Somehow, I’ve gotten a bit behind on some of my posts, so despite the fact that the leaves have already changed colors, let’s take a moment to pretend its still summer. What do you say? This soup is so delightfully simple, you could make it in a hurry any day of the week. If you love avocados, you’ll love this–creamy and served cold, the toughest decision is what you’ll want to serve along with this Creamy Avocado Soup.
As you can see, the brilliant plating I had in mind looked a little silly when all put together, but ah well, you win some, you lose some. Flavor-wise though, I was delighted–I cooked some bacon, crumbled it on top, and then sautéed some fresh, local shrimp in the bacon fat (shelled, deveined, and cooked for 3-4 minutes) to go along with this soup and make it more of a self-contained meal. Plus, both the sweet flavor of the shrimp the… click to read more…
Posted by mike on November 12th, 2008 in Fruit, Main course, Mexican, Seafood, Side dish, Soup & Stew
Aside from cinnamony apple desserts, I think there’s another dish just about everybody seems to enjoy and crave come autumn: butternut squash soup. It seems like even the most fervent anti-squash types warm up to a bowl of the stuff (and how could they not?). Even though I’m in season-deprived state of sunny Florida, my craving kicked in like clockwork and I had to have a bowl. I wanted to make a meal of this soup, so in the name of adding more substance to it, I added cannellini beans and sausage.
Of the many inspirations I had for this soup, this is what really caught my eye. Some roasted butternut squash soups can be a bit more liquidy (generally not my preference), but this was a hearty soup with some real body to it. The sweet, distinct flavor of the roasted squash was center-stage, but… click to read more…
Posted by mike on November 9th, 2008 in Fruit, Main course, Pork, Side dish, Soup & Stew
I’m not much for cooking repeats. Its not an option really if you’re trying to keep posting new and original things with some regularity on a web site and all. Given that, I’m even more averse to going so far as posting a repeat on here, but I just couldn’t help myself. I’ve come a long way in the kitchen in the past year, so I just wasn’t thrilled looking at my original pumpkin pie post. I knew I could do a whole lot better, so I sought to really make an awesome pumpkin pie. Something I’d eagerly repeat verbatim again next season. And here we are.
I chose to go with a graham cracker crust for this pie rather than the more traditional pate brisee. Given the spices inherent in pumpkin pie, a totally unspiced crust just seems like an almost bland supporting character in the pie, right? Plus, making a fresh… click to read more…
Posted by mike on November 6th, 2008 in Dessert, Fruit, Pie
Since my wife has no appetite for fish at the moment, I was alone in tackling that whole Kona Kampachi that Kona Blue had so generously sent my way. I had actually been eating fish for four days straight until I had finished it (I couldn’t dare put that wonderful fish in the freezer), but I thought I’d give you, readers a break from fish for a while, hence the gap from the other Kona Kampachi dishes I’d prepared. So here we are, the very last of my fish. This is a simple and straightforward preparation, the Kona Kampachi is sautéed in butter and topped with a cognac cream sauce.
Since I’d tried this fish cooked in many forms (raw, marinated/”chemically” cooked, and broiled), I thought I should see what its like in a good old butter sauté. Sure enough, every approach let the fish shine in surprisingly distinct ways,… click to read more…
Posted by mike on November 3rd, 2008 in Main course, Mediterranean, Sauce, Seafood
