November 1, 2011

this is how the morning looks: mornings are moments of trying to sort out the day, staring at pages in books, wasting time following the ramblings of people i know in omaha, wishing i ate more than yogurt for breakfast and had one more cup of coffee and, at the end of it all, feeling pretty darn happy with life as is.

Roasted Carrot and Tomato Soup

I am home. After 4 weeks and 5 countries, I am ready to start tackling my food inspirations from France, Germany, Switzerland, Estonia and Latvia (with Georgia and Russia thrown in for their influences in the last two countries).

To start, an almost end of summer soup for a chilly Sunday afternoon.

Roasted Carrot & Tomato Soup

1/2 onion, sliced
2 cloves garlic, unpeeled
4-5 tomatoes, quartered
3 carrots, quartered
olive oil
salt and pepper
1.5 cups chicken broth
Herbs of choice (I used basil and chives)
Cream, crème fraîche or Greek Yogurt

Warm oven to 400 degrees F. In the meantime, put the onions, tomatoes, carrots and garlic in a pan. Drizzle with olive oil, salt and pepper.

Roast vegetables for about 50 minutes, stirring or turning occasionally.

When finished, combine vegetables in a pot with the chicken broth and bring to a simmer. Allow to simmer for 15-20 minutes, add herbs and then blend (or leave as is for a chunkier soup).

Spoon into bowls, top off with a bit more olive oil and crème fraîche.

Plum & Cherry Confiture with Rosemary

Black berries, raspberries, plums, apricots, peaches, mangos, strawberries, cherries, meyer lemons, blueberries - you name it, its in season.

This afternoon, summer promised to last a few extra months while I made confiture with the fruit I had on hand.

Making fresh fruit confiture is simple. Absolutely simple.

And there are few things better than getting to open up the flavors of summer in the middle of a cold, wet winter (its rains a lot here). Consider the bright, smiling taste of plum and cherry jam with a hint of rosemary on a scone. Or drizzled over crepes/waffles/pancakes. Yes. Perfect. This next winter just might be bearable.

Plum & Cherry Confiture with Rosemary

3 lbs. fresh fruit (1/3 pitted cherries and 2/3 peeled and sliced plums)
3 lbs. sugar (Okay, okay. You really are supposed to use equal weights of fruit and sugar but I just couldn't - I used closer to 2.25 lbs.)
1 sprig rosemary
juice of 1 lemon

Combine the fresh fruit in a large dutch oven or stock pot and heat over medium until some of the juices begin to release. Add the sugar and mix well. Continue to stir often over medium heat until most of the liquid from the fruit is released and the sugar is dissolved. Add the rosemary sprig. Allow the mixture to simmer until thickened.*

When ready to can, add the lemon juice, give it a couple of stirs, remove the rosemary and then remove the pot from the heat. Spoon the jam into warm, sterilized jars.** Put the lids on immediately and allow jars to cool at room temperature. As they cool, the lids will seal.

Once at room temperature, store in a cool, dark place or open immediately, try not to eat it all and keep it in the refrigerator.

*Note on thickness: For a quick test, put a little of the mixture on a spoon, stick it in your refrigerator for a couple of minutes to cool and then run your finger through the jam to check for your desired thickness.

**Note on Jars: Be sure to have washed your jars and lids prior to use. Also, an easy way to sterilize them and keep them warm until you use them is to put them in an oven at 250 degrees F for at least 20 minutes.

Fresh Blueberries & Pear Jam with Yogurt

Take all my spoons away. Seriously.

I have eaten this dessert nearly every day for the past week ... sometimes even twice a day. I know, so indulgent. However, while luscious, I can at least say its healthy. For once.

Combine:

your favorite fresh fruit (in this case, obviously blueberries)
plain yogurt (I used Fage non-fat)
1 tsp. of some delicious confiture or jam, preferably homemade (pear/vanilla confiture shown here)

Its simplicity is alluring and it is so full of healthy protein and fruit that one cannot go wrong.