Better with Boursin?

Well, it was a quite Monday afternoon with weather reports of a soaring "high" of 13 tomorrow so what could be nicer on a cool day but soup? Nevermind that it is supposed to be a Spring soup but I am sure that it will warm the toes by Thursday when the weather guys are claiming we could get SNOW!

I started the recipe in a manner similar to Sandy but diverged a bit from there. I sauteed one onion in about 4-5 tbsp of butter until carmelized. Next came 4 level tbsps of flour to make the roux. I cooked this until ever so slightly browned so that the soup would not taste gummy. Then I added 3 cups of skim milk and cooked until thickened- then 3/4 cup of whipping cream. I had steamed one pound of asparagus and chopped them up (saving some tips)nd tossed them into the soup. The handy hand blender came out and I pureed the soup until relatively smooth but with a few rustic chunks. I thought it was still just a tad too thick so I put in 1 cup of the cooking liquid from the asparagus to lighten it up a bit. The piece de resistance was the addition of 1 package of Boursin cheese (the original herb flavour). Wow. Amazing. Never have I added cheese to an asparagus soup but with the Boursin, I may never go back.

Thinking Outside of the Can

The other day I was making Lazy Cabbage Rolls. I was in search of a substitute for the Campbell’s canned tomato soup that is used in the recipe.

Why you might ask?

MSG, preservatives, lots o’ salt, a bunch of ingredients I can’t pronounce. Not that I am against Campbell’s because I have used it a lot in the past, BUT I am looking for a change.…and I think I found it. I tried Pacific Foods Organic Creamy Tomato and Amy’s Organic Cream of Tomato Soup. The winner was:

Amy's was more tomatoey and better texture. I added just a bit of tomato paste to thicken it up. Of course, it has a much different consistency, but worked well for how it is used in the Lazy Rolls. The Pacific Foods tomato soup is an excellent substitute if you are looking for a cream of tomato soup version that you would get from Campbell’s. It is not; however, suitable for any Lazy Rolls. I realize our mothers in the 70's and 80's were a slave to the markets. Campbell's was probably all that was available, but nowadays we have plenty other options to check out.

Lazy Cabbage Rolls - Sooooo Easy!!!

1 lb. ground beef
3-4 cups cooked long grain white rice
1/2 head of cabbage, thinly sliced
1 large onion, chopped
1 or 2 cans tomato soup

Cook rice. Brown ground beef. Cook onion 3-4 mins in oil or butter with a pinch of salt. Add cabbage and continue cooking over medium heat until it wilts, but no browning, and onions are translucent. Add the ground beef to the rice (this works well if done in a large, shallow bowl). Butter a casserole dish. Add rice mixture, followed by cabbage mixture, and top off with 1 or 2 cans of tomato soup depending on how much "sauce" you want. Bake at 350 for 25 minutes or until bubbly.

You can also use tomato sauce if you prefer a stronger tomato flavour and omit the ground beef if you want to do a vegetarian version. You can also try other options, like sausage (which Car did a long time ago).

It's Spring! Cream of Asparagus Soup

Birds are singing, cherry blossoms have bloomed (finally!), and it's getting warmer. All good signs towards Spring. Spring is a great time for asparagus -- I picked a bunch up to make for a steak dinner and with the leftovers I made this yummy, creamy, asparagus soup.

Because of these leftovers I inadvertently ending up doing a family recipe test. I guess that makes it less of a Pass the Perogies test, but it's still kinda the same because I was winging it from what I remember Mum made except I don't think she used cheese...

1 pound asparagus
1 large yellow onion

2-3 tbsp butter

5-6 tbsp flour

2 cups (or more) skim milk

1/4-1/2 cup cream

1/2 cup grated cheese (hard, old white cheddar works well)
salt and pepper to taste

Chop onion and cook in crockpot in butter over medium heat until translucent (no brown) for about 7-10 mins. In the interim, cut off ends of asparagus and steam for about 8-10 mins (?) until cooked through then let cool slightly. Add flour to the onions to make a roux. Whisk in the milk and cream and bring to a boil until bubbly and thickening. Chop the asparagus and add to the soup mixture, reserving some of the chopped mixture until the end (tips preferred). Blend soup using blender or hand blender to combine the flavours. Add cheese and let melt. Add more milk or cream until desired consistency and whisk thoroughly. Season with salt and pepper and stir in reserved chopped asparagus.

Lot's of questions marksand estimates, I know. Hopefully when Car recipe tests she can fine tune the details.

Even though this is a cream soup, it tastes quite light. Great with salad or crusty bread (no pictures from this one, but sis can attest since she had some on here visit to Vancouver!)

Hobo Bread

As I write this post, I am happily feasting on two slices of the rich-tasting Hobo Bread slathered in butter with a cuppa joe. Not quite like the dude in this picture (note the coffee can, which is supposed to be used to cook the bread): (image courtesy of the-iss.com)

MY quest to make hobo bread began last night. Since I was improvising with this recipe (ie: no coffee cans!) all I had to do was start with soaking the raisins overnight and not worry about drinking three pounds worth of coffee in advance, like Car did. The recipe ended up working well by dividing the batter between two loaf pans.

There was a certain nostalgia when prepping this recipe…a sweet, rich, "molasses-like" smell wafted from the soaking raisins that brought me back to childhood. It is such a warm, familiar smell.

Car’s note that the dough is “stiff” is an understatement – it is heavy, too, from all of the plumped raisins! Good news is that I suppose this is one recipe that could be considered “low fat” since it only uses 4 tbsp. of vegetable oil for two loaves (or three if you are using coffee cans). Overall: DELICIOUS!