Mark Bittman's Beans, Shrimp & Fennel

As a special monthly feature at I Heart Cooking Clubs we are cooking through the recipes of our past twelve IHCC chefs. Our second chef is a big favorite of mine, Mark Bittman. I cook with Bittman often--before, during and after the time we featured him at IHCC; loving his often healthy, quick, and very adaptable recipe style. I have most all of his cookbooks except for the newest Mark Bittman's Kitchen Matrix--which I am sure I will eventually get even though I have drastically cut down on my cookbook buying. Probably the Bittman book I cook the most from is his Kitchen Express with it's seasonally-arranged recipe sketches that make it easy to cook from the pantry and adapt to what you have on hand. 

There is a recipe in Bittman's The VB6 Cookbook that I have been meaning to make and had not gotten around to yet--Beans, Shrimp and Fennel. Three of my favorite ingredients in one simple dish.  The VB6 cookbook came out in May of 2014 as a companion to his health book: VB6: Eat Vegan Before 6:00 to Lose Weight and Restore Your Health... for Good. 

Bittman says, "If you've never tried this combination, do. Like now. Beans with seafood is not only just as classic but also just as tasty as beans with pork. (And it's faster.) You control the texture here: the main recipe results in creamy beans in a thick broth; but see the variations for a drier stir-fry and a tomato, shrimp, and bean stew."  

I made a couple of very slight changes to the recipe--reducing the oil and the salt as I used a low-sodium mock chicken stock that still has plenty of salt. Changes are noted in red below.

Beans, Shrimp & Fennel
The VB6 Cookbook by Mark Bittman
(Serves 4)

4 cups cooked or canned white beans
3 Tbsp olive oil (I used about 1 1/2 Tbsp)
1 onion, halved and sliced
1 tsp salt (or to taste) (You may need less if you use stock or bean water is salted)
1/2 tsp black pepper (or to taste)
1 lb fennel, bulb trimmed and thinly sliced
1 Tbsp minced garlic
2 bay leaves
2 cups vegetable or chicken stock (low-sodium) or water, plus more as needed
1 lb peeled shrimp
2 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
1 Tbsp chopped fresh oregano or marjoram 

Drain beans. If you made them yourself, reserve the cooking liquid to use with stock; if canned, discard liquid and rinse beans well.  

Put the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. When hot, add the onion, sprinkling with salt and pepper, and cook, stirring occasionally, until it softens and turns golden--about 5 minutes. Add the fennel, garlic, and bay leaves, continue cooking and stirring until fragrant, 1 or 2 minutes more.

Add the beans, along with 2 cups of liquid, either the bean-cooking liquid, stock, water or a combination. Bring mixture to a boil, then lower heat so it bubbles steadily and cook, stirring occasionally until the beans and vegetables become quite tender, 10 to 15 minutes. If you'd like, mash some of the beans with a spoon to help thicken the sauce; add more liquid if the mixture ever looks too dry.

When the beans and veggies are the texture you like, add the shrimp and cover the pot. Cook, stirring once or twice, just until the shrimp turn opaque, 3 to 5 minutes. Add the lemon juice and fresh herbs (use some of the fennel fronds chopped too if desired). Taste and adjust the seasoning as needed, and serve.     

Notes/Results: There is so much to love about this besides how very good it is--it's a one pan meal, can be on the table in about 30 minutes, and it balances a homey stew or cassoulet feel while still being elegant enough for company. As with most Bittman recipes, he provides a couple of variations to the base dish--a drier, stir-fry-ish version as well as a bouillabaisse version with tomato and leek. But to me, this one with its brothy goodness is pretty wonderful. The shrimp are pink and plump, the broth flavorful from the fennel, lemon and oregano (perfect to serve with bread for sopping), and the beans make it satisfying. I will happily make this again.    

Three other favorite Mark Bittman recipes that I highly recommend:

Spanish-Style Pasta e Fagioli from How to Cook Everything Fast. 

 Tomato-Freekeh Soup from The Food Matters Cookbook.

  
Apple Cider & White Wine Slushies from Mark Bittman's Kitchen Express. (Note: I've made these with Riesling as the recipe suggests and Calvados (apple brandy) and both were delicious.)
   

 
You can see what Mark Bittman dishes everyone made by checking out the picture links on the IHCC post. 

 

Lentil Veggie Burger Sliders: A Little Bite of Mark Bittman

This week at I Heart Cooking Clubs starts our six months of cooking with the always fabulous Mark Bittman. I love the man and his style of cooking--simple, delicious and with plenty of room and encouragement to adapt his recipes however you like. I also like his food philosophy--limiting (not eliminating) the amount of meat consumed, as well as reducing consumption of dairy, over-processed carbohydrates, and junk food. (Good for the planet and good for the body too). This week's IHCC theme is "Bites of Bittman" meaning appetizers, small plates, pupus, or whatever you like to call them. Since I always enjoy a mini-burger or slider, I thought some veggie sliders would be a fun little bite to enjoy.

I have been meaning to make some sort of veggie burgers from the more than ten pages on the subject in Bittman's comprehensive "How to Cook Everything Vegetarian: Simple Meatless Recipes for Great Food." As is his style, Bittman offers tips and tricks for crafting the perfect veggie burger, some base recipes for different types of veggie burgers (bean burgers, nut burgers, vegetable burgers and tofu/soy burgers), and then gives suggestions for building on the base recipes to create varied and unique burgers. I decided to start with Bittman's The Simplest Bean Burgers recipe, choosing canned lentils as my base, and adding a bunch of additional ingredients--listed in red below.

The base recipe can be found in "How to Cook Everything Vegetarian" on pages 660-661 or from Mark Bittman's "The Minimalist" column at the New York Times website here.

Lentil Veggie Burger Sliders

Adapted from Mark Bittman
Time: 20 minutes, with cooked beans

(Makes 4-6 Servings)

2 cups well-cooked white, black or red beans, or chickpeas or lentils, or 1 14-ounce can, drained (I used 1 14-oz canned organic. low-sodium lentils)
1 medium onion, peeled and quartered
1/2 cup rolled oats (preferably not instant)

3 cloves garlic

2 Tbsp tomato paste
1 tablespoon chili powder, or the spice mix of your choice (I used 1 Tbsp ground cumin, 2 tsp chipotle chili powder and 1 tsp ground coriander)

1 Tbsp flat-leaf parsley leaves

1 Tbsp cilantro leaves

Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 egg

1/4 cup raw sunflower seeds
Bean-cooking liquid, stock or other liquid (wine, cream, milk, water or ketchup) if necessary
Extra virgin olive oil or neutral oil, like grapeseed or corn.

Combine all ingredients except liquid and oil (and sunflower seeds) in food processor and pulse until chunky but not puréed. (Add sunflower seeds and pulse another couple of times to break up seeds and mix them in) If necessary, add a little liquid for a mixture that is moist but not wet. Let mixture rest for a few minutes.

With wet hands, shape into patties and let rest again for a few minutes. (Burger mixture or shaped burgers can be covered tightly and refrigerated for up to a day. Bring back to room temperature before cooking.) Film bottom of a large nonstick or well-seasoned cast iron skillet with oil and turn heat to medium. When hot, add patties. Cook undisturbed until browned, about 5 minutes; turn carefully with spatula and cook 3 or 4 minutes until firm and browned. (I made mine into about 2 & 1/2 to 3-inch patties)

Serve on buns with mustard, ketchup, chutney or other toppings. (I served mine on sandwich thins cut to fit, and topped them with lettuce, guacamole, carrot and cucumber slivers.)

Notes/Results: Yum! Why do miniature foods always taste some much better?! I was in the mood for something Mexican-inspired and had some guacamole to use up, so those were the flavors I played up in my spice mix. I liked Bittman's suggestions for add-ins and tried a few different ones--sunflower seeds for texture, fresh herbs and tomato paste for color and complexity, and garlic (do I really need to tell you why?) ;-) The result was perfect--crispy outside, soft and moist inside and a little texture and crunch from the sunflower seeds. The burgers held together well--easier with the smaller slider size of course, and they browned nicely at about 4 minutes per side over medium heat.

I ended up making 6 sliders with half of the mixture and saved the rest because a side bar in the book on using veggie burger mix as ground "meat" caught my eye. I cooked the remaining burger mix off, making crisp brown crumbles that I am planning to use in some veggie tacos this week.

Since it was a winner--quick, easy, and delicious, I will use the base recipe again--probably trying it with different beans and playing with the spices, trying some Indian and Thai flavors. I like making my own veggie burgers so much more than buying them--they are cheaper, fresher and I get control over the ingredients. Bittman gives enough suggestions and ideas for different burgers and combinations to keep me in veggie burger heaven for quite some time.

You can see what bites the other IHCC members cooked from Mark Bittman by going to the website here and following the links.

*****Giveaway*****

Don't forget to read my cookbook review and enter my giveaway for a chance to win a copy of a wonderful new cookbook: "The Mediterranean Diabetes Cookbook" by Amy Riolo. Filled with delicious recipes, this book is for everyone who loves good, healthy food.

You can get the details for how to enter here. (There are three different ways to enter for three chances to win!)

This giveaway is open to everyone and the deadline for entering is Monday, April 12th.

Mark Bittman's Sesame Shrimp Toasts & Egg Drop Soup: A Quick and Easy Meal

It's Potluck week at I Heart Cooking Clubs and (sniff :-( sniff), our last potluck with Mark Bittman, in fact there is just one more week of Bittman after this and then we switch to our new chef/cook, Giada DeLaurentiis. I wanted something that was fast to make, that I could make from items already in my pantry/fridge/freezer, and especially something that tasted great. I got them all with Bittman's Sesame Shrimp Toasts and Egg Drop Soup.

Both recipes are from my favorite Bittman book, "Kitchen Express." I know I keep saying it but if you don't own this book, add it to your list. Every single quick and easy recipe sketch I have made from this book has been delicious. It is the perfect book to have when you need a fast dinner from your pantry.

Sesame Shrimp Toasts
"Mark Bittman's Kitchen Express"

Bittman says, "Better than any version you've had in a restaurant."

Heat the oven to 475 degrees F. Slice a baguette in half lengthwise, put the halves face up on a baking sheet, and set them in the oven while it heats. Put shrimp in a food processor with some butter, scallions, soy sauce, a few drops of sesame oil, and a pinch each of sugar and salt. Pulse until the mixture forms a chunky pasta. Smear the shrimp paste all over the bread and sprinkle with sesame seeds. Bake until the shrimp paste is pink and cooked through and the bread is crisp, about 10 minutes. Cool a bit, then cut up and serve with a salad. (or soup!) ;-)

Egg Drop Soup
"Mark Bittman's Kitchen Express"

Bittman says, "Nothing could be easier."

Bring a quart of stock (chicken or vegetable) to a slow bubble; gently pour four beaten eggs into the stock while stirring. Add soy sauce to taste and garnish with some chopped cilantro or scallions; a little sesame oil is nice, too.

Notes/Results: A simple comfort food dinner that comes together in less than 20 minutes and tastes really good. Make the shrimp toasts, then while they are baking, make the soup. I just made a cup's worth of the soup with some homemade stock and one egg, and it was perfect with a few pieces of the crunchy / creamy shrimp toasts. I might add some frozen green peas the next time for a bit more color and texture. The shrimp toasts are really good with the thicker baguette bread and not oily like the ones you get in Chinese restaurants often are. They would work well as a fun and simple appetizer. I would make both of these recipes again.

You can see what the other IHCC participants made for their potluck dishes by going to the post here and following the links.

To double the Potluck fun, I am also sending these sesame Shrimp Toasts and Egg Drop Soup to the Friday Potluck Party at EKat's Kitchen.

Aloha,

Tropical Oatstacks (with Mixed Dried Berries): A Healthy, Unique Cookie Treat From Mark Bittman

I have had Mark Bittman's "The Food Matters Cookbook: 500 Revolutionary Recipes for Better Living" sitting beside my bed, covered in post it notes tabs marking recipes I want to make for the past couple of months, but sadly had not cooked anything from it. Today I wanted something sweet, a banana muffin or maybe a healthy-ish oatmeal cookie, so I opened up the book and finally settled on a compromise with Bittman's Tropical Oatstacks.

Bittman says, "Different and amazingly good cookies that fall somewhere between banana bread and macaroons. The not-to-sweet oatstacks contain no sugar except for the natural sugars in the bananas, but if you have a real sweet tooth, you can roll the mounds of dough in sugar before you bake them. These are good vegan too: Just substitute vegetable oil for the butter." Sounded pretty good to me. ;-)

Since I am a huge fan of Bittman and his "Food Matters: A Guide to Conscious Eating" so I knew that I would like the follow-up cookbook. Bittman continues his philosophy of consuming a plant-heavy diet, full of fruits, vegetables, legumes, nuts, whole grains and unprocessed foods.

Bittman has 5 basic principles for healthy, conscious eating--all of which I support:

1. Eat fewer animal products than average.
2. Eat all the plants you can manage.
3. Make legumes and whole grains part of your life.
4. Avoid processed foods.
5. Everything else is a treat--and you can have treats daily.

It's a sane way of looking at your diet and taking care of yourself, your health and the planet. For example--here's some of what he says about Desserts: "Desserts are treats, but that doesn't mean you have to throw all of the Food Matters principles out of the window in order to indulge. On the other hand, most of us don't want constant offerings of super "healthy" or vegan desserts. So what you have here is a meeting on middle ground: satisfying desserts made from real food, but completely from their traditional counterparts in that fruits, whole grains and nuts are the primary focus. To the extent that butter (and other dairy) and sugar are included, they're in supporting roles."

The recipes are the usual Bittman--simple and easy to adapt to your taste or what ingredients you have in your pantry. With lots of supporting material on cooking seasonally, setting up a pantry, making meals vegan, etc. it is a useful tome for anyone looking to eat mindfully. Another Bittman winner for me that I will be pulling out often to cook and get ideas from.

Tropical Oatstacks

Adapted From "The Food Matters Cookbook" by Mark Bittman

(Makes 2 to 3 Dozen)

Time: About 30 minutes, plus time to cool

4 Tbsp (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, melted, plus more for greasing the pans

3 large ripe bananas

1 tsp vanilla extract

2/3 cup rolled oats

1/2 cup chopped cashews or macadamia nuts

1 cup shredded, unsweetened coconut

1 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

Heat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease 2 baking sheets with a little butter.

Put the bananas in a large bowl and mash them well with a fork or potato masher. Stir in the melted butter and vanilla. In a separate bowl, mix together the oats, nuts, shredded coconut, baking powder, and salt. Add the dry ingredients to the banana mixture and stir until just combined.

Drop tablespoon-sized mounds of dough about 3 inches apart on the baking sheets. Bake, rotating the pans as necessary, until golden brown, 12 to 15 minutes. Cool for about 2 minutes on the sheets before using a spatula to transfer the cookies to a wire rack to finish cooling. Store in a tightly covered container at room temperature for no more than a day or two.

Notes/Results: A soft and tasty little cookie full of good banana flavor. I did make a vegan version, using half of an Earth Balance Vegan Buttery Stick. I also wanted a bit of color in them, so I added 1/2 cup of mixed dried berries, which was nice. Not too sweet, tender and chewy--a couple of these little cookies make a great snack with a cup of tea. Bittman says to store them at room temperature for just a day or two, but I found that they freeze pretty well too. I will make these again--they would be fun with cacao nibs or dark chocolate chips in them too.

I thought I should send these delightful little bites of guilt-free goodness to the Alex at A Moderate Life's Tackling Bittman Blog Hop this week. My pal girlichef is hosting this month and also giving away a copy of this must-have book--follow this link for all of the details.

Happy Weekend!

Anything Goes Granola for a Mark Bittman Pantry Raid (Plus Giveaway Winner!)

I don't have a regular "Things I Am Loving This Week" post but I do love Mark Bittman, our new cook at I Heart Cooking Clubs and I also love the recipe I picked, and the book it came from. And I love having a good giveaway and so I am announcing the winner of my cookbook giveaway at the bottom of this post. BTW--If you entered and must find out if you won, you can go do so but I do expect you to come back and read the post! ;-)

This week at I Heart Cooking Clubs we are celebrating spring cleaning by having a Pantry Raid, using up any excess items we have sitting around our pantries in a Mark Bittman recipe. I consider my freezer to be an extension of my pantry as I store many of my flours, nuts and dried fruits there so that they stay fresh in the warmer weather. Since I have an excess of nuts (my Mom likens me to a squirrel, storing them for winter), I thought Bittman's Anything Goes Granola would be a great way to use them up. I also had a large amount of rolled oats, dried fruits and shredded coconut on hand, and plenty of spices so this truly was a pantry raid appropriate dish.

The granola is from "Food Matters: A Guide to Conscious Eating" which is not a Bittman cookbook but rather his plan for eating in way that is good for health, weight and the planet. The book makes sense and advises eating whole foods, veggie-based meals and limiting the amount of meat consumed. (Bittman personally eats vegetarian for breakfast and lunch and enjoys meat in moderation for dinner--which helped him loose 35 pounds and improved his blood levels). The book has 75 simple recipes, which in true Bittman style allow for lots of adaptation. (It's a great book and I recommend it if you have an interest in whole food, healthy eating and cooking)

The recipe can be found in the book on pages 168-169 or a version of it can be found at the New York Times site, here. My specific ingredients/adaptations are in red below.

Bittman says, "Granola is a versatile snack and breakfast food. Unfortunately most packaged stuff is usually too sweet, more like candy than cereal. Though some of the smaller production brands are nice, it remains worth making and customizing your own. Usually granola has a high proportion of rolled oats, but you can add different rolled grains like wheat, rye or kamut. Play with the flavor by tossing different nuts and seeds into the mix, adding a teaspoon of vanilla or ground spices like cinnamon, ginger, cardamom, or nutmeg (alone or in combination), or using any chopped dried fruit--dates, cranberries, cherries, blueberries, apricots, pineapple, crystallized ginger, or banana chips."

Anything Goes Granola
"Food Matters" by Mark Bittman
(Makes about 9 cups)

5 cups rolled oats (not quick-cooking or instant) or other rolled grains
3 cups mixed nuts and seeds, (I used a mix of chopped walnuts, pecans, mac nuts, sliced almonds, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, & flax seeds)
1 cup dried unsweetened shredded coconut
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, or other spices to taste (I used 1 tsp each of cinnamon and cardamom, and 1/2 tsp each of ground ginger & orange zest)
1/2 to 1 cup honey or maple syrup, or to taste (I used a mixture of both & about 3/4 cup)
salt
1 tsp vanilla, optional
1 to 1 1/2 cups raisins or other chopped dried fruit (I used a mix of 1 1/2 cups of dried pineapple, papaya & cranberries)

Heat oven to 350 degrees F. In a large bowl, combine the oats, nuts and seeds, coconut, cinnamon, sweetener and vanilla if using; sprinkle with a little salt. Toss well to thoroughly distribute ingredients. Spread the mixture on a rimmed baking sheet and bake for 30 minutes or a little longer, stirring occasionally. The granola should brown evenly; the browner it gets without burning, the crunchier it will be.

Remove pan from oven and add raisins or other dried fruit. Cool on a rack, stirring now and then until the granola reaches room temperature. Put in a sealed container and store in refrigerator; it will keep indefinitely.

Notes/Results: Yum! Every time I make granola, I wonder why I ever buy it--it is just so good when you make it yourself. This is a good base recipe, although I am glad I added more spices than the recipe called for as it was perfect with the three teaspoons, I don't think one teaspoon would have been near enough. I liked the mix of honey and pure maple syrup which along with the spices, vanilla and salt gave a lot of layers of flavor. I love the pre-chopped no-sulfite. low-sugar dried pineapple and papaya I buy from my local co-op and the mixture of fruit was great--the cranberries added some nice tartness. The recipe makes a lot of granola which keeps well and is great topping yogurt, or eaten with milk (or almond milk as in the photo above), or just grabbed by the handful to snack on. (Bittman also has a recipe for Fruit and Cereal Bites in the book that you can use it in). You also can reduce the amount you make, or like me, make it all and give some away--it makes a great hostess gift. A keeper recipe and one to play around with different fruit, nut, seed and spice combinations.

You can check out how the other IHCC participants cleaned out their pantries and find out what they made by going to the IHCC site here.

***Giveaway Winner***

I am happy to announce the winner of my recent giveaway who will receive their own copy of "The Mediterranean Diabetes Cookbook" by Amy Riolo. I wish I could give each of you this fabulous book. Since we kick it old school here, I wrote down the names of everyone who left a comment about why they wanted to win, tweeted the giveaway, or was a follower or started following Kahakai Kitchen (one entry slip for each of those actions and comments), and then I randomly drew out one name.

And the winner is:

It is Kristen from Whatcha Eatin'? Congratulations Kristen! If you email me at debinhawaii@gmail.com with your shipping address, I will get the book out to you this week. Thanks to everyone who entered.

Have a wonderful rest of your week!

Pasta with Bacon and Breadcrumbs--Three of My Favorite Words & My Bittman Potluck Pick!

A busy week and no time to catalogue all of the "Things I Am Loving This Week"--my usual Tuesday feature. Instead I bring you something completely lovable--Mark Bittman's Pasta with Bacon and Breadcrumbs.

Pasta with Bacon and Breadcrumbs... Lets say it again, this time with feeling...PASTA with BACON and BREADCRUMBS! It is like poetry to the senses, sheer perfection in a bowl. Oh Mark Bittman, how I do love thee and your recipes that are so simple they are genius. Now I am no newcomer to the breadcrumbs as topping phenomenon--I eat it often, (like here and here with pasta, or here with asparagus and the countless times not accounted for on my blog when it tops my quick, go-to, delicious but not pretty to look at meal of canned tuna, lemon, garlic capers and breadcrumbs on pasta). Bittman takes breadcrumbs to a whole new level where not only are they are paired with bacon...but oh wait!...they are crisped and browned in a combination of said bacon's fat, olive oil, garlic and red pepper flakes. Yep, it is poetry...bacon-scented poetry, and the fact that it is on the table in about 20 minutes makes it all the better. If it actually makes it to the table and you don't just lean over the pan on the stove, fork in hand and shovel it (delicately of course), into your mouth.

The recipe, my April Potluck choice for I Heart Cooking Clubs can be found in "Mark Bittman's Kitchen Express" on page 151.

Bittman says, "This relies on good breadcrumbs, which mean homemade or panko."

Pasta with Bacon and Breadcrumbs

"Mark Bittman's Kitchen Express"

Boil salted water for pasta and cook it, reserving some of the cooking liquid. Meanwhile, cut bacon into small pieces and fry it in a bit of olive oil until just crisping; remove from the pan and add two or three minced cloves of garlic to the pan; cook over fairly low heat, turning until just fragrant, a couple of minutes. Toss in a cup or so of breadcrumbs and a pinch of red chile flakes; cook, stirring, until the breadcrumbs turn golden (they go fast, so you'll want to watch them). Toss the pasta and the breadcrumb mixture along with the bacon and a little of the reserved liquid. Top with some more olive oil and a bit of chopped parsley or basil.


Notes/Results: Pasta, bacon, breadcrumbs...do I really need to tell you how good this was and why? It is simple genius. I pretty much made it as the recipe stated--with the exception of some extra garlic and a big pinch of red pepper flakes. With so few ingredients, use good ones--a good olive oil, real bacon (I used a nitrate and antibiotic-free thick cut pepper bacon--and loved the extra kick from the pepper), and fresh, flavorful garlic and basil. We can argue the merits of homemade breadcrumbs, which are great, but I firmly believe panko is the way to go here--its feathery ethereal lightness crisps up to perfection.


The right pasta is important too. I received a bag of "radiatore" pasta from Garofalo Pasta to sample and I thought this would be the perfect opportunity to try it out as radiatore are small pasta shapes that are said to resemble radiators. Their ruffled edges make them work well with thicker sauces and as I learned, breadcrumbs--as they hold the toasted crumbs in between ruffles, giving you a crispy-tender bite. The Garafalo Pasta company has been making pasta for over 200 years and produces 10% of Italy's pasta production. It can be found here in the United States at grocery stores and even Costco on the west coast. The pasta worked well in this dish, holding its shape well and was tender and good. Thanks to Garafalo Pasta for allowing me to try it.

No complaints about this dish at all--it was perfect. (OK, maybe next time I might add some capers to it, but caper-love is just my issue. Trust me even without them, it is still pretty darn perfect!)

You can see what the other IHCC participants are picking for their Potluck dishes by going to the IHCC website here and following the links.

Besides going to IHCC, such pasta goodness must also be shared at Ruth's Presto Pasta Nights, hosted this week by Cynthia of Kitchen Slave. You'll want to check out the PPN round-up at her blog on Friday for all kinds of yummy pasta creations.

My "Things I Am Loving This Week" feature will be back next Tuesday!

Creamy Potato Soup with Chive Pesto for Souper Sundays (Yep, We Are Back with a New Linkup!)

Sometimes I just crave a simple potato soup, creamy, hearty and satisfying. Mark Bittman is always an excellent source for simple recipes and this Creamy Potato Soup with Chive Pesto is from his How To Cook Everything Fast. It's actually a suggested variation from the Creamy Parsnip Soup with Parsley Pesto in the book.

I made a few adaptations to the recipe--taking out the butter and chicken stock and using olive oil and veggie stock. I also made my pesto in my mini chop instead of by hand and replaced the pine nuts with cashews (because they were handy). My changes are noted in red below.

Bittman says, "Vegetables that will be pureed need to be cooked until very soft. If you cut them into chunks, getting there can take 20 minutes, even longer. But grated, they're ready in a flash." Because I wanted a semi-pureed soup and wasn't too concerned about time, instead of grating, I chopped my potato into a small dice that still cooked quickly (about 20 minutes), but allowed me to keep some chunks in the creamy broth.

Creamy Potato Soup with Chive Pesto
Adapted from How to Cook Everything Fast by Mark Bittman
(Serves 4)

2 Tbsp butter (I used olive oil)
1 medium onion, chopped
1 1/2 lbs potatoes (I used russet), peeled and chopped into small dice
salt and pepper to taste
6 cups chicken or vegetable stock or water (I used low-sodium veggie broth diluted with water)

Chive Pesto:
1 bunch fresh chives, chopped
1 garlic clove, peeled and minced
1/3 cup pine nuts (I used cashews), roughly chopped
3 Tbsp olive oil

Put 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. When hot, add onion and cook, stirring occasionally until softened and browning on the edges, about 10-15 minutes. 

Raise heat to high, add potatoes, a sprinkle of salt and black pepper and the stock or water. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer (it should bubble gently but steadily) and cook until the potatoes are tender, 15-20 minutes. 

Meanwhile, combine the chives, garlic, nuts, olive oil, and a sprinkle of salt and black pepper in a small mixing bowl mash and stir with a fork against the side of the bowl until the pesto becomes a loose paste. (Or roughly chop all ingredients in a food processor until it becomes a chunky paste.)

Turn off the heat under the soup and run an immersion blender through it until desired consistency--or, working in batches, carefully puree it in a blender. (I blended 3 cups of the soup in a blender and added it back into the soup pot.) 

Reheat the soup for a minute or two if necessary. Taste and adjust seasoning. Divide into 4 bowls and spoon the pesto over the top of each serving. Enjoy!
 

Notes/Results:  A humble but tasty soup, creamy but hot heavy. I love the freshness that the chive pesto adds and the texture that it gives--it also has the vibe of a baked potato with chives on top. ;-) In addition to parsnip and parsley original and this variation, Bittman also pairs asparagus and mint, celery root and cilantro. I find this bowl of soup perfect for cool weather but hinting that spring is around the corner. I will make it again.

I am linking this post and its Mark Bittman soup up to Potluck week at I Heart Cooking Clubs--our chance to make any recipe form the current chef Ellie Krieger or any previous IHCC chef like Mark Bittman. You can see the chefs and dishes that everyone chose for February's potluck by checking out the picture links on the post.

Many thanks to everyone who joined in last week for Souper (Soup, Salad & Sammies) Sundays comeback. It's a slightly different format, making me less pressed for time on Sundays but still a fun way to see what soups (and salads and sandwiches that everyone is making). If you are not familiar, you can read about of the origins Souper Sundays' here. 

Here are three impressive soups shared last week from some of my good friends at I Heart Cooking Clubs:

Kim from Stirring the Pot tried Ellie Krieger's White Chili (and hominy!) for the first time saying, "Having never tried hominy, I can only tell you that I've clearly been missing out! Hominy is SO good! It has the most lovely and intense corn fragrance that I find incredibly appealing. The hominy itself is big and puffy, which is not only pleasing to the eye, but also to the palate. As far as I'm concerned, hominy is the star of this chili! In fact, I will be adding hominy to all my chili from now on, without question."

Joyce of Kitchen Flavours is back at Souper Sundays with Hearty Pork Stew from Ellie Krieger and says, "This stew is delicious. We love it. Thumbs up from the family, and a request to cook this again. The pork pieces are very tender, full of flavour from the red wine and all the other ingredients. The veggies are soft tender and I thought the green peas makes the bowl of stew looks even better with its fresh green colour. We had this stew with some homemade bread, and it was a satisfying dinner."

Finally, we welcome Flour.ish.en Test Kitchen to Souper Sundays with a version of Ellie Krieger's (notice a theme here?) Vegetarian Black Bean Chili with Ancho and Orange, saying, "What I like best about this recipe are the ancho chili with a little heat, and the orange zest and juice which give the chili the right amount of fragrance, brightness and acidity. This is such a tasty chili that I don't miss the meat at all, as strangely as it may sound."

To join in this week's linkup:

• Link up your soup (stew, chili, soupy curries, etc. are fine), salad, or sandwich dish, (preferably one from the current week or month) on the picture link below for the current week and leave a comment below.

On your entry post (on your blog):

• please mention Souper (Soup, Salad & Sammies) Sundays at Kahakai Kitchen and link back to this post.
• you are welcome to add the wonderful Souper Sundays logo (created by Ivy at Kopiaste) to your post and/or blog (optional).

Linkups will be open until midnight (PST) Saturday each week. 

An InLinkz Link-up

Hope you join in the fun by linking up any soup, salad, or sandwich recipes this week!

Happy Sunday!