Pasta Fagiole

 

 This recipe was given to me by my Mother in Law. It's truly a simple and oh so comforting recipe that I had never had before. I had never ordered it for fear of the unknown. When she ordered it it smelled so delicious and I asked for a bite. I haven't looked back since! Yummo!

 

Ingredients

 

5 cups water

8 ounces dried Great Northern or Navy beans (about 1 & 1/4 cups) (you could really use what ever white bean you like) 

* to save time use canned beans and less sit/boil time is needed *

 

1 large onion, chopped

1 large tomato, chopped or 1 eight-ounce can tomato sauce

2 medium stalks celery, sliced

2 cloves garlic, chopped

1/4 pound salt pork chopped (or 1/4 to 1.2 pound cooked ham, chopped can be added with the salt pork)

2 teaspoons instant beef boullion

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1/2 cup uncooked macaroni (shells, bows, or elbow)

Grated Parmesan cheese 

 

Process

 

 1. Heat water and beans in a dutch oven, until boiling. Boil 2 minutes. Remove from heat, cover and let stand 1 hour. 

 

2. Add onions, celery, tomato, garlic, salt pork, bouillon, salt and pepper to the beans. Heat to to boiling, reduce heat, cover, and simmer until beans are tender, about two hours. DO NOT BOIL as beans will burst. Skim fat if necessary. 

 

3. Stir macaroni into the soup. Cover and simmer until the macaroni is tender, about 10 to 15 minutes. 

 

4.  Sprinkle with cheese as you serve.  Accompany with more cheese for the table. 

Avocado Soup Gerald

 This is another of Hi-Ho's recipes from New York Times cookbook and I am including it because I just love the name and I wish there was a backstory. 

 

Ingredients

1 to 2 ripe avocados

Several drops onion juice

1 cup chicken broth/Consomme

1/2 cup sour cream 

1/2 cup light sweet cream

freshly ground salt and pepper, to taste 

paprika for serving 

 

Process

1. Wash and peel enough avocado to make one cup. 

 

2. Combine all ingredients in an electric blender, or mash the avocado and beat with the other ingredients until smooth and well blended.  

 

3. Store the mixture in a covered jar in the refrigerator until chilled. 

 

4. Correct the seasonings and top each serving with a sprinkle of paprika 

 

 

Onion Soup

 

Back to my great grandmother's recipes in the old metal box. 

Ingredients

Bone

seasonings

salt

pepper

water

butter

6 onions, sliced

2 slices bread, lightly browned and buttered.

Cheese

Process

1. Place any kind of bone, put in seasonings, and boil a long time with salt and pepper, adding additional spices as desired. 

2. Put in 1/2 bouillon and half cup water. ( make sure it is at least a quart of liquid). 

3. In a frying pan, add 2 Tablespoons butter. Add sliced onions to butter and brown well. 

4. Add the bread to the frying pan and mix thoroughly.

5. Add contents of frying pan to the bouillon.  

6. Top with cheese. 

7. Put in oven. and cook until heated through. Serve in crocks.

Cream of Artichoke Soup

This soup is the brain child of SP's after combining a few recipes, tweaking it to taste, and was a welcome addition for this year's Mystery Soup at Christmas dinner.

Ingredients

 1 pound frozen artichoke hearts, thawed (we use Trader Joe's)

4 cups chicken broth

2 Tablespoons unsalted butter (add oil if you need more)

2 cloves garlic, chopped

1/2 cup heavy cream

2 Tablespoons lemon juice

1/4 teaspoon white pepper, or to your taste

1/4 teaspoon salt

Process

1. In a medium sauce pan, saute the garlic and artichoke in the butter, adding a little oil if necessary, for roughly 3 minutes or until slightly softened. 
2. Add the broth and simmer until all warmed through. 
3. In batches, carefully transfer to blender and blend until very smooth, for at least 2 minutes. 
4. Pass blended mixture through a fine sieve and add back to the original pan.  
5. Bring to a boil and then reduce to a simmer. 
6. Once simmering, add the cream slowly. Stir and simmer until heated through. 
7. Add the lemon juice, pepper, and salt. Taste and adjust as you like. 
8. Serve and enjoy!
   

Brunoise Soup

 This recipe appears to be a consomme of sorts.

"Put in saucepan equal quantity sliced carrots, onions, leeks, turnips, celery, with a large piece butter. Fry until vegetables are brown. Pour in small quantity stock. Boil quickly. Add rice and rings of turnip fried in butter. "

Kentucky Black Bean Soup

 

 This recipe seems timely as today was the Kentucky Derby. Go Medina Spirit!

Ingredients

1 pound black beans, soaked overnight

1 pound lean veal

1 lemon, cut in eighths

1/2 teaspoon grated nutmeg

2 Tablespoons salt

2 Tablespoons Worcestershire sauce

5 onions, chopped

3 quarts water

1 veal knuckle of meat

4 whole cloves, stuck in the lemon sections

1/2 teaspoon allspice

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

1 cup sherry

5 Tablespoons butter

hard boiled egg, sliced, as garnish for serving.

Directions

"Cover beans with water and soak overnight. Drain. Put 3 quarts was in soup kettle. Add meat, 2 onions, lemon, drained beans, salt, pepper, Worcestershire and spices. Simmer slowly until beans are mushy, roughly 4 hours. Remove lemon and meat and strain off broth. With potato masher, mash beans to a puree, pounding through strainer. Return puree to stove. Add meat, shredded, and fry with remaining onions in butter, until dark brown. Add to mixtures then let is come to a boil again. Now add sherry. Serve with one slice of lemon and 2 hard boiled slices of egg on each plate.

Cheese Soup

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 I am a turophile  and I can stand behind this!

 

"Take 1/2 cup flour , 1 cup cream, 2 Tablespoons each of butter and grated Parmesan cheese,  with 1 quart stock. Stir flour , cream, butter, cheese and pepper together in a bowl. Place over hot water and stir until it is a thick paste. Add 2 eggs, mix thoroughly and cook 2 minutes or longer. Let cool. Roll into balls and drop into boiling water and cook 5 minutes. Put in soup plates, pour over stock and serve with Parmesan cheese."

Vichychoise

 

Ingredients

 3 medium sized potatoes

4 medium sized leeks

1 medium sized onion

2 Cups warm water

2 teaspoons salt

Process

 "Peel and dice potatoes. Clean and cut leeks into 1 inch cubes. Cut onion into small pieces. Cover all with water and place over medium slow fire in covered stew pan. When it begins to boil, add salt and cook until it is like mush, stirring frequently. Run it through a fine sieve or food mill. Heat 1 cup consomme with 1 cup water and into this stir 2 cups of puree. Add salt and pepper to taste and strain through fine strainer. When cold add 2 and 1/2 cups cream and 3 Tablespoons chopped chives. "

Onion Soup

 

 

Picture from Reddit's "Questionable recipe" page. 

 

"Take any kind of bone..."

 

Human? Ok I am already done with this recipe!

 

"...put in seasonings and boil a long time and season with salt, pepper, and spices (unspecified). Put in 1/2 bouillon and 1/2 cup water, making at least a quart of liquor.

 

Put 2 Tablespoons butter in frying pan. Slice 6 onions into frying pan and slice 6 onions into the butter and brown well. Add liquid and brown slices of bread and butter and add to bouillon adding cheese on top of the bread. Put in oven. You can put a little flour with the onions, stir, add bouillon and then proceed as above."

Ok, note to self, do not make this recipe as it does not make sense.

Mulligatawny Soup

 

 Serves 8 to 10. 

I am delighted to see that this recipe has an earlier origin in my family, long before Mom and Dad met Shani in NYC. Shani went on to give me his favorite Mulligatawny Soup recipe, found here: Shani's Mulligatawny. Let's see how this one compares!

Ingredients

3 quarts water

3 onions, finely cut

1 Tablespoons flour

2 carrots, peeled and sliced

1/2 pound sliced mushrooms

1/2 cup cream

4 or 5 pounds chicken, cut in pieces

1 pod garlic, minced

4 Tablespoons butter

3 stalks celery, sliced

1 Tablespoon curry powder

2 Tablespoons parsley

salt and pepper to taste

Process

"Place chicken in soup kettle, add water, salt, pepper, onions, garlic, celery and carrots and cook until tender, about two hours. Melt fat in skillet and mushrooms and simmer for 20 minutes or until tender. Add mushrooms to the soup. Brown flour in the fat in which the mushrooms were cooked and add 1 cup soup stock to make a smooth sauce. Pour into soup and continue cooking until the chicken falls off the bones (about 1 hour). Remove bones and skin from soup (maybe this isn't a recipe for me) and skim off excess grease. Dissolve cury powder in a few Tablespoons of soup and allow to simmer for 1 minute before adding cream. When soup is ready to remove from the stove, stir in parsley. When plated st the table, add a heaping Tablespoon of cooked rice. "

Eggplant Soup

 

 

 "Peel and slice 3 medium eggplants. Soak in salt water for 20 minutes and drain. Cook in 4 to 5 Tablespoons chicken or meat fat in large heavy pot, covered, over a slow fire. Stir occasionally and let brown. After 1.2 hour, add 2 crushed bay leaves, a pinch of marjoram, 4 unpeeled chopped tomatoes, a clove of garlic minced, and 1 finely chopped onion. Cook, stirring, for 15 minutes. Add 1/2 cup rice (cooked?), 2 and 1/2 quarts water or boillion, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Cook slowly, covered, for about 40 minutes. Put through a strainer. "

Potato Cream Soup

 

 "Peel and boil 2 large potatoes. Drain and mash with one cup cream. Mix with stock. Add salt, pepper, and chopped parsley. "

Wow they really liked parsley back then!

Duchess Soup

 This must have been one bland Duchess!

Ingredients

 2 onions

2 Tablespoons butter

sifted flour

1 quart boiling milk

salt and pepper

2 Tablespoons grated cheese

3 eggs

Process

 1. Fry onions and butter. 

2. Add sifted flour and stir to prevent browning. 

3. Pour milk in slowly, season, and stir for 10 minutes. 

4. Strain and put back in sauce pan. 

5. Add cheese. 

6. Beat eggs with salt and pepper and pour through strainer into soup. 

7. Take off fire and stir

Cauliflower Cream Soup

 Ingredients

1 quart stock

1 Tablespoon minced onion

I cup cooked and mashed Cauliflower

1 cup cooked cauliflower branches / florettes

1 pint milk, boiled

salt and pepper

flour

water

1 Tablespoon butter

1 Tablespoon minced parsley

Process

1. Boil stock with onion.  

2. Add mashed cauliflower. 

3. Add milk. 

4. Season and thicken with flour and water mixed together. 

5. Add butter 

6. Add cooked florettes. 

7. Add parsley

Russian Beet Soup

 I know this recipe as Borscht, but this recipe is as simplistic and non specific as it gets.

Process

Cook grated beets in stock. Thicken with flour and butter cooked together. After it is hot, plate it and add 1 teaspoon of cream to each plate of soup. 

No salt and pepper? No dash of vinegar? Bizarrely simple.

Leek and Watercress soup

  This recipe is from Gourmet 1976. Serves 6.

Ingredients

1/2 stick butter

1.5 cups washed and minced leeks

1 cup minced onion

1 clove garlic, minced

salt and pepper

2 potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced

2 bunches watercress, but 1 and 3/4 coarsely chopped reserving the rest for garnish

3 cups chicken broth

1 cup milk

1 cup cream

Process

1. In a large saucepan, melt 1/2 stick butter and sweat the leeks, onion, garlic, and salt and pepper to taste. 

2. Cover and simmer for 20 minutes until the veggies are very soft. 

3. Add potatoes, watercress, and chicken broth and simmer for 25 minutes. 

4. Puree the mixture in a blender or food processor. 

5. Return puree to the pan and add the milk and cream and bring to a simmer. 

6. Add salt and pepper to taste. 

7. Divide the soup among 6 heated bowls and garnish with watercress leaves.

Clear Soup

 This recipe is credited to family friend Deb Brinkerhoff. Hi-Ho noted that it makes an excellent appetizer. 

Combine equal parts clam broth and chicken broth and heat. Add sherry, salt, and pepper. Add heavy cream before serving. 

I don't really know what to think about this bizarre recipe but according to the internet it is a thing.

Autumn Carrot Soup

 I'm not sure what Greenwich publication this was clipped from, but the recipe is credited to Morgan in Glenville

Ingredients

1 lb carrots, peeled

1/2 lb butternut squash

1 medium onion

2 stalks celery

2 Tablespoons butter

1 Tablespoons flour

1/4 cup oil

6 cups chicken stock

1 & 1/2 cups light cream

1/4 tsp nutmeg

salt and pepper to taste

Process

1. Skin, seed, and chop the squash.

2. Chop the onion and celery. 

3. Slice 1/3 of the carrots into thin circles. Chop the rest. 

4. Reserving the carrot circles, saute the chopped vegetables in oil until tender. 

5. Place the sauteed vegetables and some stock in a blender and puree. 

6. Bring remaining stock to a boil, add carrot circles and simmer until tender, then add the vegetable puree. 

7. Heat butter, add flour, and cook over slow heat 4 to 5 minutes until smooth and light brown, then add it to the soup. 

8. Add cream, nutmeg, salt and pepper. Cook 15 to 20 minutes over slow heat. 

9. Adjust seasonings and serve. 

 

Serves 8

Avocado Soup

 Serves 6 to 8

Ingredients

4 ripe avocados

3 cups chicken broth

2 scallions, chopped including green tops

1 teaspoon lemon juice

herb salt and pepper to taste

1 cup sour cream

Process

 1. Peel, pit and dice avocados. 

2. Places in blender with scallions and 2 cups chicken broth. 

3. Blend on high speed until completely smooth. 

4. Transfer to a bowl and stir in remaining 1 cup chicken broth, seasonings, and sour cream. 

5. Cover and refrigerate until well chilled. 

6. Serve in individual bowls with a sprinkling of chopped chives.

Curried Zucchini Soup

 Serves 4 to 6 people

Ingredients

4 zucchini (washed and thinly sliced)

3 T butter

2 onions, thinly sliced

1 clove garlic, minced

2 teaspoons good curry powder (Madras)

3 cups chicken stock

1 Tablespoon lemon juice

1 tsp salt

dash cayenne pepper

1 cup medium cream

parsley

Process

1. Place sliced zucchini in colander, sprinkle heavily with salt, and allow to rest 30 minutes. 

2. Melt butter in a large frying pan, add sliced onions, and garlic and cook over low heat for 5 minutes, or until onions are translucent. 

3. Add curry powder and cook slowly another 2 to 3 minutes. 

4. Wash and dry zucchini and add to the frying pan. 

5. Cook over low heat another 5 minutes.  

6. Season with salt and pepper, add the chicken stock, and when the stock begins to simmer, cook for 10 minutes or until zucchini is still a bit crisp. 

7. Put mixture through a food mill or blender. 

8. Add lemon juice and chill. 

9. When chilled add the cream and top with a sprig of parsley.