My Global Kitchens

Souper Sunday Sweet Potato & Black Bean Soup

Posted on November 1, 2017 by Marilyn

Click here to view recipe.

Souper Soup!

Everyone seems to have gotten on board with “meatless Mondays.” Personally, I like my Souper Sundays just as much. After a weekend at home or out and about, soup is always something we love as do our occasional guests who stop in for an early dinner.

This latest creation is simple to prepare, has pretty basic ingredients, and start to finish takes a little under an hour. Easy, delicious, super healthy and so satisfying!

Souper Sunday Sweet Potato and Black Bean Soup

Serves 6

Ingredients

1 medium yellow onion, peeled and diced ¼ inch
1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
3 medium sweet potatoes, peel and chop into ¾ inch pieces (about 4 cups)
1 16-ounce jar prepared chunky salsa (get from the refrigerated section at the supermarket)
1 15-ounce can black beans, rinse and drain or fresh made black beans, 1 ½ cups
4 cups chicken stock (you can use “Better than Bouillon” in a pinch or vegetable broth if you are making this vegetarian. I was lucky to have frozen chicken stock)
1 Tbsp ground chili powder
2 tsp ground cumin
½ tsp ground cinnamon
pinch ancho chili powder if you like a little spice

Optional Garnishes

Fresh chopped cilantro
Marinated red onions
Greek yogurt or sour cream
Lime wedges (this is a must in my book. I put a little wedge on the rim of every soup bowl)
Shredded cheese
Hot sauce if you like heat
Good quality corn chips to scoop

Instructions

In a large pot over medium heat, gently cook onions in one tablespoon oil. Stir and continue cooking on medium heat for about five minutes.

Add sweet potato and spices. Cook for three minutes. Then add salsa and chicken broth.

Bring mixture to a low boil on medium heat and then lower heat and gently simmer. Add black beans, cover and cook for at least 20 minutes more or until the sweet potatoes are fork tender and the soup has thickened.

Serve with any of the listed garnishes. I usually have good tortilla chips alongside, especially when I have little people eating at my house. In case you were wondering, we had oatmeal honey bread on the side and a great fall salad too.

This soup is even better the next day! It thickens up considerably too.

Posted in Soups | Tagged sweet potato black bean soup | Leave a comment

Autumn Apple Arugula Salad

Posted on October 18, 2017 by Marilyn

Click here to view recipe.

A Fabulous Fall Salad

AHHHHH. This recipe is always a hit around my house! I have been making this salad for a long, long time but forgot about it until this fall. I’ve had my fill of Caesar salads and light tomato garden lettuce salads from the summer, so the combination of slightly buttery, sweet pecans, slivers of seasonal Washington apples and crumbles of sharp bleu cheese spoke to me.

I have recreated this wonderful little salad using feta cheese in place of bleu cheese, walnuts in lieu of pecans and even sliced grapes or ripe plums can be swapped for the apples. So don’t be afraid to make this according to your palate.

As for me, this is my longtime fave. I love bleu cheese (it is an acquired taste I am told) and I find this a perfect accompaniment to any savory main dish. And I always make a lot more dressing than I need for one meal — because the dressing keeps for a few weeks and I just know I’ll be making this salad several times within that time frame (often every other night!).

I hope you give this a try sometime soon. It screams Fall.

Autumn Apple Arugula Salad

Serves 6 generously

Candied Nuts Ingredients

1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1 tablespoon cold salted butter
2 pinches of sea salt
1 cup pecans, coarsely chopped (I reserve ¼ cup once cooked to top the salad when serving)

Dressing Ingredients

2 tablespoons sherry vinegar
½ teaspoon Dijon mustard
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
3 tablespoons walnut oil (keep this in the fridge so it does not become rancid)
½ teaspoon honey

Salad Ingredients

1 Braeburn or Pink lady or any red tart apple, cut into thin slices
Juice of half a lemon
10 grinds of fresh black pepper
8 cups greens (I use arugula or a combination of arugula and baby spinach – or any type of soft lettuce is wonderful)
3 ounces Roquefort or bleu cheese, crumbled

Instructions for Candying Nuts

In a small fry pan, sprinkle the sugar on the bottom of your pan and cook gently over medium-high heat without stirring. Shake the pan occasionally. Once the sugar is melted and light brown, stir in the butter and a pinch of salt. Stir in the pecans and cook until the caramel turns dark brown. Quickly remove the nuts to a small plate to cool. Keep moving them around the plate after a few minutes so they don’t stick together, and store them in a jar in the fridge. Here too I always make more than necessary!

Instructions for the Dressing

In a small jar or squeeze bottle add the vinegar, mustard, honey, a pinch of salt and oils. Shake vigorously until combined — taste and add more honey to smooth the taste if you like it a little sweeter like me.

Instructions for Assembling the Salad

Place the apple slices in a small cereal bowl, toss with lemon juice (I did lime one time) and season with ground pepper.

Combine the greens in a large bowl. Toss with just enough dressing to coat. Season with salt and pepper. Add the walnuts, apples and crumbled Roquefort and mix well. Sprinkle the reserved nuts over the top of each salad plate once it is dressed.

Posted in Salads & Dressings | Tagged arugula apple salad | Leave a comment

Almond Slices

Posted on October 4, 2017 by Marilyn

Click here to view recipe.

Elegant Almond Slices

The roots of this recipe are circuitous, which most recipes actually are – at least the ones I adore. Let’s begin at the beginning. True story: while hiking with me in Mexico, my sister Susan mentioned these little almond gems because we incessantly talk about food and cooking and she knows I love, love, love crispy, nutty, not too sweet, easy to make cookies to have with tea or coffee. Shortly thereafter she sent me a link to the recipe for Almond Slices from David Lebovitz’s blog and he gave credit to his recently deceased friend Flo Braker. So from Flo to David to Susan to moi. Oui oui!

I had the added benefit of my sister’s suggestions and comments before I actually got started. We decided that a bit more cinnamon hit the spot and agreed that salted butter would add a nice balance to the sweetness of the cookies. We both have the same oven and probably equivalent baking skills, so that works for me. I made them and loved them – crispy, nice texture, nutty, sweet and so good it’s impossible for me to eat fewer than two at a time. Susan made them for her 4th of July bash and they were ooooed and ahhhed over, and the only people that haven’t liked them to date are Jakey Boy, his wife Nazlee and her Persian family. These naysayers do not like sweet desserts ever, so do not let this stop you.

I call these a melding of brittle and cookies.

Almond Slices

The original recipe says this makes 80-90, but in my world I would count on 45-55 realistically. Unless you slice more thinly than me…

Ingredients:

1 stick of salted butter (4 oz) cut into 8 pieces.
⅓ cup water
1 ⅓ cups raw turbinado sugar (most grocery stores will carry this)
½ heaping teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 ⅓ cups unbleached all purpose flour
¼ tsp baking soda
1 cup sliced almonds

Instructions:

Melt the butter in a medium-sized saucepan over low heat with the water, sugar, and cinnamon. Stir until the butter just melts but don’t allow it to boil: most of the sugar should not be dissolved.

Remove from the heat and stir in the flour, baking soda, and almonds with a rubber spatula until well blended.

A great tip, per Mr. Lebovitz, is not to let the sugar melt when you’re mixing in the butter; the big crystals add a wonderful crunch to these delightfully delicious cookies.

Line a 8-9-inch bread loaf pan with plastic wrap and press the dough into the pan so the top is smooth. I do this with an offset spatula. Cover well and chill until very firm. Personally, I do this overnight.

To bake the cookies, preheat the oven to 325Fº. Using a very sharp chef’s knife, slice the dough crosswise, as thin as possible, into rectangles. The thinner they are, the more delicate and crisp they’ll be.

Space the cookies on parchment lined baking sheets and bake in the middle of the oven for 10-15 minutes, or until the cookies feel slightly firm and the undersides are golden brown. Carefully turn the cookies to their other side with a large offset spatula and bake an additional 10-15 minutes, until the cookies are crisp and deep golden-brown on top. The baking times depend on how thin you cut the cookies. Mine took 15 minutes for the first side and 13-15 minutes for the second side. Be careful because they go from nutty brown to burned in a flash, and I speak from experience.

Fresh out of the oven!

Cool completely, then store in an airtight bin until ready to serve.

Storage: Once baked, the cookies will keep in an airtight container at room temperature for up to three days or in the freezer for a month.

The dough can be stored in the refrigerator for up to four days, or frozen for up to two months, if well-wrapped. I have even sliced and baked the cookies straight from the freezer with great results. Perhaps I should let David in on this little tip!

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Vegetarian Yellow Split Pea, Barley and Vegetable Soup

Posted on September 20, 2017 by Marilyn

I first posted this recipe back in November of 2012 – where has the time gone?! I wanted to share it again because it’ll be simmering away in my kitchen on September 29 when the family descends on my home for Kol Nidre – the evening before Yom Kippur. It’s the perfect meal for the celebration – warm, nourishing and hearty!

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Click here to view recipe.

Soothing Soup

The week following Thanksgiving is tough for me. All our out of town guests depart, one after the other… my house feels suddenly very quiet (but cleaner) … and I am stuffed with turkey, sweet potatoes, pie, leftovers and heavy food in general. Because I feel both full and empty at the same time – I always turn to warm, healthful, vegetarian soup containing vegetables and grains. My standard go-to: yellow split pea soup with barley. It’s an old standby, and after years of playing with the original formula, I have now perfected it to the point where it pleases me without fail. Plus – it’s so simple … just serve this soup after Thanksgiving with huge slices of whole grain bread and a simple green salad and call it dinner.

Vibrant Vegetables for Soup

Vegetarian Yellow Split Pea, Barley and Vegetable Soup

Serves 6 large eaters and can easily be doubled to serve a crowd or to freeze for later

Ingredients:

½ pound of dry yellow split peas
½ cup pearl barley, measured then put in a strainer and rinsed
½of a bay leaf
1 Tbsp fine sea salt
8 cups water
1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
¼ minced yellow peeled organic onion, diced ¼ inch
2 cloves finely minced garlic (I mince this by hand)
2 stalks of diced celery – dice 1/4 inch
½ small diced peeled potato (1/4 inch pieces) – about ½ cup
2 peeled medium diced ¼ inch carrots – about 1 cup

Instructions:

Bring the first five ingredients to a boil, turn heat to low and simmer covered for 40 minutes or until the split peas and barley are soft. Remove the bay leaf.

Meanwhile, sauté remaining ingredients for eight minutes in a frying pan on medium heat. Sautéing the vegetables give a different dimension to this soup and any soup for that matter.

When vegetables are a bit tender and barley/yellow split peas are soft, add the vegetables to the soup. Cover and continue cooking together on low simmer for 20 minutes.

This can be done a day or two ahead of time – the soup thickens a lot when it is cold.

Heat and season the soup before serving with fresh ground pepper and more salt if needed to taste. (I did not add more salt). I add a pinch of dry mustard as well and ¼ tsp of sesame oil while heating the soup and I top the plated soup with some chopped fresh parsley and diced tomato if I have it around.

Cook’s notes:

To cool soup quickly so you can store it in the refrigerator and avoid leaving it out at room temperature, fill a large sink with ice and water (I happily have an ice maker in my freezer). Put the pot of soup in the sink so the ice water is above the “soup line” and stir occasionally. After a mere 15 minutes it cools down and is fridge ready. I use this method for anything that is hot and needs refrigeration to avoid leaving things at room temperature.
If you happen to have a chicken carcass or chicken bones left over (I always freeze mine when I roast chicken or make chicken breast on the bone) this can be added to the soup with the barley and split peas at the beginning. If you do this, remove the bones as you add the carrots and celery.
The soup, prep and all, takes about an hour –so I always use the time while cooking takes place to do other kitchen prep or chores. Today I made chicken sandwiches for lunch, salad dressing for the week, I rolled and baked crackers (made the dough last night), and made enough steel cut oats for the week as well!
In my picture of ingredients, you’ll see I used a small purple fleshed potato and a small Yukon gold potato instead of half a potato – next time I would only use Yukon gold potato as the purple potato had a weird color in the soup.
This soup freezes really well!

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Eclipse Bittersweet Hot Fudge Sauce

Posted on September 6, 2017 by Marilyn

Click here to view recipe.

Deep Dark Chocolate Sauce and My Favorite Ice Cream

OK you fellow chocoholics, listen up. If you are like me and answer YES to the following three statements, then this one is for you!

I love chocolate
I always choose the darkest chocolate
I enjoy hot fudge sauce on top of vanilla bean or coffee or coconut ice cream

I am naming this “eclipse hot fudge”, because I just got back from TOTALITY in Madras, Oregon with my sisters, and I told them they must make this sauce. It is a chocolate blackout. It is almost as good as Totality. Truthfully though, even dark chocolate isn’t as good as Totality… Complete magic!

Sisters Spying Eclipse!

But back to my original thought. This is the ULTIMATE hot fudge sauce. I deleted the other recipes I have had on my computer since the end of time – all those with evaporated milk, with manufactured squares of unsweetened chocolate. I am finished with my search for hot fudge – and once I settle on the perfect anything – be it recipes for chocolate chip cookies, brownies, or chocolate cake…I no longer am interested in a new or more hip or exciting formulation. Call me stubborn, call me set in my ways, but that is the truth.

Enough said.

If you want, you could always change this a bit by adding mint extract and chopped peppermint candies to top a sundae or coconut extract with toasted coconut or almond extract with toasted almonds. But as far as I’m concerned, just give me pedestrian hot fudge. We did a blindfolded taste test last night with my favorite gourmet hot fudge sauce that I have been ordering on the internet for a long time, and there was no question. THIS is the winner.

Such Simple Ingredients

The only hard part, really, is chopping up chocolate and truthfully it just isn’t that hard. I just took a wide sharp knife, began at a corner and kind of chopped/shaved the chocolate until it weighed in at six ounces.

I beg you to make this! It isn’t bad at all for dipping banana chunks either. I use this for my grandkids by warming up a couple of tablespoons of fudge in a shallow dish and then topping it with a small scoop of great ice cream. We call this “floating island” and it is what the kids always request for dessert. Nothing could be easier or better. The origin of this recipe is from a 2004 issue of Gourmet Magazine, may she rest in peace. Make this in her memory!

Eclipse Bittersweet Hot Fudge Sauce