Oh, the Perfect Creamy Tasty Goodness of Broccoli and Spud Soup!

KELLY * June 30 * Dinner

Whew, we've been away for a day. We have been very popular (well, a little) and therefore not home to cook. Tonight, honestly, I almost ruined my dinner by going to Trader Joe's while starving. Liz did open the pumpernickel pretzels in the store and begin eating them (an act I frown upon but is inherited from her Grandma Flauto). The unfortunate "shopping while hungry" incident did lead to some random purchases (cereal, chicken chili, goat cheese), but also to a tapenade that well complemented the dinner. We've actually been waiting since Sunday to eat the potato and broccoli soup. It was ultimately fabulous (although Liz does not think I liked it enough). We ate it with some lovely bruschetta (red pepper and eggplant tapenade from Trader Joe's and thinly sliced pork leftover from Monday night's dinner). (That was totally my idea. Don't let her tell you different.) In short, I say lovely (although I seem to now be forcing Trader Joe's light kettle corn into my mouth (that is perhaps a little too light for my taste).

ELIZABETH * June 30 * Dinner

The problem is that I thought that soup was awesome. Kelly thinks it's delicious. I think it's surprising and spectacular. The secret of this soup, and of several other soups I have made and loved (soup's my specialty) is this Herbes de Provence mix from Central Market Austin. I have bought HdP other places and found them lacking. The special ingredient here is.... lavender. It contains the usual suspects - thyme, rosemary, etc - but the slight herbal flowery note struck by the lavender is unexpected and complex. This is the first time I have used it in a cream/puree soup, and if anything I like it better in there - the pureeing of it really infuses the flavors into the whole thing. I recommend it in potato leek and sausage bean soups, but this was special. Thanks to Dad for the page from his James Beard cookbook about cream soups - I combined the recommmendations of that re: white sauce and seasonings with an old Weight Watchers trick of using potato in a cream soup to make it creamy. More or less this is the soup -

- Garlic, chopped fine, and onion, diced, sauteed in butter and olive oil
- Major quantity of broccoli, flowers and tender stem parts (Angelic CSA)
- Box of organic chicken broth (Costco)
- Herbes de Provence, 1 tsp appx (CM Austin)
- 2 Dried Bay Leaves (Dad's Garden)
Cook this until broccoli is tender

Make roux of small amt butter with 1 tbs flour. Add
- 1/2 cup skim milk
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- fresh ground pepper

Meanwhile, boil potato chunks until very tender.

Mix potatoes, broccoli/broth, and white sauce together, mix well, then puree. I prefer the immersion blender, as you can do it all at once in the pot. Season to taste. It sure was to my taste!

Kelly's great suggestion of tapenade bruschetta was perfect.

Unlike my Grandma Flauto, I did eventually pay for the pretzels. She chose to approach bulk bins as if they contained free snacks. Kelly was scandalized - she would never let me get away with that.

R.I.P Lettuce. I Hardly Knew Ya.

KELLY * June 28 * A Eulogy

Little to say today. We had dinner at a friend's, so no work on the CSA veg. I did, however, make Liz a lovely salad this morning to try to salvage the last 2 boxes worth of lettuce. Unfortunately about half of it had gone to the great beyond. That which remained made a lovely lunch for Liz with farmers' market white radishes, some "been around for a while" carrots, "who knows where they came from" olives and red onions, Edgewater Produce tomatoes, and CSA broccoli stalks. Word on the street is that the salad was delish. I'm only sad to say that the rest of the lettuce was not around to hear its praises. I give my heartfelt apologies for being wasteful and I'll try to do better in the future. Our first casualty.

ELIZABETH * June 28 * Lunch

I will just say, the salad was awesome. And big. I know a lot of lettuces (2) gave their lives for that salad, but it was not in vain. The half we didn't have to throw away was crisp, sweet, and flavorful. The salad, with basil-infused olive oil and salt and pepper, provided a great and satisfying luncheon, which I enjoyed. Thank you lettuces. And XO K.

What To Do With a Zucchini The Size of Liz's Forearm? EAT IT!!

KELLY June 27 *Dinner*

Okay, it's been a really long day of cleaning and cooking. We were determined to keep up with the CSA box and we had a banner night. I'm going to have to take the blog over for both of us this evening (as Liz does not think she can blog twice in one day and she's just too pooped from the cooking). So, part 1 of the cooking was some lovely potato and broccoli soup. We'll tell more about that in a couple days. We've put it away for later in the week. For tonight, we enjoyed the wonder that was zucchini, onion, and spinach enchilada casserole. I must admit, my makeshift grapefruit Izzie margarita and the near-concussion I gave myself today while cleaning has made me less than prolific, but... Here you go. So, you think you can't make enchiladas without cheese. Wrong you are. Despite her misgivings, Liz persevered sans queso. She sautéed chunks of zucchini and fresh spinach (CSA) with white onion. They were then layered between 2 stacks of 3 Atotonilco corn tortillas (local), smothered in the same Meijer salsa of last night, and topped with sour cream, fresh cilantro, and the ubiquitous Trader Joe's chili pepper sauce. As with any meal, Goya black beans hit the spot as a side dish. I fully admit that I ate 3/4 of them. It just looked like we split them. All I know is that we inhaled this meal. It was tasty, delicious, and SO NOT BAD FOR US!!! In short, this was an amazing day of cooking. Thank you CSA and thank you my live-in chef. Now, off to play Rock Band and work off the meager caloric intake from dinner.

Kale: It's Not Just for a Red Lobster Garnish Anymore!

KELLY * June 27 * Brunch

Okay, so it's Sunday morning. We've already had an amazing and giant storm. The breeze is blowing through the sun room windows. I started the day off by watching (500) Days of Summer for class while searching "kale egg" on the world wide internets. I enjoy letting Liz sleep and then waking her up with ideas of what she can cook for me. This recipe seemed to maximize items from the box and farmer's market items we're still trying to polish off (kale, parsley, green onions, red jalapeños, etc.). I fully admit that I was a little wary of kale. I had really known it only as the garnish (with lemon) when I frantically plated shrimp, clams, etc. Well, I'll be damned. Kale is tasty! Liz, tell the folks about our breakfast.

ELIZABETH * June 27 * Brunch

Thank you, Diana Dyer, for the inspiration!

I too am fairly new to kale - I have put it in soups a couple times, where it is great because it stays together better than other greens (spinach gets squishy, chard turns brown...). Kale cooks longer and stays chewy, so it holds up to soup cooking and storage. However, I never would have thought of this dish but for Diana, but we're sure glad she did! Using her great recipe as a jump-off, I fried our diced potatoes (small red, Visser's Holland MI), substituted (for her roasted red pepper) some of the bottomless box of Visser's red jalapenos (still two left!) which I sauteed with CSA green onions and garlic (From China. Why do we import garlic from China!?! Made me sad to buy it but it was a garlic emergency.) I added the kale and steamed it with the sauteed peppers and onions, added some chopped parsley, then cracked the eggs right on top. Decorating the top with the fried potatoes, some chopped tomato, and some Durango Chile Powder and Smoked Salt (Central Market Austin!), I put the lid on and waited (not patiently) for the eggs to set. Then we ate it. With toast (white with poppy seeds from Levinson's Bakery in Chicago). This is my favorite kind of dish - flavorful, fresh, rich, easy, and with no set recipe. You could throw anything in there. Great start to the day! Off to clean closets Woo Hoo!

Rock Band Made Me Eat the Meal With No Name

KELLY *June 26* Meal with no Name

Well, we picked up box #2 today and had grand plans to make zucchini and spinach enchiladas (that I intermittently called empanadas and tamales) with black beans and a fresh salad. Unfortunately (or fortunately) we also picked up Rock Band for the Wii from a friend (thanks LB) and went to the Tour de Fat (and had beer in the middle of the day) and then snacked at 90 Miles Cuban restaurant on Armitage (where I had an afternoon-altering goat cheese empanada). Anyway, the grand plans for dinner were sidetracked by a 3 hour nap and a few rounds of Rock Band. (Note: the drums almost make me cry. It's too much like dancing.) Anyway, we were left to figure out something that was not too hard to prepare at about 11pm (as the jam session left us famished). The enchiladas were too high maintenance and out the window. The fridge and pantry seemed lacking in the "I want it now" category. Liz, as usual, found the perfect combo by combining her fave (eggs), my fave (Mexican), and a few odds and ends from the CSA box. Go Liz. It's now pushing midnight and we're full and happy. Liz, would you like to tell the folks about the meal with no name?

ELIZABETH * June 26 * Elevenses (PM)

I really do love eggs. They're so easy, and can transform any odds and ends into a great and filling meal. We bought some organic brown eggs at Costco - 16 for less than $4 - a super deal. I scrambled them with some red jalapeno and green onion (CSA) and a little cheddar, then put them in handmade tortillas Kelly bought in MI (adobada flavor from La Espiga D'Oro - Holland company, highly recommended!) and topped them with cilantro (CSA), chopped tomato, and some super-tasty salsa we got at Meijer (we actually finished one and bought two more it is so good - roasted tomatillo) with a side of Kelly's fave, Goya black beans topped with really good, thick, rich sour cream (local conventional - 2 for a dollar at Edgewater produce!). Didn't use up quite as much CSA bounty as we had planned for the night, but I really am totally useless after a nap, and I drummed my heart out. We are SO GOOD at Rock Band. There's time for cooking tomorrow - grand plans on hold until morning. Zucchini Spinach frittata? Maybe! And Broccoli soup for dinner!

Ancient Chinese Secret, Huh? Sauté the Scapes!

KELLY * June 24 * Dinner

Well, I totally feel like the housework I did today was repaid tenfold. We were making it toward the end of the week and we were starting to panic about eating all of the stuff. AAAAHHHHH!!!!! So many greens, peppers, and squashes (is that a word?)! What are we going to do?! I voted for a noodle stir-fry. I must say that my vote was not wasted. Liz is hurrying off to complement our lovely dinner with ice cream eaten straight from the container (but we won't judge). In short, tonight's veggie noodle stir-fry kicked some serious butt and has perhaps officially apologized for the entire bag of stale kettle corn that I ate this afternoon. I finished eating about 10 minutes ago and mouth is still burning slightly. I call that a good day.

ELIZABETH * June 24 * Dinner

Yup, it was good. Red Ripe Jalapenos from Visser's (Holland Farmers Mkt), Yellow Squash, Green Onion, Garlic Scape, Bok Choi all from Angelic CSA, seasoned with a Thai Black Pepper Sauce, with an Egg and Chinese Noodles, topped with Fresh Basil. It was hot, especially as I cannot leave Siracha out of anything because it is so delicious. Saveur Magazine (Thanks Beth!) suggests that a super hot and uncrowded pan is the only way to stir fry, so I did it up two veg at a time in the cast iron skillet, which I will say truly tops any other stir frying vessel in our house! I got tiny crispy edges on the squash and peppers, and no soupy water in the bottom. Saveur suggests a heavy flat-bottom steel wok for American stoves, which don't put out as much heat as Asian home stoves. Christmas list!

Just invented a summer cocktail too, which I like but no one else will, as I seem to be the only person I know who actually likes the taste of vermouth... Three parts vodka to one part dry vermouth, over ice in a tall glass, soda to the top. Voila - martini spritzer! Refreshing... if you like vermouth.

Beans, Beans, and Nothin' But Beans

KELLY * Dinner * June 23

Okay, so it was a really long day. The entire dinner event was sidelined for an hour by a tornado watch (which we sat out from the basement of the Steppenwolf Theatre costume shop). By the time we got home (after eating mini bagel dogs on the way), I seriously could have eaten my left foot. The only saving grace was striking a deal whereby I did not have to help with the cooking. So, what for today. The fridge is full of things that will die soon and we need to salvage something for a tasty dinner. Oh, Hell to the ya. We continue to dig through our first CSA box and settle upon a wad of swiss chard. All I know is nothing bad can come from chard, garlic, and beans. This was evident from the fact that my food was gone in 3 seconds. Liz, any thoughts?

ELIZABETH * Dinner * June 23

Kelly has gone to get the last two lemon cupcakes, which we are intending to eat with the last of the Michigan Strawberries, now macerated to a point well past "sauce". Can't wait. Meanwhile, I am reading an article in Cooking Light about simple recipes being the best, and feel fully sure that tonight's dinner qualifies! Ditto family recipes. Tonight an homage to Friday night meatless dinners at my Grandma's - a simple beans and greens with the most beautiful green swiss chard I ever saw mixed with a handful of spinach (both from Angelic CSA) sauteed gently with a little garlic (when I say little I mean three cloves) and crushed red chile peppers, wilted in some chicken broth with some canned cannelini beans, and topped with a shredded aged romano cheese. Some family members reject beans and greens as being reminiscent of hard times (no meat) but I think it is truly a harmonic manna and tonight's was superlative! Some more Great Bread Co sourdough with crushed chiles and sea salt for dipping and a couple olives... I love dinners that take as long to eat as they do to cook as well as being nostalgic AND delicious. Thanks Mar!