Chicken Tortilla Soup

I have never been a soup person, that being said, yummm tortilla soup. We are having a little false summer here (I know, we jumped from polar vortex to mini-heat wave) and I am starting to break out, tentatively, the rose, strawberries, and avocados (it's still a little early for fresh tomatoes). I will try to post something springy next, but in the meantime, enjoy some tortilla soup.

 I easily ignored the urge to make my own tortilla strips and happily reached for my always-on-hand bag of Have'a Corn Chips.To begin saute 1 chopped onion until it starts to get a little yummy and brown. Add in 4-6 cloves of smashed garlic along with 1 tablespoon each, paprika and cumin, 1 heaping teaspoon coriander and chili powder and a healthy dash of cayenne. Let the flavors marry for a few minutes before adding in a quart of chicken stock and one 28-oz can of tomatoes. Add a cup and a half of extra liquid whether you choose water (I often do), extra stock or a can of beer - it's up to you. Toss in a couple of bay leaves, a couple teaspoons of salt, a half bunch of roughly chopped cilantro, and a couple handfuls of slightly crumbled tortilla chips. Let the mixture simmer for about 45 minutes.

 Meanwhile, you can be working on your chicken. I used a half chicken but go with what suits you. I just did a super simple preparation for the chick-a-dee - season the meat with salt and pepper, sear in a cast iron skillet until skin is golden and then pop into a 450 degree oven for about 30 minutes or until cooked through. Once the soup mixture is done cooking, puree and serve. I like to put the shredded chicken on the bottom of the bowl and pour the soup over it - topping it off with some shredded cheddar, fresh cilantro, chopped avocado. I also like to eat the crispy chicken skin while i shred the meat. 

This recipe was inspired by the tortilla soup recipe from Food & Wine Magazine. 

Disappointing Game, Fulfilling Nachos

Well, we may not have won the game, but at least the nachos were awesome.

Sutro Baths

The real star of the day though, was . . . Sutro Sam (see below for a portrait)! I get abnormally excited by animal sightings, so naturally I have an unhealthy interest in our local river otter, Sam. Re-directing my focus -  Super Bowl Sunday has come and gone and as I may have mentioned in the past, my real interest is based on the rituals of eating surrounding the "big game". Although I did get into it, given that the local team (the 49ers, for those of you who may not know - no judgment) was in it. Unfortunately it didn't go our way but I think we all took comfort in the copious amounts of pork and crunchy-nacho-ness surrounding us.

I was inspired by Bon Appetit's recipe from their latest issue - but I of course made some tweaks. To see my version read on:

 

Cause for Celebration - Rack of Lamb

We have many reasons to celebrate - in addition to good health and being surrounded by good friends we have had milestone birthdays and work triumphs. Apparently, in a nod to the momentous occasion, there was a sale on some beautiful racks of lamb and I gobbled one up, literally. 

Lamb is one of my favorite special occasion foods - it is generally what I request for my birthday dinner - so I jumped at the chance to make my very first rack of lamb. I went a fairly traditional route, serving it with a breadcrumb crust - it was perfectly simple and delicious. I served it with an Indian summer panzanella complete with a decadent amount of burrata. Everything was perfect and we enjoyed it all with a celebratory bottle of wine, a highly recommended accompaniment.

A Party! Complemented By Some Bourbon-y BBQ

I will begin with a confession - I did not make this sauce, I observed its making and enjoyed being a taster but I was most definitely not the chef. My lovely mother took on the job of BBQ sauce-maker and it turned out to be absolutely perfect (and, as proof, it was completely inhaled by the party-goers). We decided not to marinate the chicken and instead our master griller brushed the chicken with sauce as it cooked giving it a delicious, caramelized glaze. It was cooked to perfection and was such a success that we even glazed our sausages with it and gobbled those up as well. 

The aftermath

For the original recipe from Bon Appétit please click here. 

London Calling - Lamb Shepherd's Pie

My good friend was in town staying with us, and I told him that if he came up with the idea for supper, I would cook it.  He quickly (I always have the hardest time coming up with the idea) suggested a shepherd's pie. This seemed quite fitting given that we became friends when we were both living in England. It felt like a good nostalgia-dish. I started poking around and eventually found my muse, care of Bon Appétit – a Greek-inspired shepherd's pie with lamb. The original recipe called for Kasseri (a hard sheep's milk cheese), and, despite making a special trip to Rainbow Grocery (the name says it all), I didn't come up with Kasseri. I decided that the pie was rich enough without the addition of cheese, but I finished my servings of pie with a sprinkling of feta to give it a little extra cream.