Asian Dumpling Soup

I think I've gotten pretty adept at one-handed cooking over the past week. I have trouble opening jars and washing dishes (heh!), but I'm okay with chopping, mixing (left-handed) and a bunch of other things. Not quite up to kneading, but I'll get there. I took the wrist brace off after a week, and immediately over-used it by cleaning the house. So...it's back on. And Alex only said "I told you so" once. Under his breath, bless his heart.

Last night's dinner was a wonderful find in my favorite magazine, Real Simple. Alex and I have been on a vegetarian dumpling kick for the past few weeks and I picked up a bag of frozen Thai Dumplings from Trader Joes with the intention of just serving them plain one day as a snack. However, this soup is a much better use of these yummy guys. I would eventually love to make my own dumplings, but I'm not quite up to that challenge yet. Hmmmm...maybe that's what I'll pick for my round of Daring Bakers?

This soup is a great one-pot recipe, super easy to do in about 25 minutes. Filling, yet light, with great Asian flavors from the ginger, soy sauce and scallions, and it's packed with good vegetables. The original recipe called for watercress, but I couldn't find it. I used baby spinach instead, which tasted just fine. The only change I would made next time is to either chop or grate the ginger. I didn't like biting into a mouthful to get a crunchy slice of ginger - it's pretty overwhelming!

Ingredients:

2 32-oz containers of low-sodium chicken broth (I used vegetable)

1 2-inch piece of ginger, peeled and sliced thin (or 1 inch, grated/minced fine)

1 16-oz package of frozen pot sticker dumplings or Japanese gyoza

2 carrots, halved and sliced

4-8 oz mushrooms, sliced

2 cups frozen shelled edamame

1 bunch watercress, stems removed, about 3 cups total

1 TBS low-sodium soy sauce

Kosher salt (optional)

4 scallions, sliced

Instructions:

In a large soup pot, bring broth and ginger to a boil. Add the dumplings and carrots, and simmer until just tender, 8-10 minutes.

Add the mushrooms and edamame, and simmer until heated through, about 2 minutes. Stir in watercress and soy sauce. Taste before adding the salt, and season if necessary. Ours didn't need any. Sprinkle with scallions before serving.

Mushroom Barley Soup

Sorry for the cruddy picture! I left my camera at work last night, so I snapped a quick one in my office of my lunch today.

One of the things I love about reading food blogs is that it will lead me on a recipe adventure all across the interwebz. I'll start off on a favorite blog, like Smitten Kitchen, for example, and she'll have made a recipe from one of her favorite blogs, The Wednesday Chef, who will have made a recipe from her favorite blog...and so on and so on. This is how I came to discover today's winning recipe of deliciousness.

Originally published by the New York Times in 2002, this soup is from Marian Burros's mother. Burros is a food writer and columnist for the Times. She talks about eating soup to "feed the starving beast within" especially after indulging in heavy holiday food. Well, it hasn't been a holiday, but I have been indulging quite a bit! So it was time for a healthy and filling meal that wasn't going to weigh me down.

Enter, Mushroom and Barley Soup! Clearly, you have to like mushrooms in order to enjoy this soup. And luckily, we do! I love how they take on a whole new depth of flavor once they are cooked...and sauteed in a broth? Oh, fugheddaboutit! I made the soup totally vegetarian (pareve beef bullion cubes) so it can go with any side dishes. I also threw in some fresh thyme that was hanging out in my fridge, looking a little lonely. The end result is a hearty, rich and flavorful soup, chock full of soft onions, tender barley, and immensely delicious mushrooms. And Burros is spot-on: the wine vinegar (and sherry) give this soup a great "sparkle," as she calls it.

Mushroom and Barley Soup
adapted from New York Times, Marian Burros, 2002

Ingredients:
1/3 cup dried mushrooms like porcini (my store only had Chanterelles)
2 TBS oil
1 medium onion, diced
1 medium carrot, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 pound white mushrooms, washed, trimmed and coarsely cut
1/2 pound shiitake, cremini, portobello or other mushrooms, washed, trimmed and coarsely cut
1/2 cup pearled barley
6 cups no-salt-added beef broth or stock (I used pareve beef bullion cubes mixed into vegetable broth)
3 TBS dry sherry (could omit, but I think it adds a great level of flavor! We happened to have a bottle in the liquor cabinet)
Salt and pepper to taste
1 TBS wine vinegar

Instructions:
Cover dried mushrooms with 1 cup hot water, and set aside for 20 minutes. Drain, reserving liquid. Finely chop mushrooms.

Heat oil in heavy-bottomed deep pot. Sauté onions and carrots over medium heat until onions begin to color. Add garlic, and sauté for 30 seconds.

Add fresh mushrooms, and sauté for 5 minutes, until they begin to release liquid.

Raise heat and add barley; sauté until it begins to color. Add broth and sherry. Strain mushroom-soaking liquid and add to pot along with reconstituted mushrooms. Season with salt and pepper, and simmer for about 40 minutes, until barley is tender. Stir in vinegar; adjust seasonings and serve.

Yield: About 6 cups.

Italian Bread and Cheese Soup. Delizioso!

Bread, cheese, garlic, basil, soup? How can you go wrong? Simple...you can't!

This is another hit from the Moosewood Cookbook. They say that this soup is a quintessential supper for many Italian families, and I can see why. It's easy to throw together, but has a comforting and homey flavor. Enjoy!

Ingredients (serves 4):

1 TBS olive oil

3 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
1 quart vegetable broth

4 oz Fontina, Gruyere or grated Parmesan cheese (the original recipe said cheddar would be okay, so that's what I tried first, but it was too gummy. Parm works much better!)

4 slices whole wheat breat

1/4 cup chopped basil

black pepper

1 onion, diced (my addition)

Instructions:

In a soup pot, heat the olive oil. Add onion if using, and cook until golden and soft. Stir in garlic and cook until just golden - not brown! Add the broth and bring to a simmer. Meanwhile, grate the cheese (unless you're lazy like me and used a bag of pre-shredded Parm cheese!)

When you're ready to serve the soup, toast your bread. Yes, it will get soggy, but the toasting adds a great flavor. Break each slice into bite-sized pieces and place into individual soup bowls. Cover with about 1/4 cup grated cheese, and sprinkle with basil and black pepper. Ladle about a cup of hot soup over the bread and cheese, then serve immediately.

Mexican Soup

So I have a bunch of posts to add since we moved and I'll slowly post them on here. This soup is another Weight Watchers recipe. It's a Zero Point soup and since Alex and I love the flavor of chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, I knew I had to try it. However, I was in such a rush that I made two HUGE mistakes:

1) I didn't wear gloves when chopping the jalapeno. NOT smart.

2) I didn't remove the seeds before I pureed the chipotle pepper. Again, NOT smart.

So, in this case, do as I say, not as I do. :-)

Ingredients:

6 cups vegetable broth

14 ounces canned diced tomato, Mexican-style preferred

2 cups fresh green beans, trimmed into bite-sized pieces

3 cloves garlic, minced

2 small zucchini (I did not use this b/c we hate the texture of cooked zucchini)

1 cup tomatillo, cubed (start with about 2 medium tomatillos)

1/2 medium poblano chili pepper, chopped (left this out b/c Giant didn't have any)

1 medium jalapeño, membranes and seeds removed, minced

1 medium Spanish onion, chopped

1 green pepper, chopped

1/2 teaspoon cumin

1 teaspoon fresh oregano (I used 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano)

2 roasted red peppers packed in water (Again, I left these out b/c I can't stand roasted red peppers)

1 tablespoon chipotle peppers in adobo sauce (these are found in small cans in the 'Mexican' section)

Salt to taste

2 tablespoons lime juice (from 2 limes)

1/2 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
Optional Additions: tortilla chips, sour cream, shredded cheese

Instructions:

Heat a large pot or Dutch oven on MEDIUM HIGH.

Add the vegetables and spices (canned tomatoes through oregano) as they're prepped.

Add the broth.

Whiz the red peppers and chipotle pepper in a mini food processor and stir in. BE SURE TO REMOVE THE CHIPOTLE SEEDS FIRST

Cover and bring to a boil.

Once at a boil, partly uncover the soup, reduce the heat to maintain a slow simmer and simmer for about 10 minutes. Stir in salt, lime juice and cilantro. Serve immediately.

We thought it needed a little something, so I crumbled up baked tortilla chips and topped it with fat free cheddar cheese. This upped the points value, clearly, but it added a good flavor and crunch.

Also, if you're stupid like me and don't wear gloves when dealing with the jalapeno, wash your hands in milk. The dairy counteracts the capsaicin, which is the source of heat in peppers. If you don't have milk, try smearing yogurt or sour cream on your hands instead. DO NOT touch your eyes, nose, or lips until you've gotten off the capsaicin. Trust me on this.

Gazpacho

With this insanely nasty heat wave, we were craving something light and cool. Alex decided that we should have gazpacho, so I turned to the trusty Temple Aliyah cookbook and picked a recipe. Anyone find it amusing that we used a recipe for Spanish Gazpacho from a cookbook put together by a whole lot of Jewish mothers? Yeah, us too. Alas, no picture this time, but it was really good. I like my gazpacho pretty chunky so I chopped up celery into mine. Alex prefers it smooth. And isn't compromise what marriage is all about?

Gazpacho (Even More Delicious)
1 can tomato juice
3 whole tomatoes
1 cucumber, peeled
1 red pepper, seeded
1 green pepper, seeded
1/2 small jalapeno pepper, seeded
1/2 small onion
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, without stems
1/4 cup parsley, without stems
2-4 cloves garlic, depending on preference
3 tbs lime juice
2-3 tbs EVOO
1 tbs red wine vinegar
1 tsp salt
2 tsp sugar, or to taste

Put tomato juice in a large bowl or pot. In a food processor run tomatoes, cucumber, peppers, onions, cilantro, parsley, and garlic until finely chopped. Transfer processed ingredients to tomato juice as the food processor becomes full. Add lime juice, vinegar, EVOO, salt and sugar and mix well.
Refrigerate overnight for best taste. Top with sour cream (optional) and cilantro.