In our house, this is “kluski” dough used in soup. Add Parmesan, and it becomes gnocchi dough. In French bakeries, this dough is used for eclairs, and cream puffs, and all kinds of delicious crispy pastries stuffed with cream and fruit. Master Paul Bocuse, however, uses 7-8 eggs per batch. 2 cups water 8 tablespoons butter 2 cups flour 3-5 eggs Pinch salt Cook water, … Continue reading Pâte a choux
There are no quantities for Laura’s recipe, because sometimes you’re serving a dinner party, and sometimes you just need one bowl of chicken soup to cure the sniffles. Chicken stock or clear chicken broth Fresh or frozen spinach Hard-boiled egg(s) If using fresh spinach, sauté briefly in olive oil and drain well. If using frozen, cook to package directions and drain or squeeze until nearly … Continue reading Chicken Soup with Spinach
Olive oil ½ onion, diced 1 ½ pounds ground turkey, or turkey tenders cut into small chunks Williams chili seasoning 2 cans black beans (although, to be honest, we usually throw in another can of red or white beans) 1 large can diced tomatoes Sauté onion in olive oil until it turns clear. Lower heat, and add turkey; cook through. Drain and rinse beans, and … Continue reading Black Bean and Turkey Chili
1 ½ pounds ground beef 1 green pepper, diced 1 onion, diced 1 large can whole tomatoes 1 tablespoon chili powder 1 ½ teaspoons salt 1 can red beans, drained and rinsed well with water In a large skillet or a Dutch oven, brown the ground beef with the green pepper and onion; drain fat. Add tomatoes, crushing with spoon, and spices. Drain and rinse … Continue reading Salley’s Chili
Bob Lacaff, Mom’s second cousin and Maurine’s son, longtime San Antonio resident and serious Tex-Mex eater, blessed us with his magnificent recipe for the best gazpacho we’ve ever eaten. 5 cups tomato juice 1 large cucumber, peeled, seeded and sliced 1 medium onion, sliced 1 large green bell pepper, diced 2 tablespoons olive oil 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar ½ teaspoon salt ¼ teaspoon Worcestershire … Continue reading Gazpacho
Best served icy cold, so it’s great for hot summer days. And don’t be put off by the pickled beets! This Polish soup, one of Dad’s favorites, is spicy and delicious. It’s sort of pronounced huh-LOD-nick … close enough. 3 cups cold buttermilk ½ cup sour cream ½ teaspoon salt 1 cup pickled beets, diced, plus ¼ cup of juice ½ cup cucumber, diced (seedless … Continue reading Chlodnik (Chilled Beet Soup)
Call it poached or call it boiled; if you can boil water, you can say bye-bye to paying through the beak for prepared grocery store or deli chicken. If you want to make chicken stock, buy a whole chicken and cut it up; if you just want to cook some chicken breasts for salads or entrees, that’s fine too. But for stock or dumplings, you … Continue reading Basic Chicken/Stock/Chicken Salad
After tweaking this recipe for so many years, it’s not exactly like the steak soup served at Kansas City’s Plaza III restaurant, now or back in the 1970s when we wheedled the recipe out of the general manager, but we still call it the P3 soup. For one thing, they used to add MSG and we quit that nonsense a long time ago. And yes, … Continue reading Plaza III Steak Soup
Family legend says that our paternal grandmother – “Mamcik,” which means “mother” in Polish – made her beef stock by boiling a full sirloin roast until it liquefied. We don’t go quite that far; despite legend, making soup stock isn’t complicated. You need: Roasted beef bones for beef stock, or veal bones for veal stock Roasted poultry bones for chicken or turkey stock Cooked fish … Continue reading making soup stock
Purée it smooth if you wish, but Mom generally left a few potato chunks in because she liked the texture. Do peel the potatoes before cooking them. 2 small onions, cut into slices 1 clove garlic, peeled 2 or 3 stalks celery, cut into 1 to 2 inch pieces 3 tablespoons butter 2 medium potatoes, peeled and cubed About two quarts of chicken stock or … Continue reading Mom’s Potato Soup
