Shrimp Corn Chowder

I found a shrimp corn chowder recipe in this (next) month's issue of Real Simple. It looked fine but it didn't look quite as good as my trusty lobster corn chowder recipe from Williams-Sonoma. The recipe can be found on the Williams-Sonoma site.

This chowder ideally should be made at the height of summer when both corn and lobsters are plentiful but I did not want to wait for summer so I decided to make a few substitutions to the original recipe. I used frozen sweet corn kernels and shrimp instead of the ears of corn and lobster. The chowder still tasted pretty good without the corn cobs and lobster. I made the stock using homemade chicken stock, shrimp shells and the legs from the lobster I bought for the curry.

I served it with a nice crusty sourdough.

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Chicken Green Chile Stew August 2009

I made this earlier in the week but was too tired (lazy) to post. I had green chiles in the fridge that I bought the week before from Sunflower Market. This was their first shipment of green chiles this season. I read that the chile growers in Hatch had an awesome harvest this year so the green chiles started showing up a few weeks earlier. The green chiles will also be shipped to other parts of the country that usually do not receive green chile shipments.

Since it wasn't the height of green chile season, the roaster in front of the store did not continually roast them. You can get roasted chiles but you had to wait. I was in a rush so I took the chiles home unroasted. (I usually roast my own poblanos and jalapenos during the off season.)

I won't repost the recipe because I base it off my regular recipe with minor adjustments. Sometimes I will use fresh tomatoes and other times I will use canned. I use fresh tomatillos when I can find them but chile verde works just as well. I will vary the meat. I sometimes will cook a whole piece of pork loin or butt but cubed pork or chicken works. I am a little careful with chicken breast because I don't like to over cook it or it will dry out. This time I used a mix of thighs and bone-in breasts. I slightly undercooked both, pulled them out and shredded the chicken before returning it to the pot.

The one thing that I never sub are the chiles. I don't use canned chiles. The chiles have to be freshly roasted or frozen freshly roasted. Chile season is not very long so I rely on frozen green chiles. I, however, always add a few freshly roasted poblanos and jalapenos or serranos. Poblanos, serranos and jalapenos can be found fresh all year round.

I start with a mix of three types of peppers (hatch, poblanos and jalapenos). I use mostly hatch but add two poblanos and one very large jalapeno. The mix of chiles adds to the complexity of flavors.

Roast the green chiles and place them in a large container with a cover.

Wait about half an hour and the chiles should be cool and the skins should come off easily. Use gloves or your hands will hate you.

Make a slit down the chile. Remove the tops and under running water, slip off the skin and remove the seeds.

Should look like this.

Same chile but from the outside.

Dice them up.

Chile looks like this before adding the corn and cilantro.

Here is the finished stew. I like adding potatoes and corn for a heartier stew. I omit the potatoes and corn when I want to use it as a sauce for enchiladas or breakfast burritos. This time I used chicken thighs and shredded the meat before adding it back into the stew.

Ladle into a bowl and top with some shredded cheese and serve with a tortilla.

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Chicken Green Chile Stew

I made this stew a while back for one of my SoupGroup meetings. I seldom try new recipes for SoupGroup because of my fear of failure. The stew is a variation of my green chile sauce. The potatoes and corn makes a pretty hearty meal. I like to top it with shredded jack cheese and serve with a tortilla or two.

This recipe makes enough for five quart-sized containers and then some. Tonight I scaled it down a bit. I am really trying to learn how to cook for one (and sometimes two).

It is not green chile season so I used frozen green chiles and enhance it with some fresh roasted poblanos and jalapenos. During chile season I still like to use a roasted jalapeno or serrano. It adds a little dimension to the chile flavor. Don't use canned Hatch green chiles. They are vile.

- 4 lbs chicken breast; cubed
- 3 cloves garlic; crushed
- garlic powder
- cumin
- mexican oregano
- sea salt
- black pepper
-fbacon drippings or oil
- Flour
- 1 Onion; diced
- 2 quarts Chicken broth
- 3 jalapenos; roasted, peeled, deveined, de-seeded, and diced
- 3 poblanos peppers; roasted, peeled, deveined, de-seeded, and diced
- 1 cup roasted peeled green chile
- 5 diced tomatillos (or a 7 ounce can of Herdez salsa verde)
- 1 can diced tomatoes (I think it was a 14-15 ounce can.)
- bay leaves
- 5 red potatoes; peeled and diced
- 5 Yukon gold potatoes; peeled and diced
- 1 bag frozen super sweet corn (I used a gold and white mix.)

1. Marinate chicken breast with garlic, garlic powder, cumin, oregano, salt, and pepper. Refrigerate overnight.
2. Make a blond roux using equal parts bacon drippings or oil and flour. Set aside.
3. In a sauté pan, brown chicken breast in bacon drippings or oil. Transfer to large stockpot when browned.
4. In same pan, sauté onions with a little oil. Transfer to stockpot.
5. Place stockpot on medium heat. Add jalapenos, poblanos, and green chile. (I usually add half first, taste, and then add more later if I want more flavor and heat.)
6. Add tomatillos or salsa verde, diced tomatoes, chicken broth, and bay leaves.
7. Bring to a boil and add potatoes. Cook until potatoes are slightly fork tender.
8. Add roux and bring to a boil. Roux will thicken stew when it comes to a boil. (I usually will make the roux with about half a cup of flour and add in small quantities until I get the desired consistency.)
9. Adjust seasonings and add frozen corn.

I tried some pre-cooked tortillas.

I'm not sure if I like them. I think they are supposed to be closer to homemade tortillas. They were a little too thin. I like the handmade tortillas at Casa Guadalajara.

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Israeli Couscous Soup

It looks like we will have winter temps tomorrow. I’m so excited! Temps have been in the 70s lately. I feel like I have been cheated out of a winter. The precipitation levels are quite pathetic. The mountain resorts have really suffered. Some winters we have so much snow that it takes up all the good parking spots in the parking lot.

The 2006-2007 winter shut down the city for a few days. I managed to get on a plane the night before the blizzard. I didn't even realize that Denver was covered in over two feet of snow. The storm came in quick and dumped the snow in just a few hours. And because I am usually away that time of year, I also missed the second blizzard on the December 28th/29th. My friends emailed me tons of pictures of their cute dogs playing in the snow. When I came back a few weeks later, I saw the massive mounds of snow everywhere. I felt a little cheated. I missed the blizzard I've been waiting for.

I took this picture from my bedroom window. This was a few days after the second blizzard. The seats are Coors Field still had snow on them.

In the years since moving to Denver, I've been waiting and waiting for a blizzard. I missed the 2003 blizzard by a few month. I believe that in Denver, blizzards come in cycles of about 3-4 years. I was hoping we would get a blizzard this March. I said March 15th because I think it sounds sort of cool to have a blizzard on ides of March.

The problem with Denver is that the city does not take snow removal very seriously. The blizzard that shut down the city shouldn’t have. If we had proper snow removal like most major cities, we would be able to get places. Denver has this idea that the sun will come out and take care of it all. I’ve lived in Massachusetts and Rhode Island. Do those states come to a screeching halt when it snows? No. Plows are out all night.

Since it will be 39 degrees tomorrow (according to my car thermometer, it was 84 degrees today), I decided it was time to make this wonderful Israeli Couscous soup that a fellow SoupGroup member made a while back. I’ve been hounding her for the recipe and she finally sent it a few weeks ago. I'm also trying to make something light since we had dinner at Brasserie Felix last night. I ordered the duck breast and duck confit in an orange gastrique. I didn't eat the duck confit. I never eat the duck confit because I find it too salty for my taste. We also ordered a basket of pommes frites.

Israeli couscous is not the same as the north African couscous that most people are used to eating. It is very different. Israeli couscous is a pasta made with wheat flour but unlike regular pasta, the couscous is shaped into tiny little balls and then toasted. The taste is smooth, nutty, and delicious.

This is the only brand I was able to find. They do not sell Israeli couscous in the bulk bins.

I didn't exactly follow the recipe. I omitted the cilantro and the mint. I don't recall seeing cilantro or mint in the SoupGroup version. I did add a little dried parsley for the green color. I think dried parsley has very little flavor but it does add a bit of color. I dried the parsley myself. I also toasted the cumin in the pot before adding the stock. I didn't season the soup with salt, pepper, and cayenne until the very end.

Tomato Soup with Israeli Couscous (adapted from Jewish Traditions Cookbook)
Serves 4 to 6

30 ml/ 2 tbsp olive oil
1 onion, chopped
1-2 carrots, diced
400 g/14 oz can chopped tomatoes
6 garlic cloves, minced
1 ½ liters/2 ½ pints/6 cups chicken broth (veggie broth can be substituted)
200g-250g/7-9 oz/1-1 ½ cups Israeli couscous (came in 8.8 oz package)
2-3 mint sprigs, chopped, or several pinches of dried mint (omitted)
1 ½ ml/¼ tsp ground cumin
1/4 bunch fresh coriander or about 5 sprigs, chopped (omitted)
cayenne pepper, to taste
salt and ground black pepper
dried parsley, for garnish

1. Heat the oil in a large pan, add the onion and carrots, and cook gently for about 10 minutes until softened. Add the tomatoes, half the garlic, the stock, couscous, mint, ground cumin and coriander, with the cayenne pepper, salt and pepper to taste.

2. Bring the soup to the boil, add the remaining chopped garlic, then reduce the heat slightly and simmer gently for 7-10 mins, stirring occasionally, or until the couscous is just tender. Serve piping hot, ladled into individual serving bowls.

**If you buy the chicken stock in the 32 ounce cartons like I do, you will need 1 ½ cartons. Use the other ½ to thin out the soup as the couscous starts to absorb more water.

This recipe makes exactly 2 quarts.Pacific Natural Foods chicken broth is the brand that I use in many of my soup recipes. I buy them by the case from Costco. I think they come to just over $1.30 per carton. I go through a lot of chicken broth for SoupGroup. I also use it for my curries when I don't want to use a whole chicken.

My pepper grinder was out of peppercorns. I went to look for the container of peppercorns in my pantry and I couldn't find it. I thought I was out of peppercorns. I swore I bought a huge container at Costco. I finally found it with the other spices that I gathered for my spice re-org project that I am just not motivated to complete right now. Why did they package it in a container with a spice sifter? I couldn't get the peppercorns out of the container and when I tried to pry the sifter off, the peppercorns went flying.

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The Best Potato Leek Soup

I've made this soup countless times. It is just one of those recipes that I enjoy making on a regular basis. I made this for a late lunch/snack when we had a girls weekend up in the mountains. I also made for the very first SoupGroup meeting. I've given it out to several people and it has become one of their regular soups.

The soup freezes pretty well. I freeze them in little 2 cups containers leaving a bit a room at the top. When frozen, I top with some bacon pieces.

* 1 pound maple bacon, cut into 1 inch pieces (optional, sub 2 tablespoons butter)
* 3 large leeks, sliced (pale parts only)
* 5 lbs Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and cubed
* 1 carton (32 ounces )organic free range chicken broth
* Water to cover
* kosher salt, to taste
* fresh ground black pepper, to taste
* 1 cup half & half or milk

1. Place bacon in large skillet. Render bacon over medium high heat until evenly brown. Drain, reserving 3 tablespoons of drippings.

2. Sautee leeks in reserved bacon drippings or butter until soft.

3. Place potatoes and leeks in large stockpot. Add chicken broth (may need some water to cover). Cook until potatoes are tender.
4. Blend soup in until creamy or use potato masher for a chunkier soup. Season with salt and pepper. I prefer the chunkier soup so I usually blend 75% of the soup and then mash the rest.
5. Serve hot with a splash of half and half or milk and top with bacon pieces. It is also delicious without the milk or half & half.

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Aloo Chole (Potato Garbanzo Bean Curry)

I made this for soupgroup. I wanted to make the potato dish often served at indian restaurants. I was not sure what the dish was called. Instead of potatoes and peas or potatoes and cauliflower, I decided to make a potato and garbanzo bean combination.

1 lb. garbanzo beans, rinsed
4 tablespoons ghee (clarified butter)
1 large onion, finely diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
5 lbs Yukon gold potatoes, peeled and cubed
2 teaspoons tumeric
1 to 2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 tablespoon garam masala
2 teaspoons madras curry powder
2 pinches asafetida
4 green cardamon pods
1 teaspoon minced fresh ginger
1 tomato, diced
2 teaspoons tomato powder
2 tablespoons honey
8 cups vegetable or chicken stock
sea salt, to taste
½ cup fresh cilantro leaves, chopped

1. Bring garbanzo beans to a boil. Cover and let sit overnight.
2. Boil garbanzo beans until almost tender.
3. In a large pot, heat ghee. Add onions and garlic and sauté until translucent. Do not burn the garlic.
4. Add potatoes and sauté a few minutes. Add tumeric, cayenne, garam masala, curry powder, asafetida, and cardamon pods. Saute a few minutes until fragrant.
5. Add ginger, tomato powder, and stock. Bring to a boil. Add garbanzo beans and simmer until potatoes and garbanzos are tender. Add salt. Garnish with cilantro.

It tastes better if you let it sit for a few hours. The potatoes and garbanzo beans will absorb all the yummy spices. The spices (including the asafetida, tomato powder, garam massala, madras curry, and cardamon pods) are from Savory Spice Shop.

All packed in official soupgroup containers.

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