Edited to add: Round Up is up.

Waiter, There’s Something in my…#2, is hosted this month by Cook Sister. I had to think long and hard for this event. Pie. What kind of pie? It’s winter, so no peach pie. A savory pie? Maybe. Hmmm… This clearly was going to take some effort.

One of the requirements for the pie, is that it is covered with two crusts (as opposed to an open-face type of pie). In the end, I chose sweet and went with a ginger pear pie because it sounded interesting and also, I like pears a lot. And jwa likes pie in general, so it was a good choice all around. This was also the first time I had ever made a closed-variety, two-crust type of pie.

The recipe comes from Bon Appétit Magazine and I made it pretty much exactly as written. I used the suggested Buttermilk Pie Crust recipe and it turned out really well. You could also use a prepared pie dough but this one was very easy to make. You could even make it ahead of time and have it all ready for when you want a pie. And who doesn’t want a pie at some point in a given week?

Ginger Pear Pie with Golden Raisins
3/4 cup golden raisins
1/4 cup plus 2 tbsp minced crystallized ginger
3 pounds ripe medium pears (about 6 - 7), peeled, cored, sliced 1/2 inch thick
1/2 cup sugar
3 tbsp butter, melted
2 tbsp quick-cooking tapioca
1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
pinch of salt
1 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
2 Buttermilk Pie Crust Dough disks (or two prepared pie dough rounds) — recipe below
1 egg
2 tbsp milk

When the liquid is mostly absorbed, it should look like this

Combine raisins and ginger in heavy small saucepan. Add enough water to just cover. Simmer over low heat until liquid is absorbed, about 15 minutes. Cool completely.

Position rack in lowest third of oven and preheat to 400°F. Combine pears and next 7 ingredients in bowl. Stir in raisin mixture. Roll out 1 pie crust disk on lightly floured surface to 13-inch round (about 1/8 inch thick).

Roll up dough on rolling pin and transfer to 9-inch-diameter glass pie plate. Gently press into place. Trim edges of crust, leaving 1/4-inch overhang. Spoon pear mixture into pan, mounding in center.

Roll out second crust disk on lightly floured surface to 13-inch-diameter round. Roll up on rolling pin and unroll over pie. Trim edges, leaving 3/4 -inch overhang. Fold overhang of top crust under edge of bottom crust. In terms of trimming the crust, I try to err on the side of not trimming enough. I figure a bit too much is much easier to work with than not enough.

Not perfect. but it got the job done

Pinch edges together to seal. Crimp edges to make decorative border. Gather and reroll scraps. Cut out decorative shapes. Beat egg with milk in small bowl for glaze. Brush top of pie with glaze. Make several slashes in top crust so steam can escape. I did not go super fancy here — I just used a biscuit cutter with decorative edges, cut out two of those, quartered them and arranged on top. If you have a leaf cookie cutter or a pear cookie cutter that would look really nice on top of the pie! Or just be lazy like me and cut out a circle.

Bake the pie until crust is golden brown and the juices bubble up through slashes. Cover the crust edges with foil if the top of the pie is browning too quickly, about 1 hour.

My edges did start to get a little brown after about 40 minutes, so I cut out a foil edge-protector

Remove from oven and let cool a little bit. I believe we dug into it after about a half an hour. Use your own discretion here.

Serve warm with vanilla ice cream and you will think you have gone to pie heaven. Wow. This was really good. In fact, I am thinking the next time I host Thanksgiving (ha! Not next year! Hooray for jwa’s aunt!) I will include this in addition to a pumpkin pie.

Oh, so here’s the crust recipe. You will probably need this too.

Buttermilk Pie Crust Dough
2 1/2 cups unbleached all purpose flour
2 tbsp sugar
1 tsp salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) chilled unsalted butter, diced
1/2 cup chilled solid vegetable shortening
1/4 cup plus 2 tbsp buttermilk

Combine flour, sugar and salt in large bowl. Add butter and shortening. Cut in using fingers, pastry blender or food processor (pulses!) until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Add buttermilk and stir with fork until moist clumps form (or pulse with the processor).

Press together to form dough. Divide dough in half. Gather dough into balls; flatten into disks.

Wrap separately and chill 1 hour. (Can be prepared ahead. Refrigerate 1 week or freeze 1 month. Let dough stand at room temperature to soften slightly before using.) Makes enough for 2 crusts.

Thanks again to Cook Sister for hosting this month’s event!

Here it is 2007 and it’s time to start eating healthy. Really. I mean it this time! So, it was very good fortune that the theme of this month’s Weekend Cookbook Challenge is stew. And it’s the perfect time of year around here for a warm and comforting stew. No snow, but our lows have been in the 30’s. Brrrrrrr.

Since I am thinking about low-fat, healthy meals right now (huh — good thing I won’t be posting about those homemade refried beans I made tonight until later in the week), I chose a vegetarian stew. Moroccan Style Chick Pea Stew from the cookbook, Fresh from the Vegetarian Slow Cooker by Robin Robertson. It’s chock full of chick pea, vegetables and spice. It makes the house smell so amazing. Also, it’s a very easy recipe to substitute ingredients. I had no carrots, green beans or peas on hand when I made this. Not a problem. I used some defrosted frozen spinach and lima beans instead and it all turned out just great.

Moroccan Style Chick Pea Stew
1 tbsp olive oil
3 shallots, chopped (or 1 small white onion)
1 large carrot, chopped (alternatively, throw in about 1 cup defrosted and drained frozen spinach)
1 small yellow bell pepper, seeded and chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced (up from the one the recipe calls for)
1 tsp peeled and minced fresh ginger
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/4 tsp smoked paprika
1/4 tsp turmeric
8 ounces green beans, trimmed and cut into 1-inch pieces (or, use some lima beans, frozen and defrosted — about 1 cup)
1 can chick peas (garbanzo beans), drained
1 can diced tomatoes (or whole works too, just break them up a bit)
1 1/2 cups vegetable stock
1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
dash of red pepper flakes
salt and pepper
1/2 cup frozen peas, thawed (I omitted)
1/4 cup dried fruit, chopped (I used dried mangoes and golden raisins)
1/4 cup green olives, pitted and chopped (mine were stuffed with feta)
Garnish: chopped parsley and/or garlicky yogurt

In a large skillet, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add the shallots, carrot, bell pepper and garlic. Cover and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the ginger, cumin, cinnamon, paprika and turmeric, and cook, stirring about 30 seconds to bring out the flavors.

Next, transfer the mixture to a crock pot. Now, you just start layering. Add the spinach (if using), chick peas, tomatoes, stock, red pepper flakes, lima beans (if using) and lemon juice. Add a little salt and pepper.

Stir, cover and cook for 6-8 hours on low.

About 20 minutes before serving, add the peas (if using) and dried fruit. When ready to serve, stir in the olives.

Adjust seasonings and ladel into bowls. Top with a little garlicky yogurt if desired. Perhaps a sprinkle of parsley? We had this on top of some pistachio couscous — (scroll down for recipe). So, so good.

Thanks again to Sara at Weekend Cookbook Challenge and this month’s guest host, Shaun at Winter Skies, Kitchen Aglow.

Today’s recipe comes from the awesome cookbook, The Soup Peddler’s Slow and Difficult Soups, by David Ansel. I love this book because the author tells an amusing story of soup making and soup delivery to his customers by bike — it’s both cookbook and memoir.

In addition, the recipes are oh so good and both carnivorous and herbivorous in variety. Obviously, the mulligatawny features the latter ingredients, as I am posting about it this week. Lentils, curry, potatoes, apple and assorted vegetables meld together for a slightly spicy, totally satisfying soup.

The Soup Peddler’s Mulligatawny
2 tbsp ghee (clarified butter) or olive oil
2 medium white onions, diced
3 carrots, peeled and chopped
3 tbsp curry powder
1 medium potato, peeled and diced
2 cups red or green lentils, rinsed
2 14-oz cans coconut milk
6 cups water
1/2 cup cauliflower, cut into florets
1 Granny Smith apple, diced
2 tbsp olive oil
4 cloves garlic
2 Roma tomatoes
1 cup spinach leaves (my addition)
Salt to taste
Garnish: plain yogurt

Heat the ghee or olive oil in a soup pot over medium heat and saute the onions and carrots. When the vegetables soften and begin to release their juices, about 10 minutes add the curry and stir well.

Continue to saute 2 minutes longer, then add the potato, lentils and coconut milk and bring to a simmer. Add the water as necessary to keep a soupy consistency.

After about 20 minutes, when the lentils are soft, add the cauliflower, apple and celery. I actually skipped the cauliflower because I didn’t have any — but if you have some, throw it in! Cover with more water if needed and bring back to a simmer.

In a blender or food processor, puree the olive oil, garlic, tomatoes and spinach.

Stir the puree into the soup and season to taste with salt. Cook for 5 more minutes and serve. Garnish with a dollop of plain yogurt.

So, Vegetarian Week is almost over here at je mange la ville. I almost feel ready to face whatever mega-meaty offerings are served at the Anthony Bourdain dinner at the Heathman next week…

Now, this meal is based of something similar that I saw on Good Deal with Dave Lieberman. So far, I think I like that show. I’ve tried the Mexican Mac & Cheese and recently saw a meatloaf that I may try and make this weekend when we are all cold and rainy again. Besides, he doesn’t seem too annoying and that’s always a good thing in a TV chef.

Rosemary, salt, pepper and olive oil are pretty much all there is to the pork tenderloin. For fun, I made a maple and balsamic sauce to drizzle over the top. It was very good. Originally, the tenderloin was paired with a mushroom risotto — I chose instead to make wild mushroom polenta, which I really like as an accompaniment to pork. The nice part about using dried, wild mushrooms is being able to use the soaking liquid for the polenta. It’s funny — I never really used dried mushrooms very much until jwa nade me that wonderful birthday dinner in February. Now, all I want to do is add dried porcinis to things.

I picked up a pork tenderloin at Trader Joes specifically for this recipe and the rosemary came from the three foot tall (and four foot wide) rosemary plant in the front of the house.

Rosemary Pork Tenderloin with Wild Mushroom Polenta
1 (1 1/2 to 2-pound) pork tenderloin
Olive oil
Salt
Freshly ground pepper
2 sprigs fresh rosemary leaves, finely chopped, plus a few sprigs for garnish
1/2 white onion, sliced

Rub the tenderloin with oil, salt, pepper, and rosemary — laugh a bit like Beavis if you must, I understand. Here, I’ll join you: “huh-huh-huh-huh-huh”. Now, cover with plastic wrap (or put in a food storage bag) and let marinate for about 2 hours in the refrigerator.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Heat an ovenproof pan up over high heat and sear the pork on all sides, in a little more olive oil. Add onion slices and put the whole pan in the oven for 10-15 minutes or until pork has reached a temperature of 145 degrees. Remove pork and onions from pan. Cover loosely with foil and let rest 5-10 minutes. When ready to serve, slice the pork on a bias, so that you can fan the slices out around the polenta.

Maple Balsamic Sauce
2 tsp balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup maple syrup
1/4 cup chicken stock
2 tsp Dijon mustard
1/2 tsp chopped rosemary

Add the balsamic to the pan and return it to the heat. Use a wooden spoon to scrape up any brown bits that cling to the pan. Stir in the mustard, maple syrup, and chicken broth, along with any juices from the pork chops that have accumulated on the platter. Cook over high heat until the mixture is syrupy, about 5 minutes. Add the rosemary and season with salt and pepper to taste. Does this look familiar? Well, I can’t help that it’s a very good sauce with pork.

Wild Mushroom Polenta
1 oz dried wild mushrooms
1 cup polenta
2 cups chicken broth
1/2 cup milk
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
salt & pepper

Bring 4 cups of water to a boil and then pour over dried mushrooms. Let them soak for about 15 minutes. Reserve soaking liquid — combine one cup of that with the chicken broth. Chop the rehydrated mushrooms and set aside.

Heat the mushroom liquid/broth, milk and minced garlic, bring to a boil. Whisk in polenta and reduce heat to low. Stir frequently, as it cooks, about 30-40 minutes. If it gets too thick, you can whisk in more chicken or mushroom broth.

When the polenta is cooked and all creamy, add the chopped, wild mushrooms and the Parmesan. Stir to combine and add salt and pepper to taste. Serve the hot polenta with the 3-4 slices of pork arranged on the side, drizzled with the maple-balsamic sauce. Add a sprig of rosemary to the polenta as a garnish, along with some of the onions scattered around the plate. I really liked the flavor of this dish — the mushrooms and their broth really give the polenta a rich, Earthy flavor.

***

Friday: Strawberry + Black Pepper Tart for Two!

We always have tons of yogurt in the house. Little containers of Tillamook Vanilla, Strawberry and Peach, as well of large containers of vanilla or honey for smoothies and plain yogurt for Indian-ish and Mexican-ish dishes.

So, when I saw Alton Brown make Yogurt Cheese on a Good Eats recently, I immediately went rummaging through my kitchen drawers looking for cheesecloth (I just knew I had some somewhere). Because — wow! Cheese from yogurt, you say? That’s sounds so fun.

After locating the cheesecloth and blending my yogurt and herbs together, five hours later I had this easy and tangy yogurt cheese spread. I used a seasoning blend that I had on hand, but fresh herbs could easily be used in this recipe. Chives, thyme and rosemary would be good. So would shallots, chives and tarragon — the possibilities are quite endless!

The secret is in separating the whey from the yogurt. The whey is the watery liquid that is strained from the yogurt, leaving the creamy, thicker yogurt cheese when you are done. Give this one a try.

Herbed Yogurt Cheese Spread
1 quart plain yogurt (low fat)
4 big cloves of garlic or 8 little cloves of garlic, minced
1 tsp fresh lemon juice
2 tbsp dried herb seasoning of your choice (I used Penzey’s Fox Point Seasoning — or you could also use a combination of fresh thyme, rosemary, chives or whatever herbs you’d like)
A dash of cayenne pepper

In a mixing bowl, add the garlic, lemon juice, chives and seasoning mix (or fresh herbs) to the yogurt and combine. Place mixture in cheesecloth (I doubled mine up), set over a colander, set over a large bowl.

Then, wrap the ends of the cheesecloth up over the yogurt to cover.

You will see it start to drip right away.

Weight the top down with a saucer and can on top and place in refrigerator for 4-6 hours.

When it is done draining, the consistency of the yogurt should be like cream cheese and you there will be a fair amount of liquid down in the bottom of the draining bowl.

Discard liquid and add salt and pepper to the yogurt cheese, to taste. Use the spread with crackers, vegetables, on baked potatoes or what-have-you. It’s creamy and very flavorful — and good for you too!

Pickled onions. Tillamook Cheddar. Toasted onion bun. Crispy, golden oven fries. Now, this was a meal. I sometimes like to add different combinations of ingredients and make interesting turkey burgers. These puppies had sautéed onions, spinach and smoked paprika. They were excellent.

Yukon gold potato wedges were roasted with some extra-virgin olive oil, kosher salt and Trail Dust seasoning and magically turned into a crunchy-on-the-outside, creamy-on-the-inside accompaniment for this epic burger. Make your own, won’t you?

Spicy Greens Turkey Burger
1 small onion, diced
1 handful spinach leaves, chopped roughly
1 tsp olive oil + a bit more for brushing
1 tbsp smoked paprika
1 lb ground turkey
salt & pepper
Onion buns, toasted
Microgreens — or any favorite lettuce
Sliced tomato
Mayonnaise
Mustard
Ketchup
4 slices Cheddar cheese — or any cheese you are in the mood for — there’s no bad cheese for this — all cheese is delicious. (mmmmmm…cheese….)

Saute the onion in the oil until soft, 2-3 minutes. Add the paprika and continue to stir until it becomes very fragrant and the onions darken. Add the spinach and toss, until spinach wilts. Remove from heat and let cool.

When onions are room temperature, combine with ground turkey. Form into four equal burgers. Heat a grill pan and lightly brush the tops of the burgers with olive oil. Salt and pepper each one and place oil-side down on the hot grill pan.

Meanwhile, get your toasted buns ready. Slather with a little mayo and mustard of your choice, then lay down the lettuce of your choice. I am really liking microgreens lately. They are so little and cute! After the greens, top with a huge tomato slice.

Give the burgers about 5-6 minutes (or more) per side, depending on the thickness of your burgers. You’re shooting for about 165 degrees after the cheese meltage. I typically place the cheese on the second side when the temperature reaches 160-162. Then, I lid the pan, let the cheese melt for a minute or so and by the time that occurs — I figure the burger’s at 165 and ready to go.

You will now want to get your plate ready with your oven fries and pickled onions. Oh and a beer. Perhaps a nice MacTarnahan’s ale. Or, whatever your beverage of choice may be. Place your burger atop the bun and enjoy. Add ketchup if desired. Oh, try to drip the burger juices down onto the fries. There you go — excellent.

Simple, Crispy Oven Fries
3-4 Yukon gold potatoes, cut into 8 wedges, each potato (Slice in half lengthwise, then quarter that into wedges)
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp salt
Optional: 1/2 tsp Trail Dust or other seasoning mix of your choice

Preheat oven to 425. Toss potato wedges with olive oil, salt and seasoning. Spread out onto a cookie sheet and cook until crisp and golden, 20-25 minutes. Serve with the burger.

Pickled Onions
This recipe is from Eating Well Magazine
1 small onion, halved and sliced into thin rings (red or a sweet, white onion will work)
1 cup red wine vinegar
2 allspice berries
2 tbsp brown sugar
1/2 tsp salt

Combine the vinegar, sugar, salt, and berries in a microwave safe measuring cup or small bowl. Microwave on high for 2-3 minutes or until boiling. Add the onions and toss to coat.

Put it all together for one hell of a tasty dinner.

Oh and yeah, if you haven’t guessed, it’s cold again now.

This fun little number packs quite a punch. The ginger is spicy and the vodka is…well…vodka. In my version, I used vanilla vodka, as that’s all I had on hand, but citron (or any other variety) would probably work just fine too. Before you can have a drink, you need to first make a ginger-lemon simple syrup but that can be done in under a half an hour. Ah, you’ll be on your way to drinking in no time!

This is based on a recipe I saw on Food Network but I changed it into more of a ginger lemon drop (rather than just a ginger martini), so it’s different. Ha!

Ginger Syrup:
1 lemon, peel removed with a vegetable peeler into strips
2 cups coarsely chopped fresh ginger (peel too)
1 cup sugar
2 cups water

Add the ginger chunks and lemon into a food processor and process until finely chopped.

Transfer the mixture to a pan and add sugar and water. Mix and simmer for about 15 minutes.

Strain the mixture and cool. It can be refrigerated for up to 1 week. So, now that you have your ginger-lemon syrup…here’s what you do with it.

Ginger Lemon Drop
Ice
3 ounces vodka, (vanilla, citron, unflavored or ?)
1 ounce ginger syrup, recipe follows
Juice of 1 lemon
Twist of lemon

Fill a shaker or pitcher with ice. Add the vodka, ginger syrup, and lemon juice. Cover and shake vigorously, or stir, until combined and chilled. Strain into a martini glass. Add twist and serve. Ahhhh.

And remember, ginger is good for the digestion!

This meal all started with a trip to Zupan’s (fancy-pantsy grocery store). I went for some tuna, I left with tuna and this spice rub. Which, just now, when I looked it up, I realized was affiliated with Michael Chiarello. I bought it anyway because I am a sucker for pretty packaging and coffee products.

But, later it dawned on me — I should have just copied down the ingredients and made it myself! So, here you go:

grey salt ( you could also probably use kosher)
instant espresso
coriander (ground)
paprika
cumin
orange zest
chile powder (chipotle or a blend)

Ta da — you’ve just saved $7.95. As far as measurements go, I’d use a tablespoon of everything, except the salt, maybe 1 teaspoon of that and the zest, again, maybe a teaspoon. Oh, and for this pork recipe, I also mixed some brown sugar into the spice rub I used — so, throw a tablespoon of brown sugar in there too just for fun. But, I am just kind of guessing on the measurements here, so it might take a bit of trial and error.

If you are not feeling that adventurous, the recipe that I ultimately found to use my spice rub with, came with its own spice rub recipe, which I will list below. You can also use whatever spice rub you know and love.

I found this recipe on Food Network and it is one by Bobby Flay. I know! I changed a lot of it, though, including: using my own spice rub, cooking it differently, using a pork loin roast instead of tenderloins, using different peppers in the sauce and using masa harina instead of corn meal for the tamales. Ha! So there!

Spice-Rubbed Pork Tenderloin with Chipotle Chile Mustard Sauce:
Chile Mustard Sauce:
2 cups chicken stock
3/4 cup apple juice concentrate
3 black pepper corns
1-2 chipotle peppers
2 tsp Dijon mustard
1 tbsp sour cream or plain yogurt (can be light, but not fat free)

Combine chicken stock and chipotle pepper(s) in a blender or food processor and puree. Add to a pan with the apple juice and peppercorns. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat and reduce to a sauce consistency, about 20-30 minutes). It can be made to this point and then refrigerated until needed. When ready, bring back up to temperature, then whisk in mustard and sour cream or yogurt and cook for 1 minute. Season with salt and pepper to taste. This sauce was awesome — spicy but sweet. jwa and I both loved it.

Pork Loin:
1 pork loin roast, approximately 2 1/2 - 3 pounds
Spice rub
1 cup chicken stock
2 tbsp olive oil

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Dredge the tenderloin in the spice rub mixture and pat off any excess. Heat olive oil in medium oven-proof skillet. Add the pork loin and sear well on all sides — about a minute or two each side.

For the rest of the cooking, I followed something similar to how I cooked my last pork loin roast. Add 1 cup of chicken stock to the bottom of the pan and tent with foil. Place in the oven and continue cooking until pork is done (155 degrees), about 1 hour. When done, transfer pork to a plate and recover with foil. Let rest for 5-10 minutes and slice into 1-inch pieces on the diagonal.

Spoon the yummy, yummy sauce onto a platter and top with the slices of pork.

Alternate Spice Rub:
3 tbsp ancho chile powder
1 tsp chile de arbol
1 tbsp pasilla chile powder
1 tblsp guajillo powder
1 tsp allspice
2 tbsp brown sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon
Salt and freshly ground pepper

Combine all ingredients in a small bowl and season with salt and pepper.

With this pork loin roast, I also made tamales as a side dish. Settle down. Just simple tamales. This recipe made about seven, so there were leftovers for us. They were good the next day with leftover pork and black beans.

Roasted Garlic and Goat Cheese Tamales
15 dried corn husks
3/4 cup corn kernels (fresh or frozen)
1/2 medium onion, coarsely chopped
7 cloves of roasted garlic (Wrap separated cloves in aluminum foil and bake 30-40 minutes at 400 degrees until soft)
1 cup chicken stock
3 tbsp unsalted butter, melted
3 tbsp vegetable shortening , melted
3/4 cup masa harina
1/2 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp fresh thyme leaves (less if using dried thyme)
Salt and freshly ground pepper
1/2 cup goat cheese, crumbled

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Turn off the heat. Add the dried corn husks and weight down with a plate. Let soak until soft, about 30-40 minutes. Pat dry and set aside the best 8 husks. Cut the other husks into strips for tying.

If using frozen corn, place in a microwave safe bowl add a tablespoon of water and cook, 2 minutes or so until done. Drain excess water.

Puree the corn, onion, roasted garlic, and stock in a food processor. Transfer the mixture to a mixing bowl and mix in the melted butter and shortening. Add the masa harina, sugar, and salt and pepper to taste. Fold in the goat cheese.

The mixture will seem very loose — that’s okay. Lay a husk flat on a work surface. Place about 1/4 - 1/3 cup of masa mixture in the center.

Roll up. Tie each end of the bundle with a strip of corn husk.

Arrange the tamales in a single layer on a steaming rack, cover tightly with foil or a lid, and steam over boiling water for 1 1/2 hours.

We had the pork and tamales with a simple side of sautéed Swiss chard. For true crazy decadence, put a dollop of butter on the hot tamale. Mmm!

Planning:
I made this on a Sunday, so I had all afternoon to work on it and take breaks. I roasted the garlic first, then made the sauce. Next, I soaked the corn husks. Then, if I remember correctly, came a little TV and a beer.

I made the tamales next and while they steamed, I seared the pork and got it in the oven. When done, the tamales can sit covered with foil, off the heat, for a bit. Nice. The pork also rests. Hey, this is a great time to sauté the greens.

Lastly, the sauce can get heated up and combined with a little sour cream (or plain yogurt) to finish it off.

Sit down and eat!

Last weekend, when I was in my, “Let’s do a Spanish food night!” mood, I searched high and low for a recipe that we could have with the Tuna Empanaditas. I came across numerous mentions of Spanish Garlic & Bread Soup and loving garlic like I do, I just knew I had to give it a try. Plus, it was an opportunity to use the Smoked Spanish Paprika from my latest Penzey’s excursion!

I ended up melding numerous recipes together based on what I had on hand, how much chicken stock my favorite soup pot could hold and what sounded good. Below, is what I came up with when all was said and done. I must admit, it was with both intrigue and trepidation that I decided to go ahead and poach eggs in the soup but I’m glad I did it. The soup (eggs and all) was very good and jwa liked it as well!

Also, don’t be scared by all the garlic. It really didn’t taste super garlicky. Honest! In fact, I am tempted to add more garlic next time because that is my way.

Bread & Garlic Soup with Poached Eggs (Sopa de Ajo)
4 cups chicken stock
1/3 cup good olive oil
2 cups breadcrumbs, make your own if possible (I started with cubed sourdough, then processed those into crumbs)
1 head of garlic, cloves separated, peeled and minced
1 tsp smoked paprika
A dash of cumin just for fun
Salt and pepper to taste
4 eggs (optional)
Chopped parsley for garnish

Heat the stock in a large, heavy-bottomed soup pot and bring to a simmer. In a smaller pan, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat, toss in the bread crumbs and stir until golden. Add paprika and garlic, and sauté 1-2 more minutes. Combine into the hot stock and continue simmer over low heat for about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.

When ready to serve, salt to taste, bring back up to a medium simmer and break the eggs into the soup. Let poach until done — 5 minutes or so for a slightly runny yolk. Ladle into soup bowls, (each bowl getting a poached egg) and serve. Garnish with a little chopped fresh parsley.

***
Hey, speaking of soup — the new Jonathan Carrol novel, Glass Soup is supposedly on its way to me. Yay!

Penzey’s Spices
11322 SE 82nd Ave
Portland, OR 97266
(503) 653-7779

I ventured to Penzeys last weekend, eager to see what I could see (and smell). I manage to do a TJ Maxx/Ross/Pier 1 run every so often, so this was a nice addition to that typical shopping experience.

It was a lot brighter inside than I thought it would be (I don’t know why — for some reason I was expecting some kind of dark, cluttered, spice cave) and there was a very helpful and friendly staff on hand to answer questions and encourage sniffing. While I was browsing, an interesting event occured — a man ran in, practically breathless, announcing that there was an emergency at his house — they were out of cinnamon! It reminded me of what happens around our house when we are out of garlic.

I’m really looking forward to experimenting with all the different curries that I purchased. I am convinced that I can find some kind of combination of jarred curries, along with other spices (ginger, cumin, chilies, etc) that I can make really good curry at home with — CONVINCED, I tell you! So, that will be fun and perhaps a post soon.

Then I went to TJ Maxx and found a cute, black purse. Yay!