When a recipe comes from a reputable source, if it’s good it ends up on countless food blogs. That’s the case with this tomato soup recipe, which I recently found on America’s Test Kitchen’s web site. They’re an arm of Cooks Illustrated.

Their test cooks have devised a method for making a rich, creamy soup with no cream. I was skeptical, but as I said, the recipe has been floating around the blogosphere for awhile now so I decided that it must be worth a try, and indeed it was.

They use sliced white sandwich bread to thicken the soup. Now before you get all squeamish, consider this: bread has been used as a thickener in Italy for generations in their Italian Bread Soup, otherwise known as Ribollita.

If you’re a fan of Nordstrom’s Tomato Basil Soup but don’t like the fact that it’s laden with cream,  make this and you won’t have to feel guilty when you accompany it with grilled cheese sandwiches. By the way, the original recipe does not call for basil, which is one of the predominant flavors in the Nordie soup. If you like basil, top each bowl with some slivers before serving.

Creamless Tomato Soup

2 T. olive oil
1/2 onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
Pinch red pepper flakes
1 bay leaf
1 (28-oz.) can tomatoes with their juice
1 t. brown sugar
2 slices white sandwich bread, crusts removed and bread torn into small pieces
1 cup low-sodium chicken broth
1 T. brandy (optional)
salt and pepper
fresh basil or chives

Heat oil in a Dutch oven, add onion, garlic, red pepper flakes and bay leaf and cook until onion is translucent, about 5 minutes. Stir in tomatoes and their juice and break up tomatoes with a potato masher or fork into pieces no bigger than 2 inches. Add brown sugar and bread and bring to a boil.

Reduce heat and simmer until bread is beginning to break down, about 5 minutes.

Transfer soup to a blender and blend until smooth. (You can also use an immersion blender.) Return to pot and stir in chicken broth and optional brandy. Bring to a simmer, add salt and pepper to taste along with basil or chives. Drizzle each serving with extra virgin olive oil.

Serves 4

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Show this photo to your children and tell them that these are REAL baby carrots!

Blue cheese dressing has a devout following, including myself, or rather, my former self, before I became calorie-conscious. My favorite birthday dinner growing up was steak, baked potato with sour cream and salad with blue cheese dressing. And yes, this is why I had a weight problem at an early age and why I haven’t indulged in this dinner for the last, oh, 40 odd years or so.

Martha Stewart’s new Light Cookbook yields a less waist-expanding version of my once-favorite dressing that is very satisfying, provided you make it and use it up within several days (it gets substantially thinner as it sits). The base for its relative lightness is buttermilk, which is used in the full-fat version but in equal amounts with real mayonnaise and sour cream.

I’m posting this well before Super Bowl Sunday for those of you seeking lighter versions of popular TV snacks. Serve with celery and baby carrots along with buffalo chicken drumsticks, which you can find here.

Caveat: Don’t expect miracles. This dressing is not as thick as the original, but it ranks way above the light bottled version, which I find gummy and artificial-tasting and not worthy of human consumption.

Light Blue Cheese Dressing

1 cup low fat buttermilk
1/4 cup light mayonnaise
1 T. red wine vinegar
1/2 cup crumbled blue cheese (2 ounces)

Whisk together the buttermilk and light mayonnaise until smooth. Add vinegar. Fold in blue cheese crumbles and season with salt and pepper. Use within two days.

Serves 6 to 8 (2-3 T. each)

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The next time I make this I’m going to add 1 T. of hoisin sauce to the soy sauce/broth mixture, as I found the recipe to lack the hint of sweetness that balances out the heat of the red pepper flakes. If you don’t have hoisin, this is still good.

Stir-fry is easy and fast. It can be made up of a multitude of veggies and protein. Think asparagus and shrimp; bell peppers and chicken breast; pineapple (don’t forget fruit!) and pork tenderloin. And tofu. Don’t hate me for adding that last one. And don’t knock it till you’ve tried it!

I used a filet mignon that I found in the depths of my freezer, which makes me wonder what else is hiding in there behind all those massive bags of Costco chicken, tilapia and shrimp.

2 1/2 T. cornstarch, divided
1/2 t. salt
3/4 lb. lean beef sirloin, thinly sliced against grain
1 T. peanut or canola oil
1 cup reduced-sodium chicken broth
5 cups broccoli florets (about a 12-oz. bag)
1 T. fresh minced ginger
2 t. minced garlic
1/4 t. red pepper flakes, or to taste (I used more!)
1/4 c. low-sodium soy sauce
1/2 c. water

On a plate combine 2 T. cornstarch and salt. Add beef and toss to coat.

Heat oil in a wok or skillet. Add beef and stir-fry until almost cooked though, about 4 minutes. Transfer to a bowl.

Add 1/2 cup broth to the pan and stir to loosen any browned bits. Add broccoli, cover and cook until broccoli is almost crisp-tender, about 3 minutes.

Add ginger, garlic and red pepper flakes and stir-fry until fragrant.

In a cup, combine soy sauce, remaining 1/2 cup broth, remaining 1/2 T. cornstarch and water. Stir into pan and return to a simmer, cooking until sauce is slightly thickened.

Return beef to pan and toss to coat.

Serves 4, each serving yields about 1 1/4 cups

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My winter refrigerator, the firewood pile outside the back door, where the cranberries cool before adding the final, pivotal ingredients.

It’s Thanksgiving morning, and I’ve got all my ducks in a row, so to speak, which means that the turkey is brined, the stuffing and sweet potatoes are ready to go into the oven and the cranberry sauce is chilling in the refrigerator.

Ah, the cranberry sauce! A major find from Bon Appetit, and one which has become a staple at our adult Thanksgiving table. (This is definitely not kid food!) The name gives it away–it’s tantamount to an edible cosmopolitan cocktail, with a good helping of vodka and Grand Marnier added after the berries have cooked in sugar and water.

Try it and prepare to become enchanted by its indescribable, Je-ne-sais-quoi quality (French for “I don’t know what it is but I love it.”). I added the last part.

Cosmopolitan Cranberry Sauce

1 (12 oz. bag) fresh or frozen cranberries
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup water
1/3 cup vodka
3 T. orange-flavored liqueur, such as Grand Marnier or Triple Sec

Combine the cranberries, sugar and water in a heavy saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and cook, stirring occasionally, until most of the berries have popped and the sauce is thickened, about 15 minutes.

Transfer to a medium bowl and cool to room temperature, about 30 minutes. Stir in the vodka and orange liqueur, transfer to a serving bowl and refrigerate.

Note: Cranberries have a high acid content, so you can safely make this ahead and refrigerate it for up to two weeks.

This photo was taken just before I sprinkled on the cheese and put it in the oven. Aren't the vegetables' bright colors beautiful?

Every week Weight Watchers distributes a leaflet that contains healthy eating tips, exercise ideas and recipes. Last week the recipe was for a variation of this vegetarian casserole. Since I had barley in my pantry and had no idea what to do with it, I figured this was a fortuitous sign.

Before assembling the casserole I cooked the barley on the brown rice setting of my rice cooker. If you’re a barley novice, I’d just follow the package directions. Pearled barley works well here. I also added kidney beans to my version, and I’m glad I did. They gave the dish a Tex-Mex flair as well as some extra heartiness. I love Swiss chard, but you can substitute baby spinach if you prefer.

Wow! This was so good I’m going to put it on a semi-regular Meatless Monday rotation. Leftovers were even better the next night.

2 t. olive oil
1 small onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
3 cups Swiss chard, coarsely chopped*
2 cups frozen corn, thawed and drained
1 cup dark kidney or black beans
1 14-1/2 oz. can diced tomatoes with chilies (I used Rotel)
2 cups cooked barley
1/4 t. cumin
1/4 t. dried oregano
1/2 t. salt
pepper to taste
1/2 cup sharp, low-fat shredded cheddar cheese

*remove tough stems from chard with a knife before chopping

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet and sauté onion until translucent. Add garlic and Swiss chard and cook until chard is tender, about 5 minutes. Add corn, beans, tomatoes, barley, cumin, oregano, salt and pepper and heat through.

Coat a 3-quart baking dish with nonstick spray and spread barley mixture evenly into dish. Sprinkle with cheese and bake until cheese melts, about 25 minutes.

Serves 6

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I poached this egg last night and warmed it for lunch today.

I wouldn’t want to go in for a cholesterol check just now, considering that I’ve been poaching eggs every which way for the last two days. We had eggs with spinach and quinoa for dinner last night, eggs on toast for breakfast this morning, and I just ate this egg atop more spinach for lunch.

No more eggs for me. Tonight’s dinner will be its grownup incarnation, chicken. I never thought I’d be excited about a boneless, skinless chicken breast.

Happily, this ovum overindulgence has resulted in a method for poaching eggs that works, I think, better than the standard method of cracking a raw egg into a cup and then tipping it into a shallow pan of simmering water.

You should try this. Eggs make for a lovely and quickly prepared dinner. How about topping a salad with crumbled bacon and a poached egg or two, or with various vegetables that lend themselves nicely? Asparagus, for instance, can be sprinkled with Parmesan cheese and topped with an egg. Or spinach. Or Swiss Chard. Or how about kale? You get the picture.

The following poaching method requires an extra step, but it’s easy and it’s worth it. And it comes from none other than Julia Child!

Here’s what you do: heat about 2 quarts of water in a medium stock pot until boiling. Prick a hole* in the large end of the egg (to release air from the tiny air pocket inside. Don’t worry, the egg won’t leak out). Then, using a slotted spoon, lower the egg into the gently boiling water for 10 seconds, counting thusly: “One thousand, two thousand, three thousand.” After 10 seconds, remove the egg and do the same with the other eggs you’re going to poach.

Now, fill a shallow saute pan with water to a depth of about 2 inches and bring it just to a simmer but NOT a boil. Add about 1/4 cup of vinegar to the water.

Then, one by one, crack the egg fairly hard against a flat surface, and holding the shell right at the water line (you might want to use plastic gloves if you’re afraid of burning yourself, but I had no problem), open it quickly and release it into the water. The egg should hold its shape better than if you were doing this with a raw egg, because the 10-second dip into boiling water started the cooking process.

Allow the eggs to remain in the water for exactly 4 minutes. No longer. Remove the eggs with a slotted spoon, and here’s the really cool part: if you don’t want to eat them just yet, place them into a bowl of cold water (with a few ice cubes, which will stop the cooking process) and refrigerate them for up to two days. This is what restaurants do when they know they’ll need lots of poached eggs quickly.

When it’s time to eat, just dip them into hot water for a few seconds to take off the chill, and serve. They will still have a slightly runny yolk, as if you had just poached them. I’ve never served eggs at holidays because it was too labor-intensive to poach them all at once, but now I can make them ahead and serve them on Christmas morning.

Christmas is two months from now. I figure by then I’ll be ready for another egg.

*I bought an inexpensive egg pricker gizmo at a kitchen shop. You simply place the egg onto the gizmo and push down. It makes a perfect, tiny hole.

I’ve been experimenting with quinoa so much lately that I’ve almost emptied my large bag of Costco quinoa. This high-quality source of complete protein has been a revelation, one which I will henceforth be unable to abandon as a mere culinary trend.

Where has quinoa been all my life? I certainly didn’t eat it when I was growing up in Sacramento, California. Indeed, quinoa (pronounced keen-wa) didn’t appear on my radar screen until several years ago, when a vegetarian Weight Watcher member mentioned it at our meeting. I was hesitant, obviously, because it’s taken me these two years to finally give it a try. As I said, it will be a kitchen staple from now on.

Here is a meatless (since it is a complete protein, there’s no need for meat!) adaptation from Bon Appetit, which I only slightly tinkered with. Believe it or not, I simplified it, which, when you read the list of ingredients, may seem implausible. Yes, the list is long, but take a good look–it’s mostly spices.

If you opt for the full 1/2 t. cayenne, you’ll be in for a very spicy treat. For a tamer version, cut it down or out altogether. The remaining combination of spices is absolutely brilliant. I’ve made this twice already, it was so good!

Stew

2 T. olive oil
1 onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 t. sweet paprika
1 t. salt
1/2 t. pepper
1/2 t. ground coriander
1/2 t. ground cumin
1/2 t. turmeric
1/2 t. ground ginger
1/4 to 1/2 t. cayenne pepper (I used 1/2 t. but beware, that makes this dish pretty fabulously hot)
1 cup water
1 14-1/2 oz. can diced tomatoes
2 T. fresh lemon juice
3 cups peeled butternut squash, cut into 1-in. cubes
2 cups peeled carrots, cut into 3/4-in. cubes

Quinoa

1 cup quinoa (I buy pre-rinsed quinoa at Costco)
1 T. butter
1 T. olive oil
1/2 c.onion, finely chopped
1/4 c. carrots, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 t. salt
1/2 t. turmeric
2 c. water
1/2 c. chopped cilantro

For the stew: heat oil in a large pot and add onion; saute until soft, about 5 min. Add garlic and cook 1 min. Mix in paprika, salt, pepper, coriander, cumin, turmeric, ginger and cayenne pepper.

Add water, tomatoes and lemon juice and bring to a boil. Add squash and carrots. Cover and simmer until vegetables are tender, about 20 min. Season to taste with salt and pepper. (You can prepare this a day ahead and reheat it.)

For the quinoa: Rinse quinoa and drain. Melt butter with oil in a large saucepan; add onion and carrot. Cover and cook until vegetables being to brown, about 10 min. Add garlic, salt and turmeric. Cook 1 min. Add quinoa and cook another 1 min. Add 2 cups water; bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer until liquid is absorbed and quinoa is tender, about 15 min.

If you’ve refrigerated the stew, re-heat it and stir in half of the cilantro. Spoon quinoa onto a platter, forming a well in the center. Spoon the stew into the center and sprinkle with remaining cilantro.

Serves 4

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I never ate oatmeal when I was growing up in Northern California in the 1960′s. Like most children, my brothers and I preferred sugary cold cereals, and our mother was happy to accommodate us. In her defense, the health benefits of oats weren’t as well known then as they are now.

Although hot oatmeal is the most familiar oat breakfast,  there’s another cereal eaten by millions of Europeans: muesli, which originally hails from Switzerland. Think of it as raw granola.

Muesli is a combination of raw oats with roasted nuts and dried fruit mixed in. It is traditionally mixed with milk and left in the refrigerator overnight to soften the oats, but I like to eat it right away, adding milk, a bit of brown sugar and fresh fruit. Another Swiss tradition is to grate an apple into the muesli/milk mixture. You can also eat it with yogurt.

Mix up a big jar of this and keep it in your pantry. It’s delicious with whatever fresh fruit you have on hand. And it will keep you satisfied all morning.

Muesli
1 1/2 cups almonds (I get big bags at Costco)
3 cups old fashioned oats
3 cups quick oats
1 cup wheat bran
1 cup raisins (you can use dark or yellow raisins or even chopped dates)
Grated fresh tart apple for serving (optional)

Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Spread almonds on baking sheet and roast for about 5 to 8 minutes, until lightly browned. Allow to cool and finely chop.

Mix the nuts with the remaining ingredients and store in a jar with a tight-fitting lid. Serve with milk or yogurt and your sweetener of choice.

per 1/3 cup

Banish bland Meatless Mondays with spicy quinoa!

This post marks the beginning of a foray into recipes with quinoa, an ancient grain from the Andes. Quinoa is unique because it contains a balanced set of essential amino acids which, unlike other grains such as wheat or rice, makes it a complete protein. Thus it is an excellent choice for Meatless Mondays.

The following recipe is adapted from epicurious.com. This was my first try at quinoa, so I sought the least complicated recipe I could find. We discovered when we ate it that it was also completely satisfying and delicious.

A note of caution: read the label on the bag of quinoa you purchase. If it hasn’t been thoroughly washed, rinse it several times in a sieve, as it contains a bitter outer protective coating.

The poodle points do not reflect the optional feta cheese, but I highly recommend crumbling some on top of each serving.

1 T. vegetable oil
2 cups chopped onion
1 cup chopped red bell pepper
1 cup quinoa, rinsed and drained
2 t. chili powder
1/2 t. ground cumin
1/2 t. salt
1 1/2 cups water
1 15-ounce can black beans, rinsed and drained
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
feta cheese (optional)

Heat oil in heavy medium saucepan  and add onions and red pepper; sauté until beginning to soften, about 5 minutes.

Stir in chili powder, cumin, quinoa and salt. Add water; bring to boil. Cover, reduce heat to low and simmer until quinoa is almost tender, about 15 minutes. Add beans and 1/4 cup cilantro; cook uncovered until heated through and liquid is fully absorbed, about 3 minutes. Transfer to bowl; sprinkle with 1/4 cup cilantro and feta cheese, if desired.

Serves 4

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Sliced tomatoes, mozzarella, prosciutto, topped with fresh arugula lightly dressed with lemon juice and olive oil.

It’s a cool, crisp September morning here in the Midwest. With any luck we’re in the final throes of summer and the leaves will begin turning soon. In the meantime, I’m enrolled in Pizza 101 (self-taught course); today’s lesson involves the grill.

You can bake your pizza in the oven as well. What you want is a steady 500 degree heat source and a pizza stone. Better yet, if you want to make several pizzas at once, heat up both the oven and the grill and bake them simultaneously.

The following recipe is adapted from Cooks Illustrated and has become our favorite summer pizza. Fresh arugula is tossed in lemon juice and olive oil and piled atop the pizza just as it  comes off the grill. The combination of cool, tangy greens and hot pizza is surprisingly refreshing. Even Tom the carpenter loves it. We’ve taken to topping every pizza we’ve made, regardless of its ingredients, with arugula!

I haven’t given quantities for the topping, as you may want to make more than one pizza. You’ll need about one to two ounces of prosciutto and 1/2 to 1 cup of mozzarella per pizza.

Thin-crust pizza dough

Toppings:
Fresh tomatoes, sliced thin
Olive oil
Thinly-sliced prosciutto
Mozzarella cheese
Arugula, tossed lightly in lemon juice and Extra-virgin olive oil and seasoned with salt and pepper

Prepare pizza dough. Heat grill and/or oven to 500 degrees and place a pizza stone on grate.

Place prepared dough on a well-floured pizza peel (or the back side of a baking sheet). Arrange tomato slices in concentric circles over pizza dough. Drizzle with one tablespoon of olive oil.

Slide pizza onto hot pizza stone, cover grill and cook for approximately 7 to 8 minutes, or until just beginning to brown. Uncover and add sliced prosciutto and mozzarella. Re-cover and continue to cook until crust is well browned and cheese is bubbly.

Remove pizza, allow to cool for a few moments, slice into single slices and top each slice with dressed arugula.