No Beef on Bessie


Roasted Cauliflower & Potato Soup

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To be honest, I – to this day – have no idea what I want to be when I grow up. Some days I want to open a gourmet grocery store or bakery… other days I want to be a full time food blogger… then there are the days that I want to change the world and be the next big entrepreneur… or a stay-at-home cat mom. My coworkers tell me that I just need to have a baby. *gulp*

caul closeAwhile back, a couple friends and I were out for dinner at our favorite local restaurant, 36. We spent the time discussing what I should do in life, who they should date, where our lives are going, among other dilemmas. And then… my soup came. Roasted cauliflower and potato soup in fact.

Now, I consider myself a soup connoisseur. I make homemade soup at least once a week. I could eat it every day and be happy. Bottom line: I LOVE soup. And when this soup came out, I tried it and – literally – stopped talking. Looking down at this big bowl of creamy, steamy goodness I thought, ‘Dang it. You’re a soup and even you have it all figured out.’

caul fave

Wait a second…

caul sprinkleThere I was comparing my life to soup. I was in a nice restaurant, with a hot bowl of soup, sitting with friends discussing the careers that we have the education to back… on a Wednesday evening. Soup, of all things, brought me to heaven for a second and then put me right back in my place.

Ever since I first tried this ‘perspective soup’ at 36, I’ve craved it. So, naturally, I ventured to recreate it at home. Now, I’ll be the first to admit that this recipe comes nowhere close to comparing to theirs, but it is hot, creamy, and delicious. And quite frankly, it’s soup; I’m blessed to have it and able to make it. But no joke, if you have the opportunity to eat at 36 in Cape Girardeau, order the soup of the day without any hesitation.

Hope you all enjoy it!

caul up top

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Roasted Cauliflower & Potato Soup
 
Ingredients
  • 1 onion, chopped
  • 1 lb yukon gold potatoes, peeled and chopped
  • 2 heads cauliflower, chopped
  • 4 whole garlic cloves
  • ¼ cup olive oil
  • Salt
  • Ground black pepper
  • 4 cups reduced sodium chicken broth
  • 1 cup beer (or broth)
  • 4 Tbsp butter
  • 1 tsp smoked paprika
  • ⅛ tsp crushed red pepper flakes
  • 1 can reduced fat evaporated milk
  • Scallions, sliced (optional)
  • Grated Parmesan cheese (optional)
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 400° F.
  2. Toss onion, potatoes, cauliflower, and garlic cloves with olive oil, and season with salt and pepper. Divide and spread vegetables in a single layer among two baking sheets. Roast for 40-45 minutes or until caramelized, stirring the vegetables and rotating the baking sheets halfway. Reserve some of the roasted cauliflower for topping.
  3. Transfer roasted vegetables to a large pot on the stove. Add chicken broth, beer, butter, smoked paprika, and red pepper flakes. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer until liquid has reduced a little and vegetables are tender.
  4. Remove soup from heat, and using an immersion blender (or batch blend using a counter top blender), blend until soup is smooth and creamy. Stir in evaporated milk.
  5. Top soup with reserved cauliflower, scallions, Parmesan cheese, and a drizzle of olive oil, if desired.

 

Summer Squash Gratin

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gratin squashLet me tell you a story about the most amazing summer squash gratin.

I decided to make this recipe after being gifted some garden vegetables, and I wanted something that celebrated the tastes of summer. This gratin was looking beautiful, smelling delicious, and being very photogenic. Sounds like a success, right?gratin crumbs gratin top

Well as I was removing the gratin from the oven, it totally slips out of my oven mit, slides down the oven door, and slams to the bottom of the oven – squash flying into the oven and breadcrumbs scattered all over the kitchen!

ovenAnd then… the breadcrumbs catch on fire… the smoke alarm goes off… my cat starts meowing because she doesn’t know what the **** is going on, and I have to open the doors and windows on one of the hottest days of the year. I thought, ‘I’m done. I give up. I’m not supposed to be a food blogger. Who likes food anyway?’ Total. Meltdown.

After giving myself a much-needed pep talk and cleaning up, I realized there was leftover wine from the recipe still sitting on the counter. I poured a glass, grabbed a fork, and dug into what was left of the gratin. And you know what? It was still pretty and it still tasted great.

Moral of the story: When life challenges you beyond your breaking point, first realize that it – most likely – is a petty circumstance like spilled gratin. And if you want to cry over it, then cry; you’re human and accidents happen. My recommendation then is to pour a glass of your favorite wine, grab a fork, and dig into defeating what first defeated you.

gratin fork

Another lesson learned.

Print
Summer Squash Gratin
 
Ingredients
  • 1 Tbsp olive oil
  • 1 onion, sliced
  • 1 red bell pepper, sliced
  • Salt
  • Ground black pepper
  • ¼ cup dry white wine (or broth)
  • 1 zucchini, sliced
  • 1 yellow squash, sliced
  • ⅓ cup panko
  • ¼ cup grated parmesan cheese
  • 1 Tbsp basil pesto
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 425 F.
  2. Heat olive oil in a medium pan. Add onion and red bell pepper. Season with salt and pepper and cook until onion is soft. Add white wine and cook an additional minute.
  3. Spread an even layer of onion mixture in a shallow baking dish. Top onion mixture with a layer of sliced zucchini and yellow squash, rotating colors if desired.
  4. In a separate bowl, combine panko, parmesan cheese, and pesto until thoroughly mixed.
  5. Top the gratin with an even layer of the panko mixture. Bake for 15 minutes, and then broil to further brown the gratin if necessary.

 

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photos in image slider styled by Annie Em's at Home and photographed by Shannon Duggan Photography