Green Soup

Had folks over for a Christmas-y party last night: Strip loin roast (a little overcooked, but still very good), asparagus (way overcooked--I forgot about it in the oven--but still very good), mashed potatoes, and a soup that I think is really good for the holidays, as it's warm and creamy and GREEN. It doesn't have an official name, so you may call it what you like.

1 Bunch of Celery, sliced
1 bag or 2 bunches green onions, chopped
1 tbsp olive oil
1 can chicken broth
1 can artichoke hearts
1-1/2 quarts milk
1 cup shredded mozzerella cheese
1 tsp black pepper
pinch of salt

Heat the olive oil in a medium-to-large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the celery, green onions, and salt and saute for five minutes, until the celery starts to soften a little. Pour in the chicken broth, add black pepper, and cook uncovered over medium heat for ten-fifteen minutes, until chicken broth is reduced by about half and vegetables are tender. Transfer to a food processor or blender and process until smooth--use caution as hot liquid tends to shoot out the top of the blender and get over everything if you aren't careful.

You can stop at this point, put the soup base (the green mess you just made) into a storage container and refrigerate for a day or two, or probably freeze it for a good long while. When you're ready to go, just put it in a soup pot over low heat and bring it up to a simmer slowly.

Assuming you're cooking the whole thing now, transfer the soup base to a large soup pot over low heat and add the artichokes and milk. When the mixture gets good and hot, add the mozzerella a little at a time fo melt and slightly thicken the soup.

It almost qualifies as healthy, but if you want to make an artery clogging version you can probably substitute cream for the milk and leave the cheese out entirely.

Speaking of Shakespeare,

I thought I might take this opportunity to drop a note or two on theatre projects coming up in the next six months or so. I've been cast as Pompey in Measure for Measure at Theatre Memphis, which looks to be a fantastic show with a fantastic cast (I might include the Frosted Shakespeare Charms joke in my program bio just for kicks), and Avram the Bookseller in Fiddler on The Roof at Playhouse on The Square.

These two are likely to keep me nice-n-occupied for the forseeable future. Updates as I get them.

Why, I'm a Marketing Genius!

Okay--not really, but since I Googled the exact phrase and didn't come up with a match, I figure my concept for a breakfast cereal based on the bard is both profound and unique.

Ready? Frosted Shakespeare Charms--They're Tragically Delicious!

(Negative comments on bad puns always accepted)

The lecture

Last night, pastry chef Tanya and I took off to the Memphis Library for a lecture from noted pastry chef and lousy raconteur Nick Malgieri. I'm not sure if he was in town for the Food Network thing at The Peabody (it would make sense), but he did present a lovely slide show of things Sicilians make with almond paste. Which is to say, everything. He did sign a cookbook for Mom for Christmas (Mom doesn't yet know about the blog, so we're okay), and I felt really comfortable being the only guy there among the housewives.

The bulk of Malgieri's lecture consisted of discourse on the pastries you could buy, which seems a shame. While there's nothing wrong with purchased pastries, they tend towards things that are too complicated to make in small quantities, and are aimed squarely at convenience in volume for the chef. For those of us with wooden spoons for a toolkit, these things are far too time-consuming to work properly, so we stick to pie.

Anyway, much cooler people show up to Alton Brown booksignings. I'm sure I'll get around to that story eventually.

A simple start

Okay, first things first--a mission statement as it were. I like to cook; I think other folks might be interested in a recipe or two I've acquired and/or created over the years, and I figure this would be a good way to disseminate recipe information, hints, opinions, and vitriol. Over the duration of this experiment, I should have enough recipes gathered together to form, perhaps, a cookbook. With comments already in the margins, if readers are so inclined.

So, without further ado, let us begin.

Black Bean Dip

This dip is ridiculously easy, and yet enormously popular. The only variation that my wife consistently suggests is doubling the amount of cheese, if only to actually make the dip as unhealthy as it tastes.

1 16 oz can Black Beans
1 16 oz jar salsa
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
3-4 green onions, chopped (white and green parts)
black pepper to taste

Dump everything in a bowl, mix, and serve with tortilla chips.

Notes:
1. Take heed--this is the last time I will specify that you use the white and green parts of green onions.
2. It gets harder from here.