I made kick ass Potato Leek Soup!

Potato Leek Soup

Please excuse my cheek, but I thought this soup was doomed from the beginning. I let the leeks brown, and the milk boil, and every taste promised blandness. But once I sat down with a piping hot bowl and ate it up, I realized that, holy crap, I made kick ass Potato Leek soup! Which leads me to realize that yes, I can make up a recipe completely on the spot and it just might turn out ok. Whew.

Every recipe for Potato Leek soup I looked at just seemed…not what I had in mind. Right, you’re thinking, Potato Leek soup is pretty basic, how could it be not what she had in mind? I don’t know, maybe I was just feeling contrary. And because this soup is pretty basic, I figured I could figure it out on my own, yeah? I few tips on leeks (specifically, don’t burn them because they will taste bitter), some basic knowledge of cooking with milk and boiling potatoes, and a hint about hot stuff in blenders, and I was ready to go.

Continue reading I made kick ass Potato Leek Soup!

Corn Potato Chowder and Dinner Rolls

Corn Chowder

My apologies for the late update–today was a particularly difficult Monday morning. The Corn Potato Chowder dinner was actually Friday night’s, courtesy of Crystal and her family recipe. I decided to make basic dinner rolls, to continue my current obsession with dough and baking. I’m not sure how well I’m going to be able to reconstruct chowder making: There was a lot of wine consumed Friday night. But I’ll do my best.

Crystal’s made this chowder a few times before, and I always like it. She said it wasn’t as good this time, but I still thought it was good. It’s a very starchy chowder, heavy on the potatoes, but overall pretty healthy, I think. You can definitely taste the corn. And the bacon. Mmm. Bacon. She did say that this is a recipe you can tweak a bit, so I’m sure if I don’t get it exactly right here, it will still be good. The bread, thankfully, I can reconstruct exactly. I might go with less sugar in the future, but they were loved by all at the dinner table, so I should stop criticizing them, probably.

Continue reading Corn Potato Chowder and Dinner Rolls

Pasta e Fagioli, mostly

Pasta e Fagioli

Last night it was cold, and I lost my hat, and I was super tired from staying up until 1 am the night before, and I really, really wanted soup. Good soup. Hearty, filling, not-from-a-can soup, and I wanted it quick. Nothing complicated, or time-consuming, or that would make me stand over a stove for a long time. This soup exactly fit the bill.

I think it’s a pretty traditional Pasta e Fagioli, but in my cursory research, I couldn’t really find a definitive Pasta e Fagioli reference. I figure, though, that it contains both Pasta and Fagioli, so that’s close enough for me. Plus, since I got the recipe from Eating Well, it’s even good for me and stuff. Of course I ended up with way more than I expected, so I’ll be eating this for a few days, but no matter, it is good. And warming. And full of vegetables and good stuff. Did I mention that it was also easy?

Continue reading Pasta e Fagioli, mostly

Fake Christmas Eve! Beer Cheese Soup and Good Times

Beer Cheese Soup

I look forward to Beer Cheese Soup all year. My family has been eating Beer Cheese Soup on Christmas Eve as long as I can remember, and it is a deceptively delicious concoction. By deceptively, I mean that when I tell people about Beer Cheese Soup, they look at me like I might be a little bit crazy, but when they taste it, they realize it is like god in soup form. By deceptively I also mean that, visually, it’s not the most impressive soup in the world. It was maddeningly difficult to get a good picture of The Soup. By deceptively I ALSO mean that it is very, very easy.

I probably could eat Beer Cheese Soup all year round. I’m not normally much of a traditionalist (or maybe I am and I just don’t know it yet), but for some reason, this soup feels like Christmas to me, and I can’t have it any other time of year. This means that I very infrequently get to share it with other people, since, you know, I’m usually with my family, who already understand the magic that is this soup.

This year, I decided to buck tradition, at least a little bit, and celebrate Christmas Eve two nights early, with all my Boston friends, before they leave to enjoy (or insert a more appropriate word here) their own family traditions. And let me tell you, everyone in that room loved this soup, and good times were most certainly had.

Continue reading Fake Christmas Eve! Beer Cheese Soup and Good Times

Chicken Chipotle Chili

The alliteration wunderkind strikes again!

 So, I have this recipe file that dates back to, oh, 1989. When I was 10. Yes, I’ve always been food crazed. Most of them are things I’ve never cooked: some family recipes, some things pulled from magazines and newspapers, or sent to me by friends. I thought it would be fun to go through and selectively try some of these out, and on this freaking cold ass day, chili sounded perfect.

Continue reading Chicken Chipotle Chili