Very Creamy Vegetable Chowder

From Moosewood Restaurant Daily Special by The Moosewood Collective

This is a crowd-pleasing Moosewood standard. There is nothing more appealing and satisfying than a sweet, fresh vegetables in a smooth, saucy Cheddar and cream cheese base: it's food that makes you feel safe and sound and well cared for.

This soup is sweet and mild and filled with enough vegetables for one meal, so serve it with a peppery little salad for contrast.

Serves 8 to 10
Yields 11 cups
Total time: 50 minutes

2 cups chopped onions
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon canola or other vegetable oil
2 celery stalks, diced
1 cup peeled and diced carrots
1 1/2 cups diced potatoes
3 cups water or Basic Light Vegetable Stock (I used 2 cans of vegetable broth)
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1 bay leaf
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 cup green beans, cut into 1-inch pieces
1/2 cup diced red bell peppers
1 cup diced zucchini
1/2 cup fresh or frozen green peas (I used corn in place of the peas since that's what I had open in the freezer)
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
2 cups milk (I used skim milk)
1 cup grated Cheddar cheese
2 ounces Neufchatel or cream cheese

In a large soup pot on medium heat, sauté the onions in the butter and oil for 3 to 4 minutes. Stir in the celery, cover, and cook until just soft, stirring occasionally. Add the carrots, potatoes, water or stock, thyme, bay leaf, salt, and pepper and bring to a boil; then reduce the heat, cover, and simmer until the vegetables are just tender, about 5 minutes. With a strainer or slotted spoon, remove about 1 1/2 cups of the cooked vegetables and set aside in a blender or food processor.

Add the green beans, bell peppers, and zucchini to the soup pot and cook until the green beans are tender, about 5 minutes. Stir in the peas and parsley, simmer for 2 more minutes, and then remove from the heat. Discard the bay leaf.

Puree the reserved vegetables with the milk and cheeses to make a smooth sauce. Stir the sauce into the soup and gently reheat. Serve hot.

My notes: This is an excellent soup. It tastes just rich enough, but it's not at all heavy like a cream soup. I used corn in place of the peas since that's what was open in the freezer and I would not skip the corn again - it definitely went very nicely with this soup, just as it does with many chowders. I also added a sprinkling of crushed red pepper - not only did it add nice color, but it gave it a nice zing.

I talked about this recipe HERE.

Fusilli with Creamy Pancetta-and-Pea Sauce

Source: Cooking Light, October 1999

Pancetta (pan-CHEH-tuh), a type of Italian bacon cured with salt and spices but not smoked, adds a distinctive flavor. Substitute American-style bacon if you can't find it.

Cooking spray
1/4 cup chopped pancetta or bacon (about 1 ounce) (I used ounces
1 teaspoon olive oil
1 cup diced onion
1 garlic clove, minced
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 cups 1% low-fat milk (I used 2%)
1/4 cup (2 ounces) 1/3-less-fat cream cheese
2 1/2 cups frozen green peas, thawed
1 1/4 cups (5 ounces) grated fresh Parmesan cheese, divided
1/3 cup chopped fresh basil (I used dried oregano)
1/4 teaspoon salt (with the extra pancetta, it didn't need any salt)
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
5 cups hot cooked fusilli (about 4 cups uncooked short twisted spaghetti)

Heat a nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray over medium heat. Add pancetta; cook 1 minute or until browned. Place pancetta in a large bowl. Heat oil in pan. Add onion and garlic; sauté 7 minutes. Add onion mixture to pancetta. Place flour in pan. Gradually add milk; stir with a whisk until blended. Cook over medium heat until thick (about 5 minutes); stir constantly. Add cream cheese; stir until cheese melts. Stir in peas, 1 cup Parmesan, basil, salt, and pepper. Add cheese sauce and pasta to pancetta mixture; toss well. Sprinkle with 1/4 cup Parmesan. Yield: 6 servings (serving size: 1 1/3 cups)

NUTRITION PER SERVING: CALORIES 410(30% from fat); FAT 13.7g (sat 7.1g,mono 4.6g,poly 1g); PROTEIN 21.6g; CHOLESTEROL 30mg; CALCIUM 419mg; SODIUM 656mg; FIBER 5.1g; IRON 3mg; CARBOHYDRATE 49.5g

I talked about this recipe HERE.

Creamy Pea Soup

Source: Cook's Illustrated

Remove the peas from the freezer just before starting the soup so that when you are ready to process them, as the stock simmers, they will be only partially thawed. To preserve its delicate flavor and color, this soup is best served immediately. Croutons make a nice topping for this soup.

Makes about 6 1/2 cups, serving 4 to 6

4 tablespoons unsalted butter
8 medium shallots (about 5 ounces), minced (about 1 cup), or 1 medium leek, white and light green parts chopped fine (about 1 1/3 cups)
2 tablespoons unbleached all-purpose flour
3 1/2 cups low sodium chicken broth (sub vegetable broth for vegetarian version)
1 1/2 pounds frozen peas (about 4 1/2 cups), partially thawed at room temperature for 10 minutes (see note)
12 leaves Boston lettuce (about 3 ounces) from 1 small head, leaves washed and dried
1/2 cup heavy cream
Table salt and ground black pepper

This simple soup is a pleasing pale, creamy green and full of subtle flavor nuances.

1. Heat butter in large saucepan over low heat until foaming; add shallots or leeks and cook, covered, until softened, 8 to 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add flour and cook, stirring constantly, until thoroughly combined, about 30 seconds. Stirring constantly, gradually add chicken broth. Increase heat to high and bring to boil; reduce heat to medium-low and simmer 3 to 5 minutes.

2. Meanwhile, in workbowl of food processor fitted with steel blade, process partially thawed peas until coarsely chopped, about 20 seconds. Add peas and lettuce to simmering broth. Increase heat to medium-high, cover and return to simmer; simmer 3 minutes. Uncover, reduce heat to medium-low, and continue to simmer 2 minutes longer.

3. Working in 2 batches, puree soup in blender until smooth; strain into large bowl. Rinse out and wipe saucepan; return pureed mixture to saucepan and stir in cream. Heat mixture over low heat until hot, about 3 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper; serve immediately.

My notes: This soup is one of those recipes where the sum is greater than the parts. It's delicious. Simple, but delicious - or is it deliciously simple? Forever looking for ways to make things go faster, I used my immersion blender instead of a regular blender and I skipped the straining part. The texture was a bit coarse and it would be better to follow their directions, but I don't mind a few lumps here and there.

Interestingly enough, Cooks' Illustrated tested both fresh and frozen peas with this recipe and decided that frozen were actually better. Good thing - fresh are quite hard to find, at least around here. I was also curious about the reason for including lettuce leaves. They claim it had something to do with a delightful frothiness they provided when pureeing. I'm not sure they are absolutely necessary, but since the soup was great as written, I'd be hesitant to leave them out.

We had a wonderful pea soup at a restaurant last year that was lemony. I would seriously consider adding a bit of lemon to this soup next time.

I talked about this recipe HERE.

Chilled Fresh Pea Soup

Source: Jack Bishop's A Year in a Vegetarian Kitchen

Makes 2 large or 4 small servings

1 pound peas in pods
3 scallions, chopped
10 sprigs fresh parsley
1 teaspoon salt, divided
5 cups water
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 medium onion, chopped
1/2 teaspoon sugar
2 cups chopped tender green lettuce leaves (Bishop recommends Bibb; I used plain green-leaf)
1/2 cup heavy cream
chopped chives

Shell the peas and reserve. You should have at least 1 cup of peas; more is fine. Bring the empty pea pods, scallions, parsley, 1/2 teaspoon of the salt and the water to a boil in a saucepan. Reduce the heat and simmer for 20 minutes. Pour the broth through a sieve. Reserve the broth. You should have about 3 cups.

Melt the butter in the empty saucepan over medium-low heat. Add the chopped onion, remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt, and the sugar. Cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until onion is soft but not browned, about 10 minutes. Add the peas and broth, raise the heat, and bring to a boil. Simmer briskly for 3 minutes. Add the lettuce and cook for another 2 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and let soup cool a bit.

Puree the soup in batches in a blender until very smooth. Add cream and mix well. Chill the soup in an airtight container for several hours.

I talked about this recipe HERE.

Curried Tempeh with Brown Rice and Peas

Source: A Year in a Vegetarian Kitchen by Jack Bishop

3 3/4 cups water
1/4 cup tamari (I used low-sodium soy sauce)
1 tablespoon curry powder
1 tablespoon minced gingerroot
8 ounces tempeh, cut in half the long way and then cut into 1-inch squares
3 tablespoons canola oil
2 small onions, halved and thinly sliced
1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
1 cup long-grain brown rice (I used brown basmati)
2 cups frozen peas, thawed
2 tablespoons minced fresh cilantro leaves (I forgot to add this - we actually had some on hand!)
salt

1. Combine 1 cup of the water, the tamari, curry powder, and ginger in a medium saucepan. Add the tempeh and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat, cover, and simmer for 20 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat, uncover, and allow tempeh to cool to room temperature in the liquid. Drain the tempeh and discard the liquid. (I reserved the liquid and added it to the brown rice - see notes below - why waste all that good seasoning??)

2. Heat 2 tablespoons of the oil in a large sauté pan over medium heat until shimmering. Add the tempeh and cook until nicely browned and crisp, about 7 minutes. Transfer the tempeh to a bowl and set aside.

3. Add the remaining 1 tablespoon oil to the pan along with the onions. Cook, stirring often, until the onions are golden, about 7 minutes. Stir in the turmeric and coriander and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the rice and cook, stirring constantly, for 1 minute.

4. Add the remaining 2 3/4 cup water (I used the reserved liquid from the tempeh and enough water to equal 2 total cups of liquid. 2 1/4 cups might have worked better - the rice was quite firm, but I prefer it firm rather than too soft.) to the pan and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat, cover, and simmer gently until the rice is done, 40 to 45 minutes. Stir in the peas, cilantro, and tempeh and heat through for several minutes. Adjust the seasonings, adding salt to taste and serve.

I talked about this recipe HERE.