Posted by Blake Royer, July 24, 2008 at 5:15 PM
It seems like every recipe for chowder uses liberal amounts of heavy cream. That might make soup instantly rich and delicious, but it's not exactly healthy.
My girlfriend loves corn chowder, but just about every recipe has too much dairy and upsets her stomach. When I was casually flipping through Suzanne Goin's Sunday Suppers at Lucques and read how much people swore by "this rich soup must have cream in it," we set out to try.
At first I was pretty disappointed: the pureed corn, potatoes, onion, and chilies tasted sweet and bland. I couldn't tell whether my corn was too starchy or if I'd cooked it incorrectly. But everything changed once I whipped up the avocado puree, spiked with lime juice and jalapenos, which gets dolloped on top. It melted into the soup, offering a bracing acidity that set all the flavors in relief.
Continue reading »
Posted by Lucy Baker, July 9, 2008 at 12:00 PM
The following recipe is from the July 9th edition of our weekly recipe newsletter. To receive this newsletter in your inbox, sign up here!
This recipe for Avocado-Cucumber Soup, excerpted from Serves One by Toni Lydecker, actually makes two 1 cup first course servings. But I could certainly eat the whole batch myself, paired with a multigrain roll, as a full summer meal.
Continue reading »
Posted by Lucy Baker, June 11, 2008 at 12:00 PM
The following recipe is from the June 11th edition of our weekly recipe newsletter. To receive this newsletter in your inbox, sign up here!
Making mayonnaise at home is as simple as whirring a few ingredients in a food processor, and the results are far more flavorful than anything jarred or store-bought. In New South Grilling, renowned chef and author Robert St. John offers up this recipe for homemade avocado mayonnaise. Try it as a topper on all your summer sandwiches.
Continue reading »
Posted by Lucy Baker, June 4, 2008 at 12:45 PM
If, like me, you live in a small city apartment, turning on your oven in the warmer months can be unbearable—the whole place heats up like a sauna. And even if you live in the spacious suburbs, who wants to slave away in a hot kitchen on a steamy night?
Today's Cook the Book recipe, excerpted from The Splendid Table's How to Eat Supper, is made up entirely of raw and precooked ingredients. No oven, no stove, no microwave needed. Fresh tomatoes are whirred in a food processor with lime juice, red onion, jalapeño, and spices, and then heaped on top of bowls of cucumber, avocado, and shrimp. Think of it as a no-cook stew.
Win 'The Splendid Table's How to Eat Supper'
This week we're giving away copies of The Splendid Table's How to Eat Supper. Click here for a chance to add it to your collection.
Continue reading »
Posted by Lucy Baker, May 20, 2008 at 3:15 PM
Here is what I learned while cooking this week's Magazine Recipe Review: when life gives you so-so guacamole, make Chilled Avocado Soup with Crab.
When you live in a city, as I do, the summer issues of food magazines can get a little depressing—all those articles on backyard barbecues and beach side clam bakes. I'm lucky enough my front stoop faces the sun; forget having the outdoor space for a souped-up grill, or even a tiny hibachi.
After enviously eying all the recipes in the June issue of Food & Wine for homemade barbecue sauce and grilled steaks, not to mention Jean-Georges' Spit-Roasted Suckling Pig, I decided to make the Guacamole with Charred Jalapeño and Scallions.
I don’t even have a grill pan, so using author Grace Parisi's tip for a "brighter, crunchier guacamole," I skipped the charring step and stirred in the jalapeño, scallions, and garlic raw. The recipe came together in under five minutes, and while it was perfectly creamy and lime-y, it was also somehow lacking. Perhaps it needed some chopped tomatoes, or a dash or two of cumin?
Continue reading »
