The Corn Chowder

Brief Introduction

This is literally everyone’s favorite soup. I found it in Fine Cooking, it was advertised at Poblano, something, bougie, whatever. The original was conceived as a soup eaten as a starter or side, so I quadrupled the amounts. I can’t reliably find poblanos or a decent ear of corn in this county, so I’ve adapted. It’s a soup that can be eaten year round to the satisfaction of all of us.

Servings: Makes enough for us + lunch the next day, with side bread.

Time: Solid hour and a half with all the chopping and the simmering.

Ingredients

• 4 tablespoons butter
• 2 medium yellow onion, chopped
• 4 carrots, peeled and chopped
• 4 celery stalks, chopped
• 3 bell peppers, chopped
• Spice Pack
  • 2 teaspoons cumin
  • 2 teaspoons coriander seed
  • 2 Bay Leaves
  • 1/2 tsp Cayenne Pepper powder
• 1/2 cup all purpose flour
• 1/4 cup tomato paste
• 8 cups reconstituted vegetable stock concentrate
• 6 cups whole milk
• 6 cups red potatoes, skins on, small dice
• 1 pound frozen sweet yellow corn kernels

Directions

1. In the large Dutch oven or stock pot (at least 8 quarts), melt butter over medium heat and add the onions, carrots, celery, and peppers and a couple heavy pinches of salt and allow to sweat for 5 to 7 minutes.
2. Add the spice pack; move it around for 30 seconds to 1 minute.
3. Add the flour and tomato paste, stirring constantly and vigorously for 30 seconds.
4. Add the stock and milk, increase the heat to high and bring to a boil.
5. Add the potatoes and the corn. Return to boil and then reduce to a simmer until the potatoes are cooked (~15 to 20 minutes).
6. Discard the bay leaf, check for saltiness needs, and eat it like you mean it.

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Tuscan Kale Potato Bean Soup

Brief Introduction

I found the first version of this recipe and was like: “What a great idea!” Then when I tried to make it I decided they had way too many ingredients and complications and so I got it down to its essence. Like there were 8 ingredients which basically matched Penzey’s Italian Herb Blend and then some pointless things like onion powder and nutritional yeast so those just went. No one misses them. I did add bacon based on a recommendation from a friend. Unlike the Split-Pea soup recipe, when I forgot the bacon one time, I heard about it.

Servings: Makes enough for us + lunch the next day, as long as there is some bread for dipping.

Time: About an hour, add 15 minutes for unruly children afoot.

Ingredients

• 6 slices of bacon, cut into 1/2 inch chunks
• 2 medium yellow onion, chopped
• 2 carrot, chopped
• 4 celery stalks, chopped
• 2 tablespoon minced garlic, I use the jar
• Spice Pack
  • 2 tablespoon Italian Herb Blend
  • 1 teaspoon Smoked Paprika
  • 2 Bay Leaves
  • 1/2 tsp Red Pepper Flakes
• 6 cups reconstituted vegetable stock concentrate
• 6 cups water
• 2 tablespoon lemon juice
• 8 sun-dried tomato halves, finely chopped (in the bag, not oil or water packed)
• 1 tablespoon mellow white miso 
• 6 cups red potatoes, skins on, small dice
• 2, 15.5 oz. can Cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
• 6 cups Tuscan kale, stemmed and torn into ~1 inch pieces

Directions

1. In the large Dutch oven (or similarly large stockpot), cook the bacon over medium heat for 2 minutes.
2. Add the diced onion, carrots, and celery, sauté for another 5 to 7 minutes.
3. Add the minced garlic, and spice pack; sauté for 30 seconds to 1 minute.
4. Add the vegetable broth, water, lemon juice, sundried tomatoes, then increase the heat to a boil, stir well, then immediately lower to a low simmering boil.
5. Add the potatoes. Cover and simmer until the potatoes are almost tender (~15 to 20 minutes).
6. Add beans and (by handfuls) the kale, stir to incorporate, simmer for 5 minutes.
7. Discard the bay leaf, check for saltiness needs, and eat it like you mean it.

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Vegan Instant Pot Split-Pea Soup

Brief Introduction

I found some recipes somewhere on the Internet, and have significantly mangled them into the below. The original vegan one was pretty weak on flavor in the beginning, I added the smoked paprika, chipotle powder, and soy sauce to help offset the lack of bacon or ham hock. The vegan original also had some kind or fake meat thing in it, I never used it because it was processed garbage.

I also started sautéing the ingredients rather than just dumping in the whole mess. Using the Maillard reaction on the vegetables comes through again. You could do 4-6 slices of chopped up bacon instead of the olive oil, if you’re into that sort of thing. We don’t miss the bacon and decided that the calories aren’t worth it.

Servings: Enough for us to eat Dinner and Lunch the next day, see reheating instructions below.

Time: Like … 30 minutes to prep and chop. Then waiting on the Instant Pot for another ~40. So just over an hour.

Ingredients

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 yellow onion, chopped
• 2 medium carrots, diced
• 2 stalks celery, chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, minced (I’m not ashamed to say I use the jarred)
• Spice Pack:
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
  • 1 teaspoon dried basil leaves
  • 1 teaspoon dried thyme
  • heavy pinch to 1/4 teaspoon chipotle powder (cook’s choice)
• 2 tbsp Soy Sauce or Liquid Aminos
• 2 cups/1 pound dried split peas, picked through
• 2 medium red potatoes, diced
• 8 cups reconstituted vegetable stock concentrate, rocket hot if possible (it helps getting the IP up to temp faster)
• Salt and pepper to taste

Directions

1. Put the Instant Pot on the medium heat saute setting, and add the olive oil to start warming it up.
2. Add onion, carrots, and celery to the pot, sprinkle some salt, and the veggies soften and start browning. Add the garlic and the spice pack and move that around for 30 seconds until fragant.
3. Add the Soy Sauce or Aminos, let them thicken up for just a moment, maybe 15 seconds.
4. Add the split peas and potatoes. Stir that around until the spices and herbs coat the peas and taters.
5. FINALLY, dump in the vegetable stock and stir to combine.
6. Put on the pressure lid, set valve to Sealing, press Cancel to turn off the Sauté function, press the Soup/Stew button, and adjust to 20 minutes. It will take about 10 minutes for the IP to get to temp.
7. When the timer goes off, do a Quick release (will take 5-7 minutes). Stir (because it does separate a bit), keep a sharp eye for the bay leaf and throw it away when you find it, and then eat it like you mean it!

Reheating

We usually leave the soup in the IP insert and affix a silicone lid to store overnight. The next day, things will look bleak. The split peas will have soaked up the liquid and the thing will look like you could lay brick with it. Fear not.

When the soup is cooking the night before or at this very moment, you got a quart-sized mason jar and into put: 1/2 tsp dried basil, 1/2 tsp dried thyme, a pinch each of smoked paprika and chipotle pepper, and 1 tbsp of stock concentrate. Filled it with warm water, put a lid on it, and carefully shook to combine.

An hour before lunch time, put the insert in the IP, put it on the Warm setting (also known as the Cancel button) and stir occasionally/when it loosens enough to let you. Put the herby-stock in the microwave for a minute or two, and stir it into the soup until you reach the desired consistency. You could just use water, but we found that it dilutes the flavor too much and it’s just not as good as the day before.

Vegetable Rice Soup

We tried this soup because it was Saturday, the meal plan had gotten completely horked up over several unexpected events and the unavailability of ingredients. I found it in The Food Lab by Kenji (here or here) and left out the chicken. I hope he doesn’t mind.

<40 paragraphs of unnecessary story and over-produced pictures>

Serves our family for one meal using some toast or other side bread.

Time: 30 minutes, a real 30 minutes with the chopping and everything.

Ingredients

• 2 Quarts of Chicken Stock or reconstituted Stock Concentrate
• 2 Medium Carrots, Chopped
• 2 Medium Celery Stalks, 1/4 inch slices
• 1 Yellow Onion, Chopped
• 1/2 cup, your favorite long grain white rice, raw
• 1 tbsp dried Parsley
• 2 cups of Kale, torn into 1-inch piece, optional (I didn’t have it this time):

Directions

1. Combine the stock, carrots, celery, onion, and rice in a Dutch oven and bring to a boil over high heat.
2. Reduce to a simmer and cook until the vegetables are almost tender, about 15 minutes.
3. Add the Kale, if using, and cook until all the vegetables and the rice are tender, about 5 minutes longer.
4. Stir in the parsley. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

That’s it. Serve it!

Tomato Soup

This tomato soup started off as a copycat effort of the Panera Tomato Basil Soup. It is worth the effort to procure some San Marzano tomatoes. I’m not sure if the San Marzano’s at my local Costco are the “real” deal, but they’re better than the usually acidic ones that we had been getting and there is a perceptible difference by a 5 year old who was unaware of the change. Also goes well to dip with the Pane Veloce.

This scales well up or down. The below will make a gallon and a half of soup, which is enough for 2 meals for our family of 2 adults and three children. And a little bit to freeze.

Time: 90 Minutes

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 12 garlic cloves, minced
• 3 large yellow onion, sliced
• 6 (28 oz) cans San Marzano peeled tomatoes
• 3 cups vegetable stock (or stock concentrate + water)
• 3 tablespoon sugar
• 2 cups heavy cream or non-dairy cream replacement (cashew?)
• 1 tbsp dried basil
• 2 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 teaspoon of red pepper flakes
• kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Optional Garnishes:

• 2/3 cup shredded Parmesan cheese, optional
• buttery croutons, optional topping

Directions:

1. In a heavy bottomed pot (or dutch oven), heat olive oil over medium-high heat. Add garlic and saute for 30 seconds – until fragrant.
2. Add onion and cook, and sweat. Stirring as needed, until translucent – about 8 minutes.
3. Add San Marzano peeled tomatoes (juice and all), stock, and sugar. Bring to a low simmer. Cook uncovered, for 20 minutes or until it has thickened.
4. Add the heavy cream, basil, oregano, red pepper flakes and season to taste with salt and pepper.
5. Using an immersion blender (or carefully transfer soup to a real blender – in batches), puree soup until there are no large chunks left.
6. OPTIONAL: Stir in Parmesan cheese and serve topped with buttery croutons.
7. Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months.

Red Beans and Rice

This is a vegan version of the Cajun classic, (don’t leave any comments about sacrilege or desecration or fake food or whatever). I’ve made substantial modifications from the vegetarian version offered in America’s Test Kitchen Vegetarian cookbook. We eat this about every other week. It will feed the five of us for dinner, lunch, and about a quart leftover to freeze for later. This recipe scales well but also freezes if you are into making a ton of it on a weekend and then using it up to a month later.

This will take some time, and I’ve not been successful with converting it to an Instant Pot or slow-cooker yet. So use your Instant Pot to make a batch of white rice per the multi-cooker’s instructions.

Ingredients

• Kosher salt
• 2 pounds small red beans (about 4 cups), rinsed and picked over
• 1/4 cup olive oil, plus more
• 2 medium onions, chopped
• 2 green bell peppers, seeded and chopped
• 4 celery ribs, chopped
• Seasoning Pack:
  • 8 medium garlic cloves, minced or pressed through garlic press (about 1 tablespoon)
  • 1 teaspoon dried thyme
  • 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
  • 4 bay leaves
  • 1/2 tsp chipotle pepper powder
• 2 tablespoons Worchestershire Sauce or Liquid Aminos
• 6 cups low-sodium vegetable stock AND 6 cups water OR
  • 12 cups of water AND concentrated vegetable base
• 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar, plus extra for seasoning

Directions

1. Soaking – soak the beans overnight in cold water (or at least 4 hours in hot water) so that they are submerged by at least 3 times more water than beans. You’ll know they’re done soaking when the beans have taken up most of the water. Either way, you’ll want 1 tbsp of kosher salt for every quart of water. For the above, I would plan 3 quarts of water for the 2 lbs of beans.
2. Drain – Drain and rinse the soaking liquid off the beans and let them sit in the colander while you spend the next 30 minutes chopping and measuring.
3. Sweat – In a large dutch oven over medium heat, warm the oil.  When hot, add the onions, bell peppers, and celery (the Cajun trinity) to the pot, with a heavy pinch of salt, and let them get soft. Then add the seasoning pack, and move it around for 30 seconds or so then the Sauce or Aminos (you can also add the stock concentrate at this point). Add the beans and move them around to get the flavor base incorporated all over the beans.
4. Simmer – Add the liquid (water + stock or just water), cover, and bring it up to a boil. The liquid should just cover the beans, by no more than a quarter of an inch. Once boiling, put it on low, give it another stir, put the cover back on. Then go about your life for an hour.
5. More Simmering – Take off the lid, (not much will have changed) add a tablespoon of the red wine vinegar, and stir. You will now need to keep an eye on things. You will need to stir once every 10 minutes, and then it will decrease in frequency until you are down to about every minute and the beans are starting to stick to the bottom. But the starches will show up and the liquid will start to thicken. I wish I had a decent timeline, but this step will take 1.5 to 2 hours. Luckily, with this big of a pot of stuff it doesn’t cool off easily; so if you are making this for a dinner party situation you should plan on it taking 2 hours and it should be done in time.
   Note: I recently had a pot of this stuff go for 3 hours on this step and I’m not sure why. So we went out for tacos and ate it the next day. Beans can be tricky depending on age, treatment and grower.
6. Eating – Chuck in at least 2 more tablespoons of Red Wine Vinegar and 2 tablespoons of oil. Taste for salt and pepper needs. Hopefully, you didn’t forget to make the rice. Because you need it now. We like to eat this with collard greens.
7. Reheating – When this cools, it hardens up like mortar. So the next day, throw it back on the stove with up to a cup of water to loosen it up and make it not look like dog food
8. Freezing – When it freezes, it expands. Like more than you think, I’ve shattered a quart-size Ball jar and a medium-sized Ziploc food container because I tried to squeeze too much into a container.

That’s it good luck. If you want to comment please make it constructive, no trolls or MAGA-hats (but really what’s the difference).

Quick No-Knead Bread

I’ve made this bread a couple times.  It’s quick, vegan-ish (if you don’t count the honey), easy, and dips well in delicious soups.

<Pretend there are 40 paragraphs of well-written prose and beautiful photos about discovering the bread and that time it nearly saved my life.>

This is from a site that no longer exists so I pinched it from Archive.org.

Pane Veloce

(literally Quick Bread, but not like … Banana / Zucchini Bread – you know what I mean!)

Ingredients

• 500 grams of all-purpose or bread flour (plus a little more for your work surface)
• 370 ml of lukewarm water
• 1 Tbls (32g) of honey
• 1 1/4 tsp active dry yeast OR 1 tsp instant yeast
• 1 tsp of salt

Directions

1. Dissolve the honey in the water. Put the flour into a large bowl – make a well in the center and add the yeast followed by the warm water and honey solution, then the salt.
2. Mix briefly with a fork until just combined.
3. The dough will be very soft and sticky – but that’s fine – that’s exactly how you want it to be. If you think it is a little dry then add a little more water – your dough should not be dry.
4. Sprinkle the dough with a little flour and cover and place it in a warm place for roughly an hour.
5. While the dough is rising do the following:
6. Cover a baking tray with parchment and then sprinkle generously with flour.
   1. Optional (but I don’t): Place an ovenproof dish in the bottom of the oven filled with warm water.
   2. Also optional (but I also don’t): Place a pizza stone in the oven to put your bread tray on if you have one also (not essential, but makes the crust crisper).
7. Preheat your oven for at least 30 minutes at 450F/220C.
8. When your dough has roughly doubled in volume carefully turn the dough out on to your floured parchment. I scrape mine out of the bowl with a wide spoon – a knife would work as well. Divide into three equal pieces and shape into small long loaves. The flour on the loaves and the loose dough makes your loaves look amazing when baked.
9. Bake for 15- 20 minutes then turn the oven temperature down to 320F/160C and bake for a further 10-15 minutes.
10. Cool on a cooling rack for 15 minutes before cutting.
11. Bask in the afterglow of your bread baking.

 

If you’re after a super-fast bread – this is the one.

Collard Greens

This is my recipe for collard greens.  It was not passed down through the ages.  I read a recipe in the ATK Vegetarian Cookbook and changed it significantly.

• 6 lbs of fresh Collard Greeens
• 4 tbsp Butter or Earth Balance (if being Vegan or Dairy-Free)
• 4 cloves of Garlic, minced
• 2 tsp Smoked Paprika
• 1.5 tsp Chipotle Powder
• 4 cups of Vegetable Stock
• 1/4 Apple Cider Vinegar
• Kosher Salt
• Pepper

Instructions

1. Destem the Collards.  This will take some time, count on it being 45 minutes to an hour.  Either fold the collard and cut the stem out, or purchase a tool from Amazon.  I make this enough that I bought the tool.  Once de-stemmed, cut into 2-inch squares as best you can.  There’s no need to be extra militant over your square size.  1 inch and 3 inch squares will happen.
2. Melt the butter in a saute pan with a lid over medium-low heat (or if using an InstantPot, set it to saute’ at the middle level).
3. Once the butter is melted, put in the garlic, paprika, and chipotle powder.  Stir it around for about 30 seconds.
4. Working in hand sized batches, wilt the collards in the cooking vessel of choice.  It will take 3-5 minutes to wilt a handful, I use tongs to keep things moving and prevent too much browning.  You have to keep things moving, leaving it alone for 30 seconds may cause excess browning or burning.  Season with pinches of salt as you go.
5. Once all the greens are wilted, pour in the vegetable stock and scrape up any brown bits off the bottom.  The stock should almost cover the greens.  Stir in the vinegar.
6. Simmer:
   1. If on the stove top, cover and simmer over low heat for 3 hours.  Stirring every 30 minutes or so.  If you are losing too much liquid, add more stock or water as needed.
   2. If in the InstantPot, affix the lid, set it to Manual, High Pressure for 1 hour.  Then do a quick release.  If you let it natural release you risk over-cooking and getting mushy greens.  If you need to do a natural release, you’ll need to reduce your cook time to like 40 minutes (I don’t know, I’m guessing – but it sounds right).
7. Take a taste, you might need another pat of butter for some richness, a splash of vinegar for some tang, or a shot of hot sauce for some heat.  If bland, chuck in some salt to taste.

This is kind of a production to make.  So balance how many greens you make with how much you think are going to get eaten.  The most involved amount of time is the de-stemming.  This can be done the day before and the greens can be stored in an airtight container for that day.  If the vagaries of pressure cooking are too much (like it was for me), do half the greens on the stove and the other half in the multi-cooker.   Lots of anxiety, especially after you spend an hour de-stemming.

That’s it good luck and let me know how it goes.

Cornbread

This is the cornbread recipe you have been looking for.  It is not vegan, keto, paleo or any of the current fad diets.  But it is delicious and was a hit at a potluck last night.

• 8 tablespoons unsalted butter (1 stick), melted and cooled slightly
• 1 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour , (6 1/2 ounces)
• 1 cup yellow cornmeal (5 1/2 ounces), see note
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 3/4 teaspoon table salt
• 1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons packed light brown sugar (1 3/4 ounces)
• 3/4 cup frozen corn (3 1/2 ounces), thawed
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 2 large eggs

1. Melt Butter, if not already melted.
2. Adjust oven rack to middle position; heat oven to 400 degrees. Spray 8-inch-square baking dish with nonstick cooking spray. Whisk flour, cornmeal, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in medium bowl until combined; set aside.
3. In food processor or blender, process brown sugar, thawed corn kernels, buttermilk until combined, about 5 seconds. Add eggs and process until well combined (corn lumps will remain), about 5 seconds longer.
4. Using rubber spatula, make well in center of dry ingredients; pour wet ingredients into well. Begin folding dry ingredients into wet, giving mixture only a few turns to barely combine; add melted butter and continue folding until dry ingredients are just moistened. Pour batter into prepared baking dish; smooth surface with rubber spatula.
5. Bake until deep golden brown and toothpick inserted in center comes out clean, 25 to 35 minutes. Cool on wire rack 10 minutes; invert cornbread onto wire rack, then turn right side up and continue to cool until warm, about 10 minutes longer. Cut into pieces and serve.

Indian-Style Curry with Potatoes, Cauliflower, and Chickpeas

Serves 4 to 6 as a main course

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons curry powder (sweet or mild)
• 3 1/2 teaspoons garam masala (see note above)
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 2 medium onions, chopped fine (about 2 cups)
• 12 ounces Red potatoes, scrubbed and cut into 1/2-inch pieces (about 2 cups)
• 3 medium cloves garlic, minced or pressed through a garlic press (about 1 tablespoon)
• 1 tablespoon finely grated fresh ginger
• 1/4 tsp red pepper chili flakes
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 1 medium head cauliflower, trimmed, cored, and cut into 1-inch florets (about 4 cups)
• 1 (14.5-ounce) can petite-diced tomatoes,
• 1 1/2 cups water
• 1 (15 ounce) can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
• Table salt
• 8 ounces frozen peas (about 1 1/2 cups)
• 1 can (15 ounces) coconut cream

Instructions

1. Toast curry powder and garam masala in small skillet over medium-high heat, stirring constantly, until spices darken slightly and become fragrant, about 1 minute. Remove spices from skillet and set aside.
2. Heat 3 tablespoons oil in large Dutch oven over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add onions and potatoes and cook, stirring occasionally, until onions are caramelized and potatoes are golden brown on edges, about 10 minutes. (Reduce heat to medium if onions darken too quickly.)
3. Reduce heat to medium. Clear center of pan and add remaining tablespoon oil, garlic, ginger, chile, and tomato paste; cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add toasted spices and cook, stirring constantly, about 1 minute longer. Add cauliflower and cook, stirring constantly, until spices coat florets, about 2 minutes longer.
4. Add tomatoes, water, chickpeas, and 1 teaspoon salt; increase heat to medium-high and bring mixture to boil, scraping bottom of pan with wooden spoon to loosen browned bits. Cover and reduce heat to medium.
5. Simmer briskly, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are tender, 10 to 15 minutes.
6. Stir in peas and cream or coconut milk; continue to cook until heated through, about 2 minutes longer. Adjust seasoning with salt and serve immediately, passing condiments separately.