Dinner, Day 6: Pozole

Before I write anything, I need to make sure you pronounce this properly. It's a Mexican soup, and it's pronounce "poe - SOE - lay". Now we're talking about the same thing.

So I mentioned last week that I was quite sick. I'm all better now, thanks for asking, but my husband was hit at the beginning of this week with the same knock-your-socks-off cold I had. This was no ordinary humdinger, but rather the kind where you can do nothing but lay in your bed and avoid everything. There was only one thing I could do for him: make pozole.


What?! What about chicken soup with homemade noodles? I'll answer your question, but just because I'm so nice. Back in my single days, anytime a friend got sick, I would make the very best homemade chicken soup and use my grandmother's recipe for homemade noodles. It was delicious at the time, and I especially loved the noodles, but I was burned out on chicken soup before I ever got married. Lucky for me, Mark has never been a chicken noodle soup fan. He does, however, like soups that are aromatic, spicy, and have a good broth.

Pozole is a combination of many of the best flavors Mexico has. You start with a strong stock (though you can cheat, as it gets stronger) then add the flavor of chiles, lots of garlic, pork, hominy, onions, cilantro, cabbage, and lime. I'm convinced that if you only had that garlic, chile-infused broth, you'd be delighted, but everything else puts it over the top. When you're sick, this is the best thing you can eat. It's satisfying and healing. When you're healthy, this is still one of the best things you can eat. It's satisfying, fresh, and packed with vibrant flavors.

I learned how to make pozole soon after I married Mark, as he's long had a strong affinity for good Mexican food, and learned to make it better from Rick Bayless. If you want to make good Mexican cuisine at home, or even just want to improve your Mexican repertoire, he is the master. And if you live nearby, you can come over and browse a cookbook. I have three or four from him, all very useful.

This is a fairly simple version of the recipe. I include my instructions on making a good chicken stock, but if you buy a good variety in cartons at the grocery store, you'll still get a decent soup.


Pozole

5 lbs. chicken drumsticks
1 large head garlic
2 lbs. pork (sirloin roast or Boston butt works well; even pork chops will do), sliced or diced, 1/2" thick
2 oz. dried guajillo or New Mexico chiles (or more, if you like it extra spicy; or less, if you don't)
1/2 medium onion, roughly chopped
1 t. dried Mexican oregano
1 30-oz can white hominy, drained, rinsed
cabbage, thinly sliced
onions, thinly sliced
limes, wedged or cut in half
cilantro, roughly chopped
radishes, sliced

To make the chicken stock, lay the drumsticks in a single layer on a baking sheet or in a pan. Drizzle with olive oil; sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake at 400˚ for an hour. Cool the chicken until it is manageable. Remove the meat from the chicken and save it for another use.

Place the bones, skin, and anything else remaining from the chicken in a large pot. Cover with water. Bring just to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 3 hours. Strain the stock and return the stock to the pot. You should have about 6 cups of broth, give or take. Season lightly with salt, but not too much, as the stock may further reduce a bit.

Remove all the garlic cloves from the head. Set two cloves aside. Peel and slice the rest, then add them to the chicken stock. Add the pork to the stock as well. Place the Mexican oregano (not even remotely the same thing as regular oregano, this is found in inexpensive plastic packets in the Mexican section of most grocery stores) in the palm of your hand. Rub your hands together over the pot to crush the oregano as it falls into the soup. Bring the stock to a simmer again; simmer for about 90 minutes, until the pork is tender.

After about an hour, remove the stems from the chiles and shake out the seeds. Place the remaining chile pods in a bowl. Cover with very hot water (or microwave the bowl with chiles and water until water is nearly boiling); set aside and let the chiles rehydrate for about 20-30 minutes.

Once the chiles are soft, place them in the blender with the 1/2 onion, 2 cloves garlic, 1/2 t. salt, and about 1/2 c. water from the chile bowl. Blend until smooth, adding a touch more water if necessary.

Here's an optional extra step: you can pass the chile purée through a strainer before adding it to the pot if you like. If you don't, you'll have very small pieces of chile skin that you will feel occasionally as you eat the pozole. This doesn't bother me, but it is more pleasant without them. If you thin the purée with a little more water first, it will be slightly easier to strain. The soup will be very good either way.

Add the chile purée and hominy to the soup. Simmer for about 30 minutes to let the flavors come together. Taste for salt and season as necessary. If it's not spicy enough for you, add some cayenne as well.

Set out the aromatics: cabbage, onion, radishes, cilantro, and lime.

Ladle some soup into a bowl, then add aromatics as desired. Don't miss the squeeze of lime; it's essential!

Enjoy. You'll be better soon.

Dinner, Day 4: Tomato Soup (for the soul)

As I mentioned previously, I'm feeling extraordinarily under the weather. Enough that all I've done over the last 24 hours is sit at the computer or in front of the tv. Okay, that's not true. I took the kids to school, picked them up from the stop, made lunch, fixed Em's hair for ballet, cleaned the kitchen, scrubbed the floor, and worked on my new crochet stitch. And I made tomato soup.

Tomatoes are high in vitamin C. Not as high as oranges, which are crazy-off-the-charts high, but a good source of vitamins C and A with a little fiber to boot.

I was planning on tomato soup with grilled cheese for dinner as a celebration of my son's first day of kindergarten, since he's a grilled cheese fan suddenly. But I was slightly hungry at lunch and nothing - NOTHING - else sounded good enough to ingest except water. So I made tomato soup. I didn't have any chicken stock or vegetable stock on hand, so I cheated by adding a few extra vegetables at the beginning. Also, I had a little less tomatoes than I would have liked and supplemented with a can of chopped tomatoes.

I roasted the tomatoes and carmelized the onions to give the soup some depth. I only added a small amount of milk, so it was not only very healthy but a good soup for me on a sick day. I ate very small bowls of it most of the day and found it very comforting.

We didn't have the grilled cheese and tomato soup for dinner. My kind husband whisked the children away as soon as he was home from work to their various activities (ballet, back-to-school night, grocery shopping) and left me alone to lay perfectly still and nearly catch up on Top Chef Masters. And he found some food for them on the way. But I didn't mind at all. Now I have more soup leftover for today. Which I am happy to consume.


Tomato Soup

4 lbs. tomatoes (or at least 2; you can supplement with good, canned diced tomatoes)
1 large onion, chopped
1 medium carrot, thinly chopped
1 stalk celery, chopped
1 clove garlic, chopped
4 T. butter, room temperature
1 1/2 T. flour
2 sprigs fresh thyme
water
1 c. milk
salt
pepper

Turn the broiler on in the oven and set the rack six inches below it.

Spray a sheet pan with non-stick spray. Core the fresh tomatoes (not as essential with Romas) and spread them out on the pan. Broil on both sides until the skins are blackened. Remove from oven and set aside to cool for a few minutes.

In a large saucepan (larger is better so it doesn't spit at you), sauté the onion and a couple of pinches of salt in 2 T. butter for about 5 minutes over medium high heat. (Adding the salt immediately with the onion helps to bring out the sugars in the onion, which will help it to carmelize faster.) Add the carrot and celery and continue to cook until the onions are starting to brown, then reduce the heat to medium and cook for about 5 more minutes, until they're more thoroughly browned but not burning. Add the garlic and cook, stirring, for another minute. Remove the pan from the heat.

Place all of the contents of the saucepan in the blender. If you're supplementing with canned tomatoes, add a 15-oz. can, juice and all, along with the onion mixture to the blender. If you're not supplementing, add a tomato or two, removing the skins first. Blend until smooth, then return to the saucepan.

Remove the skins from the tomatoes and purée the tomatoes, in two batches, in the blender. Add to the saucepan. Stir everything together and return to heat. Add 1 cup of water and leaves from the thyme sprigs. Bring to a simmer and let it cook for about 5 minutes.

Stir together the remaining 2 T. room temperature butter and flour to make a beurre manié. Stir the beurre manié into the soup and continue stirring as the soup thickens slightly. Stir the milk into the soup and remove the pan from the heat. If you prefer a thinner soup, you can add more milk.

Taste for seasoning and add salt and pepper as desired.

You can, of course, strain the soup if you don't like the tomato seeds in there. It wasn't a big deal to me, and straining would take a while. Plus I really liked the consistency of the soup, which would smooth out more upon straining. Removing the skins before puréeing the soup takes away the biggest reason to strain, but use your own judgment.

Also, one or two tablespoons of chipotle purée would be a great addition if you're not serving it to spicy-sensitive kids.

Tortilla Soup

Everyone should know how to make tortilla soup. (I realized this just as I was finishing the last of it off, which is why the soup bowl is nearly empty.) I mean tortilla soup that is fairly quick to throw together, has a rich broth with a good depth of flavor, and uses ingredients readily available in your kitchen. The first time I followed a recipe for tortilla soup (by Rick Bayless), it felt complicated and tedious. Yesterday, following a different recipe by the same chef, I went from barely deciding what to make to serving dinner in under an hour. That's pretty good for me. Next time, it should be a little faster...closer to 40 minutes.

"What is tortilla soup?" you may ask. Lucky for me, that answer was given several years ago. Mark and I stopped in a Boston Market (oh, back in the day, when they were all over the place) to grab some dinner. Our order was slightly delayed by a frustrated customer who had ordered the tortilla soup. Usually, it came with a small cup of chopped green onions on the side, as well as another cup or bag of tortilla strips. She had returned from her table to complain of the lack of green onions for her soup. "By definition," we distinctly recall her saying, "tortilla soup has green onions." Perhaps the confident tone of voice she used helped to solidify this knowledge in our young minds, but we have never forgotten this culinary lesson.

That is not really all there is to tortilla soup (and many would argue that green onions have nothing to do with it). The soup base has a little chile kick, a little tomato, and chicken broth. Typically, chicken is added once the soup is done along with other toppings, most notably tortilla chips.

I did a small experiment. Yesterday, in making dinner, I made my own tortilla strips chips by chopping up some tortillas, frying them in oil, salting them, and adding them to my bowl of soup. They were delicious. Today, eating the leftovers, I broke some purchased tortilla chips in pieces and placed them in my soup. I liked them even better. So now I know.

The recipe I used called for adding a melting cheese, like Monterey Jack, to the soup as well. I think my kids really liked that part, but it made the soup a bit sloppy for me, so I'd recommend one of three things: a dollop of sour cream, a bit of feta or queso fresco, or leave it out. It's also topped with avocado, which adds plenty of creaminess to the soup, so the cheese is unnecessary. Also, the recipe did not call for topping the soup with green onions, but I added them anyhow, for old time's sake. They were good.

Here's the recipe, adapted from Mexican Everyday by Rick Bayless.


Tortilla Soup

olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, chopped
1 or 2 dried chiles: guajillo, pasilla, ancho are good (use 2 if it's a milder chile)
1-14.5 oz. can chopped tomatoes
6 c. chicken broth
1 to 1 1/2 lbs. chicken breast, chopped into small bite-size
Kosher salt
1 t. dried oregano, preferably Mexican (inexpensive; usually found in packets with other Mexican ingredients in grocery store)
1 large, firm-ripe avocado, chopped into 1/2" cubes
3-4 green onions, chopped
1/4 bunch cilantro, chopped
lime, halved
queso fresco, feta, or Monterey Jack (optional)

In a large saucepan, heat 2 T. olive oil over medium high heat. Add the onions and a pinch of salt and cook, stirring occasionally, 3-4 minutes, then add the garlic and continue to cook, stirring, about 2 minutes.

Meanwhile, heat a skillet over medium high heat. Press the dried chile(s) onto the skillet to toast. Turn and repeat. Add the chile(s) to the blender along with the tomatoes, juice and all, and blend until smooth.

Add the tomato mixture to the saucepan with the onions. Reduce heat to medium and cook, stirring frequently, until the sauce thickens, 5-10 minutes. Add the chicken broth, bring to a simmer, and simmer for about 20 minutes to let the flavors combine.

While that's going on, drizzle the chicken with 2-3 T. olive oil, a couple generous pinches of salt, and the oregano. When adding the oregano, crush it by placing it in your palm and rubbing your hands back and forth. This will help to bring out the flavors. With a spoon or clean hands, mix this all together to coat all the chicken with the oil. This will keep it from sticking to each other as the pieces cook.

Heat the skillet over medium high. Add the chicken (unless you have a very large pan, do this in two batches; crowding the pan will leave you with steamed, not sautéed and nicely browned, chicken). Cook for a few minutes, until the edges are white and the white is starting to creep up the top side, then either carefully turn each piece and cook a few minutes more, or stir and cook, stirring occasionally, about 5 more minutes, until it's thoroughly (but not over-) done. Remove to a serving dish.

Taste the soup for salt and add a bit as necessary.

Serve. Fill a bowl with broth, then add some chicken, avocado, cilantro, green onions, a squeeze of lime, and cheese, if you're having it. Enjoy!

Creamy Corn and Zucchini Soup with Sourdough Bread

Yesterday I made bread again. (I did warn you.) This time, I made Pain de Campagne from Daniel Leader's Local Breads, except I made it with all regular bread flour, rather than adding a bit of rye and whole wheat. It's made from a sourdough starter, a liquid levain, which only took a week to be fully ready to use. Not bad, really.


I was pretty pleased with the turnout this time, but it was interesting along the way. I'd heard that sourdough rises late - meaning it sits around the first half of the rising time and then gets on its way - but it was still unexpected. During the second rise, after my loaves were shaped, I didn't notice much change in height. I'd been careful not to let too much of the gas release when I shaped them into loaves, but I expected something to go on in the next hour and a half. It may be a bit difficult to see from the picture, but these loaves are not very tall...maybe an inch or so. After leaving them for even longer than the suggested 1 to 1 1/2 hours, I decided to go for it and accept my failure if nothing happened in the oven.

During the first 3 minutes of oven time, it's really important to introduce as much steam as possible to the bread. This keeps the top of the bread from forming a crust too early, which allows it to rise longer. Often, I can literally watch the bread rising during this period, which I find absolutely fascinating. I still had some hope that my sourdough would jump up during these first few minutes and I wouldn't have to stick my head in the sand, but after the final introduction of steam, I still hadn't seen more than maybe a quarter inch rise in the oven. So discouraging. I walked away.

Five minutes later, I returned to two lovely, tall loaves. Not Empire State Building tall, of course, but it wasn't that kind of a loaf. They'd somehow risen after I walked away, probably intentionally waiting for me to turn my back. It was a nice surprise.

Like all good sourdoughs, the bread has a very chewy, connected feel. Substantial yet well-risen. Lots more good holes that the last loaf, too, which was a result from long rises as well as making slits in the top. If you don't make slits in the top, the membrane of the upper crust suppresses the leavening inside, while slits will allow it to jump up in certain areas, creating a less uniform rise. Just what I was looking for. I'll have to try that with the Ciabatta again, where I hope to find a more dramatic increase. I can't wait.

Now to the soup.

Since I keep making bread, unless I want to eat myself to death, I need some lighter meals. Soup is the obvious choice, especially being a girl. I found inspiration from Rick Bayless (not really surprising, is it?). He has a lovely recipe in Mexican Kitchen which I didn't follow whatsoever but was a really good inspiration. My sister Michele recommended it to me, and it involves blending corn and milk together and straining them, which is the only part of the recipe I was interested in, based mainly on what was available in my house.

Being a lover of creamy soups, this hit the spot without being too heavy or too starchy. It's slightly thick naturally, sweet, and simple enough. And to top it all off, it's really good made with frozen corn (choose a quality product, please), though I'm sure it's wonderful with fresh corn. So here's the recipe, though I'll admit right off that I didn't measure everything out exactly out, but the measurements should be quite close.


Creamy Corn and Zucchini Soup

1 1/2 T. olive oil
2 stalks celery, diced
3 cloves garlic, chopped
2 serrano chiles, chopped
5 cups sweet corn, thawed if frozen
5 cups whole milk (it won't be really creamy unless you use whole milk...at least go for 2%)
1/2 c. chicken broth (if you have it around...you could leave this out or add more milk)
2 medium zucchini, chopped into 1/2" squares
Kosher salt

In a medium saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium high heat. Add the celery, garlic, and chiles. Sauté for about 5 minutes with a pinch of salt, until softened and the garlic is quite fragrant (slightly roasty), but not burnt.

Set the pan off the heat, then scoop the sautéed ingredients out of the saucepan, leaving the oil behind, and place them in the blender along with the corn and 3 cups of milk (you may need to do this in two stages as your blender will be quite full). Blend until smooth.

Set the saucepan over medium heat and set a strainer over the saucepan. Pour the blended corn mixture back into the saucepan, straining it as you go, and stirring the mixture back into the oil to keep it from burning. Bring to a simmer. Simmer for one minute and season with salt. Add the zucchini and continue to cook, just barely simmering, until the zucchini is done to desired consistency.

Serve. Tonight!

Squash Soup

I totally feel like a cheater today because I'm posting someone else's recipe in its original form. I usually mix it up a bit, improve on it, and do some alterations before I get a recipe exactly where I want it and pass it on to you, but I'm willing to sink so low because I love this soup. Granted, it's a soup, so if you're male, there's still a good chance you won't like it, and if you're female, there's a terrific chance you will. Why is that?

Anyhow, Jamie Oliver has a new show on the Food Network, and I'm thrilled to watch it. Unfortunately, the recipes are only available inside the U.S. and they don't post all the recipes from the show...I'm sure it's all Jamie's doing, and it's all very understandable. However, the show is fantastic because he grows nearly everything he uses except meats and grains in his backyard (and perhaps some of the meats...definitely the eggs). Everything is fresh, local, and organic. So splendid! I just love it...it's my own personal dream, really. But I digress.

This squash soup is so good...it's warm and hearty, especially hearty for a puréed soup, and has just a touch of heat from the chile. While my carrot soup is lovely and delicate (and can be used for a simpler squash soup substituting squash for carrots), this soup tastes more reminiscent of a winter stew. I didn't make the parmesan croutons to go with it this time, but you may as well go for it. I'm sure they're delicious. Also, I learned a very valuable lesson from this episode: if you chop up butternut squash, simmer it for soup, and purée it, you don't need to peel the skin off of it first. It gets nice and soft and leaves no trace behind once it's puréed. Seriously. In fact, before I tossed everything in the blender, I checked the skin for tenderness, and it was more delicate than the carrots that had been cooking for 25 minutes.

One word of warning: make sure you remove the sage leaves after frying them in the oil (to season the oil). While they enhance the soup with flavor, they don't purée into a smooth consistency, and you'll have to strain them out later if you forget. My only alterations to the recipe were substituting serrano chiles and doubling the amount of celery and carrots. Also, I only made a half recipe and it made more than enough...probably 6 or 8 cups.

Last of all, enjoy. Squash is one of the best parts of the winter foods, and this soup shouldn't be missed.


Butternut Squash Soup
by Jamie Oliver

This fantastic soup is best made with varieties of squash that have dense, orange flesh, such as butternut or acorn squash. It's important to use good chicken stock and season the soup well to bring out the nutty, sweet flavor of the squash. Once you've mastered this recipe, you can take the soup in different ways by adding pearl barley, dried pasta, or some chopped bacon. Even the smallest amount of dried porcini. P.S. I made this in my pressure cooker the other day, with really great results - it's so quick!

Olive oil
16 fresh sage leaves
2 red onions, peeled and chopped
2 sticks celery, trimmed and chopped
2 carrots, peeled and chopped
4 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
2 sprigs fresh rosemary, leaves picked
1/2 fresh red chile, to taste, seeded and finely chopped (I substituted serranos)
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 1/4 pounds butternut squash, onion squash, or musque de Provence, halved, deseeded and cut into chunks
2 quarts good-quality Chicken or vegetable stock
Extra-virgin olive oil

For the croutons:
Extra-virgin olive oil
16 slices ciabatta bread
1 chunk Parmesan, for grating

Put a very large saucepan on a medium heat and pour in a couple of glugs of olive oil.

Add the sage leaves and fry for around 30 seconds or until dark green and crisp. Quickly remove them with a slotted spoon to a bowl lined with paper towels - you'll use these for sprinkling over at the end. In the pan you'll be left with a beautifully flavored oil, so put it back on the heat and throw in your onion, celery, carrot, garlic, rosemary leaves, chile and a good pinch of salt and pepper. Cook gently for about 10 minutes until the vegetables are sweet and soft. Add the squash and the stock to the pan, bring to the boil and simmer for around 30 minutes.

While the soup is cooking, make your croutons. Drizzle a little olive oil over the ciabatta slices, and press some grated Parmesan onto each side. Place in a non-stick pan without any oil and fry until golden on both sides.

When the squash is soft and cooked through, whiz the soup with an immersion blender or pour it into a standard blender and pulse until you have a smooth puree* (but you can leave it slightly chunky if you like). Most importantly, remember to taste and season it until it's perfect. Divide the soup between your bowls, placing 2 croutons on top of each. Sprinkle with a few of your crispy sage leaves and drizzle with a swirl of good-quality extra-virgin olive oil.

*When blending hot liquids: Remove liquid from the heat and allow to cool for at least 5 minutes. Transfer liquid to a blender or food processor and fill it no more than halfway. If using a blender, release one corner of the lid. This prevents the vacuum effect that creates heat explosions. Place a towel over the top of the machine, pulse a few times then process on high speed until smooth.

Roasted Garlic Soup

You may think from the title of this post that this is some ordinary soup you might like when it's snowy or rainy outside. You're right. This soup is so good when it's cold outside, and it's my favorite soup of all time. It's also absolutely delicious and appropriate in late spring or summer, with its bright flavors matched with the warmth of a rich broth and sweet, slow-roasted garlic. In fact, this soup is fantastic everyday, though I recommend only having it about twice a week, so you can try other things in between.

The other very nice thing about this soup is that it's a cinch to prepare and crowd-pleasing, since you add almost all the ingredients at the table and can cater to individual tastes (very handy with children, you know).

Did I mention this is my very favorite soup? It leaves you feeling satisfied but not heavy, since the protein from the chicken and creaminess from the avocado and feta cheese fill you up, but the tomatoes, cilantro, and lime lift the palate with some of the best south-of-the-border flavor combinations. The dish is similar to one found in Mexican Kitchen by Rick Bayless, the great source for Mexican cuisine, but I've altered it fairly significantly to my tastes. I like the clear broth while Chef Bayless instructs you to stir an egg in at the end to make it nice and creamy. I also like the taste of a fresh cheese, while he recommends dry Jack or Parmesan. And he puts the roasted garlic olive oil to use by making croutons, which is a lovely addition but not necessary if you're going for a quick meal.

There's not much more to say, since it's a very simple dish, so I'll get right to the recipe, but you should try this soon.


Roasted Garlic Soup
my adaptation from Mexican Kitchen by Rick Bayless

1 roasted chicken - rotisserie from the store is a fabulous choice here
1 head garlic
3/4 c. olive oil
4 to 6 Roma tomatoes
1 to 2 avocadoes, ripe but still a bit firm
1 lime, wedged or cut in half
6 to 8 sprigs cilantro, chopped
1/2 c. feta cheese (or queso fresco)
Kosher salt

Remove the chicken from the bones and refrigerate. Set the remaining chicken pieces - bones, skin, etc. - in a pot and just cover with water. Bring to a boil and reduce heat to low. Simmer for 1 to 4 hours, whatever you have time for.

Remove the skin or paper from all of the garlic cloves and slice them into 1/8" pieces. Bring the olive oil with the garlic to a slight simmer in a small saucepan over very low heat. Simmer for 15 minutes, being sure to maintain the slight simmer without the oil coming to a full boil or cooling off too much. This is the most difficult part of the process, but it shouldn't be too bad. After 15 minutes, check to see if the garlic is nice and soft. If not, cook for about another 5 minutes, but don't brown the garlic as this will form a crust on the outside that you do not want for this dish.

Strain the olive oil from the garlic, return the garlic to the saucepan and add 4 to 6 cups of the chicken stock you've just made. Taste (carefully...it's very hot) for salt. Keep this over low heat just long enough to prepare the other ingredients.

Warm about 2 cups of the chicken in a serving dish. Chop the tomatoes and avocados and set them in small dishes, as well as the lime, cheese, and cilantro.

To serve, have each individual fill theirPublish Post bowl with a bit of all of the items, including a squeeze of lime, and top with a couple ladles full of soup. Serves 4.

Enjoy!

Carrot Soup

So, it has been a long time since I blogged. About three months, actually, but there's a good excuse. I'm three months pregnant, and it's only recently that I'm enjoying food again. Not just enjoying it...needing it desperately. I wanted to share one of my favorite recipes - Carrot Soup. Even though soup, for me, is more of a cold-weather favorite, this recipe has all the right flavors to make it seem fresh from the garden in the summer or soothing and warm in the winter. It's so good, just thinking about it makes me want to dash off to the kitchen.

Carrot Soup

4 T. butter
1 small onion, diced
1 lb. carrots, peeled and chopped
1/3 c. white wine
3 c. chicken broth (not a strong stock)
1 t. sugar, if needed
Kosher salt and fresh black pepper to taste

Melt the butter in a medium saucepan. Stir in the onion and sauté with a pinch of salt (to bring out the sugars in the onions) about 5 minutes, until translucent. Stir in the carrots and wine with 1/2 cup of the broth. Bring to a light boil, then cover and cook over low heat for half an hour, stirring occasionally, until the carrots are mashable.
Pour the contents of the saucepan into a blender with 1 cup of broth. If the blender is more than half full, only do half of the soup at a time. Purée carefully, letting steam out as necessary so the top doesn't blow off. Return the soup to the saucepan and heat with remaining ingredients. Test for seasoning and serve.


And now I think I'll go make another batch!