Our springtime weather, disconcerting as it may be, translates into lessened fire danger and a healthier forest. That’s why, here in the mountains, this is our weary mantra. It’s been a soggy, snowy, chilly April/May in the Rockies. Think mud. Memo to Denver, Las Vegas and L.A.:As agreed, we’re shipping you our precious water but could you use a little restraint, please?
This tiny White-Breasted Nuthatch and it’s mate are year-round residents in the old-growth cottonwood tree standing next to my balcony. Although nuthatches do know up from down, their preferred direction is climbing head-down.
This weather has dovetailed nicely into what I’ve chosen to make for this month’s Cottage Cooking Club. My food-blogging colleagues and I share inspired veggie dishes from Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall’s River Cottage Veg cook book. My choices, Spinach, Penne and Cheese “Spoufflé” and Pearled Barley Broth, will tickle a bud or two. Guaranteed.
PEARLED BARLEY BROTH, really a substantial soup, is a winner from River Cottage Veg cookbook.
I’m also sharing with you a glimpse of this resort community as you’ve probably never seen it. This is always a time when tourists are few, Aspen is under construction and flora and fauna begin to whisper, “Hey, remember us? ”
You thought the view from my balcony was Aspen Mountain? Not.
When I hear the first wing buzz and sharp chirp of the Broad-tailed Hummingbirds, I hang up my feeders. This astounding creature, weighing about 13 oz., can enter a protective torpor, by slowing its heart rate and dropping its body temperature, if our weather is abnormally cold.
The beautiful Pasqueflower is a welcomed harbinger of spring.
The Downy woodpecker is our smallest, has a very short bill and was too busy to be bothered by yours truly.
The painters arrived at The Gant in early April and are still here because the weather has not cooperated with their time schedule. At one point, while painting my D-Building, they needed to cover my windows/doors and tape me into my condo. Let me just say, Man Caves are overrated.
Here’s a view down valley of Sopris Mountain from the top of Smuggler Mountain, a typical Aspen day this spring.
Our mule deer are molting and look a little scruffy right now.
Remember those baby goslings from a few posts ago? They are growing up.
Elk migration is taken very seriously in these mountains. Their pathways are protected by numerous signage and limited speeds. When I first returned here two years ago I payed a hefty fine for speeding during the migration season. Learned my lesson.
On Memorial Day the local military association remembered to also honor the 38 Civil War veterans laid to rest in the historic Ute Cemetery located in The Gant’s backyard.
A well-recognized rite of springtime is graduation. Having never attended an Aspen High School graduation, tomorrow I’ll be sitting front and center at the Aspen Music tent to watch young Cav O’Leary receive his diploma. It was a wonderful day for Michael and me when the Texas O’Leary family moved to Aspen and our neighborhood. Then I will be deadheading to Bishop, California, where, next week, Emma will be graduating from 8th grade. Her Mother and I, always quick with the tears, will be shedding a few. Emma will be mortified.
Cav O’Leary, Aspen High Graduation Class 2015
Emma, 8 years old, Black Mountain, Henderson, Nevada. (When Emma once visited me in Henderson, I “made her” hike up Black Mountain. It was high noon and in the 90s. I know, what was I thinking? Emma has never forgiven me, her parents were not happy and she has never visited me “alone” again. Lesson learned.)
Ahhh, Springtime.
Spinach, Penne & Cheese Spoufflé by Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall, River Cottage Veg cookbook
Serves 4
INGREDIENTS:
1 1/2 cups whole milk
1 bay leaf
1/2 onion finely cut
3 1/2 oz. penne or similar shaped pasta
A little canola or olive oil
9 oz. spinach
3 1/2 Tbs. unsalted butter, plus extra for greasing
6 1/2 Tbs. all-purpose flour
3 oz. mature Cheddar, finely grated
A little freshly grated nutmeg
3 large eggs, separated, plus 1 extra egg white
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F and put a baking sheet in to heat up. Liberally butter a 6-cup soufflé dish. TIP: I halved the recipe and used a smaller dish.
2. Put the milk, bay leaf, onion and peppercorns into a small saucepan, bring to just below a simmer, turn off the heat and leave to infuse.
3. Bring a pan of well-salted water to boil. Add the penne to the boiling water and cook until al dente. Drain well and add a bit of oil to stop sticking together.
4. Cook the spinach, with just the water clinging to it after washing, in a large covered pan over a medium heat until wilted – just a few minutes. When cool enough to handle, squeeze out the liquid with your hands, then roughly chop the spinach. TIP: I used chopped, frozen spinach.
5. Re-heat the infused milk, then strain. Heat the butter in a saucepan over a medium heat, stir in the flour to form a roux (paste) and cook for a few minutes. Remove from the heat. Add the milk slowly to the roux and keep stirring until you have a thick béchamel sauce.
6. Remove from the heat. Stir in the cheese, nutmeg, chopped spinach, and some salt and pepper. Beat in the egg yolks, then fold in the cooked penne.
7. In a clean bowl, whisk the egg whites to firm peaks. Stir a spoonful into the Bechamél Sauce mixture to loosen it and then fold in the rest. Fold into the buttered dish and place on the hot baking sheet in the oven. Bake for 25 – 30 minutes, until well risen and golden. TIP: Top with sour cream, yogurt or crème fraîche sprinkled with nutmeg and serve immediately.
If you wish the recipe for Pearled Barley Broth (really a substantial soup), just ask. The Cottage Cooking Club is an international online cooking group cooking and learning our way through Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall’s “River Cottage Veg“ cookbook. The Club, led by The Kitchen Lioness, is ‘meant to be a project aimed at incorporating more vegetable dishes into our everyday cooking, learning about less known, forgotten or heritage vegetables,trying out new ways to prepare tasty and healthy dishes, and sharing them with family and friends.’
Green Onion Galette, a quick supper of puff pastry, onions and Parmesan cheese.
It’s time for my Cottage Cooking Club wrap-up of five tasty vegetarian dishes. Every month I join other bloggers to feature recipes from award-winning food writer Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall’s River Cottage Veg cookbook. Realizing there isn’t much about beef, pork, poultry and seafood that I don’t relish, you may wonder Why Vegetarian? Why now?
EMMA
As I’ve admitted, I was tossed into this vegetarian mumbo-jumbo by shame. Years ago, my dear vegetarian friend, Susan, brought her own meals to Hirsch dinner parties. I couldn’t be bothered. (Yes, I have groveled and apologized about that for 25 years.) Eventually I offered an elegant green salad and crusty bread to my veggie guests. Gradually I began to realize that this dietary option is not mumbo nor jumbo. It’s a legitimate choice.
For your left over puff pastry, Cheesy Peesy Puff Turnover, filled with peas (fresh or frozen) and grated cheese.
Cheesy Peasy Puff Turnover is folded to a triangular pocket. I served it with homemade Broccoli-Leek Soup.
Four years ago, my 9-year-old granddaughter announced she was a Vegetarian. Although I suggested to her Mother it was just a phase, how the hell was my darling sweet Emma going to get enough iron, zinc, Vitamin B-12 and calcium to grow and flourish. Where’s the protein? Would her friends think this strange? Would Melissa, her mother, have to make two different menus for their dinners now? Couldn’t her Mom and Dad just say, “No?” ( I don’t say these concerns were legitimate, I am just admitting having them.)
Emma (9) in 2011, the year she announced she was a Vegetarian. Clara (7) is on the right. Death Valley National Park
Fast forward four years. Emma is still a healthy young woman, about to enter high school, and, yes, a Vegetarian. (Grandmothers can be wrong.) Before her family’s recent visit, I called Emma and asked to interview her about her vegetarian lifestyle. I’d never had a serious discussion with anyone about this rather important lifestyle choice. She agreed. We set a date, stipulating no Mom, no Sister, listening in. (They’d already asked.) Briefly, this is the very enlightening result.
Honey-roasted Cherry Tomatoes, an easy topping to make and delicious on risotto and grilled or roasted vegetables.
Grandma: Emma, I’ve heard various rumors but will you tell me why you chose to be a vegetarian?
Emma: You remember we went to Hawaii when I was 9, right?” she asked. (I nodded affirmatively.) “Our family went spearfishing. Dad caught a fish. When the boat people pulled it in, it wasn’t dead. They just whacked and whacked it on the head to kill it.” (Emma demonstrates the whacking technique.)
Grandma: What did you do?
Emma: Clara (7) and I started screaming and crying. Mom took us down into the cabin until the trip was over. Then, later that night we went to a Luau where they were roasting a pig. It just went round and round on the spit all night. I got sick.
That’s the night Emma made her announcement.
I piled my Honey-Roasted Cherry Tomatoes on toasted Artisan bread with Maldon Sea Salt flakes sprinkled on top.
Grandma: What did your Mom say?
Emma: She said okay. But right from the beginning she made three rules: [Readers, I know. I know. Pot. Kettle. Black.)
1) We went to the library, checked out books about food, proteins, vegetarian stuff. I had to read them and any books she gave me on the subject.
2) I was responsible for taking vitamins every morning, especially B vitamins;
3) When I am around other kids who are eating hamburgers, stuff like that, I can’t say, “Gross!” or “Ooh.” I must be polite.
My health concerns were proven unnecessary. The Places lead an outdoor lifestyle. This Summer Emma and her Dad took a 4-day Hiking trip over Paiute Pass ((11,423-ft). Emma carried a 24-pound pack.
Grandma: Do you ever do that?
Emma: Of course not, Grandma, 90% of the kids at my school are vegetarian. (eye roll and sigh)
Stir-fried Sesame Cauliflower, a strongly seasoned side dish with chile, garlic and ginger.
The kicker here is this. Our girls go to a Seven Day Adventist private school. One of the Adventist beliefs and practices is a vegetarian lifestyle. Since they have attended this school since preschool, this was a comfortable choice for Emma.
In California they also live near Loma Linda populated by a high concentration of Seventh-day Adventist. It is one of five places in the world identified as Blue Zone Areas. These are the 5 sites where people are particularly healthy and live the longest. The other four Blue Zones Areas are Karia, Greece; Nicoya, Costa Rica; Okinawa, Japan; and Sardinia, Italy.
I wish this Sesame Cauliflower photographed better because it is tasty. I served it as a side straight from the pan but, with rice or noodles, it’s supper.
Grandma: I know you make your school lunch. What’s in it?
Emma:Vegetables and Fruit, Peanut Butter Sandwiches, Nuts, Tofu, Salads, Protein Bars, Leftovers, Salads and Yogurt for dessert. I love yogurt.
Emma, this Winter at Hearst Castle, just before our interview. She looks pretty healthy, huh?
Grandma: Do you ever get hungry?
Emma:No, Grandma. (another eye roll and sign)
Roasted Parsnip Chips with shallots.
Grandma:Tell me your favorite foods.
Emma:Pad Thai, Veggie Burgers, Tofu with various seasonings, Apples, Raspberries, Mushrooms and Caesar Salad.
These are ‘crisp and carmelized at the thin ends, chewy in the middle, tender and creamy at the fat ends,’ Best served hot, just out of the oven.
Grandma:Do you think you’ll always lead a Vegetarian lifestyle?
Emma:Yep, Grandma, I do.
There are many things I always want to do with my granddaughters but never in a million years did I think I would be exchanging vegetarian recipes and ideas with one of them. Every day of Life, a learning experience!
We are not allowed to print any of Hugh’s recipes but if you would like to learn how to make any of these delicious recipes, e-mail me. I’ll send them.
Cotriade, a Breton fish stew, is my French Fridays with Dorie choice this week.
Ciopinno. Bouillabaisse. Cotriade.
Odds are that you recognize two out of three of these fish stews. Cotriade, maybe not. Ciopinno was created by Italian fishermen who had migrated to San Francisco in the mid-1800’s. It’s a tomato broth stew loaded with fish sourced from the Pacific Ocean. When you visit the City by the Bay, it’s a must-try.
But if you’re in Marseille, walk over to the old port where their world-famous Bouillabaisse, a Provençal fish stew, is the speciality. What sets traditional Bouillabaisse apart from others is the Provençal herbs and spices used in its broth with an assortment of bony Mediterranean fish. Cotriade, my French Fridays recipe choice this week, is a traditional, coastal fish soup originating from the French province of Brittany. It’s the staple that Breton fishermen made aboard their boats while at sea for days or, maybe, weeks. The secret (and, filling) ingredient here is potatoes. In Dorie’s Around My French Table cookbook, she entitles this recipe, Simplest Breton Fish Soup.
The mussels are put into the fish mixture at the last 2-4 minutes. Discard any closed mussels before serving.
After a 1,053-mile road trip to California this past week, I arrived safely in Cambria, picked up keys to my rental house and literally dropped my bags in the garage. Then I dashed eastward to Templeton where I found all the necessary Cotriade ingredients at Trader Joe’s and Pier 46 Seafood. (Not mentioning that it was an additional 50-mile roundtrip – food blogger-journalist-deadline – a crazy combo.)
Although their are only two main ingredients added to the broth, fish and potatoes, the onions, shallots, garlic cloves, celery and leeks add flavor and depth. A Bouquet Garni, salt and pepper, are all the spices you need but I also added saffron. Love that aroma and taste. What Dorie suggests also is a red or white wine-based vinaigrette to drizzle over the fish before it’s served. Unique, delicious with the drizzle and a wonderful first-night dinner.
It is traditional with this dish, which Dorie calls Simplest Breton Fish Soup, to bring the kettle to the table and ladle the soup into bowls which have a toasted baguette slice already at the bottom.
Although I’ve been vacationing in Cambria with my family for the past eight years, this is only my second winter here. Cambria is a drowsy, quaint seaside village of 6,000 people, primarily retirees, located on the spectacular central coast and sitting among a native stand of Monterey pines. If you want excitement, stimulation and élan, if you will, Cambria’s probably not for you.
It’s a good choice for me, perhaps, and here’s why. Cambria is everything that Aspen is not. Two years ago when I had the responsibility of recreating my Life, the realization was I better get it right. Me being me, and, that’s not always good, I gave myself a year to do it. That deadline thing, you know. Two years later, I’m still tweaking, the plusses, minuses, the want-to-do’s, forget-that’s and what-was-I-thinking’s?
I love Colorado and the whole crazy, invigorating and challenging Life I lead there. Aspen is home and friends and organizational commitments and social activities. I visualize Cambria, amusing as it may seem to you, as a sabbatical, retreat, time-out and rest. A period to be selfish with my own time and be quiet. Do you get that? It’s almost anti-American to want to be alone, isn’t it? Hopefully you’ll enjoy reading my blog as I take you along on my winter adventure. Solitude does not translate to boring, I promise.
French Fridays with Dorie is an international group cooking it’s way through Around My French Table. To see what my colleagues made this week, go here. If you want a copy of this week’s recipe, Simplest Breton Fish Soup, go here.
Judy is reading about Red Kuri Soup from Dorie’s Around my French Table while Philip holds up the star of the show. Note that this week the spine separated itself from my well-worn and beloved cookbook.
Once upon a time, in the snow-peaked Colorado High County, lived a brilliantly colored, teardrop-shaped squash named Red Kuri. She tipped the scales at three pounds, a bit hippy, you might say. It’s all about her unique essence of squash infused with chestnuts that suggests her possibilities. Her fatal flaw? If she is baked, braised, or steamed, her shell softens, is edible and, when pureed, completely dissolves. Think Frosty the Snowman.
Béatrix’s Red Kuri Soup garnished with goat cheese and cranberries.
If you read last week’s Post, you are familiar with my midweek dinner party, Dorie’s Profound Sweet & Salty Nuts, and other food-fun nonsense. However, you didn’t realize we rapidly motored into serious mode, featuring a Squash Seminar followed by the tasting of this week’s recipe choice, Béatrix’s Red Kuri Soup.
The three Presenters: Judy, Philip and Donna
Leave it to the French to romanticize this delicate squash, calling it potimarron. Potiron means pumpkin and marron is the word for chestnut. Perfect and parfait. First, my guest, Judy, read about the recipe from our weekly bible, Dorie Greenspan’s Around My French Table cookbook. Judy, who spent her career teaching Aspen’s high school kids both French and Spanish, can roll her rrrrrr’s like none other. For those of us who have spent serious money to speak san succès français, it was a revelation.
Philip’s responsibility was to hold up the Red Kuri, my table centerpiece, every time the little darling’s name was mentioned in English or in French. He was kept busy. I had previously asked the mastermind of our nature study group, Donna, to give us the lowdown on the Red Kuri from a botanist’s point of view. She did such a good job she was rewarded with the centerpiece.
It looks like a squash, it cuts like a squash, it tastes like a squash but its delicious shell is edible.
Because the Red Kuri is so flavorful, there’s not much work involved in pulling together this delicious soup. Dorie first tasted it at the table of her friend, Bèatrix Collet. I’ve posted her recipe below. This is a keep-it-simple dish, requiring little else for flavoring but 3 slender leeks. Use your creativity with the garnish. I used toasted walnuts and chopped apples. For my next-day’s lunch, I tried a goat-cheese/ cranberry mixture. Think also about sliced avocados, a squirt of olive oil and fresh lime juice.
Feedback from my taste testers, Steve, Jessica and Don, who are taking their responsibility very seriously.
In the winter you can find Red Kuri squash, in various sizes, at most local grocery stores. Although I prefer a thick soup, it’s the cook’s preference and quite tasty, filling and satisfying either way. French Fridays with Dorie is an international on-line group winding its way through Around My French Table by Dorie Greenspan. To see what my colleagues stirred up this week, go here.
Le Potimarron
The cubed Red Kuri, sliced leeks, liquid and seasonings are in the soup pot and ready to boil and simmer.
3 slender or 1 1/2 larger leeks, white part only, trimmed, split lengthwise and washed
3 cups whole milk
3 cups water
Salt, freshly ground pepper and freshly grated nutmeg
For the garnish (optional):
1 tart apple, peeled, cored and cut into tiny dice
About 1/3 cup chopped toasted hazelnuts or walnuts
About 1/2 cup crème fraiche or heavy cream
Instructions
Scrub the red kuri squash under water, using a brush, if necessary, to scrape off any stuck-on dirt. With a heavy chef’s knife, cut off the pointy tip of the squash, then cut the squash in half from top to bottom. Scoop out the seeds and the strings that bind them, then cut the squash into 1-to 2-inch chunks, shell and all.
Toss the squash into a large casserole or Dutch oven. Cut the leeks into inch-thick slices and put them in the pot, too. Add the milk and water, salt generously and bring to the boil. Lower the heat to a simmer and cook the soup about 25 to 35 minutes, or until the pumpkin is soft enough to mash when pressed lightly with the back of spoon.
Using a hand-held immersion blender, a standard blender or a food processor, puree the soup until it is very smooth. Depending on how much liquid boiled away, you may have a thick soup and a decision to make: leave it thick or thin it to whatever consistency pleases you with either more milk or more water. Taste for salt and season with pepper and nutmeg. Heat the soup if it’s cooled in the blender or if you’ve thinned it – this soup is at it’s best truly hot.
Notes
Serving: If you’re using the apples and nuts, spoon some into the bottom of each soup bowl and ladle over the hot soup; top with a little cream.
Storing: The soup will keep for up to 4 days in a covered jar in the refrigerator (it will thicken as it stands, so you might want to thin it when you reheat it) and for up to 2 months packed airtight in the freezer.
Bonne Idée: There are so many flavors that go well with this soup that you can make the basic soup and serve it several different ways. Top the soup with olive-oil sautéed bread cubes. Toss shredded sage into the skillet along with the bread. Or, use thin slices of toasted baguette sprinkled with grated cheese and run under the broiler – use a nutty cheese like Gruyere or Emmenthaler, or a blue cheese like gorgonzola or Roquefort. Why not sauté some cooked chopped chestnuts (you can use bottled chestnuts) in a little butter or oil, season with salt and pepper, chopped fresh thyme or sage. Either spoon a little over the soup or, better yet, over the crème fraiche, if you’re using it.
Baby Beet Tarte Tatin from River Cottage Veg, authored by Hugh Fearnley-Whitingstall, an October Cottage Cooking Club recipe choice.
By no stretch of the imagination would you call me a Vegetarian. My granddaughter, yes. Close friends, you bet. But, me, absolutely not. That’s why it’s surprising that lately Deborah Madison, Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall, Yotam Ottolenghi and I have become best buddies. I’m in awe of these three cookbook authors whose recently published cookbooks make vegetables sexy.
River Cottage Veg, 200 inspired vegetable recipes, by Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall
For the past 6 months, since joining Cottage Cooking Club, I’ve been exploring Whittingstall’s River Cottage Veg, 200 inspired vegetable recipes. This month I baked his scrumptious Pumpkin & Raisin Tea Loaf (no butter, no oil) and Baby Beet Tarte Tatin. Both recipes were unique, compelling, flavorful and dinner guest-worthy. Visit my October 7th Post, devoted to his Tea Loafhere. Find the recipe here.
Pumpkin & Raisin Tea Loaf
Tarte Tatin is a classic, of course, if you use apples. With beets? Not so classic. “But,” as HF-W writes, “the principle of caramelizing some delicious round sweet things, topping them with puff pastry, then flipping upside down, works equally well in the savory interpretation.”
Baby Beet Tarte Tatin
I simplified the preparation by purchasing vacuum-packed, ready-to-eat baby beets. My puff pastry of choice is DuFour Pastry Kitchens, available in grocery stores. Basically, halve the beets, caramelizing them and then fitting snugly into an 8-inch ovenproof container. Having already cut out a puff pastry disk to fit the dish, place it over the beets, patting firmly and tucking its edges down the pan’s side. After 20 minutes in the oven, the pastry should be a puffy, golden brown. Cool for 15 minutes before inverting it carefully onto the serving plate. Top with the vinaigrette (recipe included) or crumbled feta cheese. Serve immediately.
Spicy Chickpea & Bulgar Soup from Plenty More, a cookbook authored by Yotam Ottolenghi
Baby Beet Tarte Tatin is an excellent appetizer, first course, entrée side or, as I found, delicious lunch. I enjoyed this with a bowl of Ottolenghi’s Spicy Chickpea & Bulgar Soup, a recipe from Plenty More, his latest cookbook published this month. What I love about Ottolenghi is his no-holds-barred attitude regarding ingredients. There’s a whole vegetable world out there with its accompanying flavorings and spices that I’ve never met.
Plenty More, Yotam Ottolenghi’s latest cookbook
For this soup I did have the spices on hand, cumin, coriander and caraway seeds. Garlic, onions, carrots and celery added flavor and crunch. Bulgar wheat was a first time-ingredient for me but Bob’s Red Mill brand carries all kinds of Natural Foods, Mixes and Flours in our grocery stores. Harissa Paste, I knew about but had never used. My advice? Perhaps, less heat? Use 1 TBSP instead of 2 TBSP. For stock, vegetable, chicken or water work equally well. Instead of the Creamed Feta Paste garnish, I cut calories and just sprinkled feta chunks on the top. This soup is goodness.
Spicy Chickpea & Bulgar Soup topped with Feta Chunks
Deborah Madison waded deeply into the veggie business in 1997 with the publication of Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone, a James Beard Foundation Book Award winner, and, now, a classic. But it’s her recently published Vegetable Literacy, a celebration of the plant kingdom’s diversity, which has been captivating. Nostalgic moment, my mother often cooked with rutabagas. When the Indian Summer fades and our snow falls turn serious, I’m all over her Rutabaga and Apple Bisque and Winter Stew of Braised Rutabagas with Carrots, Potatoes and Parsley Sauce.
Quite often, when I finish a three or four-hour hike, my reward is to stop by the Woody Creek Tavern, an old Hunter Thompson hangout, and have a burger, fries and beer. Not that there’s anything wrong with that. However, a journey down the veggie highway created by these three masterful chefs is well worth my time and effort also. Having it all is a good thing.
The Cottage Cooking Club is a virtual international group cooking its way through Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall’s excellent River Cottage VEG cookbook. Please join us in our adventure if you wish. To see what delicious fare my colleagues created this month, go here.
Soupe au Pistou is as close to the south of France as one can be without actually sticking a big toe in the Mediterranean. Grab a big dose of imagination, polish up your bonjours and mercis and follow me through a recipe we Americans call Provençal Vegetable Soup. This week French Fridays with Dorie celebrates summer, that glorious few months when Farmers Markets strut their stuff and tout their wares.
Although this soup is jam-packed with vegetables, it’s broth is fragrantly light and airy. By itself, it’s a light lunch. With a green leafy salad and a warm baguette, it’s supper on the patio. If you’ve grown fond of Rosés, pull out your nicest bottle.
The veggies – carrots, potatoes, green beans, zucchini, tomatoes and corn, onions and garlic – grab the spotlight. Hovering nearby are an abundance of fresh herbs – parsley, thyme, rosemary, basil and bay. Salt. Pepper. Depending on your audience, use vegetable, chicken broth or, water as your moisture base. Dorie’s version also includes 1/3 cup of tiny pasta and a can of cannellini beans.
To my mind, what makes this soup très spécial is its lah-de-dah finale. After ladling the liquid into individual bowls, add a healthy dab of basil pesto, drizzle a stream of olive oil over that (not much) and top everything with shredded basil leaves and grated Parmesan. Can’t you just visualize those bowls marching out of your kitchen in lockstep with the proud chef?
A Cast-iron Soup Kettle Packed with Fresh Vegetables and Herbs – Perfect for Summertime
The most challenging but important preparation in this recipe is adding the vegetables in proper order. Now is the time for Mise en Place – have all your ingredients prepped, lined up and ready to go. Tip One: when making this again, I will eliminate the 1/3 cup of pasta. The pasta becomes soft and mushy after a day or two. Tip Two: it’s perfectly acceptable, if you’re pressed for time, to buy your pesto in a jar.
Meet Rusty the Rufous Hummingbird. The word in the neighborhood is “Don’t Mess with Rusty.”
This summer I’ve been eating lunch and dinner on my tiny balcony. It’s fun, my mountain view is glorious and, it seemed to me, my Soupe au Pistou just tasted better en plein air. A little white-breasted nuthatch is often working his way down the nearby cottonwood tree and an amazing number of Anna’s and Broad-tailed Hummingbirds visit my two feeders everyday. These beautiful little creatures are fascinating to watch, making me laugh. Unfortunately this blissful scenario of joy ended abruptly recently. I’ve been kicked off my own balcony by a belligerent bully who is 3.75” long, weighs 3.4 grams, has a wingspan of 4.5” and doesn’t even speak English.
Last Sunday a male Rufous Hummingbird (now named Rusty) spotted my two nectar-filled feeders and decided to claim the territory. He quickly chased off the others and torpedoed any newcomers who ventured by for a sip. Rusty, who is often caught flashing his iridescent gorget (throat) while vigorously moving his head from side to side, is obviously looking for chicks. The more, the better. He is not a monogamous guy.
“WHOOPS, I’ve reached the end of the Line.” The white-breasted nuthatch has worked its way down this huge 100-year old cottonwood. Lots of tasty morsels to be had along the way.
Rusty sits in a nearby bush, guarding, what he now claims as his feeders, chasing off those who venture near. That includes Moi. Sometimes there are 5 or 6 hummers circling the feeders with a frenetic Rusty, darting to and fro. The chattering racket and loud wing-beating sounds have become annoying. The paying guests who are renting the condos surrounding mine are very good sports but we’re all pulling for Rusty to get lucky, eventually lose interest and move on. The sooner, the better, so peace can be restored at The Gant.
Rusty, caught cat-napping. When you’re on duty 24/7, it’s necessary to grab some shuteye when you can.
Whether you enjoy your Soupe au Pistou inside or outside, you will find the recipe here. To see what my colleagues cooked up this week, go to our French Fridays link. French Fridays with Dorie is an international cooking group working its way through Dorie Greenspan’s Around my French Table.
