Soup Au Pistou

It's a new year and I am renewing my vows, so to speak, to eat food, not too much, mostly plants.  I made this for dinner last night and it was delicious! Another New York Times hit.  Love their recipes for health section!  (The rest is copy and pasted from the website)

Perhaps Provence’s answer to minestrone, this seasonal vegetable soup — enriched with a simplified basil pesto (no pine nuts) — was inspired by the white beans, canned tomatoes and soup pasta languishing in my pantry, as well as the basil in my garden and the early summer vegetables at the local farmers’ market. The ingredient list is long, but the labor involved in making this soup is minimal. It tastes best if you make it through step 2 a day ahead.

Recipes for Health

Each week this series will present recipes around a particular type of produce or a pantry item. This is food that is vibrant and light, full of nutrients but by no means ascetic, fun to cook and a pleasure to eat.

See previous recipes »

Related

Recipes for Health: Cleaning Out the Pantry (July 13, 2009)

Recipes for Health: Bulgur and Walnut Kibbeh (July 14, 2009)

Recipes for Health: Wheat Berries With Broccoli (July 15, 2009)

Recipes for Health: White Beans With Celery (July 16, 2009)

For the soup:

1 1/2 cups white beans, soaked for six hours in 6 cups water and drained

2 quarts water

1 large onion, chopped

4 large garlic cloves, minced or pressed

A bouquet garni made with a few sprigs each thyme and parsley, a Parmesan rind and a bay leaf

Salt to taste

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

2 leeks, white and light green part only, cleaned and sliced

1 pound tomatoes, peeled, seeded and chopped, or 1 14-ounce can, with liquid

2 cups shredded savoy or green cabbage

2 large carrots, diced

2 celery stalks, diced

1 medium-size zucchini, scrubbed and diced

2 medium-size turnips, peeled and diced

1/2 pound green beans, trimmed and broken into 1-inch pieces (about 2 cups), blanched for five minutes and set aside

1/2 cup soup pasta, such as macaroni or small shells

Freshly ground pepper

For the pistou:

2 large garlic cloves, halved, green shoots removed

Salt to taste

2 cups, tightly packed, fresh basil leaves

1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil

1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan

Freshly ground pepper

1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan for sprinkling

1. Drain the white beans and combine with 2 quarts water in a large, heavy soup pot or Dutch oven. Bring to a boil. Skim off any foam, then add half the onion, half the garlic and the bouquet garni. Reduce the heat, cover and simmer 45 minutes. Add salt to taste.

2. Heat the olive oil in a heavy skillet, and add the remaining chopped onion and a generous pinch of salt. Cook, stirring, until tender, about five minutes. Add the leeks and remaining garlic. Stir together for a few minutes, and add the tomatoes. Cook, stirring, until the tomatoes have cooked down slightly and the mixture is fragrant, five to 10 minutes. Stir this mixture into the soup pot, add all of the remaining vegetables except the green beans, and bring back to a simmer. Cover and simmer over low heat for 45 minutes to an hour. Taste and adjust the seasonings.

3. While the soup is simmering, blanch the green beans for five minutes in salted boiling water. Transfer to a bowl of ice-cold water. Drain and set aside.

4. To make the pistou, mash the garlic with a generous pinch of salt in a mortar and pestle. Remove it and set aside. Grind the basil to a paste in the mortar, a handful at a time, then add the garlic back in and mix together well. Work in the olive oil a tablespoon at a time, then stir in the cheese.

5. Add the pasta to the simmering soup about 10 minutes before serving, and cook until cooked al dente. Add pepper, taste and adjust salt. Stir the blanched green beans into the soup and heat through. Serve, adding a spoonful of pesto to each bowl for guests to stir in. Pass additional Parmesan for sprinkling.

Serves: Six to eight.

Advance preparation: The soup can be made through step 2 up to two days ahead, and definitely benefits from being made a day ahead. Refrigerate overnight, then bring back to a simmer and proceed with the recipe. The blanched green beans will keep for two or three days in a covered bowl in the refrigerator.

Andean Bean Stew with Winter Squash and Quinoa

The New York Times strikes again. Yum. I made this tonight. I give it two thumbs up, my husband one thumb up and one down, my kids two thumbs down, but I think that is pretty much the story of everything I make. I think you will give it two thumbs up. And, not only does it taste delicious, if you plan ahead and get the beans going in time, this is a very very easy meal to make.

This savory, filling pot of beans is inspired by a Chilean bean stew and uses quinoa instead of the corn called for in the authentic version. Make it a day ahead for the best flavor.

1 pound dried pinto beans, rinsed and picked over, soaked in 2 quarts water overnight or for 6 hours

Salt

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

1 medium onion, chopped

1 tablespoon sweet paprika

4 large garlic cloves, minced

1 bay leaf

1 (14-ounce) can chopped tomatoes, with liquid

1 pound winter squash, such as butternut, peeled and cut into 3/4-inch cubes

1/2 cup quinoa, rinsed thoroughly

Freshly ground pepper

3 tablespoons chopped fresh basil or parsley

1. Place the beans and soaking water in a large pot. Add water if necessary to cover the beans by about 2 inches, and bring to a boil. Skim off foam, reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer gently for 60 minutes, or until the beans are tender but intact. Add salt to taste.

2. Heat the oil over medium heat in a large, heavy nonstick frying pan and add the onion. Cook, stirring, until the onion is tender, about 5 minutes, and add the paprika. Stir together for about a minute, and add the garlic. Cook, stirring, for a minute or two, until the garlic and onions are very fragrant but not brown, and stir in the tomatoes and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Cook, stirring often, until the tomatoes have cooked down slightly and smell fragrant, 5 to 10 minutes. Remove from the heat and scrape the contents of the pan into the pot of beans.

3. Bring the beans back to a simmer, add the bay leaf and winter squash, and simmer, covered, for 30 minutes, or until the squash and beans are thoroughly tender. Add the quinoa and simmer for another 20 to 30 minutes, until the quinoa is translucent and displays an opaque thread. Taste and adjust salt. Add a generous amount of freshly ground pepper. Stir in the basil or parsley, simmer for a couple of minutes more, and serve, with cornbread or crusty country bread.

Yield: Serves 6 to 8 generously

Advance preparation: This tastes best if made a day ahead and reheated. The stew will thicken up, so you will probably want to thin out with water and adjust seasonings accordingly. Add the fresh herbs when you reheat. It will keep for at least five days in the refrigerator. It freezes well.

White Bean Burgers

The New York Times had this recipe in their well column. It sounds delicious. I'm a big fan of black bean burgers, so am excited to give this one a try.

Big Food vs. Big Insurance

Here's another Michael Pollan opinion article from the NYTimes. Interesting ideas for the future. Here's to keeping our fingers crossed!

Another Link for Another Great Pollan article

This one  "Out of the Kitchen, Onto the Couch" is about America's obsession with cooking shows, but it's inability to actually spend time cooking.   The more hours a person spends cooking the healthier they are, because of course homemade food, made from scratch is healthier than packaged food and take-out. As always an interesting read. I read it while I thawed a frozen pizza. Let me tell you how guilty I felt! VERY.

Tomato Season: Provencal Summer Potato Gratin

Provençal Summer Potato Gratin by Martha Rose Shulman

(from NYTimes Well section)

You can use almost any type of potato for this savory gratin. I know because I recently made it with odds and ends that had been sitting in my pantry for a little too long. They included a russet, a few Yukon golds and some fingerlings.

2 garlic cloves

Extra virgin olive oil

2 1/2 pounds tomatoes, peeled and sliced

2 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves, or 1 teaspoon dried thyme

Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

2 pounds potatoes, peeled if desired or scrubbed, sliced about 1/4 inch thick

1 or 2 sprigs rosemary

2 ounces Gruyère cheese, grated (1/2 cup, tightly packed)

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Cut one of the garlic cloves in half, and rub a 3-quart gratin or baking dish with the cut half. Oil the dish with olive oil. Mince the halved garlic along with the remaining garlic, and toss with the tomatoes. Add the thyme, and season to taste with salt and freshly ground pepper.

2. Make a layer of half the potato slices, slightly overlapping the layers, and season generously with salt and pepper. Layer half the tomatoes over the potatoes. Place the rosemary sprig(s) on top. Repeat the layers with the remaining potatoes and tomatoes. Be sure to season each layer generously. Pour any juices left in the tomato bowl over the vegetables.

3. Bring 1 cup of water to a boil, and carefully pour into the baking dish. Bake 45 minutes, checking and pressing the potatoes down into the liquid after 30 minutes. Remove from the oven, press the potatoes down into the liquid in the dish and sprinkle on the cheese. Bake another 30 to 45 minutes, until most of the liquid has been absorbed by the potatoes and the gratin is lightly browned. Serve hot or warm.

Yield: Serves four to six.

Advance preparation: The gratin can be assembled several hours before baking. It doesn’t have to be served hot, so you can bake it an hour or two ahead and serve it warm.

101 Simple Summer Salads

Here's another article from the NYTimes' Minimalist food series: 101 Simple Salads for the Season

They look really fantastic and for the most part, very, very easy to throw together. That's my idea of summer cooking without having to stand over the oven or stovetop. Be sure to share any results of ones that you try--I'm thinking of #19 for tonight:

Mix cooked cannellini or other white beans, chopped cherry or grape tomatoes and arugula or baby spinach. Lightly toast sliced garlic in olive oil with rosemary and red pepper flakes; cool slightly, add lemon zest or juice or both, then pour over beans.

Look on the left side of the article for links to several dressing recipes, like basic viniagrette, a real ranch, a yogurt-feta, and a miso-ginger.