Culinary Delights from Tonight's Meeting

Bring on the Vegetables!

Cookbook Club meets tonight at 6:30 pm. Adults ages 18 and over are cordially invited to attend. Cookbook club is a gathering of individuals who enjoy cooking and sharing recipes. Tonight features the 3rd course in our menu vegetables. Recipes will be shared and often group members opt to bring a sample of the recipes they've chosen to make for members to taste.

There will be a giveaway this evening with raffle winners receiving an organic beefsteak tomato or sweet red pepper plant to take home. These plants are newly sprouted, or will be sprouting in a matter of day, they can be kept on a sunny windowsill, and will be ready to be hardened off and transplanted in your home garden around Memorial Day or after the last frost. These little plants will produce enjoy fresh organic tomatoes or peppers you can enjoy throughout the summer.

Hope to see you this evening, Bon Appetit!

Pistachio Soup

Sharon made a Pistachio Soup to share with club members. The first time she tasted Pistachio Soup she was on a cruise, she had such fond memories of the soup she wanted to recreate it and share.

Sharon found her recipe on the HGTV website, posted courtesy of Marvi Drone Hidalgo;

Ingredients:

1-1/2 cups unsalted shelled pistachios, plus 1/2 cup for garnish
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 small shallots finely chopped
1 large garlic clove crushed
2 tablespoons rice flour
12 cups chicken broth
2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice

Directions:

Bring 6 cups water to a boil in a large pot. Reduce heat and add 1-1/2 cups pistachios for about 2 minutes. Drain and remove pinkish skins. Transfer to a food processor. Pour in 2 cups broth and puree.

Add olive oil to a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add cumin and turmeric and cook for about 30 seconds, or until fragrant. Add shallots and garlic and saute until soft but not brown, about 3 minutes. Whisk in pistachio puree, remaining broth, rice flour, salt and pepper. Cook uncovered for 5 minutes. Remove from heat and carefully pour into blender. Pulse for a minute and bring back to saucepan.

Ladle into bowls or shot glasses for appetizer-style serving. Garnish with chopped pistachios.

Sharon chose to serve her Pistachio Soup cold.  This was the first time members of the club had tried Pistachio Soup and were pleased that she shared this.

Mo's Pasta E. Fagioli

You can find the Carrabba's Cookbook: Recipes from Around Our Family Table on our shelf at 641.5995 C

Mo loves Carrabba's and chose to make Carrrabba's infamous Pasta E Fagoili  as her soup for this month's theme (Recipe is shown on pg 28 & 29). 

The Carrabba Version:

Ingredients:

1 pound dried cannellini (white kidney beans)

4 ounces sliced pancetta, cut into 1/4 inch dice

2 tablespoons EVOO 

2 ounces sliced prosciutto, cut into 1/4 inch dice

1 medium red onion chopped, minced

3 celery ribs, cut into 1/4 inch dice
4 garlic cloves minced
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh rosemary
1 1/4th teaspoon dried oregano
1 bay leaf
3 cups chicken stock (see previous post on how to prepare stocks)
1 cup crushed tomatoes
2 cups broken (1 inch lengths) bucatini or soup pasta such as ditalini
Kosher salt & fresh ground pepper
Freshly grated Parmesan cheese for serving.

Preparation:

At least 4 hours before cooking the soup, put beans in a large bowl and add enough water ti cover the beans by 2 inches, Let soak for 4 hours, or bring beans and water to a boil in a medium saucepan over high heat, Boil for 2 minutes. Remove from heat, cover, and let stand for 1 hour. Drain and rinse the beans.

Cook the pancetta and oil together in a soup pot over medium heat just until the pancetta is lightly browned, about 5 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the pancetta to paper towels, leaving the fat in the pan. Add prosciutto and cook, stirring occasionally, until  beginning to browns, about 2 minutes. Add red onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 3 minutes. Add the celery until beginning to soften, about 3 minutes more.  Add garlic, rosemary, oregano,  bay leaf and cook, stirring often, until the onion is golden, about 3 minutes.

Stir in the broth, crushed tomatoes, drained beans, and reserved pancetta. Bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to medium-low and cover with the lid ajar. Simmer, stirring occasionally, until the soup is thick and the beans are tender, about 2 1/2 hours, adding water, if needed. Remove the bay leaf.

Note: When beans are cooked with tomatoes, a chemical reaction makes them take a long time to cook, so this soup refuses to be rushed. 

When the beans are tender, bring a medium saucepan of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and stir well. Cook, stirring often, according to the package directions , until the pasta is al dente. Drain well, reserving about 3 cups of the pasta water. 

Add the pasta to the soup, Stir enough of the pasta water to give the soup a loose, soupy consistency. Season with salt and pepper, Ladle into soup bowls and drizzle each serving with olive oil. Serve hot, with Parmesan cheese passed on the side. 

Mo's version varied slightly from this version in that she substituted pancetta and prosciutto for beef, and used shells instead of butalini or ditalini as she had these ingredients readily available. 

Her version inspired by Carrabba's was divine! 

Taking Stock

 The secret of any good soup starts with a good stock.  Basic stock recipes can be found at the beginning of all good cookbooks. "Julia Child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking" located on the shelf at MacDonald Public Library at 641. 5944 C. "Stock How To's" can be found on pages 107 & 108.

There is a PDF version available online   - just download and unzip the file to view the book in it's entirety.

The Basics:

Today's Tip: Reserve a little stock to be used in future recipes to save time. Just pour stock into ice cube trays or little containers and freeze until needed.

Mary Jo shared stock making tips and techniques with the group and chose to make a Hearty Old Fashioned Chicken Soup with homemade soup stock and the last of the fresh vegetables grown in her garden last summer.

The noodles used were Bavarian Egg Noodles purchased at the little bakeshop downstairs at Zender's  in Frankenmuth.  Zender's Bakery is located in the shopping promenade on the lower level of the restaurant.

It must have been good, as there were very little in the way of left overs.