Baked Tomato Soup in Potato Pastry Crust

Muthu, many of you might know him from the MMC challenge in my blog, has kindly agreed to guest post today. I have been pretty busy with travel and family visit, so M's request to contribute to my blog was very timely. And so here it is - an interesting and sinfully delicious take on tomato soup. Coming to think of it, this is almost similar to soup in a bread bowl except that a tasty pastry crust is substituted for a bread bowl. I have been drooling over the pictures he sent and I cant wait to try it out in my kitchen and hope you all feel the same way as well.
Though the recipe seems elaborate and with a few too many steps I can assure you it is very easy once the flavored oil and marinated cheese is prepared. Both these steps can be made a few days ahead and refrigerated. If you have marinated cheese leftover, they do make a yummy grilled cheese sandwich. The left over oil after picking out the cheese can be used in other dishes (like a salad dressing, on pasta or making pastry/pizza dough).

Flavored (Herb Infused) Oil and Marinated Cheese
Ingredients
1/2 - 3/4 cup Olive oil
3 tsp Dry Basil
3 Dried red chilies
3 cloves garlic

1/2 cup cubed Mozzarella cheese

Method

1. Pour all of the Olive oil in a heavy bottom saucepan.
2. Add the dried basil, red chilies, and garlic and let the pan simmer in very low heat for about 20 minutes. Take care not to overheat the oil.
3. Set the pan aside to cool to room temperature. Let the oil to rest at least for 3-4 hours. Longer the oil rests and the herbs steep better is the flavor. 
4. Take the cheese cubes in a small bowl. Pour the flavored oil just until the cheese cubes are well immersed in the oil. 
5. It is all right if the dried basil goes along. Leave the garlic and chili in the oil.
6. Let the cheese marinate in the oil for atleast 2-3 hours.
7. If you don't have atleast 4-5 tbsp of olive oil left over, make some more of the oil using the same method.

Potato Pastry Crust and Tomato Soup
Ingredients
1/2 cup Pastry flour or All purpose flour
1/2 tsp Baking soda
1/2 tsp Baking powder
2 Potatoes, medium

1/2 Medium size Onion, thinly sliced or julienne
3 Medium size Tomatoes
1 bay leaf
1tsp sugar
1/4 cup red wine (preferably Cabernet Sauvignon or Merlot)
Salt to taste

Method
Crust -

1. Peel and boil the potatoes till they become soft.
2. While it is still hot mash the potatoes using a fork and let it cool.
3. Add the pastry flour or all purpose flour, baking soda, baking powder and appropriate amount of salt and 2-3 tbsp of the flavored Olive oil without garlic and chillies.
4. Mix it well till it forms into a soft dough. Cover and set it aside to rest.

Soup -

1. Blanch the tomatoes and peel the skin.
2. Filter the olive oil so that all basil is removed.
3. In a pan add the remaining flavored olive oil (or about 2-3 tbsp) and just the garlic and red chillies.
4. Saute the onion till it is caramelized.
5. Crush the blanched tomatoes into smaller pieces by hand and add them to the onion.
6. Add the bay leaf and let the mixture simmer.
7. Once the mixture comes together, take the pan off the heat and let it cool.
8. Take the garlic, chilies and bay leaf off the mixture and set it aside.
9. Blend the mixture in a blender and pour it back in the pan. Let it simmer in low heat for a few minutes.
10. Now add wine to the mixture. The quantity of wine should be approximately equal to 1/5 of the mixture. A cherry or plum wine goes well here. If you do not want to add wine, add a pinch of baking soda to cut the acid in tomatoes.
11. Add sugar, salt (adjust seasoning) and let the mixture simmer till the wine smell disappears.

Assembly -

1. Preheat the oven to 375 deg F.
2. Coat the sides of 2 ramekins with olive oil.
3. Split the pastry dough into 2 halves and roll them into balls. Place it in the center of the ramekin and hand press it till the dough is evenly spread on the base and sides of the ramekin, like a pie shell.
4. Cut a parchment paper to a size slightly bigger than the ramekin. Keep the parchment paper inside the ramekin and add any grain(rice, wheat)/dry bean/lentil as weight. Do not use ingredients like coffee bean as the flavor of coffee will interfere with food.
5. Keep the ramekins in the oven at 375 deg F for about 40 minutes or till the edges of the dough in the ramekin browns. You might hear occasional popping sounds of the bean as the dough expands. Keep an eye on the oven to ensure that the beans do not spill/burn inside the oven.
6. Once the dough has browned enough and looks crispy, take the ramekins out (remove the parchment paper along with bean).
7. Fill the ramekin with the tomato soup mixture and scatter 3-4 cubes of flavored mozzarella cheese into each soup filled ramekin.
8. Return it to the oven for another 5-10 minutes or till the cheese melts.
9. The soup is ready to be served.

Enjoy !!

Fall Vegetable Soup

We had a lovely thanksgiving this year, with unseasonably warm weather and enjoyable company. As always its also a holiday to indulge in the fall bounties and so we did. Here's a few pictures from our Thanksgiving dinner. After all the rich food over the weekend, "cyber Monday" is "lean" Monday in our household. I usually end up having a good number of vegetables leftover from the big dinner. This year I had some squash, one sweet potato, corn etc which I put to good use by making this fall vegetable soup. The ingredient that makes this soup a bit different from the ordinary is the use of apple cider. I made some mulled cider and had a few cups of unsweetened cider leftover. Used that instead of the vegetable stock to get the tang and the sweet aromatic flavor of the apple. The outcome was a pretty filling yet light enough kind of a soup to start the detox regime post-thanksgiving :-)

Notes:

• Any combination of fall vegetables will work. Feel free to substitute with other fall vegetables like turnip, pumpkin etc.
• The vegetables can be diced large or small as long as they are evenly sized.

Ingredients

Butternut squash - 1 cup diced
1 Sweet potato diced
1 Medium Potato, diced
2 carrots, diced
1 medium red onion. finely chopped
2 tomatoes, diced
1 cup corn kernels (fresh or frozen, thawed)
1 tsp ginger minced
1 clove of garlic minced
3-4 leaves of fresh basil, finely chopped
1/2 tsp cayenne powder
1/2 tsp smoked paprika
1 tsp cumin powder
2 cups apple cider, unsweetened
2 tbsp olive oil
Salt, to taste

Method

1. Heat 2 tbsp olive oil in a big pot. Add onions, ginger and garlic. Saute till the onions are translucent. 
2. Add the chopped vegetables except corn kernels and saute for 2 minutes. 
3. Now add the spices (cayenne, paprika, basil, cumin powder and salt). Saute for 2 more minutes. 
4. Now add 2 cups of apple cider and one cup of water. 
5. Cover and simmer over medium flame. Add more water to get the consistency you like. I added 4 cups water in total. 
6. After the vegetables are cooked tender but not falling apart (about 15 min or so), add corn kernels, taste, adjust seasoning.
7. Cook for 2-3 minutes until the corn is tender. 
8. Serve hot with some rustic bread on the side. 

Enjoy !!

Vegetarian Black Bean Chili

Its been pretty hectic and fun times training and playing with Tipoo. Guess you guys have to put up with my Tipoo tales for a few weeks now, what with every single one being eventful - happy for most part and really tiring at the end of the day !! For much of the day I am the primary care-taker and am I glad that puppies sleep a lot. But once he wakes up I am running around behind him either playing with him or making sure he doesnt chew everything he finds in his way. By 6 PM both of us are eagerly waiting for my husband to come home, so he will relieve me of the running around :-) If he gets delayed at work for some reason, then I have a crazy puppy on my hands. All those walks and playing fetch saves our day. And its a sight to see Tipoo welcoming my husband home from work. I fade into the back ground for sometime until the two boys have had their little "reunion" :-)

After such a busy day, I rarely have the energy or enthusiasm to cook elaborate dinner. I prefer one pot meals that is both easy on the time and makes a complete dinner. Most of my leisurely cooking now-a-days have been relegated to the weekends when my husband takes complete care of the little guy.


Anyway, coming to today's recipe, I have been planning to make chili for a long time now. Finally I did make some a few weeks ago and it came out very good. There are a lot of different recipes for vegetarian chili and as always I have taken ideas from few different recipes to make one that best suits our taste. I think the addition of bulgur is what gives the texture and body to the recipe. This is a wholesome and healthy one pot recipe since it has everything you need to make a complete meal.

Notes:

1. A combination of black beans and red kidney beans works very well for this recipe.
2. If using fresh beans, soak it overnight and cook it till its done but still firm.
   
3. Use Jalapeno sparingly, I did go a bit overboard and my chili turned out a bit spicier than what I would have liked.
4. I havent included celery in my recipe but if you have it on hand you can surely use it for the added flavor.
5. Bulgur makes the soup to be a bit on the thicker side. So adjust the quantity according to the final consistency you'd like to have.

Ingredients
1 14oz can Black beans
1/4 cup bulgur
1 yellow onion, finely chopped
1 green bell pepper, finely chopped
1 medium carrot, finely chopped
2 zucchini, chopped
1 14oz can diced tomatoes
2 tbsp tomato paste
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 jalapeno, finely chopped (adjust as per heat)
2 tsp chili powder
2 tsp paprika
2 tbsp cumin powder
1/2 tbsp coriander powder
2 tbsp molasses
2 tsp oregano
2 tbsp olive oil
3-4 cups water or vegetable stock (or as required)

Garnish:
Sour cream
Monterey Jack or mexican blend cheese
cilantro

Method

1. Heat oil in a large heavy-bottom sauce pan or a dutch oven. Add onion, garlic and jalapeno.
2. Saute it for a few minutes until onions turns brown, almost 4-5 minutes.
3. Now add carrots (and celery if using). Saute it for 2 minutes.
4. Add bell pepper, zucchini, tomatoes and tomato paste. Saute it well until the tomatoes are well cooked. It takes about 5 minutes or so.
5. Now add all the spices, starting from chili powder to oregano. Add bulgur and stir well.
6. Let it cook for 2 minutes and then add water starting with 2 cups.
7. Bring this to a boil, close with a lid and let the soup cook for 15 minutes or so.
8. Keep a close watch to make sure it has enough water. Add more water as the chili cooks as necessary.
9. Finally add salt, adjust seasoning and spices.
10. Allow it to boil for 5 more minutes or until done.
11. Ladle it in a bowl, garnish with cilantro, sour cream and cheese.
12. Serve with corn bread on the side.

Enjoy !!

MMC: Ingredient 1 - Fennel

Here's my first MMC challenge - fennel

Fennel & Carrot Soup

Fennel is good for health in many ways and as we Indians know, is a good palate cleanser and is very good for digestion. A quick google search gives a whole slew of websites packed with helpful healthful info on fennel. I wanted to bring out the natural goodness of fennel yet didnt want it to be overpowering. Hence, I paired it with carrots and kept the flavorings to the minimum. This is a extremely simple soup that contains ingredients that are easily available and one that you'd most likely have in your pantry. What better way to start a dinner...


Note:

1. Wash and cut the stem/fronds off the fennel bulb (Save a tsp of fronds to garnish before you discard them). Quarter it and remove the hard center part (core). Dice each quarter into half, you will end up with eight pieces.
2. I find it very easy to use my oven to roast veggies, 'coz this gives me whole a half-hour to do a bunch of other things. If you do not have an oven or dont want to use it for some reason, no problemo. Just saute the veggies on the stove top and let it brown a bit, then continue with step 4.
   
3. I have used frozen corn in my recipe. My husband who usually does the taste testing for my recipes thought corn would make a great addition. So I incorporated his suggestion. Corn has a tendency to thicken the soup. If you'd prefer a thinner version, I would suggest adding the corn kernels (thawed) at the final step as a garnish and NOT blend it with the roasted veggies (step 4).
4. Avoid sour cream/yogurt for a vegan version of this recipe.
   

Ingredients:
1 big fennel bulb, (cut into 8 pieces)
2 carrots, diced
1/4 cup white onions, sliced
1 clove garlic
1 tsp thyme (fresh or dried)
2 tbsp frozen corn kernel, thawed (see note)
2 tsp black pepper powder
salt, pepper to taste
1 - 1 1/2 cups water or vegetable stock
2 tbsp olive oil
Lime juice from one small lime
1-2 tbsp sour cream/yogurt/greek yogurt (optional)
1 tsp fennel fronds (optional)

Method:

1. Pre-heat oven to 450-500F.
2. Take 2 tbsp of olive oil in a bowl, add carrot, fennel, onion and garlic. Sprinkle some salt, thyme and black pepper. Mix well.
3. Roast this in a sheet pan for 30 - 40 min or until tender, just beginning to brown at the edges.
4. Allow it to cool a bit. Blend the roasted vegetables with corn and 1 cup stock/water. For a thinner soup increase the amount of liquid you use.
5. Adjust salt and pepper as per taste. Add lime juice (add more or less of the lime juice depending on the sourness you'd like).
6. Garnish with a few drops of olive oil, fennel fronds and sour cream. Serve warm.

This will be my entry to the "Healthy Inspirations event - soup" hosted by Usha.

MMC judge has spoken !!! Click here for the result.

Enjoy !!

Sol Kadi (Coconut milk and kokum gravy)

Sol kadi is a konkani dish made out of coconut milk, kokum and cilantro. This makes a complete meal when served along with rice or khichdi. A thinner version of this dish makes a very good soup. There are a few different ways of making this dish and the recipe I follow is from one of my friends who got it from her mom.

My love affair with sol kadi started almost 7 yrs ago when my friend introduced me to this tasty concoction. It was our first year in grad school, all of us students trying to live & learn together, far away from our family and taking care of way too many things than what we thought we had signed up for. On one of our very busy weekday, when we were craving for some comfort food, my friend served us sol kadi with khichdi. Her mom used to make it with coconut milk extracted out of coconut and a paste made of cilantro and green chillies. But here we were, pressed for time and with a ill-equiped kitchen. She made do with a bottle of the cilantro chutney that you get in the Indian store and canned coconut milk. And for the rest of the evening we forgot all our troubles and were licking the pot clean :-)

Now that I have graduated in more than one way, with a better kitchen: I grind my own masala with cilantro though I still seek the comfort of using coconut milk from the can. Kokum is very easily available in most of the Indian grocery stores. Kokum imparts the sour flavor to the dish. You can extract its juice by soaking it in warm water. However, I add Kokum directly to the Kadi and it does taste yummy with all the coconuty goodness. Wash the Kokum well to get rid of the dirt that is normally found in the store bought ones. If you like coconut/coconut milk you will love this dish and it is unbelievable that a dish this simple can taste so yummy....

Ingredients
1 can coconut milk
5-8 kokum pieces
4 green chillies
1 medium bunch cilantro/coriander leaves
1 clove garlic
1/4 inch ginger
salt to taste
1 tsp jeera
2 tsp oil

Method

1. Grind chillies, garlic, ginger and cilantro into a smooth paste. Set aside.
2. Heat oil in a pan, add jeera and when it starts to splutter add the ground paste.
3. Saute for 2-3 min and then add kokum.
4. Now add coconut milk and allow it to cook for a few min (3-4 min).
5. Adjust seasoning and turn off the heat.

Serve with plain rice or khichidi.

To make a lighter version for soup, dilute half a can of coconut milk with half a cup water.

Enjoy !!

Curried Tomato Soup

This particular recipe is adapted from Mark Bittman's Curried Carrot soup that appeared in his Bitten column in NYTimes. I am a huge fan of Mark Bittman, I love his show on PBS , his column Bitten in NYT and also his book "How to Cook Everything Vegetarian". And the book, it' s a bible..no - encyclopedia...oh well... I'll just say its one of the most resourceful books yet in my collection. I have never made a recipe exactly as given in his book but I have used them as a foundation to build my own version. And the result has always been wonderful... Speaking about Bittman, I cant wait to watch the show on PBS "Spain...On the Road Again". Looks like it will be a good show given that it has Mario Batali as well who is yet another of my fav TV chefs .....

Coming back to the soup...the great thing about this soup is that it is simple as well as light. Soup has become an integral part of our eating lifestyle. After a weekend of overloading the digestive system, Mondays are the perfect day to stick to a simple meal of hot soup. It doesn't take too long to cook a pot of soup and what better way to ease into the next few days of grinding work.

To make this soup really light go easy on the coconut milk. I have used half a can, which gives a good flavor without inducing a heaviness to the dish. But if you like the soup to be really heavy on the coconut flavor, go ahead and add a little more....

Ingredients:

3 tsp olive oil
1 small onion, roughly chopped
10-15 cherry tomatoes or 5-6 medium sized tomatoes
1 clove garlic
1" piece ginger, grated
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp turmeric
1 tsp coriander seeds
1 tsp cayenne pepper, or as required
1 cup vegetable stock or water
1/2 can coconut milk or even less if you prefer
Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
Cilantro (optional)


Method:

1. Heat oil in a large pan, add cumin seeds, coriander seeds, diced chopped onions, garlic, ginger, cook until softened, about 5 minutes.
2. Add tomatoes, turmeric, salt and let it cook until tomatoes are well cooked.
3. Add cayenne pepper, stock and let it boil 10 min or so. Now add coconut milk.
4. Allow the mixture to cool and puree it in a blender or food processor. Adjust the consistency of the soup by adding more stock.
5. Boil the pureed soup for 5 more minutes, adjust salt and pepper as per taste.
6. Garnish with cilantro and serve.

Another version of this soup is to substitute the coconut milk with buttermilk. This version is a bit tangy but still yummy.

And this week's recipe is my entry to the "WYF:Salad/starter/soup" event hosted by EC of Simple Indian Food blog.

Happy Slurping :-)