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Showing posts from September, 2013

Quick Asian-Style Dumpling Soup

This came from Cook's Country magazine, which I actually prefer quite a bit to Cook's Illustrated, though both tend to go on and on about how they got to their eventual recipe. C'est la vie. One can easily skim or skip and see what the darned recipe looks like. An exception to this tendency is the eight recipes that are always on cardstock in the middle of the publication, perforated so one can easily detach them and have a ready made recipe card with picture on one side and recipe on the other. I'm a sucker for Asian soups of all sorts and this one looked tempting with dumplings, green onions, and mushrooms poised in the bowl of broth. My one fear was that it wasn't hearty enough for a main dish. This recipe delivered on both flavor and filling ability, especially when accompanied by a baguette and salad (dressed with Balsamic Vinaigrette ). I made a half recipe for the two of us which was a hearty meal. I think next time I'll make a full recipe up to the

A Continual Feast by Evelyn Birge Vitz

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A Continual Feast: A Cookbook to Celebrate the Joys of Family & Faith Throughout the Christian Year by Evelyn Birge Vitz My rating: 5 of 5 stars At Pentecost a few years ago the usefulness of food for teaching religious ideas really became apparent to me. I was trying to explain to my children what Pentecost was, and their eyes were getting that glassy look that mothers know so well. I was losing them fast. Then (providential inspiration?) I declared, "We are going to bake a cake to eat on the great feast of Pentecost. How shall we decorate it?" Now, as it happens, my children love to decorate cakes and cookies. Their eyes brightened and their ears pricked up. We made a pretty wild-looking bakery item, with flames and doves and rays of light, but we all had a wonderful time, and they certainly knew what Pentecost was by the time we were through. Evelyn Vitz goes on to give a recipe for making and decorating the Pentecost Cake, but as we can see, this is much more

Curried Cream of Chicken Soup

This is from The Silver Palate Cookbook. It is simple, delicious, and a touch out of the ordinary, both because of the curry flavor and the "cream" method which calls for half-and-half but is just as good with regular milk! Step 1: 6 tablespoons butter (I use 2 tablespoons) 2 cups minced onions 2 carrots, peeled and chopped Cook over low heat, covered, until tender. Step 2: 2 tablespoons curry powder 5 cups chicken stock 6 parsley sprigs 1 chicken, quartered ½ cup rice Salt and pepper to taste Add all. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and cover. Simmer until chicken is done. Cool chicken in stock. Remove meat from bones and dice it. Step 3: 1 cup half and half (I use milk, either whole or 2%, depending on what I've got around) 10 ounces frozen peas, defrosted Remove fat from broth. Strain soup through strainer. Put solids and 1 cup stock in food processor and puree. Return to pot and add milk. Stir in reserved stock until