SUPER GREEN SOUP

I've decide to eat and juice a lot more greens. Trying to work on the lunch muscle a bit. It may not feel like it but winter is heading our direction. Winter urges us to eat heavy foods, here is something lite and clean. This super green soup is something I've been cooking quite a bit. My girls have termed it " baby poop soup" behind my back.

This recipe is very close the mushroom soup I posted earlier.

This soup can be made with any green leaf veggie, kale, red or green chard, spinach, dandelion arugula, you name it.

Cook time is about two hours, but that  may very depending on how hardy the greens you choose.  Like any soup its always better the next day.

4 onions
2 bunches of green veggies
handful of carrot
2-3 Tsp of Ambrosio rice
OR 1/3 cup lentils
4 cups water
pepper
salt
cayenne pepper
2-3 Tsp Olive oil

Caramelize the onions in the olive oil. The secret here is do it in your stock pot on low heat with the lid on.

From Chef Boy Am I Hungry

When you think they are ready let them go another half hour. Almost a onion jam.

Add your carrots and greens and cover for about 15 minutes stir occasionally. This were the lentils or rice comes in. They are a thickener, and rice will add a creamy element. I really like the lentils because of the nutty flavor they add.

Pour in your water and bring it up to a simmer. Cover, stir occasionally What your looking for is the rice to cook through so it will blend thoroughly and bring a nice creamy texture to the soup.

                                                                                                   

 Blend the soup with a immersion blender. season with salt, pepper and cayenne to taste. Don't be afraid of the heat of the cayenne, it brings out the sweetness of the onions.

Dish up and drizzle fresh uncooked olive oil on  to the soup.

Autumn Pantry Omelette

I'm so lucky to live in an area that has such great local produce. I picked up these spanish patron peppers at New Leaf market along with spanish chorizo links.

Patron Peppers are commonly cooked in olive oil with salt and served with eggs. Since I all ready had these amazing Chantrelle mushrooms at home the gears were turning.

Onion in the pan first. saute for a few minutes. Add your mushrooms

cook your peppers

Looking good

2 eggs, queso fresco, small amount of chorizo

Eat up

Bomb-Diggity-Dogs: The Sultan

Perros. Caliente. Here is the first of my bomb-diggity-dogs recipes I'm sharing with you my interwebs friends. I start off with some local links from el Salchichero.

Steam them buns. Hot!

I add some mayo below and Rooster sauce on top.

Top with the slow cooked pepper, onion, garlic, olive mix. (see recipe mix below)

I give you The Sultan. Served with sweet and spicy flax seed chips from R.W. Garcia

Sultan Topping
Ingredients
onion
40 cloves of garlic (peeled)
red bell pepper
kalmata olives
tomato
1 cup sherry
1/2 cup sugar

Directions

Cut up all your veggies and place on a foil lined cookie sheet.

Salt and Peper

place in a oven heated to 250 degrees for about 2 hours.

You want the veggies to reduce in size with out getting mushy

Turn the oven up to 375. Mix the sherry and sugar together

cover the veggies with the veggies and turn so they are always covered.

Place back in the oven for another 20 to 30 minutes. Turn the veggies

so they caramelize evenly.

Let cool and serve

Spanish influences

This is one of my favorites. Perfect served cold with old crusty bread

Slow roasted dry farm tomatos, red peppers, olives, garlic, and white onion, finished with sherry

Think I may need to use this to top hot dogs from el Salchichero.

Fall Fungus

We had our first rains a few weeks ago, and the mushrooms have started pushing there way through the thick duff.

The start of the fall gold rush has began. Mushrooms are big money and people very rarely share there secret claims. I don't know enough about wild mushrooms to feel confident to hunt by myself so I normally await invitations for meals cooked with bolete's or chantrelle from friends who are in the know.

Last week I recieved a call from the leader for the SLVMLO (San Lorenzo Valley Mushroom Liberation Orginization) He goes by Jack. He offered to take me on a harvest hike, and I couldn't refuse. So after a long hike blind folded, playing a game of "sink the Bismark" and being verbally broken by his cohort we got to "the Spot".

I came home with enough chantrelle mushrooms to create a few dishes.

Could I get back to"the Spot"? I'm not telling

My intentions we to show case my find with a simple soup

2lbs. Mushrooms

1 white onion

4 cups chicken broth

zest of one lemon and some juice

Once you have combine all the ingredients and let simmer for about 45minutes you should blend. This could be served hot or cold. I think soup is always better the second day so I let mine sit a day before serving

Chris Rene - Audition 1 - THE X FACTOR 2011

I put the fork down to rep a local kid

@ The Source

Somethings are best left untouched

I just spent a few days above Oroville lake helping
a friend work on their house.
Jeff has spent the last few years planting fruit trees on the 20 plus acres he owns out side of Chico. I'm not talking just a few trees, the orchards he has planted require a lot of love on the scale Jeff is farming. It takes him most of the day to water them in the hot summer sun. The local deer and the squirrels want in on the action, always trying to get their piece of the pie. Battling pests and molds in a organic manner. Farming is one of his passions, as of now Jeff does not sell his fruit. He gives it freely, as blessing to his friends, family and church.
He said that a lady from his church used his peaches in a salsa recipe she entered and won first place in the county fair . I've char grilled his nectarines, and used them in ice cream that I made the most amazing ice cream sandwiches with (see my previous posts).

I have to say that there is something about special about working hard all day, then picking the perfect peach and eating as the sun sets. Smelling the sugars in the air. Juices flowing down your wrist dripping from your dusty elbow.