MoFo Day 1, Favorite food

Not long ago my 11 year old lamented that because I cook by taste 90% of the time she would grow up and never get to cook the meals she grew up eating. She looked so sad so we decided together that we would start a family cookbook so she helps me taste and adjusts spices while recording the ingredients.

Anyone who has spent any real time with me “in real life” knows I love soup. I would happily eat it daily even in the heat of summer; unfortunately my husband is not on the same page. In fact he eats it rather grudgingly and only on request during the gravest of illnesses.  Unfortunately for him our two daughters are team soup all the way.   

Often times I will make soup for Sabbath Pot Luck  that way I get to branch out from the limited list of ones I can make when he is eating dinner with us. Recently he requested rather out of the blue; corn chowder. I’d never made it before and being honest couldn’t tell you the last time I’d had some, perhaps when I was waiting tables at Victoria’s kitchen which seems like a life time ago (14years?). So on the 9^th of October I got cracking with my first ever batch and I’ve made it 3 times since in part to be sure it would be blog worthy but largely because he actually loves it. I’ve made it Creamy and basic and once in the instant pot which was fine but a touch strange and a bit “Smokey” flavored and I’m not including that recipe here.  This soup is great but being a family of 4 there is only so much corn chowder you can eat in one month and I put a ban on it until December. Maybe I’ll make it for potluck before then? 

How ever often you chose to chowder make sure to serve it up with some  of House Vegan's oh so tasty Biscuits fresh from the oven!

When soup is on the menu he does suggest one of the following:

French Lentil Soup

Onion Soup

& Hot and Sour Soup which will be blogged later in the month.

Without Further ado Corn Chowder 2 ways :

 

Basic Corn Chowder

Ingredients:

• 2 medium Onions diced
•  3 stalks of celery sliced
• 7 cloves of Garlic minced
• 1- 1 ½ tsp. Thyme
• ¼ tsp. Black Pepper or to taste
• 1c. diced sweet peppers color(s) of choice  
•  2-3 large carrots  quartered and sliced
• 2 pounds of Potatoes peeled and cut into 1 ½ inch piece
• 5 c. water or vegetable broth
• 1Tbsp. No chicken  soup base (if you used water not broth)
• Pinch- ¼ tsp cayenne
• 1Tbsp Paprika
• 1large or 2 small bay leaves
• 1Tbsp. oil (optional)
• 2 14.5oz cans organic sweet corn

Method:

1. Sauté onion and celery until translucent using oil or water to prevent sticking. Add the garlic, sweet peppers, thyme and black pepper cook 1-2 min until fragrant.
2. Stir in water and remaining and remaining ingredients apart from the corn bring to a boil, reduce heat to a simmer, cover and let it simmer 30-40 minutes.
3. Test to make sure carrots and potatoes are fully cooked.  REMOVE bay leaf!
4. Use the back of your spoon to mash a bit of the potatoes against the side of the pot, add corn stir and let simmer 1-2 more min, adjust seasoning if necessary and enjoy!!

Version 2- Creamy Corn Chowder:

• 3 Tbsp.  Oil
• 3 Tbsp. All Purpose Flour
• 2 c. Unsweetened Soy Milk (or other non-dairy milk)
• ½ tsp. Onion and Garlic Powder(optional)
• Salt and Pepper to taste

Method:

  After following the above basic corn chowder recipe it’s time to make the creamy white sauce for the creamy-style corn chowder.

1.   In a separate sauce pan heat oil to medium high heat.
2. Add to the pan stirring vigorously I highly suggest using a whisk.  This would be a good time to break out the sifter and sift the flour first. I’ve only done it this way once so I can’t say you have to but it’s not a bad idea if you want to be certain to avoid weird little clump dumplings.
3. Fry the flour in the oil for around 3 minutes, stirring the whole time, don't allow it to get too hot, reduce heat if it starts to stick!
4. Add Milk and continue to stir constantly, allow the sauce to gradually thicken, and should be at desired thickness when it gets to a rolling boil.
5. With a wooden spoon slowly add the cream sauce to the pot of soup stir very well until fully incorporated and the soup thickens add additional garlic/onion powder salt or pepper now if needed.

Enjoy!!

Either way you chose  to have your chowder do yourself a favor and serve it with House Vegan's  absolutely divine :

Perfect Fluffy Biscuits

MoFo day 9 , two family recipes.

Welcome back! MoFo Day 9’s prompt was most retro-recipe, this was a hard one for me.  I was looking around online and there was a variety of scary jell-o dishes to be tried but I would never normally make something like that so we are going back in time to the mid-80s not very retro I’m afraid but I don’t want to waste food.  Growing up my maternal grandmother used to make a huge vat of potato soup when my aunt and cousins came to visit, as well as a few other times of the year but it wasn’t nearly often enough and it was always gone way too soon.   

Sadly I don’t have a recipe that simply wasn’t how she did things so I’m working from memory. The ingredients are basic: oil, onion, potato, salt, a ton of paprika& black pepper& dry parsley, a dozen eggs, chicken bouillon, water to fill pot and sour cream to serve. Italian flat beans could also be used in combination to the potato or as a replacement.  I add garlic powder to mine but I honestly don’t know if that or minced garlic was a part of her version.

When the soup was done she was crack eggs into the simmering soup pot careful not to crowd or mix so that you’d end up with whole poached eggs, one per bowl. Considering this is a vegan blog I won’t be using eggs and I won’t be using tofu to try and substitute I am however going to use dumplings.  I realize that’s not an egg substitute it is however my second favorite thing that she used to make, and covered the shape that the poached egg has. Feel free to omit the dumplings the soup if more than fine without them.

Grandma's Potato Soup!

Ingredients:

Soup:

4c Water Plus more to refill pot after it’s boiled down.

2.5 Tbsp. Paprika

1 Tsp Black Pepper

3-4Tbsp Dried Parsley

½ tsp. Garlic Powder

1 ½ tsp Better than Bouillon No Chicken Soup Base

3 Medium/Large Potatoes diced on the larger size

2-4oz. cut frozen green beans Italian if you can find them

 Dumplings:

1 1/3c. All-purpose Flour

¼  c. Semolina Flour

2 tsp. (Heaping) Baking Powder

½  tsp.  Salt

¾  c. soy milk

1tsp. Vinegar

Vegan Sour Cream

Sauté onion in enough oil to prevent sticking or broth/water if you avoid oil. When the onions are browning add 4 cups of water and remaining soup ingredients bring to a boil reduce to simmer and let cook 30 min. Add more water if needed.

In small bowl mix soy milk and Vinegar, let sit, mix dry ingredients, add “buttermilk” and combine it should be fairly thick but not dry add to soup by the tablespoon and let cook 10 minutes.

Serve with a dollop of sour cream. Enjoy!!

French Lentil Soup

       Yikes, I haven’t been around in ages! I’m hoping to get back to posting twice a week and then I’ll be participating in Vegan mofo everyday of September so please check back soon!! :D

This is one of our family’s favorite soups which says a lot since the girls and I can eat soup on a daily basis, often times even for breakfast. This one is Vivian’s favorite, which is something she often says about soups but this one she asks for the most aside from noodle and tomato. Even our picky eater says it’s quite good for a soup, which is high praise since I’m fairly sure he would never eat soup again if it wasn’t for the fact I’m the cook in the family.

      You can use brown lentils if you must but the French are best for both flavor and texture. You can omit the miso paste but you’d need more base or to use vegetable broth in place of the water, I really HIGHLY recommend you get your hands on miso paste it’s really worth it for the flavor it adds and it will keep in the fridge for ages so you don’t need to worry about using it up before it spoils.

       Last thing before I get to the recipe; please check the lentils for stones/debris. I found two while making this and I couldn’t tell you the last time I found any; you never know if there will be one!

Ingredients:

• 1.5 c. sorted French Lentils- you can reduce to one cup for a thinner soup, we do this often, as we sever ours over rice.
• 2c. diagonally cut carrots
• 1- 14.5oz. canned diced tomatoes(no salt added)
• 2c. diced  yellow onion
• 5 cloves garlic, minced
• 7c. Water

• 1 Tbsp.  tarragon
• 1.5 tsp.  thyme
• 2Tbsp. Paprika
• 2 bay leaves
• tsp.1/2  black pepper
• 1 tsp. oregano
• 2 Tbsp. miso paste
• 2 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tsp. Better Than Bouillion; Vegetable Base
• Salt to taste
• Cooked brown rice(we prefer short grain) and/or a loaf of crusty bread for serving

Method:

    Peel and dice the onions wash and slice carrots, feel free to peel if you prefer. Peel and mince garlic. In a large pot on medium/high heat and add onion and carrot. Add some of the water for the soup in small amounts if the onions and carrot start to stick, you’ll want to sauté stirring often until the onions and carrots start to brown. You can also use oil or a vegetable broth if you don’t like to use a dry or water sauté method. Add garlic, tarragon, oregano, thyme, black pepper and, paprika. Stir and cook a 2-3 min. Add 2/3 of the water, Worcestershire sauce,bay leaves, lentils, and pepper. Cover and bring to a boil. To the remaining water add miso and vegetable base and blend smooth, add to pot. 

      Once soup is boiling, reduce heat to a simmer, cook covered 40minues to an hour. Lentil should be tender but not mush. Taste and add salt as needed.(We use around a tsp.) Remove bay leaves!!
                                                  Ladle over brown rice and enjoy!