Julia Child's (Hot or Cold) Cream of Cucumber Soup Revisited for Cook the Books April/May Pick: Mastering the Art of French Murder

I totally missed the boat for our April/May Cook the Books pick of Mastering the Art of French Murder (An American in Paris Mystery #1) by Colleen Cambridge (April 2023) and I was the host. I have a litany of excuses involving May being full of travel, illness, increased work responsibilities and more travel, but nonetheless, you can see I am posting my review and dish today and we are 4 days into June. I will be rounding up the entries at the Cook the Books site soon --before I leave town again on Thursday and I thank our group for their patience. 

From the Publisher:

As Postwar Paris rediscovers its joie de vivre, Tabitha Knight, who recently arrived from Detroit for an extended stay with her French grandfather, is on her own journey of discovery. Paris isn’t just the City of Light; it’s the city of history, romance, stunning architecture . . . and food. Thanks to her neighbor and friend Julia Child, another ex-pat who’s fallen head over heels for Paris, Tabitha is learning how to cook for her Grandpère and Oncle Rafe.

Between tutoring Americans in French, visiting the market, and eagerly sampling the results of Julia’s studies at Le Cordon Bleu cooking school, Tabitha’s sojourn is proving thoroughly delightful. That is, until the cold December day they return to Julia’s building and learn that a body has been found in the cellar. Tabitha recognizes the victim as a woman she’d met only the night before, at a party given by Julia’s sister, Dort. The murder weapon found nearby is recognizable too—a knife from Julia’s kitchen.

Tabitha is eager to help the investigation but is shocked when Inspector Merveille reveals that a note, in Tabitha’s handwriting, was found in the dead woman’s pocket. Is this murder a case of international intrigue, or something far more personal? From the shadows of the Tour Eiffel at midnight to the tiny third-floor Child kitchen to the grungy streets of Montmartre, Tabitha navigates through the city hoping to find the real killer before she or one of her friends ends up in prison . . . or worse. 

My Review: 

I picked this book because I love cozy mysteries as a palate cleanser for other and heavier books and I love a good foodie cozy. I also love Julia Child and had a Once Upon a Book Club book box for it but I ended up reading it on my Kindle and I haven't opened the box and its corresponding gifts yet. I will try and do that and add to this post when I return from my trip after next week (a couple of days of PTO with a work conference added in in Oregon).

Overall, I thought this was fun--love a Paris after WWII setting and Julia was a fun character--who wouldn't want her as a friend? The food aspect was good and I thought the mystery worked. The main character Tabitha drove me a bit crazy when she called herself and "imp" or "sprite" when she was just making dumb decisions but I will still read the next book in the series that came out in April. (A Murder Most FrenchA Murder Most French) 

Food Inspiration: There was so much food inspiration in this book from Julia's struggle with mayonnaise to roasted chicken, salmon, stews, potatoes.... I didn't even get all of it written down. 

In the end, I went to Maine, got really sick, came back and had massive work commitments before leaving again and didn't get around to cooking a dish. Instead, I'm going to go back a few years and revisit a tasty cucumber soup from Julia Child. (First posted here). You can eat it hot or cold, making it perfect as we head into summer. 

Cream of Cucumber Soup

Slightly Adapted from Mastering the Art of French Cooking, Vol. 2 by Julia Child via TheDailyMeal.com
(About 6 Servings)

1 1/2 lb cucumbers, about 3 large
1/2 cup minced shallots
3 Tbsp butter
6 cups light stock (I used vegan non-chicken stock), plus extra for thinning if needed
1 1/2 tsp wine vinegar (I used tarragon Vinegar)
3/4 tsp dried tarragon
(I added 1/2 tsp dill)
4 Tbsp farina (cream of wheat) breakfast cereal (I used cream of rice cereal)
salt and white pepper to taste
1 cup minced fresh herbs like dill, tarragon or parsley

Peel cucumbers. Cut 18-24 paper-thin slices and reserve in a bowl for later. Cut the rest of the cucumber into 1/2-inch chunks; you should have about 4 1/2 cups

Cook the shallots slowly in the butter for several minutes until tender but not browned. Add the cucumber chunks, broth, vinegar, and herbs. Bring to a boil, then stir in the farina. Simmer, partially covered, for 20-25 minutes. Puree in a blender and then return the soup to the pan. Thin out with more broth if needed, and season with salt and white pepper to taste.

Just before serving, beat in 1/2 cup of the sour cream. Ladle soup into bowls and place a dollop of the leftover sour cream on top of each. Float slices of cucumber on top of the sour cream and decorate with a sprinkling of herbs. 

Cooking Notes: If you are planning on eating the soup cold, let it cool down to about room temp, then stir in the sour cream and chill in fridge at least 4 hours before serving.

This soup relies mostly on farina (cream of wheat) for thickening but the cream of wheat I found in my local grocery stores was over $7.00 for a large box that I doubted I'd use up. Instead I grabbed a small box of Cream of Rice soup that was under $4.00. Cream of rice is a good gluten-free option that works just as well. I made a couple of other small changes to the recipe, noted in red on the recipe. 

Notes/Results From When I Made It: I know cold soup, cucumbers and cold soup with cucumbers are not everyone's favorite cup of soup ;-) but this one is really delicious--crisp, refreshing, the flavor of the herbs (tarragon and the dill I added) come through nicely. it's creamy and rich but the sour cream and vinegar give it a bright pop of acidity. On The daily Meal where I found the recipe, they said it was equally good cold and hot and when I tried the warm soup, it was good. There is just something about cucumbers and cold that go together though so that's the way I'll enjoy it. It's going to work with me with egg salad sandwiches this week and I'd happily make it again.

If you like food and books, and foodie books, join us in June/July when we will be reading Family Tree, by Susan Wiggs, histed by Claudia of Honey From Rock.

Happy Reading, Cooking & Eating!

 

Persian "Adassi" Lentil Stew (Not Really For) Cooked the Books: December/January Selection: Undercooked by Dan Adhoot

So big confession, I am currently failing at life. I could go on and on, but it seems like I am always whining about being busy or being sick, so I won't belabor it here. On the plus side, I did finish (and enjoy) Undercooked: How I Let Food Become My Life Navigator and How Maybe That's a Dumb Way to Live by Dan Ahdoot, our December/January Cook the Books selection (hosted by Debra of Eliot's Eats)  last week but on the downside, I got bronchitis and never made it to the kitchen. With better timing of my life, I would have read the book earlier and not while ill, but procrastination is my middle name (actually it's Ann, but you get the idea.) I started feeling somewhat better yesterday, but I had no plan in place so the options were: 1) Sit out this round 2) Try to run to the grocery store after work and cook something tonight and get a very late post in (not that appealing) or 3) Repost a Persian dish from the ones on my blog. We are going with 3) and hoping I am not drummed out of the club! 

I made (and modified) this Persian Adassi (Lentil Stew) back in May 2018 from the gorgeous cookbook, Sirocco by Sabrina Ghayour. It was tasty and warming and if I were to run to the grocery store and cook something to get away from my current chicken noodle soup and toast diet, it would be a soup like this. 

Publisher: ‎Crown (March 21, 2023)

Hardcover: ‎240 pages

My Thoughts on the Book: I had not heard of actor, writer, and comedian Dan Ahdoot before reading Undercooked (I got my copy through the library as an e-book) but found his story interesting. I think he's a good storyteller and I enjoyed his humorous essays. He's a very bad boyfriend and I don't think I would want to hang out with him (he seems both judgey and needy and very high pressure to go to a restaurant with) but I did start following him on Instagram and plan to check out his podcast and Food Network show, and he's pretty funny overall. I enjoyed the tie-in to food and family and loss and comfort that food always seems to bring. That part was extremely relatable. I didn't like the hunting stories--I still lean vegetarian overall but the learning he got about himself and others when he joined in with Meals on Wheels was endearing. Overall, it was an engaging read and I enjoyed it. 

From undercooked risotto to fusion fine restaurant dining, plus French food, offal to both Jewish and Persian cooking, there was plenty of food inspiration in Undercooked. I love a good falafel and I have made a lot of great Persian food over the years. My old roommate's uncle was from Iran and an excellent cook and made a similar Persian rice recipe like he got from his mother (at the end of the book--probably the part I laughed the most at!) with chicken and fava (or often lima beans in Oregon)  and served it with yogurt. It was amazing and I still think about it--even though I have never gotten the recipe quite right. 

As mentioned above, I picked a recipe I made a few years ago from one of the several Persian cookbooks I own. It's a simple soup but if you search Persian in my blog search bar you can find other dishes and recipes.  

I can't vouch for how authentic this soup is as the recipe is written, and I, of course, added my own touches (coconut milk for creaminess) but here you go! 

Persian (Adassi) Lentil Stew 
Slightly Adapted from Sirocco by Sabrina Ghayour
(Serves 4)

3 Tbsp vegetable oil (I used coconut oil)
1 large onion, finely diced
1 1/3 cups Puy lentils
1/4 cup tomato paste
2 heaping Tbsp medium curry powder
flaky sea salt
1 1/2 quarts or so hot water from a kettle
(I added I can coconut milk)
(I added 1/2 tsp Aleppo pepper)

Heat a saucepan over medium-low heat (or medium heat, if you are cooking on an electric stove). add the oil and fry the onion until translucent. Add the lentils and stir for 1 minutes. then stir in the tomato paste and curry powder, season with salt, and add a couple of tablespoons of water to hydrate the mixture (spices absorb moisture quickly). Stir well for about a minute, until the ingredients are evenly mixed in. 

Then, in stages, stir in a few ladlefuls of hot water at a time, stirring well and allowing each ladleful of water to be thoroughly absorbed by the lentils before adding the next. Once all the water has been absorbed, taste the lentils to check you are happy with the texture and that they are cooked thoroughly. If not, add another 1-2 ladlefuls of water until you are satisfied. (At this point I stirred in a can of coconut milk and seasoned with a bit of extra salt and some Aleppo pepper.)

What I Said: Notes/Results: A simple soup, but great flavor from the curry and another demonstration of why Puy lentils are my favorite for soups. I love the texture and body they give it--staying firm rather than melting into the liquid or getting mushy, like other lentils do. I really didn't notice what gradually adding the liquid to the lentils did or didn't do for the soup--I'll have to look into it more. Since there are few ingredients and a good amount of curry, use a curry you really like for it as the flavor stands out. The one I use the most is on the milder side of medium, so I added a bit of Aleppo pepper for a little kick. In the end, I liked it as it was but felt it would be even better with coconut milk added to make it creamy. I thought it made it even better, but you can certainly leave it out. I served my soup with a prantha--Indian flatbread I stock in my freezer but think it would pair well with any bread or flatbread or rice, I would happily make it again.

The deadline for this round is today (surprise, surprise) but if you like food and books, and foodie books, join us for February/March when we will be reading the graphic novel, Relish by Lucy Knisley (hosted by Simona at briciole

It's a reread for me and I am going to attempt to have my act together! 

 

Creamy Potato and Spinach Soup for Cook The Books October/November Pick: The City Baker's Guide to Country Living by Louise Miller

It's Cook the Books time again and for October/November, we read The City Baker's Guide to Country Living.by Louise Miller, hosted by Claudia of Honey From Rock. It's a foodie/baked goods-friendly novel, although I don't bake and chose to make a warming Creamy Potato and Spinach Soup as my book-inspired dish. 

Publisher's Blurb:

When Olivia Rawlings—pastry chef extraordinaire for an exclusive Boston dinner club—sets not just her flambéed dessert but the entire building alight, she escapes to the most comforting place she can think of—the idyllic town of Guthrie, Vermont, home of Bag Balm, the country’s longest-running contra dance, and her best friend Hannah. But the getaway turns into something more lasting when Margaret Hurley, the cantankerous, sweater-set-wearing owner of the Sugar Maple Inn, offers Livvy a job. Broke and knowing that her days at the club are numbered, Livvy accepts.

Livvy moves with her larger-than-life, uberenthusiastic dog, Salty, into a sugarhouse on the inn’s property and begins creating her mouthwatering desserts for the residents of Guthrie. She soon uncovers the real reason she has been hired—to help Margaret reclaim the inn’s blue ribbon status at the annual county fair apple pie contest.
 
With the joys of a fragrant kitchen, the sound of banjos and fiddles being tuned in a barn, and the crisp scent of the orchard just outside the front door, Livvy soon finds herself immersed in small town life. And when she meets Martin McCracken, the Guthrie native who has returned from Seattle to tend his ailing father, Livvy comes to understand that she may not be as alone in this world as she once thought.
 
But then another new arrival takes the community by surprise, and Livvy must decide whether to do what she does best and flee—or stay and finally discover what it means to belong. Olivia Rawlings may finally find out that the life you want may not be the one you expected—it could be even better.

• Publisher: ‎Penguin Books; 

• Paperback: 352 pages

My Thoughts:

Overall, I enjoyed this story as books where starting over in a small town/community or starting over, in general, are my jam, especially where food is involved. I do admit to not liking Olivia much when the book started, but she grew on me as the story continued. The town of Guthrie with all its quirky residents and small-town politics grew on me as well. Although I fear I could never warm up there--the blood things after 22+ years in a tropical climate, the book definitely made me want to go for an extended visit. And Salty the dog was perhaps my favorite character. In the end, it's a good rom-com that had me smiling and tearing up a few times and a good story to cozy up with. 

There is food galore in the book from apple pie (there's the contest of course) to muffins and scones, cookies (macaroons, butter cookies, sugar cookies, peanut butter cookies, and pecan sandies) to locally-made cheeses, and all manner of breads. There were desserts aplenty, but also a harvest dinner with corn consommé, a fancy salad, prime rib, mushroom risotto, popovers, a cheese course, and even a Thanksgiving dinner. I was going to do the riff on the risotto as it's a favorite and then I switched to a corn soup (heartier than consommé), but at the end of the day, I was craving a simple potato soup, so that's what I made..Is it in the book? Not at all. Would I have wanted it if I was staying in a sugaring house in Vermont in the fall and winter? Absolutely!

Creamy Potato and Spinach Soup

By Deb,  Kahakai Kitchen

(Makes about 4 Large Servings)

2 Tbsp butter

1 onion, diced

2 stalks celery, diced

2 garlic cloves, minced

½ tsp paprika

½ tsp celery seeds

½ teaspoon thyme

1.5 lb potatoes of your choice, cubed

2 1/2 cup low-sodium chicken or vegetable broth

1 cup whole milk or milk of choice

¼ cup all-purpose flour

1 bag (8oz-ish) baby spinach washed & chopped

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Melt butter in a large soup pot over medium heat. Add the diced onion and celery and sauté for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until softened. Add the garlic and herbs, and cook for an extra minute or two, until the onion is coated and smells good. Stir in the cubed potatoes and broth, bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer, cover with a lid and cook for about 15-20 minutes or until the potatoes are tender, stirring occasionally.

Meanwhile, whisk together the milk and flour in a cup. When potatoes are tender, add the flour and milk slurry and stir until the liquid in the pot comes back up to a simmer and starts to thicken (it should take about 2-3 minutes).

Add the spinach to the pot and cook stirring for about 3-4 minutes until the spinach is wilted. Taste and add salt and pepper, adjusting the seasoning to your liking. 

Serve hot and enjoy!

Notes/Results: Sometimes it's the really simple things in life that taste the best and this soup is an example of that. Heartly, creamy, warming, and delicious, it was perfect for our starting to get a bit cooler at night, weather. I only wish I'd made a bigger batch. 

The deadline for this round is today (surprise, surprise) but if you like food and books, and foodie books, join us for December/January, when we'll be reading I’m hosting for December/January when Debra of Eliot's Eats is hosting with Undercooked: How I Let Food Become My Life Navigator and How Maybe That’s a Dumb Way to Live by Dan Ahdoot.   

 

Simple (and Edible) Pasta E Fagioli and Pesto Bread for Cook the Books October/November Selection: Cooking with Fernet Branca

Yes, I am a day late for our Cook the Books October/November Selection: Cooking with Fernet Branca by James Hamilton-Paterson and hosted by Simona of briciole. I could give you plenty of excuses but it's mostly work, life and just not spending much time in the kitchen. Also, and I'll address this later--the food inspiration wasn't strong in this book, so I finally made something that I was craving, Pasta e Fagioli and Bread with Pesto to dip into it. 

Publisher's Blurb:

Gerald Samper, an effete English snob, has his own private hilltop in Tuscany where he whiles away his time working as a ghostwriter for celebrities and inventing wholly original culinary concoctions––including ice cream made with garlic and the bitter, herb-based liqueur known as Fernet Branca. But Gerald’s idyll is about to be shattered by the arrival of Marta, on the run from a crime-riddled former Soviet republic, as a series of misunderstandings brings this odd couple into ever closer and more disastrous proximity . . .

My Thoughts:

This was quite the quirky book and one that would not have been on my radar without Simona and Cook the Books. At times very funny, at times a little annoying (mainly Gerald, but occasionally Marta) and never once did it make me crave food--which I guess was the satirical point of it. At least I am hoping that the many recipes using otter and cat were a joke. I think you have to be a fan of farce, especially British farce and humor to fully appreciate it. Gerald, a British biography writer, is such a priss and Marta, a Eastern European composer so very down to earth, yet mysterious, and these neighbors don't get a long, or think much of each other. Gerald is always perfecting crazy recipes with the above mentioned ingredients, and there is copious amounts of Fernet Branca, an herby liqueur that I have never tried, but that Gerald and Marta seem to think each other drinks to excess. There are Italian directors and British boy bands and lots of misunderstandings and adventures. Overall, an amusing romp, it kept me reading it to see what would happen, but I probably wouldn't revisit it or look for the two other books featuring Gerald. 

As stated before, not a lot of craveable food was in the pages with the exception of some Florentine cookies and a dish of cold eggplant with pesto that sounded delicious. Gerald seems to try to come up with the most obscure and disgusting dishes he could work on "perfecting."

For my bookish dish, I had some leftover Thanksgiving turkey legs and I wanted a soup with pasta and beans--so of course pasta e fagioli, and then I put the pesto from the eggplant dish onto some French bread with a little dusting of parmesan. Simple (and edible, thank you) comfort food. 

Simple Turkey Pasta e Fagioli

By Deb, Kahakai Kitchen

(Serves 4 to 6)  

2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil 
1 large onion, chopped 
3 cloves garlic, minced

1 tsp each dried oregano and dried basil + two bay leaves
6 cups vegetable stock + extra if desired 
1 can diced tomatoes + juice
2 cups cooked or canned beans (I used borlotti from the import section of my local grocery store)

the meat from one large cooked turkey drumstick, finely chopped, optional
1 heaping cup elbow macaroni or other small pasta 
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Put the oil in a large, soup pot over medium heat. When hot, reduce the heat to medium-low and add the onion. Cook, stirring, until it softens and starts to turn brown, about 15 minutes. 
Add the garlic and dried herbs and cook, stirring, for a minute or two, then add the stock and the tomatoes and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer gently, stirring every now and then, about 20 minutes. 

Add the  beans, turkey meat if using, and the pasta, and adjust the heat once again so the mixture simmers. Cook until the pasta is al dente, about 10-15 minutes. Taste and adjust the seasoning to your preference with salt and pepper. Serve, garnished with pesto bread slices on top. 

Notes/Results: Just a simple, homey and meaty soup that hit the spot for a week spent with a stuffy nose. For the pesto bread, I just toasted French bread slices and spread them with store-bought pesto and then sprinkled finely grated parmesan cheese on top. There are very tasty dipped into the soup. I would make both again.

So, yes, the deadline for this round of Cook the Books was yesterday, but if you want to join in the next one, I will be hosting our December/January round with the novel, Miss Cecily's Recipes for Exceptional Ladies by Vicki Zimmerman here at Kahakai Kitchen.

 

The Book Tour Stops Here: A Review of The Secrets of Ohnita Harbor by Patricia Crisafulli, Served with Three Favorite Pasta Dishes

Happy Friday Eve! Really the best day of the week, especially when Friday is your birthday and you took it off. I'm happy to be today's stop on the TLC Book Tour for a new start to a cozy mystery series, The Secrets of Ohnita Harbor by Patricia Crisafulli. Accompanying my review are three favorite recipes using pasta inspired by my reading. 

Publisher's Blurb:

Amid a mountain of rain-soaked donations to the Ohnita Harbor Public Library rummage sale, Gabriela Domenici finds a small box that contains an odd-looking cross. When the carved center turns out to be ivory and a clue links the cross to Catherine of Siena, a medieval saint, Gabriela turns to her expertise as an authenticator of historic documents to lead the quest to discover the truth about this mysterious object. But the cross isn’t the only secret in town: first, a beloved Ohnita Harbor resident is found floating in the harbor and then someone else is murdered on the library lawn. As Gabriela races to solve the mystery of the cross, she discerns between infatuation and what could be the start of true love. All the while, she must stay one step ahead of the danger that slowly encircles her.

Publisher: Woodhall Press (September 6, 2022)

Paperback: 394 pages

My Review:

I like cozy mysteries, they are easy reads and great palate refreshers between heavier books. I also love it when they are set in bookish settings like libraries or book stores. This one is set in an a public library in a small harbor town in update New York. Gabriela Domenici has returned to town with her young son after her divorce and the death of her father to care for her mother. She's Director of Circulation and Head of Programing at the local library and is in the midst of organizing a rummage sale to help with funding as they await a referendum vote that will help them save and improve it when a mysterious ivory cross is left with the other donations. When Gabriela's former classmate and friend dies in the harbor, the police and her family think it was suicide, but Gabriela isn't so sure. Then mysterious things start happening and another resident is murdered and it all seems to be tied to the cross. 

I liked that Gabriela is 40, smart, and I didn't have to yell at her in my head about her choices as much as some cozy mystery main characters. I did yell at her for some other things--especially in the beginning, I found her to be somewhat judgy in regards to other characters and that annoyed me, but she ended up growing on me and I really enjoyed her mother, son and her potential love interest as well as some of the other secondary characters. The mystery was pretty good, I did have the killer figured out, but I was unsure of my pick until the reveal. The information about the cross and the process of authentication was interesting and gave the book depth. Overall, it was a good escape read and I will definitely look for the second in the the series. 

-----

Author Notes: Patricia Crisafulli is an award-winning author. She received a Master of Fine Arts degree from Northwestern University, where she received the Distinguished Thesis Award in Creative Writing. She also received the grand prize for fiction from TallGrass Writers Guild/Outrider Press for a story, Loon Magic and Other Night Sounds, for which she was also nominated for a Pushcart Prize. Patricia is the author of a collection of short stories and essays titled Inspired Every Day, published by Hallmark, and is also the founder of FaithHopeandFiction.com.

-----

Food is not really front and center in this cozy mystery but there were some mentions including casseroles, macaroni-n-cheese, Fried egg and green pepper sandwiches on Italian bread, coffee, granola bars and a banana, seafood Cobb salad, fish sandwich, iced tea, chicken and potatoes roasted in garlic, olive oil and herbs. 

Since Gabriela's mother is from Italy I decided to pair my reading with three pasta dishes I enjoyed-a pasta, pasta salad and soup. You can follow the links below to the recipes.

Cacio e Pepe By Geoffrey Zakarian via FoodNetwork.com is an easy classic:

  

Caprese Pasta Salad from Giada De Laurentiis via The Cooking Channel is perfect if you are a caprese fan and love pasta salads too:

Alphabet Pastina Soup from Happy Cooking by Giada De Laurentiis with it's fun pasta letters, it's the perfect vibe for a library full of books:

Note: A review copy of "The Secrets of Ohnita Harbor" was provided to me by the author and the publisher via TLC Book Tours. I was not compensated for this review and as always, my thoughts and opinions are my own.  

You can see the stops for the rest of this TLC Book Tour and learn what other reviewers thought about the book below.

TLC Tour Schedule:

Saturday, September 17th: The Cozy Book Blog – author guest post

Monday, September 19th: From the TBR Pile – author guest post

Saturday, September 24th: @abduliacoffeebookaddict23

Monday, September 26th: Bookchickdi

Wednesday, September 28th: @kristens.reading.nook

Thursday, September 29th: @paws.read.repeat

Friday, September 30th: @fashionablyfifty

Monday, October 3rd: Laura’s Reviews and @laurasreviews_1

Monday, October 3rd: @kenzathome

Tuesday, October 4th: From the TBR Pile

Thursday, October 6th: What is That Book About – author guest post

Thursday, October 6th: Kahakai Kitchen

Sunday, October 9th: Subakka.bookstuff and @subakka.bookstuff

Wednesday, October 12th: @thebookishalix

Wednesday, October 12th: @always_reading1

Friday, October 14th: @books.ashley.reads

Monday, October 17th: @welovebigbooksandwecannotlie

Monday, October 17th: She Just Loves Books and @shejustlovesbooks

Wednesday, October 19th: @booksandcoffeemx

 

(Very Mock Turtle) Creamy Rice Soup with Olives for Cook the Books August/September Pick: Alice's Adventures in Wonderland

Sneaking in at the last possible minute with a dish for Cook the Book August/September pick, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll, hosted by Debra of Eliot's Eats. As usual, I am running late to the party so I will just keep this post quick.

I cannot tell you how long ago it was when I read this book, decades! So it was fun to get back into. I grabbed a pretty pink edition from Barnes & Noble and settled in for a wild ride. It's a short read at just over 100 pages and so I read Through the Looking Glass too-something I didn't do as a child. The whimsy and humor of Carroll's writing made more of an impression on me as an adult, I am sure there was much of it that went completely over my had as a child. It's both weird and wonderful, making it a fun afternoon escape. Thank you to Debra for appealing to our inner children with this round!

I covet host Debra's Dali-illustrated edition, but it was equally satisfying to look at the classic John Tenniel drawings in my copy. 

There is so much food inspiration in Wonderland, tarts and tea, marmalade and mushrooms, lobster and soup just to name a few. I originally was going to make some tea sandwiches but got to thinking about soup, beautiful soup and then  mock turtle soup--which seems to have been made of chopped or ground beef parts and sometimes eggs to offset the more expensive turtle meat in the real thing. 

Beautiful Soup so rich So green,
Waiting in a hot tureen
Who for such dainties would not stoop.

Soup of the evening
Beautiful Soup,
Soup of the evening,
Beautiful Soup

Beautiful Sou-oop
Beautiful Sou-oop
Soup of the evening Beautiful Sou-oop
Beautiful, Beautiful Soup.

Beautiful Soup, Who cares for fish,
Game or any other dish?
Who would not give all else for two
Pennyworth only of Beautiful Soup?

Pennyworth only of Beautiful Soup,
Beautiful Sou-oop
Beautiful Sou-oop
Soup of the evening Beautiful Sou-oop
Beautiful, Beautiful Soup.

I wanted a meat-free version of mock turtle soup and I was craving a creamy wild rice soup. I decided to add some green olive, sliced lengthwise to the mix thinking they looked like the back and shell of little turtles. The olives and a boil of their juice, brighten up the soup and give it a tangy vibe. It was great served with some dill pickle potato chips too.  

(Very Mock Turtle) Creamy Wild Rice Soup with Green Olives

By Deb, Kahakai Kitchen

(Yields 4-6 Servings) 

 

2 Tbsp butter

1 medium onion, diced

1 large carrot, diced

2 medium celery stalks, diced

3 cloves garlic

1 tsp dried time

1 tsp celery salt

1 tsp dried tarragon

4 cups low-sodium vegetable stock

1 cup wild rice

2 Tbsp cornstarch + 2 Tbsp cold water

1 cups coconut milk or half-and-half

I cup pitted green olives, sliced lengthwise 

1-2 Tbsp of the olive brine (optional)

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

chopped fresh dill for garnish 

In a large heavy-bottomed soup pot, melt the butter. Add the celery, carrots, onion, garlic, thyme, celery salt and tarragon and cook over moderate medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables just start to soften, about 8-10 minutes. 

 

Add the stock and wild rice to the pot. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables and rice are tender, about 35 minutes. Make a slurry with the cornstarch and cold water and stir it into the soup. Add the coconut milk and stir in the olives and olive brine to taste then simmer, stirring occasionally, for 2 to 3 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Ladle the soup into bowls and serve, garnished with chopped fresh dill and enjoy.

Today (9/30/22) is the deadline for this round of Cook the Books and Debra will be compiling all the entries on the Cook the Book site. If you missed this round and like food and books and foodie books, join us for October/November when Simona (briciole) hosts the novel Cooking with Fernet Branca by James Hamilton-Paterson.