Homemade Croutons

Stop. If you try these, you may never buy a box of croutons again. Don’t say I didn’t warn you.


Craveable Croutons
Printable Recipe

½ 1 ½-pound loaf sourdough bread, cut into ¾-inch cubes
¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 ¼ teaspoons granulated garlic
1 ¼ teaspoons paprika
½ teaspoon Mexican oregano
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
Kosher salt

Preheat the oven to 375˚F. Toss together the bread, oil, granulated garlic, paprika, Mexican oregano, pepper, and cayenne in a large bowl, making sure that the bread cubes are evenly coated. Season generously with salt. Arrange the croutons in a single layer on a baking tray and bake for 22 to 24 minutes, or until golden brown and crisp. Let cool.

Makes enough croutons for several large salads. These are the best croutons ever, even if I do say so myself. They are crisp and infinitely more flavorful than the ones that come in a box, and they’re equally enjoyable with or without a coating of salad dressing. I have to hide them from my husband, or he will eat them all before they ever see a leaf of lettuce. They’re perfect for Caesar salad, and they also make a fantastic soup garnish (I especially like them in tomato soup). Use artisan-style sourdough bread, the kind with a crisp crust, irregular crumb, and tangy flavor; either fresh or day-old is fine. Cut the crust off the bread if you like, but I don’t bother. Dried Mexican oregano, which has a unique floral character, can be found at some gourmet grocers and (usually for less than a dollar) at any Mexican market. If you can’t find it, you can substitute common oregano in this particular recipe. For the best browning, use a heavy baking tray, like the aluminum sheet pans used in restaurants, and be sure not to overcrowd the pan. Croutons keep well for a couple of weeks in a tightly sealed container in the pantry. For parmesan croutons, simply add a handful or two of finely grated Parmegiano-Reggiano when tossing the bread cubes with the oil and spices.

Reader Request: Hearty Beef & Vegetable Soup

Recently, I received a lovely email from a reader. I’m blushing profusely because she said such nice things. Here’s what Linda, of Hamilton, New Jersey, wrote:

Your recipes are amazing…delicious…some of the best I have ever made, and I now know why after reading about you. I am looking forward to having your cookbook too.

Your soup recipes are so good! My husband and I both love the Beef, Barley & Mushroom Soup. We love it so much that it is always stocked in our freezer, and I can't remember not having a few containers always on hand. As a matter of fact, I went to the store today for the ingredients to make another pot.

Would you consider making a hearty steak-vegetable soup and sharing the recipe on your site? I have no talent for creations of my own and since finding your site have found none other that compares. I haven't made anything yet that we did not enjoy.

Thank you for considering a recipe request.

Linda, thank you so much for your kind words about my recipes and about Hungry Cravings! Comments like yours really make my day and encourage me to keep at it! And seriously, with that kind of flattering feedback, how could I not honor your recipe request?

A hearty, comforting meat and veggie soup usually includes peas, carrots, celery, onions, and potatoes.


But the start of spring and the first farmers market of the season inspired me…I chose to use leeks instead of onions.


I also added some cauliflower, since it’s one of my favorites.


This one’s for you, Linda. Enjoy!


Hearty Beef & Vegetable Soup
Printable Recipe

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 ½ pounds beef chuck, cut into 1-inch cubes
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
3 to 4 cloves garlic, minced
¼ cup all-purpose flour
½ cup red wine
3 quarts beef broth
1 14 ½-ounce can diced tomatoes
2 bay leaves
1 sprig thyme
1 sprig Italian parsley
4 medium red potatoes
2 stalks celery, sliced
2 carrots, sliced
2 leeks, pale parts only, sliced
12 ounces cauliflower florets
1 cup shelled English peas
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper

Heat a large, heavy pot over high heat until very hot but not smoking. Add the oil and swirl to coat the bottom of the pot. Add half of the beef and cook for 7 to 8 minutes, tossing about 3 times, until crusty and brown in spots.* Using a slotted spoon, remove the beef to a plate. Sear the remaining beef in the same manner and set aside. Reduce the heat to low, add the butter and garlic, and sauté for 1 to 2 minutes, or until fragrant. Stir in the flour. Add the wine and simmer, stirring, for a minute or so. Stir in the broth, return the beef to the pot, and add the tomatoes (along with their liquid), bay leaves, thyme, and parsley. Bring to a boil and simmer, stirring occasionally, for 50 to 55 minutes, or until the beef is nearly tender. Meanwhile, cut the potatoes into ¾-inch cubes. Add the potatoes, celery, carrots, leeks, and cauliflower to the pot, return to a boil, and simmer for another 15 to 20 minutes, or until the potatoes are cooked through and the vegetables are tender. Add the peas and simmer 4 to 5 minutes more, or until they are tender. Remove from the heat, discard the bay leaf, thyme sprig, and parsley sprig, and skim off any fat from the surface of the soup. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Ladle into bowls and serve immediately.

Serves 6 to 8 as a main course. Leeks tend to be very dirty, so rinse them thoroughly after you slice them. Vary the vegetables as you like—try turnips, parsnips, pearl onions, cabbage, or whatever else may be in season. Use thawed frozen peas if fresh peas are unavailable.

*Searing the beef in this manner adds tons of flavor to the finished dish. For everything you ever wanted to know about searing, plus dozens of fabulous searing recipes, look for my book Seared to Perfection in stores in the fall of 2010.

Glenora Grapes

Do you cook or bake with grapes? I never have. I don’t know why, but I guess I’ve never thought of them as an ingredient. OK, I’ve gone so far as to toss them into a salad, but that’s about it. To me, grapes were for snacking.

Thanks to my gardener, there’s a Glenora grapevine growing on the arbor over our patio table. It’s about 3 years old now, and it provides shade and a romantic atmosphere for our alfresco meals. And for the first time, it’s providing loads of gorgeous purple grapes.


Glenora grapes are juicy and intensely flavorful, like grape bubblegum with a hint of spice, and they have a most satisfying snap when you bite down on them. In fact, they’re so good, they’ve sparked an attitude adjustment in this cook—grapes deserve to be the star of a dish, not just the fruit group in a sack lunch. They are every bit as good as any berry and ought to be treated with the same reverence in the kitchen. Though I can hardly resist eating them out of hand, I’m inspired to transform them into dessert. I made a grape consommé (which the husband insists on calling grape juice), but there are still lots of grapes hanging on that vine. I wonder what else I should make with them…Do you have any suggestions for me? And don’t you just love being inspired by ingredients?


Red Grape Consommé with Lemon-Honey Sorbet
Printable Recipe

For the sorbet:
1/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup honey, preferably orange blossom honey
Grated zest of 2 lemons
1 2/3 cups water
2/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice

For the consommé:
3 pounds stemmed red grapes
1 cup sugar

To serve:
1 cup blackberries

Make the sorbet:
Combine the sugar, honey, lemon zest, and water in a small saucepan. Heat until the sugar dissolves. Remove from the heat and let cool. Stir in the lemon juice. Chill over an ice bath until ice-cold. Transfer to an ice cream maker and churn until frozen. Transfer to a container and freeze for 4 to 6 hours before serving.

Make the consommé:
Combine the grapes and sugar in a large, heavy pot. Lightly crush the grapes using a potato masher. Heat to a bare simmer, stirring occasionally. Remove from the heat and let cool. Juice in a food mill using the finest disc. Strain through a fine mesh sieve and chill.

To serve:
Ladle the consommé into individual bowls. Add a scoop of the sorbet to each bowl and divide the blackberries among them. Serve immediately.

Yields about 3 ½ cups of sorbet and 1 quart of consommé, serving 8. I used leaves of lemon balm and jasmine blossoms for garnish in addition to the blackberries. The clarity of the grape consommé is, by far, best on the day it’s made.

Learning to Love Fennel

I try not to discriminate. But no matter how hard I try, there is one food I don’t like. Actually, it’s a whole category of food: fennel and anything that tastes even vaguely like fennel. This obviously includes fennel, the vegetable, and fennel, the seed, and also tarragon, chervil, anise, star anise, licorice, and a whole range of alcoholic beverages. And I absolutely abhor root beer—I hate it so much that I can’t even stand when my husband drinks it.


I’m really traumatized—ashamed even—by my hang up with fennel. I mean, no self-respecting foodie should be in the position of having to avoid an entire category of food. Let’s just say that when you journey all the way across the country to dine at Chez Panisse, and the night’s menu features salad with raw fennel, it’s not embarrassing to cry in public. (That was like ten years ago, and I’m still scarred.)

Lest you think less of me, I want to point out in my own defense that I do love spicy Italian sausage (even though I sometimes pick out a few of the more obvious fennel seeds), I will devour a bowl of bouillabaisse in no time flat, I think of pho as comfort food, and I often sprinkle Chinese five-spice on duck breasts before I sear them. It takes lots of therapy, but I’m working really hard to overcome my fennel issues.


I’m proud to report that I’m making steady progress. Although raw fennel still makes me cringe, I’ve found that I like fennel when it’s cooked in ways that bring out its natural sweetness. I’ve even managed to create a fennel dish I absolutely love.


I hope you like it as much as I do. I think there’s hope yet for this fennel hater…

Unfortunately, in some perverse twist of karma, my puppy Alice (who just happens to be named after Alice Waters) just tore the only fennel that actually grew a bulb out of the garden and chewed it up to bits.

I’m sure I can’t be the only one out there with a funny food aversion. So I’m wondering, what’s your food hang up? And do you think it’s nature or nurture? Because neither of my parents can stand fennel either.

Braised Fennel with Shallots*
Printable Recipe

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 fennel bulbs, trimmed and quartered
4 shallots, halved
2 tablespoons white wine
½ cup chicken broth
2 sprigs thyme
1 teaspoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper

Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Heat a medium, heavy sauté pan over medium-high heat until very hot but not smoking. Add the oil and swirl to coat the bottom of the pan. Add the fennel and shallots and cook for 8 to 10 minutes, tossing about 2 times, until crusty and brown in spots.* Add the wine, broth, and thyme. Cover the pan, transfer to the oven, and bake for 35 to 40 minutes, or until tender. Discard the thyme sprig and return the pan to medium-high heat. Bring to a boil and simmer for 4 to 5 minutes, or until the broth is thickened and saucy. Drizzle with the lemon juice and season to taste with salt and pepper. Transfer to a platter and serve immediately.

Serves 4 as a side dish. Chop and toss with pasta and grated Parmegiano-Reggiano for a main course. Blend with more chicken broth for a soup.


*Searing the fennel and shallots in this manner adds tons of flavor to the finished dish. For a related Pork Tenderloin with Braised Fennel Sauce recipe and everything you ever wanted to know about searing, plus dozens of fabulous searing recipes, look for my book Seared to Perfection in stores in the fall of 2010.

In the Mood

Do you ever have one of those days when you don’t feel like making the thing you had planned for dinner? Or you’re just not hungry for it? Sure, fish chowder sounded good when you did your weekly meal planning and grocery shopping last Sunday. But not anymore—today, the very thought of seafood ruins your appetite. I have one of those days a lot. It drives my husband nuts, but how in the world am I supposed to guess what I’ll be in the mood for at some future date? If only I had a crystal ball. So what to do? Go out? No, that would blow the budget. And, in any case, all I know is what I’m not hungry for, not what I actually do want to eat. Then there’s the inevitable exchange…

Me: “What do you feel like having?”

Husband: “I don’t know, what do you feel like having?”

Me: Sigh. “I don’t know, I asked you first.”

Husband: “I don’t know. Fish chowder?” Belly grumbles.

And on and on.

Me, finally: “I know, there’s broccoli and cheddar.” There’s always broccoli and cheddar in the fridge, and there’s one thing I’m always, always in the mood for—Broccoli-Cheese Soup.


Broccoli-Cheese Soup
Printable Recipe

4 ounces (1 stick) unsalted butter
1 yellow onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
½ cup all-purpose flour
2 quarts chicken broth
1 ¼ pounds broccoli, stalks and florets separated and chopped
½ teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 to 2 teaspoons Tabasco sauce
1 bay leaf
¼ teaspoon powdered mustard
Generous pinch cayenne pepper
8 ounces shredded sharp cheddar
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper

Heat a large, heavy pot over medium-high heat until hot but not smoking. Add the butter and onion and sauté for 4 to 5 minutes, or until soft. Add the garlic and sauté for another 30 seconds, or until fragrant. Stir in the flour. Stir in the broth and add the broccoli stalks, Worcestershire, Tabasco, bay leaf, mustard, and cayenne. Bring to a boil and simmer, stirring occasionally, for 16 to 18 minutes, or until the stalks are tender. Discard the bay leaf, remove from the heat, and puree with an immersion blender until smooth. Return to the heat and add the broccoli florets. Bring to a boil and simmer, stirring occasionally, for another 7 to 8 minutes, or until the florets are tender. Reduce the heat to low, stir in the cheddar, and season to taste with salt and pepper. Ladle into bowls and serve immediately.

Serves 6. Feel free to substitute vegetable broth or water if you prefer a vegetarian soup. If you don’t have an immersion blender, you can use a regular blender but remember: never fill a blender more than half way with hot liquid. This means you will need to blend the soup in batches and reheat it before adding the broccoli florets. Do not boil the soup once the cheddar has been added, or it will have a grainy texture.

Black Bean Soup

It sure doesn’t feel like spring’s right around the corner. This morning, there was snow, and this afternoon, a hail storm. This calls for more soup!


Black Bean Soup
Printable Recipe

1 pound black beans, picked over and rinsed
¼ cup canola oil
1 large yellow onion, diced
6 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons pure chile powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
½ teaspoon Mexican oregano
Generous pinch cayenne pepper
3 quarts chicken broth
½ cup sour cream
¼ cup milk
1 ripe Hass avocado
Juice of 1 lime
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
¼ cup minced cilantro

Place the beans into a large bowl and add enough water to cover by several inches. Cover with plastic wrap and let soak overnight at room temperature.

Drain the beans. Heat a large, heavy pot over medium heat until very hot but not smoking. Add the oil and swirl to coat the bottom of the pot. Add the onion and sauté for 4 to 5 minutes, or until soft. Add the garlic and sauté for another 30 seconds, or until fragrant. Stir in the chile powder, cumin, Mexican oregano, and cayenne. Add the broth and beans. Bring to a boil and simmer, stirring occasionally, for about an hour and 15 minutes, or until the beans are cooked through.

Meanwhile, whisk together the sour cream and milk in a small bowl. Halve, pit, peel, and dice the avocado. Remove the soup from the heat and puree with an immersion blender until smooth. Stir in the lime juice and season to taste with salt and pepper. Ladle into individual bowls, top with plenty of avocado and cilantro, and drizzle with the sour cream mixture. Serve immediately.

Serves 8. If you don’t have an immersion blender, you can use a regular blender but remember: never fill a blender more than half way with hot liquid. This means you will need to blend the soup in batches and reheat it before serving. This soup is also delicious topped with crumbled cotija cheese. For a simple yet delicious meal, serve with Mexican Rice, either on the side or stirred right in. Feel free to substitute vegetable broth or water if you prefer a vegetarian soup. Dried Mexican oregano, which has a unique floral character, can be found at some gourmet grocers and (usually for less than a dollar) at any Mexican market. If you can’t find it, just omit it from the recipe; don’t substitute common oregano.

Special Request

It’s not often that my husband asks me to make something specific for dinner. Most of the time when I ask him what he wants he just shrugs and says, “I dunno, you’re the chef.” Either that, or he suggests burgers. Needless to say, I’ve spoiled him, and the meal planning is pretty much all on me. But the other day, he made a special request for my Beef, Barley & Mushroom Soup.


Beef, Barley & Mushroom Soup it is!

Beef, Barley & Mushroom Soup
Printable Recipe

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 ½ pounds beef chuck, cut into ¾-inch cubes
1 large yellow onion, diced
2 stalks celery, diced
1 carrot, diced
3 to 4 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 pound button mushrooms, sliced
½ cup red wine
3 quarts beef broth
1 ½ cups pearled barley
1 bay leaf
1 sprig thyme
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon minced Italian parsley

Heat a large, heavy pot over high heat until very hot but not smoking. Add the oil and swirl to coat the bottom of the pot. Add half of the beef and cook for 6 to 7 minutes, tossing about 2 times, until crusty and brown in spots.* Using a slotted spoon, remove the beef to a plate. Sear the remaining beef in the same manner and set aside. Reduce the heat to medium, add the onion, and sauté for 5 to 6 minutes, or until soft. Add the celery and carrot and sauté for 5 to 6 minutes, or until soft. Add the garlic and tomato paste and sauté for another 1 to 2 minutes, or until fragrant. Add the mushrooms and sauté 6 to 7 minutes more, or until soft. Add the wine and simmer for a minute or so, scraping up the brown bits from the bottom of the pot with a heat-proof spatula. Return the beef to the pot and add the broth, barley, bay leaf, and thyme. Bring to a boil and simmer for 50 to 55 minutes, or until the beef and barley are both tender. Remove from the heat, discard the bay leaf and thyme sprig, and skim off any fat from the surface of the soup. Season to taste with salt and pepper and stir in the parsley. Ladle into bowls and serve immediately.

Serves 6 to 8 as a main course. This is hearty, satisfying comfort food, and perfect for the coldest of days. The recipe makes a lot, but it’s even better the second day.

*Searing the beef in this manner adds tons of flavor to the finished dish. For everything you ever wanted to know about searing, plus dozens of fabulous searing recipes, look for my book Seared to Perfection in stores in the fall of 2010.

Fancy

I didn’t have company over, and it wasn’t a special occasion. But do I really need an excuse to break out the caviar? I just had some leftover Leek & Potato Soup in the fridge, so I decided to dress it up.

It’s easy, you should try it. Everyone will be so impressed!

Vichyssoise Shooters
Printable Recipe

2 cups chilled Leek & Potato Soup
2 tablespoons crème fraîche, whipped to soft peaks
1 to 2 tablespoons black caviar

Divide the Leek & Potato Soup among 10 shot glasses. Top each with a small dollop of the crème fraîche and a small spoonful of the caviar. Serve immediately.

Serves 5 to 10 as an hors d’oeuvre. Use a pitcher or measuring cup with a spout to pour the soup into the shot glasses neatly and easily.