Witchy Kitchen

Tag: leeks

  • Buttered Leeks

    Buttered Leeks

    Leek, leek, it rhymes with Reek.

    This is an innocent side of green veggie that is secretly, luxuriously bathed in butter. Leeks are delicate, with such a softness to their sharpness that even my daughter who hates onion with the fire of seven hells was happy to gobble up.

    Buttered Leeks

    • 2 pounds leeks
    • 3 tablespoons butter
    • generous pinch salt
    • several sprigs thyme to garnish

    Trim leeks of almost all green (you can leave a little of the spring green stem) and slice vertically. Wash well to remove all grit, and slice into half moons.

    Heat butter on medium heat, and add leaks, season with salt, and stir to coat. Cover and cook, stirring frequently, until completely soft and wilted. Season if necessary, serve garnished with thyme.

  • Spring Ribollita

    Spring Ribollita

    I have a well documented love of peasant food (see Castilian garlic soup, and over on our Fiction Kitchen podcast site, Cinderella cassoulet), so of course I adore ribollita which is essentially bean and bread soup. I love foods that are humble and rustic (not to mention cheap), yet with something so elegant in their simplicity.

    spring-ribollita

    Although ribollita is typical winter comfort food, this version is completely appropriate for cool and sometimes rainy spring days. It makes use of spring produce like leeks and sweet peas and is just a little brothier and greener than it’s hearty winter counterpart.

    Spring Ribollita

    • 3 tablespoons olive oil + more for garnish
    • 2 medium leeks (white parts only), sliced into half moons
    • 2 stalks celery, sliced into half moons
    • 4 cloves garlic, grated
    • salt and pepper
    • pinch red chili flakes
    • 2 teaspoons paprika
    • 1 1/2 tablespoons tomato paste
    • 2 cans cannelini beans, drained and rinsed
    • 1 large or 2 small carrots, peeled and sliced into half moons
    • handful fresh or frozen sweet peas
    • 1 tablespoon Herbs de Provence (or just use a mixture of what you have on hand, herbs like thyme, rosemary, oregano, etc.)
    • 3-4 slices stale bread torn into chunks (or if it’s fresh, you can just toast it)
    • olive oil, chopped fresh basil, and freshly grated parmesan cheese for garnish

    Heat oil in a soup pot on medium, and saute leeks, celery, and garlic with a good sprinkle of salt and pepper until the leeks are very soft and translucent. Add red chili flakes, paprika, and tomato paste and cook for another minute or two. Add beans, carrots, peas, Herbs de Provence, and 4 cups of water.

    Bring to a boil then reduce to a simmer. Simmer, covered, for 20 minutes or so until the carrots are soft. Stir torn bread into the soup, and serve hot, garnished with a good drizzle of olive oil, chopped basil, and lots of fresh grated parm.

  • Winter White Parsnip and Hazelnut Soup

    Winter White Parsnip and Hazelnut Soup

    Spring is almost here but winter is still lingering; last week we finally had some snow, which is what we call icy rain and slush in North Carolina. Gloria came over for another lovely Sunday in the kitchen. We’ve decided to get together about once a month and master a new skill; last month it was deboning a chicken and making Pollo a la Brasa. This month I requested we make soup (because jaw surgery) so we chose the complimentary skill of making nut milk for the soups, and baking with the pulp!

    Making nut milk is devastatingly simple: it’s just a matter of soaking the nuts overnight (we did a batch of hazelnuts and a batch of pecans), straining them, blending them with water, and straining them again. I’ve done it before through a cloth, but this time used a fine mesh strainer. You could probably squeeze out just a little more with a cloth and get the pulp a little drier, but it’s also so much messier, so search in your heart whether it’s worth it. My heart is lazy efficient.

    The soups we made with the nut milks were a sweet potato casserole soup that Gloria dreamed up (spiced roasted sweet potatoes, apple juice, pecan and coconut milks – I have some in the freezer I can’t wait to eat!) and a parsnip and hazelnut soup from Diana’s Food Adventures in Ficiton blog. It’s inspired by Rapunzel, which thrilled my daughter. You can read all about it on Diana’s blog, or even listen to us discuss it on our Grimm’s Fairy Tales episode of Fiction Kitchen!

    The only thing I did differently was to add some of the hazelnut pulp to thicken the soup. The way she prepares it is more elegant, but as I’m mostly eating soup nowadays, I’m trying to make them as hearty as possible – so mine is the rustic version.

    Winter White Parsnip and Hazelnut Soup

    For the hazelnut milk (makes about 2 cups)

    • 2 cups blanched and skinned hazelnuts
    • 4 cups water

    Soak the hazelnuts in 2 cups water overnight. Strain, and blend with 2 more cups water. Strain through a cheese cloth or a fine mesh strainer. Reserve the nut pulp.

    For the soup

    • 3 tablespoons butter
    • 2 leeks, sliced (white parts only)
    • salt & white pepper
    • 2-3 small parsnips (the smaller the sweeter), peeled and chopped
    • 1/2 cup hazelnut pulp
    • 2 cups hazelnut milk
    • 1 cup vegetable broth
    • crushed hazelnuts for garnish

    In a soup pot, heat the butter over medium heat. Add the leeks and saute until nice and wilty. Season with salt and white pepper, and stir for a minute. Add the parsnips, hazelnut pulp, hazelnut milk, and vegetable broth, and simmer until parsnips are very tender, about 20 minutes.

    Pour into a blender and puree (hold a tea towel over the lid). Pour back into the soup pot and gently warm back through; taste and adjust seasoning if necessary. Serve hot garnished with crushed hazelnuts.

    soups-mason-jars

    Soups look so cute and cool in mason jars.

    minty-split-pea-soup

    Oh yeah I also made a (nut milk-less) Minty Split Pea Soup for our Arabian Nights episode of Fiction Kitchen podcast!


  • Mash o’ Nine Sorts

    Mash o’ Nine Sorts

    This month I’ve made a couple of traditional recipes associated with Samhain (namely Irish Boxty and Barm Brack), so here’s an English one for the mix. It has nine ingredients – hence the name – and is also played as a fortunetelling game, with a ring (symbol of marital happiness) hidden inside to be served to a lucky guest.

    For the record, I got the ring, but Zoeya got upset so I re-hid it and she totally by chance got it and was really excited about it. Which is to say, usually in these situations I just tell her to get over it, but I think it’s ok to spoil your kids a little once in awhile to see them smile.

    Mash o’ Nine Sorts

    Slightly adapted from Food.com

    • 2 lbs potatoes, peeled and diced
    • 2 carrots, peeled and diced
    • 1 small turnip, peeled and diced
    • 1 large parsnip, peeled and diced
    • 1 tbsp butter
    • 2 leeks, cleaned and chopped into thin slices, including some of the green tops
    • 6 ounces farmhouse cheddar cheese, grated
    • salt & pepper
    • 2 tablespoons cream (or half & half, which I always have around)

    Heat oven to 350°.

    In a big pot of salted water, bring the potatoes, carrots, turnip and parsnip together to a boil, and cook until soft. Mash them thoroughly (I think it’s supposed to be more uniform but I left it a little lumpy) and season with salt and pepper to taste.

    Heat the butter and saute the leeks for a few minutes until soft. Add to the potato mixture along with the cream and mix. Stir in the grated cheese – and the ring! – and spread in a baking dish. Bake until golden brown, about 30 to 45 minutes.

    We ate this on Friday movie night while watching Frankenweenie.