No-Chicken Noodle Soup

As we shake off the last chill of winter, I'm finally getting around to cooking up some comfort food. Here's a vegetarian version of chicken noodle soup to see you through these last days of cold and flu season. Of course you could throw in some tofu in place of chicken, but I thought the simplicity of this recipe was its greatest strength. Well, that and the homemade noodles. 

No-Chicken Noodle Soup

adapted from Food Network with inspiration from The Pioneer Woman

(Double this recipe if you prefer more soup than noodles)

• 2 Tablespoons olive oil
• 1-2 ribs celery (I used 2), diced
• 1 large carrot, diced
• 1 clove garlic, smashed (and diced)
• 1 small onion (or 1/4 medium onion - 1/2 cup), diced
• 1/4 teaspoon salt (or to taste)
• pinch of dried thyme
• 6-8 cups vegetable stock (or water and vegetable powder)
• pinch of turmeric
• pepper to taste
• handful of fresh parsley, chopped

Heat oil in a large pot over medium heat, toss in all the veggies and season with salt and cook until tender (6-10 minutes, depending on the size of recipe you're making). Toss in thyme and cook for 30 seconds. Add stock or water+veggie powder, turmeric and pepper. Simmer for a little while (maybe 10 minutes) then bring to a boil before adding noodles.

Pasta Noodles

from The Pioneer Woman

(Serves 2)

• 2 eggs
• 1 cup flour

In a medium bowl, make a well in the center of the flour and crack in eggs. Slowly mix together with your hands. Turn out onto a floured surface and knead until dough becomes smooth, adding flour as necessary (see Ree's photos for the perfect consistency). Let dough rest for a bit before rolling out. Roll onto a floured surface as thin as you can get it - the thinner the better. Cut thin noodles with a sharp knife or pizza wheel.

Add noodles to your boiling soup and cook for 2-5 minutes (depending on thickness) until noodles are cooked. Toss in some pepper and parsley. Add a squirt of lemon if you like. Of course, this is even better as leftovers.

Garden Vegetable Soup

It's been unseasonably warm lately (considering its the Northern Hemisphere's equivalent of December) and along with the unseasonable weather came some unseasonable veggies, perfect for making Alton Brown's Garden Vegetable Soup. I made roughly half of the following recipe:

• 4 T. olive oil
• 2 c. chopped leeks, white part only (from approximately 3 medium leeks)
• 2 T. finely minced garlic
• Kosher salt
• 2 c. carrots, peeled and chopped (approximately 2 medium)
• 2 c. diced potatoes
• 2 c. green beans, cut
• 2 quarts (8 c.) vegetable broth (which you can make with the green parts of the leeks)
• 4 c. peeled seeded and chopped tomatoes (approximately 6 medium tomatoes)
• 2 ears corn, kernels removed (about 1.5 cups)
• 1/2 t. freshly ground black pepper
• *1 T. tomato paste
• 1/4 c. chopped parsley
• 1-2 t. lemon juice

Heat the olive oil in large, heavy-bottomed stockpot over medium-low heat. Once hot, add the leeks, garlic, and a pinch of salt and sweat until they begin to soften, approximately 7 to 8 minutes. Add the carrots, potatoes, and green beans and continue to cook for 4 to 5 more minutes, stirring occasionally.

Add the stock, increase the heat to high, and bring to a simmer. Once simmering, add the tomatoes, corn kernels, and pepper. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and cook until the vegetables are fork tender, approximately 25 to 30 minutes. Remove from heat and add the parsley and lemon juice. Season, to taste, with kosher salt. Serve immediately.

*I added tomato paste for flavor since our winter tomatoes weren't exactly ripe and juicy.

I also didn't have any lemon to squeeze on top but added a little shredded parmesan.

Veggie Corn Chowder (and a national holiday)

Today's a big day for Argentina - not only are we celebrating the yearly revolution day but today is the country's bicentennial. To me, this equates to even more food and fireworks. Weeee! It's traditional to eat stew today, locro in particular. But Guille's mom is out of town and I'm not going to attempt a family dish (but Katie does a good job here). So I spent all day in the kitchen yesterday working on my soup repertoire.

Corn Chowder

• 2 T. butter
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped
• 2 T. flour
• 1/2 red pepper, chopped
• 1/2 carrot, shredded
• 1/2 t. thyme
• 1 can creamed corn
• 2 c. corn (I used frozen)
• 1-2 c. vegetable stock
• 1 c. milk
• 1/3 c. cream
• 1 large potato, peeled and cubed
• black pepper and salt to taste

Saute onion and garlic in butter, when they start to soften whisk in flour, stirring constantly for a minute. Add in pepper and carrot (Add 1 T. EVOO if it's too stiff). It will be pasty but allow to cook for a few minutes. Season with thyme and a shake of salt. Add one cup veggie stock and simmer until veggies are soft. Add creamed corn, milk, and cream. Bring to a boil and add potato and corn - drop heat to a simmer, add salt and a good amount of black pepper to your taste and cook until potatoes are tender (about 20 minutes), adding stock if necessary to thin stew to your preference. You can re-heat this on the stove top with 1/4 c. milk or stock.

Throw in some empanadas! These are from Safyta (Dorrego, entre Mendoza y San Juan) and, yes, that's a little powdered sugar sprinkled on top of humita empanadas. Super delicious.

Here's the chowder and chili on a plate - yep, these are pretty thick. Happy 200!

Chili sin Carne

It's been chilly out and I needed something to warm me to my bones - something with spice! This recipe uses a packaged blend of finely chopped dried chilies and other spices that I found at Falabella (Narda Lepes, no 2 HOT) in place of chili powder - only because I couldn't find anything close enough in powder form. The same amount of chili powder can be substituted. The other spices include oregano and cayenne pepper (among other stuff) so I'd toss a little of that in too. I also used dried beans but you could use one can of each - black and kidney beans, drained.

I used fresh tomatoes, peeled and crushed, because I read that canned tomatoes are actually somewhat toxic due to BPA. To easily peel tomatoes, cut an X into the bottom and drop into boiling water for about 15 seconds. Remove and, using a fork and knife, immediately peel skin off. It should almost fall off in 4 pieces. Cut out the core, chop up and smush a little with a fork. Let these rest in a bowl for a little while before adding to chili - they'll get a little juicy.

Chili sin Carne

• 1 T. olive oil
• 1 large onion
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1 cup bell pepper (I used half of a red and half of a green)
• 1 carrot
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 zucchini (zapallito)
• 1 c. corn
• 2 T. chili mix
• 3/4 T. cumin
• Big pinch of salt and a few twists of the pepper mill
• 3 tomatoes, peeled and chopped (and smashed)
• Beans*
• Tomato paste to taste (I used about 2 T.) or use a greater quantity of tomato puree
• 1 c. vegetable stock
• 1 T. apple cider vinegar

*3-4 c. cooked or canned beans - I used about 1 1/2 c. (combined) dried black beans and kidney beans. Either soak overnight or bring to a boil, cover, remove from heat and let sit for an hour. Then simmer for one and a half hours - being careful not to let them dry up.

Chop and then saute onion, garlic, pepper and carrot in oil along with bay leaf until they start to soften. Add chopped zucchini and corn kernels and cook until soft, about 7 minutes. Add chili powder, cumin, and s&p and cook for 1 minute. Add tomatoes, cooked beans, stock, and tomato paste. Simmer for 30 minutes. Taste to adjust seasonings. Stir in cider vinegar and add water if you want it thiner. Simmer another 5 minutes or so. Remove bay leaf. Add cornbread (I only used 1 T. of sugar with this recipe) and toppings!

Save some for leftovers - it's even better on day 2!

Blended Chickpea Soup

It's nearly winter here and I'm experimenting with hearty soups. Most chickpea soup recipes have a Moroccan influence and are spiked with curry powder, but we're fresh out. Still, there is plenty of room for herbs and spices as you see fit!

I really loved the texture of Butternut Squash Soup so I aimed for something similar with this recipe. It worked out well - try it!

• 2 T. EVOO
  
• 1/2 onion, chopped
• 1/2 red pepper, chopped
• 1 carrot, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped
  
• 1 T. lemon juice
• 1 1/2 c. vegetable stock
  
• 1 can (350 g) chickpeas, drained
• 1/2 t. cumin
• S&P and paprika to taste

Saute onion, garlic, pepper and carrot in EVOO on med low heat for 10 minutes. Add cumin and 1 c. stock and simmer 5 minutes. Blend chickpeas, 1/2 c. veg stock, and lemon juice in food processor, add veg mixture and puree. You can return to the pot at this point, add seasonings and simmer another 10 minutes. Serve with pita chips.

An American teaches English and makes soup

Argentina me is somehow slipping back into NYC me. It's a familiar routine that goes a little something like this: work, work, gym, quick dinner, bed. Luckily, I don't expect it to last long. I'm substitute teaching English classes around the city and it has been exhausting, especially on top of my work-from-home job, but surprisingly fun. I never would have thought of myself as a teacher, given that I hate speaking in front of crowds (including classroom-sized), but it turns to to be something I really enjoy. I spend my free time planning out lessons and crafting worksheets. For the conversation classes, I play podcasts and episodes of The Office and follow these with lively discussion. It's totally fun!

2 things motivated me to take this temporary work - the need to make friends with locals and the need to take regularly scheduled Spanish classes. I'm actually trading English for Spanish! So, while my 5-days-a-week teaching schedule will only last another 2 weeks, I decided to take on a permanent class of my own. I know, I know, I've turned in to an ex-pat English teacher cliche. Oh well, at least I get to direct the Socratic Method at someone other than Guille.

The downside to this current routine, obviously, is that I'm so drained at the end of the day I lack the motivation to cook, one of my favorite things, and then blog about it. A canceled class this evening has given me the chance to tell you that I woke up Saturday morning and realized it was fall. So I baked a peach pie and figured out a perfectly autumnal soup.

Roasted Butternut Squash Soup

• 1 medium butternut squash (calabaza)
• 1 medium onion
• 1 clove garlic
  
• 4 T butter
• 1-2 T olive oil
• 2 celery stalks, cut into small cubes
  
• 1 carrot, cut into small cubes
  
• 3 cups veg stock
• cinnamon, s & p to taste

Melt 2 T butter and use to coat bottom of 9X13" glass casserole dish. Add olive oil if it isn't enough butter to coat the pan. Halve squash and spoon out the seeds. Cut onion into 4 chunks and peel garlic. Place squash, cut side down, in baking dish along with onion and garlic. Drizzle onion with extra olive oil. Roast at 190C (375F) for 45 minutes or until squash is cooked through. Remove from oven and let cool.


Melt the other 2 T butter in a sauce pan and saute celery and carrot until soft. Add cinnamon (I used about 1/2 t.) and a good sprinkle of s & p. Add stock and simmer a few moments while you spoon out the roasted squash. Add vegetables to soup, bring to a boil and drop to a simmer for 10 minutes.

Either transfer soup to food processor and puree or use hand blender. I used hand blender and it left it a little chunky. It would be delicious to add a little cream after blending but I couldn't justify it along with all of the butter. It was still incredibly yummy.


UPDATE: I made this again but sauted the onion instead of roasting it. It blended easier and made for a more tasty soup, I thought. Oh, and the dollop of Casan crem added a little something extra.