Cream of Red Pepper Soup

Pepared by Jeffrey

INGREDIENTS
4 red bell peppers
2 tablespoons butter
1 onion, minced
1 sprig of fresh rosemary
1-1/4 quarts of chicken or light vegetable stock
3 tablespoons tomato paste
1/2 cup heavy cream (divided)
paprika
salt and freshly ground black pepper


METHOD

• Heat the broiler. Put the peppers in the broiler pan under high heat and turn them regularly until the skins blacken all around.  Put them into a plastic bag (or other large sealed container) and close.  Leave for 20 minutes.
• Peel the black skin off the peppers.  Avoid rinsing them because this loses some of the natural oil and hence the flavor.
• Halve the peppers, removing the seeds, stems and pith.  Roughly chop the flesh.
• Melt the button in a deep saucepan.  Add the onion and rosemary and cook slowly over low heat for about 5 minutes.  Remove the rosemary and discard.
• Add the peppers and stock to the onion and bring to a boil.  Simmer for 15 minutes.  Stir in the tomato paste.  Process or strain the soup to a smooth puree with a stick blender or regular blender.
• Stir in half the cream and season with paprika, salt, if necessary, and pepper.
• Serve the soup hot or chilled, with the remaining cream swirled delicately on top.  Speckle the cream very lightly with a pinch of paprika.

YEILD
Serves 4

RECIPE CREDIT
(From "The Soup Bible" - Anness Publishing - 2003)

Thanksgiving Potato Soup

I present to you... another experiment... I called it (after tasting it) Thanksgiving Potato Soup.

It is.... thick. So I wonder if it actually qualifies as a soup or a side dish?

INGREDIENTS:

5 pounds potatoes roasted in oven with salt & garlic
1 onion chopped and roasted
1 bulb garlic roasted
2 boxes veggie broth
1 block smoked cheese
Salt
Pepper
1 tbs Sriracha sauce
green onions


METHOD:

Roast potatoes, onions, and garlic. Add to pot with broth. Simmer in vegetable broth for about 20 min. Chop & add cheese. Garnish with chopped green onions.

Mexican Vegetable Stew

by Jackie




INGREDIENTS:

1/4 cup olive oil (I used closer to 3 tbsp or less, just poured not measured)
4 garlic cloves, minced
2 large onions, diced
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 28-oz can imported plum tomatoes (about 3 cups), roughly chopped with their juice (I used organic diced roma tomatoes as I couldn't find the elusive canned plum tomato)
8 cups vegetable stock
1/2 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
2 carrots, thinly sliced
3 medium zucchini, cut lengthwise into sixths, then into 1-inch chunks
2 cups freshly cooked kidney beans, or 1 15-oz can kidney beans, rinsed and drained
2 cups fresh or frozen corn kernels
Grated cheddar cheese (optional)
Corn chips (optional)


METHOD:

In a 6- to 8-quart pot, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Sauté the garlic, onions, and cumin 10 minutes, stirring often.

Add the tomatoes with their juice, the vegetable stock, salt, and pepper and bring to a boil.

Add the carrots and cook 15 minutes, then add the zucchini and cook 5 to 10 minutes, or until the zucchini is tender, not mushy.

Add the kidney beans and corn and cook 2 minutes. Remove 2 cups of the stew, puree it in a blender or food processor, then return to the pot. This will nicely thicken the stew. Taste to adjust the seasoning. If desired, sprinkle on grated cheese and break a few corn chips over each serving.

MODIFICATIONS:

All ingredients are organic, minus seasonings and oil.

Instead of using one 15-oz can of kidney beans, I used two.

Since I used low-sodium veg stock, I added perhaps an additional tablespoon of sea salt to the pot when finished.

I added a tablespoon or so of ground cayenne red pepper. Could even use more, depending on personal preference.



YIELD:
Serves 4 as a main course  
(it actually made more than that in my opinion – yielded 9 pint jars)

RECIPE CREDIT:
Quick Vegetarian Pleasures by Jeanne Lemlin