Spicy Chorizo, Cippolini, and Tomato Soup

Oh man, it is getting chilly here in San Diego!  And of course, by chilly I mean highs in the mid sixties during the day, and lows of high forties at night.  I know, some of you have snow already, and I feel for you.  I really do.  But I swear my blood has thinned after living in Southern California for six years now.  After dealing with Midwest winters and living in the snow belt for most of my life, you would think I would be tougher.  And I can be pretty tough, but right now, I am just cold.  

So here is what I have been doing lately - eating a hot bowl of creamy oatmeal for breakfast, wrapping my hands around a steaming cup of coffee, wearing thicker socks and comfy sweaters, and cuddling up on the couch with my sweet little puppy.   Oh, and I have also been eating lots and lots of soups.  

Cippolini onions.

I have been filling up on pho and chicken noodle soup from some of my favorite restaurants, but when it comes to tomato-based soups I would just rather make it at home myself. (Call me picky, but I always find tomato soups from restaurants to be sort of bland, not nearly tomato-ey enough for my taste.)  I have had the idea in my head for awhile now that I wanted to make a batch of nice and spicy tomato soup, and I knew I wanted to heat it up with chorizo.  I had seen a recipe for including Spanish chorizo in a sort of thick stew-like soup, but I wanted to experiment with the Mexican chorizo since that is more readily available and less expensive around here.  Normally, Mexican chorizo is used in tacos and the like, but I thought it could definitely be used in soup too.  But I just couldn't decide what to pair with the chorizo... 

And then, as usually happens, I got inspired by a visit to the farmers market.  As I was browsing around last Saturday at the Little Italy Farmers Market, I happened upon these adorable golden cippolini onions from Schaner Farms.    

Carrot Cake Cupcakes, with Maple Cream Cheese Frosting

I am always a little perplexed when someone says to me, "Oh carrot cake is my favorite!"  I mean, obviously I think carrot cake is awesome... but your favorite? Really?  (Are you sure you aren't fibbing?)  I always want to ask them why, not necessarily because I question their taste, but more out of sheer curiosity.  What is it that holds carrot cake at the forefront of your taste as your favorite?   

I think I feel this way because for me, carrot cake is sort of akin to that old worn out sweatshirt at the bottom of your drawer - you know, the one that you know you love, but that you forget you have.  Then the minute you put it on you immediately chide yourself for not wearing it all the time because it is so comfortable and so warm and just all-around perfect.  Carrot cake is like that old sweatshirt - a love, many times forgotten, but never a quite placed on the 'favorite' shelf.      

But last week my sister (who has recently discovered her love for baking, Yay!) said to me, "Hey I am going to make carrot cake cupcakes!"  And just like that - carrot cake rushed off the dusty shelf in the back of my mind.  I couldn't stop thinking about making these cupcakes.  I was dreaming of fall spices - cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger - and I knew this would be the perfect recipe to make me feel like the season was here.  (Of course, it didn't hurt that my sister told me her co-workers loved them, and highly recommended I make them.)   

Since my sister had already made these cupcakes using a Smitten Kitchen recipe, I asked her if she had included any changes to the ingredients or baking time.  I was super excited to hear that she had read through some of the comments on the original post (as well as some reviews from a similar recipe on Epicurious), and decided to substitute applesauce for most of the oil in the cake batter. Swapping apple sauce for oil is a trick I have long wanted to try, but never really had the occasion.  

Fresh Spring Rolls with Spicy Carrot Sauce

I have another guest post for you today, and I can't even begin to tell you how much I love this one!  This cool and refreshing recipe comes from Liren of Kitchen Confidante - her and I go waaaaay back, all the way to when we first started our blogs.  Even from the beginning, I knew I liked her warm heart and friendly spirit, and her blog is a place where she shares inspiring recipes with gorgeous photos.  I also really love her writing, she has a voice that is calm and real, and I always find her posts informative. 

With this recipe for Fresh Spring Rolls with Spicy Carrot Sauce, Liren has touched on so many things that I adore: first, you know how I can't resist fresh and seasonal veggies, and in this recipe, they are the star.  Liren was even lucky enough to find some pea shoots at the farmers market, which make these spring rolls extra special.  Second, she elevated standard spring rolls to greatness by pairing them with an intriguing Spicy Carrot Sauce (I can't wait to try it myself!).  And last, but certainly not least, Liren encourages us to share these rolls with friends and family - a concept that is near and dear to my heart, since I learned to make these rolls from a good friend, and have shared them with family ever since.  

I know you will just love this recipe from Liren, and be sure to stop by Kitchen Confidante and check out all her other recipes - I have still been thinking about her post from last year on making beer bratwurst, if you are into homemade foods and DIY projects, this one is for you.  Enjoy!

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I am so honored to share a post today on The Cilantropist. Amanda and I both started our sites at about the same time, and it has been a delight getting to know one another better through our kitchens and the world of food. I have also had the joy of meeting Amanda in person, and I have to tell all of you - she is as sweet and kind and as passionate about food in person as you can imagine. Having once been in her grad school shoes, I well know the stress of that world - dissertation drafts, defenses, meeting upon meeting...I honestly don't know how she does it all whilst cooking, photographing, writing and sharing it here -- and beautifully so -- for all of us. So I am more than happy to share something with Amanda's readers, while she gets all that hard work done.

It's been a sweltering summer for much of the country, and while it's been unusually mild here in the Bay Area, I am often chatting with family and friends that are melting in heat and humidity. I have the utmost empathy for them; I well remember the oppressive heat, when your excursions outdoors are greeted by hot sidewalks, heat permeating from every inorganic material - I've crossed many a taxi filled street in NYC to know. All you want to do is find air conditioning, all you want to eat is something light and refreshing.

Like Amanda, I am a fan of cilantro, so for today's post, I thought I would serve up something cool and refreshing, that highlights vibrant herbs and vegetables. Perfect for these hot summers, you will find these Vietnamese-style Fresh Spring Rolls with Spicy Carrot Sauce satisfying with the crunch of carrots and cucumber, the coolness of slippery bean threads (rice vermicelli), succulent seafood, and peppy herbs such as mint, cilantro and basil. And if that isn't enough, sweet carrots were used to create a Spicy Carrot Sauce in which to dip your bundles of coolness.

Zucchini Noodles with Chicken and Tangy Peanut Sauce

I am super excited to share this recipe with you today - partially because I get to tell you about an amazing new gadget I discovered (pssst... the Swissmar Julienne Peeler rocks my world!) but more importantly because I am sharing this recipe on one of my favorite blogs: Kitchen Confidante.  

The lovely Liren of Kitchen Confidante is getting some much needed rest and relaxation in Maui for a week and she was kind enough to invite me to guest post for her while she is gone.  I love Kitchen Confidante because the recipes Liren shares use seasonal, fresh ingredients that I enjoy, but there is often a twist that makes each dish really unique and innovative.  On the flipside, some of her more traditional recipes touch close to my heart and remind me of happy food and family memories.  Plus, her photography is always stunning, and you know how I love my beautiful food.        

The recipe I am sharing on her site today is definitely seasonal - hooray for vibrant summer squash and zucchini! - as well as an easy and healthy way to shake up your weeknight meals.  Be sure to head on over to Kitchen Confidante to get the recipe for these Zucchini Noodles with Chicken and Tangy Peanut Sauce - trust me, you want to go there as much to get my recipe as you do to check out all Liren's other great posts.  Plus I really really have fallen head over heels in love with this new julienne peeler that I got, and I want you to see how easily you can make healthy vegetable 'noodles.'  This recipe is for good, clean food to keep fit and happy.  

  Head on over to her site to read the full post and get the recipe!

   

On the side, Spice Roasted Carrots

I am always attracted to fresh, bright orange carrots at the farmers market.  With their springy, leafy green tops and wispy roots still attached, they are worlds apart from their plastic-wrapped counterparts at the grocery store.  They might even still have a little dirt clinging to them, telling you they really came from the earth.  (As opposed to those perfectly shaped baby carrots; who knows where they really come from...) 

Freshly washed carrots from the farmers market. 

The carrots from the farmers market even taste better - they have a sweeter and more grassy taste, whereas I think the carrots from the grocery store just taste a little watery and dull.  And speaking of watery, it is funny how those plastic wrapped carrots are packed in water, but yet can be so dry.  The carrots from the farmers market are always fresh and full of life.  And if you like a little variety in your life, look no further than the farmers market to find red, purple, and yellow carrots.  

The carrots from the farmers market come in all sizes... including some mini ones.

Sometimes when I get these carrots I just bring them home and eat them raw with an easy veggie dip, or I slice them up for salads or slaws.  But recently, I have been really into roasting them with spices to enhance their sweet flavor.  

No need to peel them, these carrots are perfect and beautiful just sliced in half.

You can really toss vegetables with any spices you like, but I often try out some new or more exotic spice blends.  Spice things up, if you will.  (Ha!  A pun!)  

So for these spice roasted carrots, I decided to mix sweet and salty with a rich spice blend known as baharat.  Baharat is a Middle Eastern spice blend commonly used to season lamb, lentils, stews, and soups and there are several different varieties.  The one originating in Turkey also contains mint, but the most traditional Arabic or North African baharat spice blend contains black pepper, coriander, cloves, cassia bark, cumin, cardamom, nutmeg, and allspice.  Some blends also include chili pepper or paprika to give them a bit more ‘heat,’ but mine doesn't so I added some extra cayenne pepper to this recipe.  

Olive oil with sugar, salt, and spices to glaze the carrots.

Turkey Noodle Soup, and Homemade Stock

As I mentioned before, I wasn't able to head home to Ohio for Thanksgiving and so I spent the day with my friend Ana and her family.  The dinner was by all accounts fabulous, and dessert was even better (though I barely had room!).  Never again will I complain about having to do anything labor-intensive after eating a massive Thanksgiving dinner prepared by a woman who is 7+ months pregnant.  Seriously, I don't know how she did it.  Did I mention she also has an adorable 2-year old and that there were 3 other little ones running around?  Such are the superpowers of moms.  I offered my help multiple times, but it seems superwoman and her equally super husband were able to pull off a delicious dinner and a happy family gathering with ease.  Many thanks for a great day with family, friends, and satisfying comfort food.

Now the days after Thanksgiving can often be a let down from the big day.  All the extensive preparations are over, the 20-pound turkeys have (almost) been devoured, and that annoying aunt or uncle has finally left the premises for good (or at least until Christmas).  In the silence that follows, many people can feel lonely and nostalgic while others start to get into full-on Christmas mode.  Me??  I feel a little bit of both; after Thanksgiving I indulged myself and started my Christmas baking and also soothed myself with soup (and also shopping, but we don't need to talk about that-or look at those receipts-just yet).


When I was having dinner at Ana's place, I was secretly hoping that there would be enough turkey left so that I could take some home to make myself at least one bowl of soup; however, I was in for a big treat because there were loads of turkey left over!  Score!  So there I was, helping myself to my portion of leftovers, when Ana's husband called his brother over to help him get the turkey carcass into a bag.  I assumed they were bagging it up to keep in the fridge, and I continued shoveling my loot (aka turkey) into a container.  When John took the bag and said, "Ok, into the trash!" I screeched out, "Waaaait!  I will take it home!"  Ana, John, and his brother all looked at me for a minute like I was crazy.  "I will use it to make turkey stock," I explained.  They still looked at me like I was crazy.  (You don't think I am crazy, right?) 

Bella's Banana Bites

Say hello to Bella!  She is a 7-month-old female purebred boxer with a gorgeous brindle coat, adorable little white paws, and eyes that make your heart melt.  She is a Cancer (born 7/21/09), and she enjoys snuggling in bed, long walks and runs at Garden of the Gods, and not-so-ferociously tearing apart chew toys.  My sister and her boyfriend got little Bella when she was only 3 months old, and I met her for the first time when I went out to Colorado Springs for a visit.  What can I say? It was love at first sight.  Bella has amazing muscle tone and looks so strong, but yet she is still tiny and cute in a way that I suppose only a large-breed puppy can appear.  She is amazingly well-behaved (aside from the appearance of her alter ego, which I refer to endearingly as "Bella Pooper"), and any owners of chronic barkers take note: I never heard her bark once while I was visiting!  Even on one occasion when we were wrestling over a chew toy, I happened to growl at her, and she immediately backed away, and looked at me as if to say, "Now was that really necessary?"  

Though she is usually a little angel, even Bella apparently has a mischievous streak.  In the three days that I was visiting, Bella managed to chew a pair of tevas, scratch the top of the kitchen table, poop in the house 4 times, eat a hand lotion, and then puke it up.  Quite a busy schedule for a little pup!  Even though this was completely out of character for her, my sister and her boyfriend scolded Bella each time she misbehaved.  Aww, just looking at her, you could tell the poor thing felt badly about what she had done.  She turned those apologetic puppy eyes on us and despite the poop and puke we just wanted to love her and hug her and... bake her puppy treats!  Because really, could you say no to this face?