Roasted Potato Soup

{I have said many times that I am not, and have no desire to be, a food blogger. But I love food, and sometimes, I have to record a recipe or blather about baking. My apologies.}

Have you ever had the privilege of reading a recipe review that looks something like this:

"It was terrible! I substituted baby formula for the half and half and didn't use any salt. I also omitted the potatoes and used soft pretzels instead. I will never ever EVER make this recipe again!!?!"

Okay, so you didn't make the recipe you made...something. Maybe it was edible. Presumably didn't kill you, since you wrote the review. I know some of them aren't quite that bad, but it's frustrating to read a review and then hear about how great it was . . . after they totally changed the recipe!

Anyway, I felt like a bit of a recipe Frankenstein Friday night while making potato soup inspired by this Barefoot Contessa recipe. I saw the episode in the week (ironing + Food Network gets the ironing done, okay), promptly forgot about it, then re-remembered it Thursday night (i.e. the day I do my grocery shopping when the getting new stuff ship had long sailed). But I thought it might be a fun way to spruce up "boring old" potato soup, which was already on the menu for Friday.

So, instead of leeks, I used onions. And boring old russet potatoes. And veggie broth. And no arugula. Or crime fraiche. Or crispy shallots.

So this is what I did do. No process pics, because I didn't know how much I was going to enjoy my concoction to know that I needed to document it.

2.5 pounds of potatoes (I eyeballed a quarter of a 10-lb bag.)

2 medium onions

2 quarts (8 cups) of vegetable broth (I used homemade, but you could use store bought or chicken)

Whole milk to taste (again, what I had; you could use half & half or cream or whatever)

Thyme -- a few sprigs

Salt & Pepper to taste

1. Peel potatoes and cut into large chunks. 

2. Dice onions into large chunks.

3. Coat onions and potatoes with oil, salt and pepper. Spread on baking sheet. Add thyme on top.

4. Roast in 400* oven for 45 minutes or until cooked and golden brown

5. Remove thyme twigs

6. Transfer potatoes and onion mixture to food processor in batches (I used 2) with a little broth. At this point, you do not want a smooth mixture, but a chunky one. Transfer to a pot or Dutch oven, and add the rest of your broth.

7. Simmer and season to taste. I made the soup mid-afternoon and let it simmer for a couple of hours, but it would be just as good after 20 or 30 minutes. A bit before serving, add milk to taste -- we don't do a super creamy soup, so I used maybe 1/4 cup (eyeballed, of course). Honestly, it was pretty good without it, if you're a non-dairy person.

8. Try not to eat it all before you serve.

On Friday night, I served it with a salad and crusty artisan bread. I ate leftovers with a sprinkle of cheddar. I can't help but feel like the dish calls for some good white cheddar, or maybe a grilled cheese or another toasty sandwich on sourdough. Yum!

Food Is My Love Language

It's not an original comment. Surely you've heard it in some form before. Food is my love language. Coffee. Chocolate. Wine. Whatever. I certainly know I have. And I know it's meant tongue in cheek, but there's some truth to those words as well.

I've been thinking about it lately. Because, oh my gosh, you guys, food is so my love language. The kitchen is my happy place. I talk whine here about my kitchen a lot. And I really, truly am grateful for a functioning, reasonably modern Western kitchen. But I daydream about the kitchen I long for. I watch Property Brothers and Fixer Upper to swoon over the kitchens. 

If you're not familiar with the Five Love Languages, I'd definitely recommend you checking them out. Understanding how to communicate love to those you, well, love, goes so far in keeping those relationships running smoothly. And if things are rocky, you might just find that there's a love language disconnect. I think the apology language stuff is really interesting, too.

So food is my love language. And quality time, acts of service, and, sometimes, touch. I score just about zero when it comes to gift giving --  I try for those who value it, but it's just not my forte. Sorry.

That's what got me thinking.

I was making dinner to take to the mom of a recently birthed little bambino. I had met this woman exactly one time in my life, but I very, very happily spent the better part of a day getting her dinner perfectly aligned and ready to deliver. For someone who doesn't do gifts, this was turning into quite the spread.

But it wasn't a gift, I said, it was an act of service. I totally do acts of service.

Lightbulb.

People, food isn't a love language. It's all of the love languages.  Or at least it invites all of the love languages. Think about it. Food invites us around the table: quality time. We prepare it, clean it up, share it: acts of service. Eating is a physical activity: touch. It call us to words of affirmation and thanksgiving: for preparing food, for joining us at the table, for sharing your story or your joke. And giving food to those around us: gifts. 

And then, my mind kept going . . . what is the centerpiece of our faith? A meal. First, God called the Israelites to prepare for, and then commemorate the Exodus with a meal. Then, he perfected it by becoming the Passover lamb. A meal we become united with at each Mass. Christ calls us to share in him, in his unity, in his love . . . through food.

Maybe I'm on to something.

In the Kitchen with Clare

It was a rare, lazy Sunday morning, thanks to the Saturday Vigil Mass and Charles' scheduled Sunday shift. There were two well-overripe bananas (or "mananas" if you're Clare) itching to be mushed. So what did we do?

No, we did not make banana bread.

We made banana muffins to indulge in a little streusel topping. Yes, the recipe calls for nuts, but nuts in baked goods = wrong.

Clare still doesn't quite get the measuring or the waiting patiently and cleaning the kitchen while in the oven parts of baking, but she loves the mixing and "helping" prepare for the oven (scooping into muffin tins, shaping cookies, etc.) parts of baking. As a result, I normally get everything ready to go (do my mise en place, if you will) and call her in to help bring it all together. Then I distract her while I clean up, so she stops asking for a whatever it was we made while I tell her over and over that is has ___ more minutes in the oven.

On Sunday, since the muffins are a spoon batter instead of a stand mixer deal, she was an extra good helper:

Mixing

Licking the spoon

Eating

Yum!

I'm really starting to enjoy our little kitchen adventures together, and I know she does, too.

Mr. Turkey, Mr. Turkey, Big and Fat

Tomorrow is the day, people.

I can think of no better (unofficial) end to the liturgical year than giving thanks to God for the myriad blessings which he has bestowed on us in the last year (This year, I am feeling abundantly, overwhelmingly blessed, but I'll do that rambling tomorrow.), then pigging out harvest festival style. Twist my arm, why dontcha? Turkey? Cranberry? Mashed potatoes? Bread? Veggies? Bring. It. On.

Just (finally) posting some of the things I dream of creating, eating and owning:

-For the turkey, two years ago, I made the turkey out of Martha Stewart's Cooking School, and it was fab. Not to toot my own horn, but it was worth the bit of effort and was juicy and delicious. At the time, I was a few weeks pregnant with Clare . . . and the Friday after the Big Feast, BAM!, turkey aversion. But I got to enjoy that yummy bird the first time around at the very least.

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-I've been looking for a chance to try these mashed potatoes from Ina Garten for something fancy and different. I will make it happen one of these days, and I will document the details.

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-I prefer my holiday veggies somewhat straightforward: green beans cooked with bacon, corn, carrots with butter and brown sugar (my dad makes THE best boiled carrots -- they probably no longer qualify as veggies by the time he's done with them, but they are sooooooooo good). I'm happy to skip the casseroles and fancy sauces (though I'm happy to help make them disappear that way, too!).

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-I'm trying this recipe for rolls this year -- pretty straightforward. I've said it before and I'll say it again, making (and eating) homemade bread it good for the soul.

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-My dream home will have a giant harvest table not too unlike this one. Bonus points if it is made with actual reclaimed wood (instead of courtesy of Crate & Barrel's mass-production elves).

Not exactly the dream but close enough -- via

-And I will serve my harvest feast on dishes like these:

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or these:

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or these:

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Happy Turkey brining and basting!

7 Quick Takes, Vol. 39

It's Friday, what did you expect?!? Linking up with Jen.

1. I can't believe we're basically half-way through with our time in Wichita. The time so far has flown. It has been a great experience so far, and I have high hopes for these next two weeks.

More patio cuteness.

2. As we inch further and further into fall, I return to my annual perplexed state. When did Halloween turn into such a thing? I feel like there are two Halloween camps. The first loves Halloween as much, or more, than any other holiday ev-er. Decor pins on Pinterest. Food pins. And on and on. The second eschews Halloween as evil. Huh? I feel like the only person in the world (or at least access to Target) that has a wholly moderate view of the whole thing. I enjoy it for a day. I take cute pictures of my kid dressed up. Trick or treat or whatever. Move on with my life. Done, done, and done.

3. And when did Hocus Pocus become the it movie?!? I mean, I've seen it. Once. But I missed the memo on being obsessed with it. #outoftheloop

4. On the other hand, I am a big, fat, huge, massive fan of harvest fall. I'm a gigantic Thanksgiving geek. I am totally fine with pumpkins and gourds and Pilgrims and corn stalks. Team Turkey, fo' so'.

5. Speaking of holidays, Clare is going through her obsession with Mardi Gras beads phase, which she found in the play cabinet here. I guess I'm glad that it's now and not in college. Right?!?

Hard to see in the blur, but she's holding her beads and grinning.

6. Night-shift 2/2 for the rotation. Same dealio as last week: Project Runway in real time and the second half of my sorbet. Loverly.

7. I made these cake mix cookies this afternoon. I want to be anti-boxed cake mix, but the semi-homemade-ness of the recipe walked the line between my desire to bake and my limited supplies on the road. I used chocolate cake mix and chocolate chips. Charles thought they were a fantastic cookie-brownie hybrid. I thought they would have been better with peanut butter chips. Taste is subjective, I guess. *bigwink*

A small sampling

Have a lovely weekend!

5 Favorites, Vol. 19

Joining Hallie and the Favoriteers for five of my favorites this week. Which, again, are all about food.

1. Winter squash. I've mentioned before that I am a great devotee of the gourd family. I love summer squash, especially zucchini, but I also love, love, love winter squash. Butternut. Acorn. Spaghetti. Even trendy ol' pumpkin.

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2. Soup. I love it. I always have, though my tastes have diversified over the years. Plus, it's a fantastic, easy, tasty way to add veggies to your diet. I particularly love homemade soup -- more flavor, less sodium -- though there are a few varieties I'm still working to perfect (cream of broccoli, I'm looking at you). But with fall and winter coming on, it has me thinking soup, even more than usual.

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3. What is the perfect way to combine #1 and #2? Butternut squash soup, of course. Preferably made by roasting my own squash with plenty of garlic and using my own, frozen chicken broth. Add some apples and onions and seasonings. Blend. Enjoy with bread. The fresher and hotter the better. So much yum!!

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4. While I'm talking obsessively about food, I must mention the Food Network. It's my favorite background noise, but I prefer the TV off or being actively watched when the baby is up, so I really enjoy and savor it when I do have a few minutes to drool/question the hosts' choices/pick up an idea or technique or two.

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5. Something not food related . . . oh, who am I kidding?!? I'm pregnant and have reached my "lumberjack appetite" phase. Food is on my mind, and one odd-for-me craving lately has been baked potatoes. Loaded, if possible. Thanks.

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Visit Hallie for more, less caloric, favorites. :)

7 Quick Takes, Vol. 36

Joining Jen and the rest for Friday (afternoon) 7 Quick Takes.

1. Clare is going through some sort of nap reset/resistance/nap dropping phase. I mean, I know it's normal and all, but it's totally messing with my mojo and making my ability to get back on the blogging bandwagon more difficult as I try to figure out what my day looks like when there is only one nap. I'm determined. Plus, I have a couple of posts in draft status that I think will unblock a bit of writer's block. I hope.

Motto: more coloring, less napping

2. Yesterday was my birthday. The introvert in me is all about not making a big, crazy deal out of it, but I had a lovely day of breakfast with extended family, a stroll through Target, and dinner with Charles and Clare. I'm sure 32 is gonna be awesome. It already is. :) Really, what more could a girl ask for?

3. Answer, a break from this **** heat. I'm over the 100+ temps. I really, truly am. Growing up, the county fair was the weekend after my birthday and you always, always needed a sweatshirt at night when you went to the fair. Here, a mere 2 hours south . . . not so much.

4. I'm going to stop complaining about the (lack of) fall. I am. In large part because this is our last week in Phoenix before another (and last!) away rotation for Charles. Next Friday, we head to Wichita, Kansas. I never, ever, in my whole life imagined going to Wichita (or much of anywhere else in Kansas), much less potentially living there, but here we are. The medical journey has already taken us places, literally, that I've never imagined. The beauty of that is how much is has already stretched and grown me as a person. And I know there's more to come, because I know residency has plenty of surprises up its sleeve for us.

5. That was kinda two takes, so I'll fill this one with a picture. You're welcome.

Insta Mama feeding her baby

6. The good thing about this second departure is that we're much more experienced as packers and road warriors. And it's only four weeks. We got this.

Road warrior and her straw sippy.

7. I'm sure you've seen this Whole Foods satire floating around the web (or Grace's QTs). The timing was perfect, because a new one opened nearby this week. Every time I drive by, it is teeming with cars, circling like mall vultures on Black Friday. I have to admit to enjoying an occasional wistful wander through the ridiculous, wishing it were not completely crazy to spend a billion dollars on gorgeous, high-quality ingredients. Even so, the parking lot reaction is crazy!!

Enough babble from me. Have a lovely weekend!

5 Favorites, Vol. 17

Joining Hallie via Grace. And getting back on the blogging train. I hope.

1. Not blogging -- Okay, not really a favorite, but it seems to be, since I have barely touched the computer in nearly 2 weeks. I could write a big update post, but really it was more like this: We were in Denver. We drove 1 million miles and hours home, but it wasn't bad, because we hit zero of interest on the weather front. We got settled back into life in Phoenix. I got a cold. I'm mostly over it. Yep, exciting life I'm living.

From our day trip to Vail. Clare was very impressed.

2. Over-the-counter medications -- Said cold was made a billion times more tolerable by the classic combo of generic Tylenol (better when I'm sick than ibuprofen, always), cough drops and fluids. Not gonna lie, I've included some decongestants along the way. Scandal. No, I'm not one of those people who only uses medication if I'm dying of the plague. Why do you ask?

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3. Tea with honey -- I might go all modern-medicine on you, but I also love a good cup of tea with honey. It helps the throat, it warms you up, there is nothing cozier.

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4. Zucchini --I know lots of people have a certain amount of dread for this magical time of year when zucchini is abundant and no one has any idea of what to do with it all. Especially the ones that are the size of a small child. Not me. I love it love it love it. I love squash in all forms, if I'm being honest, but zucchini season holds a special place in my heart.

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5. Dreaming of fall -- I know I talk about the weird phenomenon that is Arizona weather far too frequently, but the struggle hits the hardest this time of year. The mercury is still topping 100 on the reg, but everyone else is getting fall wanderlust fueled by Pumpkin Spice Lattes and apple stuffs. Only we're not immune to the disease, so we put out pumpkins and browse sweaters and boots with longing for the November day where we'll only look slightly crazy wearing them.

Yeah, right! Via

Happy Wednesday-ing!

5 Favorites, Volume 16 (Carbalicious)

So there is a draft of this post, started yesterday, in which my whine escalates to (at least) level 11/10. And while I don't mind whining about Clare's crack of dawn antics or musing on her decision to throw strawberries across the kitchen, I don't really want to feed my own bad mood with that level of complainery. I'm going with this, instead, and plan to turn the other post into something at least a tad bit more thoughtful.

Even though today is looking brighter (thanks, ironically, to cloud cover), my Five Favorites were still inspired by my homesickness. Yes, friends, today's favorites are all about the carbs, 'cause nothing says comfort like carbs. And my palette knows no seasons (even when I force it to eat semi-seasonally).

1. French baguettes -- there is nothing, nothing better that a warm, crusty French baguette. With butter, bien sur. It takes my heart and palette on a direct flight to the land of bread, cheese and guiltless bread consumption. La vie belle. 

2. Mac & Cheese -- any kind, any time, any where. Ol' fashioned Kraft dinner? Sure. Scrumptious homemade gooey cheeseyness? Bring.it.on.

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3. Sweet potatoes -- while my Southern girl is buried a couple of generations back on my dad's side (hey, my grandpa was born in North Carolina! It counts!), the sweet potato in all its delicious forms is the "better" carb of adulthood, but is still yummy and delicious. And amazing as fries.

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4. French Fries -- speaking of fries, French is clearly the pinnacle of potato preparations. I mean, I enjoy a good baked potato, soup, or mash with the rest of 'em, but there is something irresistible about a crispy, salty fry. I take 'em with ketchup, but I won't fault you your condiment of choice.

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5.Corn on the cob -- bonus points if you see the stalk where it grew. Super duper bonus points if you go from stalk to pot without using transportation. It has been too long since I've had really good corn on the cob, but oh, the sweet, buttery, silk-in-your-teeth goodness!!

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As always, visit Hallie for more!

Really Good Chicken

I had no intention of writing a recipe post. I don't know how I feel about recipe posts, generally. I enjoy playing in the kitchen. There is something therapeutic about chopping veg and simmering stock. Stews and soups are totally my comfort foods. But, this isn't a food blog, and I'm not a particularly original cook. I dunno. My other problem is that I cook pretty much by instinct rather than recipe, even when I have a recipe in front of me. Is that more or less helpful? I dunno.

I digress. Shocking. I know.

Since I didn't plan on writing this as a recipe post, 1) my recipe has no name, and 2) there is only this lame picture of my dinner plate. (Ahem, classy. Je sais.) Apologies for the lack of mediocre food shots.

Food photography is my real calling. Clearly.

The food was, however, so good that I need to record the cooking and subsequent devouring of it for posterity.

***Disclaimer. This made enough food for 2 adults and a baby.  Anyone with more mouths would need to do some multiplication.

Ingredients:
Chicken (I used 3 legs, 'cause we had them. I think most anything would work)
Carrots (I used about 5 of the small ones I picked up the other day)
Onion (I used two smalls ones, but would normally use a large one)
Tomatoes (I used about a pint of fresh frozen tomatoes. A can of tomatoes or a few fresh ones would probably be okay, too.)
Garlic (I used a spoonful of the jarred stuff.)
1-ish cup white wine (I used the bottom of a bottle of Chardonnay. The top of a bottle would work well, too.)
Thyme (I used a sprig of fresh. The best.)
Seasonings to taste

I got the ol' oven cranked to about 300. Meanwhile, in a Dutch oven, I browned the chicken in a little oil. Once that was done, I removed the chicken and deglazed the pot with the white wine and reduced it to about 1/2 in volume.

This is when Charles called in from the deck, asking if I was cooking with beer. We were off to a fantastic start.

I added everything else: the chopped veg, the tomatoes, and some garlic and thyme. I seasoned it with seasoned salt and pepper. I put the chicken back into the mix and added enough water to about 3/4 up the veg/chicken mix. I brought the whole thing to a boil, covered it and put it in my now-hot oven.

I let it cook for about 3 hours. By then, there was very little liquid, but the food was very tender and caramelized.

And it tasted great!