Soups & Stews

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I have mentioned this recipe briefly in one of the previous posts, but because that was in passing, I wanted to assure that it could be easily located in the archives by giving it a post of its own.

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Do you love nettles? I love nettles, and there is a sea of them in my backyard this time of year. Rich in iron and bursting with flavor, cooked nettles are not a half-bad substitute for spinach, but, in my opinion, they are at their best in this hearty cream soup. You can find the recipe here.

Just use leather gloves when harvesting, and remember that soap and water can be an effective remedy for a relatively small encounter.

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I am thrilled share with you that my first contribution to the Edible Madison website is up! Now Edible Madison is a wonderful local quarterly magazine, and they have just launched a new website with some exclusive web content, which includes from-scratch, seasonal recipes from yours truly.

Without further ado, I give you Cheese and Wine Beef Stew. Read the complete recipe here.

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Moroccan Elk or Venison Stew from “Girl Hunter”

December 13, 2011

A couple of months ago, I had a distinct pleasure of being offered an advance copy of Georgia Pellegrini‘s new book, Girl Hunter. This book is a memoir that covers Georgia’s personal journey from the trading floor at Lehman Brothers to a huntswoman and a writer, and some amazing life trajectory that is. Although I [...]

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Classic Russian Borscht

October 19, 2011
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Having lived in a number of countries and having dabbled in various cuisines, I came to think of myself as a bit of a culinary (and cultural, for that matter) chameleon. Whenever I make a vat of borscht, however, there is no mistaking me for anything other than a native Russian. Coincidentally, borscht also happens [...]

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Homemade Beef Stock Recipe

January 19, 2011
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Whenever it comes to stock-based soups, I almost always use homemade – with homegrown  beef and chickens and fresh local fish I buy from time to time it just makes sense. Every time we butcher, I ask our small-town butcher to keep soup bones, which are usually cut out of legs and include a nice [...]

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Beef or Venison Chili

September 27, 2010
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I didn’t grow up with chili, or, for that matter, beans, cumin, or cheddar cheese grated on top, but pretty much as soon as I came to US, chili found its way into my repertoire of crowd-pleasing numbers. What I like about this is that it requires little advance planning, only one pot, feeds a [...]

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Bulgarian Cold Cucumber Soup

August 9, 2010
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I gotta tell you, my husband has a relatively low level of interest in my excellent blogging adventures, but he was very excited that I was, finally, going to post the recipe for this all-time favorite of ours. Now this Bulgarian classic, called tarator, is as common there as ranch dressing is in the US [...]

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Turkey- or Chicken-and-Rice Soup with Yogurt-and Egg Liaison

June 8, 2010
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A perfect comfort dish for a cold, rainy day like today, this turkey soup is made different by the addition of yogurt-and-egg liaison and sour cream, which serve the dual purpose of thickening the soup and adding tang. In my opinion, chicken soup needs some sort of acid to avoid being bland – that’s just [...]

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Rasha’s Not-Quite Russian Borscht

April 27, 2010
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A while back this past winter our dear friend Rasha (not to be confused with “Russia”) came over and made a very different kind of borscht for us. (My apologies to Rasha for not posting this sooner). Unlike my usual meaty version, this was a vegetarian borscht (which is not, in itself, an unusual thing), [...]

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East Meets West: Wild Wisconsin Green Borscht

April 22, 2010
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There are probably as many variations of this classic as there are of the regular “beet” borscht. Although I think most people in this country might not even be aware such a thing exists. Green borscht is, essentially, a beef stock with potatoes and a multitude of greens which create the bulk in the soup. [...]

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