Roasted Tomato Vegetable Soup

This past Sunday was a gorgeous day! It felt like autumn blew in on a cool, crisp breeze. It brought beautiful clouds that dwarfed the fields, wisps of burning wood fires, and jacket weather.Trees are only beginning to hint about their color changes but soybeans have turned golden and will be harvested soon. This early autumn weather urges me to finish stacking my firewood. And it reminds me of all the other chores that I still need to get done around here before winter.

But autumn makes me think about fun things, too, like fresh apple cider, smokey campfires, bumpy hayrides, and soup...... this soup.

I love this soup!

When you read how to make this soup it might sound like it's complicated, but this is really a very simple recipe. Three different pans of ingredients are roasted. Then they are combined with some stock in a blender. That's it. Done!

This soup cans well, too. It maintains its flavor and consistency if you home can it. When you open up a jar of this soup it's just as fresh and tasty as the day you made it.

Here's how to prepare this soup:

1) Peel, seed, and chop 5 pounds of tomatoes. Spread them out into a shallow non-reactive pan. Add several cloves of rough chopped garlic. Drizzle with a bit of olive oil. Sprinkle with thyme, fresh ground pepper, and salt. Roast at 300 degrees for a couple of hours. This will yield about 2 quarts of roasted tomatoes, including their liquid. (Don't drain the liquid.)2) Roast, core, and peel 3 or 4 large red (or orange or yellow) peppers. Here's how I do it... I cut the flesh of the peppers into large sections that will lay flat on a baking pan. I place the pan in the oven under the broiler until they become mostly blackened. Then I remove the pan from the oven and I lay a piece of plastic wrap loosely on top of the blackened peppers. I let the peppers rest until they are cool enough to handle, then I rub the skin off of the peppers.3) Peel and roughly cut 4 cups of carrots. Peel and slice 2 cups of onions. (Optional: add a chopped jalapeno.) Combine carrots and onions (and jalapeno, if using) in a shallow baking baking pan. Drizzle with a bit of olive oil and sprinkle with fresh ground pepper and salt. Cover pan and roast at 350 degrees for 1-2 hours, stirring or shaking pan occasionally, until carrots and onions are soft.

4) Puree prepared and cooled ingredients and a quart of vegetable stock, in a blender. This is quite a bit of soup. I have to blend 10-12 batches of it in my standard sized blender to puree all of it. I add a bit of each ingredient (some roasted tomatoes, some roasted and peeled peppers, some roasted carrots and onions, and some vegetable stock) to each batch that I whirl in the blender. Blend ingredients well so that no chunks of vegetables remain. Pour each blended batch into a large stock pot and stir to combine all the batches.

5) Heat soup. Add a pinch of sugar, adjust seasonings to taste, and serve!If canning, fill hot jars, leaving one inch of headspace, and process in a pressure canner at the pressure that is appropriate for your altitude. (Despite the tomatoes, this is a low acid food and can not be processed in a boiling water canner.) I process it for 35 minutes at 11 pounds pressure, the amount of time recommended for the least acidic ingredients, and the pressure required for my elevation. This recipe makes 7-8 pints of soup.ROASTED TOMATO VEGETABLE SOUP

5 pounds tomatoes
several cloves garlic
2 tablespoons of olive oil
thyme
salt and pepper

3-4 red (or orange or yellow) sweet peppers

several large carrots
1-2 onions
2 tablespoons olive oil
salt and pepper

1 quart vegetable stock

more salt and pepper, if needed
a pinch of sugar

1) Peel, seed, and chop 5 pounds of tomatoes. Spread them out into a shallow non-reactive pan. Add several cloves of peeled, rough chopped garlic. Drizzle with a bit of olive oil. Sprinkle with thyme, fresh ground pepper, and salt. Roast at 300 degrees for a couple of hours. This will yield about 2 quarts of roasted tomatoes and their liquid. (Don't drain the liquid.)

2) Roast, core, and peel 3 or 4 large red (or orange or yellow) peppers.

3) Peel and roughly cut 4 cups of carrots. Peel and slice 2 cups of onions. (Optional: add a chopped jalapeno.) Combine carrots and onions (and jalapeno, if using) in a shallow baking baking pan. Drizzle with a bit of olive oil and sprinkle with fresh ground pepper and salt. Cover pan and roast at 350 degrees for 1-2 hours, stirring or shaking pan occasionally, until carrots and onions are soft.

4) Puree prepared and cooled ingredients and a quart of vegetable stock, in a blender. This is quite a bit of soup. I have to blend 10-12 batches of it in my standard sized blender to puree all of it. I add a bit of each ingredient (some roasted tomatoes, some roasted and peeled peppers, some roasted carrots and onions, and some vegetable stock) to each batch that I whirl in the blender. Blend ingredients well so that no chunks of vegetables remain. Pour each blended batch into a large stock pot and stir to combine all the batches.

5) Heat soup. Add a pinch of sugar, adjust seasonings to taste, and serve!

Stovetop Tomato Chicken Stew

Healthy, filling, and full of flavor, this meal cooks up on top of the stove in one pot. It's easy enough to be a quick weeknight meal but it's classy, too, and perfect for company because it doesn't require much attention while it simmers and cooks and teases you with its delicious aromas.

Change the spices to suit your own taste. Use some basil and oregano to give it an Italian flair and serve it topped with Italian cheeses. Give it more of a New Orleans spin with your favorite Creole seasoning. Or, use cumin, paprika, and some heat to give it a Mexican taste.

This time I seasoned mine simply with a bit of my "hot" spice... a variety of hot peppers, dehydrated and then ground. I rubbed the chicken pieces with a mixture of kosher salt, pepper, and "hot." Then I sprinkled more of those same seasonings and pushed a little sprig of fresh thyme into the dish as it was beginning to simmer on the stove. Usually I like to eat this with crusty bread or buttermilk biscuits. I like to push the bread down into the bowl to soak up every drop of that tasty sauce.STOVETOP TOMATO CHICKEN STEW

3-4 pounds, bone in, skin on, chicken parts
kosher salt, pepper, and a hot spice, (cayenne, chili, or chipolte powder, or red pepper flakes)
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup chicken broth
1 quart jar of tomatoes, undrained
1 cup tomato sauce
2 cups chopped carrots
2 cups chopped celery
2 cups sliced onion
several cloves garlic, roughly chopped
a pinch of sugar
1-2 bay leaves
fresh or dried thyme, to taste
more salt and pepper, and hot spice, to taste

Rub chicken with kosher salt, pepper, and a hot spice such as cayenne pepper, chili powder, or chipolte powder. Heat olive oil in large stock pot and brown chicken on all sides, then remove chicken and set aside. Add chicken broth to pot and scrape up browned bits from bottom of pan. Add canned tomatoes and tomato sauce. (I like to can some 8 ounce jars of tomato sauce and chicken broth because I seem to use "1 cup of tomato sauce" or "1 cup of chicken broth" in a lot of recipes.) Add chopped vegetables and garlic, pinch of sugar, bay leaves, and thyme. Place chicken back in pot, Push pieces of chicken down into liquid. Simmer on stove top for about an hour, until chicken is very tender and falling off the bone. Remove chicken and let sit until cool enough to handle. Pull meat from chicken and return meat to pot (or skip this step and just leave the pieces of chicken whole). Add more salt and pepper and hot spice, to taste. Serve with fresh crusty bread or buttermilk biscuits.

Simple Crusty Baguette Buns (and How I Dreamed of Eating My First Tomato of the Season)

Each spring, when I plant tomatoes, I think about the first tomato that I will get to eat.

As the tomato plants grow, and flower, and then start growing small green fruits, I keep thinking about that first beautiful juicy red tomato.This year I pined for that first tomato especially long. Late freezes and spring floods made it so tomato plants got into the ground later than usual.

I actually had a dream about how I would eat that first tomato while I was waiting for it to actually happen.

This is what I dreamed......a lovely thick slice of tomato on a crusty baguette bun with mozzarella cheese and thinly sliced strips of fresh basil.

That's it. I didn't even need mayonnaise.

This sandwich was perfect, just as it was.

But this post isn't about that first tomato... it's about that Simple Crusty Baguette Bun.These buns are crusty and crunchy on the outside but light and airy on the inside... perfect for a rustic sandwich and great with soups or any time you want a crusty bread to go with something.

And they are seriously simple, which is nice for people (like me) who want to eat freshly baked bread, but (like me) don't want to go through all of the fuss that making bread usually demands.

In fact, any real bread makers out there please look away, because this recipe is probably an assault to all of you true bread-making souls who are good at the art of kneading and rising and proofing. This here is just my countrygirl shortcut. These buns take about 2 hours from the moment you think about making them until the moment you bite into one (and most of that time the buns are rising while you are doing something else).

First you combine some flour, yeast, and salt and whisk that mixture into some warm water.Then add more flour and stir it in as much as possible.Knead for five minutes and then let dough rest for fifteen minutes. Shape dough into balls and put them in the oven to rise for an hour.Then, no pre-heating, just turn the oven on and bake them. The next time you even touch the baking pan these buns are ready to eat!

SIMPLE CRUSTY BAGUETTE BUNS

3/4 cup warm water
1 teaspoon fast-acting yeast
1/2 cup bread flour
1/2 teaspoon coarse salt
1 more cup of bread flour
a bit more flour to sprinkle on counter for kneading
olive oil or vegetable oil for greasing baking pans

If possible, use non-metallic bowls and utensils. Combine 1/2 cup bread flour, yeast, and salt in a small bowl. Whisk these dry ingredients together. Pour 3/4 cup warm water into a larger bowl. Add dry ingredients to water and whisk to combine. (Optional: you may want to add some dried herbs at this time.) When mixture is smooth add 1 more cup of bread flour. Stir this together with a spoon as much as possible. When ingredients are mostly combined place dough on counter top sprinkled with flour and knead for about 5 minutes, until dough is smooth and pliable. Let dough rest for 15 minutes. After dough has rested drizzle a bit of oil onto baking pan and spread oil onto baking pan with your fingers. With oily hands, pinch off pieces of dough and form into 6 to 8 round balls. Place dough balls several inches apart on baking pan. Place baking pan on middle or top rack of oven and turn oven light on. Let dough rise in oven for an hour (or less... if they rise too long they start to get wide and flat instead of puffy). After dough balls have risen leave them right there in the oven. Place a small metal bowl or baking pan with a handful of ice in it on the bottom rack of the oven and turn oven on to 400 degrees. Bake until buns are golden on top, about 25 minutes (although I expect baking time may vary oven to oven). Buns will be crusty and crunchy on the outside but light and airy on the inside. Beware: they are addictive.

Chicken Marsala

Not too long ago I wrote about Chicken in Wine Sauce and how it's a quick recipe for hurried nights when you want to put a nice dinner on the table in a hurry.

Thinking about Chicken in Wine Sauce made me think of Chicken Marsala.

I had never made Chicken Marsala before, so I googled for a recipe and the "Olive Garden" restaurant came up in my search. I almost dismissed it, thinking, "I don't want to go to a restaurant and order it, I want to MAKE it." But then I realized that the "Olive Garden" was offering up their recipe. Hmmm... this sounded interesting...

So I tried it.

Oh my goodness... this was one of the quickest and easiest recipes I have ever made! It only took a few minutes of preparation, pounding the deboned chicken and slicing the mushrooms. Then most of the cooking was done while everything simmered in the covered skillet.I made a couple of minor changes to their recipe. I used four cups of mushrooms instead of two and I used a few fresh herbs from the garden instead of dried oregano. I'm sure I'll be making this again and when fresh herbs aren't available I'll use "Italian Seasonings," a simple blend of home grown dried herbs... oregano, parsley, basil, and thyme. I served my Chicken Marsala over some homemade noodles with a side of wilted spinach.

I'll reprint the Olive Garden recipe here since they been kind enough to share it... but I noticed that they shared a number of other recipes as well and you might want to visit their site when you're looking for a little inspiration some time. Their site is www.olivegarden.com. Their recipes can be found under the heading "Connections to Italy."CHICKEN MARSALA (Olive Garden recipe)

Ingredients
4 chicken breasts, boneless & skinless
1/2 cup flour
Salt to taste
Pepper to taste
Dried oregano to taste
4 Tbsp oil
4 Tbsp butter or margarine
2 cups fresh mushrooms, sliced
1 cup Marsala wine

Procedure
POUND chicken breasts between sheets of plastic wrap until about 1/4" thickness.
COMBINE flour, salt, pepper and oregano in a mixing bowl. Dredge chicken pieces in the flour, shaking off any excess.
HEAT oil and butter in a skillet over medium heat. Cook chicken breasts on medium heat for about 2 minutes on the first side, until lightly browned. Turn breasts over to cook other side, then add mushrooms to skillet. Cook breasts about 2 more minutes, until both sides are lightly browned. Continue to stir mushrooms. Add Marsala wine around chicken pieces.
COVER and simmer for about 15 minutes.
TRANSFER to serving plate.

Ham and Beans

I was shocked, recently, when it dawned on me that I have not yet talked about beans here. How could this be? Beans! My most favorite food on the entire planet! How could I have ignored beans? I don't know how this could happen. But I will change that today. Let's talk about beans!These are pinto beans. They are delicious, tender, quick growing bush style green beans. In early summer I harvest and eat some fresh as green beans, but then I let them go. I let the pods get big, overgrown, and tough. Through summer I let the pods dry out right on the plants. By fall they have usually become quite dry, but not dry enough yet to shell and store. At that time I pull the drying dying plants out of the ground. I shove those plants down into feed sacks and put them in a dry place. Shoving whole plants into the sacks allows some air to circulate and the beans dry nicely like this. I let them stay there for several weeks, until the beans are dry enough to shell and store.

Each year I put up jars of these beautiful beans.But I always save some for seed so I can plant more of my beloved pinto plants the following summer.

Many of my favorite meals are made with these beans.

Let me introduce you to this one: Ham and Beans.Here's how I make them...

Soak beans in water overnight. When ready to cook, drain and rinse them and put them in a pot with a chopped onion, a nice smoked ham hock, and cover with water. Put the pot on a campfire, grill, or cook them on your kitchen stove. Let this cook for several hours.When the beans are tender and the meat is falling off the hock, remove the hock and let it sit until it is cool enough to handle. Pull the meat off the hock and put the meat back into the pot. Season with salt, pepper, a touch of molasses, and a bit of your favorite hot spice, like cayenne pepper or chipolte powder. Then simmer with the lid off until it reduces to the consistency you like.

I like these just like this, with cornbread.But they are also good with a bit of fresh crunchy chopped onion on top.Or add some cheese.And sour cream.Or any combination of these toppings.

Try these ham and beans... I know you'll like them!HAM AND BEANS

2 cups dry pinto beans
1 smoked ham hock
1 to 2 cups chopped onion
1 to 2 tablespoons molasses
a pinch of hot spice, cayenne or chipolte powder
salt and pepper, to taste

Soak beans overnight. When ready to cook, drain and rinse beans. Put beans, ham hock, and chopped onion in a large pot. Cover with two inches of water. Cover pot and cook for several hours, until beans become tender and meat is falling off the hock. Remove hock and let it sit until it is cool enough to handle. Pull meat from hock and return meat to bean pot. Add molasses, hot spice, and salt and pepper to taste. Let beans simmer, uncovered, until liquid in beans thickens to the consistency you like. Top with chopped onion, shredded cheese, or sour cream, as desired. Serve with cornbread!

About Thyme

Let's talk about thyme.Thyme may not be the first one that comes to mind when you think about herbs.

You might think of bold oregano, or a friendly sprig of parsley.

You might think of flashy basil, the popular rock star of herbs. Everyone seems to admire basil.

Sage could come into your thoughts, soft fuzzy aromatic leaves of sage that remind you of autumn and holidays (and sausage).

Lush lovely lavender? And its enchanting romantic scent? Lavender is like a sailors siren. Be careful around lavender.

Maybe you think of Rosemary... sturdy rosemary, the survivor. The one herb that still looks fresh and strong in the garden when a hot dry summer has withered everything else.

Some people might think of cilantro, but others won't, because it seems like people either love or hate cilantro.

Mint might meander into your thoughts, mint, the mother of juleps and mojitos. Mint is one of the first herbs to show up in the garden, just in time for the kentucky derby.

Or if you're thinking of early spring herbs you might think of chives. You can always depend on chives. They will never let you down.

But thyme?Thyme sometimes gets forgotten.

But thyme is the herb I reach for most often.

It's the herb I want by my side when I'm making dinner every night.

That's what thyme is... thyme is on your side.(Please forgive me for saying that. I know it was very corny but I couldn't help myself.)

Thyme is modest. It doesn't take up too much space in the garden and it stays close to the ground. It makes lovely little purple blossoms.

I planted thyme once and I never had to plant it again. I don't do anything special for it, but somehow it endures the winter and comes back to life each spring. It's strong.You can't kill thyme.

(Forgive me again?)

I like to put thyme into pot roasts, chicken stew, shepard's pie, and chicken and wine sauce. Thyme is good in tomato dishes and soups. And it's also really nice in salad dressings and marinades.

I think if I had one bit of advice for any new gardener I would tell them...... you can never have too much thyme.

Mushroom and Garlic Pot Roast

I affectionately refer to this as "My Favorite Pot Roast."But don't tell the other pot roasts I said that!

Truth be told, my favorite pot roast is always whatever pot roast is piled on the plate in front of me, regardless of the form it takes.

Sometimes I make a whole pot roast just so I can make it into sandwiches!

As with all pot roasts, this one just takes a little bit of preparation. Then it sits in the oven and does its own magic without any sort of intervention... so cooks and countrygirls and other busy folks can get stuff done while it is cooking.

Pat the meat dry and sprinkle some salt and pepper on it.I always use coarse salt and a pepper grinder when I season the meat. It makes me feel fancy.

Smash and peel some garlic cloves.I leave small ones whole but I cut larger ones in half. (The garlic simmers and turns so sweet and delicious while cooking.)Slice up a large onion.And brush the dirt off of a whole bunch of mushrooms.I didn't grow these mushrooms! I got them at the getting place.I would leave small mushrooms whole but these were giants so I quartered them.

Then I pull a frozen sprig of rosemary out of the freezer.In the summer, when herbs are at their peak, I cut, vacuum pack, and freeze some sprigs of different herbs to use in soups, stews, and roasts the rest of the year. This works great... they add flavor to things just like fresh herbs would and they take up only the tiniest bit of freezer space.

I get the wine and chicken broth ready...I heat some olive oil in my roasting pot and sear the meat a few minutes on each side so that it browns a bit. Then I remove the meat and stir the onions around in the pot for a couple of minutes.

Then I remove the onions, too. The bottom of the pot looks brown and burnt by now... but then I pour in the wine and it helps to release all those delicious brown bits from the pot.

Then I add the broth, some seasonings, and put the meat and onions back in the pot. I also add the herb to the pot.I dump the mushrooms on top and grind a bit of black pepper (and throw a bit more salt) over them.Then I put this in the oven for a long time. It makes the house smell so good...

I like to ladle the hot roast (and the delicious broth it makes) over a pile of mashed potatoes but this time I lost track of time and didn't have the potatoes ready.

I couldn't wait. The house smelled so good and I wanted to eat some right away. No potatoes, no photos, and no napkin. I just ate a big bowl of it.

And then I ate another one.

After a couple of helpings I didn't even miss the potatoes (or the napkin).

But look! There was still plenty left for making sandwiches the next day!MUSHROOM AND GARLIC POT ROAST

a 2-3 pound cut of roasting beef
salt, pepper
2-3 tablespoons olive oil
2 cups sliced onion
1/2 cup red wine
1 pint chicken broth
1 teaspoon worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon liquid smoke
a whole lot of whole or halved garlic cloves, slightly smashed
a sprig of herb (I used rosemary this time)
8 cups whole, quartered, or sliced mushrooms
more salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Pat meat dry and sprinkle generously with salt and pepper. Heat oil in dutch oven over high heat on stove top. Sear meat 3-4 minutes on each side to make it nicely browned and flavorful, then remove it from pan. Add sliced onions to pot and stir them around until they are slightly softened and have a tinge of tan color, but be careful not to burn them. Then remove onions from the pot, too. Turn off heat and immediately pour in wine to deglaze pan. Add chicken broth. Add worchestershire and liquid smoke. Return meat and onions to pot and add garlic. Place sprig of herb into pot. Add mushrooms. Sprinkle with more salt and pepper. Put lid on dutch oven and place pot in oven. Cook for at least an hour per pound of meat, plus probably one extra hour. It could take even longer, depending on the shape of the meat. A thin cut of beef will cook and get tender much faster than a thick wedge... but the house will smell glorious the whole time this is cooking.

Hollandaise Sauce

Hollandaise sauce sounds fancy. And difficult. And time consuming. And fussy.But it's totally not any of those things!

It's fun. It's simple. It's quick. And it's forgiving.

Really! Just do it my way...

Melt some butter.

Whisk an egg yolk, lemon juice, water, and some spices together in a bowl over simmering water for a few minutes.Remove that bowl from the heat and whisk in the butter.

Done!

Amazingly, this Hollandaise Sauce can even sit around waiting for you to use it for a little while.

Unfortunately, I can't tell you how long it can sit around...

Folks, in the interest of food science, in the interest of this blog, and in order to serve you... you, dear readers... I tried to see how long this Hollandaise Sauce could sit around, waiting to be used.

But I kept sticking my fingers in it.

I tried to see how long it would take for this sauce to separate... but I could not do it. I shamelessly stuck my finger in the bowl and licked it every time I passed by that bowl. Eventually the sauce was completely gone.

I can only tell you that the sauce stayed deliciously smooth and saucy for one hour and twenty three minutes... because that's how long it took me to lick the bowl completely clean.

It reminded me of that old Tootsie Roll commercial... remember that one? How many licks does it take to get to the tootsie roll center of a Tootsie Pop?
Try this Hollandaise Sauce... I know you'll like it!HOMEGROWN COUNTRYGIRL HOLLANDAISE SAUCE

1 egg yolk
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon water
a pinch of a hot spice, like cayenne pepper, or chipolte powder or "hot" spice
a pinch of salt (if you're using unsalted butter)
4 tablespoons butter, melted

Use a double boiler or place a bowl over a pan of simmering water. Put yolk, lemon juice, and water in bowl. Whisk. Keep whisking over simmering water for 2-3 minutes, until mixture begins to get lighter and thicken slightly. This part, whisking and simmering for a few minutes until it gets lighter and thickens a bit, seems to be an important step in the stability of the sauce... whisk until dribbling sauce leaves a bit of a ribbony mark on top of the rest of the sauce. (This is like "trace" to any of you soapmakers out there.) At this time remove bowl from the double boiler water. Gradually whisk in melted butter, just a few drops at a time, similar to making mayonnaise. When mixture begins to emulsify you can whisk in the rest of the melted butter. Double or triple recipe as needed.

If sauce sits for a while before you use it the sauce may thicken to a less pourable consistency. If this happens, just whisk in a teaspoon or so of warm water... it makes the sauce pourable without changing the taste or consistency of the sauce.