Good Character, Like Good Soup, Is Usually Homemade.......Amish Proverb

As the rain continues in "Sunny Southern California", it has allowed me more cooking time and less outdoor play time and I LOVE IT.

Stew vs. Soup..........one you plate and one you eat out of a bowl.  The recipe I am about to share with you, I consider a "Soup", however with Stew, eating this the next day only enhances the many flavors and with this "Soup", it is one of those dishes that benefits from an overnight trip to the fridge.

With family is coming to visit, I am working on recipes that are easy to fix in advance, as well as delicious the night it is made.

You can buy all of the ingredients, or fill your home with the aromas of the fruits of your labor. I am not the baker but every now and then, I will bake my own bread.  I always make my own stock,  I actually had to buy a freezer for all the containers of stock I make in one setting,  and is an easy way to clear the chicken parts from my freezer I have saved......wing tips, back bones from my spatchcock chickens, celery and onions that are on their last days, etc.....

Home made stock

One of my brothers request is my "Italian Sausage Soup" for his return, it is healthy, but don't let that turn you off, savory and makes you just go YUMMMMM!

As the previous recipes, I always add my LSS items (Lil Som'n Som'n), these are optional, but they do make all the difference.

Enjoy!

ITALIAN SAUSAGE SOUP RECIPE

• Olive Oil - 3 tbsp

The Mirepoix (2:1:1 ratio) - Onions, carrots and celery

• (1) medium onion - chopped
• (3) carrots - diced
• (2) stalks of celery - chopped

• (2) Anchovies - LSS, try it, it does make a big difference
• 2 Heaping fork full of Sauerkraut  - LSS
• 2 tsp of Red Chili Pepper flakes, or for spicer, add more
• 2 tsp of Cumin or to taste
• 2 tsp of black pepper
• (2) 14 oz cans of Cannellini Beans
• (1) 28 oz can of Stewed Diced Tomatoes (Italian stewed tomatoes are the best)
• (1) qt Chicken Stock
• (1) bunch of Italian Kale or Swiss Chard (I cut the woody large end of stems off, but use the stem between the leaf's, or remove the stems all together, your choice.) Rolled and cut into 2" pieces
• (12) Sausage Meat Balls, about the size of golf balls (HINT - You can make your own sausage balls or buy the sausage, much like ground beef packaging, or buy a Jimmy Dean Sausage package and make your own sausage balls, or could buy the pre-rolled sausage balls as I have found in select grocery stores  The heat of the sausage is personal preference I like medium spice.) Uncooked.
• Salt to taste
• (1) lemon
• Sour Cream (optional)
• Chives - chopped (optional)

MIS EN PLACE is a French culinary phrase which means "everything in it's place" and refers to the set up of required ingredients before cooking.  Remember "the prep" is half the battle.

Chop Mirepoix - Onions, carrots and celery

Pull your anchovies out of tin, or use anchovy paste from tube

Drain and wash beans in strainer

Chop Kale or Chard, set aside in bowl, you'll need room on the cutting board

Measure out your spices

Make your Sausage balls

Open your can of tomatoes

NOW YOUR ALL SET

1. Heat OO (olive oil) in dutch over over medium high heat, add anchovies for just about 30 seconds or until they breakdown, then add Mirepoix and cook until the onions are transparent, stir frequently.
2. Add spices, sauerkraut and stir until mixed.
3. Add tomatoes, juice and all, washed beans and stock, bring to a boil.
4. Add chopped Kale/Chard, cover pot and at medium high heat bring back to a boil.
5. Once the Kale/Chard has wilted and the pot is boiling again, add the uncooked sausage balls, make sure they are submerged, bring back to a boil, then lower heat to medium and let the  flavor of the sausage, as they cook, do their magic.
6. Stir occasionally for about 45 minutes, turn pot off and let sit for 15 minutes or so.
7. Taste for saltiness, if you need to add, this is the time.  If you add salt to early the beans will get tough and remember the sausage will add some salt to the pot as well.
8. Right before serving squeeze in the lemon, watch out for the pits.

You're now ready to plate or in this case "bowl" up, add a dollop of sour cream and sprinkle with chives.  Slice up some hot bread of choice for dipping and serve with a salad or eat the soup by its self.

I hope my brother enjoys and you as well.

Bon Appetit!!

FRENCH ONION SOUP IS SIMPLY LIQUID COMFORT

There is nothing better than a rainy, cold weekend day, to stay in your PJ's all day and cook an aromatic savory soup, and particularly for me, if it takes hours from start to finish to complete.

The aroma of onions cooking down for an hour or so, before you add the homemade stock, which slowly simmers for another 2 hours, all the while you're binge watching your favorite Netflix series, in my case, "food porn", ie.... multible cooking series.

Now add the aroma of homemade bread, a beautiful French, Italian or Sour Dough loaf..........does it get any better than this?  I don't think so.

For those that don't want to go to the trouble of making you own stock or bread, there are grocery stores, it's just not as much fun.

Then at the end of the day, after you grated your cheese, and toasted a big thick piece of bread and rubbed garlic on each side, poured the soup in your cup, added the bread and cheese on top of the soup and baked in the oven, there simply is no greater comfort.......I promise.  The bubbling cheese and soup is more than I can take.

Per my initial posting, I said that I cook every recipe three times before I serve to anyone, in this case, this is my go to recipe for rainy, cold days.  Thus over the course of time I have tweeked the recipe for my taste, hopefully my quest likes it as much as I do.  I will give you the straight ingrediants and then if you wish, I listed my "LSS" ITEMS (LSS = Little Some'm Some'm) that you can explore with.

CLASSIC FRENCH ONION SOUP

• 4 or 5 tbsp of unsalted butter
• 2 1/2 to 3 lbs of yellow onions, sliced thinly
• "LSS" ITEM - 2 or 3 anchovies (optional, but don't turn your nose up yet, they make a difference and are not fishy once cooked with onions)
• 1 tsp sugar
• 2 cloves of minced garlic
• 2 tsp of salt, perferably kosher salt or sea salt
• 2 tsp of freshly ground pepper (more at the end if necessary)
• 2 tsp of AP flour
• 3/4 c of white wine or sherry - "LSS" ITEM, I use 1/2 sherry and 1/2 tawny port
• 2 qts chicken stock - NOTE Some will use beef stock, I like the chicken stock better
• 2 tbsp of sherry vinegar or balsamic vinegar, you might want to add some more at the end as well
• "LSS" ITEM - Squeeze a lemon
• Thick slices of hearty white bread, French or Italian and day old is the best, toasted with garlic rubbed across it
• 2 or 3 garlic gloves, peeled and left in tack for rubbing on the toast
• Grated Gruyere cheese to cover the bread and bowl

Serves 6 (or 4 if you are selfish like me)

1. Melt butter in Dutch oven or large stock pan over medium heat.  Add onions and "LSS" anchovies and sugar.  Cook mixture until onions are transluscent, 25 to 30 minutes.  Stir occasionally thru this process.
2. Add garlic, salt and pepper and cook onion mixture for 1 1/2 hours.  Don't stir as much and cook at medium to low heat, anything more and the mixture will burn badly, trust me I know from experience.  However the brown bits that this process creates, are ambrosia when scrapped off the bottom into the onion mixture.  The onions will have collapsed into brown carmilized pile.
3. Add the flour and stir continuously for 1 minute, then add the sherry and deglaze the pan, remember brown bits are good and add flavor, scrap them all up.  Add the stock, bring to a boil, decrease to a simmer and cook for 1 to 1 1/2 hours, slow and easy.  Turn off the heat and add the vinegar and lemon.  You may need more pepper, vinegar or lemon to taste at this point.  Let is sit and take in the aroma.
4. Preheat oven at 400 deg and set ovenproof bowls on a sheet pan lined with foil or parchment paper.
5. Toast bread and once out of the hot oven, rub garlic on both sides.
6. Ladle soup into the bowls, set toast on top of soup, sprinkle with ample grated cheese and into the over for 20 minutes or so, until the cheese is melted and browning.  Serve right away and enjoy my friends!

BON APPETIT!

My Love Of The Kitchen, Cooking, Messes And Saturday's

Southerners can't stand to eat alone. If we're going to cook a mess of greens....we want to eat them with a mess of people. - Julia Reed

I am not a professional chef, trained cook, sous chef, hash slinger or bottle washer.......I just like to cook and apparently "eat", but more importantly, I find that food with family and friends simply gives me great comfort.

Fortunately, I build some of the finest restaurants in LA for some very impressive owner's and chef's and I am a little bit privy to some of the trade secrets of the great kitchens, but mostly my recipes are just trial and error.

Fresh Seafood for Paella

Every effort is made to not poison my friends, neighbors and family, therefore, before I serve my specialties to my loved ones, I cook it 3 times (different times).

I find that a perfect Saturday is creating the recipe in the morning on paper, spending the day shopping for the groceries and the evening, cooking it.  A very perfect Saturday.

I don't always use exact measurements, however I do add my own "Little Some'n Some'n" to my dishes and will show you those "LSS" ideas at each recipe.  Be creative with your own "LSS" too.

Ingrediants from Spain for Paella

And lastly, I am blessed that so many of my friends are great cooks, so hopefully they will share their skills and recipes in this blog, as I am sure you will enjoy the Italian cuisine, the Mexican fares, the breads, the slow cooking one pot meals, as much as I enjoy eating them.

Spanish Paella

I am looking forward to sharing and learning anything about food and hopefully this blog will be worth the read with my "mess of friends".

Enjoy the Video of "Paella 101", from all the ingredants shown above.

PAELLA 101 VIDEO