Sunday, December 13, 2009

Devon's Cooking...A Soup-Stravaganza!

We San Diegans are pretty unfamiliar with the wet stuff that comes out of the sky elsewhere around the globe... but every now and again, San Diego gets a deluge of rain that rocks our world a little bit. Last week was our rainy season (one week of rain... I know, I know-- we've lived in Denver, we've lived in Boston, we should be grateful for one week of rain. But we're spoiled now!) and I'm a firm believer that there's nothin' better on a cold and rainy day than a nice hot bowl of soup. So last week was Soup-Stravaganza at the Atchison house. We had Pumpkin Soup (yum!) and grilled veggie panins and then, later in the week, we had Portuguese Caldo Verde soup (potatoes, kale and turkey sausage). These soups hit the spot!

PUMPKIN-WHITE BEAN SOUP
INGREDIENTS:
1 spray(s) olive oil cooking spray, or enough to coat pot
1 medium onion(s), coarsely chopped
15 oz canned pumpkin
3 1/2 cup(s) fat-free chicken broth
15 1/2 oz canned white beans, rinsed and drained
1/4 tsp ground oregano
1/8 tsp table salt, or to taste
1/8 tsp black pepper, or to taste
6 Tbsp grated Parmesan cheese

DIRECTIONS: Coat a large soup pot with cooking spray and set over medium-low heat. Add onion, cover and cook until tender, stirring occasionally, about 6 minutes. Stir in pumpkin, broth, beans and oregano; simmer 8 minutes. Using an immersion blender, blend soup until smooth and then season with salt and pepper. To serve, ladle soup into bowls and top each with 1 tablespoon of grated cheese. Yields about 1cup per serving.

PORTUGUESE CALDO VERDE
INGREDIENTS
1/2 pound turkey sausage, casings removed
1 medium onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 pound russet (baking) potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces
6 cups water
1 pound kale, stems and center ribs discarded and leaves very thinly sliced

DIRECTIONS: Heat cooking spray in a 5-quart heavy pot over medium-high heat and brown sausage, stirring often, 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer with a slotted spoon to a bowl. Re-spray the pot with cooking spray and cook onion and garlic with 1/4 teaspoon each of salt and pepper over medium heat, stirring often, until browned, 7 to 8 minutes. Add potatoes, water, and 1 teaspoon salt and simmer, covered, until potatoes are very tender, 15 to 20 minutes. Mash some potatoes into soup to thicken, then add kale and simmer, uncovered, until tender, about 5 minutes. Stir in sausage and cook until just heated through, 1 to 2 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

2 comments:

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  2. Devon, are you guys really moving to Seattle? (I found your blog through Ronna's :). We moved just outside of Seattle over the summer! Let me know!

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