potato soup
Posted on | May 7, 2007 | Comments Off
potato soup is what i was PLANNING for dinner.
it’s been chilly, albeit sunny, and a soaper posted a great-looking recipe for potato soup.
of course, it’s a public holiday here today….labour day….viva le worker!….and absolutely everyone except for us had the day off.
which means most of the shops were closed.
not having bacon…or potatoes…on hand, really slowed my soup plans down.
after soapmaking, i scrounged around in the fridge and came up with a truly motley crew of ingredients:
kumara (those are sweet gold potatoes, for you non-new zealanders)
aging tomatoes
aging green beans
breaded chicken breast fillets
the usual seasonings.
grasping any opportunity to go for a whirl on the shiiiiiinyyyyyy shiiiiiinyyyyyy motorcycle, i wrapped myself in my gear and roared off (going the long way, naturellement)to pick up a green oakleaf lettuce, which was by far the best-looking lettuce in the shop.
upon my return, i peeled the kumara, chopped them into big chunks, massaged in some olive oil, salt, pepper and set aside.
i sliced the roma tomatoes in half , seasoned them and threw them in my strange glass convection oven on super-low and let them shrivel, so all the juices became wonderfully concentrated and the tomatoes dried out.
not all the way…..still tender, but definitely cooked.
i steamed the picked-over green beans (and i do like to steam them until still bright green, but fully cooked….i intensely dislike the way undercooked beans squeak against the tooth enamel…my dears, it fairly makes my blood run cold even imagining it), then tossed them in a cheeky vinaigrette with plenty of fresh garlic, fresh parsley, sea salt and the ubiquitious fresh black pepper.
i do love my peugeuot pepper grinder and i got it for a song on ebay a couple years ago.
o and a few shreds of pickled artichoke hearts.
i set this aside for the beans to cool and sponge up the tasty vinegar-y flavours.
when the tomatoes were done, i threw them into the bean mix….gently, so they wouldn’t collapse.
then i roasted the kumara chunks until they were bright orange, and tender as young love, with a few charred bits….perfect.
meanwhile, i fried the breaded fillets in lashings of olive oil, then flipped them onto the chopping board to cool, then be cut into narrow strips.
i assembled washed and crisped (well as crisp as that oakleaf muck can get) lettuce leaves on plates….ladled on the bean mix, strew some kumara chunks about, topped with a smear of mayonnaise, and the chicken strips.
it looked very pretty and colourful and of course, the whole household was crazy with hunger by this time, having been tortured with the scents of hot olive oil and sweetly caramelising root vegetable.
we fell upon it and alas…..no time for photos.
i will try for potato soup later in the week.
tomorrow i have my usual tuesday night *three hungry guys* to cook for and i like to impress.
menu planning will begin early in the day…….
i cannot possibly give them chili again….there will be some kind of uprising.
