Tuscan Vegetable Soup with Sage

This is a healthy and delicious soup for a cold winter day. Serve with nice mozzarella garlic bread.

3 TB olive oil

4 TB fresh sage, chopped

4 cloves garlic, fine mince

1 cup frozen peas

1 cup green beans, cut in 1/2" pieces

1 cup zucchini, diced

1 cup diced carrots

1 stalk celery, diced

1 sweet potato, peeled & diced

1 can white beans, drained and rinsed

6 cups (2 big packages) vegetable broth

1/2 tsp red pepper flakes

salt & pepper to taste

ricotta is optional  

Heat oil, cook garlic & sage.

Add all ingredients except for broth and kale, cook 5 minutes.

Add broth & kale.

Simmer 20 minutes. 

Slow Cooker Country Style Beef Ribs

Unlike short ribs, country style beef ribs do not render much fat. This recipe calls for a simple tomato and red wine barbecue sauce that is lightly sweetened with honey. With the addition of cayenne it is slightly spicy so you may want to cut down on that.

Serve in bowls over rice pilaf.

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 8 hours

Total Time: 8 hours, 20 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 pounds country style beef ribs
• 1 1/2 cups ketchup
• 1/2 cup red wine, reserving half for deglazing pan
• 1/3 cup onion, finely chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 2 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
• 2 teaspoons herbes de provence
• 1 teaspoon dry mustard
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne powder
• salt

Preparation:

Combine ketchup, 1/2 of the red wine, soy sauce, honey, Worcestershire sauce, herbs, dry mustard, black pepper, and cayenne in a bowl. Set aside. In a large pan, heat olive oil. Add onion and cook for 1-2 minutes. Add garlic, and cook for an additional 1 minute. Remove with slotted spoon and set into bowl with sauce mixture. Sprinkle both sides of ribs with salt and pepper. Add to the pan and sear the meat on all sides (about 2 minutes per side). Make sure the pan is good and hot. When meat is done searing, remove and place them into slow cooker. Keep pan hot and add 1/2 of the red wine (1/4 cup) to pan allowing it to deglaze. Let the mixture bubble for 30 seconds. Turn down heat. Add sauce mixture to pan and heat through. Once the sauce is well mixed, pour over meat and turn on slow cooker for high heat. Cook for 30 minutes on high and reduce heat to low and cook for 6-8 hours.

Soy Concentrate

This sauce is delicious drizzled over fish. Also is good used as a glaze (be careful not to burn it).
Soy Concentrate

(adopted from Washoku Cookbook by Elizabeth Andoh, this post copied from Helen Rennie's blog, beyond salmon.com)

20 square inches kombu (5 g)
1/2 cup dry shiitake mushrooms (8 g)
1 1/3 cup soy sauce (10 oz)
2/3 cup sake (buy the real stuff, don’t use “sake for cooking”)
1/4 cup mirin
1/3 cup water
1/3 cup, plus 2 tsp sugar
1 cup lightly packed katsuo-bushi (or 10 large slices of thick bonito shavings, atsu kezuri)

1. In a small saucepan, combine everything together except for katsuo-bushi (unless you are using atsu kezuri, in which case, add it right in).  Let sit for 1 to 12 hours at room temperature.  
2. Bring to a boil on the stove top and regulate heat so that the mixture bubbles, but doesn’t bubble out of the pot (watch out, this sauce gets foamy, so don’t leave it unattended).  Simmer until syrupy and reduced to your liking.*  Take off heat.
3. If using katsuo-bushi, stir them into the sauce and let sit for 3 minutes.
4. Dampen a paper towel in water and line a fine mesh sieve set over a bowl.  Strain the sauce through this set up forcing it through with the back of a ladle.  
5. Cool until barely warm and move to a jar or squeeze bottle.  When the sauce cools completely, cover tightly and store in the fridge.  This sauce doesn’t spoil, but is best if used within 3 months.

*Judging doneness with this sauce is tricky.  Luckily, it will still be good whether you make it thicker or thinner.  After you make it a few times, you’ll develop your own preference for how thick and syrupy you like it.  I like mine very thick (after refrigeration, I want it to feel like molasses) and this recipe only yields about 2/3 cup sauce for me.  You might like yours thinner.  The thicker you like it, the harder it is to push the sauce through the paper towel, so you might want to reduce it only in half, add katsuo-bushi, strain, then return the sauce to a clean saucepan and continue to reduce it.  Keep in mind that the sauce becomes a lot thicker as it cools.  To help you make a guess about its texture as it cooks, put a few drops on a cold plate and wait a few minutes.  Touch the drops with your finger to see how they feel.  You are aiming for the consistency of maple syrup.  

Blue Cheese Dressing

Wow! It's been a while since I've blogged here.. Anyhow, had to add this gem to the archives. 

Since it's summer, instead of dried chives and dill I used fresh. I also determined my own amounts and used milk instead of buttermilk with added lemon juice. 

1 Pint Sour Cream
1 Pint Mayo
1 Pint Buttermilk
1 cup crumbled blue cheese - I used stilton which crumbled easier after a time in the freezer when everything else was prepped
Juice of 1 small lemon - about a 1/4 cup
1 T. Onion Powder
1 t. Garlic Powder
1 t. Fish Sauce - the secret ingredient!
1 T. Dried Chive
1 t. Dried Dill Leaf
1 t. Salt (I used black truffle salt)
1 T. Ground Black Pepper or more, lots more!

Whisk together in a bowl - best if made the day ahead. I've had it last a week in the fridge, but it usually disappears before then and I usually make a double batch.

Cook up some thick pepper bacon and sprinkle crumbles of that on the wedge salad along with a half dozen croûtons.

Scalloped Potatoes with Ham

1-2 cups thin slices of ham

1 stalk celery, finely chopped 

1 small or 1/2 large onion, finely chopped 

1 cup chopped mushrooms 

1 chopped garlic clove

1 cup chicken or beef or vegetable stock

3/4 Tb thyme

2 bay leaves

1 cup cream

2 large russet potatoes 

1 1/2 cups favorite cheese (smoked Gouda) 

Preheat the oven to 350.

In a covered pot (dutch oven or large sauce pot) melt 1 Tb butter and 1 Tb olive oil. 

Saute 1 stalk of fine chopped celery, half a fine chopped onion and 1 cup of chopped mushrooms until softened. Toss in a chopped clove of garlic and cook another 30 seconds-minute.
Add 1 cup of beef stock (or chicken), 3/4 Tb dried thyme (or 1 Tb fresh), 2 bay leaves and 1 cup of cream. Season with pepper. You probably don’t need salt since the ham can be salty. 
As you bring to a simmer, peel and slice 1/8" thick russet potatoes (2 large). I use a mandolin.
Add to the pot, bring to a simmer over medium, turn to low and simmer for ten minutes. Remove the bay leaves.

Slice up your ham (1-2 cups or so) into thin slices to layer with the potatoes.
Shred up some yummy cheeses. Or use pre shredded, whichever you prefer. I went for a mix of cheddar and fontina this time. 1-1 1/2 cups to add as topping.

Butter a 8x8" baking dish of 1 1/2 quart casserole. When the potatoes are ready, using a slotted spoon, layer your casserole dish: potatoes, ham, potatoes, ham, potatoes, liquid, cheese.

Bake for 1 hour until the cheese browns on top and the edges are bubbling.

Let sit for 10 minutes to cool.

Enjoy!

Roasted Beef Bones

It is pretty simple- buy inexpensive ($3 for a pack) beef bones, toss in olive oil, salt & pepper and roast at 400º for 45 minutes. You will know when they're done because they will brown up and smell heavenly! Serve like butter atop your favorite bread. Toasted Trader Joe's Tuscan Pane is perfect.  

This is an indulgence... Surely the fat will line your arteries.

Some fat is good, just make sure to follow up with some blood pumping exercise!