Leek Soup

In the book French Women Don't Get Fat, the author recommends, as a kick off to becoming French, that you start your French journey with a leek soup weekend.  A leek soup weekend is when you eat nothing but leek soup and drink leek broth and water.  When I first "became French" I was very scared of leek soup weekend and skipped it.  However last April I went to visit my parents in Hawaii for two weeks and gained 4 pounds while I was there!  To offset the weight gain and get myself back on track, I decided to do a leek soup weekend.  The leek soup I made was so thin, very watery, extremely unappetizing with yucky chunks of boiled leek in it.  Needless to say, I didn't make it 24 hours eating this disgusting fare.

However, for the past two weeks, we have been receiving leeks in our final CSA baskets of the season.  Finally, I had about 10 of them crowding my crisper drawer and it was time to clear some space.  Last night I decided to make a starter of leek soup as I knew I could do so much better than last time if I just put my mind to it.  What I created had very subtle flavors from white wine and chicken stock, had a little "meat" to it with added olive oil, and was chock full of yummy, sauteed pieces of leek.  Much, much better.  Now I understand leek soup weekend.  I could happily survive the weekend on this soup.  Last night it was relegated to a mere starter to a main course of baked salmon, but I can't wait for lunch today to give it a starring role all it's own.

Leek Soup by Joie de vivre

Made at least 8 big servings

10 leeks, cleaned and chopped into 1/2 inch chunks

3-4 Tbls. olive oil

salt and pepper to taste

1/2 cup white wine

2 quarts of chicken stock

*Note*  If you have never worked with leeks before, the key to using them is getting them clean.  The way farmers grow them is to mound dirt around the base to make for a longer usable white part.  This results in lots of dirt in those little groves.  What I do is chop off the green leaves.  These are good for stock but are not going to be used for the soup.  We are working with the white parts here.  Chop off the root of the white part, turn sidewise and slice long ways down the middle.  Then turn the leek and chop short ways into 1/2 inch size chunks.  Put these chunks into a salad spinner.  Continue in this manner until all of the leeks are cut.  Put the salad spinner insert containing the leeks into the salad spinner bowl and fill the bowl with cool water.  Swish around the leeks with your hands, lift out this insert and drain the water.  Repeat 3-4 times until you are convinced the leeks are clean.  

 

Instructions:

1.  Heat the olive oil in a big soup pot over medium low heat.  

2.  Add the leeks and sautee them, stirring frequently, until they are very limp and starting to stick to the bottom slightly (maybe 10 minutes)  Don't let them burn!

3.  Add the white wine and scrape the bottom of the pot clean with a wooden spoon.

4.  Season with salt and pepper to taste, give the pot a good stir and then add the chicken stock.

5.  Raise the heat to medium-high and bring the soup to a boil.

6.  Ladle into soup bowls and enjoy.

Eating Locally

When we first moved to Eastern Washington from Davis, CA more than 5 years ago now, the thing we mourned the loss of the most was our CSA subscription.  Our CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) was our way of eating fresh, locally grown produce, and provided endless hours of entertainment as we tried to figure out how to use certain vegetables.  We moved up here to what seemed like a wasteland (you'll understand if you've ever been to Eastern WA) and tried in vain to find a CSA.  After all, it is such an agricultural area, we figured someone was bound to have a CSA.  After fruitless searches of the web, and speaking to every farmer at the farmer's market, I was resigned to do without my beloved CSA and took heart in the fact that there was a farmer's market to begin with.  

Last spring I was reading our newspaper when I happened to see a small 1" x 3" ad with the very cryptic words of, "Eat Locally" and there was a phone number.  Could it be?  Yes it was.  A fairly large local farm was starting a CSA and put out a small feeler in the newspaper to see if there was any response.  Last year, there were 48 subscribers in the CSA.  Thanks to the glowing reviews of the customers and a large article in the paper this year, there were 250 subscribers this year and the farmer plans to add a couple hundred more next year.  This area was crying out for a way to eat locally.

This is my sad goodbye to my CSA box for this growing season.  Now that it is November, the weather is just too cold to sustain anything else.  But what a season it was.  I took the photo above as I was reveling in the beauty of local food.  The last box of the CSA season, and my first dozen eggs from my winter egg subscription.  I'm thinking a locally grown frittata?  Mmmm.  If you live in Eastern Washington and are interested in finding locally grown eggs or are interested in participating in the CSA, I'll include the resources below.  If you live no where near here, never fret.  CSA's are the hottest thing in farming.  Do a search of your own and I'm sure you will find local farmers selling their products.

The thing I love the best about buying locally grown foods and particularly being in a CSA, is knowing the farmer and whose work went into the foods you eat.  It just makes everything taste all the better.  

Schreiber and Sons CSA:  http://www.schreiberandsons.com/schreiberandsonsfarm.html

Greene Hills Farm (egg subscription):  http://greenehillsfarm.com/

Crock Pot Love!

In my house, the crock pot is a well loved appliance.  I use it a couple of times a month even during the summer.  I love being able to put things in the crock pot in the morning and know that dinner is done.  Also being able to do the big dishes in the morning frees up so much time in the evening when all I have to do is pop our dinner dishes in the dishwasher.  

Yesterday in our CSA, we received 4 whopping parsnips.  Frankly, they were taking up space in my refrigerator and I really wanted to get them out of the way.  Hence, tonight's dinner was born.  I could take the kiddos outside after school and play until 5 minutes before dinner.  A quick zap with the immersion blender and dinner was ready.  

Chickpea, Parsnip, and Ham Soup by Joie de Vivre

1 lb. dried chickpeas, rinsed and picked over

4 garlic cloves, peeled and minced

4 parsnips, peeled and diced

3 celery stalks, diced

2 onions, peeled and diced

1 ham steak, cut into 1 inch pieces

8 cups chicken, beef or vegetable stock

A little bit of Liquid Smoke, to taste

Place all vegetables, ham and stock into the insert of your crock pot.  Cook on HIGH for 7 hours or until the chickpeas are tender.  Use your hand-held immersion blender to puree about 3/4 of the soup (the more pureed the better in my house with two picky eaters).   Spoon into bowls and season with a little Liquid Smoke.

Summer abundance

My family and I belong to a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture).  Basically, one buys into a farm at the beginning of the season thereby taking on some of the risk of the farmer and supporting the local guy.  In turn, you get a box of produce every week throughout the growing season.  August is always the time of year that we struggle to use all of the produce as the abundance is almost embarrassing.  For example, this week's box contained the following:

Peaches

Onions (both bulb and green)

string beans

kale

eggplant

purple potatoes

red cabbage

hot peppers

bell peppers

squash

cucumbers

tomatillos

tomatoes

2 melons

sweet corn

carrots

We are not talking just one of each either.  There were 6 ears of corn, 4 huge cucumbers, a plethora of eggplant, a huge bunch of kale, you get my point.  In order to tackle this bounty, I have gotten in the habit of making my weekly menu and shopping list after I know what is coming in the box.  I thought I'd share my dinners this week with you.  Last night was a very simple melon and shrimp salad, a cucumber dill salad, and some chocolate pudding chocolate chip cookies.  Enjoy the recipes and stay tuned for more recipes from this week!

Shrimp and Melon Salad adapted from The French Market:  More Recipes from a French Kitchen by Joanne Harris and Fran Warde

Serves 6

1 ripe melon

1 lb. shrimp cooked (I used baby shrimp)

A bunch of dill, chopped (probably about 2 tsp)

2 Tbls. olive oil

Juice from 1 lemon

Slice the top and bottom off of a melon so that it stands flat on your cutting board.  Carefully cut away all of the rind.  Cut the melon in half, scoop out the seeds, then cut melon into serving sized slices.  Arrange melon slices on a fancy plate or plate individually.  Top with shrimp and dill.  Drizzle with olive oil and lemon juice.  Serve immediately.

Cucumber Salad  taken from The French Market:  More recipes from a French Kitchen by Joanne Harris and Fran Warde. 

Serves 6

2 large cucumbers

A bunch of dill, chopped (probably 2 tsp)

1/4 cup olive oil

Juice of 1 lemon

Sea salt, to taste

Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Peel the cucumbers and slice in half lengthwise.  Run the tip of a teaspoon down the middle of the cucumber halves to remove the seeds.  Slice the cucumbers finely at an angle and place in a bowl.  Add the dill, olive oil, and lemon juice.  Season with salt and pepper.  Toss well and leave to marinate for 30 minutes.

Chocolate Pudding chocolate chip cookies by Joie de vivre!

Made a lot....not sure, but at least 4 dozen

3/4 cup brown sugar

1 c. butter

1 30z. package instant chocolate fudge pudding

2 eggs

1 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. vanilla

1 c. chocolate chips

2 1/4 c. flour

1 c. walnut pieces

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Soften the butter and mix well with the brown sugar.  Add each ingredient in order, mixing well before adding another ingredient.  Roll into walnut sized balls and place on cookie sheet.  Flatten cookies with spatula or fingers (they do not spread much)  Bake for 8-10 minutes at 350 degrees.  (Mine baked in exactly 9 minutes)

Enjoy and stay tuned for more recipes using this week's produce!