Here are the last three:
Butternut Squash Soup (Food & Wine, Nov 06; as posted on the Ckng Lght BB) 9
This was very good. This was a delightful variation from the standard pureed butternut squash soup (which I love). Two pounds of squash is simmered in chicken broth with some leeks and celery till tender, then pureed till smooth (have I mentioned lately how much I Love my immersion blender? I may have to post a picture of my favorite kitchen tool.). Then corn, diced red pepper, and pinto beans were added along with some spinach in place of collard greens or kale. The resulting soup is bright, colorful, flavorful and delicious. Super easy to make too.
My only negative comment would be I would perhaps skip the greens next time unless serving immediately. I have found they are becoming a bit bitter as they sit. This dish makes a generous 6-8 servings.
Sweet Pea Risotto with Corn Broth (Ckng Lght Annual 07, 295) 6
This is a continuation of my exploration into the world of risotto. The bright colors grabbed my attention for this one and it helped that I already had most of the ingredients. This came together very smoothly. I don't believe in constant stirring so I can chop and clean and assemble as the risotto cooks.
This dish started out by making a corn broth. I subbed frozen corn for fresh, boiled it up, pureed (love my immersion blender!) and strained before setting aside. The rice cooked up in about twenty minutes, combined with carrots, celery and onion. After the rice was cooked I added two cups of peas and another cup of corn and grated Parmesan.
In between all this, I assembled a quick vinaigrette of white wine vinegar, olive oil, sugar, salt and garlic. I inadvertently pitched the first tub I made - I was cleaning the counter and oops! into the sink it went. I'm know to be the mad mad cleaner...
A half cup of corn broth is ladled into a bowl, followed by the pea infused risotto, and drizzled with the vinaigrette. The dish is finished with a splash of fresh grated Parmesan and parsley. The end result is an explosion of flavor. I found it almost too busy. You have the creaminess of the corn broth, the brightness of the pea, the smoothness of the rice, the dancing flavors of the vinaigrette and the mellowness of the Parmesan. It was all very good...just too many flavors at once and I found that distracting.
Old Fashioned Tapioca Pudding (Ckng Lght Annual 07) 9
I was in the mood for some tapioca pudding and when I was transferring my magazine notes into the annual cookbook, I came across a whole article on homemade puddings. This was super easy to make and delicious too. It used small pearl tapioca (which I found in the spice section at Whole Foods Co-op), milk, water, sugar, eggs and vanilla. The actual cooking times were significantly shorter than the written times, which was nice. And I confess that I didn't follow the directions exactly - the sugar was to be mixed with the egg but I missed that little detail so it got dumped in on it's own. That mistake didn't seem to adversely affect the final product, which was so good I ate a small bowl while it was still warm. Yummy! This made 5 - 1/2 cup servings. (I know this 'cause I carefully measured them out into small ramekins for individual servings.)
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