There is magic in soup. A beautiful kitchen alchemy in which a few simple ingredients are magically transformed into culinary precious treasure. There is nothing to me more satisfying than hefting the weight of my good enameled cast-iron Dutch oven from its special nook and placing it on the burner, ready to start my experiments, ready to create. Soup runs from the sublime … [Read more...] about Bacon Cheeseburger Soup
beef
Tourtière – French Canadian Meat Pie
I am tempted to say that this is an old family recipe, but my family has no connection with French Canadians whatsoever. But it is a recipe my family has been making for years. The story goes like this: my grandparents had tourtière on a trip to Canada, and enjoyed it so much, that my aunt wrote to Gourmet magazine to ask for a recipe. Gourmet did not print her request in … [Read more...] about Tourtière – French Canadian Meat Pie
Garlic Scape Beef Satay
This year, for the first time, I noticed vendors at the local farmers market selling garlic scapes. Garlic scapes are the greens that shoot off the top of a variety of garlic. They have a milder, garlicky flavor. They are long, green, and have a bulbous head at the top. I had heard of scapes, but never used them and as I am intrigued by anything garlic related, I bought a … [Read more...] about Garlic Scape Beef Satay
Simple Beef Pho
Soup seems to be a universal comfort food. The French have their onion soup, the Italians minestrone, and Moroccans love harira. For me, to be honest, tomato soup and a grilled cheese sandwich are the most comforting combination on earth. And Vietnamese pho is certainly part of this long list. My parents are big fans of a Vietnamese restaurant near the neighborhood, but I … [Read more...] about Simple Beef Pho
Belgian Beef and Beer Stew (Carbonnades Flamandes)
In Bruges When I was young and foolish and full of high ideals, I spent a semester away from college studying European politics in London. The whole merry band of scholars was ushered to Brussels for a week to visit the European Union headquarters and NATO and lots of other sites twenty year-old college student find fascinating. We were, however, granted a free day to … [Read more...] about Belgian Beef and Beer Stew (Carbonnades Flamandes)
