Leeks

FRIDAY FISH: Salmon, Leek, & Fennel Quiche

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Springing up in our yard

There’s just something about eggs and cream together. A marriage, as they say, made in culinary heaven. The wide, wide world offers so many choice custard desserts (do you know natilla?); my hub and best sous Dave adores old school American custard pies, as does good friend and fine baker Ruth Lehmkuhl. I, myself, like nothing better than a little crème brûlée to tuck into at the end of a long, laughing dinner, along with a not-too-tiny Armagnac, of course. I also love plain old custard with nutmeg –the perfect sore throat fast food– baked in Pyrex custard dishes, so there. And next comes quiche, which is simply a savory custard pie no matter what shape it’s baked into or what kind of dish or pan or plate holds it. It’s all good fun to bake a few quiche (quiches?) for a brunch, having them ready when folks arrive so they can choose their favorite(s). While yummy when warm — they’re not good straight out of the oven as they need to set a spell before cutting to avoid a hot mess — they’re also stunning at room temperature or even cold sliced up into bites on an appetizer platter. I have to slip in here that they travel beautifully; we often have a slice or two in hotel rooms after long car rides. I’ll also attest you can make a quiche out of just about anything, which makes them exceptional dishes for using up leftovers — more on that later. Today’s SALMON, LEEK & FENNEL crustless quiche (no pastry worries here) was just such a fortunate pie in my kitchen. After making a Salmon Cheese Spread for a charcuterie platter demonstration, I had just a little salmon leftover…

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Mushroom and Leek Lentil-Chickpea Soup

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The beauty of a vegetable soup is manifold. It’s mouthwatering, colorful, done in a snap, affordable, versatile, full of vitamins and fiber, accessible, easily vegan/gluten-free, and pantry-friendly. Wow! The beauty of a vegetable soup with legumes, or in this case both lentils and chickpeas, is even greater as there’s the addition of plant-based protein (and lots more fiber) which makes the soup increasingly healthful — to say nothing of filling. Now all those things are true, real, and make me feel happy about putting a pot of this goodness on the table anytime. But I mostly want to make vegetable soup because I like to eat it (especially right after Super Bowl and Valentine’s Day!) and before that, I like to smell it cooking in my house. Is there anything better?

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INSTANT POT: Cream of Broccoli-Cauliflower Soup with Dill and Chives

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Each week this summer, I’ve made a vegetable-based soup to have for lunches or to round out a salad dinner that uses up leftovers. In order to increase my INSTANT POT (IP) skills and to see how many of my soup book’s recipes transfer well to this medium, I’ve mostly made them in the IP or multicooker–-the real name for the electric pressure cooker that’s also a sauté pot and a slow cooker. Like folks call all tissue “Kleenex,” we tend to call most multi cookers “Instant Pots.” (Note: I like my regular slow cooker much better than the IP version.) To get food cooked in a flash is the main idea with IP recipes and while I’m rarely in a hurry (in fact, it’s just the opposite in my kitchen), I get the idea. In fact, I do enjoy throwing things in a pot, turning it on, and then being able to disappear to the treadmill or a good book. Magic! Another excellent reason to cook soup this way is there’s much less heat in the kitchen with the stove off.

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Pasta Primavera Soup (Spring Vegetable Soup with Pasta)

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If you’re lucky enough to live in places where spring vegetables were planted weeks ago, you could already have a crop of spinach or green onions or asparagus. Our past-frost date in Colorado Springs hasn’t yet arrived; it’s June 1 – June 10. For the first time, I’ve snuck a few things in early, but am nightly ready to rush out to bring pots in or run into the yard like a crazy woman throwing blankets over newly-planted beds.  (We have upcoming lows of 32 F this week, for instance.)

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It Might as Well Be Spring Soup — Lusty Vegan Fare

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Disclaimer June, 2014 :  I  have used the term “lusty vegan” in my blogs without knowing a book by that name was going to be published; I naively thought it was my own phrase.  Just so you know.  Not a thief!

In Colorado, spring comes in fits and starts, swirling itself in and out through March, April, and sometimes May.  There are warm days where we heat up the grill at five pm followed by frozen hoarfrost mornings perfect for stew-making.  We, unlike most of the northern United States, have truly fine days long before the real start of spring; January and February can breed 55 or 60 degrees Fahrenheit afternoons when the windows are thrown open for the stagnant winter aromas to dissipate into sweet, albeit temporary, breezes floating down from the mountains.  A cook who lives within the seasons and responds accordingly often doesn’t know what to do but be exceedingly spontaneous and keep a daily eye on the weather channel.

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Despite snow still appearing on an at least weekly basis, I have for weeks been dreaming of spring vegetables and a new soup to celebrate them.  It’s not that we have any spring vegetables cropping up (good pun) in Colorado Springs; we have so little rain that locally-grown vegetables are like gold.  And where we live, up on the mesa, it’s bedrock, bobcats, coyotes, deer, and bears.  If you had the good luck to get anything to grow, you could be sure something not-so-human would be eating it.  I grow copious amounts of herbs in pots and often have cherry tomatoes in hanging baskets on the deck.  That’s about it; that’s all I can protect from the wildlife.

below:  one of our local young and scrawny bucks making his way through our back garden

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Still–the idea of spring food is dear to my heart and I have lovely memories of the Saint Paul Farmer’s Market and its bounty.  (In Saint Paul, the Farmer’s Market is still selling winter products, I’m sure.  Way too early to plant, though they’re all dreaming and many are starting seeds indoors.)  Happy spring vegetables like fennel, asparagus, and leeks deserve their very own dishes with luscious and copious amounts of fresh herbs to encourage them along.  While I love asparagus soup ( and who doesn’t), adore leek and potato soup (same thing), and will put sautéed spicy fennel on just about anything, I kept thinking of a soup that featured all of them. Together.

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