As with most of the food ideas we have, this soup started out as something completely different. Originally, it was a recipe from Emeril for Garlic-roasted Asparagus that we were asked to make for Easter. That recipe was deceptively simple: toss the Asparagus with some crushed/minced Garlic, Olive Oil, and Salt & Pepper and roast it until golden brown – about 10 minutes or so. It was very similar in execution to our Rosemary Roasted Asparagus only Emeril finished it with a squeeze of fresh Lemon Juice.

We loved the freshness that the Lemon added to the Asparagus, and since we’d been wanting to make some Asparagus soup for quite a while we decided to borrow heavily from the Easter recipe ala Emeril.

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This recipe was originally stolen from Sister Amy who over the last few years has blossomed into a seriously top-notch cook. The Tuscan White Bean Soup she made was fabulous, and it was actually the vehicle for our first Garlic Crostini (which we should probably credit her for, too).

However, since we’ve never learned to leave well enough alone we, of course, tweaked it a little. Read more »

To be honest, we’ve been pretty disappointed with Bon Appetit magazine since the whole format ‘update’ a while back (thought the website still rocks heartily). It seemed a little too focused on the look of the magazine (not to mention the incessant shameless promotion of Bon Appetit-sponsored events) and not enough attention was being paid to the actual content.

Then, all of a sudden the April issue arrived and it’s beautiful. It’s a little more like the magazine that we used to love: recipes that normal folks can make and lots of pretty photographs of uneaten food. And that lovely cover shot of the salad with the Grilled Chicken and the Tarragon? Hmmm, where have we seen something like that before?

Anyhoo, the R.S.V.P. section has the most wonderful sounding recipe for Pozolé (posole, posolli, ala Wikipedia). Pozolé. is a kind of Mexican stew that’s not unlike the sauce and filling of a Verde Burrito: a lusciously rich amalgamation of succulent bite-sized pieces of Pork, Hominy, Onions, Garlic, Chiles, Tomatillos, and spices.
Pozolé has long been on our recipes-to-make list. It has a wonderful depth of flavor and it couldn’t be easier to prepare. Read more »

The foodie magazine Bon Appetit recently had a great cover shot of a chili made with Beef Brisket and Butternut Squash that looked incredible. We thought it was really inspiring, but we don’t normally keep whole Beef Briskets lying around so we had to come up with something on our own that would round out the dish a bit.

If you like Bon Appetit like we do then you should also check out Cook’s Illustrated which is basically the print version of the PBS show America’s Test Kitchen (or vice versa). They recently had a special issue all about classic soups and stews. Included among them was a recipe for Chili con Carne that had some great instructions for making your own Chile Powder from scratch using those dried, store-bought, pre-bagged Chilis you can find in the Ethnic Foods section of your grocery store. We thought there might be some potential for greatness if we combined aspects of both recipes into one great dish. Read more »

Roasting the Butternut Squash first really brings out the sweetness and the flavor melds beautifully with the tang of the Bleu Cheese and the toastiness of the Hazelnuts. This soup is great served with some crusty bread and a spinach salad, or as a starter for a warming winter meal.

This recipe makes a pretty big batch, which is good since this soup is even better the next day after the flavors have had a chance to blend. Read more »