"A first-rate soup is more creative than a second-rate painting." -- Abraham Maslow (http://www.brainyquote.com/)
You know, there was a time when soup was considered a poor man's meal. I suppose if you just had a bone with no meat on it and a pot of water, yes it would still be considered so. But I like soup and it not only warms the body, it warms the soul.
Mid-week post about Last Night's Soup
I had determined that Reuben sandwiches would be the fare for the evening. But it seemed to beg for something more. What could I add to the meal without having to purchase anything additional? Home-made potato chips would be nice, potato salad would be wonderful... but those potatoes were beyond recognition. "What about soup?" I asked my husband. "That will be fine... what kind do you have in mind?" he replied. "Tomato?" I responded... and off to the kitchen I went.
Well, I really had a craving for potatoes... and when I got to the pantry shelf I found that I had a can of potatoes, an equal size can of corn and two cans of diced tomatoes. I don't know about you, but one of my favorite soups is Washington Chowder. You may not have heard of it so I will describe it here.
I first heard about Washington Chowder in a vegetarian cookbook called: "Oats, Peas, Beans & Barley." I bet you've never seen that one. It was my one and only favorite recipe from the book and I made this soup often enough I knew the approximate proportions of ingredients.
Using canned potatoes instead of fresh definitely makes a difference... but we were here to create Washington Chowder from shelf-stable canned goods. The only other ingredients we needed were an onion and a stalk of celery, and of course seasonings.
I chopped the onion (a little too large I think) and then the stalk of celery and sauteed them in some butter. While that sweated it out, I diced the small potatoes and opened the other cans so I'd be ready to combine everything after about 10 minutes. And finally, poured milk into the pot to make it the thickness I preferred. The seasonings included plenty of Emeril's Original Seasoning, minced garlic, black pepper and salt.
After 25 minutes of simmering, we served it up in large bowls with a piece of fresh cornbread on the side.
I could have just opened two cans of condensed tomato soup and made quick work of it... but what would be the joy in that? I love to cook but sometimes I'm just too wiped out to do something from scratch. However, my Washington Chowder was "close to home-made" and fairly quick and easy to put together. You notice I did not give you any measurements for the various ingredients. I like to do it by sight and by taste and encourage you to do the same. You'll have a wonderful soup put together in no time!
Wednesday, January 23, 2013
Friday, January 18, 2013
Getting up to speed...
Well, I haven't done a good job of keeping this updated. Must need to do something different or make it easier for me. I just need to create a new habit. Maybe if I choose a certain day of the week to post? Since today is Friday, let's try Fridays for starters.
I have been enjoying Pinterest (http://pinterest.com/spicewagon) quite a bit lately and I need to see how I can incorporate what I'm doing there with what I'll be doing here. I'd like to use this as a site to post photos and articles on food and cooking... that is one of my true passions.
A LITTLE HISTORY
I'm going to tell you about this recipe and how I found it. But first, a little history.
I was raised a vegetarian. Way back when it wasn't "cool". My mom was an EXCELLENT cook, and still is, for that matter. She always had something delicious on the table and did it on a very tight budget. I like to kid her and say that the only thing she served us that wasn't good was a block of tofu. Yes, just a block of tofu jiggling on a plate without any sauce, or anything. I don't know if the story is true, but it makes for a good way to get my mom to laugh.
Now, I on the other hand, have moments of incredible creativity in the kitchen and then I'll do something like burn the garlic bread. So, I have to work REALLY HARD at it.
My daddy was a pastor and momma played the organ. We traveled as evangelists for the church I was raised in -- and yes, being a vegetarian was part of that religious upbringing. I don't regret it but I like to have choices. And now, I can choose to eat meat or not. It's up to me. And I love to make those vegetarian favorites every once in a while too.
Funny thing, it seems like I've been going through my recipe books for months now. Yes, not only cookbooks that I dare not part with but cardfiles of recipes dating all the way back to 8th grade. I have clippings from the Chicago Tribune from 1974 with recipes I've never tried on them!
I'm slowly getting rid of the recipes it seems I would never make in a hundred years now. Like "Soy Milk and Bran Flake Muffins." I'm making that one up, but some of the recipes are really that far out.
I was 34 years old before I ever cooked meat. And prior to that, the only meat I had came from Taco Bell or Mrs. Winner's. If it had a bone, I didn't know how to eat it. When I first started cooking meat, I was living with a guy that was really a pretty good cook -- a little limited -- but he could cook southern food just like his mama. Anyway, I pretty much learned from him and have taught myself since then.
Oh, the recipe I promised you. Seems like a good time to tell you about it.
IT'S RAINING MEATBALLS
My mom makes wonderful VEGETARIAN meatballs and they always get rave reviews. I don't know if she has ever made a true meatball. I sure hadn't until I ran across this recipe. I was making dinner for my fiance Jim, and his daughter, Mary about 8 months ago. We were going to have pasta and I just decided, how about I try to make a real meatball to go along with it.
Who would I turn to for the best recipe? Emeril of course. I have his Potluck cookbook and looked in the index. Sure enough, there's a recipe called "Paul Makes Whole Crew Happy Sausage Meatballs and Red Gravy." Great title, right? I thought, now this sounds really good for a first try at a meatball. And when I checked the seasonings, which is what I do... I scan the ingredients and the seasonings and if I can "taste" it, then I know it's worth a try. Anyway, we made those meatballs that night and they were AMAZING!
So, for the second time -- I made those same meatballs the other night. And there were 20 of them. So, that meant -- 4 with Cavatappi pasta, 4 as meatball sandwiches, 4 more with pasta at another meal, 1 with pasta for lunch, 3 mixed with rice for stuffed peppers, and 2 in the freezer. And there's one in the frig for a quick lunch. Let me tell you... in this day and time. When you can cook 1 meal which equals about 4-1/2 lbs. of sirloin, sausage and italian sausage -- cavatappi pasta, boule rolls and red peppers... you've done well! That whole bit cost under $16 for all those meals! By the way, I made all of the meatballs and only cooked the ones I needed at the time. The ones for the peppers were just stored in a gallon size ziplock bag in the fridge. (It was important to use them all within about 5 days as they do have raw egg in them.) You can always store in the freezer and pull out just what you need... microwaving on defrost for about 8 minutes and then finishing off in the leftover sauce.
I will add the recipe shortly.
And then, you will have a chance at making this your very own version of this tasty meatball and sauce recipe!
I have been enjoying Pinterest (http://pinterest.com/spicewagon) quite a bit lately and I need to see how I can incorporate what I'm doing there with what I'll be doing here. I'd like to use this as a site to post photos and articles on food and cooking... that is one of my true passions.
A LITTLE HISTORY
I'm going to tell you about this recipe and how I found it. But first, a little history.
I was raised a vegetarian. Way back when it wasn't "cool". My mom was an EXCELLENT cook, and still is, for that matter. She always had something delicious on the table and did it on a very tight budget. I like to kid her and say that the only thing she served us that wasn't good was a block of tofu. Yes, just a block of tofu jiggling on a plate without any sauce, or anything. I don't know if the story is true, but it makes for a good way to get my mom to laugh.
Now, I on the other hand, have moments of incredible creativity in the kitchen and then I'll do something like burn the garlic bread. So, I have to work REALLY HARD at it.
My daddy was a pastor and momma played the organ. We traveled as evangelists for the church I was raised in -- and yes, being a vegetarian was part of that religious upbringing. I don't regret it but I like to have choices. And now, I can choose to eat meat or not. It's up to me. And I love to make those vegetarian favorites every once in a while too.
Funny thing, it seems like I've been going through my recipe books for months now. Yes, not only cookbooks that I dare not part with but cardfiles of recipes dating all the way back to 8th grade. I have clippings from the Chicago Tribune from 1974 with recipes I've never tried on them!
I'm slowly getting rid of the recipes it seems I would never make in a hundred years now. Like "Soy Milk and Bran Flake Muffins." I'm making that one up, but some of the recipes are really that far out.
I was 34 years old before I ever cooked meat. And prior to that, the only meat I had came from Taco Bell or Mrs. Winner's. If it had a bone, I didn't know how to eat it. When I first started cooking meat, I was living with a guy that was really a pretty good cook -- a little limited -- but he could cook southern food just like his mama. Anyway, I pretty much learned from him and have taught myself since then.
Oh, the recipe I promised you. Seems like a good time to tell you about it.
IT'S RAINING MEATBALLS
My mom makes wonderful VEGETARIAN meatballs and they always get rave reviews. I don't know if she has ever made a true meatball. I sure hadn't until I ran across this recipe. I was making dinner for my fiance Jim, and his daughter, Mary about 8 months ago. We were going to have pasta and I just decided, how about I try to make a real meatball to go along with it.
Who would I turn to for the best recipe? Emeril of course. I have his Potluck cookbook and looked in the index. Sure enough, there's a recipe called "Paul Makes Whole Crew Happy Sausage Meatballs and Red Gravy." Great title, right? I thought, now this sounds really good for a first try at a meatball. And when I checked the seasonings, which is what I do... I scan the ingredients and the seasonings and if I can "taste" it, then I know it's worth a try. Anyway, we made those meatballs that night and they were AMAZING!
So, for the second time -- I made those same meatballs the other night. And there were 20 of them. So, that meant -- 4 with Cavatappi pasta, 4 as meatball sandwiches, 4 more with pasta at another meal, 1 with pasta for lunch, 3 mixed with rice for stuffed peppers, and 2 in the freezer. And there's one in the frig for a quick lunch. Let me tell you... in this day and time. When you can cook 1 meal which equals about 4-1/2 lbs. of sirloin, sausage and italian sausage -- cavatappi pasta, boule rolls and red peppers... you've done well! That whole bit cost under $16 for all those meals! By the way, I made all of the meatballs and only cooked the ones I needed at the time. The ones for the peppers were just stored in a gallon size ziplock bag in the fridge. (It was important to use them all within about 5 days as they do have raw egg in them.) You can always store in the freezer and pull out just what you need... microwaving on defrost for about 8 minutes and then finishing off in the leftover sauce.
I will add the recipe shortly.
And then, you will have a chance at making this your very own version of this tasty meatball and sauce recipe!
Sunday, May 22, 2011
If it was the end of the world... what would you enjoy as your last meal?
This is a new blog for me but I usually take pictures of interesting dishes I create and post them on facebook, so now I am taking it to a new level.
I'm going to start tweeting about my blog and encourage other gastronomers to get involved.
If I was going to enjoy my last meal... it would have to be Alaskan King Crab with drawn butter, steamed broccoli, rice pilaf and a Castello del Poggio Moscoto d'Asti to wash all that yummy goodness down with.
What would you enjoy?
I'm going to start tweeting about my blog and encourage other gastronomers to get involved.
If I was going to enjoy my last meal... it would have to be Alaskan King Crab with drawn butter, steamed broccoli, rice pilaf and a Castello del Poggio Moscoto d'Asti to wash all that yummy goodness down with.
What would you enjoy?
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