Sunday, March 18, 2012

Liquid Comfort

"Soup is liquid comfort." I agree. I make a different soup every week. Usually I don't bother consulting recipes, I simply use the ingredients on hand for inspiration. But I want to try some new flavor combinations, so here are some recently discovered soup recipes posted on my favorite cooking blogs. Something for everyone here:

Perry’s Plate
Southwest Chicken and Barley Soup

101 Cookbooks
A Simple Tomato Soup

What’s For Lunch, Honey?

She Simmers: Thai Home cooking

Naturelita


Kitchen Illiterate

Closet Cooking

eCurry

Closet Cooking

Wives with Knives
Thai Red Curry Coconut Soup w/ Chicken

Skinny Taste
Brotchán Roy (oatmeal leek soup)

Kitchen Confidante
Tofu Soup with Pea Shoots & Radish

Saturday, March 03, 2012

Curried Kabocha Soup

This is perhaps the easiest soup to make EVAH. I oven-roasted a kabocha squash the other night. Although the skin is edible, I peeled most of it off for today’s soup. All told, prep was 10 minutes. And because I use a vegetarian “chicken broth” from New Leaf, the soup is vegan. Jim likes it anyway.

You may be tempted to substitute butternut or another winter squash for the kabocha, but the soup will not taste the same. IMHO, there is no substitute for kabocha. Try it and you'll see why.

Curried Kabocha Soup
Ingredients
1 medium kabocha squash
1 yellow or orange bell pepper, diced
1 red onion, diced
1 can coconut milk
1 fat teaspoon of powdered curry spices
4 cups broth

Directions
  1. Roast the squash until tender. Let cool. Peel and remove seeds.
  2. Saute the onion, pepper and spices in olive oil.
  3. Add the broth and squash and simmer for 15 minutes.
  4. Puree with immersion blender.
  5. Add coconut milk.
  6. Serve.
We had leftover country potatoes from breakfast -- also seasoned with curry and red onions -- so I tossed those in.

Jim’s words: “oh man, this is incredible.” That's an understatement.