzzy socks with freezing temperatures and gusting winds.  Definitely soup season!  On one of our date nights, my husband ordered an amazing mushroom soup and it sparked an idea for a mushroom and parsnip soup.  Their soup just had mushrooms in it with Gorgonzola cheese.  Well I shouldn’t say just as it was delicious.  But I went off on a tangent.  


As luck would have it, the co-op had a great selection of mushrooms.  Including a Japanese mushroom called maitake.  Slice up the mushrooms and toss them in olive oil.


Roast them at 350F/175C until they are nicely browned.  In the meantime, peel and dice 1 to 2 parsnips depending on the size.  Finely chop a couple of garlic cloves.  Sauté the parsnips and garlic with olive oil in a saucepan.


Add a amall handful of fresh thyme, sauté for another minute or so.  Add about three cups of chicken stock and half a cup of dry sherry.  Bring to a medium simmer.  Once the mushrooms are roasted, add them to the soup.


Season with sea salt and pepper.  Cook until the parsnips are soft and the broth has reduced about a quarter.  Remove from the heat and purée until reasonably smooth.


Top with a dollop of sour cream and a bit of chive.  This could easily be made vegan with a veg broth.  The parsnip makes it very creamy so I didn’t have to add any cream.  

Using the Carrot and Keeping Things Positive

Posted on by

Yesterday was a much needed day for so many people.  There has been so much rhetoric and hatred that seemed to have been winning out and leaving a lot of us feeling adrift and shocked.  But yesterday was an historic day.  It was a day that millions across the world stood up peacefully and said we don’t accept that.  The reports today are estimating that nearly 3 million in the US alone showed up which made it the most represented protest in US history.

I know it was called the Women’s March but it was inspiring to see that men and children joined in as well and that we are standing up together and rejecting the hate, rejecting the notion that we are going to be dragged backwards.  I’m afraid we will for awhile but I hope that we will not be silenced and we will fight to move our rights forward for all.

In our little town we had a turnout of about 500 people.  It was fabulous, though as I looked round you could see people of my parent’s generation and all I could think was that they must be so irritated they have to march for this again.  Signs around the world definitely bore this out.

Here are some of my photos of yesterday to share with you.

carrot-ginger-soup-5-2017carrot-ginger-soup-6-2017carrot-ginger-soup-7-2017carrot-ginger-soup-8-2017carrot-ginger-soup-9-2017

I think if we can keep this positivity and using the carrot instead of the stick we can do so much.  Well, except voting.  That’s going to be a very big stick.

In the middle of tax season starting and standing up for ourselves I am finding time here and there to be creative in the kitchen.  Not as much as I’d like but it’s that time of the year!

We had great success with the carrots in the garden.  They came out massive but very sweet and tender.  There was the last large one to use up and because the kids love soup this time of the year I made a carrot ginger soup.  There are a lot of recipes out there with orange juice but that would that would make this soup super sweet so I went the savory route.

carrot-ginger-soup-1-2017

In a saucepan heat up a couple of tablespoons of olive oil.  Chop up about half a red onion.  You want to end up with a 1/2 cup/4oz or so.  Finely chop a couple of garlic cloves.  Begin to saute while you cube the carrot.  Obviously if you don’t have a massive carrot, cube 4-6 of them depending on size.  Add the carrot to the saucepan.

carrot-ginger-soup-2-2017

Add enough chicken stock to cover the carrots and bring to a simmer. Grate fresh ginger into the pan. I did about an inch/2.5cm square. Then add a small handful of fresh tarragon.

carrot-ginger-soup-3-2017

I seasoned this with sea salt and pepper.  I wanted a little kick to this so I added a bit of red pepper flakes.  Once the carrots are cooked through puree and add back onto the heat.  Add a cup of cream and slowing heat that through.

carrot-ginger-soup-4-2017

Add a dollop of sour cream and enjoy with your favourite bread.

I sincerely hope that yesterday is the beginning of hope and positivity where we find our strength to stand up against the drumming of fear.

 

Moroccan Lamb Soup

Posted on by

Mother Nature has been messing with us a lot this past week.  Winter had a lot of periods of spring weather and so far spring has ushered in winter weather.  We’ve had freezing temps and snow.  Not amused!  Fortunately we haven’t had anything in the garden yet and the bulbs seem to be holding their own which is good.

It did present a perfect time for baking and soup last weekend.  I found some nice stewing lamb at the co-op and I was in the mood for Moroccan flavours.  Something to take the chill off.

This is an easy soup to throw together.  In a bowl add 1/2 a cup of flour, a tablespoon of ground tumeric, a teaspoon of ground cinnamon, and 2 teaspoons of paprika.  Season with sea salt and pepper.

Moroccan lamb soup 1 2016

Mix thoroughly.  I got about a pound of lamb for this meal.  Cut it up in small pieces, an inch/2.5cm square or so.  Toss in the flour mixture to coat.

Moroccan lamb soup 2 2016

In a large saucepan heat up a couple of tablespoons of olive oil.  Brown the lamb in the saucepan for several minutes.

Moroccan lamb soup 3 2016

Chop up a small onion and a few cloves of garlic.  Add to the pan and saute for a few more minutes.

Moroccan lamb soup 4 2016

For some reason, I spaced on taking pictures for the next few steps.  Don’t know what I was doing!  Add 4 cups of vegetable bouillon to the pan.  I use a paste mixed with water rather than the dry cubes.  For this I kept it on the light side so the flavour was subtle.  Grate a piece of fresh ginger that is about 1 1/2 inches/3-4 cm square.  Simmer for a couple of hours at a low temp.  Cube an aubergine and add to the soup in the last hour of cooking.  After it simmers for awhile check the seasoning and adjust as needed.  I added a bit more tumeric and paprika to mine.  When the lamb is tender and cooked so it’s falling apart it is ready to serve.

Moroccan lamb soup 5 2016

You can’t go wrong with lovely crusty bread and butter with this.  As warming this soup was I am looking forward to the weather behaving itself so we can get back to grilling and salads.  I am ready for spring!

Tarragon Beef Stew to Keep You Warm

Posted on by

I think it is time to give up the ghost where the garden is concerned at this point.  With the exception of the hardy root veg and brussels sprouts we’re done and dusted.  A couple of weeks ago I managed to find some tarragon still green in the garden which reminded me of a recipe I had printed out from allrecipes.com a few years ago.  Looking at it again, I realised that I hadn’t followed it completely when I made it before.  For one, it had honey.  And a few other interesting things.  But it does have vermouth which works really well with tarragon.

I love beef stews, particularly with ale, but my husband sometimes finds them too heavy in flavour.  This stew has a lot of flavour without the heaviness.  A more refined rustic soup if that isn’t too much of an oxy moron!  

Terragon beef stew 1 2015

Dredge about a pound of stewing beef in flour and season it with sea salt and pepper.  In a saucepan melt 2 tablespoons of butter.  Brown the beef.  Chop a small red onion, 3-4 cloves of garlic, a carrot, and 2-3 mushrooms.  Add the veg to the beef and cook for a few minutes.

Terragon beef stew 2 2015

Cube 2-3 red potatoes depending on the size.  Add it to the saucepan.  Cook for a few minutes then add 4 cups of vegetable bouillon and bring to a simmer.  Add 1/2 cup of vermouth, 4 tablespoons of worcestershire sauce, a handful of tarragon, and a small spoonful of mustard.

Terragon beef stew 3 2015

Simmer for a few hours at low temperature until the beef is tender and the potatoes are cooked through.

Terragon beef stew 4 2015

Add some crusty bread and you’ll be warmed to your toes!  🙂

Curried Carrot Soup

Posted on by

Oooh, it was very scary in town last night.  Lots of ghouls and monsters wandering about asking for candy.   And I bet most of them slept well after their quest for the sweet stuff.  It was a little bittersweet last night as our kids were off doing their own thing this year.  It’s tradition for us to gather at a friend’s house as their neighbourhood is a fabulous place to trick o treat.  We went without them to see all the kids having fun.  The best costume was a young girl who took a parasol and stringed it with lights to be a jelly fish.  You could see her journey through the neighbourhood.  A fantastic job.

The husband of the duo where we go likes to dress up as death.  He has an old sickle that was the wife’s great grandmother’s.  Once there are enough of us to hand out candy he starts slowly walking the driveway dragging the sickle.  A bit scary.  So it’s fascinating to watch the kids.  A good number, even the tiny ones, will loudly declare “You don’t scare me!”  Some keep an eye on him as they make their way to the candy.  A couple get scared but with the rest of us yelling it’s ok, there’s candy at the end, they make it as well.  I don’t think there was one child that gave up candy out of fear.  🙂

Now I’m not one, when this time rolls by, to go pumpkin crazy.  Occasionally I make a pumpkin pie but that’s it.  Crikey, they put it in everything!  People go mad over it.  But I do enjoy good harvest soups.  The comfort rustic ones that take the chill off the bones.  And if they are quick even better!

A couple of weeks ago I made a curried carrot soup for the family as I had to teach class that night.  Nothing is easier to make ahead of time and just reheat.

Curried Carrot Soup

Peel and slice 3-4 carrots depending on their size and thinly slice them.  Chop up half a large red onion and coarsely chop 4-5 cloves of garlic.  Add about 4 cups of chicken stock.

Curried carrot soup 2 2015

Bring to a boil and cook until the carrots are tender.  Use a blender or an immersion blender to blend all soup.

Curried carrot soup 3 2015

Don’t worry about getting it perfectly smooth, this is a rustic soup.  Put it back on the heat and bring it to a low simmer.  Now the seasoning bit is a guideline.  I used hot curry powder, curry paste, cumin, sea salt, pepper, and a bit of garam masala.  The last bit you don’t want to use a ton. A little goes along way. We really like the curry flavour and the heat so I add a good amount.  I also add a spoonful of the mango habanero sauce I made recently.  This is seriously hot so don’t go overboard with that bit!  Simmer to allow all the flavours to develop together.

Curried carrot soup 5 2015

Top with a dollop of sour cream or creme fraise.  Garnish with fresh chive.  This is a very warming soup.  Wonderful on a cold day or if you have a cold!

Loaded Baked Potato Soup to Keep Us Cosy

Posted on by

We’re in the first peak of tax season so quick meals are key.  And given how cold and snowy it’s been, comfort food is a definite must.  We’re lucky it’s not as bad as the winter in the midwest last winter but you get to a point that cold is cold.

I’ve seen several pins and references to loaded baked potato soups.  The idea really sang to me so I thought I’d come up with my own recipe for this soup.

I cubed up a couple of red skin potatoes and covered them with homemade chicken stock.  Cover, bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer until the potatoes are tender and cooked.

Loaded potato soup 1 2015

In a separate skillet cook up some streaky bacon, scallions, garlic, mushrooms, and thyme.  To hold up in the soup the bacon needs to be on the crispy side.

Loaded potato soup 2 2015

Once the potatoes are cooked through use an immersion blender to blend the potatoes until they are smooth.  Sprinkle a teaspoon or two of red pepper flakes into the soup.

Loaded potato soup 3 2015

Add a cup of cream and the bacon mixture and warm through again.  Season with salt and pepper.

Loaded potato soup 4 2015

Top with shredded cheese, sour cream, and some chives.

Loaded potato soup 5 2015

A good stick to your ribs soup!  It was even better the next day with the flavour of the red pepper flakes really coming through.  And it did the trick for pushing back winter.