Spicy Sausage Cabbage Soup

Sometimes it seems to me that life is a bunch of befores and afters. Often little befores, before I bought my first real purse (a satchel!) and after, where nothing else compares and the canvas bags of yore are used for grocery shopping. I think we have a habit (the royal 'we', were I include everyone and no one all at once) of over emphasizing some befores & afters. We fantasize about how different life will be after we ____ (fill in the blank: start that new diet, buy that new car, move out, move in, start dating). Sometimes rightfully so, but more often the resulting 'after' is remarkably similar to the life before. And often again, we go through a before and after, a transition of sorts, without even recognizing it! How crazy is life? So. Crazy.

Here is my example. I have fantasized much about life's transitions and what a fabulous new thing is waiting for me as soon as I make my way from before to after. Most of the time though, I end up in nearly the same patterns and life doesn't change too much. It can be disappointing. Can't it?

I've spent a lot of time focusing on what's next, I just purchased a fabulous juicer and expect life to change very dramatically from here on out, but I seem to have missed a transition I didn't even know was occurring. I've gone from someone who buys pre-made soups to someone who can whip one up with what's on hand.

Hollah!

No, really though. How and when did this happen? Also, please tell me there is a soup boon occurring because I swear I see homemade soup recipes all around me.

I made this soup recently, I've made about a half dozen times, and Dylan asked me where I got the recipe from. I looked at him and thought long and hard about it. Where did this recipe come from? I looked around. No cookbook, no printout. Just the ordinary mess of prep work gone mad; casings of sausage on the meat cutting board, ends of chopped cabbage rolling about and mingling with carrot bits and pieces. I didn't have a recipe. How quaint.




Now, I can see how those of you who rock this kind of thing all the time may not be amazed. That's fine, I accept that. But I just realized you can make pretzels and wheat thins at home if I wanted to. And somewhere in the past six months I learned how to make soups from scratch with and without a recipe. What, what? Seriously. I did that.



It's all a part of this big transition I'm finding myself going through. My unprocessed food love affair. This recipe does include sausage, spicy delicious Italian sausage, and while I go all organic and buy the good stuff, you can use whatever type of sausage you are comfortable with. I am sure some guru's of unprocessed foods may not be fond of sausage, but the flavors- oh the flavors. Read the ingredients: avoid additives  like nitrates, flavorings, etc. to keep it unprocessed.

This soup is adored in this household. Adored. It's not the prettiest thing to hit the plate, but who the heck cares.



Spicy Sausage Cabbage Soup
serves 4

ingredients

1 lb organic spicy Italian sausage
1/2 head of cabbage, chopped (or more or less depending on your preference)
2 carrots, chopped into 1/4 inch rounds
4 cups vegetable stock

1 tablespoon chopped chives (garnish)



Warm a large soup pot at medium high heat. Start prepping by removing the casings on the sausage (if it came in casings). I make a cut down the inside curve of the sausage and peel back the casing very gently. Then, crumble the sausage into the warm pot and brown for 4-5 minutes. I prefer a good browning, cook to your desired doneness as the sausage will finish cooking in the soup later. Remove the sausage from the pot, but leave the fat in the pan.

Toss in the cabbage and carrots and stir it up to coat the veggies with the fat. Let the flavors combine for 1-2 minutes, then pour the vegetable stock in and bring it to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium and simmer until the vegetables are a bit tender, about 5-6 minutes, and then toss gently place the sausage back in. Let it simmer for another 10-15 minutes, or until the vegetables are tender and the sausage has cooked through. 

The soup is ready to go after the vegetables and sausage are cooked through. I often let it simmer for a bit longer to let all the flavors really combine or serve it the next day as it just gets better after a day. The spicy sausage creates a mild kick and if you are sensitive to spicy foods, substitute any other type of sausage you prefer.

Enjoy!
-m

Leek and Potato Soup

 I plan my meals pretty religiously each week. I buy mostly what we need for each recipe, but sometimes I buy a bag of carrots instead of just the one or two I need. Who doesn't? Seems normal to me. But it means I end up with weird left over things in the fridge and pantry. I almost always have a potato on hand. They have a very distinct odor when they start to go sour, those darn unused potatoes.

That's why, when I decided to make this soup because I had all the necessary goodies on hand, I decided to just use the rest of the stinkin' (well, not literally thank goodness) potatoes. The recipe calls for two, I used three. What's the big deal? It's just one extra potato. Extra heartiness, right?

Then it hits me. I'm thinking of tweaking this recipe, I'm not doing exactly what it says to do. Whoa. That's big for me in the cooking world, or it would have been in 2006.  I'm still such a.. what's the word? I still have a lot to learn. But I'm much more comfortable these days with using what I have to make a meal. That wasn't the case years ago. I would have just let that potato rot.
Because really, what do you do with just one potato?

I like to keep a tidy workspace. Ha! I was planning to freeze the leftovers and had these containers on the counter, it made for easy and clean prepping!

I have noticed the same thing with my running. I have a lot of gadgets and gizmos for running- gps watch, multiple water solutions, a cleverly disguised fanny pack, tons of technical gear. When I first started really running regularly years ago, I thought in order to be a real 'runner person' I would need some serious gear. Stuff. I read the magazines, they said buy the stuff. I read the reviews, I bought some of the stuff.

I love knowing I'm going to puree a soup- pieces cut funky? Who cares!

Now, like with cooking, I'm realizing that you don't need all that extra stuff all the time. I don't have to follow all the directions I hear and read all the time. The recipes. The reviews. The must-haves. The get-nows. I still love my gps watch just like I love my immersion blender, but I'm not taking it on every run.

People cook without recipes, without all this stuff, and they run without all this stuff as well. What exactly have I learned? I'm not really sure. I feel like I need a big moral of the story here, but I'm still figuring it all out. I'm just now noticing the pattern, that I'm relying less on the stuff and more on myself. It's kinda nifty. Sometimes it rocks, and sometimes I use one too many potatoes and make more of a mashed potato and leek thing than a soup. Then I realize I can just add more stock and a bit of milk and voila! Soup once again.

It was about this point, after simmering for 15 minutes, that I realized I'd made a starchy mess. Luckily, it was a delicious starchy mess.

This is one soup I make pretty often, it's pretty classic. I added some mascarpone cheese and whole milk to up the ante a bit and whoa, it didn't go unnoticed. Even with that extra potato heartiness.

Leek and Potato Soup
adapted from one of those cookbooks without an author that I'm unable to find online. What's up with that? 

print this recipe

ingredients

4 tablespoons butter
1 medium onion, chopped
2-3 leeks chopped (whatever you can find or have on hand!)
3 potatoes, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
3 1/2 - 4 cups of vegetable stock
2 tablespoons mascarpone cheese (or cream cheese)
1/3 cup milk
salt and pepper
chives or green onions for garnish


Melt the butter in your big ol' soup pot. Add the onions, leeks and potatoes and cook for 5-7 minutes until they cook through a bit.

Pour in the 3 1/2 cups of stock and bring the mixture to a boil. Turn the heat down and let it simmer for about 15 minutes.

Take the soup off the heat when the veggies are all soft and fabulous. Puree with your preferred method of doing so- immersion blender, blender, whatever you please, then pour it back into the pot and bring the heat to medium low. Add the mascarpone cheese and stir to combine, not that anyone would complain if they got a little chunk of that cheese on their spoon. Add the milk, salt and pepper to taste- as well as any more stock if you desire a thinner soup. Garnish with chives or green onions.

Enjoy!
-m

Cream of Tomato Soup

October Unprocessed was such a success for me. How do I know? Let me explain.

Last weekend, right before my long run, I woke up with a stomach ache and a sore throat. I managed to finish my long run, but the feeling lingered. On Monday, I came home from work and just wanted comfort food. Someone floated the idea that I just get some takeout. Decide what I want, and just go get it. What an idea. The thought hadn't even occurred to me. I had already decided that I was going to make homemade tomato soup and bread. I knew what I wanted, I wanted homemade goodness and I knew that even though I felt crummy and wanted to rest, my effort would be so worth it. And it was. I passed on the 'easy' route, no take out for me. Tomato soup. Homemade bread. Comfort to the max.


See what I mean? Two months ago, I may have taken that offer for take out. Now, better habits are taking over. I'm digging it.

looks like a lot, but I doubled it- keep that in mind!

This tomato soup is so easy to make. I'm completely in love with it.

to prevent curdling when adding the milk? Or to reduce the acidity of tomatoes? Not sure. But it works. Do it.

It takes no time at all, and I'm hoping it freezes well because I just made a double batch and froze a bunch so that next time I come home feeling yucky I can just heat up some goodness.

You know what? Two years ago I would have never made tomato soup. I actually don't even really like tomatoes. But thank goodness I'm realizing that tomatoes can be more than just marinara sauce.

Almost done! Just add the milk..mm creamy..

I have made this soup four times, each time I make it the two of us eat it all. It's that good. Not only is it easy but it's good- I'm serious. This is a new staple. I plan to have this on hand, in the freezer, at all times.

Cream of Tomato Soup
adapted from Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone

ingredients
2 1/2 tablespoons butter
1 small onion, chopped
1 1/2 tsp dried basil
a pinch of ground cloves
2 tablespoons flour
2 15 ounce cans of diced tomatoes in puree (if you can find it in puree, you can also use one large 28 ounce can)
a pinch of baking soda
2 1/2 cups vegetable stock or water
1 1/2 cup milk
salt and pepper
tomato paste (if needed)

Melt the butter in a large pot, then add the onions, basil and cloves and cook until the onion is tender, about 5 minutes. Stir the flour in and then add the tomatoes, baking soda and stock and bring it all to a lovely boil. Bring the heat down and simmer it, slightly covered for 20 minutes. Turn off the heat and let it cool just slightly before you puree the heck out of it. Add the milk and season with salt and pepper. If you want it thinner, add more milk or stock. If the tomato flavor is a little lack luster, add some tomato paste. Serve it hot! Splash some cream in for a rich flavor.

Enjoy!
-m

Barley Soup with Caramelized Onions and Pecorino Cheese

Can you believe October is more than halfway over!? I'm inclined to think it's still August or September here in California.

 We had fall weather not too long ago, maybe two weeks? It rained. It was chilly. I loved it. Today? Today it was 86 degrees outside. 86.

I shouldn't complain. I know that, yadda yadda, but I'm eager to make soups. Very eager. So eager, that I haven't let this disgustingly warm weather (don't mind my opinions. They creep in.) stop me from making some new soups.

 I'm also eager to try using new whole grains.

 Tell me if this ever happens to you. You plan your meals, you make a great grocery list and you head to the store. You walk with determination and drive toward all the delicious items on the list, feeling accomplished with each item you place in your cart and the budget you will most certainly be able to mind. Until, oh yes, you see something glimmering like shiny new jewels on a shelf. An item you, maybe, read about in a recent drool worthy recipe or have been curious to try. So you snatch that bad boy up and toss it in your already too full shopping cart. You unpack it with love and tender care and all the best intentions in the world only to realize that weeks go by and the not-so-newly acquired goods get dusty.

That may or may not be a weekly recurrence in my grocery shopping regime. I decided it was high time to try some of the grains I'd purchased so lovingly not that long ago. The lucky grain this time- barley!

Barley and soups were just made for each other. I just adore barley soups and this one with the fabulous pecorino cheese was just delightful. 

 And guess what? Now I've reinforced my indulgent grocery shopping behavior! Excellent!

Barley Soup with Caramelized Onions and Pecorino Cheese

From Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone by Deborah Madison  (ok, so I’m crazy in love with this cookbook)

Ingredients

¼ cup olive oil

3 onions, diced

2 quarts, 8 cups, vegetable stock

about ½ cup dried porcini mushrooms

2 tablespoons tomato paste

1 tablespoon minced rosemary

1 cup pearl barley, rinsed

1 cup diced celery

2 carrots, diced

salt and pepper

½ cup pecorino cheese

Heat the oil up in a soup pot. Add the onions and cook, covered, on low heat for 40 (yes, 40!) minutes. Put the lid aside, turn up the heat to medium and cook the onions until they are browned. While the onions are cooking, either make some delicious vegetable stock and add the porcinis or if using store bought stock, rehydrate the porcinis in the stock at this point. Take them out of the stock before you strain it, or when they are plump and dice them up.

As soon as the onions are gorgeously browned, add the tomato paste and rosemary. Let these flavors mix and mingle for a few minutes. Now, add the barley, vegetables, diced porcini and stock and bring it all to a boil. Bring the heat down and simmer the soup, covered slightly, until the vegetables and the barley are done. This should take around 25 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste. When you serve it, grate the pecorino on top- it makes all the difference. Don’t skip that step! 

Enjoy!

-m

Creamy Cauliflower Soup

I have been searching for a creamy cauliflower soup ever since I had a delicious, enlightening soup at the California Academy of Sciences. Yes. At a museum type place I had an existential experience with soup. Twice. And I would go again not only for the indoor rain forest or albino reptile but for the cauliflower soup. I broke down this week and instead of racing to San Francisco to get some, I decided to make my own.

The only problem, I couldn't find a recipe that looked good.



So, I winged it. I skimmed through a few recipes, noticed that they sauteed some garlic/onions/cauliflower then cooked the cauliflower in some liquid for a bit before pureeing it. This is one thing I love about cooking, the patterns. Once you figure them out, the world is your oyster. Or, I hope it is because that's what I keep telling myself. Find. The. Patterns.

I knew I wanted to add heavy cream/whole milk because I had some on hand and had to use it before it went bad and my guilt at wasting food and money kicked in. I also knew that thyme would go well and that I wanted to use some lovely shallots. I was hoping to make it using things I had at home, and I think I succeeded!



It is the easiest soup ever, in my honest opinion, and it is so delicious. I'm fantasizing about the leftovers in the freezer, and planning my next big ol' batch. I will thank myself in about two months when I'm exhausted from a day of teaching and I just want something relatively healthy and filling for dinner. :) You are welcome, future me.

(I recognize that this is not the best picture, I'm working on cooking and documenting the experience, but can you see the texture? Does it just look like heaven? Because it is. It really is.)


Creamy Cauliflower Soup

Ingredients

1 tbsp butter
2 shallots, diced
1 head of cauliflower, chopped into florets (or 1-inch pieces really)
4 cups vegetable broth
3 sprigs of thyme
½ cup heavy cream
½ cup milk
salt
pepper

Start by melting the butter in a large pot over medium heat. When the butter is melted add the shallots and cook until translucent, about 4-6 minutes. Toss in the chopped cauliflower, and don’t worry about how the florets look- you are going to blend the heck out of them! Toss with the shallots and cook for a few minutes, just to bring some of the flavors together.

Pour the broth into the pot and toss the thyme on top. Bring the whole shebang to a boil. When it is boiling and bubbling, cover it and turn it down to simmer for about 15-20 minutes or until the cauliflower is tender.

When the cauliflower is tender, turn off the heat, grab the thyme sprigs and throw them out, and blend the soup mixture. I used my immersion blender and it whipped the soup up fast but this could also be done in batches with a regular blender, just be sure to let the heat escape. Then (put it back in the pot if you used a regular blender), mix in the milk and heavy cream and bring the heat back on for a bit and add salt and pepper to taste. Let it warm up on the stove for a few minutes to help the flavors get along and to be sure you have the consistency and taste you desire. Viola! Creamy, satisfying soup.

Enjoy!
-m