Tomato Basil Pesto Soup

The sass is back! Ten months later and making a big splash with soup!

It's a been a very long time since I have shared my love for food, cooking and sharing my passion for preparing meals! For 10 months I've been dragging my feet, with a move to a new apartment, adopting a kitten ( hello Umber!) and repairing a camera that took way too long to finally fix, I am back in full sass! Thanks to all of you who welcomed me back with open arms, it was tough after being gone for so long!

In my 10 month hiatus, I have done and A LOT and learned A LOT about:
-veganism
-dairy-free cooking
-Paleo
-raw food

While some of these lifestyles, and I call them that because they truly define the ways you approach food in and out of the kitchen, are not for me 100% of the time, they all have very valuable characteristics and principles that celebrate food as something to be enjoyed and as a strong force of nutrition as well as energy. I've picked up on a number of tips and tricks that cut corners here and there --they have really helped make prep time, easier, faster and more convenient for home cooks with limited time, without ingredient fatigue.

Homemade vegan pesto is the best. Toasted cashews give it that creamy texture without the cheese!

I have been cooking up a storm in my new place, mostly perfecting existing recipes and also working with things I have at home or whatever is in season (or inexpensive!) at the grocery store. Not only have I been buying more produce, but I've been playing around with substituting starches with hearty veggies. Turning them into pastas and rice, topping them off with tons of protein!

My number one fan, Umber the kitten!

As so this left me thinking  long and hard about my comeback to Kneading Sass; I knew I wanted to make a splash (in truly, sassy fashion!) but I did not want to make anything new or complicated. Simple is my mantra these days. No more than 5 main ingredients --- all of which are easy to find and versatile for everyday cooking. I've also been cooking for the entire work week, saving a lot of money and calories, by making at least two different meals and switching off days to give myself some variety. Keeping all these culinary experiences (some failures, some successes) in mind, I decided to reintroduce myself to Kneading Sass with some soup. The perfect cure for any ailment!

Soup is AWESOME, and I truly believe this for a number of reasons:
- Soup can be prepared in large quantities (and ahead of time!)
- No need to eat it all at once, or even share your soup, freeze it for at least a month!
- Most soups have a base of garlic and onion (sometimes carrot and celery), always got that on hand!
- Not using the exact amount of any particular ingredient won't ruin your soup! (there are plenty of ways to hide mistakes in soup)

Here is lovely, San Francisco, we've finally got our dose of winter...and by winter I mean a few days of rain, cloudy weather and chilly nights. It's the perfect setting for soup

This recipe is gluten free (yay!) and can be made vegan (double yay!). Sip and slurp on this sassy soup..oh and let me know what you think!

Tomato Basil Pesto Soup

Ingredients:

• 3 can of diced tomatoes (do not discard these lovely juices!)
• 3 Tbl. olive oil
• 1 small white onion, diced
  
• 5 cloves of garlic, minced
• 3 cups vegetable or chicken stock
• 3 heaping Tbl. pesto (homemade or store bought) Alternatively, you can use about 1/2 cup of fresh basil leaves roughly chopped instead
• 1/2 tsp dried thyme
• 2 Tbl. agave nectar (or sugar)
• 1 bay leaf
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 3/4 cups of milk + 2 Tbl unsalted butter, melted (combine these two to make half and half-like consistency), optional

Directions:

1. In a large pot, saute diced onions on medium heat, about 5 minutes until they are transparent. Add in your minced garlic and cook for one minute, until fragrant.

2. Add in 3 cans of diced tomatoes, stock, agave nectar thyme, salt, pepper and bay leaf. Stir in pesto. 

3. Bring your soup to a boil, once you see it bubbling away, bring the heat down to a simmer and cover. Let the soup simmer, while covered, for 30 minutes. Don't forget to remove your bay leaf once you are done simmering!

4. Using a blender (LOVE my Ninja blender), or blender stick, you can emulsify your soup making it smoother in texture.

5. Using a ladle spoon, slowly add all your soup mixture into you blender. If you are using an immersion stick then be sure to cool your soup mixture for a few minutes, it is possible that some soup will splatter, so it's best you save yourself from a burner! Or just use a blender, honestly, it is
MUCH safer.

6. Blend soup for about 30 seconds, until smooth. Add in milk mixture and blend again for another 30 seconds.

7. Serve piping hot with an extra teaspoon of pesto on top. Goes great with a gooey grilled cheese sandwich or toast!

For storage, store cooled soup in an air tight container. Without the dairy your soup should be good in your fridge for about 1 and half weeks. With our without dairy, your soup should freeze well for 1-3 months.

Serving size: 6-8 soup lovers!

Spring into Spring: DIY Brown Rice Spring Rolls and Homemade Wonton Soup

There is nothing like adding your own toppings to frozen yogurt right? Or customizing a coffee drink? Adding  that runny egg on your burger is like the icing on the cake for me!

So trust me when I say that you'll experience the same kind of satisfaction with these vibrant, healthy, gluten-free and frankly, very easy homemade Vietnamese spring rolls.

Mix and match veggies and protein to make for satisfyingly healthy lunch or dinner! I added some cooked shrimp with a dash of fresh lime juice, but braised tofu is also an excellent filler!

Now while I never really drank the brown rice Kool-Aid, growing up with Basmati rice, a long-grain white rice that is buttery and delicious, there is a certain lightness to brown rice spring roll wrappers that makes them less gummy and thick. Instead, you'll taste the crispy, crunch of your veggies, not a mouthful of gooey sticky white rice wrappers...or at least that's what I tell myself to justify a late night trip to Whole Foods in Portero Hill!

The wonton soup was equally as simple and fast. In less than 25 minutes, I've made my "own" broth and fresh wontons. I was quite impressed. The best part is making those little wontons; filling them folding then shaping. You could really TASTE the freshness of using unprocessed ground chicken, fresh spices and herbs. They plumped up quite nicely in the broth, making it a lovely meal on its own.

But that's my style, I go full sass ahead, making two dishes, instead of one! In case you guys haven't caught on, I love having options.

Again, half this meal is gluten-free (the spring rolls) and has great potential to be vegetarian; I really think my ultra liberal, super-left, living/work situation in San Francisco and Oakland has gotten the better of me...and it's awesome!

I know it seems like there are a ton of steps below, but trust me, it goes by quick! Cut your veggies, wrap and repeat!

Brown Rice Vietnamese Spring Rolls with Shrimp and Ginger-Garlic Chicken Wonton Soup


Adapted from Simple Reem
Ingredients:

For Spring Rolls:

• 1 cucumber, seeds removed and cut thinly
• 1 sweet pepper, cut into thin strips
• 1 -2 carrots, peeled and grated ( I didn't have them on hand so I skipped this!)
• Fresh mint springs, thinly sliced
• 1/2 cup, cooked shrimp, tails removed
• 1 package brown rice spring roll wrappers
• Lime juice
• Dash of tamari or soy sauce
• Chili sauce (use sparingly!)

For Wonton Soup

• 8 cups of chicken broth
•  1-2 Shanghai bok choy, sliced
• Handful of minced chives
• 2-3 cloves of garlic sliced
• Several slices of fresh ginger
• 1 Tbl olive oil (or sesame oil if you have it on hand)
• 1/3 lb of ground chicken or turkey
• 1 tsp minced or grated ginger
• 2-3 cloves of garlic, minced
• 2 Tbl tamari or soy sauce
• 1-2 tsp chili hot sauce
• Fresh lime juice 
• 1 cup lukewarm water (to seal wonton wrappers) 
• Wonton wrappers (makes about 10 wontons) 

 Directions:

For Spring Rolls:

1. Julienne (or attempt to julienne) your veggies for the spring rolls. I used yellow peppers, cucumbers (with the seeds removed) and fresh mint. Grated carrots would be excellent in here, I just didn't have any on hand. Bamboo sprouts would also give this a nice crunch as well. Cut as thinly as possibly without cutting your fingers!

2. Lightly marinate your cooked shrimp (tails removed) with soy sauce and fresh lime juice. Begin assembling your springs rolls! Yes it's that easy :)
3. Remove one spring roll wrapper and follow instructions for softening the wrapper. Usually it involves submerging the wrapper (one at a time, to avoid having them stick together!) in bowl of warm water (not hot!)
4. Briefly soak wrapper in warm water, otherwise the wrapper will become very sticky and start sticking to itself. Remove and place on a plate.
5. Assemble veggies about 1/3 away from the edge of the wrapper. This will allow you to roll the spring roll tightly, leaving enough room for all the fixings!

6. Begin rolling the wrapper, ticking the excess wrapper and placing on the plate, seam side down. Make a few and save for the lunch the next day. Serve with peanut sauce.
Note: I'm not the best spring roll wrapper, but this method certainly kept all the veggies neatly in the wrapper!

For Wonton Soup:

1. In olive oil, over medium heat, add slices of garlic and ginger to a large pot. Cook until fragrant about 1-2 mins.
2. Add chicken broth and chives to pot and bring to a boil. Add in soy sauce (or tamari), rice vinegar and hot sauce.

3. Boil broth for about 10-15 mins, to allow all the flavors to seep into the broth. Remove ginger and garlic slices with a slotted spoon.
4. While broth is boiling, begin assembling wontons.
5. Prepare ground chicken or turkey. In a mixing bowl, combine ground meat, grated ginger, minced garlic, chili sauce, soy sauce and lime juice with your hands to make sure the meat is well seasoned.
6. Wash hands and on a clean surface begin making wontons.
7. Have a cup of lukewarm water handy. This will be the binding agent for the wontons.
8. Take one wonton wrapper and with your fingers, wet edges of the wrapper with the water. Place about 1/2 tsp of ground meat mixture at the center of the wrapper.

9. Fold one edge diagonally, to the other edge, forming a triangle. Press firmly along edges of the triangle, to ensure that none of the filling is seeping out (I overfilled a few wontons and they broke in the soup! Not to worry if this happens, just less is more!)

10. Bring the two corners of the wont wrapper up and pinch them together. Assemble all the wontons before adding to the soup. I made about 10-12 wontons.

11. Add wontons to boiling broth and continue to cook for about 5-7 mins. Then, add in your bok choy. Note: The raw meat will cook completely in the boiling broth, a great way to NOT worry about undercooked  poultry.  Serve immediately.

ANOTHER NOTE (annoying, I know): The wonton soup soaks up a lot of a the broth, so any leftovers should be eaten the next day. However, if you make extra springs rolls, they keep well in some tupperware for the next 2-3 days!

Let's Talk Soup: Introducing Kale's Other Brother, Swiss Chard

I was inspired to make this dish because I knew I had some Swiss Chard I had lying around and was looking for the right moment to make a soup with it. Let me tell you, foggy Monday's are by far the worst days (so are rainy Tuesdays!) When I know I have a busy week ahead, am already lacking the energy and on top of that, their ain't no sunshine in site, let's just say you can call me Deb...because I'm going to be a real downer. But a little rainbow chard goes a long way!

Since Kale is all the rage and literally, always out of stock, each time I visit the grocery store, I've been opting for it's lesser acknowledged, sibling of a dark green.

The rainbow chard really adds to the magical properties of this soup. I mean when you just need a little extra TLC (maybe for no particular reason), soup is the ultimate comfort food, without the guilt of something far more greasy. In just on bite you've got every flavor and ingredient asking for your taste buds attention. Soup isn't particularly sexy looking, nor is it sexy to eat, but it sure does get all the senses stimulated at once.

And for that, it seems pretty magical to me! But what makes this very recipe sing its praises, is the that it's well-balanced in all aspects. You've got protein with your lean meat (optional!) and beans. Then you've got your dark greens, carrots and other vegetables. A little bit of carbs, that go a long way. Not to mention, that the flavor profile stands out, because no one spice is over bearing. It's not too earthy or too spicy. The only thing I'd change is adding less of the whole wheat elbow macaroni pasta, as it will soak up much of the liquid making this final product more of a stew than soup.

But let me say that this soup hit the spot...hit the nail right on the head...and the best part? This entire meal came together in less than 30 minutes!

Rainbow Chard White Bean Pesto Soup

Ingredients:

• 1 bunch, chopped  and washed rainbow swiss chard ( 1 bag of already washed and chopped chard)
• 1 leek, washed and sliced
• 1/2 yellow onion, diced
• 2-3 medium sized carrots, sliced
• 3 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1 package of pre-cooked, turkey kielbasa sausage link, chopped  into quarters (totally optional if you are a vegetarian or vegan!) 
• 1/4 cup, whole wheat elbow macaroni (optional)
• 2 cans cannellini or white beans, drained but NOT rinsed (we want the starchy yumminess!)
• 1 Tbs. fresh rosemary, chopped
• 4 cups vegetable stock
• 3 cups water
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Olive oil
• 2 Tbs. of pesto (homemade or pre-made)

Directions:

1. In a large pot or Dutch Oven, add about 1 Tbs. of olive oil and heat on medium. Add minced garlic, onions, onions and leeks. Season with salt and pepper. Sautee these until they are soft and translucent, about 6-7 minutes. 

   2.  Add in drained cannellini beans and cook for additional 3-4 minutes. OPTIONAL: I know many readers are veg or vegan, but if you are a meat lover like me, this is the time to add your cooked turkey sausage quarters!

 

  3.  Add in stock, water and pasta (optional!) bring the pot to boil. Once this is boiling, bring temperature down to a simmer for 10-15 minutes. 

 

  4.  Add chard, which will wilt in the heat. Then add fresh, chopped rosemary and stir in pesto.

  5.  Serve piping hot with a side of some crusty bread! YUM!

 This is a very large serving, perfect for lunch or dinner (or both!) for days and days after. But if you so happen to be serving this for one meal, I'd say it serves about 8-10 hungry urbanites :)

Stay dry in this San Francisco "winter"!