Cajun Sweet Potato Soup

I have been in a soup kind of mood lately, as you can tell with my back to back soup posts. Since I didn't have time to celebrate Mardi Gras last weekend, I decided to honor it this past weekend with this delicious Cajun Sweet Potato soup. It's creamy, sweet and has a nice kick of heat at the end with the hot sauce and sausage (in my case chorizo). Then for the side I made a Charred Cajun Bruschetta. Bon Appétit!

Ingredients

• 1 Lbs Andouille or Chorizo sausage
• 4 tablespoons butter
• 6 Tablespoons all-purpose flour 
• 1 large onion; diced
• 1/2 red pepper; diced
• 4-5 ribs celery; diced
• 3 cloves of garlic; minced
• 1.5 quarts chicken stock
• 2 large sweet potatoes; diced
• 2 cups heavy cream
• 1/4 cup spinach; chopped
• 1/4 cup parsley; chopped
• 1/4 cup chives; chopped
• Hot Sauce; to taste
• Salt & Pepper; to taste

Directions

In a large stock pot, brown sausage links until cooked through. Remove, wrap in tin foil and reserve.

Add butter to the pot and melt, add flour in with butter and whisk to make a roux. Add in onions, celery, red pepper and garlic, saute until soft. Once vegetables are soft, add in warm stock and bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Add in sweet potatoes, cover, and simmer for about 20 minutes or until sweet potatoes are tender.

Transfer to a blender and puree until smooth. Return soup to the stock pot and mix in cream, chives, parsley, spinach and hot sauce (to taste). Dice sausage links into large chunks and mix into the soup. season with salt and pepper (to taste) and serve warm. 

 

Potato & Leek Soup

This past weekend I was the head chef for the Boal Mansion Museum's annual grand dinner in Boalsburg, PA. This was the first time I had to come up with an 8-course classic french menu and I really enjoyed the challenge. For the soup course I made a pureed Potato & Leek soup which turned out fantastic. Potato & Leek is a very classic soup and in french cuisine it is most often served as a cold soup or a vichyssoise. It is a very simple, delicious and quick soup. Bon Appétit!

Ingredients 

• 1 pound leeks, cleaned and dark green sections removed
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
• Heavy pinch kosher salt, plus additional for seasoning
• 3 small Yukon gold potatoes, peeled and diced small
• 1 quart vegetable broth
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 1/2 teaspoon white pepper
• Diced chives; for garnish
• Crème fraîche ; for garnish

Directions


Chop the leeks into small pieces.

In a 6-quart saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter. Add the leeks and a heavy pinch of slat and sweat for 5 minutes. Decrease the heat to medium-low and cook until the leeks are tender, approximately 25 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Add the potatoes and the vegetable broth, increase the heat to medium-high, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and gently simmer until the potatoes are soft, approximately 45 minutes.

Turn off the heat and puree the mixture with a blender until smooth. Stir in the heavy cream, buttermilk, and white pepper. Taste and adjust seasoning if desired. Ladle into a bowl, add a dollop of crème fraîche, sprinkle with some chives and serve immediately, or chill and serve cold.

**Note: Leeks can be a little intimidating to dice so here is a video demonstrating how to go about doing it.**

 Kitchen Word of the Day 

Purée and (more rarely) mash are general terms for cooked food, usually vegetables or legumes, that have been ground, pressed, blended, and/or sieved to the consistency of a soft creamy paste or thick liquid. Purées of specific foods are often known by specific names, e.g., mashed potatoes or apple sauce. The term is of French origin, where it meant in Old French (13th century): purified or refined.

Mary Had a Lamb-a-Letta

This past summer I entered in a national sandwich competition through Mezzetta (they sell imported olives and olive oil). I didn't win the competition, but I really liked the sandwich I came up with and wanted to share it. This is a twist on a traditional New Orleans sandwich called a Muffaletta, which typically features Italian meats and an olive salad. My version uses sliced leg of lamb, smoked gouda, baby arugula, the olive salad and a garlic aioli. It's a little bit of a pricey sandwich to make, but if you're entertaining and want to show off a bit, this will definitely do the trick! Bon Appétit!

Ingredients

For Lamb:

• 1 boneless leg of lamb, butterflied (ask butcher)
• 4 cloves of garlic, thinly sliced
• 4 sprigs of rosemary, bruised to release oils
• Juice and zest from one lemon
• Kosher salt and crack black pepper

 For Garlic Aioli:

• 3/4 cup mayonnaise
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

For Olive Salad:

• 3/4 Cup Spanish Olives w/ Pimento
• 1/4 Cup Pitted Kalamata Olives
• 1/4 Cup Giardiniera (use at lease one of each veggie)
• 3 Peperoncini, stems removed and seeded
• 4 Cocktail Onions
• 2 Tablespoons non-pereil capers
• 1 medium clove of garlic
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• pinch of black pepper
• 2 teaspoons lemon juice
• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

For Assembly:

• 4 Chibata Rolls, sliced in half & lightly toasted
• Garlic Aioli
• Sliced Lamb 
• Smoked gouda, sliced
• Baby arugala
• Olive Salad Mixture

Directions

Add the first 4 ingredients for lamb into a large ziplock bag or bowl and stir to combine. Add the lamb to the marinade and seal or cover. Allow the lamb to marinate for at least one hour and up to 24 hours. Allow the lamb to come to room temperature before grilling. 

Remove the lamb from the marinade and discard all of the garlic slices and rosemary. Season both sides of the lamb very liberally with kosher salt and fresh cracked black pepper. 

Grill over medium-high, fat-side down first for about 15-20 minutes, then flip and grill for another 15-20 minutes for medium rare. (The cook time maybe adjusted for other degrees of doneness) Beware of seriously flare ups that may arise from the fat-side down direct flame grilling. You may need to move the meat to a portion of the grill that is not directly over the flames to prevent serious charring. Remove the meat from the grill and cover loosely with aluminum foil. Allow the lamb to rest for at least ten minutes before slicing. 

For the aioli, Mix mayonnaise, garlic, lemon juice, salt, and pepper in a bowl. Cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before serving.  For the olive salad,  Place all ingredients into the bowl of a food processor and pulse, being sure to scrap the sides until blended. Dish the olive salad into a bowl and refrigerate. 

Slice the lamb in thin slices and split sliced lamb up into even piles.  Slice the chibata rolls in half and lightly toast. Place the bottom half of the chibata rolls on a work surface and spread the Garlic Aioli on the bread, then top with the sliced lamb and a slice of smoked gouda. Set your oven to broil, place sandwich bottoms on a baking sheet and broil on high to melt the cheese. Take the top half of the chibata roll and press the inside of the bread to form a bowl shape. Pile the olive salad mixture into it. Remove the bottom half of the sandwich from the broiler and top with baby arugala. Put the top on, cut the sandwich, plate it and enjoy the Mary Had a Lamb-a-letta!