Red Bean and Spinach Soup

Bean soup is a staple in my house; its simple to make and fun to improvise. If I have some dried beans (which I always do) a few veggies (ditto) and a complimentary starch: rice, pasta, potato, I've got rich satisfying soup. The same basic process can produce nearly unlimited variations just by mixing up the variables. First you've got beans: red beans, black beans, white beans, pink beans, garbanzo beans etc..... and don't forget lentils and split peas. Next, veggies: you've got the classic celery and carrots, also mushrooms, tomatoes, spinach, squash, peppers and on and on. Add a complimentary starch, seasonings and flavorings like spices and herbs, meats (bacon and sausages really go well, but any meat will work), olives, flavored oils and vinegars, etc, and you can see the potential for your own versions are endless.

I was inspired to share my bean soup habit by a new stall selling beans at the farmers market. I realize I am disproportionately excited about this, but I am pumped! I love beans, and these beans are the best; super fresh, and right there with my weekly staples every Saturday morning. Now if they would sell coffee beans at my farmers market I might be able to give up shopping indoors all together.


Red Bean and Spinach Soup
the recipe:

canola oil
1 small onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup dry red wine
1 cup dried red beans, soaked over night or "quick-soaked"
3 - 4 cups spinach, rinsed and stemmed
1 cup ditalini pasta
salt
fresh ground black pepper
extra virgin olive oil


In large heavy bottomed saucepan or dutch oven saute onion in canola oil over med heat until caramelized, but not dark. (lower heat if necessary to prevent burning) Add garlic and saute one minute. Deglaze pan with wine (pour in wine and scrape up any bits (fond) stuck to the pan). Add soaked beans and water to generously cover. Bring to a boil and skim off any foam or scum from the surface. Reduce heat to low and simmer until beans are tender (1 -3 hours depending on the type and freshness of your beans) skimming surface often and adding water as necessary. Generously salt beans and add pasta. Simmer until pasta is nearly al dente. Add spinach and simmer until pasta is done and spinach is just wilted. Taste and adjust seasoning and serve immediately with extra virgin olive oil and fresh ground black pepper. (If you want to make soup ahead, either wait to add pasta and spinach, or remove from heat before pasta and spinach is fully cooked. The soup will finish cooking when reheated.)























Reading this recipe I'm sure you can see all the ways this very basic recipe can be adapted. First you can throw some diced carrots and celery in with the onion, or maybe some peppers and cilantro, or mushrooms... get creative, it's nearly impossible to mess it up. this first step is also a great time to add bacon or whole or ground spices (there flavor is intensified by a brief saute in hot oil). Next, in goes your beans, this is also a good time to add long simmering flavor enhancers like wine, canned tomatoes, cheese rinds, dried chilies, etc. (Note: using dried beans makes a very rich and flavorful broth. If you don't have time to use dried beans, you could try canned and use some meat or veggie stock.) Once your beans are tender, it's time for vegetables and starches; almost anything goes here, just keep in mind the cooking time for each ingredient. Finally, taste and adjust your seasoning; keep in mind if you haven't added one in earlier steps, you probably want a little bit of some kind of "acidic" flavor to balance it all out. Lemon juice or vinegar works great.

Here is an example of one variation: Chickpea Stew with mushrooms carrots and rice. I flavored this batch of soup with a Parmesan cheese rind. As you can imagine, this soup tastes all together different from the red bean soup, with only a few simple changes. Simply swap out chickpeas for red beans, add minced carrots and mushrooms to your caramelized onions, and cubed carrots and mushrooms instead of spinach, simmer with Parmesan and add a little rice and a squirt of lemon.

Rhubarb Ginger Jam

For the first time in my life; I ate jam out of a jar with a spoon. Make this zingy, sweet and tart Ginger Rhubarb Jam and you'll understand. It's rhubarb season, which means my friend RH is making ginger rhubarb jam. I don't know if she was planning on making it a tradition, but it elicits such rave reviews that it has showed up each spring right along with the rhubarb crop. Just when it starts to sound like a jammy fairytale; the bad news: R is moving to Chicago this summer, making this not only an opportunity to make a great jar of jam, but an opportunity to pass on a great recipe, and keep a little bit of my friend right here in Brooklyn. She might be eating deep dish, while I get to savor a Brooklyn slice, but we'll both be eating the same jam every spring.

This jam, like most, is very simple and requires no special equipment. If you make a larger batch, it would be a natural for canning, as rhubarb season is short and a jar of tart rhubarb jam with a warming ginger bite sounds just as good, if not better, in the bitter cold of winter. We made a pretty small and manageable batch, (I don't think R digs the idea of moving jars of jam cross country), great if you want to make enough for you and your friends, or maybe enough to last until the strawberries arrive.


the recipe:

3 lbs rhubarb (discard leaves)
4 cups sugar
zest and juice of 1 large lemon
2 tablespoons fresh grated ginger

Cut rhubarb into 1 inch lengths. Mix with sugar and lemon and let sit for 20 minutes. Add rhubarb mixture and ginger to heavy saucepan. Bring to boil and adjust heat to a gentle boil. Cook, stirring occasionally, until gelling point (place a dollop of jam on cold plate. The surface will form a skin when gelled): 45 to 55 minutes. When gelled, skim any scum from the surface, remove from heat and stir to evenly disperse fruit. Ladle into warm jars and store in fridge, or use canning process for self stable storage. Makes about 4 - 5 half pint jars.

Cardamom Ice Cream

Yeah! I have a new (to me) ice cream maker, and I love it. So little work for such a delicious result. My very first ice cream experiment involved a custard and some cardamom pods. I was hoping for the best, and the results far exceeded my expectations. The flavor was intense and "exotic" but also familiar: much like a slightly more floral cousin of vanilla. This was all balanced by a rich and eggy custard base.

I have a confession: I am not a chocolate dessert person, (I know many find this blasphemous.) Don't get me wrong chocolate is great, but I actually like vanilla better. Keeping in mind my chocolate disclosure - I have to say, I think this just might be my new favorite ice cream.

I served my cardamon ice cream with sweet ripe cubes of mango. I can't take full credit for the combo as they are two classic Indian ingredients, but the combination was perfect. Both the ice cream and the mango have rich and floral notes, the mango added a nice piny musky complexity that was tamed by the creaminess of whole milk and heavy cream.

If you don't have an ice cream maker, I highly recommend getting one. They are very inexpensive these days, and I imagine it would pay for itself in no time. Not only can you save money, you also have complete control over what goes into your ice cream. I made mine with milk, cream, and eggs from the farmers market, and I could taste it. So fresh and rich and eggy, no store bought ice cream could possibly compete.

the recipe:

2/3 cup sugar
2 eggs
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups whole milk
1 cup heavy cream
6-7 green cardamon pods, slightly crushed


Whisk together sugar and eggs until frothy and lemony yellow. In saucepan, heat milk and cardamom until it simmers. Add milk and cardamom slowly to egg mixture, whisking constantly. (This process is called Tempering) Return to pan and cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until it coats the back of a spoon: 6-8 minutes. Pour custard through a strainer and cool. Add cream and refrigerate until cold. Process in ice cream maker according to your machines directions.

Spaghetti with Ramps

Ramps are here! Those who are not jumping for joy as they read this are probably scratching there heads. To many ramps are unknown. To those who eat seasonally or stalk their local farmers market for the next interesting treasure, this member of the leek family is the first fresh new offering since fall, as well as the beginning of an onslaught of fresh produce that will last nearly until thanksgiving. The very first fruits and veggies of the year are actually foraged: ramps, fiddlehead ferns, stinging nettles, morel mushrooms, rhubarb, and other lesser known wild things. The season for these wild edibles is quite short, in the case of ramps: about three to five weeks.

I decided to make Spaghetti with Ramps, a very common preparation, as my introduction to ramps for the season. I should warn you; I was only briefly introduced but I could taste the garlicky goodness for hours, if not days afterwards. This member of the onion family tastes like a musky mix between garlic and leek, and while mild, relative to a regular onion, the taste (and smell) really linger. I suggest making enough spaghetti for all of your friends: (spread the stink!)

A ramp is a self contained feast. It comes with two flavors (garlic and leek) and three textures: a tender green top (looks a bit like tulip leaves) a thin red stem, and a little white bulb (much like a scallion.) Mother nature knows the ramp will venture forth early and alone, and gives a chef nearly all they need to whip up an easy dish like Spaghetti with Ramps. I simply separated each ramp into its three distinct parts, chopped the bulbs and caramelized them, quickly sauteed the stems followed by the greens and stirred in some lemon juice (or wine), olive oil(or butter) and Spaghetti with some of its cooking liquid. Gave it a stir and ate it with lots of fresh ground black pepper and lemon wedges. If I would have had it on hand (or hadn't been quarantined by rain,) I would have topped it with a generous mound of fluffy shredded Parmesan, or some breadcrumbs sauteed with butter and parsley.





















recipe:

2 tablespoons canola oil
1 bunch ramps, trimmed and cleaned
2 tablespoons lemon juice (or white wine)
4-6 ounces Spaghetti
salt
fresh ground black pepper
extra virgin olive oil


Cut ramps into three separate parts: leafy tops, red stems, and white bulbs. Chop the bulbs and add to large skillet with 1 tablespoon oil and a pinch of salt over medium heat. Saute until gently caramelized, stir occasionally and lower heat if necessary. Remove from pan and reserve. Add additional tablespoon of oil to pan and increase heat to medium-high. Add stems and stir fry until just tender, add greens and season with salt, stir fry until wilted. Reduce heat to medium. Add caramelized bulbs back to the pan along with lemon juice and scrape up any bits stuck to the pan. Meanwhile cook pasta in salted water and drain, reserving a cup of liquid. Add pasta, a few grinds of black pepper, and a 1/2 cup cooking liquid to pan stirring gently until pasta is coated and liquid has mostly reduced. Add more pasta water as necessary to achieve desired consistency. (Keep in mind it will evaporate further as it is plated) Serve on warm plates drizzled with extra virgin olive oil; either with lemon wedges and fresh ground black pepper, or with grated Parmesan, or toasted bread crumbs) Serves 2.