After France our randomizer landed in China where Hot and Sour soup was our choice. It is actually a wonderful soup that uses ingredients that are quite different from soups in the west. Tofu, bamboo shoots and mushrooms including tree ears etc. The “hot” part is largely due to white pepper. That was a surprize. It is super delicious though.
I love French Onion Soup. The secret it to caramalize the onions till they are almost an onion jam. Cooking sweet onions low-and-slow in melted butter not only makes your kitchen smell spectacular, it also gives this bistro classic its rich, velvety raison d’être. Don’t swap in yellow onions or olive oil; they’ll alter the taste and texture. Use Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Grigio, or any other dry white wine you like to drink to deglaze the pan. Then, simmer the caramelized onions with thyme sprigs and bone broth or whatever alternative works best for you while you preheat the oven.
Swap the French bread “crouton” for ciabatta or another hearty loaf if you like, and the Gruyère for coarsely grated Swiss cheese or Fontina. Dry sherry has a salty, nutty flavor; just a splash works overtime to give this French onion soup recipe layers of savory flavor, but in a pinch, you could swap it for dry vermouth.
Process:
In a Dutch oven or other large pot, melt 3 Tbsp. unsalted butter on the stovetop over medium heat. Add 1 Tbsp. vegetable oil and 3 lbs. Vidalia onions (about 4 medium), halved lengthwise, peeled, and thinly sliced, and cook until onions are softened, stirring occasionally, about 15 minutes. Add 1 tsp. Diamond Crystal or ½ tsp. Morton kosher salt, ½ tsp. freshly ground black pepper, and ½ tsp. granulated sugar. Continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until onions are deep brown, almost mahogany in color, and caramelized, reducing heat slightly if onions seem to be browning too quickly, 45 minutes to 1 hour more. (If the bottom of your pot begins to burn at any time during the cooking process, add 1–2 Tbsp. water and scrape the bottom, stirring in the browned bits.)
Step 2
Add 1½ cups dry white wine such as sauvignon blanc or pinot grigio and raise heat to high. Cook until almost all liquid has evaporated, 8–10 minutes.
Step 3
Tie 10 sprigs fresh thyme and 2 dried bay leaves into a bundle with twine. Add 6 cups Beef Bone Broth or store-bought low-sodium beef stock and herb bundle to pot with onions. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer, and cook, uncovered, until broth is thickened and flavorful, 20–30 minutes. Remove from heat and whisk in remaining 2 Tbsp. unsalted butter. Taste and adjust seasoning with additional kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper.
Do ahead: Soup can be made 3 days ahead; refrigerate in an airtight container or freeze for up to 6 months. Reheat over medium until steaming.
Step 4
To serve, position a rack in the upper third of the oven and heat the broiler to high. Cut two ½-inch baguette slices for every serving of soup. Place baguette slices on a rimmed baking sheet and toast in oven until crisp and dry but not browned, about 1 minute per side. Rub one side of each toast with the 1 garlic clove, cut in half lengthwise, and set aside
Step 5
Place ramekins, crocks, or ovensafe bowls on a rimmed baking sheet, add ½ tsp. sherry, preferably Fino or Manzanilla, to the bottom of each, and ladle soup on top. Top each serving of soup with two garlic-rubbed toasts. Divide 4 oz. (about 1 cup) coarsely grated Gruyère cheese among the servings, covering the toasted bread slices and some of the soup. Carefully transfer baking sheet to oven and broil until cheese is melted and bubbling, 4–8 minutes. (Alternatively, if using regular soup bowls: Top each garlic-rubbed toast with some cheese and return to broiler to melt, about 2 minutes more. Divide sherry and soup among bowls, sprinkle with remaining cheese, and top each serving with two cheese toasts.)
Next we went to Poland for Chlodnik. This is a soup that can be served hot or cold, and we chose cold. It’s basically a beet soup that carries that sourness that is so moreish.
Avgolemono is probably the easiest, tastiest and most delicious soup we made. It’s a classic Greek soup that everybody should have in their wheelhouse. A real pleasant egg lemon flavor profile that just goes on. It’s the best version of chicken soup we found.
This is the Broccoli Gruyere Soup. When I found the soup in the Modernest Cuisine at Home cookbook, it seemed an easy cook. You pretty much use a pressure cooker. You put the floweretes from 3 broccoli stems into the pressure cooker with butter, backing soda and water, then blend it and pass it through a sieve, after that, you incorporate the cheese and add any broth needed to get the texture right. Finish it with roasted hazelnuts and fresh thyme and a few of the flowerets fried.
One of the things that happens when you make a series of different pizzas, is that you accumulate a fair number of leftover ingredients. After we spent a week making pizza, a really great way of eating by the way, we found our fridge beginning to fill up with a lot of small leftover cheeses and sauces especially. So, on Sunday night, we made the “What do we have left over in the fridge” Pizza. What did we have? We had pepperoni sausage, some two week jalapeno pickled pineapple, along with feta, fresh and grated mozzarella, parmigiano reggiano, and arugula. Heather built the pizza she was craving. It was absolutely delicious
This one is the best pizza I have ever tasted. Ever. And it’s not even close. This is a Thai Peanut Shrimp pizza, with spinach, ricotta, peanuts EVOO and Thai peppers, then finished with a squeeze of lime juice. It’s hard to describe the experience of eating this pizza, it’s moreish, it’s delicious, it’s divine, it’s spicy, it’s pure umami in every bite. One of the ways it was so much better was that I kept more dough on the base to it was slightly more chewable than crunchy (which I also like).
After enjoying Chris Bianco’s Rosa Pizza, we made the choice to try his Bianco Verde, Fresh Mozzarella, Parmigiano Reggiano, Ricotta, and Arugula to finish over a red sauce. We used a spicy marinara. The pizza definitely has legs, the ricotta offers a creaminess, so we need to experiment with the red sauces to find the right combination, especially since his version does not use a red sauce. He is innovative in rethinking what pizza is. In any event, we enjoyed it, especially because the arugula wilts and tastes to yummy on top of the pizza, offering a pepperiness that is needed to offset the cheeses.
Next we went simple. The Burrata is a pie on the menu of Ken’s Artisan Pizza in Portland. It’s basically tomato sauce, basil leaves and fresh Burrata after it comes out of the oven. My first thought was, “Well, this is going to leave me hungry,” but, it was really filling and super delicious. Definitely the simplest pie we have ever made. Pizza perfection.
Ingredients:
Tomato Sauce
Fresh Basil leaves (after its out of the oven)
Fresh Burrata (after its out of the oven)
We FINALLY got it right! (they were all fabulous, but this one was the BOMB!)
My Life: A Memoir 