Recipes for the Chilly Nights

We are having some unusually cool temps these days and sunny SoCal is feeling the winter. What better way to enjoy your evening than with a cozy cup of soup made from whatever you have on hand. Soup is the easiest dish as it can me made with anything you may have in your fridge and can be served for many days as a quick lunch or snack.
Soup is also very healthy as you can load many veggies into the healing broth and include ginger, garlic and healing spices which are all so good for you!
Here are a few of my favorites but remember it is a creative process- to cook- so enjoy creating your own yummy and delicious dishes.

Creamy New England Clam Chowder
Serves 6

Ingredients
1 Tb. canola oil
4 slices slab bacon, rind removed, diced
2 medium onions, diced
2 bay leaves
1 tsp. thyme, chopped
3 cups fish stock
2 large baking potatoes, peeled, diced
2 cups milk
4 Tb. flour
1/3 cup cream
1 1/2 cups white wine
4 pounds littleneck clams, rinsed several times
2 sprigs thyme
1 Tb. butter
Salt, pepper, to taste
2 Tb. finely chopped parsley

Procedure

1. Heat a medium saucepan over med-hi heat add the oil and sauté the bacon, onions, bay leaves and thyme until onions are golden, about 7 minutes. Add the fish stock and deglaze the pan. Add the potatoes, salt and pepper and reduce heat to med-low and simmer until potatoes are tender about 15 minutes. Add the milk and bring to a simmer.
2. Whisk the flour and cream together in a small bowl. Add to the saucepan and stir until thickened. Taste and adjust seasoning.
3. Meanwhile bring the wine to a boil in a medium saucepan. Add the clams, sprigs of thyme, butter, salt and pepper to taste and cover. Allow clams to open removing them as they open, after about 10 minutes. Set aside. When they are cool enough to handle, remove them from the shells.
4. Add the clams to the soup and heat through. Serve chowder in large bowls with the parsley as a garnish.

Chick Pea Soup with Sausage
Serves 6

Ingredients
4 cloves garlic, peeled
2 stalks celery
1 medium onion, chopped
1/3 cup olive oil
1 Tb. rosemary, chopped
3 cups chicken stock
2 cans chick peas, rinsed and drained
Salt and pepper to taste
5 sausages of your choice, sliced into ½ inch rounds
1 bunch Swiss chard or Escarole, rinsed, trimmed, roughly chopped

Procedure
1. Sauté the garlic, celery and onion in 2 Tb. of the olive oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat until softened. Add the rosemary, stock, chick peas, salt and pepper and bring to a simmer. Cook for about 20 minutes. Spoon some of the solids into a food processor and puree. Add the puree back to the saucepan and cover to keep warm.
2. Heat the remaining oil in a medium skillet and sauté the sausages until browned. Remove to a plate lined with a paper towel to drain. Add the sausages to the saucepan with the greens and wilt down. Taste and adjust seasoning, serve in large bowls.


French Onion Soup
Serves 6

Ingredients
4 medium onions, sliced very thinly
2 Tb. butter
1 Tb. olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tb. flour
6 cups chicken or vegetable broth
1 Tb. thyme, chopped
1 bay leaf
6 stale slices French bread
Salt, pepper
1/4 pound grated gruyere cheese

Procedure
1. Sauté the onions in the butter and oil over med-hi heat in a large saucepan about 3 minutes, add garlic and lower the heat and sauté until caramel color, about 20 minutes.
2. Add the flour and sauté another 2 minutes. Add stock, thyme and bay leaf and bring to a boil over med-hi heat, stirring constantly. Scrape up all the brown bits on the bottom of the pan. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 20 minutes. Taste for seasoning.
3. Heat the oven to 500.
4. Place bread on a baking sheet and toast lightly on both sides. Ladle the broth into soup bowls. Place a crouton on top of each soup and divide the cheese evenly.
5. Place on the baking sheet and put into the oven and melt the cheese. Serve very hot.