KooKoo for Coconut.

Pinterest is all the rage. A friend of mine has referred to Pinterest as the "new black".  It has instantly become one of my "online happy places" and also a resource for recipe inspiration! I recently tested a recipe I found on Pinterest for Coconut and Chicken Curry Soup from a site called Cooking for Seven. You can find the original recipe here but I adapted it to fit Madame Munchies' tastebuds. I wanted to incorporate more vegetables and I also kicked it up a notch or two in my cookbook.

Easy peasy is the name of this soup, it came together swiftly and is a great meal to make for the autumn season (that is if you are lucky enough to enjoy cooler temperatures right now).  As I have become more comfortable in the kitchen, I find myself feeling more comfortable to change recipes to not fit only fit my taste buds but also what I may have on hand that I could use or needs to be used.

Coconut & Chicken Curry Soup (Makes 4 hearty servings)

Adapted from a recipe posted on Cooking for Seven

Ingredients:

Extra virgin olive oil

1 lb (give or take) skinless boneless chicken thighs, cut into bite sized chunks

1 large onion, chopped fine

1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger

2 cups chicken broth, low sodium

1 can (14 ounces) unsweetened coconut milk, full fat

2 teaspoon curry powder

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 jalapeño, seeded, minced

2 tablespoons lime or lemon juice

1 red bell pepper, sliced thin

Kernels of corn, from one ear of corn

½ tomato, chopped

½ cup chopped fresh cilantro

¼ cup chopped fresh basil

Salt and pepper to taste

2 cups freshly cooked rice (optional)

Directions:

1. Heat the olive oil in a medium sized soup pot over medium heat. Add the chicken to the oil, season lightly with salt and pepper. Sauté until the chicken is cooked through and golden. Remove chicken and set aside. Sauté the onion, adding more oil if necessary, until tender.

2. Return the chicken to the pot with the onions. Add the ginger and garlic - cook for 1 minute. Add chicken broth, coconut milk, curry powder and jalapeno. Bring to a simmer over medium heat. Add bell pepper, tomato, corn and cilantro and simmer an additional 5 minutes. Stir in lime juice or lemon juice, cilantro and basil. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

3. Optional: Spoon rice into 4 bowls. Top with two ladles of soup. Serve.

I dream of....

...Paris. Constantly since returning from my trip last fall.  Everywhere I go there are little reminders of Paris that jump out at me. That city is in my blood now. One day I will go back to that magical place and explore more of its crevices (Lord knows there are plenty) but for now I rely on a lush bistro in Beverly Hills to take its place.

On a perfectly clear Sunday afternoon, I met my friend in the cleanest city within Los Angeles County for brunch at Bouchon. For two weeks, LA foodies have a opportunity to visit numerous restaurants for several fixed price menus - it's called dineLA week (it happens several times a year). 

The soup of the day was butternut squash soup with a hint of cream and cranberries. Delicate and smooth, the soup danced in your mouth like pale orange velvet. 

The croque madame - deja-vu, being back in Paris, enjoying the very same sandwich on St. Germain. French fries, crisp and perfectly salted.

And for dessert, a pot de creme with orange gelee and vanilla sugar-coated shortbread.  If culture dictated that licking inside the little pot would be acceptable, I gladly would've done so. Smooth, light and layers of citrus and vanilla perfumed your palette with every spoonful.  Looking forward to returning there soon for dinner, until then, au revoir.

Tomato Soup.

I've been making a lot of soups lately. Not only are they good lunch choices, but it's a one pot meal that can't be beat. I can't remember the last time I made tomato soup, but I think it was when I was still living in the midwest. It's also been a while since I've made a grilled cheese sandwich and what goes better with grilled cheese, then the perfect bowl of homemade tomato soup?!?!?

Without time to peruse all of my cookbooks, I opted for a "google" search and ended up selecting Michael Chiarello's tomato soup featured on the Food Network site. A few red flags upfront, this recipe calls for 3/4 c. evoo and 2 tbs. butter. That's alot of evoo and alot of butter, even for my taste buds, let alone arteries. Given that the recipe calls for only 1 14-oz can of diced tomatoes, I highly recommend cutting the amount of olive oil by at least 50% (if not a little more) and if you're going to use cream, I'd leave out the butter. It's decadent enough with one or the other. But it's your call and your arteries.

Now tomatoes are not in season this time of year, it's a great recipe for using canned tomatoes (just make sure you get a brand that is organic or at least super high quality like San Marzanos, it really does make all the difference). What's different about this recipe is that M.C. instructs you to roast the canned tomatoes (after draining and reserving the liquid), which intensifies the sweet, subtle nature of these apple-red jewels. In under 40 minutes, four servings of homemade creamy tomato soup are ready and all you need is that grilled cheese sandwich, of course. I made mine on sourdough with asiago, fontina and mozzarella.

Heart n Soul Soup.

Like all foodies, I look forward to my monthly subscriptions to various food publications, but Bon Appetit has to be my most favorite (especially since the untimely death of Gourmet). This month's issue includes a section devoted to LEAFY GREENS!!!! I'm trying to include more leafy greens in my cooking and every recipe in this section will make your mouth water.

I'm a soup groupie. Especially living on my own, I find making soups and stews on the weekends is a great way to save money on lunch during the week and most of them freeze well. And I look for recipes that are substantial enough as an entree. It's the kind of soup is warms your heart and soul. Your body will thank you.

Recently, I gave the Mixed-Greens and Sausage Soup with Cornmeal Dumplings a good ol' college try. I made it with chicken andouille sausage I found at Trader Joe's and think it turned out fabulous. The cornmeal dumplings are sweet and savory, without feeling heavy in your belly. The chicken sausage added a lil' kick and paired nicely with the mixed leafy greens called for in the recipe. Take advantage of the all the leafy greens available to you this season and give this recipe a whirl!

Yummy in Your Tummy (A Tribute to Tom Yum Soup)

A couple of weeks ago, I assisted one Jet Tila's L.A. cooking classes at The New School of Cooking in Culver City. The class featured some Wazuzu Bistro's dishes (recipes from Jet's Las Vegas restaurant at Steve Wynn's Encore resort), including Tom Yum Soup, a classic Thai dish. Beloved by L.A. foodies, Jet has that "secret sauce" that you rarely see in a culinary classroom and that secret sauce is passion. As much as Jet is passionate about food, he's also passionate about his students. He goes to great lengths to ensure that students get what they pay for when they sign up to take one of his classes.

I was able to grab an extra copy of the recipes featured in that class and with his permission, I get to share the Tom Yum Soup recipe with you fine readers out there in cyberland. I made the Thai chicken stock on Saturday and it honestly took no time at all (about an hour or so total, give or take). I always enjoy shopping for groceries and picked up the "thai" items at Bangkok Market on Melrose Ave. This basic stock is chock full of Thai yumminess (no pun intended) - galangal, lemongrass, thai chiles, chicken parts, and kaffir lime leaves. Anytime you make your own stock, it requires the attention of a child in the sense that you need to skim off any fat and foam that surfaces to the top throughout the simmering process. I check the stock every 15 minutes or so to see if the stock is ready for skimming. The next day I actually made the soup which included the fabulous stock, shrimp, straw mushrooms, roasted thai chiles, and kaffir lime leaves. A great cure for a cold or a yummy one pot meal on a rainy day, this Tom Yum Soup will definitely make your belly and your heart happy.

TOM YUM SOUP

copyrighted by Jet Tila (2004)

Thai Chicken Stock

1 to 2 chicken carcasses

8 to 10 cups water

3/4 c. thinly sliced galangal

2 stalks lemongrass, lower portion only, pounded

2 garlic cloves, peeled whole

2 to 4 kaffir lime leaves

2 large shallots, sliced

2 to 4 thai chiles, pounded

Place carcass in stock pot and cover with cold water. Bring bones to a boil and simmer for 5 minutes. Remove bones and rinse until sediment is removed. Discard cooking liquid. Transfer bones and roast into a fresh pot and cover with the 1 gallon of fresh water and bring back to a simmer.

** Note - I didn't have a carcass so I used chicken wings (I didn't bother with the bones and discarding portion of the recipe).

Add galangal, lemongrass, kaffir lime leaves, garlic, shallots and chiles to stock and allow to simmer. Skim fat and foam often, continue to simmer for 1 1/2 hours. Skim off any additional fat and strain stock through cheesecloth.

Tom Yum Soup

2 quarts of Thai chicken stock

1 cup shrimp, peeled and deveined

1 15 oz. can straw mushrooms, peeled, drained and rinsed

6 to 8 roasted thai chiles

6 tbs. fish sauce

6 tbs. lime juice

3 tbs. chile paste in soybean oil

4-6 kaffir lime leaves

cilantro springs to garnish

Bring Thai chicken stock to simmer over medium-high heat in a medium pot. Add shrimp, mushrooms and chiles. Cook until shrimp turns pink, about 1 minute. Stir in fish sauce, lime juice and chile paste. Garnish with lime leaves and cilantro, serve immediately.

Buried Treasure.

Soups has to be one of my favorite one pot meals to make, and recently I came across a black bean soup recipe (Black Bean Soup with Cumin and Jalapeno) on Epicurious that has rocked my culinary world! From start to finish, this soup took about 45 minutes to make, which was a perfect meal before heading out to see The Swell Season last night.

An excellent source of protein, this thick and satisfying soup warms the cockles of your belly and your heart. Made of onions, carrots, garlic, jalapeno, cumin, diced tomatoes, black beans, and chicken broth, I didn't have to substitute anything in this recipe. I did add extra jalapeno simply because I'm a spicy gal. I topped my big bowl of soup with sliced scallion, chopped cilantro and crumbled feta cheese. A hearty supper or lunch, give this yummy soup a try!

Soup to Nuts.

One thing I adore making time after time is soup. It's usually pretty simple and even the complicated recipes really aren't that complicated. Have I mentioned Heidi Swan's blog yet, 101 Cookbooks yet? She has easily become one of my favorites, with her whole foods approach to cooking, her book, Super Natural Cooking and her blog are not intimidating at all when it comes to healthier cooking and eating.

I pulled her recipe for Thai Spiced Pumpkin Soup a couple of weeks ago and finally made it this evening. It's been a cool and rainy day in Los Angeles and nothing is more rewarding than a big bowl of homemade soup. The recipe calls for pumpkin, but any winter squash will do honestly. I bought some butternut squash at the farmer's market last weekend and thought it would be an adequate substitute given that pumpkins aren't in season currently.

This soup is so satisfying and good for you, the Thai inspiration comes out in the coconut milk and red curry paste. The coconut milk is silky and sweet and the red curry paste balances it out with some heat. The consistency of this soup is all about preference, I happen to like my soups thicker than most, so I added very little chicken stock (the recipe calls for water, but that's boring). I topped it with some cilantro leaves for garnish. What I also adore about this recipe is that it calls for so few ingredients, which makes for a simple meal but also one that you can whip up anytime throughout the week.

** Note that the adorable owl bowl is created by Eclectic Clayworks.

yucatan lime soup.

So it's a weeknight, you want to make a light meal, you are strapped for time, what do you make? Well, why don't you pull out your Yucatan Lime Soup recipe?? I found this gem many years ago, thanks to the Food Network (it was an old episode of Emeril Live) and since then it's been like a trusty friend. This soup will be ready in about half an hour and requires minimal prep work. This lime juice infused soup contains chopped onions, cumin, 1 chopped chicken breast, a chopped serrano chili, a chopped tomato, garlic, chicken stock, cilantro and to garnish, some creamy avocado. And to boot some homemade tortilla chips seasoned with Emeril's essence (this has become a staple in my pantry, I especially enjoy its flavor in burgers). While the soup packs a little heat, it also packs some veggies, a wee bit of protein, and just enough zing to make your mouth perk up.

Obsession.

I don’t know about you but I have a slight obsession with food-related magazines. In fact quite a few years ago I started organizing and collecting recipes from the various magazines I subscribe to. Some may think it’s slightly “anal” and others may observe the genius behind my mini-obsession.

I make a concerted effort to try out new recipes and while perusing my assorted file folders, I found a recipe for Roasted Red Pepper and Fennel Soup, from a past issue of Rachael Ray’s magazine. It sounded delicious and I’ve been trying to eat more vegetables, one way or another, so I decided to give it a go.

Sometimes Rachael Ray recipes are a hit or miss, it’s really a gamble, but this gamble turned out to be rather delicious as well as nutritious. The soup consists of roasted red bell peppers, leeks, fennel, potato, chicken broth, salt, pepper, and a wee bit of heavy cream. Simple to make and soothing for your belly. It’s silky smooth texture was delightful and I was so pleased with this vegetable concoction. I will definitely keep this recipe in its rightful place.

Curried Coconut Lemongrass Soup.

Perhaps not the most "pretty' photograph I've taken, but it was so satisfying, that I had to share it with you! I have been venturing out more and more into the world of vegetarian cooking. It's a hit or miss out there, but Mark Bittman's, How to Cook Everything Vegetarian has proved to be very useful, so far. I adapted the recipe from his book. I added fried tofu (which I learned how to make from his book) and instead of porcini mushrooms, I used straw mushrooms, typical in many Thai soup recipes. In fact, straw mushrooms are the only "canned" mushroom I am unopposed to. One of the things I love about Thai cuisine is the play on your taste buds - sweet, sour, salty and spicy. Thai cuisine interlaces all of these unique flavors so well and I just can't seem to get enough of it. I'm an honorary Thai. The leftovers proved even tastier with the added flare of some garlic chili spice to kick up your sinuses.

delight of the wonton.

It's been a while since I've made wonton soup, several years in fact. I was perusing my copy of Splendid Soups by James Peterson when I stumbled on this simple recipe for wonton soup. The wonder of this recipe is not only it's simplicity, but the open door that leads to culinary creativity. I stuffed my wontons with a mixture of ground pork, spinach, garlic, soy sauce, ginger, sesame oil, salt and pepper. I also added some chopped scallions, grated carrots, and raw spinach to the broth. For extra flavor, before devouring, I added some garlic chili paste for some heat and wee splash of soy sauce! The recipe also provided for other wonton stuffings as well, salmon for example, which trips my trigger. The possibilities are endless and this recipe offers you the opportunity to be creative with what you have on hand, as opposed to buying extra ingredients you may not use.

cheesy broccoli soup.

This past weekend marked Midwest Munchies' first birthday! Hard to believe it's already been a year, but I'm glad I stuck with it, hope you are too! I was perusing my recipe box a couple of weeks ago, while planning some meals and happened upon a "goodie" - Cheesy Broccoli Soup. It was passed onto me by a legal assistant I used to work with in downtown Fort Wayne. She is as passionate about food as I am and she loves to entertain the masses. She gave me this recipe and it was a hit! It's super easy and delicious, though, if you're watching your waistline, you might want to save this for a non-watching waistline day. However, indulging in this soup every now and then won't kill you........

Cheesy Broccoli Soup (serves 4)

1 head of broccoli

1 onion, chopped and sauteed in a bit of butter or oil (your choice)

1 can of cream of mushroom soup

1 1/2 + 2/3 c. half and half

1/2 lb. pepper jack cheese

1/2 lb. Velveeta

Chop broccoli and steam separately. Chop velveeta in squares and shred pepper jack cheese. Heat over medium heat the can of cream of mushroom soup and half and half. Add cooked broccoli, sauteed onion, and cheese. Heat and stir until cheese is melted. Voila, it's ready to serve.

A dash of freshly ground pepper is a nice finishing touch. if you're not a fan of pepper jack cheese or velveeta, you can substitute with monterey jack, sharp white cheddar or whatever else you fancy. I like a good kick and the pepper jack is delish!

On a side note, I wanted to plug Molly Wizenberg's book, A Homemade Life, which was released this week! Molly is behind the coveted Orangette, which was just named #1 food blog! I haven't bought a book in a while, but I wanted to support Molly's work. Her blog is so wonderful and the 60 pages or so that I've read so far are absolutely delightful! So if you can swing it, buy it!

half is better than nothing at all.

It's a running joke between Paul and I, I am half Jewish and often this cultural heritage ends up being a scapegoat for many of my quarky characteristics. Though I am only half (and let's be honest a conservative synagogue woldn't even recognize me because it's on my father's side), I was lucky enough to benefit from some of its pastimes and traditions. The most important one being food. The majority of this heritage was mainly celebrated when my grandmother was alive, though my parents were friends with Jesus. Christmas mornings featured "bagels" for breakfast and matzo ball soup was often the only source of comfort when I was sick with the flu. When I moved to the midwest, it became obvious, my boyfriend had no clue what a matzo ball was, let alone, a real bagel. Often compared to chicken and dumplings (but there is truly no comparison), matzo ball soup is a step up from the traditional chicken noodle soup most are familiar with. Matzo balls are light and fluffy in comparison to dumplings which can often take the unlikely turn for hockey pucks. The wonder behind this simple soup is its chameleon-like ability. Some joints serve it in broth alone, others with noodles. I prefer a combination myself - some left over chicken, tiny pasta granules, diced carrots and onions, compliment this comforting soup. On days like we've been experiencing (30's), it's the perfect soup to warm your spirit and your belly.

flowers for you (and roasted zucchini soup)

This morning I woke up early (even though it's a Saturday). The Barr Street Market is on Saturdays and I needed to pick up some fruits and veggies for the next week or so. So I bought these "mini" bouquets at the farmer's markets for a mere $2. What a bargain for some loveliness in my apartment, something I've decided to do as often as I am able to, I just adore flowers. They bring a smile to my face. And I thought they might bring one to yours. So enjoy the beauty. In addition to going to the farmer's market, I was given some rather large zucchini earlier in the week and set aside some time to make a roasted zucchini soup from scratch. A few weeks ago, I had lunch at the Dash-In Cafe and they served a roasted squash soup. It was delish and the more I thought about it the more I wanted to make my own. So thanks to a co-worker's neighbor I was supplied with some garden fresh zucchini. I kid you not each was at least a foot in length. I seeded the zucchini and roasted them on a sheet pan drizzled with olive oil, salt and pepper. While the zucchini roasted away I diced up 5 or 6 garlic cloves, two white onions and a carrot,and caramelized them in olive oil and butter. The ultimate combination for caramelization. The fruitiness of the olive oil and the creaminess of the butter add a delicate and very aromatic flavor to the vegetables. Once the zucchini was done roasting, I added the chunks to the caramelized veggies and added plenty of chicken stock, just enough to cover the vegetables. I brought the soup to a decent simmer before pureeing the mixture in the food processor. And voila, roasted zucchini soup. It's so tasty, and very satisfying. A nice accompaniment to any salad or chunks of warm country bread. Plenty left for lunch or dinner tomorrow.

** Note I provided a picture of the soup before and after pureeing. Oh la la.

A Photo Opp!

The main reason I am adding this photo to my blog is just because I like the way that it looks. Paul is actually responsible for taking it. So what's inside you ask? BLT & Potato Soup - a Rachael Ray recipe, which was pretty tasty. Even tastier with the homemade stock I added to it. This photo was taken right after I served big bowls of the soup alongside some chewy sourdough rolls I bought at Fresh Market. I like how the soup creates a rim or edge around the Le Creuset dutch oven and makes it look like a big bowl or plate.