Potato Leek Soup

Thursday, March 29, 2012
Alas…time to sit down and write (!). It is Spring break and my kids are home all day, and it’s wonderful… We have been on the go enjoying the break from our typical suburban routine of school and extracurricular activities. Even though the weather hasn’t been the best here in the Sierra Nevada Foothills, tons of much needed rain, we have managed to spend a significant amount of time outside getting ready for our spring garden planting, taking long nature walks and bike riding around the town. This morning I am enjoying wonderful coffee while reading some of my favorite food blogs and “pinning” on Pinterest. I may be obsessed!  

My day, of course, started at 5am with a nice long hour and a half workout at the gym. I arrived home to one of my favorite sights, my Fresh Farm to You box! Liv and Jack were awake and awaiting my return so when I pulled into the drive they both ran out in PJs to greet me. I was eagerly awaiting those wonderful big hugs when they both stopped and started jumping with excitement and joy! “Our Fresh Farm To You is here”! They together picked up the box and hauled it inside. I guess I know my rank in the grand scheme of things! I could hardly put my keys and water bottle down, they wanted me to unpack the box and show them all the fruits and veggies that were inside.

Fresh Farm to You (FFTY) is a wonderful family owned organic farm with two locations, one in Southern California and one in Northern California. They grow and sell the highest quality organic seasonal produce and nuts by delivery. Members choose the amount and the frequency they wish to receive fresh produce, and voila it magically appears on your doorstep nicely wrapped with featured recipes all before the crack of dawn! This service is so nice for me and my family because our local farmers market is very seasonal and not available in the late fall through early spring. Our FFTY delivery is our farmers market in a box!

A few weeks ago we took the opportunity to tour the Northern California Fresh Farm to You Farm in the beautiful Capay Valley. They open the farm on the second Saturday of each month for tours. They invite you to bring a picnic lunch and stay to enjoy the live music they provide. They offer guided tractor tours of the grounds, over 300 acres at the Capay Valley location. They also offer you the opportunity to walk though a current crop and pick your own produce. During our tour we stopped in the kale fields and pick tons of wonderful fresh dino kale! The kids loved it and so did the adults. It was a fun day, and a great way for our kids to see where the “box” comes from.



During this transitional time between the end of winter and beginning of spring we have some beautiful seasonal flavors to work with. This potato leek soup is a simple, easy recipe that marries the warmth and comfort of winter dishes with the simple clean flavors of spring. And for all my fellow Moms with little time on your hands to tackle complicated dishes, it’s easy! It’s also easily made vegan and you can make it even lower fat if you wish.

 If you wish to make it vegan sweat the leeks in one tablespoon of olive oil. Once the leeks start to soften, about 5 min, add a little water, about 1/4 of a cup. At the end, when the soup is done simply don’t add the dairy; it still tastes creamy and delicious! I have to admit I almost didn’t add the buttermilk, but I’m SOOO glad I did that little hidden tang makes this soup special. I did however reduce both the amount of butter Alton used in his recipe to sweat the leeks, as well as the amount of cream he finishes this soup with to lower the fat and calorie content. I also didn’t have “real” buttermilk in the frig so I made a quick buttermilk substitute (I included the technique below.) My final adaptations to Alton’s recipe was not pureeing all of the potatoes and adding some grilled sweet corn kernels. My kids and husband like some texture in their soup so I reserved some of the potato chunks, approximately 2 cups, and added it back after the soup was pureed. I also always have grilled sweet corn kernels in the freezer so I added about ¾ cup to the soup before I added the dairy. I grill and freeze my own during the summer, but if you don’t you can pick up a bag at Trader Joes. Bon Appetite!  



 Buttermilk Substitute:


Milk (just under one cup)

1 Tablespoon white vinegar or lemon juice



What to Do:


Place a Tablespoon of white vinegar or lemon juice in a measuring cup.

Add enough milk to bring the liquid up to the one-cup line.

Let stand for five minutes. Use as much “buttermilk” as your recipe calls for. 

If you have heavy cream in the fridge even better, you have everything you need to make real buttermilk!



Potato Leek Soup 


Adapted from Alton Browns Recipe 

 

Ingredients:



2-3 large leeks, cleaned and dark green sections removed

1 tablespoon unsalted butter

Heavy pinch kosher salt, plus additional for seasoning

14 ounces, approximately 3 small, Yukon gold potatoes, peeled and diced small

1 quart vegetable broth

½ cup heavy cream

1 cup buttermilk

½ teaspoon white pepper

¾ cup of grilled sweet corn kernels (optional)

1 tablespoon snipped chives (optional)

Cooked turkey bacon for garnish (optional)


Directions:



Chop the leeks into small pieces.

In a 6-quart saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter. Add the leeks and a heavy pinch of salt and sweat for 5 minutes. Decrease the heat to medium-low add about ½ cup of water and cook until the leeks are tender, approximately 25 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Add the potatoes and the vegetable broth, increase the heat to medium-high, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and gently simmer until the potatoes are soft, approximately 45 minutes.

Turn off the heat. If you wish to have some chunks in your soup remove 1-2 cups of potatoes and leeks and reserve. Puree the remaining mixture with an immersion blender, or transfer in batches to a regular blender and blend until smooth. Return soup to pot, add back in reserved potato and leeks and grilled sweet corn, and stir in the heavy cream, buttermilk, and white pepper. Taste and adjust seasoning if desired. Sprinkle with chives, top with turkey bacon and serve immediately with some hot crusty bread.

Posted by The Junk-Free Chef at 2:43 PM 1 comments

Curried Beef Pita Pockets with Lime Cilantro Yogurt Sauce

Monday, February 20, 2012


One of my favorite classes in culinary school was titled Cuisines Across Cultures. This class, obvious by the title, explored the roots and traditions of different cuisines from around the world. We would take one ingredient, such as lentils, and prepare it utilizing different cooking techniques, methods and flavor combinations to explore and better understand flavor profiles and cuisine staples from different countries. We also spent a good deal of time learning about every herb, spice and seed used to flavor foods around the world. One of the first topics our chef instructor lectured on was curry.

Most people are well aware that curry is widely used in Indian and Thai cooking, but most don’t know that curry itself is not a spice. Curry is actually a blend of up to 20 spices, herbs and seeds which typically contain cardamom, chiles, cinnamon, cloves, coriander, cumin, fennel seed, fenugreek, mace, nutmeg, red and black pepper, poppy and sesame seeds, saffron, tamarind and turmeric. Obviously you can purchase commercial curry powder in the grocery store, but it bears little resemblance to the freshly ground traditional Indian blends and pastes. If you decide to explore this recipe I have included a recipe for making your own simple curry powder, which will stay wonderfully fresh in an airtight container for up to two weeks.
I LOVE traditional curried dishes, but I also love to mimic those deep flavors in simple easy, healthy dishes too. I really wanted to share something this time that is so simple to make that literally anyone can do it! This is a perfect dish for those who work long hours and like to use the slow cooker to ensure dinner is ready when you get home. This is one of my favorite Wednesday meals, and the leftovers make packing Thursdays lunch for Liv a breeze. Weighing in at under 400 calories per serving while boasting a whopping 37 grams of lean protein you just can’t go wrong with this slow cooked, curry inspired, healthful super easy meal!

This dish does take a little bit of prep to get into to the slow cooker, but it is worth it! The good news is the assembly for dinner is a breeze, so invest the 20 minutes in prepping this dish in the morning while you are sipping your coffee, for a healthy dinner on the table in 10 minutes when you get home in the evening. I found this idea in one of my all time favorite magazines, Clean Eating. I took the liberty to add and change a few of the basic ingredients and cooking techniques to deepen the flavor profile without adding any noticeable calories. My simple addition of onion, garlic, cinnamon and tomatoes really add a richness and body to this yummy dish. Most importantly browning the meat prior to putting it in liquid is a must for a delicious tasting stewed or braised dish. Skipping this step will result in tougher bland meat which will taste more boiled than slow cooked.



Curried Beef
Adapted from a Tosca Reno Clean Eating Recipe http://www.cleaneatingmag.com/Recipes/Recipe/Beef-Chickpea-Curry-Wraps.asp

1 lb extra lean or lean stew beef, defatted and cubed into about 1-1.5” cubes
1 teaspoon Kosher salt
2 tbsp Indian curry powder, divided (I used yellow mild curry, no hot chilies for the kids)
½ tsp ground cinnamon
2 tsp cooking oil (I like grape seed oil)
½ large yellow onion, chopped
2-3 cloves garlic, finely sliced
1 tbsp tomato paste
1-14oz can chopped tomatoes
1 can (drained) low sodium chick peas, or 14 oz of cooked dried chick peas
1 cup low-sodium stock (you can use vegetable, chicken or beef. I use chicken or vegetable typically because I make my own stock and freeze it)
1 cup frozen peas

Combine cubed beef, kosher salt, cinnamon, and 1 tbsp curry powder in a medium bowl. Rub meat vigorously with your hands to cover thoroughly with spice mixture.

Heat cooking oil in a medium skillet over med-high heat, add spice rubbed meat evenly in one layer to skillet and brown on both sides. Don’t over crowd the pan, work in batches if necessary. Remove meat with a slotted spoon and place on paper towel lined plate.

Add onions and garlic to the pan and cook for 2-3 minutes until translucent and fragrant, do not brown.

Add tomato paste, cook one minute then add chopped tomatoes, cook for 1 minute more to deglaze the pan.

Add beef, tomato, garlic and onion mixture to a 2- to 3-qt slow cooker.

Add stock and chick peas to the slow cooker, stir in remaining 1 tablespoon of curry powder and cook on low for 8 hours.

To finish use a large skillet heated on medium-high heat, transfer the contents of slow cooker to skillet and bring to a simmer. You will reduce this mixture to desired consistency, stir in frozen peas during the last minute of cooking so they retain their bright green color. If you would prefer this dish to stay on the saucy side don’t reduce as much and serve over cooked brown rice instead of inside a whole wheat pita!


Lime Cilantro Yogurt Sauce
1 cup non or low-fat plain Greek yogurt
1 clove garlic, grated
Pinch kosher salt
¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro (optional)
Lime juice, to taste
Low-fat milk (as needed to thin the yogurt)

In a small bowl grate one clove of garlic. You can use minced garlic, but I personally hate biting into a piece of raw garlic so I prefer to grate raw garlic with a micro plain or fine cheese grater. Combine garlic, yogurt, salt, cilantro and lime. If needed, stir in a dash of milk to thin the yogurt to desired consistency. I also like to add just a bit of honey to this sauce it works nicely to balance the tartness of the lime and garlic.

For Serving

6 warmed whole-wheat pitas (I love the Trader Joes WW pitas)
2 cups fresh baby spinach
Stuff each warm pita with some spinach, spoon in some curry mixture, drizzle with yogurt sauce and enjoy!

Homemade Yellow Curry Powder, makes 5 to 6 tablespoons.
2 tbsp whole coriander seeds
1 tbsp whole cumin seeds
2 tsp whole black peppercorns
1 ½ tsp whole brown mustard seeds
1 ½ tsp ground tumeric
1 tsp whole fenugreek seeds (I used 1 tsp of ground fenugreek, you can get it at Whole Foods)
3 hot dried red chilies, crumbled (when I use chilies I use dried chile de arbol)
3 whole cloves

Heat a small DRY frying pan over medium heat. When it gets hot, add coriander, cumin, peppercorns, mustard seeds, cloves and chilies. Keep moving the pan constantly, to make sure the spices do not burn, the spices will begin to get toasted and become fragrant. Keep moving the pan over the heat until they begin to darken slightly in color. Add tumeric and fenugreek and stir constantly for 10-15 seconds.

Remove from heat and pour into a bowl. Allow to cool. Once cool, place into a spice grinder and grind until fine. Store curry powder in an air tight container for up to two weeks for optimal freshness.

Posted by The Junk-Free Chef at 3:37 PM 1 comments

The Sweet Stuff- Blueberry Muffin Bread Pudding and Meyer Lemon Pudding

Sunday, February 12, 2012

I have never been one to have a sweet tooth; in fact I have always considered Fourme d'Ambert and a nice vintage port to be my ideal dessert! Now my darling husband, that’s another story altogether. He loves all things sweet, with almost no discrimination; he’ll eat Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups with the same heavenly grin as when he eats a fresh baked chocolate croissant! I suppose that as I get older I do appreciate a sweet bite every now and then… My children, Liv and François (ok his birth name is Jack, but I have been calling him Francois since he was born) love sweets, but definitely approach them with a far more sophisticated palate then both their typical peers, and of course their father! Liv doesn’t like anything fancy, she will tell you without a doubt how much she loves a nice big piece of perfectly executed dark chocolate, the darker and richer the better. Françoise is my little custard and fruit forward dessert lover. He loves crème brulee, éclairs (or anything featuring pastry cream!) and of course perfect little fruit Tartelettes.

I don’t typically make dessert, but my family all love to enjoy something sweet and the end of every dinner. Usually Liv and Rick are satisfied with the small stock of dark chocolate covered cherries, and bits and pieces of good chocolate I keep in the pantry, while François will gladly opt for a piece of fruit or some yogurt. I’m not a huge fan giving kids sugar laden desserts, I have found that allowing my kids to eat sweets in moderation, choosing small portions of sweets made with REAL ingredients and not stuff bought at the grocery store or in the candy isle, which typically has tons of artificial flavors and preservatives, has satisfied their urge for sweets while meeting my expectations of eating real foods. You see I did graduate from a French culinary school, and what is more classically French than dessert? I was lucky enough to learn to make traditional amazingly buttery and flaky croissants, pâté choux pastries, clafoutis, galettes and many other delicious tarts, cakes and cookies. So…full disclosure time, I dreaded and I mean DREADED baking and pastry classes (DREADED-AND I'M NOT EXAGGERATING EVIDENT BY MY USE OF ALL CAPS)! And Dear Lord please don’t let my wonderful baking a pastry instructor Chef Adriane read this! I was (and really still am) a chef who doesn’t love to step out of the savory side of the kitchen. The best explanation for this is summed up in the expression “cooking is an art and baking is a science”. I HATE to measure…

So while I will make more complicated desserts for special events and holidays I like to stick to easier and more rustic type desserts for our family treats. I also typically need an inspiration to put on my baking apron and get out the sugar.

My inspiration for this round of baking was twofold. One being my beautiful little Meyer lemon tree and the other being Francois. It went something like this…The kids and I were enjoying the unusually gorgeous February weather out back. We picked lemons, weeded the onion beds and fed the worms (our composting worms). We were playing and chatting and I was of course thinking of what I could do with all of my lovely lemons. We were all going in and out of the house when I heard a blood curdling scream. It was Francois. He had been a good boy and taken off his mud boots in the garage before coming into the house, but in true boy fashion he was running and not paying attention. The heavy garage door closed over his bare toe and there was blood… Now those of you who have, or work with children understand that the minute there is blood with any “injury” is the minute the world must stop turning! I of course ran to his rescue, swept him up in my arms (he is only four…and my baby!) and took him to the medic station, my master bath. He was sobbing. I once had a checker at Trader Joes ask me if my son had a sister, because he pinched his finger in the cart and screamed this unworldly scream that you would only expect from a dramatic little princess. So you can imagine the drama when blood in any volume is involved. Then the magic happened. I pulled out the new box of Band Aids and suddenly like a switch he stopped, wiped his eyes, and said with such delighted surprise “you got Spiderman Band-Aids”? So I guess Spiderman saved the day! He was all bandaged up now, but he just wasn’t ready to put his boots back on over his “wound”. So when I asked him what he wanted to do he said "bake cookies"…

Ok I was inspired to bake or at least make something sweet, and after hitting a few of my favorite blogs I found this yummy Meyer lemon pudding recipe http://www.thegalleygourmet.net/2011/01/meyer-lemon-pudding.html. Francois was in, and excited. Liv wasn’t as thrilled, so we decided two desserts were in order. I also had about 10 homemade mini whole wheat and flax blue berry muffins (muffin recipe below) in the fridge that were on their last leg, approaching stale. My aunt had recently emailed and asked if I thought she could use my chocolate brioche bread pudding recipe and substitute old muffins for the brioche. So with that in mind I decided to turn our leftover mini muffins into a lower fat bread pudding. Both turned out super yummy and both were my favorite kind of desserts, easy!!! Hopefully you will find your own inspiration to try one or both of these recipes!


The Galley Gourmet’s Meyer Lemon Pudding (No modifications necessary, it was easy and delicious!) Serves 6
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup cornstarch
2 1/2 cups whole milk
3 extra large egg yolks, lightly beaten
2 tablespoons finely grated Meyer lemon zest (or 1 tablespoon lemon zest + 1 tablespoon orange zest)
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 cup freshly squeezed Meyer lemon juice (or 1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice + 1/4 cup freshly squeezed orange juice)
2 tablespoons unsalted butter at room temperature

In a medium saucepan, whisk together the sugar and cornstarch. Add the milk, egg yolks, zest, and salt and whisk until smooth. Cook over medium heat, stirring frequently at first and constantly toward the end, until thickened.

Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the citrus juice and butter. Place a fine mesh sieve over a large bowl and pour the mixture through the strainer. Divide the mixture into 6 serving dishes and let cool to room temperature. Refrigerate, loosely covered (tightly covered will trap too much moisture, making a watery pudding) for at least 3 hours and up to 3 days. Serve chilled by itself or with lightly sweetened whipped cream.


Blueberry Muffin Bread Pudding
2 eggs
3/4 c. sugar
3 c. low-fat milk
1 c. heavy cream
1/2 c. unsalted butter, melted
1 tbsp. vanilla
1 tbsp fresh grated lemon zest
1 tsp cinnamon
¼ tsp. nutmeg
8 oz. stale low fat blueberry muffins
½ cup fresh or frozen blueberries (optional)

Bread Pudding: Combine eggs, sugar, milk, cream, melted butter, vanilla, lemon zest, cinnamon, and nutmeg in a bowl; whisk to blend well. Arrange the muffin pieces in a lightly greased 4-quart baking dish and pour the mixture over muffin pieces, let stand, turning muffin pieces as necessary, until soft and saturated, about 20 minutes. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Bake uncovered until the custard is set and top is lightly browned, about 45 minutes.





Bleu Rosemary’s Low Fat Whole Wheat and Flax Blueberry Muffins
1 cup non fat milk (cow or nut)
1 large egg, lightly beaten
¼ cup raw honey
¼ cup naturally sweetened applesauce
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
3 tbsp ground flax
4 tsp baking powder
¼ tsp nutmeg
½ -1 tsp cinnamon

1 1/4 cups fresh or frozen blueberries (If using frozen blueberries, do not thaw before adding them to the batter)

Blueberry Muffins: Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (Position rack in center of oven. Butter or line 12 muffin cups with paper liners).

In a large measuring cup or bowl whisk together the milk, lightly beaten egg, honey, applesauce, and vanilla extract.

In another large bowl whisk together the flour, flax, baking powder, and salt. Remove 1 tablespoon of the dry ingredients and toss it with the blueberries. With a rubber spatula fold the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir only until the ingredients are combined. Gently stir in the blueberries. Do not over mix the batter or your muffins will be tough and dense. 

 Evenly fill the muffin cups with the batter, using two spoons or an ice cream scoop. Place in the oven and bake for about 15 - 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean. Transfer to a wire rack and let cool for about 5 minutes before removing from pan.
Posted by The Junk-Free Chef at 6:00 PM 0 comments
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