Moroccan Carrot Soup

I made this recipe from Bon Appetit last night and it was great. It was probably not the best idea to make it on the hottest day of the year so far, but the results were worth my sweat. Also, I wouldn't exactly call it a "quick" recipe. Maybe a "moderate amount of time" recipe.




Moroccan Carrot Soup

Ingredients

2 tablespoons (1/4 stick) butter
1 cup chopped white onion
1 pound large carrots, peeled, cut into 1/2-inch dice (about 2 2/3 cups)
2 1/2 cups low-salt chicken broth
1 1/2 teaspoons cumin seeds
1 tablespoon honey
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
1/8 teaspoon ground allspice
red pepper to taste
1/2 cup plain yogurt, stirred to loosen


Preparation

Melt butter in large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add onion; sauté 2 minutes. Mix in carrots. Add broth; bring to boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer until carrots are very tender, about 20 minutes.

Stir cumin seeds in small skillet over medium-high heat until fragrant, 4 to 5 minutes; cool. Finely grind--you can do so in a spice mill or with a mortar and pestle like I did. Bon Appetit also recommends that you can seal the seeds in a heavy-duty resealable plastic bag, and use the flat side of a meat mallet or a heavy-duty metal rolling pin to pulverize them.

Remove soup from heat. Puree in batches in blender until smooth. Return to same pan. Whisk in honey, lemon juice, and allspice. Season with salt and pepper. The original recipe does not call for red pepper, but when I make it again, I will add it. A little heat would make it just perfect.

Ladle soup into bowls. Drizzle yogurt over; sprinkle generously with cumin.

The Squeaky Bean

B and I recently had one of the most fun nights out we've had in a long time, with a night out with another couple at The Squeaky Bean. L and I met the guys (our husbands) there. It was loud and packed and they were waiting at the bar and VERY happy that they were drinking "Man Beer," which is a beer from Bull and Bush. When you order, make sure you do so in a very manly voice.



I ordered a "Squeaky Spritz," which consists of Prosecco, Aperol Italian Aperitivo Liqueur, Rocky Mountain Sparkling Water, and is garnished with a Castelvetrano olive. I had to get it because it sounded like such an odd combination withe the olive. It looks like an orange pop (although this pic looks red)--pretty much the color of that nasty orange drink from McDonalds that you used to get in the big yellow and red jugs. Ick. But it was surprisingly refreshing and not too sweet--just the way I like my cocktails. I'd venture to say it's one of my new favorite cocktails, but unfortunately one I probably won't try to recreate at home, due to the unique ingredients. And the olive just...works. Weird. I got the photo to the left from a nice photo essay on The Squeaky Bean from Metromix.






We started off with the Pig Platter and the fonduta. Seriously, how can you go wrong with something called a "pig platter?" And it is served on the cutest wooden pig tray ever. Basically, it was an assortment of cured pork (duh).










The fonduta was made out of gruyere and pureed potato and was served with grilled bread. Decadent and delicious! I could bathe in the stuff. Seriously.










After we got a table we ordered the crispy medjool dates with cambazola and prosciutto--always a crowd pleaser. We also got the burrata, which comes with butternut squash agro-dulce, micro fennel, and grilled bread. This was the only "disappointment" of the evening and it really was quite good. It just didn't stand up to the other dishes. (Plus I'm totally spoiled by Osteria Marco's burrata and should know better than to order it anywhere else).

We also got the roasted cauliflower salad with medjool dates, smoked trout, curry vinaigrette, and parsley coulis. I would never think to order this, if it hadn't been for this post from Denveater. Please go there to see a gorgeous pic of this amazing dish. Cauliflower is just not something that usually interests me particularly. I have nothing against it. This salad elevated cauliflower to a higher level. Although, I suppose if you mix just about any vegetable with medjool dates, smoked trout, curry vinaigrette, and parsley coulis it's going to be amazing, right?

After so many small plates, we got just two entrees to share between the four of us. By this time (ie., after several Squeaky Spritzes--and let's not even talk about the boys and their Man Beers), I wasn't taking pics and not paying attention to the details of the menu, but one had pork belly and one had kobe beef. The pork belly was awesome and the kobe wasn't my favorite as the sauce was really salty. I seem to recall there being a lot of mint and peas on the dishes, since SB focuses on seasonal ingredients. In fact, I swear I could still taste peas the next day. Plus I was ridiculously full all day the next day too!

At some point in the evening I also tried the Tejon Fizz cocktail, which our server described as tasting just like a gummy bear. It's made of Van Gogh pineapple vodka, muddled cardamom pods, fresh lemon juice, a whisper of agave nectar, and club soda. It was definitely sweet and a little too sweet for me. Plus I just liked that Squeaky Spritz so damn much...

I did not see the kitchen, but I've heard that it is very tiny and has only one convection oven. How they put out so many incredible dishes is truly a feat. This is now one of our favorite places in town. Can't wait to go back!

Making the Most of Your CSA Bounty

Here's a good article from Serious Eats on making the most of all the wonderful fruits and veggies you get from your CSA.

You can find a CSA here. If you're not familiar with the term, a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) is where you buy "shares" of a farmer's crop and get a weekly box of whatever produce they have available. I currently do something like a CSA with Door to Door Organics. I'd prefer to do a CSA, but I need that home delivery with our hectic lifestyle. I love getting that weekly box of fruits and veggies, but sometimes they can be overwhelming and I hate hate hate letting stuff go to waste. So the above article has some common sense, but still useful tips.

If anybody knows of a local CSA that delivers and I don't have to pick up the box, let me know!

Ruth Reichl Cancelled

Her Boulder book store and Denver Tattered Cover readings are cancelled. Apparently she broke her foot. Now I have no excuse to not go to the Cub Scout Pack meeting. :-(

Another Reason to Love Asparagus

Eat Asparagus to Prevent a Hangover

My favorite way to eat asaparagus is to brush it with pesto and grill it.

Orecchiette with Rapini, Sausage, and Garlic Crumbs

Orecchiette with Rapini, Sausage, and Garlic Crumbs

This dish was a huge hit in our house!

I get a weekly delivery from Door to Door Organics, a company that delivers organic food to your house. It's kind of like a CSA, but of course, in the winter, you're not getting much local food. They do try to do local as much as possible. It's fun to try cooking with new vegetables. This last week I got rapini or broccoli rabe, which I've eaten but never cooked with before. I searched the internet and found this recipe, which is going to stay on our regular menu rotation.

For garlic crumbs:

2 cups fresh (not dry) breadcrumbs (made from approximately 5 slices bread)
2 cloves garlic, finely minced
3 Tablespoons olive oil

For meat sauce:

4 sweet or mild Italian sausages, casings removed
1 Tablespoon olive oil
1 clove garlic, chopped
½ to 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes, to taste
1 bunch (about 1 lb. / 450 grams) blanched rapini, chopped into 2" pieces
Salt and fresh ground pepper, to taste
½ cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
1 (500 g) package orecchiette or penne

To make garlic crumbs:

Heat olive oil in a skillet. Add garlic and sauté on medium heat for about 20 seconds. Add breadcrumbs and stir until all crumbs are coated with oil.
Sauté crumbs on medium heat, watching carefully, until they turn brown and crisp. Remove from pan and set aside. Crumbs can be made in advance and kept in a dry, covered container.

To blanch the rapini:

Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Boil rapini for 4 minutes and drain. Plunge rapini immediately into a bowl of ice water to stop cooking.

To make meat sauce:

In a deep skillet, heat olive oil. Add garlic and red pepper flakes and sauté on medium heat for about 25 seconds. Add sausage meat and break meat up with a spatula or spoon.
Cook sausage meat until browned and cooked through. Add blanched rapini to the pan and sauté for about 2 minutes.
While meat is browning, cook pasta according to package instructions. Drain, reserving 2 Tablespoons of the cooking water.
Add drained pasta to the meat and rapini mixture and reserved pasta water. Stir together until all ingredients are evenly combined. Add garlic crumbs to pasta and toss to coat. Add a drizzle of olive oil if the pasta seems dry.
Season with salt and pepper and serve with grated parmesan cheese.

This made quite a lot, so at first I added only half of the bread crumbs to half of the pasta. That way the breadcrumbs didn't get soggy for leftovers.

Chicken Sausage, Sweet Onion, and Fennel Pizza

This pizza was the bomb! Even my 6 year old loved it (we won't talk about the 8 year old, who didn't try it. But that was good because it left more for the rest of us). It also proved to my husband that fennel bulb tastes different than fennel seed--not so licorice-y. (See, honey? I'm always right.)

We served it with a nice salad and it made a perfect week night quick meal.

Chicken Sausage, Sweet Onion, and Fennel Pizza

Ingredients
3 ounces chicken apple sausage, chopped
2 teaspoons olive oil
1 1/2 cups vertically sliced Oso Sweet or other sweet onion
1 cup thinly sliced fennel bulb (about 1 small bulb)
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 (12-ounce) prebaked pizza crust
3/4 cup (3 ounces) shredded Gouda cheese
1 tablespoon chopped fresh chives

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 450°.

2. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add sausage to pan; sauté 4 minutes or until browned, stirring occasionally. Remove from pan.

3. Add oil to pan. Add onion, fennel, and salt; cover and cook 10 minutes or until tender and lightly browned, stirring occasionally.

4. Place pizza crust on a baking sheet. Top evenly with onion mixture; sprinkle with cheese, and top evenly with sausage. Bake at 450° for 12 minutes or until cheese melts. Sprinkle evenly with chives. Cut pizza into 8 wedges.