Ever. In the history of all soups.
I made this for my monthly Supper Club when the theme was....secret ingredient, gourds! (Iron Chef style).
Ingredients:
4 cups (1-inch) cubed peeled butternut squash (about 1 1/2 pounds)
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/4 teaspoon salt
4 large shallots, peeled and halved
1 (1/2-inch) piece peeled fresh ginger, thinly sliced
2 1/2 cups fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
2 tablespoons (1-inch) slices fresh chives
Cracked black pepper (optional)
My notes on the ingredients:
4 cups of cubed squash equals about one medium sized squash (the weigh listed above, 1 1/2 pounds, I've found to be fairly accurate).
I've made this soup both with and without the ginger, it tastes fine either way. If you have all the other ingredients, don't kill yourself making a trip just for the ginger. On that note you could also probably use onion and garlic to get the same effect as shallots, but I personally really like them in this recipe and wouldn't sub them out.
The recipe, made as outlined above, has more of a puree consistency...if you want it thinner, add more broth during the blender portion of the recipe. Also, I'd recommend low-sodium broth since you're already adding some salt (I used sea salt). It just allows you to control the salt level/taste of your dish a little more.
I did not use chives, as I generally do not believe in garnishes (read-I am too cheap to buy ingredients to make garnishes).
Recipe:
1. Preheat oven to 375°.
2. Combine first 5 ingredients in a roasting pan or jelly-roll pan; toss well. Bake at 375° for 50 minutes or until tender, stirring occasionally. Cool 10 minutes.
3. Place half of squash mixture and half of broth in a blender. Remove center piece of blender lid (to allow steam to escape); secure blender lid on blender. Place a clean towel over opening in blender lid (to avoid splatters). Blend until smooth. Pour into a large saucepan. Repeat procedure with remaining squash mixture and broth. Cook over medium heat 5 minutes or until thoroughly heated. Top with chives and pepper, if desired.
My notes on the recipe:
So, what no one ever tells you (shocking, considering how often you discuss gourds, right?) is that peeling and cubing a butternut squash...not that easy. There are really two layers you need to peel off. The first is the actual outer skin, and of course it's pretty obvious that you don't want to eat that. You then need to go back and do a second peel to remove that layer with the thin, semi-translucent green veins. Help yourself out and try to get the most uniformly-shaped squash you can at the grocery or farmer's market. Those curvy squashes are prettier (and, I'm told, can be decorated to resemble geese, so that's exciting) but their unusual shape makes it tough to get your little veggie peeler angled correctly. Then again I'm also using what I assume to be a carrot peeler, so perhaps that's my problem...
Now that you've spent 30 minutes peeling your squash (worth it), you need a really big knife to begin cubing. The center is softer and has seeds, so be advised...if you're leaning your entire body weight on the knife because you lack upper body strength, you're going to get about half way through the squash and feel it give substantially. Don't fall over.
Be careful not to overcook the squash...if it gets too done (read-burnt) in the oven, it will alter the taste of your soup. If you're like me and decide to increase the temperature from 375 because you're impatient, make sure you're watching the oven closely.
Definitely use the paper towel over the blender (explained in recipe), and increase the blender speed gradually. That's probably pretty obvious, but once or twice I've started out the blender on the highest speed (see comment above re: my impatience), and trust me, not an overall time saver because with the time you've saved blending you'll be scraping a lovely orange Jackson Pollack off of your kitchen walls.
Otherwise, it's a fairly simple and straightforward recipe--enjoy!
Showing posts with label Cooking. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Cooking. Show all posts
Tuesday, November 23, 2010
Monday, November 22, 2010
What I'm Eating Now--The Pre-Vacation Fridge Cleaning Quiche
There comes a certain time of the year, a time when you have to travel for the holidays but realize that--lacking foresight--you bought an unreasonable amount of vegetables that will not last in your refrigerator for a week. Drats.
So, I thought I would share one of my favorite "fridge-clearing" recipes with you.
Zucchini, Bacon and Gruyere Quiche (adapted recipe from Epicurious)
Ingredients
1 (9-inch) refrigerated pie dough round (from a 15-oz package)
1/4 lb sliced bacon, coarsely chopped
2 medium zucchini (3/4 lb total), halved lengthwise, then cut crosswise into 1/8-inch-thick slices
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup heavy cream
3/4 cup whole milk
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
3 large eggs
2 oz Gruyère, coarsely grated (1 cup)
My notes on the ingredients:
I omitted heavy cream and instead doubled the amount of whole milk. I thought the consistency turned out great, and the overall recipe was slightly healthier than it would have been had I used the cream.
You could easily swap out the type of meat and veggies you use. I've made variations on this recipe with yellow squash, caramelized onions, mushrooms, Canadian bacon, or even entirely without bacon. Like I said, it's a good fridge cleaning option...between the buttery pie dough and the cheese, almost anything would taste good thrown into this dish.
Yes, there are only 3 eggs. I know that doesn't seem like enough. Trust me, it is. See my note below re: this is a really full quiche and you will probably spill it.
A note on cheese--I was disappointed at how expensive Gruyere cheese was at my local Safeway. The first time I made this recipe, I think I paid a whopping $7 or $8 for cheese alone. You can, it should be said, use another kind of less expensive cheese (especially if you dislike Gruyere). But I actually had good results finding cheap cheese while perusing my local Whole Foods, shockingly enough. If you can take the time to brave their monumental lines, I'd highly recommend it. I was able to pay only $3.50 for arguably better quality Gruyere, in part because the recipe calls for so little (1 cup).
And Now, the Recipe:
Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 450°F.
Fit pie dough into pie plate and lightly prick all over. Bake according to package instructions, then transfer crust in pie plate to a rack.
Reduce oven temperature to 350°F.
While crust bakes, cook bacon in a 12-inch heavy skillet over moderately high heat, stirring occasionally, until just crisp, about 6 minutes. Transfer bacon with a slotted spoon to a paper-towel-lined plate, reserving fat in skillet.
Add zucchini and 1/4 teaspoon salt to fat in skillet and sauté over moderately high heat, stirring frequently, until zucchini is tender and starting to brown, about 5 minutes, then transfer with slotted spoon to a plate.
Heat cream, milk, pepper, and remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt in a 1- to 2-quart saucepan until mixture reaches a bare simmer, then remove from heat.
Whisk together eggs in a large heatproof bowl, then gradually whisk in hot cream mixture until combined. Stir in bacon, zucchini, and cheese and pour into pie crust. Bake until filling is just set, 25 to 30 minutes. Transfer quiche in pan to rack to cool slightly, about 20 minutes.
My notes on the recipe:
There was a decent amount of debate on the discussion board at Epicurious re: pre-baking or blind-baking the crust. Trust me--bake it slightly first. I've tried both ways, and if you haven't pre-baked it for a few minutes it will end up soggy. I once cooked the quiche for an extra 30-minutes in an attempt to firm up the soggy crust, but to no avail.
The recipe above instructs you to mix the zucchini and bacon into the egg/cheese mixture. When I tried this, it was sort of a disaster. I have have much better results putting the solid ingredients into the crust and pouring the egg and cheese mixture over them. Disclaimer...you won't end up with a nice strata of ingredients, but there is so much less mess. If you really want the strata, maybe try mixing half the solid ingredients into the egg and cheese mixture, and arranging half in the crust before pouring.
Before you pour the egg and cheese mixture, examine the perimeter of your crust and reinforce as needed. Trust me. There is nothing worse than pouring in your egg and cheese mixture only to find that one edge of your crust is compromised and you're trying to put your fingers in the dyke before egg spills out onto your entire counter top. And then you're wondering whether those Seventh Generation cleaning productions you purchased in a fit of greenness will kill salmonella...
NB: This recipe makes for a pretty full quiche. You should pour the mixture in when the crust is as close as possible to your oven, to prevent a precarious transfer from counter top to oven. See note above re: spilling egg all over your counter top.
Finally, a very important thing to emphasize. Let the quiche sit for at least 20 minutes, per the recipe, before you cut it. It will be baked all the way through, but it needs some time to set. Like with scrambled eggs, the egg mixture is still firming up even after you've removed it from the heat. If you cut it too soon, some eggy veggie juice will seep out while you're not looking and form a film where the removed piece once lay. Not only does it look marginally unappetizing, but you just dried out the remaining quiche. Fail.
So, I thought I would share one of my favorite "fridge-clearing" recipes with you.
Zucchini, Bacon and Gruyere Quiche (adapted recipe from Epicurious)
Ingredients
1 (9-inch) refrigerated pie dough round (from a 15-oz package)
1/4 lb sliced bacon, coarsely chopped
2 medium zucchini (3/4 lb total), halved lengthwise, then cut crosswise into 1/8-inch-thick slices
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup heavy cream
3/4 cup whole milk
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
3 large eggs
2 oz Gruyère, coarsely grated (1 cup)
My notes on the ingredients:
I omitted heavy cream and instead doubled the amount of whole milk. I thought the consistency turned out great, and the overall recipe was slightly healthier than it would have been had I used the cream.
You could easily swap out the type of meat and veggies you use. I've made variations on this recipe with yellow squash, caramelized onions, mushrooms, Canadian bacon, or even entirely without bacon. Like I said, it's a good fridge cleaning option...between the buttery pie dough and the cheese, almost anything would taste good thrown into this dish.
Yes, there are only 3 eggs. I know that doesn't seem like enough. Trust me, it is. See my note below re: this is a really full quiche and you will probably spill it.
A note on cheese--I was disappointed at how expensive Gruyere cheese was at my local Safeway. The first time I made this recipe, I think I paid a whopping $7 or $8 for cheese alone. You can, it should be said, use another kind of less expensive cheese (especially if you dislike Gruyere). But I actually had good results finding cheap cheese while perusing my local Whole Foods, shockingly enough. If you can take the time to brave their monumental lines, I'd highly recommend it. I was able to pay only $3.50 for arguably better quality Gruyere, in part because the recipe calls for so little (1 cup).
And Now, the Recipe:
Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 450°F.
Fit pie dough into pie plate and lightly prick all over. Bake according to package instructions, then transfer crust in pie plate to a rack.
Reduce oven temperature to 350°F.
While crust bakes, cook bacon in a 12-inch heavy skillet over moderately high heat, stirring occasionally, until just crisp, about 6 minutes. Transfer bacon with a slotted spoon to a paper-towel-lined plate, reserving fat in skillet.
Add zucchini and 1/4 teaspoon salt to fat in skillet and sauté over moderately high heat, stirring frequently, until zucchini is tender and starting to brown, about 5 minutes, then transfer with slotted spoon to a plate.
Heat cream, milk, pepper, and remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt in a 1- to 2-quart saucepan until mixture reaches a bare simmer, then remove from heat.
Whisk together eggs in a large heatproof bowl, then gradually whisk in hot cream mixture until combined. Stir in bacon, zucchini, and cheese and pour into pie crust. Bake until filling is just set, 25 to 30 minutes. Transfer quiche in pan to rack to cool slightly, about 20 minutes.
My notes on the recipe:
There was a decent amount of debate on the discussion board at Epicurious re: pre-baking or blind-baking the crust. Trust me--bake it slightly first. I've tried both ways, and if you haven't pre-baked it for a few minutes it will end up soggy. I once cooked the quiche for an extra 30-minutes in an attempt to firm up the soggy crust, but to no avail.
The recipe above instructs you to mix the zucchini and bacon into the egg/cheese mixture. When I tried this, it was sort of a disaster. I have have much better results putting the solid ingredients into the crust and pouring the egg and cheese mixture over them. Disclaimer...you won't end up with a nice strata of ingredients, but there is so much less mess. If you really want the strata, maybe try mixing half the solid ingredients into the egg and cheese mixture, and arranging half in the crust before pouring.
Before you pour the egg and cheese mixture, examine the perimeter of your crust and reinforce as needed. Trust me. There is nothing worse than pouring in your egg and cheese mixture only to find that one edge of your crust is compromised and you're trying to put your fingers in the dyke before egg spills out onto your entire counter top. And then you're wondering whether those Seventh Generation cleaning productions you purchased in a fit of greenness will kill salmonella...
NB: This recipe makes for a pretty full quiche. You should pour the mixture in when the crust is as close as possible to your oven, to prevent a precarious transfer from counter top to oven. See note above re: spilling egg all over your counter top.
Finally, a very important thing to emphasize. Let the quiche sit for at least 20 minutes, per the recipe, before you cut it. It will be baked all the way through, but it needs some time to set. Like with scrambled eggs, the egg mixture is still firming up even after you've removed it from the heat. If you cut it too soon, some eggy veggie juice will seep out while you're not looking and form a film where the removed piece once lay. Not only does it look marginally unappetizing, but you just dried out the remaining quiche. Fail.
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