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Menu Plan for Fall II: Week 10, Friday

Creamy Broccoli Soup
Salmon with Red Pepper Sauce
Mushroom Risotto

Cooking time: 40 minutes for menu           Cooking schedule: see below for instructions

     Since the risotto is a rather hearty side dish, and we have lots of vegetables in the soup, we are not having another side dish with this meal. The risotto makes a bit less than the regular recipe; it's cooked part way before the soup; finished after.

Creamy Broccoli Soup

Total time: 30 minutes
     Vegetable soups make a perfect winter first course.  They're easy, warming and healthy.  The 'cream' in this soup comes from yogurt or milk. A hint of 'heat' comes from the hot mustard.

 Ingredients:

• 1/3 - 1/2 head broccoli, 1 - 1 1/2 cups, chopped
• 1 small onion
• 1 tsp butter
• 1 1/2 cups (12oz, 360ml) chicken stock
• 1 tsp dried marjoram
• 2 tsp Dijon-style mustard
• 1/4 cup (2oz, 60ml) yogurt or milk
• 1/2 cup (2oz, 60gr) shredded Gruyère cheese   reserve 1 tbs for garnish

 Instructions:

• Roughly chop broccoli and onion.
• Melt butter in a medium saucepan.  Add onion and sauté until starting to get tender.
• Add chicken stock, marjoram and broccoli.
• Bring to a boil, reduce heat, cover and simmer until broccoli is tender, 10 - 12 minutes.
• Purée soup, using only as much stock as needed.  Reserve the rest of the stock.
• Return the soup to heat, add mustard and enough reserved stock to get the consistency you like.  Remember the yogurt / milk and cheese will thicken it a bit again.
• Bring to a boil, reduce heat and stir in the yogurt or milk and cheese.
• Heat, stirring, but do not let it boil or you will have cheese strings! 
• Serve, garnishing each serving with a sprinkle of cheese.

Roasted Salmon with Red Pepper Sauce

Total time: 25 minutes
    The slightly spicy red pepper sauce is a nice contrast to the sweet salmon.  Save remaining Red Pepper Sauce for another use.

 Ingredients:

• 2 salmon fillets,  12oz (360gr) total weight
• 1 tsp olive oil
• 1/3 cup Red Pepper Sauce
• Red Pepper Sauce:
• 1/2 red bell pepper
• 1/2 medium onion
• 1 clove garlic
• 2 tsp olive oil
• 1/2 tsp chili powder
• 1/4 cup (2oz, 60ml) chicken stock
• 1 tbs white balsamic vinegar
• 3 tbs Greek yogurt

 Instructions:

• Red Pepper Sauce:
• Roughly chop pepper, onion and garlic. 
• Sauté pepper, onion, garlic and chili powder until vegetables are soft.
• Add chicken stock, vinegar, cover and simmer 5 minutes.
• Purée in blender with as little of the stock as possible.
• Pour sauce out of blender into a small bowl and stir in yogurt.
• Salmon:
• Put salmon on lightly oiled baking sheet. 
• Spoon some of the Red Pepper Sauce evenly over each salmon fillet.  You should use about 1/3 of the sauce.  
• Bake at 400 F for 15 - 17 minutes, until fish flakes easily.   Serve.

Note:  For easy clean up cover pan with foil first.  This is especially nice if you are using fillets with the skin on.  You can carefully lift the salmon off the skin to serve, leaving the skin on the foil.  Then wrap the whole mess up and toss. 

Mushroom Risotto

Total time: 25 minutes
    I used fresh cepes and oyster mushrooms for this.  Use the best / most interesting you can find.

 Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup (3.5oz, 100gr) Arborio rice (or other rice specifically for risotto - Carnaroli or Vialone Nano)
• 1/3 cup (3oz, 90ml) dry, white wine
• 2 cups (16oz, 480ml) chicken stock
• 1/2 onion other half for condimenti
• 1 tbs butter
• 1/2 cup (2oz, 60gr) Parmesan cheese - freshly grated
• Condimenti:
• 4oz (120gr) mushrooms
• 1/2 onion
• 1 tomato
• 1 tbs olive oil
• 1 tbs dried parsley
• 1 tsp dried thyme
• 2 tbs Greek or plain yogurt

 Instructions:

• Heat chicken stock and keep hot over low heat. 
• Finely chop onion. 
• In medium sauce pan heat butter; add the onion and sauté until transparent.
• Add rice and sauté, stirring, for 2 - 3 minutes until rice has white center. 
• Add white wine and stir. 
• Start condimenti. 
• When wine is almost absorbed add a 1/4 cup of stock, stir.  (No need to stir constantly but do stir from time to time.) 
• When stock is almost absorbed add another 1/4 cup and continue adding 1/4 cup at a time and stirring. 
• Before adding the last 1/4 cup taste a few kernels of rice.  They should be just 'al dente' - slightly resistant to the tooth, but fully cooked.  If more stock is needed add it 1/8 cup at a time and waiting until almost completely absorbed.  At this point risotto will be thick but not stiff - there will still be visible liquid and it will not hold it's shape on a plate. 
• Add the Parmesan and the condimenti, stir well.
• Spoon into a bowl or risotto platter and serve.
• Condimenti:
• Brush mushrooms, trim and slice. 
• Chop onion. 
• Roughly chop tomato. 
• Heat oil in medium skillet.   Add onion, mushrooms and sauté until starting to brown. 
• Add tomato and simmer until it softens. 
• Cover, turn heat to low and keep warm until needed. 
• Just before adding to risotto, stir in yogurt.

Note:   It will continue to absorb liquid and the leftovers (if any) will be quite stiff.  The risottos that we have eaten in northern Italy have all been served in soup plates (flattish bowls) and eaten with a spoon - not a fork.

Cooking schedule: 40 minutes Assemble all food, utensils and serving dishes Utensils: measuring cups, spoons, knives, 2 small saucepans, lids, 2 medium saucepans, medium skillet, baking sheet, blender Turn oven on 400F (200C) Chop both onions, divide Sauté onion for soup Chop broccoli Add stock, herbs, broccoli to onion, cover, cook Clean red pepper, reserve half, chop half Mince garlic Sauté pepper, onion, garlic, chili powder Add stock, vinegar, cover, simmer Prepare salmon, lay on baking sheet Heat stock for risotto Chop tomato Clean, chop mushrooms Purée sauce for salmon Spoon some sauce over salmon Rinse blender Purée soup Return soup to saucepan, heat, add mustard

Adjust soup for thickness, cover, simmer, low Sauté onion for risotto Sauté onion for mushrooms Add rice to onion, sauté Add wine to rice, stir Grate Parmesan Add mushrooms to onions, sauté Add stock to rice, stir Add tomato to mushrooms, cover, take off heat Add stock to rice, stir Add yogurt, cheese to soup, stir until melted Ladle soup into bowls, sprinkle more cheese Start to roast salmon Put 1/2 cup stock into rice, remove from heat Serve soup, enjoy Done? Put risotto back on heat, bring to boil Stir well, add stock, stir Reheat mushrooms Check salmon, when done, remove, keep hot Continue adding stock / stirring risotto Stir cheese, condimenti into risotto Serve

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By Katie Zeller

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