Broccoli Cheese Soup *Update (10/2011): We continue to love this soup (and eat it often)! I’ve edited the recipe just a bit to enhance with a bit of salt and flesh out some of the details. Enjoy! I could sum up this post by the following statement from my husband while devouring this meal: “This is the ultimate perfect dinner.” Note: To make my life easier, while the soup is coming together, I put the chopped broccoli in a large glass bowl, cover with saran wrap and microwave for about 3-4 minutes. Ingredients 1 3/4 cups chicken broth 1 small onion, diced 1/3 cup all-purpose flour 1/4 cup (4 tablespoons) butter 1/2 teaspoon pepper 1/2 teaspoon salt 2 cups milk 1 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese, preferably sharp or extra sharp 1/2 cup shredded swiss cheese 2 1/2 to 3 cups chopped, lightly steamed or blanched broccoli Directions Simmer chicken broth and chopped onion for 15-20 minutes in a covered small saucepan, until onions are soft.
Caramelized Onion & Mushroom Brie Grilled Cheese Well, it’s time for another grilled cheese… Will they ever get old? I DON’T THINK SO! Since I only had one grilled cheese size portion of brie cheese left in my fridge, a vigil of sorts was necessary. To treat this last portion of cheese with the respect it deserves, a special grilled cheese was in order, one which ingredients would love to be draped in gooey brie. Caramelized Onion & Mushroom Brie Grilled Cheese 2 Slices French BreadBrie Cheese1 Yellow Onion1 Clove Garlic5 Mushrooms50-100ml Concentrated Beef BrothThymeFlourButterSalt & Pepper BEWARE! First things first, get a pan going on medium heat with 1-2 tablespoons of butter. After about twenty minutes, add in your mushrooms, garlic and more butter. Cut two slices of bread and spread butter on both sides of each slice. The time spent caramelizing the onions is definitely worth it, and adding the beef stock gives this sandwich a flavour similar to a roast beef dip almost tricking you into thinking there actually is meat in it! Bob
Garlicky Baked Fries I’m never going to make garlic potato fries any other way. These garlic fries, win hands down as the best garlic french fries I’ve ever made. Plus they are baked – so I won’t feel too guilty if I make it every time I’m craving for some potato comfort. When I read that there is garlic infused oil involved, my heart skipped a beat (in a good way, not the way oil would otherwise treat your heart). I got down to making them immediately. I used extra virgin olive oil instead of vegetable oil because I just love the aroma that garlic and olive oil combine to impart. crispy golden baked fries These garlic fries are incredibly simple to make and are so full of flavour. crunchy potato skin Garlic Fries Adapted from: Lottie + Doof Ingredients: 8 garlic cloves, minced or grated 6 tbsp extra virgin olive oil 3 russet potatoes (about 8oz each), each cut into 12 wedges 3 tbsp cornstarch/cornflour 1 1/2 tsp coarse sea salt 1 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper ½ tsp garlic powder 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
what goes into making chocolate bowls Leave it up to me to mess up every recipe in the world... but on the flipside, by experiencing everything that goes wrong, I end up learning the most.I had seen these bowls from Stephanie's Kitchen, and decided it was a fantastic idea for my food independent study. ingredients: chocolate, and balloons! first, a giant bar of chocolate all the way from taiwan! and it's -special- grade, whatever that means. (i actually tried to pipe pretty lacy chocolate bowls first, but uh, that completely failed so i moved on. plus i don't like that pink fake chocolate.) balloons! tip number 2, after you have melted your chocolate in a double broiler and poured it into a bowl for dipping, let it cool before you dip your balloons. because although you are really excited to dip them and set them down like this... five seconds later you shall hear a POP and you (as well as your kitchen) will be covered in chocolate because apparently latex doesn't like heat.
Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall's perfect pizza I've been harbouring base thoughts … about pizza. I love pizza: with a good, thin, burnt-at-the-edges crust that seductively conspires to be both crisp and chewy at the same time. Spare me from those hefty, overloaded slabs favoured by so many fast food places. I've nothing against Chicago, but I'd rather trust Al Capone to do my taxes than tuck into a slice of the pizza that bears his city's name. Such heavy concoctions are a million miles away from pizza's humble origins as the simple flatbread favoured by the Greeks. Over the centuries, it acquired more adornment until, in 1889, Queen Margherita's visit to Naples produced possibly the first "modern" pizza. That clever Neopolitan was on to something. Perfect pizza dough Dan's recipe is foolproof and the dough keeps well, sealed in the fridge, for a couple of weeks. In a bowl, mix the flours, yeast, salt and water to form a sticky dough. Preheat the oven (and pizza stone or substitute) as high as it will go. Roast tomato sauce Garlic oil
Pizza Swirl Bread I have good news and bad news. The good news is… I made you bread. It tastes like pizza. It’s swirled with piles of grated provolone and spicy pepperoni and a nice little mixture of Italian seasoning [...that came out of a tube]. Yeah. The bad news is that it disappeared. Like… all of it. At best I could dig the foil out of the trash for you that enveloped this loaf for a full 13 minutes before complete domination took over. See, bread if my favorite thing to make. I want to dive headfirst into this pepperoni roll on steroids and doggy paddle through every cheesy swirl. Pizza Swirl Bread [adapted from martha stewart.com] makes one loaf 4 tablespoons butter 1/3 cup milk 1/4 cup warm water 2 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast 1 teaspoon sugar 1 large egg 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour 1/2 teaspoon salt 2 garlic cloves, minced 6 ounces provolone cheese, freshly grated 4 ounces grated parmesan cheese 20-30 slices pepperoni, or however much you would like 1/3 cup tomato sauce, or more if desired 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
The Traveler's Lunchbox - Journal in the kitchen with: adrienne blumthal’s blackberry balsamic pie It’s blackberry season again, and we have another great, easy recipe to use up the blackberries you may collect in the wild or buy at your favorite produce outlet. This recipe for a Blackberry Balsamic Pie with Sea Salt Walnut Crumble comes from food stylist and creator of PieBox, Adrienne Blumthal. I was attracted to this recipe for two reasons: first, the sea salt walnut crumble, and second, the PieBox that the pie is in!! Since Ashley began her Small Measures column here at Design*Sponge, I’ve taken note of the many things I can do to clean up my home environment and help contribute to a better world. Glass is heavy, and plastic containers are soooo 20th century, but this wood box fits the bill. It’s too early for Christmas, but a home-baked pie in a PieBox will definitely be on my list this year! About Adrienne: Adrienne Blumthal is a Chicago-based food stylist from southern Illinois who has turned her lifetime passion for baking into a career. Images by Steven Karl Metzer Filling
BEST-EVER Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies Readers, whatever you're doing, stop. Right now. Make these cookies NOW. I promise you won't be sorry. Well, you might be because it'll be near impossible to not eat the entire batch of these incredible cookies. I know (well, I've heard) there are people out there who like crispy cookies. I already had a really great chocolate chip cookie recipe, but I wanted to give these a shot. Best-Ever Chocolate Chip Cookies Ingredients: 3/4 c. unsalted butter, softened 3/4 c. brown sugar 1/4 c. granulated sugar 1 egg 2 tsp. vanilla extract 2 c. all purpose flour 2 tsp. cornstarch 1 tsp. baking soda 1/2 tsp. salt 1 c. bittersweet chocolate chips Directions: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. three years ago: Greek-style turkey burgers with lemon-mint tzatziki