Sorry for the time gaps between posts; I've been working quite a bit and after making dinner and stuff, am pretty wiped out.
Anyway; here's a bunch of stuff I did, by request of the Missus….who is working even harder than I am right now.
In my previous post, I had a photo of the roped off area for Seisel's….I basically went there to pick up bacon and the ham hocks, my favorite in San Diego. I used up the bag of red beans from Rancho Gordo and made some Ham Hock and Red Bean Soup.
We've been trading dishes with Frankie's two favorite Aunties and each got some of the soup….Aunte "Alle" said it was really good.
For some reason, the Missus is requesting cream type soups, which are kind of a pain….but She's working really hard….so what the heck.
Her favorite is the Mushroom Soup I make, I'm basically using Jacque Pepin's Creamy Leek and Mushroom Soup recipe; except with more….a lot more mushrooms, both dried, and fresh.
I finally got to use the really high quality porcini we got in Italy. I also use tried and true additions (white wine) and techniques (starting the mushrooms in a dry pan), with twice the amount of dried porcini (1 ounce) and 12 ounces of cremini, with white mushrooms added at the end.
Of course the Missus added truffle oil and extra virgin olive oil….from the bottle we brought back from Avignon.
Of course you saw the cauliflower soup in an earlier post, and I made some potato leek soup, the base of which I used to make Cream of Asparagus Soup….which turned out to be another favorite of the Missus….go figure.
I've gone ahead and used leftover beans and veggies to make Cassoulet/One Pan Dishes as well.
This one is inspired from a recipe in Joe Yonan's wonderful cookbook, Cool Beans.
Much like I do for my Cassoulet, I mix the panko with duck fat….and in this base rendered bacon fat as well before topping the dish.
Having more leftover beans, I added some sausage, sliced zucchini, tomatoes, and red bell peppers….leftovers from other dishes and did kinda the same thing in my small cast iron pan.
I think the next time I make this; I'll forgo the panko and just top with a couple of easy over eggs….cooked in duck fat of course.
And while I forgot to take photos of the potato leek soup I made; I was amazed at how large the potatoes and leeks I bought were…..so I decided to measure them, using Frankie as a reference point.
While I assured "F" that he wasn't part of the recipe….he doesn't look convinced, does he?
Hope everyone is safe and healthy!