soup

Dic-tater Soup

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Todays Dictator

DIC-TATER SOUP

 

1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 medium onion, thinly sliced
2 clove garlic, minced
4 medium potatoes, peeled, cubed (or 3 cups of yesterdays mashed)
4 cups chicken broth
2 cups half-and-half
2 carrots, sliced thin
2 cups ham cubed (this is the dic part)
1 cup crumbled blue cheese, divided (4 oz)
1/4 tsp dried basil
1/4 tsp dried lemon grass (if using fresh use double)
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon fresh ground pepper

Melt butter in large saucepan over medium high heat.

Add onion; cook 5 minutes or until soft. Add carrots and cook 2 minutes more.

Add garlic and lemon grass and cook 1 minute. Add potatoes; cook 5 minutes.

Add broth; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium low; cover and simmer 20 minutes or until potatoes are tender.  If you use the mashed you don’t have cook as long.

Stir in half-and-half, 1/2 cup of the cheese, salt, pepper and basil..

(Soup can be made to this point up to 1 day ahead.) Before serving, sprinkle with remaining 1/2 cup cheese).

New Zealand Gold Kumara & Bacon Soup

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New Zealand Gold Kumara & Bacon Soup

Kumara are a native sweet potato to New Zealand – if you’re unable to find that any other sweet potato can be substituted.

SERVES 6

 2 /12 lbs gold kumara (Sweet potato, yam or pumpkin)
1 large leek
2 Cups of crumbled (cooked) bacon
1 finely chopped carrot
4 Cups chicken stock 
1 teaspoon yellow curry powder (the mildest one)
2 Tablespoons butter salt to taste

Peel, cut in chunks kumara/ potato add carrot and boil in the stock, until soft. Save the cooking liquid.

Cook leek in the butter. Do not brown, just cook until soft or it will lose its sweetness. Put to one side, then cook bacon until crispy. Once bacon is cooled chop or crumble into small pieces.

After the kumara/potato is cooled, mash in the liquid, or use a food processor to puree.

Add bacon and leek to the potato mash and cook gently for 15 minutes for flavors to blend.

Avgolemono (αυγολέμονο) Soup (Egg-Lemon)

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AVGOLEMONO SOUP (Egg-Lemon)
αυγολέμονο

2 cups cream or half and half

6 egg yolks, beaten

2 quarts chicken stock

1/2 cup long grain rice

1/4 cup butter

2 bunch Italian parsley -chopped

1/2 cup fresh lemon juice (Many recipes call for more  I used the juice of three large lemons-very lemony 😉

Zest of one lemon

salt and pepper

Thin slices of lemon for garnish

Beat egg yolks, and stir in the cream. Set aside.

Bring the stock to boil in a 4 quart soup pot and add the rice. Cook, covered, until the rice is puffy and tender, about 25 min.

Remove the soup from heat, and temper the egg mixture, which is stirring in a few ladles of the stock mixture slowly into the egg and cream to bring up to temperature without cooking.  Once tempered, slowly add the tempered egg mixture to the remaining stock. Continue to cook over medium low heat while it thickens. Remove from the heat and add the butter, chopped parsley, lemon juice, and finely grated lemon peel.

Float the lemon slices on top before service.

This soup is great either hot or cold and you get creative and add other ingredients once you have this lovely start.