New Orleans Cauliflower Oyster Soup

Served many years ago in one of the suburbs of New Orleans.  It’s origin comes from an old Italian recipe cooked by a Cajun chef, in a small Italian restaurant located in Fat City.

Ingredients:

• 2 teaspoons minced garlic
• 1 strip (1 oz.) bacon, chopped
• ¼ cup fennel root, diced
• ½ cup shallots
• 2 ½ cups cauliflower, cleaned and cored
• 1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
• 1 bay leaf
• ½ teaspoon nutmeg
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 teaspoon olive oil
• 1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
• 1 cup wine
• 2 quarts chicken stock
• 1 pint oysters
• 1 cup whipped cream
• Caviar, optional
• 1 tablespoon chives, chopped
• Sprigs of chervil

Directions:

In a medium soup pot brown the bacon to a crisp for about 3-5 minutes. Remove the bacon, and set aside. In the same pot, add the olive oil, fennel root, shallots and cauliflower; sauté for a few minutes. Next add the garlic; continue to cook for about a minute or until you can start to smell the garlic.

Deglaze with wine and reduce by half. Add the stock and cauliflower, thyme, bay leaf and cook until it is soft and mushy (approx. 1 hour).

On a plate, chop half of the oyster, reserving the oysters. Strain the liquid into the soup pot, adding the other half of the oysters and whipping cream. Bring to boil and cook for about five minutes. Remove from heat and blend until smooth. If using a blender, allow to cool first.

Strain the soup, through a fine sieve, into your serving bowl. Transfer the soup back to the soup pot adding the butter, nutmeg, reserved chopped oysters and bacon. Bring to a boil and remove from the heat.

Ladle the hot soup back into serving bowl and top with sprig of chervil, sprinkle with chives and drizzle a little extra virgin olive oil over the top.  You can add a small dollop of caviar on top for garnish. 

Amazing Pork Soup Dumplings (Xiao Long Bao)

Ingredients:

For the Broth:

• 2 quarts water (or enough to cover the ingredients)
• 3 pounds chicken backs
• ½ pound pork belly or fatty pork with skin
• 3 ounces chinese-style cured smoked ham
• 4 shallots
• 1-inch pieces of ginger, chopped
• 1 tablespoon white peppercorns
• 1 tablespoon unflavored gelatin
• 1 tablespoon kosher salt

For the Filling:

• ⅓ pound ground pork
• ¼ pound raw shrimp, peeled
• 2 teaspoons soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon XiaoShing wine
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• ⅛ teaspoon sesame oil
• ½ teaspoon grated fresh ginger
• 2 scallions, finely minced
• ¼ teaspoon white pepper

For the Dough:

• 2 cups (10 ounces) all-purpose flour
• 1 cup boiling water
• 1 teaspoon oil

• Napa cabbage leaves

Preparation:

Combine ingredients “For the Broth,”  and cover with cold water. Bring to a boil over high heat, remove to a simmer, and simmer for about 2-3 hours. Strain broth and cover to refrigerate until ready to make the filling.

Meanwhile, combine ingredients “For the Filling,” into a food processor. Pulse a few times until a course paste is formed, about 8-10 one-second pulses. Refrigerate until ready to use.

For the dough, place flour in bowl of food processor. With machine running, add oil and then slowly drizzle in water until cohesive dough is formed (you probably won’t need all the water), continue for 30 about seconds. Form into a ball using floured hands and transfer to a bowl. Cover with a damp towel and let rest for at least 30 minutes.

Bring the broth back up to almost the boiling point.  When the broth is just about to boil, turn heat off and remove from the heat and add the gelatin. Whisk for 2 minutes until all powder is dissolved. Pour broth into a baking dish to set up and then place in the refrigerator for about 3-4 hours.

After the broth gelatin is set, crumble it up in the pan, with a spoon or fork.  Take about 1 ½ cups of the broth gelatin and add that to the filling mixture. Stir to incorporate evenly throughout. Refrigerate until ready to use.

Divide dough into 4 sections, and each section into 10 small tablespoon-sized balls, making 40 balls total. On a well-floured work surface, roll each ball into a round 3 ½ – to 4-inches in diameter. Stack wrappers and keep under plastic until all of them are rolled out.

To form dumplings, place 1 tablespoon of filling in the center of a wrapper. Moisten the edges of the wrapper with a wet fingertip or a pastry brush. Pleat edges of the wrapper repeatedly, pinching the edge closed after each pleat until the entire dumpling is sealed, into a cinched purse shape. Pinch and twist top to seal. Transfer sealed dumplings to a lightly floured wooden or parchment-lined board.

Place a bamboo steamer over a wok with 2 inches of water. Place over medium high heat until simmering. Line the steamer with napa cabbage leaves and place dumplings directly on leaves. Steam until cooked through, about 5 minutes. Serve immediately, being careful not to break them.

Weight Watches Asian Inspired Vegetable Soup

Course: soups

PointsPlus™ Value:  1
Servings:  16

Preparation Time:  20 min
Cooking Time: 60 min
Level of Difficulty:  Easy

An Asian spin on a Weight Watchers favorite. Double the recipe and freeze it in 1 cup servings for a late afternoon snack or dinner-time starter.

Ingredients:

• 2 cup(s) bok choy, chopped  
• 2 cup(s) your favorite cabbage, chopped  
• 3 clove(s) garlic clove(s), minced (medium)  
• 1 lb small raw oyster mushrooms, chopped  
• 2 cup(s) scallion(s), chopped  
• 1 cup(s) canned water chestnuts, sliced (8 oz can)  
• 1/2 cup(s) sweet red pepper(s), thinly sliced  
• 1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes  
• 2 cup(s) snow peas, stringed  
• 2 tbsp low-sodium soy sauce  
• 1 cup(s) carrot(s)  
• 1 cup(s) ginger root, minced  
• 1 medium green pepper(s)  
• 6 cup(s) Pacific Natural Foods Organic Broth Organic Low Sodium Chicken Broth  
• 4 cup(s) water  
• 1 cup(s) bean sprouts
• cilantro to taste (optional)

Preparation:

Begin with a sweating the garlic and ginger in a large stock pot. Put bok choy, mushrooms, carrots, water chestnuts, red pepper flakes, water and broth into the soup pot; stir to combine. Cover and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to low and simmer, partly covered, for about 15 minutes. Add the cabbage and cook for an additional 15 minute. Toss in snow peas, scallions, green & red peppers, bean sprouts finish for 15 more minutes of simmering. Stir in soy sauce and (optional) cilantro. Finish at low simmer an additional 10 minutes.

Roasted Poblano Pepper and Corn Chicken Soup

Ingredients: 

Poaching Liquid:

• 16 ounces boneless, skinless, white meat chicken  (only 12 oz after cooking)
• ½ green pepper, finely chopped
• 1 small onion, finely chopped
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 lime, juiced
• ½ teaspoon ground coriander
• ½ teaspoon ground cumin
• ½ teaspoon ground oregano
• 1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
• 1 teaspoon cracked black pepper
• 1 bay leaf
• 4 cups fat free, low/no sodium chicken stock
• 2 cups water

For the soup:

• 1 small onion
• 6 large Poblano peppers
• 1 large Red bell pepper
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 small carrot halved then sliced
• 1 teaspoon Ancho chili pepper powder
• ½ teaspoon ground coriander
• ½ teaspoon ground cumin
• ½ teaspoon ground oregano
• 1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
• 1 teaspoon cracked black pepper
• 2 cup defrosted kernels
• 1 jalapeño pepper, finely chopped, optional for a spicy soup
• 1 cup of stock
• 1 cup of water

Preparation:

In a food processor finely chop 1/2 onion & green pepper, along with 3 cloves of garlic.  In a large pan (big enough to hold 8 cups of liquid and two 8 ounce chicken breasts) heat 1 tsp olive oil and add the vegetables.  Sauté for a few minutes, then and add the dry spices, continue cooking.  After another minute or so add 2 cups of water, 4 cups of chicken stock, the lime juice and bay leaf and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and add the 2 chicken breasts.  Cover to pouch for 45-60 minutes or until done. Remove the chicken breasts and set aside to cool. Shred the chicken and reserve the pouching liquid.

Preheat broiler. Clean the peppers first, by cutting off the tops, removing the seeds and veins. Then cut the peppers in half so that you can lay them skin side up. Place Poblano and Red bell peppers on a baking sheet and char evenly to blacken skins. Place peppers in a large bowl and cover with plastic wrap to steam peppers and loosen flesh from skin. Coarsely chop Poblano and Red peppers. Add to a food processor, purée with a little stock until smooth, then set aside.

In a soup pot, heat 1 tsp olive oil. Add the other the chopped onion, carrot and Jalapeno for pepper. After a few minutes of cooking, add the other half of oregano, coriander, ancho chili and cumin to toast.  Stir a few minutes over medium-high heat, add the other 3 chopped cloves of garlic, cook for a minute more then add the corn.

Finish with the pepper purée, reserved poaching liquid and thin the soup to desired consistency with additional 1 cup of water and 1 cup of chicken stock. Simmer soup for 30 minutes on medium.

When ready to serve add chicken and cook to warm the meat through.  You can garnish with chopped chives or lime slices, cilantro, etc.

Makes about 10 servings less than 4 PointsPlus per 8 ounce serving.

Thai Egg Drop Soup

Ingredients:

• 4 cups of chicken broth
• ½ teaspoon soy sauce
• ½ minced carrot
• 1 tablespoon minded shallot
• 1 grated garlic clove (or ¼ tsp ground)
• 1 grated piece of ginger (or ¼ teaspoon white pepper
• 1 egg beaten with a teaspoon of water
• ½ of a Thai chili pepper sliced or minced
• 2 green onions (scallion) sliced on the diagonal
• 1 ½ tablespoon cornstarch
• Water – enough to dissolve cornstarch
• Drizzle of Toasted Sesame Oil

Directions:

In a soup pot, begin with a sauté of minced carrot and shallot. You only need to cook for a minute or so, just enough to bring out the sugars. Add the ginger and garlic using a grater or micro-planer and sauté for another minute or so (who watches the clock?). Pour in the chicken stock and soy sauce, brining it to a slow boil, season with white pepper.

While waiting for the soup to boil, combine the cornstarch with enough water to dissolve it, so that it’s a liquid and not a paste, and then set aside.  Next beat your egg and water thoroughly.  

Here comes the tricky part. Turn off the heat, (re-beat the eggs) then stir your soup enough so that it circulates under its own momentum (not too fast). Next, slowly stream the beaten egg through a fork (I use a small hand colander with holes, not a screen) about eight inches above the soup. “Note: for you guys out there… the REAL eight inches!”  When the soup starts to slow down, stir the soup again, and follow with streaming in more egg. Continue this process until all the egg is in the pot. This method ensures that the egg streams in at the required speed. The width between the fork tines (or colander) is about the right width for producing strands that are silky and not rubbery and clumpy.

Add Thai peppers and scallions and cook for a minute or two more. Drizzle in a little sesame oil for flavor.

Serves: 2 or just me.

Viola! javilabbe’s version of, “Thai Egg Drop Soup”