Jane Austen on PBS

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Soup Recipes from The Cox

Pureed Carrot Soup with Nutmeg

2 Tbsp butter, extra virgin olive oil, or vegetable oil
1 medium onion, 3 medium shallots, or 1 medium leek(white and light green parts only), chopped
2 Tbsp dry sherry or white wine
1 1/2 pounds (about 8 medium carrots) peeled, halved lengthwise and sliced thin (about 4 cups)
2 cups chicken or vegetable stock
1 tsp salt
ground white pepper
pinch freshly grated nutmeg
1-1 1/4 cups whole milk
2 tsps minced fresh tarragon mint, chive or parsley leaves

1. heat butter or oil in large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add onion; saute until golden (they carmalized the onions), about 5 minutes. Add sherry and carrots; stir-cook until sherry evaporates, about 30 seconds.
2.Add stock, salt, pepper to taste, and nutmeg to saucepan; bring to boil. Reduce heat to simmer; cover and cook until carrots are tender, about 20 minutes.
3. Ladle carrot mixture into blender. (The Cox used a braun hand mixer type thing and blended it in the pan) Add 1 cup milk; blend until very smooth. Return soup to saucepan; cook over low heat until warmed through. If soup is too thick, stir in additional milk to thin consistency. Adjust seasonings. (soup can be refridgerated for 3 days and reheated just before serving)
4. Ladle soup into bowls and garnish with minced herb and serve immediately.

Variations

Pureed Broccoli soup with basil
Follow recipe for Pureed Carrot Soup with Nutmeg, replacing carrots with 2 pounds broccoli, stalks discarded and florets cut into bit-sized pieces to yield 5 cups. Omit nutmeg and cook broccoli until tender, about 10 minutes. Thin with 1/2 to 3/4 cup milk and garnish soup with 2 tbsp minced fresh basil leaves.

Pureed Butternut Squash Soup with Ginger (this is what we sampled on Wed night)
Follow recipe for Pureed Carrot Soup with Nutmeg, replacing carrots with 1 medium butternut squash (about 2 1/2 pounds), which has been halved, seeded, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch cubes to yield 5 cups. ( The Cox like to roast the squash first; Coat pieces in oil and lay out on cookie sheet and bake at 400 for 1 hour or until fork tender) Substitute 1 tsp ground ginger for nutmeg and cook squash until tender, about 15 minutes. Thin with 3/4 to 1 cup milk and garnish with minced fresh parsley or chives.

Pureed Cauliflower Soup with Coriander
Follow recipe for Pureed Carrot Soup and Nutmeg, replacing carrots with 1 medium head cauliflower (about 2 pounds), stems discarded and florets cut into bit-sized pieces to yield 5 cups. Replace nutmeg with 1 tsp coriander and cook cauliflower until tender, about 12 minutes. Thin with 1/2 to 3/4 cup milk and garnish with minced chives or parsley.

Creamy Potato Soup with Chives
Follow recipe for Pureed Carrot soup with nutmeg, placing carrots with 2 large russet potatoes (about 1 1/2 pounds), peeled and cut into 1/2 inch dice to yield 4 cups. omit nutmeg and cook potatoes until very tender, about 20 minutes. This with 1 to 1 1/4 cups milk and garnish with minced chives.

*unsweetened coconut milk can be used as a milk substitute if you want.

We only tried the butternut squash one, which was really good.

Cox's Cooking Tips

lists of things that you should always have on hand in the kitchen

Pantry:
Canned diced tomatoes
Tomato sauce
tomato Paste
Canned Chicken, beef and vegetable broth
Jarred Marinara Sauce
Creamed Soups (chicken, mushroom, celery)
bullion cubes
pasta- a variety of shapes
Pice
Tuna fish (other canned meat such as chicken)
Onions
Garlic
Vegetable oil
Extra Virgin Oil
Balsamic Vinegar
Dried herbs (leaves)-basil, thyme, rosemary, oregano, dill, herbs de provence, red pepper flakes
Dried spices- cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger
vanilla
kosher salt
black peppercorn

Fridge:
Fresh herbs- basil, thyme, rosemary, parsley
mixed greens
butter
soy sauce
eggs
cheese
lemon

Freezer:
Ground beef and/or turkey (1 lb segments)
Chicken breasts
store bought pie crusts
bag of mixed berries
mixed vegetables
nuts
grated cheese
bread

tips that we learned last night at the Enrichment Mtg.

Fresh lemon juice: squeeze lemon juice into ice cube trays in desired amount and freeze, then dump frozen cubes into a ziploc and keep in freezer. Remove as needed.

Only need 1 TBSP of Tomato Paste: Instead of wasting the rest of can; drop paste in 1 TBSP droplets onto make shift foil like pan and freeze. Once frozen, dump into a ziploc and keep in freezer. Remove as needed.

When freezing ground beef, flatten the 1 lb segment in ziploc bag so it lays flat. This makes it easier to defrost and stack in the freezer.