I love broccoli and cheese soup. This particular version started because I saw some chipotle cheddar cheese at the local grocers. Hmm..chipotle cheddar? I am in! I originally thought i was going to make macaroni and cheese with it but when the intense need for something quick for dinner hit I went with a gut instinct, a head of broccoli and a bottle of Guinness.

Add a good bread and some fruit for dessert and you have the makings of a winter warming meal.

You can vary the beer to vary the flavor of this soup. It certainly can’t be described as delicate! The sharp smokey cheese mixes with the beer to create its own personal magic. The broccoli is merely a stunt man in this. You could use roasted peppers, cauliflower, or leave the vegetables out completely. It’s totally up to you. For one of my favorite meals just add some beer battered onion rings to the side.

Guinness Broccoli Chipotle Cheese Soup

• 3 cups half and half
• 2 cups heavy cream
• 8 oz beer
• 1 head of broccoli, chopped and steamed until tender
• One onion, chopped and sauteed
• 1/2 tsp cumin
• 1 lb of chipotle cheddar, shredded
• 2 tbs chipotle in adobo, mashed
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Cheddar for garnish

1. Simmer cream, half and half, beer, cumin, onion, and chipotle until the sauce reduces slightly and flavors meld, about 10 minutes.
2. Add the broccoli and salt and pepper. Simmer 15 more minutes, stirring often.
3. Taste and adjust seasonings.
4. Sprinkle with cheddar and serve hot.

Serves 6  to 8

Now you can feel comfortable in changing amounts to suit your own needs. Just try it!

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Try an oreo crumb crust, a peanut butter cookie crust, or even a gingersnap crust for a change. Experiment with different flavorings, if you like. This pie takes about 1 1/2 hours start to finish and is ready to serve.

I used finely ground black pepper in this. It gives it a bit of depth and the fine grind means that the smooth texture of the filling is not compromised.

French Silk Pie

• 1 cup butter, softened
• 1 1/2 cups white sugar
• 5 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1/2 tsp finely ground black pepper, optional
• 4 eggs, room temp.
• 1 (9 inch) pie crust, baked or a crumb crust

1. Beat butter and sugar until no graininess remains
2. Add cocoa powder and pepper and beat well.
3. Add eggs, one at a time, beating several minutes after each
4. Beat in vanilla
5. Spoon into crust and smooth top. Chill for 1 hour, at least
6. Serve with whipped cream, chocolate shavings or other garnish

Serves 8

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Roasting brings out the sweetness of almost any vegetable because it caramelizes the natural sugars in it. The flavors aren’t diluted by water (even steaming involves water and evaporation of flavor) and the texture is tender but not mushy. The Panko add a nice crunch while the Parmesan adds a little zing. You could also use bleu cheese instead of Parmesan. My family won’t eat bleu cheese so I only use it for my portion.

Start with an organic, firm head of cauliflower with no brown spots. Don’t separate the florets, just slice the whole thing thinly.

Place the sliced cauliflower in a 13x 9 inch pan that has been rubbed with cut garlic and then olive oil. I like to use a glass pan for this. Drizzle with olive oil. Bake it at 375F until it begins to get golden at the edges and is tender.

Mix:

• 1 1/2 cups of Panko crumbs
• 1/2 cup Parmesan
• Pinch of salt and pepper

Sprinkle over the cauliflower and put back into the oven.

Bake for another 5 to 7 minutes, or until crumbs begin to brown. Remove and serve.

Absolutely simple, delicious, and a bit different. Because of the textures involved this goes great with fish add a little lemon zest to the crumbs) or roast chicken.

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This combination of pumpkin, coconut milk and spicy smoked peppers is a rich and warming first course, or light lunch dish. It is silky and smooth with the sweetness of pumpkin and coconut offset by a smoky spicy finish. I added just a squeeze of lime before serving to brighten the whole thing and bring the flavors together. Just a sprinkle of Vietnamese cinnamon added a nice touch at the table.

Make it ahead of time and reheat it for the most flavor. I saw the prototype for this recipe on epicurious, but I wasn’t completely happy with the way the flavors sounded together. I like my version!

Make sure the coconut milk "thumps" when shaken.

Cut the pumpkin into wedges and remove seeds. This will make it easy to peel.

Peel the pumpkin.

Cut the pumpkin into chunks

Rub leaves between fingers to check for freshness.

This sounds a lot more involved than it is. You CAN do this…and trust me, you WANT to.   Adjust the spiciness to your own liking. Thai chilis are HOT…chipotle a little less, and poblanos pretty mild. I would suggest starting with the chipotle and then moving to a Thai if you want it spicier.

Spicy Thai Coconut Pumpkin Soup

• 2 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
• 1 inch piece of ginger, peeled and sliced thin
• 1 1/2 pounds fresh pumpkin
• 2 cups canned or fresh coconut milk
• 2 cups  chicken broth
• 1 cup loosely packed cilantro leaves
• 1/2 dried Thai chili, or 1 chipotle in adobo, or to taste
• 2 tbs organic coconut oil
• 1/2 tsp liquid smoke
• 1 tbs brown sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoons Thai fish sauce, or to taste
• Pepper to taste
• Juice of 1 lime

1. Peel the pumpkin and clean off any seeds.
2. Cut into cubes. You should have 4 1/2 to 5 cups cubed pumpkin.
3. Place the coconut milk, broth, pumpkin cubes, cilantro leaves, garlic, ginger, and chilis in a large pot and bring to a boil.
4. Add the salt and simmer over medium heat until the pumpkin is tender, about 10 minutes.
5. Stir in the fish sauce, liquid smoke, and coconut oil and cook for another 2 to 3 minutes.
6. Spoon, a little at a time, into a blender and blend until smooth.
7. Set aside for flavors to blend about an hour
8. Reheat
9. Check seasoning and adjust.
10. Just before serving squeeze in the lime, ladle into bowls and sprinkle with cinnamon.

About 8 first course servings or 4-6 luncheon size servings

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See?

This is one of those “Dear Lord what am I cooking tonight?” dishes. The refrigerator was skimpy and so was the pantry. I used to have a regular day for everything…Grocery shop on Monday,clean on Tuesday and Wednesday, day off on Thursday, paperwork and scheduling on Friday…

Please note the words “used to”. Now I get so busy I forget to shop and then we have the unique meals that would totally ruin any reputation as a foodie I have. I have not yet lowered myself to the point of making peanut butter ravioli with jelly sauce..but I am not saying it couldn’t happen…

This was made of a few scraps of Fontina, some left over pecans, a whisp of celery and a couple of spinach leaves that would have had to go to the chickens by the next day..

Yumm…sounds appetizing doesn’t it? Just remember; it isn’t you you start…it’s how you finish!

This makes a great luncheon dish, side dish, or vegetarian main course. There is lots of flavors and textures happening on the plate. If I make it again I am going to try adding some unpeeled, chopped apples just lightly sauteed. I wish I would have thought of it this time.

A friend of mine saw Maple Pepper on a trip to New Hampshire. She sent me a jar of it and…wowza! That stuff is potent. If you don’t have access to the maple pepper, add a tablespoon of maple syrup to the vegetables at the end of saute time, and add a finely chopped chipotle pepper in adobo as well.

Need a menu? Try this with:

Autumn Dinner

Autumn Pasta with Fontina and Pecans

Honey Glazed Roasted Parsnips and Carrots

Baguette or  Rosemary Cracked Pepper Bread

Apple Bundt Cake

This is my entry for Presto Pasta Night. PPN is the brain-child of Ruth of Once Upon a Feast and Abby of Eat th Right Stuff is the hostess for this week.

Autumn Pasta with Fontina and Pecans

• 1 lb  whole wheat penne, cooked a la dente
• 1/2 to 1 cup pecans, chopped and  toasted*
• 1 cup fresh baby spinach cut on a chiffonade**
• 4 stalks celery, chopped
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 cup mushrooms of choice, sliced ( a mixture of several is nice here)
• 4 oz fontina, grated
• 1/2 tsp maple pepper
• salt to taste
• olive oil and butter combo for saute pan (about 2 tbs each)

*To toast pecans toss them in a heavy pan and stir over medium high heat watching that they don’t burn.

**To cut chiffonade: layer several spinach leaves on top of each other. Roll up tightly and then cut horizontally very thinly. You will end up with thin strips of spinach.

1. Saute onion, garlic, and celery in pan until just soft
2. Add mushrooms and saute until done
3. Add maple pepper and stir well
4. Put penne in a large serving bowl, spoon ingredients over the top
5. Add pecans, fontina, and spinach
6. Toss lightly and serve immediately with extra fontina

serves 4-6 (8-10 appetizer or side dish servings)

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It’s the difference between eating at Frontera Grill and Don Pablos.

If you are thinking that that looks like some pretty good nachos – think again. That is one of the diet staples of the Audet household…none other than Tex-Mex Hash. The hardest thing about making this dish  was measuring so I could share it with you.

Basically you can put any meat in hash. It was a dish created to be able to use up leftovers. Traditionally it is corned beef, potatoes, onions, and maybe even beets. Well, that may be how they do it in New York City but in Texas we dance to a different fiddler, so to speak.

You can use left over taco filling if you like, or any other meat you have. I used ground beef in this because I was making it more as a quick dinner than a way to use up leftovers. Anything and everything can be substituted with great results except that you need the Ro*Tel tomatoes and the potatoes.

Tex-Mex Hash

serves 8

• 2 slices of bacon
• 1 large or 2 small onions, peeled and chopped
• 8 medium size potatoes- peeled if not organic otherwise just washed and cubed
• 1 bell pepper , chopped
• 1/2 lb mushrooms sliced, optional
• 1 1/2 lbs ground beef
• 1 tbs cumin
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1/4 cup chopped  fresh cilantro
• 1/2 cup beer
• 2 cans Ro*Tel tomatoes with chilis
• 2 cups cheddar or colby or jack cheese
• 6 corn tortillas, cut in small cubes and fried into chips
• 6 corn tortillas cut in wedges and fried into chips for garnish
• Sour cream

Instructions

1. Cut the bacon into squares and begin to fry it in a large saute pan. You want a nice amount of fat in the pan.
2. Add potatoes, onions, and pepper and saute until almost done but still crisp tender.
3. Add the ground beef, mushrooms, and seasonings, and saute until vegetables are done and meat is almost done.
4. Add cilantro, beer, and tomatoes and simmer uncovered until the most of the liquid is absorbed or evaporates.
5. Mix in the chips that were cut in cubes
6. Sprinkle the cheese over top and allow a minute to melt.
7. Serve immediately with a dollop of sour cream

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Rich and creamy, with a faint coconut flavor that is followed by a tingle of spiciness. As my dad used to say, “This soup has some authority to it!”.

Eating hot peppers really does cause your circulation to increase and it warms you up more than just a warm soup alone would. You can simmer this in a crockpot or make it on top of the stove. If you do decide to make it in a crockpot start with rice that is cooked. I never have had much luck in getting rice to cook right in a slow cooker.

This recipe has a lot of ingredients but there is not a lot of prep and it goes together really fast.  I really loved it and so did the entire family.

Need a menu suggestion? Try this –

• Thai Coconut Curry Soup
• Soft Dinner Rolls
• Mixed Baby Greens with a warm sesame dressing (just warm it to about 110F before adding it to the salad) and grilled pineapple slices
• Chai Spice Snowballs

This is based on a recipe from Epicurious.

Thai Coconut Curry Soup

• 10 cups organic chicken stock
• 2 cups water
• 1/2 oz dried lobster mushrooms, optional
• 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut in thin slices
• 2 dried thai chile peppers
• 5 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped
• 2 inch piece of ginger, peeled and chopped
• 1 leek, cleaned and sliced
• 1 carrot, peeled and diced small
• 2 14 oz cans organic coconut milk (not the sweetened kind)
• 2 bunches of cilantro, stems discarded and leaved chopped
• 1 1/2 cups Jasmine rice
• 2 tbs Asian fish sauce
• 2 tbs brown sugar, if desired
• Juice of one lime
• 3 tablespoons curry powder, or to taste
• Salt to taste

Directions:

1. Bring the water to a boil and pour it over the mushrooms. Allow to stand for 20 minutes
2. Combine stock, curry powder,  mushrooms and water, peppers, leeks, carrots, garlic, ginger, and chicken. Simmer until chicken is tender, about 15 minutes
3. Stir in rice and simmer until rice is cooked, another 15 minutes or so. Leave uncovered and stir occasionally
4. Add remaining ingredients and allow to simmer for another 15 minutes
5. Remove peppers, taste and adjust seasonings
6. Garnish with cilantro leaves

Serves 8

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Polenta and grits are similar products, both made from corn. Grits are normally served as a side dish for breakfast, much as you would serve cream of wheat. In recent years they have become more popular and taken on the role of a side dish.

Grits are creamy, somewhat bland, and soothing but they will take on the flavor of almost any ingredient you put into them. They are cheap and filling and those two attributes make them a favorite ingredient at my house.

These Southwestern style grits are full of flavor cheese, onion, garlic, chiles, tomatoes, cumin, and cilantro. They would be excellent served with grilled meats of any sort.

Quick. Easy. Cheap. Yummy. What more can you ask?

Southwestern Style Grits

• 3 cups water
• 1 16 oz. can Ro*Tel tomatoes with chiles
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons cumin
• 1/4 cup chopped cilantro
• 1 cups grated cheddar
• 1 cup diced onions
• 1 tsp finely minced chipotle or to taste
• 1 cup grits
• 1 cup black olives, sliced

Directions

1. Combine water, tomatoes, spices, onions, and chipotle in a pan. Bring to a boil
2. Add grits, stirring constantly
3. Reduce heat to medium and cook, stirring until grits thicken
4. Add cheese, cilantro, and olives
5. Stir until creamy and serve

Serves 8

You can also add some crisp bacon to this with great results

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Needless to say I did not cook like his mom. I needed to find a way to get the vegetables I loved into our diets without setting off his anti-vegetable meter. What was the answer?

Stir fry! You can chop up nearly anything and put it in a stir fry. So very slowly I introduced things like broccoli, cauliflower, asparagus and brussels sprouts. I chopped them very tiny at first and then increasingly bigger hunks. Eventually Marc was eating all kinds of veggies. He will even eat Brussels Spouts once in awhile…although they are not his favorite. He admitted that he likes spinach the way I fix it…

This sorta stir fry is one of the dishes that has no real recipe and I have been making it for 30 years. You can stretch a little bit of meat and add nearly any vegetable you want.

Marye’s Sorta Stir Fry

• 1-2 lbs of meat: hamburger, sliced beef, chicken, pork, etc.
• 2 onions, thinly sliced
• 4 oz dried maitake mushrooms, reconstituted
• 2 carrots, sliced
• 4 stalks of celery
• 2 tablespoons fresh ginger, grated
• 2 cloves garlic thinly sliced
• 1/2 lb spinach
• 1/2 lb snap peas
• Any other vegetables you have that need using up
• 1/4 cup organic tamari
• 1/4 cup white wine
• soaking water from mushrooms
• 2 tbs to 1/4 cup honey
• 1 tablespoon fennel pollen or 1 teaspoon dried fennel
• 2 tbs balsamic vinegar
• 1 tbs organic cornstarch to thicken (you may want a little more)

1. Mix the sauce ingredients together and set aside.
2. Heat the wok or pan with a tablespoon of oil. Saute the vegetables until crisp-tender. Remove from pan.
3. Add the meat and cook until done.
4. Add the vegetables and the sauce and simmer until sauce is thickened and vegetables are as tender as you like. Serve with rice.

Serves 8

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I cheated on this dish, admittedly. I had Marc go out and pick up cheese ravioli rather than making it myself. The recipe would work well with tortellini,stuffed shells, or any filled pasta.

I finished it with a bit of freshly grated Parmagiana  Reggiano. The flavors were spectacular: earthy portobellos, sweet apple, succulent chicken sausage, and mild onion gave way to tender pasta and creamy ricotta. I am still having trouble swallowing solids but I tried my best with this, I promise!

It was just that good. Serve it with a baguette or try this Rosemary Cracked Pepper bread. Add an endive salad with maybe a cranberry balsamic vinaigrette, and an apple tart for dessert. If you are going to have wine make it something fruity and round to balance the full flavors of this dish.

This is quick. Less than thirty minutes from start to finish and seriously delicious.

Ravioli Normandy

• 2 lbs of ravioli
• 1 lb of organic chicken and apple sausage, sliced
• 3 cups portobello mushrooms, sliced
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 1/4 cup of apple cider
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter
• Salt and pepper to taste

1. Cook the ravioli until done. drain, toss in a little butter and set aside.
2. Melt the butter in a pan over medium heat.
3. Add the sausage, the onion, and the mushrooms. Saute, stirring often until mushrooms and onion are very tender.
4. Pour in the apple cider and simmer for a few minutes until the liquid is reduced by about half.
5. Add the remaining butter.
6. Spoon over the hot ravioli and toss to coat.
7. Garnish with grated cheese and serve hot.

Serves 6-8

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