Tortilla Soup…

In Houston, there are some days that are so long and hot, that you don’t want to cook, at least with a lot of effort. Soup is one of my favorite things to satisfy the appetite after a long (hot) day. It’s usually light and you don’t have to eat much to feel full. One of my favorites is Tortilla Soup. The best recipe I have found is from the Houston Junior League’s book, “Stop and Smell the Rosemary.” The recipe is the best and it’s easy to throw together. If your family needs more than “just soup”, grill up a quesadilla to serve along side the soup. This is a great way to use leftover roasted chicken, too.

Tortilla Soup, de la Houston Junior League

(this is a halved version, which makes about 6 big bowls of soup)

3 tablespoons vegetable oil

4 corn tortillas, chopped into 1/4″ dice

3 cloves garlic, minced

½ chopped fresh cilantro

1 medium sized white onion, 1/4″ dice

1 (14 ounce can) fire roasted diced tomatoes with juice

1 tablespoon ground cumin

½ tablespoon chili powder

1 bay leaf

4-6 cups chicken broth (depending on how thick you want the soup)

½ teaspoon salt

pinch of cayenne pepper

½ cooked chicken breast (about 4-6 ounces), 1/4” dice

Juice of 1 fresh lime (please use fresh)

crumbled Queso Fresco to garnish

Avocado, diced, as a garnish

Heat oil in large pot over medium heat. Add onion and cook till softened. Add tortillas, garlic, and cilantro. Saute another 2 minutes. Stir in tomatoes with juice and turn heat to high. Add the cumin, chili powder, bay leaves and chicken stock. When about to be a full boil, turn down to just simmering. Cook for 20 minutes, uncovered. Turn off heat and add chicken and remove bay leaf. Stir until the chicken might be heated through. Add the freshly squeezed lime juice and stir one more time.  If not ready to serve, just keep on very low heat and cover until your gang is ready.

Ladle into bowls. Garnish with chopped avocado and a sprinkle of crumbled Queso Fresco. Add a sprig of cilantro if you want.

OLE!

P.S. As with all things seasonal, add other things, such as chiles, fresh corn, beans, etc as you like.  This is merely a nice canvas to start with or plain and perfect as is.  Think it would even be an easy and hearty thing to make for a crowd before Christmas Eve church service.

Photo courtesy of Rick Bayless, king of all things Mexican, in my book.

http://www.fronterafiesta.com

 

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Mom’s Meat Loaf…

 

It’s a well-known fact that most any foodie’s first memories of really good food was from their mother’s (or grandmother’s) kitchen. AND, it was usually based on comfort food. For me, it was my mom’s meat loaf. When things were darkest and despair could only be lessened by food, meat loaf was made and served with mashed potatoes and green beans. It’s truly the trifecta of comfort foods.

The meat loaf was always topped with a goopey glaze of ketchup, then with bacon. The consistency was light and had a crumbly texture in the cross-section. The potatoes were light and fluffy, even that they were laden with butter. She would insert a serving spoon into the potatoes, make a large scoop, and with the flick of the wrist, plop the perfect-sized portion onto a plate. The mound always had “stiff peaks”, like just-whipped cream. The green beans were always the fine French variety, skinny and small, and cooked till al dente. They were finished with a pat of butter, and a sprinkle of sea salt and freshly ground pepper. Do I have your attention yet?

“Mom Food” is special to me. My parents knew it was a special boy-friend when he got to have my mother’s meat loaf. (Any time my mother cooks, I hoard the food, and dish out only to the chosen few.) So, without further adieu, I give you THE RECIPE. I feel that I’m doing us all a favor, by recording this for posterity. Serve with a Cabernet (is there any other way?). Run to the store and make this as soon as you can. Freeze the leftovers (ha).

Bacon-Wrapped Meat Loaf with Brown Sugar-Ketchup Glaze

Serves 6-8

Glaze

½ cup ketchup

4 tablespoons light brown sugar

4 teaspoons apple cider vinegar

Meat Loaf

2 teaspoons oil

1 medium onion, chopped finely

2 garlic cloves, minced

2 large eggs

½ teaspoon dried thyme

1 teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon ground black pepper

2 teaspoons Dijon mustard

2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce

¼ teaspoon Tabasco

½ cup whole milk or plain yogurt

2 pounds meat (total) = 1 pound ground beef, ½ pound ground pork, ½ pound ground veal

2/3 cup bread crumbs

1/3 cup fresh parsley, chopped finely

8-12 slices thinly-cut bacon

Make the glaze, mixing all ingredients in a small saucepan and set aside.

Heat oven to 350F. Heat oil in medium skillet. Add onion and garlic and saute until softened, about 5 minutes. Set aside to cool, while preparing remaining ingredients.

Mix eggs with thyme, salt, pepper, mustard, Worcestershire sauce, Tabasco, and milk (or yogurt). Add egg mixture to meat in a large bowl, along with bread crumbs, parsley and cooked onion and garlic. Mix with fork until evenly blended and meat mixture does not stick to the bowl. (If sticks to the side of the bowl, add a little more milk or yogurt until it no longer sticks to the side of the bowl.)

Turn meat mixture onto a foil-lined sheet pan. With wet hands, pat mixture into approximately 9” x 5” loaf shape. Brush with half the glaze, then arrange bacon slices, crosswise, over loaf, overlapping slightly and tucking bacon tip ends under the loaf (if necessary).

Bake loaf until bacon is crisp and loaf registers 160F, about an hour. Cool at least 20 minutes. Simmer remaining glaze over medium heat until thickened slightly. Slice meat loaf and serve with extra glaze on the side.

*Note: this is not prepared in a loaf pan. It really does yield a nicer finished result, the sides and top crunchy since all exposed. Resist the inclination to use a loaf pan. You’ll be glad you did.

Original recipe and photo courtesy of Cook’s Illustrated magazine (the best).

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bruschetta a la Nan

It was the end of the first day of moving and I HAD to take a break from unpacking. It had been a long day. A bath, glass of wine, and “nothing” was calling my name. My second instinct? A movie. A foodie movie. A quality foodie movie that I hadn’t seen in a very long time, AND, one that would inspire me to do more than just open boxes.

So, I chose “Julie & Julia”, a movie based on the book of the same name, by Julie Powell. In the opening scene, she is making Bruschetta for her husband. As he eats, he devours one piece after the other, as if it was ambrosia. Ever since seeing that, I have been thinking about tomatoes and the fact that it’s summer and well, the sweetest time of year for tomatoes.

In the spirit of all things “Julia”, and for my mom, I made the attempt last night. I found the freshest loaf of light and fluffy French bread and of course, yummy little sweet tomatoes. I served to my mother with a little Pinot Grigio and MANGIA! We were both in heaven. There were no words between us, but “yummy noises”, scraping up every bit that fell to our plates, as if every morsel was precious. Here is my version of Julie’s Bruschetta. It’s summer. Make this as soon as you can. It’s too hot to really eat, so make this at the end of a day when you’re feeling heavy and tired. It will make you feel grateful to love food. Share it with someone you really like.

Bruschetta a la Nan

Serves 2

3 large slices, about 1” thick (cut on the bias), light and fluffy fresh French bread

Extra Virgin Olive Oil (dark and rich)

1 whole garlic clove

½ pint of tiny sweet tomatoes (“Cherubs”), each one sliced in half

½ orange bell pepper, cut into 1/4” dice

white Balsamic vinegar (just a splash) – I prefer white for this recipe as you get flavor without richness of the dark version

3 large leaves fresh basil

salt & pepper to taste

Parmesan cheese shavings for garnish

In a large frying pan over medium heat, place enough olive oil to coat the bottom of the pan. Add the bread slices and fry until well-toasted. Remove from the pan to plates, cooked side up. Scrape the warm side with the clove of garlic (you can’t miss this step).

In the same large frying pan, add a little more olive oil (if necessary). Add the bell pepper and cook till softened, 3-5 minutes. Add the tomatoes and salt and pepper to taste. Cook for about a minute. Add a splash of the white balsamic vinegar. Shake frying pan to blend and cook for about a minute, until the tomatoes start to soften and release juices. Turn off the heat, tear the basil leaves, throwing them into the tomato mixture. Toss one last time. With a large spoon, ladle over each piece of bread till all the mixture is used. Garnish with Parmesan cheese shavings.

Mangia!

Photos courtesy of: www.unabashedlypoetic.wordpress.com and http://www.thummprints.net