Whiteley Creek Homestead

It began with a cranberry orange muffin recipe in my November/December 2011 issue of Clean Eating Magazine. The muffins turned out quite good, but it was the cranberry orange relish component in the muffins that got my attention. The naturally sweet relish is perfect for a mid-morning or afternoon snack, a brown bag lunch, and a crunchy addition atop a bed of mixed leafy greens.

A sweet apple variety, an orange, and dried cranberries provide the sweetness… no other sweetener needed.

Cranberry Orange Relish

1 cup frozen cranberries

1 tbsp fresh ginger, chopped (I used 1/4 tsp ground ginger.)

1 large or 2 small oranges, peeled, segmented and chopped

1 sweet, crunchy red apple (e.g., gala, pink lady or fuji), cored and finely chopped

1/4 cup dried cranberries (I used Eden Organic's apple sweetened.)

2 tbsp walnuts, chopped

1/4 cup unsweetened coconut flakes, optional

In the bowl of a food processor, blend 1/2 cup frozen cranberries, ginger, and 1/2 large or 1 small orange until coarsely chopped. In a large mixing bowl, combine remaining 1/2 cup frozen cranberries, remaining orange, and apple. Fold in processed cranberry-orange mixture, dried cranberries, walnuts, and coconut. Refrigerate. Makes 4 cups.

Several years ago, I read The Fat Flush Plan by Ann Louise Gittleman. I am now revisiting her insights into cleansing the liver to boost its ability to function at its highest level. Nothing weird. Just maximizing nutrients that detoxify. For example, this Fat Flush Soup from Gittleman's blog… We finished it off so quickly that I nearly had nothing left to take a photo. A more apt name for this recipe might be chili rather than soup.   

Fat Flush Soup

2 tsp. olive oil

1 ¼ lbs. (I used 1 lb.) lean ground beef, turkey or chopped chicken*

1 large onion, peeled and chopped

1 large red, orange and/or green pepper, seeded and chopped

1 large zucchini or yellow squash, chopped

8 oz. mushrooms, chopped

2 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped

1 46 oz. bottle reduced-sodium tomato or vegetable cocktail juice (I used a 32 oz. bottle of R.W. Knudsen Very Veggie Juice.)

1 can (15 oz.) pinto, garbanzo or black beans, rinsed and drained

1 can (14 oz.) crushed tomatoes (I used diced.)

1 Tbs. fresh lime juice

1 Tbs. ground cumin

1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper, or to taste

1/4 cup each fresh cilantro and parsley leaves, chopped (I didn't have any cilantro. I subbed 1 tbsp dried parsley for the 1/4 cup fresh.)

In a skillet coated with the olive oil, thoroughly cook beef, turkey or chicken, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat; drain, if desired. In the same skillet, cook onions, peppers, zucchini, mushrooms and garlic 5 min. or until vegetables are crisp-tender, stirring occasionally. Stir in next 6 ingredients and cooked meat. Add up to 1 cup water to thin soup, if desired. Cover; bring soup just to a simmer (do not let boil). Reduce heat to medium-low. Let simmer 20 min., stirring occasionally. Stir in cilantro and parsley. Cover; let simmer 5 min. more. Garnish with shaved Parmesan cheese, if desired. Soup can be stored up to 5 days in the refrigerator or frozen. *Or for vegetarian option, omit meat and add another can of beans. Makes 10 to 12 cups.

It is a perfect tomato soup sorta day. What kind of day is that? Anytime your mind wanders to a period in your life when a happy memory is paired with a bowl of tomato soup. It may be a can of Campbell's soup or a made-from-scratch variety.

For me, it is not the tomato soup made with water that was served in my junior high school cafeteria. It is my mother's soup that she made from canned tomatoes grown in her garden and milk fresh from our cows. It is also the chunky, creamy tomato soup served only on Fridays at Westside Cafe in Brainerd (Minnesota). Dick and I would call ahead and reserve two bowls if we thought the soup might be gone before we arrived. We'd always order a grilled cheese to go along. The cafe has been closed for several years and, sadly, I neglected to ask my mother how she made hers before she died. Thus began my search for a recipe to replicate the tomato soup embedded in my memory. I have tried many recipes in my persistent quest. This recipe is it! Source: Epicurious Magazine September 1996 reprinted from The Fannie Farmer Cookbook by Marion Cunningham. 

The recipe, which uses canned diced tomatoes, states to pour the soup through a strainer before serving to remove the tomato chunks. Why?! That's just a waste of good tomatoes. The first photo shows the soup with tomato chunks. It was good, but not quite there. The second photo below shows a version that I made by blending half of it then added it back into the chunky portion. The result was exactly like what I remember at Westside Cafe! Whether you choose the chunky version or the pureed/chunky combo, you will never open a can of Campbell's tomato soup again. I am sure of it.

Homemade Cream of Tomato Soup

 Makes 12 cups (8 – 1 ½ cup servings).

5 tbsp butter (I used 2 tbsp.)

½ cup chopped onion

4 tbsp flour (I used 2 tbsp because pureeing it in a blender thickens it.)

4 cups milk (I used whole milk.)

½ bay leaf (I used 1 whole bay leaf.)

1 ½ tsp sugar

1 ½ tsp salt (I used 2 tsp sea salt + 1 ¼ tsp garlic pepper.)

1 tbsp Better Than Chicken Bouillon (my addition)

½ tsp baking soda* (I used 1 tsp because I doubled the amount of tomatoes.)

3 6 cups fresh or canned tomatoes (I used 2 – 28 oz cans diced tomatoes plus the juice.)

Melt the butter in a soup pot. Add the onion and cook until the onion is soft and translucent but not browned. Sprinkle the flour over the butter mixture and continue to stir and cook for 1 to 2 minutes. (Because I reduced the butter, the flour will burn if you cook it that long. I just mix the flour into the butter and call it good.) While stirring, slowly pour in the milk. Add the bay leaf, sugar, and salt and continue to cook and stir until slightly thickened. (You’ll only see a slight thickening action because I reduced the amount of flour, so I heated it only hot enough for serving. Do not simmer or boil.) Stir the baking soda into the tomatoes. It will fizz. Add the tomatoes to the milk and bring it back up to serving temperature. Remove from heat and put through a strainer. (I say, "Why strain it? And toss out the tomato chunks? Why?!" Option: For a smooth/chunky combo, allow to cool then puree half of the soup adding it back into the remaining chunky soup in the pot. If you want a smooth consistency without chunks, puree entire mixture, including tomato chunks, in a blender. For average blender container sizes, you'll need to do this in stages.) *Adding baking soda to tomatoes neutralizes their acidity to keep the milk from curdling.

For no apparent reason, Dick requested shepherd's pie. I don't remember when I last made it, so I went straight to Alton Brown on the Food Network web site for a recipe. Alton has never let me down. He came through again. The marriage of chicken broth, rosemary, and thyme… amazing flavor! Since the dish was rather spur-of-the-moment, I used ingredients on hand. This meant subbing ground beef for lamb which doesn't seem right. It is shepherd's pie, afterall. Next time.

1)cubed potatoes cooking 2)diced carrots and onions sautéing 3)veggie scraps to be composted 4)meat and veggies simmering 5) mashing potatoes 6) potato scoops to be spread… or not

Shepherd’s Pie

Serves 8.

For the potatoes:

1 ½ lbs russet potatoes

¼ cup half-and-half (I used milk.)

4 tbsp 2 tbsp unsalted butter

¾ tsp salt (I used sea salt.)

¼ tsp black pepper

1 egg yolk (I omitted.)

For the meat filling:

2 1 tbsp oil

1 cup diced onion

2 carrots, peeled and diced (Normally I use unpeeled carrots, but the two that lay hidden in the bottom of my fridge’s crisper drawer needed some grooming.)

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 ½ lbs ground lamb

1 tsp salt

½ tsp black pepper

2 tbsp all-purpose flour

2 tsp 1 tbsp tomato paste

1 cup chicken broth

1 tsp Worcestershire sauce Bragg liquid aminos

2 tsp freshly chopped rosemary leaves (I used 1 tsp dried rosemary.)

1 tsp freshly chopped thyme leaves (I used ½ tsp dried thyme.)

½ cup fresh or frozen corn kernels

½ cup fresh or frozen peas

Directions:

Peel the potatoes and cut into ½-inch cubes. (I used scrubbed, unpeeled potatoes.) Cook in a pan with a little water until fork tender, approximately 10 to 15 minutes. While the potatoes are cooking, prepare the filling. Sauté the onion and carrots in oil until the onions are translucent. Add the garlic and stir to combine. Add the lamb (or beef), salt, and pepper and cook until the meat is thoroughly cooked and slightly browned. Sprinkle the meat with flour and toss to coat. Stir in the tomato paste, chicken broth, Worcestershire (or Bragg liquid aminos), rosemary, and thyme. Add the frozen veggies and simmer and simmer 10 to 12 minutes until the sauce is slightly thickened and the carrots, corn, and peas are tender but not mushy. Meanwhile, drain the potatoes in a colander and then return to the saucepan. (I use just enough water so that it has just barely evaporated when the potatoes are cooked through leaving no water to drain.) Mash the potatoes and then add the half-and-half (or milk), butter, salt, and pepper and continue to mash until smooth. Stir in the yolk (if using) until well combined. Top the meat filling with scoops of mashed potatoes. (There are just enough potatoes to make eight mounds using an ice cream scoop.) Spread the potato mounds with a spatula, starting around the edges to create a seal to prevent the mixture from bubbling up or leave the scoops as is. Bake in a 375° oven for 25 minutes or just until the potatoes begin to brown. Cool for at least 15 minutes before serving. (We just dug in.)