Minestrone Soup topped with Pesto

I recently had the opportunity to sharpen my skills at an abridged Basic Knife Skills class at the very cool and new San Francisco Cooking School on Van Ness.  We diced, chopped, julienned vegetables all the while learning some very cool skills that I thought I already knew, but actually not entirely... So, now I feel much more in control of the many deadly sharp blades in the kitchen, and I brought home the basics to make a vegetable minestrone.

Recipe from the San Francisco Cooking School

Soup:
3 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
1 ½ cups diced onion
2 medium carrots, cut in ½-inch dice
2 medium leeks, white and light green parts only, finely sliced
2 stalks celery, cut in ½-inch pieces
Coarse salt and fresh pepper to taste
2 potatoes, peeled and cut in ½-inch dice
6 cups hot chicken or vegetable stock
1 (14 ounce) can chopped tomatoes
1 ½ cups Savoy cabbage, thinly sliced
1 ½ cups zucchini, cut in ½-inch dice
1 (14 ounce) can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed

We chopped all these vegetables in class and brought everything home in convenient plastic tubs so we could make the super easy recipe for soup at home.

 Pesto:
2 cups gently packed basil leaves
1 medium garlic clove, chopped
¼ cup toasted pine nuts
½ cup extra-virgin olive oil
½ cup freshly grated Parmesan


In a large stock pot, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Stir in the onions, carrots, leeks and celery with a pinch each of salt and pepper. Cook until the vegetables are lightly browned and begin to soften, 5-6 minutes. Add the potatoes and cook, stirring occasionally, 2-3 minutes more.

Stir in the chicken broth, tomatoes and a pinch each of salt and pepper and cook until all the vegetables are tender, about 1 hour. Add the cabbage, zucchini and beans. Cook until cabbage and zucchini are just tender with a bit of a bite, about 6 minutes more.






While the soup is cooking, make the pesto. Using your knife, finely chop the basil, garlic, and pine nuts together. Place in a small bowl and add the oil until the mixture is shiny and moist. Stir in the cheese and season to taste with salt and pepper.







Serve the soup with a drizzle of the fresh pesto over the top. Serves 6.  It is delicious and so easy!

Smitten Kitchen Mushroom Tart

Hi, long time no see.  I made this mushroom tart for a cookbook book club I have joined and we met at Mosswood Park in Oakland and everyone brought dishes from the Smitten Kitchen blog or cookbook.

Ingredients

the crust:
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
¼ cup yellow cornmeal
¼ teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, cold and cut into ½ inch pieces
1 large egg

the filling:

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
2 medium shallots, thinly sliced
1 clove garlic, minced
1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
½ pound cremini mushrooms, thinly sliced
1 pound assorted wild mushrooms (such as shiitake or oyster), torn into small pieces (You can substitute more cremini or baby bella mushrooms for the wild mushrooms).
1 teaspoon salt, divided
freshly ground pepper, to taste
¼ cup mascarpone cheese, room temperature
¼ cup milk
2 large eggs
½ cup freshly grated gruyere cheese
¼ cup freshly grated parmesan cheese

Instructions
To make the crust - add the flour, cornmeal and salt to the bowl of a food processor. Add in the butter. Pulse until the butter is the size of tiny peas. Add the egg and process until the dough starts to clump together (it will look like wet sand). Dump the dough onto a floured surface and use your hands to bring it together. Roll out the dough to a 12-inch circle (rolling out the dough between two pieces of plastic wrap made this very easy). Transfer the dough to a 9-inch tart pan and press the dough against the bottom and sides. Remove the excess dough from the top. Place the tart pan on a baking sheet and put in the freezer until firm, about 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Lightly butter one side of a 12-inch square of aluminum foil. Press the foil firmly against the bottom and sides of the crust (butter side down). Bake for 10 minutes (no pie weights needed). Carefully remove the foil and then bake for another 5 to 8 minutes, until lightly golden brown around the edges. Place on a wire rack. Reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees.
To make the filling - set a large skillet over medium heat. Add the olive oil and butter. When the butter is melted, add the shallots. Cook, stirring occasionally, for about 2 to 3 minutes, until soft. Add in the garlic and thyme and cook for 30 seconds, until fragrant. Increase the heat to medium high and add in the mushrooms (if the mushrooms won’t all fit in your skillet, add as many as you can and as they cook down you’ll be able to add more to the pan).


Cook for about 9 to 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the mushrooms are tender and the liquid has evaporated. Stir in ½ teaspoon salt and pepper (to taste). Transfer to a plate to cool.
In a medium bowl, add the mascarpone. Slowly pour in the milk and whisk until the mixture is smooth. Whisk in the eggs. Add in the gruyere, parmesan and remaining ½ teaspoon salt. Add in the cooled mushrooms and mix to combine.






Carefully pour the mixture into the tart shell. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, until slightly puffed and lightly golden brown on the top (if you insert the tip of a small knife into the center, it should not release any wet custard). Let the tart cool for at least 10 minutes before removing from the pan to serve. Serve warm or at room temperature.



There were lots of delicious dishes, it was a very bright sunny day and our picnic table was half in and half out of the sun, which made for the piebald effect below.  This is the spread:  pesto potato with green beans top left, then roasted carrots  and avocado salad, roasted peppers with capers and mozarella, the most amazing savory shortcake made with cherry tomatoes whipped goat cheese, salted brown butter rice krispy treats, and lemon bars made from meyer lemon.  A very delicious and fun feast!

Francoise' Lamb Tagine with Apricots and almonds

Makes 4 servings
Adapted from Dorie Greenspan

1 cup chicken broth
2 oz moist, plump dried apricots
About 6 tablespoons olive oil
1 pound boneless lamb shoulder, fat removed, cut into cubes about 1 1/2 inches on a side (we used lamb stew meat)
2 medium onions, peeled, trimmed and coarsely chopped
4 cloves of garlic, peeled, trimmed, germ removed and finely chopped
One half 14 1/2 - ounce can diced tomatoes, drained, or 2 medium tomatoes, peeled, seeded and crushed
1-1/2 tablespoon coriander seeds, cracked (I used ground)
2 large pinches saffron
1 teaspoon finely grated fresh ginger
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
About 1/4 cup chopped cilantro leaves
1/2 cup toasted sliced almonds
Salt and freshly ground pepper
Couscous or rice, for serving

Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.

If you're using the bouillon cubes (it's what Dorie's friend Francoise uses), drop them into a medium-size bowl and pour over 1 3/4 cups of boiling water; stir to dissolve.  If you're using chicken broth, bring it to the boil, then pour it into the bowl.  Add the apricots to the bowl and let them soak and plump while you prepare the rest of the tagine.

Put the base of a tagine, a heavy, high-sided skillet or a Dutch oven over medium-high heat and pour in 3 tablespoons of the oil.  Pat the pieces of lamb dry between sheets of paper towels, then drop them into the hot oil - don't crowd the pan; work in batches, if necessary - and brown the meat on all sides, about 4 minutes.  Lift the meat out of the pot and onto a plate with a slotted spoon.  Season the lamb with salt and pepper.  Pour out the fat that it's in the pan, but leave whatever bits may have stuck to the base.

Return the pan to the stove, adjust the heat to low and add 2 more tablespoons of the olive oil.  When the oil is warm, stir in the onions and garlic and cook, stirring, for about 5 minutes, just to get them started on the road to softening.  Add the tomatoes, season with salt and pepper, and continue to cook, stirring often, for another 10 minutes, adding a little more oil, if needed.  Add the chicken bouillon/broth to the pot as well as the coriander, saffron - crush the saffron between your fingers as you sprinkle it into the pot - ginger, cumin, cinnamon and 2 tablespoons of the chopped cilantro leaves.  Stir to mix and dissolve the spices, season with salt and pepper and spoon the meat over the base of vegetables.  Top with the plumped apricots, seal the pan with aluminum foil and clap on the lid.  Slide the pan into the oven.

Bake the tagine for 60 minutes before carefully lifting the lid and foil and scattering the almonds over the meat.  Recover the pan and allow the tagine to bake for 15 minutes more.  You can also just toast the almonds and scatter them over the dish when serving.

Serving:  If you've cooked it in a tagine, sprinkle the remaining cilantro over the meat, bring the tagine to the table and serve directly from the pan.  If you've used a skillet or Dutch oven, transfer the tagine to a warm large serving platter and dust with cilantro. This is fabulous served with spicy Harissa sauce on the side.

If you make the dish ahead, add the toasted almonds when you reheat the tagine for serving.

Click here to read the related story on my other blog foodhoe's foraging.