Stephen Fries Online

Hello and welcome to Stephen Fries Online!

Food is my passion and sharing my passion with you is the focus of my website.  Look around at your leisure and check out my blog...you're sure to find something delicious!  And, as always, contact me here with all of your questions!

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Here are the other soup recipes submitted by readers from my New Haven Register Food Column

GAZPACHO    submitted by: Gayle Mimnaugh    New Canaan, CT

Try to make this 24 hours before wanting to eat it, because it gets better with age and will last 7-10 days if not eaten immediately.

Ingredients:

1 Qt. V-8 or tomato juice   (I use  V-8 for the extra spicing)

2 TBS. corn oil

3/4 tsp. Worcestershire Sauce

6-8 drops Tabasco Sauce

1/4 cup red wine vinegar

1/4 cup tarragon vinegar

1/8 tsp. garlic salt

1/2 tsp. pepper

1/2 tsp. Savory/Seasoning salt

3 large tomatoes...chopped (leave skin on)

1 bunch green onions (both white and green parts) chopped

1 medium green pepper (seeded) chopped

2 cups chopped cucumber (unpeeled and unseeded)   = about 2-3 med. size

1 cup chopped celery (I use about 4 ribs or so)

Mix in large bowl or container all liquids and spices.  Stir well.    Add chopped vegetables and mix well.  Place covered in refrigerator and TRY to let sit for a day or two.   Stir occasionally to blend and then enjoy.     Serve cold. Serves 8

HAM BONE SOUP        Submitted by:  Gayle Mimnaugh   New Canaan, CT

1 QT. fresh or canned tomatoes with skin on, quartered and do not drain, save all liquid

4 medium potatoes, peeled and cubed

1 small head cabbage, shredded

3 medium onions chopped

2 LBS. ham, cubed and trimmed of all fat 

1 ham bone   (do not use hamhocks...too salty)

                    (can use ham steaks and their bones)

3 Qts. water

1/4 tsp. pepper

3 dashes of cayenne

In large cooking pot, bring water, ham, bone, onion and pepper to a bowl...boil for 2 hours.   Add potatoes, cabbage, tomatoes and cayenne and reduce to a simmer.   Add water if necessary, so soup won't stick to bottom of the pot.

Cook covered for 1 hour more, skimming off fat as necessary.     

This gets better with age and lasts at least 4-7 days.   Just add a little water as needed when reheating.

Serve with corn bread muffins. Serves 6

Butternut Squash and Corn Soup      Submitted By: Susan Murphy  Hamden, CT

  Ironically, I was sitting down to lunch today with a bowlful of my favorite soup, and I saw your winter soup request. This is a delicious, hearty soup—perfect for a cold winter’s day. I make big batches and freeze them so I always have this soup available!

Olive oil for sautéing

1 medium onion, chopped

1 clove garlic, chopped

½ cup red bell pepper, chopped

1 20 oz bag frozen, peeled, and cubed butternut squash, thawed

1 12 oz bag frozen corn kernels, thawed

1 can cannelloni beans, rinsed and drained

1-2 cups of chicken or vegetable stock (or more, depending on your preferred thickness of the soup)

3-4 handfuls of fresh spinach leaves

1 ½ tsp thyme

1 tbs basil

2 tbs parsley

Salt and black pepper to taste

Over medium heat, add olive oil to coat bottom of a medium to large stock pot. When oil is heated, add onion, garlic, and red bell pepper. Sauté until soft. Add squash, corn, and beans. Stir to mix. Add 1 cup of stock. Reduce heat to medium-low until the cubes of squash break down thickening the soup. Once thickened, you may add more stock until the soup becomes the consistency that you desire. Simmer for 15 to 20 minutes over low heat, stirring occasionally. Add the fresh spinach leaves, thyme, basil, and parsley. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Serve with a crusty French bread or top with a handful of generously cut croutons. Delish!

Sausage & Leek Soup    Submitted by:  Frances Amarante      Branford, CT

I just made a delicious soup for my family called, Sausage and Leek soup

I tasted a version of this soup at the Parthenon Diner in Branford, and set about to copy it and make it my own. Here is my rendition:

6 Leeks, sliced as far up as you can go without using the tougher leaves

2 carrots, cut up

1 potato, diced

2 stalks celery, cut small

1 lb package of Hot Italian sausage

tablespoon olive oil

6 cups beef broth

2 tbs instant or quick cooking brown rice

In large stock pot, put olive oil and heat up, take sausage out of the casings and crumble and brown in oil. Add vegetables to pot and sweat them. Add brown rice and stock and simmer til everything is tender. Serve with a crusty bread!

Note: Leeks are sandy, so after I cut them, I soak them for a bit in cold clean water to remove the grit.

Provencal Vegetable Soup with Pistou      (from Ina Garten Barefoot In Paris Cookbook)

Submitted by:    Sandra Willmott     East Haven,CT

This is a beautiful winter soup. I use reduced sodium broth and do not add additional salt.

2 Tablespoons               olive oil

2                                  onions, chopped

2                                  leeks, chopped

3 medium                      potatoes, diced

3-4                                carrots, diced

1 small                          butternut squash, peeled and diced

                                    Ground black pepper to taste

3 quarts                        chicken stock or broth (vegetable broth is good too)

½ pound                        haricot verts, halved

4 ounces                       small pasta, or spaghetti broken into pieces

1 cup                            pistou (recipe below)

                                    Grated parmesan cheese for serving

Saute onions in olive oil over low heat for 10 minutes until translucent.  Add leeks, potatoes, carrots, squash and pepper and sauté over medium heat for 5 minutes.  Add the broth or stock, bring to boil, and simmer uncovered until vegetables are tender.  Add haricot verts and pasta, bring to a simmer and cook 15 minutes.  To serve, whisk ¼ cup of the pistou into hot soup. Serve with grated Parmesan cheese and more pistou on the side.

Pistou:

4 large                          garlic cloves

½ cup                           tomato paste

24 large             basil leaves

½ cup                           grated Parmesan cheese

½ cup                           olive oil

Puree garlic, tomato paste, basil and Parmesan in food processor.  With motor running slowly, pour olive oil down the feed tube to make a paste.  Transfer into a container, pour a film of oil on top, and close lid.

Or, what I do and “cheat” by combining store-bought pesto with tomato paste.

Beef & Barley Soup     submitted By:  Pat Uscilla        North Haven, CT

I look forward to the Wednesday New Haven Register and your food page  I love making all kinds of soups and stews when it is cold outside. To me they are one of my great comfort foods and my beef barley soup is one of the ones on the top of my list.

1 pound             beef of choice (I like blade steak, it is reasonable and tender)

3 Tablespoons               olive oil

1 medium                      onion, chopped

5 cups                          hot water

2                                  beef bouillon cubes

¾ cup                           barley

3                                  carrots, cubed

2                                  stalks celery and the leaves cubed

½ teaspoon                   kitchen bouquet

Cut beef into bite size pieces.  In a soup pot heat oil and brown beef well.  Add onion and stir until onion is slightly brown.  Add water and bouillon and cover and simmer for 30 minutes. (While this is cooking, in another pot, cook barley according to directions and put aside. ) Add carrots and celery to soup and cook 20 more minutes.  Add kitchen bouquet and the cooked barley

Pat’s notes:  I don’t add salt or pepper because the bouillon has enough seasoning.  I also like to make the day before so I can skim most of the fat from the top and reheat it. A grilled cheese sandwich or some crusty bread and butter makes a wonderful lunch.

Recipe of the Month

The recipe was provided by Executive Chef Adam Gottlieb, Atlantic Grille at The Seagate Hotel & Spa in Delray Beach, Florida. 

Littleneck Clams with Chorizo, Bacon, White Beans and Tomato 

7                              littleneck clams

¼ cup                    chorizo, small dice

2 tablespoons    bacon, small dice

½ cup                    white beans, cooked

3                              cherry tomatoes, quartered

4 ounces              chicken stock

                                Salt & pepper to taste

3 ounces              white wine

1 teaspoon         garlic, chopped

1 teaspoon         shallots, chopped

2 tablespoons    celery, chopped

3 leaves                basil

2 tablespoons    butter

3 ounces              oil

In a hot sauté pan add oil.  Add bacon and cook for 1 minute.  Add chorizo and sauté for 1 minute.  Add garlic and shallots and sauté for 1 minute. Add clams and wine and cook for 2 minutes.  Add stock and cover until clams open.  Once open, add beans, basil tomato and celery.  Finish with butter and season.

Serves 1              

Cookbook of The Month

Wouldn't it be nice if you could treat yourself to dishes from your favorite restaurants anytime? Now you can -- at home! In America's Most Wanted Recipes: Delicious Recipes from Your Family’s Favorite Restaurants Ron Douglas reveals copycat versions of carefully guarded secret restaurant recipes and shows family chefs how to prepare them at home, saving time and money. With these easy and mouth-watering recipes, families can enjoy a night out in their very own kitchens.

Cookbook of Last Month

 Eat What You Love, Love What You Eat

by: Dr. Michelle May

Dr. May's Book will help you: 

Break the “Eat-Repent-Repeat” cycle of yo-yo dieting

Resolve mindless and emotional eating

Re-learn the use of natural cues of hunger and fullness to maintain a healthy relationship with food

Learn to exercise for a vibrant, healthy life instead of earning the right to eat

Use nutrition information as a tool, not a weapon

Learn to eat mindfully with both intention and attention