With the recent cold snap, we've been spending a lot of time indoors, cooking rather than going out to eat. I would love for you, faithful readers, to tell me about your favorite comfort foods. Ideas, recipes, share it all! I want to hear from you. Below, I give you a recipe for one of my favorite comfort foods.
Spicy Tomato Soup
(This is adapted to my tastes from a recipe that originated with Paula Deen. You can find her version here.)
8 tablespoons of butter, divided
1/4 cup all-purpose flour 1 medium onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, diced
3 cups canned chicken broth
1 (29-ounce) can tomato sauce
1 (29-ounce) can diced tomatoes, with juice
2 dashes hot sauce
3 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon dried dill weed
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon dried basil leaves
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
In a 4-qt heavy bottom sauce pan, melt 4 tablespoons of butter. Saute' onions and garlic, over med-low heat, in the butter until translucent, about 3-4 minutes. Add remaining butter to the pan along with the flour. Stir until flour is smooth. Cook 2-3 minutes. Slowly add the chicken broth, 1 cup at a time, stirring well after each
addition and allowing the soup to thicken slightly before adding more
broth. When all the broth is added, add the tomato sauce and the diced
tomatoes, 1 cup at a time, stirring well and allowing the mixture to
thicken before adding more. When all the tomato sauce and diced
tomatoes have been added, season soup with hot sauce, honey, dill weed,
pepper, chili powder, basil, thyme, garlic powder, onion powder and Worcestershire sauce. Allow to simmer over low heat for
about 45 minutes so that the flavors can blend. Stir frequently, as the
soup will stick to the bottom of the pot.
A couple of nights ago, I made some delicious Fleur de Sel Caramels. (You can learn about Fleur de Sel in my previous post about Haagen-Dasz Caramel Fleur de Sel Ice Cream) The recipe that I used comes form Ina Garten (Food Network's Barefoot Contessa), who is one of my favorite television chefs ebcause she makes stuff I actually want to eat with ingredients I actually want to cook with. Her Fleur de Sel Caramel recipe is posted below. (Warning: These are highly addictive and not calorie-friendly. Proceed with caution :P)
Ina Garten's Fleur de Sel Caramels You can find the original recipe here
Vegetable oil 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar 1/4 cup water 1/4 cup light corn syrup 1 cup heavy cream 5 tablespoons unsalted butter 1 teaspoon fleur de sel, plus extra for sprinkling 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1. Line the bottom of an 8-inch-square baking pan with parchment paper, then brush the paper lightly with oil, allowing the paper to drape over two sides.
2. In a deep saucepan (89 diameter by 4 1/2" deep), stir together 1/4 cup water with the sugar and corn syrup and bring them to a boil over medium-high heat. Continue to boil until the mixture is a warm golden brown color. Don't stir — just swirl the pan to mix. Watch carefully, as it will burn quickly at the end!
3. In the meantime, in a small pan, bring the cream, butter, and 1 teaspoon of fleur de sel to a simmer over medium heat. Turn off the heat and set aside.
4. When the sugar mixture is a warm golden color, turn off the heat and slowly add the cream mixture to the sugar mixture. Be careful! It will bubble up violently. Stir in the vanilla with a wooden spoon and cook over medium-low heat for about 10 minutes, until the mixture reaches 248°F (firm ball) on a candy thermometer. Very carefully (because it's hot!) pour the caramel into the prepared pan and refrigerate until firm.
5. When the caramels are cold, use the parchment paper to pry the sheet from the pan onto a cutting board. Cut the sheet in half. Starting with the long end, roll the caramel up tightly into a log, then roll out to 12 inches in length. Repeat with the second piece. Sprinkle both logs lightly with fleur de sel, trim the ends, and cut each log in 8 pieces. Cut glassine or parchment papers into squares and wrap each caramel in a paper, twisting the ends. Store in the refrigerator and serve the caramels chilled.
When I made this recipe, I skipped step 5, and instead just removed the caramel from the pan and cut it into small squares using a buttered pizza cutter before sprinkling them with the remaining salt. This method makes about 48-60 individual caramels. My co-workers devoured them, and yours probably will, too :)
I love a good story just as much as the next person, and this one is a lot of fun. There is an old internet urban legend about some extremely expensive cookies. A few years ago, an e-mail was sent out to recipients all over the world. Over time, the details (like the location of the event) have changed, but the story basically goes like this:
As I checked my e-mail today I found this story and couldn't resist
sending it to everybody I knew and didn´t know…even worse than she
expected!!
Here goes… the woman wrote: My daughter and I had just finished a salad
at Neiman-Marcus café in Dallas, and decided to have a small desert.
Because both of us are such cookie lovers, we decided to try the
"Neiman-Marcus Cookie" Neiman-Marcus is a very expensive department
store. It was so excellent, that I asked for the recipe, and the
waitress said with a frown, "I'm afraid not". Well, I said, then can
you sell it to me? With a cute smile, the waitress said "yes" I asked
how much, and the waitress said, "only two-fifty, it's a great deal!".
I said with approval, just put it on my tab.. Thirty days later, I
received my visa statement from Neiman-Marcus and it was $285.00. I
looked again, and remembered that I had spent about $20.00 for a scarf,
and $9.95 for two salads. As I looked at the bottom of the bill, it
said, cookie recipe $250.00. That´s outrageous. I CALLED Neiman-Marcus
and spoke to someone in the billing dept., and told them the waitress
had told me two fifty, not two hundred fifty. Two fifty does not by any
means suggest two hundred fifty dollars. Well, they refused to refund
my money, because according to them, "What the waitress told you is not
our problem." You have already seen our recipe, and we will absolutely
not refund your money at this point. I explained to her the criminal
statutes that govern fraud in Texas, and I threatened to report them to
the Better Business Bureau, and the states Attorney General, for fraud,
and I was in so many words, told "do what you have to do we don't give
a crap, and we will not refund your money." Well, then I told the lady
that I was going to send the recipe to everyone and anyone who has
E-mail.
Well I thought I´d give her a hand, and do the ICQ blanket thing and
this way we all can share it with all of our friends. POST IT ALL OVER
TEXAS!!!!!! HELP THIS WOMAN GET EVEN!!! Here´s the recipe. Make sure
you try it, and pass it on to everyone you can think of!!!! And
thanks!!!
This recipe may be halved.
2 cups of butter
4 cups of flour
2 tsp. baking soda
2 cups sugar
5 cups blended oatmeal
24 oz. Choclate chips
2 cups brown sugar
1 tsp. Salt
1 eight oz. Hershey bar (grated)
4 eggs
2 tsp. Baking powder
2 tsp. Vanilla
3 cups chopped nuts (your choice)
Measure oatmeal and blend in a blender to a fine powder. Cream the
butter and both sugars. Add eggs and vanilla; mix together with flour,
oatmeal, salt, baking powder, and soda. Add chocolate chips, Hershey
Bar and nuts. Roll into balls and place two inches apart on a cookie
sheet. Bake for 10 minutes at 375 degrees. Makes 48 cookies.
Enjoy cooking the most expensive cookies in the world - FREE!! This is
true. Please take the time to read this and send it to everyone you
know!!!
Now, this e-mail has been passed around for years; however, Neiman Marcus denies that this event ever happened. In fact, if you visit the Neiman Marcus website and visit the "About" section, this is what you will find:
"An urban myth is a modern folk tale, its origins unknown, its believability enhanced simply by the frequency with which it is repeated. Our signature chocolate chip cookie is the subject of one such myth. If you haven't heard the story, we won't perpetuate it here. If you have, the recipe below should serve to refute it. Copy it,
print it out, pass it along to friends and family. It's a terrific
recipe. And it's absolutely free."
Ingredients
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened
1 cup light brown sugar
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 large egg
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1-3/4 cups all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1-1/2 teaspoons instant espresso coffee powder
1-1/2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
Directions
1.
Preheat
oven to 300 degrees. Cream the butter with the sugars using an electric
mixer on medium speed until fluffy (approximately 30 seconds)
2.
Beat in the egg and the vanilla extract for another 30 seconds.
3.
In
a mixing bowl, sift together the dry ingredients and beat into the
butter mixture at low speed for about 15 seconds. Stir in the espresso
coffee powder and chocolate chips.
4.
Using
a 1 ounce scoop or a 2 tablespoon measure, drop cookie dough onto a
greased cookie sheet about 3 inches apart. Gently press down on the
dough with the back of a spoon to spread out into a 2 inch circle. Bake
for about 20 minutes or until nicely browned around the edges. Bake a
little longer for a crispier cookie.
Yield:
2 dozen cookies
The two chocolate chip recipes are completely different, but if you Google "$250 cookies" the first recipe is the one that will pop up most often. So, according Neiman Marcus, the above e-mail tail can be placed in the folder marked "Myth" as it has been denounced as a true urban legend.
NOTE: Tiff's Mom has made the "urban legend" cookie recipe several times, and she claims that it is one of the best chocolate chip cookies she has ever eaten. We don't have any info on the actual Neiman Marcus cookie recipe. Hmmm...maybe we can test those for a later post :)
I've always been a big fan of soufflé; anything served in individual cups or
ramekins makes me feel special :) My good friend Ed R. and some of his buddies
recently made a Honey Lemon Soufflé with Earl Gray Anglaise. An anglaise
is a cream sauce made from cooked egg yolks and sugar, and is generally used as
a finishing sauce for desserts. I thought that the combination of honey,
lemon, and Earl Gray was very interesting, and Ed said it was absolutely delicious. So, I offer this recipe for your
perusal.
Prepare the Earl Gray anglaise: Combine the cream, vanilla bean, tea and salt in a medium saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Let steep for 5-10 minutes. Remove from the heat and strain through a fine mesh sieve.
In a medium bowl, beat the egg yolks and sugar until pale and thick, about 3 minutes. Temper the yolks with the warm cream by slowly pouring a small amount of the cream into the yolks while whisking constantly. Add the rest of the cream to the tempered yolks and return the mixture to the saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until thick and the temperature on a candy thermometer reads 180° F. Be careful not to overcook it by heating above 180° F or the anglaise will curdle and separate. To check if it is the right consistency, the custard should coat the back of a wooden spoon and a streak should remain when you run your finger through the cream.
Remove from the heat and strain again through a fine mesh sieve to ensure smoothness. The anglaise can either be served now while warm or chilled by placing the bowl in an ice bath to cool. To store, cover with plastic wrap, pressing down against the surface to prevent a skin from forming. Refrigerate until well chilled, about 1-2 hours. To serve the anglaise warm after refrigerating, slowly reheat in a microwave at 15 second intervals, stirring after each interval.
[Chef’s Note: The anglaise can be prepared up to 3 days in advance.]
Prepare the honey soufflé: Prepare the molds by buttering the insides with a pastry brush in upward brush strokes making sure to cover every inch of the mold. Pour a small amount of sugar into the bottom of each mold and carefully swirl the ramekin, dumping out the excess, to completely coat with a light dusting of sugar. Place the molds in the refrigerator or freezer until the soufflé mixture is prepared.
[Chef’s Note: Inadequately buttered ramekins will produce an uneven rise or prevent it completely. The light dusting of sugar also helps to give the souffle a lattice to climb while baking.]
Place the milk, vanilla bean and zest in a small saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium heat; remove from the heat and let steep for 5 minutes. Whisk together the egg yolks, honey, 2 tablespoons sugar, cornstarch and salt in a large bowl until thoroughly combined. Strain the milk mixture using a fine mesh sieve into a measuring cup with a spout and carefully temper the egg yolk mixture by slowly pouring the milk into the eggs while whisking constantly. Pour everything back into the pot and cook over medium heat while whisking until the mixture thickens, pulls away from the sides of the pan and no longer tastes of cornstarch. Transfer to another bowl and cover with plastic wrap, pressing it directly onto the surface to prevent a skin from forming. Cool completely, about 1 hour.
[Chef’s Note: The pastry cream base can be prepared up to 3 days in advance and refrigerated until ready for use.]
Place the egg whites into a clean, dry non-reactive bowl and whisk on low speed using a handheld or standing electric mixer. Once the eggs become foamy and frothy, begin adding the sugar 1 tablespoon at a time until all the sugar has been incorporated. Continue whipping, slowly increasing the speed, until the egg whites become very stiff. Immediately fold the egg whites into the cooled pastry cream in three additions until thoroughly combined, being careful to use a fluid motion and not deflate the egg whites.
Remove the ramekins from the refrigerator. Fill each ramekin to the top, and then flatten the tops with an offset metal spatula or the back of a knife. Clean off any excess batter that may have dripped onto the sides of the ramekins. The soufflés can now either be baked, stored for later in the refrigerator for up to 4 hours or stored in the freezer for up to 5 days.
To bake the soufflés: Preheat the oven to 350° F. If using frozen soufflés, make sure to remove them from the freezer one hour before baking. Place the soufflés on a flat baking sheet and bake on the bottom rack of the oven. The baking time will be significantly less, 7-10 minutes, if using smaller sized ramekins and about 15-20 minutes if using larger 8-ounce ramekins. Rotate the baking sheet half-way through the baking time to ensure even cooking. The soufflés are finished when they have risen 1-2 inches above the tops of the ramekins, the top has light color and they appear sturdy. Remove from the oven and sprinkle a light dusting of powdered sugar over the surface of the soufflé for a finished look. Serve immediately with Earl Gray crème anglaise.
We were lucky to get a picture before the entire soufflé was devoured.
Ed also says that the Earl Gray anglaise is delicious on almost anything,
including sugar cookies.
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