Kale Soup

© 2013 Edward C Kern, Jr.

Our purchases at yesterday's Portland Farmers Market included two large bunches of  kale, some potatoes and two packages of local spicy sausage.  A treat was in store.  I know Kale Soup is one of Alex and Dan's favorites but  had yet to try it.  I did some chopping then Alex and Dan assembled the soup which they served with some crusty bread from Ken's.  An awesome dinner!

Dan found the recipe, which he shared with me, in capecodtoday. A traditional Portuguese soup from our east coast sailing waters, enjoyed with family on the West Coast.

In a large pot heat until warm

2 T olive oil

Then add, seasoning with salt and pepper to taste, and cook while stirring until onions are translucent:

1 large yellow onion, chopped
6 cloves garlic, minced
1 pound spicy sausage, sliced into 1/2-inch rounds [I use 12 oz package of 4 sausage]


Add and bring to a boil:

1/4 c parsley, chopped
4 quarts chicken stock [Dan, Alex and I use 2]

Then add and simmer until the potatoes are tender, about 30 minutes:

2 bay leaves
1/4 t dried thyme
1/2 t crushed red pepper flakes
[Dan and Alex add 2 T pimenton, I added 1 T]
2 large Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and diced
2 large Red Bliss potatoes, diced
14 oz kidney beans, drained and rinsed
[Dan-, Alex and I add 14 oz white beans, drained and rinsed**]
1 pound kale, well washed, stemmed, and torn into bite-sized pieces [I use 14-16 oz, trimmed*]


Skim off any fat that rises to the surface and remove the bay leaves.

Serve with crusty bread (Ken's if in Portland!) and butter or olive oil.

* November 2014: At Chris's request I made this recently, resulting in the clarifications noted above.  I have seen bunches of kale in the market with hardly any main stems but the kale available for this soup had substantial stems.  In fact 22 ounces of this kale yielded 14 ounces of leaves and left 8 ounces of stems and veins.  A bunch of kale with smaller or shorter stems would have had a much higher yield.  14 ounces seemed a good amount though I think a full pound might have been better as the leftover soup was strong on beans and potatoes and short on kale.

** January 2015: See Beans and Comfort












Reviewed 7/9/2017

Christmas Color

Yesterday we left snowy New England for Portland, Oregon. We spent this morning wandering around the Farmers' Market.  The weather was overcast, and the veggie selection was not as varied as in warmer weather. However, there was lots of local holiday color and we easily filled a backpack with local produce, sausage and roasted hazelnuts :-)


















Reviewed 9/14/2017

Israeli (pearl) Couscous with Cherry Tomatoes and Basil

Until recently the only place I had had Israeli couscous was at the Moosilauke Ravine Lodge. The MRL couscous was mixed with an assortment of veggies and was delicious, so much better than the smaller almost sawdust-like couscous with which I was familiar. Last month when I saw boxes of Israeli couscous at Trader Joe's, thinking of past dinners at Moosilauke, I impulsively put a box in my basket.  My first attempt to cook it with pistachios and apricots was okay. I got more couscous in Whole Foods bulk food and tried this. Superb first try.

This dish is a variation of Linguine with Fresh Tomatoes. The sauce, (tomatoes, basil and garlic) is pretty much the same, but the pasta and pasta preparation is different. Yes, pasta,. Though its shape and texture suggest grain-like qualities, couscous is made from semolina and part of the pasta family.






Combine in bowl, mix and marinate for about an hour:

1 pint (~ 3/4 pound) cherry tomatoes, preferably multi-colored, halved
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 T olive oil

Warm a medium sauce pan, drizzle ~ 2 t olive oil over the bottom, heat then add:

1 c (~5.5 ounces) Israeli couscous

Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until couscous is browned, about 4 minutes.  Then add:

1 1/2 c chicken stock (or vegetable stock for vegan/vegetarian)

Bring to simmer then cover tightly and cook for 15 minutes.  Stir and set aside, covered.

Add to tomato mixture:

~3/4 ounce basil leaves, slivered

Mix well,  then toss with couscous and serve.  When using this sauce with other pasta (linguine, gemelli, etc) I top with grated Parmesan. This dish, however, perhaps due to the richness of the broth and the robust flavor of the couscous, seems complete as is.

Reviewed 5/30/2017

Green Curry / Green Curry Paste

Though some may consider it "quaint", I still use the library, especially for cookbooks.  I had waited quite a while for Terry Romero's Vegan Eats World.  When I went to pick it up, the librarian said, "This book looks really good."  I replied it would probably be good, but I would still probably be disappointed as in my experience subsequent cookbooks are rarely as good as the author's first. Wrong. This is one of the few cookbooks I have borrowed from the library that I actually purchased.


The first recipe I tried, still trying to re-create Phat Thai's green curry, was "It's Easy Being Green Curry".  It has a lot of ingredients but the author notes, "The curry paste can be made days ahead, even frozen, making this a relatively fast weeknight meal."* This recipe, like Chicken Curry (Devaka), is a made-from-scratch, not "curry-powder-curry".   In the recipe below,  loosely adapted from Romero's, I took some short cuts. I used prepared ground coriander and cumin seeds, rather than toasting and grinding the seeds myself. I used powdered galangal root, rather than the 1/2-inch-wide piece called for (though optional) and prepared lemon grass. I did not have Thai or Serrano chili so I used a jalapeno and 2 scallions instead of shallots.  Finally, since I had returned the book to the library and my copy has not yet arrived, I did not have Romero's recipe for Savory Baked Tofu, so not being a strict vegan substituted chicken. Because I used chicken breast instead of dark meat as used in Deveka's Curry, I overcooked the chicken, but the sauce itself was excellent. I've since made this with dark meat with excellent results. Looking forward to trying with tofu.**

THE PASTE

Combine in a food processor:

2 t ground coriander
1/2 t ground cumin
1 t ground pepper
1 c lightly packed cilantro sprigs with stems
Green chili to taste, coarsely chopped
2 large shallots, peeled and chopped in half
4 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped in half

4 t prepared lemon grass (dried) or 1 stalk fresh, outer leaves removed and chopped

1/2 t galangal root (ground/powder)
1-inch peeled ginger, coarsely chopped
1/2 t sea salt

Pulse into a smooth thick paste, using spatula to frequently scrape the sides of the bowl.

THE SAUCE

In a 2 quart pot or wok, over medium heat, melt

2 t coconut or vegetable oil

Add the curry paste and stir-fry for 1 minute. Add and stir-fry for 2 minutes:

1/2 recipe Savory Baked Tofu or 8 oz purchased baked or fried tofu sliced into 1/4 inch strips (photo with 8 oz chicken breast - if using chicken, use skinless boneless second joints)
 .

Stir in:

1 14-oz can coconut milk (I use light)
1 1/2 c mild vegetable broth or water (I omitted first time but have since added 3/4 c chicken/vegetable stock)
4 kaffir lime leaves
1 T lime juice
2 t brown sugar
1 T Thai thin soy sauce


Increase heat to medium-high, simmer for 5 minutes then reduce heat to medium low.

Add:

1 red bell pepper, seeds removed and sliced into 1/2-strip slices (omitted in photo at left)

2 small slender zucchini ***  (I used 2 medium-small zucchini, halved lengthwise and sliced)

1/2 c lightly packed Thai basil leaves - yum, from my garden!

Simmer for another 8 to 10 minutes or until vegetables are slightly tender but still have a bit of firmness to them.  Serve with rice.

*   Page 146

** December 2013 made with Savory Baked Tofu:

*** Romero also suggests as alternative to zucchini, 6 Thai apple eggplants, stems removed and sliced into quarters.  If using Thai eggplant, add to the curry just two minutes before curry is done (or sooner - see below).

January 2015:  Found some Thai eggplant at the new Market Basket near us.  Either I sliced the eggplant too thick (photo left) or the eggplant was tougher and/or bigger than the kind Ms. Romero uses.  I added it late as directed but found I needed to cook it  almost long as zucchini of copmparable thickness.

Reviewed 7/11/2017

De-Plating

A few night ago after Ed and I had just finished some of the strawberries I had picked, Ed looked over at my plate and said, "What a mess!"   Proffering his own plate, he continued that for someone who was so focused on presenting food, I didn't care much about, "de-plating".

On his plate, the strawberry stems, cut carefully from the berry with his small buck knife, with a small cone of white strawberry flesh still attached, were arranged clock fashion. (Not only did he consider this much more attractive but in his nerdy way easier to keep track of the number of strawberries he had consumed.)

On my plate, the strawberry stems, pulled from the berry were randomly strewn.

Thinking of the chefs who buy a whole local pig and then in attempt to utilize everything but the squeal offer "pork three ways", why not strawberries ringed with tiny stems and reduced balsamic?





Reviewed 9/21/2017

Vegan Pie Crust

Inspired by the delicious vegan deserts (Strawberry cheesecake, almond crust, white chocolate, balsamic reduction; Passion fruit tart, shortbread crust, cascabel coconut caramel; ‘Death-by-chocolate’ cake, whipped coconut cream, crunchy shattered caramel) we had last month at True Bistro, I decided to try a vegan (crust) Strawberry Rhubarb Pie for Ed's Birthday Dinner.  My goal was not to make this a totally vegan dinner, in fact we had a custard like king salmon filet for the entree, but to end with a special dessert that was not butter laden.  Having had some success with some of Isa Moskowitz and Terry Romero's recipes, I went to their Vegan Pie in the Sky where I found a "Pie Crust" section containing 11 recipes. "Olive Oil Double Crust" sounded the most interesting to me, and I was convinced when I read their introduction to this recipe, "THIS HAS BECOME OUR GO TO CRUST.... The secret is to place the olive oil in the freezer beforehand, so that it becomes partially solid. This helps the fat blend into the dough in little pockets, creating the flakiness you crave."*

(Note about photo: At the last minute, for some reason I cannot explain (bad idea not to follow recipe!), I decided to sprinkle a bit of sugar on the crust, then decided it was a bad idea and tried to brush most of it off.  Residual sugar accounts for dark spots.)

I know the bit about fat blending into the dough in little pockets to be true with a butter crust, if warm butter is used, the crust is not as flaky as a crust made (in all other ways) with cold butter. I followed the recipe's instructions and put 2/3 cup olive oil into the freezer about an hour before I intended to begin the recipe.  Even though I had put the olive oil in the recommended-type container, "a thin light [plastic] container like the kind used for takeout food"*, I found getting the olive oil to the right consistency took closer to an hour and a half.


When olive oil is the right consistency, congealed and almost as hard as cold butter, begin to make the crust.  In a large mixing bowl combine:

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour [I used Whole Foods 365 Organic All Purpose Flour]
3/4 t salt [I used 1/2 t]

Working quickly add:

2/3 c solidified olive oil (see above)

tablespoon by tablespoon, cutting the olive oil into the flour with a pastry cutter or your fingers until the flour appears pebbly.

In a cup mix together:

4 T ice water
1 T apple cider vinegar [I used plain vinegar]

Drizzle 2 T of this liquid over the dough and mix with a wooden spoon or spatula. Add more water a tablespoon at a time, until the dough holds together to form a soft ball. Take care not to over knead the dough.  Although the Moskowitz/Romero recipe calls for 4-8 T water, I used only 4 T.  While I could form a ball, the dough was still a bit on the dry side and very difficult to work with (hence no work-in-progress photos).  On the up-side, the crust was very flaky.

For my Strawberry Rhubarb Pie I divided the dough, but not quite equally. I was a bit more generous with the bottom crust as I planned on making a lattice top.  Since the dough was a bit on the dry, crumbly side the edges of the crust were not as pretty as they might have been if just a bit more water had been added.

Verdict. Chris, my most reliable critic, said he likes butter crusts better but this was good.  I'm inclined to agree, but if for some reason you want a butter alternative, this is an excellent option.

* Page 41

Reviewed 6/17/2017

Vegan "Parmesean"

Chris introduced me to Veganomicon over a year ago and when I wanted a topping for Vegan Fettucine Alfredo I remembered a recipe from this book that had caught my eye: Almesan. The authors, Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero write, "'This is our vegan version of Parmesean made with almonds, sesame seeds, and a little lemon zest.  It's great for when your pasta needs a sprinkle of a little somethin'...."  I make a double recipe and initially omit the lemon zest. Easy enough to add a little lemon zest when serving, and the topping keeps longer when zest has not been added.

Combine in a food processor and pulse until everything turns to tiny crumbs:

1/4 c slivered or sliced almonds [I used whole almonds]
1 T toasted sesame seeds
1/8 t salt
1/4 t lemon zest [see note above]

This is great sprinkled on pasta tossed with Vegan Cream Sauce.











Reviewed 6/20/2017