Christen's Roasted Red Pepper Soup

Yesterday I went to lunch with a good girl friend to a place that specializes in soups and sandwiches, a "ladies lunch" type of place. I ordered the roasted red pepper soup (never had it before!) and a BLT with avocado sandwich. I'd had the sandwich before and how can you fail with that? You can't! But this soup. One word. Heaven. I decided to look up some recipes, see what the basics of this soup are. So many different recipes had so many different versions, so I made my own and I hope you enjoy it! It makes four generous servings.

Christen's Roasted Red Pepper Soup

Ingredients:

3 red bell peppers
1/2 yellow onion, chopped
4-5 cloves garlic, chopped
4-5 baby carrots, chopped into small pieces
1 tomato, peeled and quartered
4 cups chicken broth
appx. 4 fresh basil leaves, chopped
1 tablespoon evaporated milk
seasonings to taste (salt, pepper, etc)
extra-virgin olive oil

Method:

Cut the bell peppers in half, removing the seeds and stems. Place on a baking sheet skin side up, brush lightly with olive oil and broil until browned and blistered on top (when they're done, remove from oven and set aside to cool). While the bell peppers are cooking, saute' onions, garlic and carrots in a small amount of olive oil until tender. You may add a splash of chicken broth if it's starting to stick. When almost tender, add the tomato and basil. Cook for an additional 5 minutes, then add the rest of the chicken broth. Your bell peppers should be cool enough to handle now, so very gently remove the skins, then roughly chop the flesh and add to the pot. Discard the skins. Let simmer about 5-10 minutes, then puree to a fairly smooth texture using an immersion blender (you may want to empty to a big bowl if you are using a nonstick pot as I was). Once smooth, return it to a slow simmer and add the cream and seasonings. Let simmer a few more minutes and taste test.

Serve with optional green onions and cheese. Would be great accompanied with a grilled cheese sandwich!


Christen's Roasted Red Pepper Soup

The Verdict: I think this picture speaks for itself...

We had no leftovers AT ALL!

This recipe would be very easily doubled for a small dinner party, and could also be served in smaller portions (this was a main part of our dinner so we ate it all!).

Grilled Salmon, Fried Avocado Slices with Spicy Lime Crema

As you can probably tell, I'm a big fan of the Food Network. The other day I was watching Emeril and he fried avocado slices. Hello! This sounded like my idea of heaven. My husband and I are self-titled Avocado Lovers like you wouldn't believe. I tucked that nugget of deliciousness in the back of my mind. Then while at the supermarket the other day, they had salmon on sale for crazy cheap. We bought some and were trying to decide what to serve with it. Remembered avocado...read on...

Christen's Grilled Salmon

Ingredients:

1 large piece of salmon, cut into serving pieces, skin on (sorry I didn't notice the weight!)
olive oil
salt
fresh dill
lemon pepper seasoning

Heat a stove-top grill over medium heat (this will require you to turn on both front and rear burner). Lightly brush the skin sides of the salmon with the olive oil and place the salmon on the grill. Be careful to try to avoid having to place a piece over the area not over a burner. Grill 5-6 minutes, or until it doesn't stick. If it's sticking, it's not ready. In the meantime, lightly brush olive oil on the flesh sides of the salmon. Then lightly sprinkle salt and lemon pepper over each piece. Finish with sprigs of fresh dill. When ready, gently flip over and grill for an additional 4 minutes, or until it doesn't stick. Remove to a serving platter.

We served it with...

Fried Avocado Slices with Spicy Lime Crema

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups buttermilk
3 tablespoons hot sauce
4 firm-ripe avocados, peeled, pitted, and each sliced into 8 even pieces
1 1/2 cups sour cream
1/4 cup fresh lime juice
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons chopped cilantro leaves
1/4 cup diced red onion
1 Serrano pepper, seeded and minced
1 1/2 teaspoons salt, divided
Vegetable oil, for frying
1 1/2 cups flour, seasoned with your favorite seasonings, such as Essence
3/4 teaspoon baking powder

Method:

In a medium bowl, combine buttermilk, hot sauce and avocado slices. Soak for 30 minutes.

In a small bowl, combine the sour cream, lime juice, cilantro, red onion, Serrano pepper, and 1/2 teaspoon of salt. Stir to combine. Chill until ready to use.

In a medium cast iron skillet, fill oil to a depth of a couple of inches (no more than halfway up the sides of the pan.) Heat oil to 375 degrees F over medium-high heat.

Combine flour, seasoning and baking powder. Dredge soaked avocado slices in the cornmeal mixture, shaking to remove excess cornmeal.

Place avocado slices in the hot oil and fry until golden, about 1 to 2 minutes each side. Using a slotted spoon, remove slices and drain on a paper towel-lined plate. Serve immediately with spicy lime crema.


Grilled salmon, fried avocado slices with spicy lime crema and scalloped potatoes


Fried avocado slices with spicy lime crema, served on a bed of Southwestern-Style corn

The verdict: This was delicious! The salmon was cooked perfectly, not overseasoned. Just fresh tasting. The avocados were fantastic, but what really made the dish was the spicy lime crema! Fan-freaking-tastic! Also, Emeril's recipe uses a cornmeal and flour mixture, but I really do NOT like cornmeal so I used flour only. You may like to try the other way, to each his/her own! But do try it :)

Tomato and Goat Cheese Tarts

While flipping through the channels the other day, I noticed that the Barefoot Contessa was making tomato and goat cheese tarts on the Food Network. Intriguing. I set my DVR to record it and see how involved it was. Keep in mind, I have a 10 month old. Didn't look very involved at all, I thought....as I kept eyeing the tomatoes my dad grew that were sitting on my counter. Fresh tomatoes, goat cheese...how can you go wrong?

Tomato and Goat Cheese Tarts

Ingredients:

1 package puff pastry, defrosted
Extra-Virgin Olive Oil
4 cups thinly sliced yellow onions
3 large garlic cloves, I used the chopped variety
salt and black pepper
3 tablespoons white wine (I used Pinot Grigio)
ground thyme, to taste
4 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan, plus 2 ounces shaved with a vegetable peeler
4 ounces garlic-and-herb goat cheese
1 large tomato, cut into 4 (1/4-inch-thick) slices
3 tablespoons julienned basil leaves

Method (I'll just copy and paste from The Food Network's Recipe):

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.

Unfold a sheet of puff pastry on a lightly floured surface and roll it lightly to an 11 by 11-inch square. Using a 6-inch wide saucer or other round object as a guide, cut 2 circles from the sheet of puff pastry, discarding the scraps. Repeat with the second pastry sheet to make 4 circles in all. Place the pastry circles on 2 sheet pans lined with parchment paper and refrigerate until ready to use.

Heat 3 tablespoons of olive oil in a large skillet over medium to low heat and add the onions and garlic. Saute for 15 to 20 minutes, stirring frequently, until the onions are limp and there is almost no moisture remaining in the skillet. Add 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon pepper, the wine, and thyme and continue to cook for another 10 minutes, until the onions are lightly browned. Remove from the heat.

Using a sharp paring knife, score a 1/4-inch-wide border around each pastry circle. Prick the pastry inside the score lines with the tines of a fork and sprinkle a tablespoon of grated Parmesan on each round, staying inside the scored border.

Place 1/4 of the onion mixture on each circle, again staying within the scored edge. Crumble 1 ounce of goat cheese on top of the onions. Place a slice of tomato in the center of each tart. Brush the tomato lightly with olive oil and sprinkle with basil, salt, and pepper. Finally, scatter 4 or 5 shards of Parmesan on each tart.

Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until the pastry is golden brown. The bottom sheet pan may need an extra few minutes in the oven. Serve hot or warm.


Tarts are assembled and ready to be baked!


Now baked to a gorgeous golden brown.


Tomato and Goat Cheese Tart

The Verdict: Holy mother!! I'm going to say something in all seriousness now....this is honestly one of the most delicious things I have ever had the pleasure of eating. Not many things deserve that honored ranking but this is definitely one of them. It's fabulous and so easy to make!! I would make sure to always use fresh, homegrown tomatoes because they just always taste better than the store-bought junk and when you're buying things like goat cheese and wedges of parmesan, you want it to turn out great. You've got to try this...and you might want to keep a knife handy to stab anyone who tries to steal your tart because it's THAT GOOD!

Chilled Avocado Soup

Sometimes the summer heat calls for a cool, tasty treat. This chilled avocado soup (recipe from The Joy of Cooking) could be the star of your next dinner party.

Chilled Avocado Soup

Ingredients:

2 large Hass Avocados (the ones with the dark bumpy skin)
2.5 cups buttermilk
5 tsp. fresh lime juice
1/4 tsp. salt (or more if needed)
pinch of ground red pepper
1 small clove garlic, chopped

Method:

Puree' the avocados and the garlic. Stir in the buttermilk, lime juice, salt and red pepper. Remove to a bowl and refrigerate until cold. If necessary, you can thin it further with buttermilk or water. Once chilled, taste and adjust seasonings if necessary and ladle the soup into chilled bowls. Garnish with fresh pico de gallo.


The Ingredients (only the roma tomato was used, the rest just happened to be on the counter!)


Chilled Avocado Soup

The Verdict: This soup is very rich and should be served in small portions. Adding more pico de gallo also breaks up the thickness of the soup. This was delicious!