It’s that time of year, isn’t it?  The time that many think of being more healthy, adding wholesome food to their diets, exercising more, and yes, losing weight.  There’s nothing quite like a fresh, new calendar year and January 1st to motivate us — even those of us who enjoy telling others resolutions oriented to the above mentioned actions — or any action — are just not our cup of tea.  I am in that group, and smirk at my reflection when I pause long enough to look knowing I’m fooling only myself and that much of my resistance to making New Year’s resolutions has to do with a variety of things, not the least of which is that I know I can make a decision at any time of the year to make a change in my habits.  Why wait for a particular day?

Here and there throughout each week, each month, each year, I am rarely free of thinking about whether I’ve eaten enough vegetables, enough whole grain, food packed with essential vitamins and minerals, drunk enough water, kept portions reasonable, made sure I ate breakfast, use mono-saturated fat in controlled amounts, watch the sugar I stir into my coffee, and work to balance protein and carbs.  Knowing what to eat and how much of it to be in good health is one thing, and living a healthy life style entirely another.  I love to tell myself that all is well because I very rarely eat fast food, or even buy food that is packaged for easy preparation or snacking.  I’ve baked almost nothing in months, and what has been baked usually leaves the house as soon as it’s out of the oven.  It’s never been difficult to avoid chips when they’re in the house, crackers, cookies, or any of the typical snack foods I know others have trouble with.  No, my weakness comes in a wine bottle — one that preferably contains white wine, but I’ll drink red with little or no arm twisting.  I sip, sip, sip it each evening — yes, each –  consuming all that sugar knowing that to make matters worse, I won’t exercise regularly, so the calories add up over time.  And?  It’s alcohol.

I know.

The math is fairly simple though.  If I cut out the wine and get out for a 3-mile walk each day, then surely, I will lose weight, right?  But I make no effort.

The last time I seriously made an effort was five years ago.  In fact it was the reason I started Sass & Veracity.  I thought that if I wrote about all things nutrition, diet, and weight loss, I’d be able to hold myself accountable and lose 50 lbs. in the process.  Losing fifty pounds would get me back to the weight I was in my mid-twenties after the birth of my two oldest boys.  The irony of that is I thought I was overweight then and probably eat far more healthily now (minus the wine).  Five years ago with approximately eight weeks of adopting a diet loosely based on The South Beach Diet,  and regularly scheduled exercise, I managed to lose 10 lbs.  But I struggled to get past a critical psychological point and lost motivation.  The exercise dwindled to be less routine, and well, here I am today, obsessed with the idea of being more thin, but never really doing anything about it.

I think one of the reasons I stopped writing here as much as I have in the past is that spending huge amounts of time thinking about recipes, buying food, writing about it, talking about it, and reading about it all day each day began to make me a bit crazy.  It takes quite a bit of seat time to accomplish that, and since I’m horrible at routine exercise unless it’s at the crack of dawn, my body doesn’t move that much. Counting the number of times I walk up and down our stairs every day doesn’t count.  My husband gave me a requested Wii for my last birthday because I thought it would be easier on my knee than getting out for a walk, and although I do love the yoga stretching and balancing, it’s not been used for more than racing cows on New Year’s Eve in quite a while.

Our complex has a nice little gym with everything I’d need to routinely work out.  There’s a lap pool as well.  Do I use them?  No.  An uninterrupted stretch of beach several miles long is a 5-minute drive from my house, and although I do enjoy walking there, I only manage it once or twice a month.  There’s a rowing machine in our garage propped against the wall that hasn’t been used in years.  I have two sizes of exercise balls, two sizes of hand weights, a stretchy thing with handles I use once every blue moon if it’s laying on the floor blocking my path to the kitchen, and a weighted ball with a handle I blame for the torn meniscus in my right knee I had surgery for a year ago.  I have a Pilates DVD, a great Pilates book, and a variety of On-Demand exercising videos available to me for free if only I’ll turn on the television and actually engage in the exercise. I’ve subscribed to Jillian Michaels and bailed after one workout.  ONE.  I joined Sparks People, set up a profile, and never returned. I ordered Sensa, tried it for two days and decided it was ridiculous, then returned it.  I think I actually was hoodwinked into purchasing Hoodia, but never used it.  I have watched and enjoyed The Biggest Loser for the past five or six seasons, amazed at how much weight the contestants lose, and am only motivated to get off the couch to use my 8-lb. weights to stretch a few times while it’s on.

It’s pathetic.

But when I think of going on a diet to assist me in changing some of my habits, I can’t help but feel so much of what I could achieve is temporary — or even dangerous.  Eating like a cave man?  Um, no thank you.  Subjecting myself to extreme detox diets to lose weight fast?  Not worth it.  A liquid meal substitute based diet?  Not when I know that eating fresh vegetables is ultimately more beneficial and with fewer calories than most liquid diets.  No, it has to be a combination of ideas — something with the support of a routine, eating and cooking food I already enjoy, and with flexibility I need built in. Most importantly, I need to be interested in it without it taking over my life.  Instead, it needs to become my life, quietly, and routinely — like nothing has changed.

I have no excuses.  I’m retired.  (Insert much happy dancing here!) I used to gaze longingly at the people going on their morning walk as I drove past on my way to work thinking, if only I didn’t have to go to work.  Even now, I see them outside the window next to where I’m sitting — walking, jogging, cycling — all while I sit on this ball thinking and writing.  So what are my obstacles, perceived or real?  My knee still bothers me, but I know which exercises will continue to strengthen it.  Spending time in the evening watching television with my husband could be an obstacle as well, but I’ll work on that. Ultimately, my biggest obstacle is doing anything mindless.  If I can’t read, or listen, think constructively, or plan while I’m exercising, it’s like being put in a cage.  Even music does little to fend off the crazies.  Is it possible to meditate while exercising?

So where is all of this going?  We’ll call it the starting line in the sand of a different direction with a predetermined destination.  And to make it legitimate:  reduce my caloric intake by 400 calories a day + increase calories burned by 400 a day.  It should take about 32 weeks to reach my goal weight of 140 lbs. just in time to celebrate a couple of milestones.  I’m not motivated by little black dresses or high-heeled shoes and never have been, but this could definitely keep me focused as a little reward.

So it appears I’m beginning something, doesn’t it?  Cheer me along, please?

Now, let’s have soup.

 Mulligatawny Detox Soup

from Gluten-Free Goddess

Ingredients

avocado oil

garlic

fresh ginger

curry powder

turmeric

cayenne

red onion

carrots

cauliflower

Granny Smith apples

sweet potato

cabbage

water

vegetable juice

chick peas

sea salt

coconut milk

lime

brown rice syrup

apple slices & cilantro

For ingredient quantities and directions, please visit Gluten-Free Goddess.

Notes:

• Mulligatawny soup is one of those things I’d heard of, but never tried.  Traditionally it’s made with a meat base but the variations on the basic recipe are numerous and often can be packed with calories.
• I made this soup a few months ago for myself thinking I’d nip the impending holiday indulgences in the bud before they happened, if that makes any sense at all.  Think prescriptive here.
• I tried it both chunky and pureed — both are packed with incredible flavor, so it’s up to you.  The puree is quite elegant and satisfying.
• It’s a rare event when I pull it off, but I followed Karina’s recipe exactly and so glad I did.
• I didn’t have either brown rice syrup or avocado oil, but located them at Sprouts.
• It freezes quite nicely in small lidded containers — enough for 1 good sized serving and makes enough to last a week.
• Perfect for now since giving your body a nice flush after all the food and beverage indulgences the last couple of months.
•  Turmeric gives this soup its bright color.  It’s known for its powerful anti-inflammatory qualities, even in very small quantities.  I truly enjoy its exotic taste and aroma.
• Avocado oil is a monosaturated fat (healthy fat) like olive oil, but is far more delicate in flavor, so it won’t have the tendency to stand out in a recipe like olive oil can.
• Ginger is best known for its ability to sooth the intestines — especially when they’ve been taxed.  Think ginger tea…
• Cabbage is also a powerhouse for anti-inflammatory benefits — and there’s a bunch of it in this recipe!

 Mulligatawny Soup from Around the Web:

We Are Never Full — “Mulligatawny Soup — The Brits Really Know How to Shake it Up”

 One Perfect Bite — “Mulligatawny”

Mele Cotte — “Secret Recipe Club:  Mulligatawny”

Making Life Delicious — “Mulligatawny Stew”

I grew up expecting to have to eat the onions on my plate whether I wanted them or not. That’s just how it went at our house, and I didn’t question it.  Good thing I’ve always liked them.   Although I remember my mother telling me my grandfather liked a good onion sandwich, we had them sliced and in salads — mostly yellow onions because they were a staple — but scallions were included once in a while, along with red onions.  Now that I think of it, red onions made their appearance when we lived in Spain because they were served in the cafes, often included with cucumbers and tomatoes in a very light water and red wine vinegar marinade.  No lettuce, just a sprinkle of salt.  It was wonderful.

Onions were chopped and fried in bacon fat for the liver my mother enjoyed so much, and as much as I didn’t want a taste of the liver, I could sit all day and inhale the aroma of those onions.  Chopped onions went into simple spaghetti sauce to flavor it, or in goulash along with other vegetables and pasta, because it didn’t seem right to not have them in the mix.  My mother’s meatloaf wouldn’t be meatloaf without chopped onions.  They were quartered and added to our Sunday pot roast with carrots and celery as well, but I didn’t appreciate their flavor in the braise.  Perhaps it was the sweetness — something I expected in the more predictable foods kids enjoy — not an onion.  I still had to eat them. I liked them best raw on burgers, or a salami sandwich, the crunch and sharp spike of flavor something that was definitely missed if it wasn’t included.

Maybe it was the onion soup my father made one year before a holiday dinner.  I’m surprised I don’t remember the details of his making it, but the flavor of those long cooked onions nestled in a rich broth gave me a different perspective on just how unique the sweetness of caramelized onions could be.  I’d never had onion confit, though, and wondered just how different it might be.  Would the sweetness that it took me years to appreciate be more intense and if it was, would I enjoy it?  Based on many of the recipes I’ve come across where onion confit or jam is included, I’m thinking yes.

But would one type of onion suffice?

Five Onion Confit

Ingredients

1-1/2 T butter

1-1/2 T olive oil

1 large leek, white and light green parts only, sliced and rinsed well

1 medium yellow onion, sliced

1 medium red onion, sliced

3 shallots, sliced

6 cipollini onions, sliced

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 T raw sugar

salt and pepper to taste

2-3 sprigs of fresh thyme

1-1/2 c. red wine

1/4 c. red wine vinegar

Directions

1. Heat the butter and olive oil in a lidded skillet or pan with a wide bottom until the butter is melted.
2. Add all the onions and garlic at once and season with salt and pepper.  Stir briefly to mix the ingredients.
3. Cover the pan and over low heat, cook until the onions begin to soften, about 5 minutes.
4. Sprinkle the sugar evenly over the onion mixture, stir it in, then cover and allow to cook for an additional 5 minutes.
5. Now add the remainder of the ingredients.  Gently stir to mix all the ingredients well, cover and allow to cook on the lowest heat possible, about 1 hour.
6. Check the pan occasionally to ensure there is still liquid in the pan.  It should decrease gradually over the entire cooking time.  If necessary add more wine a few tablespoons at a time in the first 30 minutes of cooking time only.
7. The onion mixture should be glossy and thick when done.  Scrape the contents of the pan onto a wide platter and allow to cool to room temperature.
8. If not using immediately, place in a well covered container in the fridge.
9. Bring to room temperature before using.

Recipe Notes

• If there was such a thing as swoon-worthy, this luxurious combination of flavors would certainly qualify.
• Although I don’t have an official culinary bucket list, onion confit is something I’ve wanted to make for some time, so I’ve mentally checked it off my nonexistent list with great satisfaction and new understanding that no, onion confit is not the same as a skillet full of caramelized onions.
• This recipe was adapted from one by Steve Sullivan who is the founder of the Acme Bread Company.  It accompanies his Pizza with Onion Confit recipe in Baking with Julia.
• So what’s the difference between a confit and a jam, or preserves, and does it matter?  A confit preserves food either in fat — as in duck confit — or in sugar, such as with fruit.  Think preserves, but with less sugar.  But then again, this lemon confit recipe uses sugar and salt.  It’s a toss up as far as I’m concerned.
• From what I’ve researched, the terms are now used less to describe a method of preparation than the resulting product.  For example, onion confit, which only contains a bit of fat and sugar, ends up being quite jammy in consistency.  Fruit jam often contains pieces of the fruit in the end — hence, jam.  Am I making any sense?  If I’d chopped the onions, I’d be more inclined to call this a jam, but that’s my simple opinion.
• Comparing many, many onion confit recipes, honestly, I see little difference.  In most, sugar and acid in the form of vinegar is added to the onions to make the confit or jam.  Ultimately, when I think of recipes that involve some kind of preservation, I think of ages long past when refrigeration didn’t exist, and people wanted to keep the food and flavors to last well past harvest time.
• And speaking of harvest seasons, varieties, and all things onion, The National Onion Association is a great resource if you’re interested in knowing more — such as what the measurement of a “large” onion is as opposed to a “medium.”
• And speaking of onions, the five “onions” I used for this confit are from the allium family, but not all onions, specifically.
• Although I made this onion confit to accompany a pizza and sandwich, there are other great things to enjoy it with such as burgers, pasta, grilled meat, white beans, in or on meatloaf, in soup or bread.  I’ve got this Tartlet of quail and quail eggs with onion confit on my mind.  Think about the possibilities before you start and you’ll have a week’s worth of menu items lined up and ready to go!

More Onion Confit and Jam Recipes

Panini Happy — Roasted Garlic & Onion Jam

Kari’s Creations — Red Onion Confit

Delicious Days — Red Onion Confit with Port Wine

Kyotic Kitchen – Onion Confit

Homesick Texan — Spicy Red Onion Jam

My meager pot of tomato plants has finished producing and been cut back to a few stalks jutting from the dark soil they’ve been planted in since May, waiting for me to pull them up.  But I’m lucky to have friends whose plants are still producing and thankfully willing to share.  The challenge for me at times is knowing what to do with them because my own plants have rarely produced more than what we can eat in a salad.  Often my timing is bad in being able to enjoy the lot — just how many tomatoes can two people eat at one sitting, right?  Especially when my husband forgets to bring them home right away and they’re, well, soft.

Into the freezer they go — stems and all.  I put them on a metal tray until they’re hard as rocks, then pour them into a plastic bag for later use.  Last year I managed to save a bag until mid-February when it was a welcome addition to a hearty tomato squash soup.  This year, I’ve already used one frozen bag, but still have two more in the freezer and will enjoy deciding what to make with them.

I’ll have to blame my need to use some of my frozen homegrown tomato stash on this Irish Blue Cheese and Tomato Soup recipe from Soup Chick.   I’m a pushover to begin with because I love tomato soup, but I’ve never had it with blue cheese — let alone bacon.  I was completely intrigued, so of course I had to try it.  I had the tomatoes, but the recipe requires that they are roasted.  Roasting isn’t a problem because I’ve roasted tomatoes several different ways and truly enjoy the flavor.  However I’d never roasted thawed, frozen tomatoes.

I love a good food experiment, don’t you?  Especially when the result is such a satisfyingly, tasty soup.

Roasted Tomato Soup with Bacon, Cheese, & Orzo Recipe

Ingredients

8 large roasted tomatoes, plus juice
olive oil
3 large cloves garlic
3 strips bacon, chopped
1 medium onion, roughly chopped
1 large stalk of celery, roughly chopped
1 orange bell pepper, stemmed, seeded, and chopped
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
4 cups vegetable broth, heated
4 oz blue cheese
2/3 cup whole milk
1 cup cooked whole wheat orzo, optional
salt & pepper to taste

Directions

1. Place whole tomatoes on a rimmed baking sheet covered with parchment and drizzle olive oil over.  Smash the cloves of garlic with the side of a large knife, peel them and add them to the tomatoes.  Sprinkle with a bit of salt and pepper.
2. Roast at 425 degrees F for 25-30 minutes.
3. While the tomatoes are roasting, if you plan to add the orzo to the soup, prepare that now according to package directions — al dente.
4. Remove from the oven and allow to cool enough to touch.  If time is short, pour the tomatoes and their juice into a wide shallow bowl to quicken the cooling process.
5. When the tomatoes are cool, remove stems and skin and discard.
6. In a large pot, add the bacon and cook over medium high heat until the fat is rendered and the bacon is just beginning to brown around the edges.  Remove the bacon pieces and place them in a small bowl to reserve.
7. Reduce the heat to medium low and add the onion, celery, and bell pepper.  Allow to cook, stirring occasionally, just until softened, about 5 minutes.
8. Sprinkle the flour over the vegetables, stirring to incorporate, and allow to cook 1-2 minutes.
9. Stir the heated vegetable broth over the vegetables, stirring to scrape up any browned bits on the bottom of the pan.  Allow to cook just until it begins to thicken, about 5 minutes.
10. Add the tomatoes and their juices, continuing to cook until the soup reaches a simmer.
11. Crumble the blue cheese over the soup and stir until melted.
12. If desired, use an immersion blender, blender, or food processor to puree the soup.
13. Pour in the milk and allow it to heat briefly, about 1 minute.
14. Stir in the the cooked orzo if including it in the recipe, then add the bacon pieces, reserving a few to garnish.

Recipe Notes:

• The smaller yellow and orange tomatoes weren’t used in this recipe, but they could have been.  I just wanted to show you how I do just pop them in the freezer.  The first photo was taken earlier this past summer after I returned home from picking my dear friend’s tomatoes while she was on vacation.  Lucky me!  The second two were the last of my crop from last year which I gathered in mid-October right before we went on vacation.  Amazing how my growing season was so much longer last year!
• As usual when I’m inspired by a great recipe, I often don’t have exactly the same ingredients on hand.  In the case of this soup, I was lacking the carrots, but had the bell pepper, and although they’re both orange, of course that’s not why I made the substitution.  Both add a sweetness to the mix and if you consider the holy trinity of gumbo bases (onion, celery, and bell pepper), I knew I would be in the ball park.  I had milk but not cream, found I was out of chicken broth so used veggie, and then only a partial package of blue cheese — about half the required quantity.  And you know the story about the tomatoes from what I mentioned above.
• About those tomatoes:  My goodness they released quite a bit of water during the roasting — definitely more than what I’ve noticed when roasting fresh tomatoes.  They end up being quite soft, but the good thing is, the skins are completely separated from the flesh, so you can pull them right out of the mix simply by using a fork to poke around in it.  There’s no need to chop them, because they’re already so soft.
• We truly enjoyed the flavors in this soup, and because we’re blue-veined cheese lovers, I have to make it again using the required amount of cheese.  I used a mild blue-veined Brie for this recipe and it was a perfect choice.  Nice an creamy.
• Why the whole wheat orzo?  I had it on hand for another meal and decided to add it the next day when I was enjoying a bowl of left-over soup for lunch.  I was remembering a favorite tomato rice soup recipe and thought it might be similar.  It was a great addition, but the soup is excellent without it as well.
• Many thanks to Lydia who also writes The Perfect Pantry, for sharing such a great recipe.

More Tomato Soup Recipes:

What We’re Eating — Roasted Tomato Soup (and some incredible cheese bread!)

Sprouted Kitchen – Roasted Tomato Soup

Joylicious — Roasted Tomato Soup

Our Life in the Kitchen — Tomato Soup

Sassy Radish — Tomato Soup

One of the things my husband will tell you I ask him is whether he’s had anything green during the day.  He’s fairly patient with this interrogation because he’s intelligent and knows that ultimately, regardless of what he eats, there have to be vegetables in his diet– especially brightly colored vegetables.  But sometimes, green is enough, and often easier because all it takes to incorporate it into a day’s worth of meals is to have a salad.  A big salad.

I know many think salad is a warm weather dish, but to me, it’s one of the easiest ways to make sure vegetables are on the plate.  Fresh vegetables.  Nothing fancy — just a mix of what sounds good, what’s in the fridge, or what’s in season.  And?

The salad needs to take up half the plate.

I grew up eating salads made exclusively with iceberg lettuce.  I’m sure many of us did, and from what we now know, it’s because that’s what was in the market.  Zero choice.  But one of the first types of lettuce I discovered when I was freshly moved out of my mother’s house was Boston Butter Lettuce.  It was beautiful, delicate, and something I’d never seen before.  Although I originally saw it in small heads placed in rows upside down in the produce rack, more and more, the heads I’ve become accustomed to seeing are larger.  Much larger, and sealed safely inside plastic containers to keep them from being bruised.  I felt decadent the first time I bought a head of butter lettuce,  enjoying the tender leaves with all kinds of tasty salad ingredients, and thinking that yes, it tasted a bit on the buttery side.

During our short trip to Laguna Beach this past summer, we had a late lunch on the balcony overlooking the beach at The Beach House.  Although we both agreed the food was wonderful, I especially enjoyed the completely green salad made of a whole head of butter lettuce and all other green ingredients tucked under the leaves. Avocado, green striped tomatoes, green onions — wonderful.

When I saw the “Boston Lettuce Salad with Herbs” in the September issue of Food & Wine, I decided to make a similar version of a delicious Boston Butter Lettuce Salad.

Perfect for dinner, a special occasion, or just lunch all by yourself.

Check off your greens for the day!

Boston Butter Lettuce Salad with Avocado, Corn, & Tomatoes Recipe

Dressing Ingredients

2 tsp. chopped fresh tarragon

3 T extra virgin olive oil

1 tsp. freshly squeezed lemon juice

1 tsp. sherry vinegar

1 T water

salt & pepper to taste

Salad Ingredients

1 large head butter lettuce

1 cup of chopped fresh tomatoes

1 scallion, sliced thin

1/2 avocado, cubed

1/2 ear of corn, raw

1/4 cup crumbled goat cheese

Directions

1. Lightly toss all of the dressing ingredients in a small bowl or combine in a jar to shake.
2. Arrange the head of butter lettuce in a shallow bowl, trimming away any roots or dried stem.
3. Tuck the other ingredients between and under the leaves, or if you’d prefer, pour them over the head of butter lettuce as you prepare them.
4. Drizzle the dressing over the head of butter lettuce.
5. Cut through the head of lettuce if sharing — in half for two, or quarters for four.
6. Pour any additional bits and pieces of ingredients into the split head of butter lettuce before serving.
7. Don’t forget to sprinkle on the goat cheese.

Recipe Notes

• The recipe for “Boston Lettuce Salad with Herbs” at Food & Wine can be found here.
• This type of salad green is called a variety of names, such as butter lettuce, Boston Bibb, bibb or it seems any combination of those.  It’s still a velvety, tender salad green.
• I purchased hydroponic butter lettuce grown in the container I bought it in, roots and all.  Interesting.
• To keep it fresh, it’s easy to layer lightly between damp paper towels.  Or, if you’ve prepared a salad and want to keep it chilled, dampen a paper towel and lay it over the top of the salad before putting it in the fridge.
• I don’t remember exactly what the salad at The Beach House had in it, but avocado and green striped tomatoes were a definite.  I just loved the presentation.  It kept me busy!
• I used a handful of the last of my tomatoes from my meager summer pot this year — they were perfect since they were seriously green.
• Thinking fried green tomatoes would have been excellent in this mix — with bacon bits.  Sorry!  Can’t help myself.
• I have never liked the flavor of tarragon.  I think it reminds me a bit of licorice, and I don’t like licorice.  But I keep trying to understand the flavor.  It’s nice in this, but I’m a cilantro kind of person, so that would have been amazing.
• Have some fun with this.  I know I always say that, but think of it.  It’s not hard to make, so why not switch it up a bit to add a variety of ingredients or a different dressing.
• Mmm…butter lettuce.  Have you tried it recently?  There are all kinds of things to use it for — like lettuce wraps.

More Boston Butter Lettuce Salad Recipes

The Raw Chef — Lemon & Avocado Butter Lettuce Salad

Dinner with Daneman — Orange Salad with Fennel Pollen and Goat Cheese

Nothing but Bonfires — How to Make the World’s Best Salad

The Fromagette — Crab, Avocado + Mango Salad

The calendar asserts that summer is dwindling, but I know better.

Damp air, flat, steely skies until late in the morning and an urge to put on a sweater are only teasers of what will come much later here than most other places in the country.  Usually, I allow myself to be lulled into remembering all that I love about Fall weather after having had weeks of heat and humidity, but not this year.

No, I’ve enjoyed the blue skies and temperate weather — pleasant breezes that keep the house cool and the pots on our patio from needing constant watering.  I haven’t had my fill yet, but know by the time September has passed, I’ll be ready.  It’s usually our warmest month, only once every blue moon or so bringing blustery showers and a thunderstorm.  But it’s been years since we’ve seen that.

So for now, a bowl of soup is fine.

Something bright and full of flavor, but not packed with calories.

Take advantage of all the beautiful sweet peppers at the market right now — or if you’re lucky enough to grow them yourself –  and try this roasted sweet pepper soup.  If you’re thinking it’s still not quite soup weather yet, then freeze it.  It’s worth waiting for.

Roasted Sweet Pepper Soup Recipe

Ingredients

2 T extra virgin olive oil

1 medium onion, chopped

2 lbs. mixed sweet peppers

2 lg. cloves garlic, minced

2 T. flour

2 c. vegetable stock

1/4 c. fresh cilantro, chopped

1 c. low-fat milk

1 c. non-fat yogurt

salt & pepper to taste

Directions

1. Place whole peppers on a baking pan about 6″ under the broiler.  Allow the skins to blacken before turning them to blacken the other side.
2. Remove the pan from the oven and cover with a clean dish cloth.  Allow to sit for 15-20 minutes, or until peppers are completely cool.
3. Peel blackened skins from the peppers, remove membranes, stems, and seeds.  Do not rinse!
4. Coarsely chop the peppers and set aside.
5. Heat olive oil in a medium sauce pan over medium low heat, then add the onion and garlic and saute until transparent.
6. Add the roasted peppers and stir to combine.
7. Sprinkle the flour over the mixture and toss lightly, cooking for 2 minutes, but avoid browning.
8. Stir in the vegetable stock and raise the heat to allow the mixture to come to a boil.
9. Reduce the heat to low and allow to simmer for 20 minutes.
10. In a food processor, blender, or with an immersion blender, carefully puree the hot mixture until smooth.
11. Add the cilantro and blend well.
12. Return to the sauce pan, stir in the milk and yogurt, and allow to gently reheat.
13. Season with salt and pepper.
14. Serve.

Recipe Notes

• Many thanks to Eileen who noticed I’d forgotten to show where the peppers are added in the directions.  Just a tiny oversight!
• I’ve been making this soup for years, tweaking it here and there depending on what I have on hand.  The original recipe contained heavy cream, and I just can’t see doing that to a great vegetable soup.  The yogurt is a perfect addition because it provides a pleasant tartness that works quite well with the roasted pepper flavor.
• Roasting peppers can be a smelly process, but we love the smell.  Regardless, I always turn on my exhaust fan when I’m roasting them just to make sure the smell doesn’t end up in our bedrooms!
• I couldn’t pass up the bag of cute mini sweet peppers for less than $4.00, but trust me — what a royal pain to peel.  Turn on HDTV, stand at the counter with a nice beverage and just don’t think about it.  You’ll be done before you know it.
• Sometimes I roast green chilies with the sweet peppers and goodness they’re good!  Roasted onions work well, too, if you want a sweeter mix.
• You can prepare the roasted sweet peppers a day ahead if you need to.  Just wrap them well and keep them in the fridge.
• If you’re going to prepare the soup ahead, then allow the finished soup to cool completely before covering it and either storing for a few days in the fridge, or better, freezing to enjoy on a blustery day.
• Sweet peppers make me think of summer, so soup weather or not, this hits the spot.

More Roasted Pepper Soup Recipes

Simply Recipes — “Roasted Red Pepper Potato Soup”

Food Blogga — “Southwest Roasted Red Pepper and Corn Soup”

seasaltwithfood — “Roasted Red Pepper Soup”

A Veggie Venture — “Day 361:  Roasted Red Pepper Soup”

The Youngrens — “Recipe Sunday | Rainbow Roasted Pepper Soup”

I don’t go to our farmer’s markets as much as I’d like, but when I do, I always seem to find something new to try.  I enjoy dark, green leafy veggies quite a bit, so I’m not a hard sell.  One vendor recently  noticed me admiring the beautiful magenta color at the center of the larger deep, green leaves lightly filling a bag.  “It’s red amaranth,” the young man told me, reaching for the bag I was focused on.  “Here, taste it.” And so I did.

Although somewhat like spinach in flavor, amaranth, or what some refer to as Chinese spinach, is more sturdy between my teeth as I chew on it, its flavor somewhat like fresh grass smells like if that makes any sense at all.  It’s not sweet, but not pungent, either, and leaves a pleasant, unbitter taste in my mouth.

But I thought amaranth was a grain — isn’t it?  And don’t I remember seeing annuals at the nursery with colorful plumes which also somehow reminded me of the tasty greens I was chewing on?

Evidently yes to all above — sort of.  It isn’t a true grain, but is referred to as a pseudo-grain.  Some varieties are cultivated for the leafy green vegetable, some for seeds to be used much like rice or corn are used. And although I did know that buckwheat and quinoa were very high plant protein sources, amaranth seeds are as well.  And, they lack gluten, so that makes them quite beneficial to those who are gluten intolerant.

Historically, amaranth was a staple of ancient Mesoamericans and has been enjoyed in Asia for centuries.  Why and how did our culture adapt to eating iceberg lettuce instead?  Evidently, amaranth became associated with religious rituals involving human sacrifice, so it was banned by the invading Spaniards who then came to North America.

So that explains how we ended up with ice berg lettuce.

This recipe spices things up a bit, perfect for lunch by itself or a dinner side.  Use spinach if you can’t find red amaranth.  Your body will thank you.

Spicy Red Amaranth Stir-Fry

Ingredients

1/2 lb. fresh red amaranth

1/2 tsp. ground cumin

1/4 tsp. ground coriander

1/8 tsp. ground cloves

1/4 tsp. ground cardamom

1 tsp. canola oil

1 lg. garlic clove, minced

1/2 tsp. fresh minced ginger

1 red jalapeno, sliced

squirt of fresh lime juice

salt & pepper to taste

Directions

1. Make sure the amaranth is rinsed of soil and thick stems are removed.
2. Mix the dry spices together except the salt and set aside.
3. In a large skillet or wok, heat the oil over medium heat and add the garlic, jalapeno, and ginger, stirring about 30 seconds or so to soften.
4. Sprinkle in the mixed dry spices and stir lightly.
5. Add the amaranth, stirring to mix with the other ingredients, then add the lime juice and a couple of tablespoons of water.  Continue to toss lightly.
6. Season with salt and pepper and serve immediately.

Recipe Notes:

• I lightly adapted this recipe from one found at Seasonal Chef
• I could make an entire meal of this, so if you plan to experiment, I’d start right away by doubling the recipe — at least!
• Soy sauce seems to belong in this — maybe next time.  And maybe a bit of sesame oil.
• It would be perfect with a bowl of rice, or quinoa.
• Now I’m wondering about soup.  I love a nice green soup.

Other recipes using red amaranth:

Serious Eats:  “Seriously Asian:  Amaranth Greens”

India on My Plate:  “Sauteed Amaranth Leaves with Coconut”

Greek Food Recipes and Reflections:  “Amaranth with Scorthalia”

Cityhippyfarmgirl:  “Cooking with Red Amaranth”