Sherrie's Sausage, Spinach and Polenta Soup

•  1 lb mild Italian Sauage (I use Johnsonville)
• 1 to 2 Tbs olive oil
• 1 sweet onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, finely minced
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• 1/2 tsp ground black pepper
• 3 cans (14.5oz) chicken broth
• 1/2 cup coarse, stone-ground yellow cornmeal
• About 2 to 3 cups spinach, coarsely chopped
• opt: 1 can Canellini beans, rinsed and drained
• Grated Parmesan for garnish

 In a dutch oven start sausage browning in the olive oil while you chop the onion and mince the garlic. Stir them into the sausage and continue cooking until they are tender.

 Add broth, then slowly whisk in cornmeal. Bring to a simmer, reduce to low and cook (uncovered) for about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally and scraping bottom to prevent sticking.

 Stir in spinach and optional beans and continue cooking for another 5 minutes. Serve with grated Parmesan (the cheese is salty, so individual diners can adjust their own seasoning to taste).

Sherrie's Taco Soup

Sherrie's Taco Soup

1 or 2 Tbs olive oil

1 lb Johnsonville Chorizo Sausage

Salt & Pepper, to taste

1 large sweet onion (usually Maui or Vidalia), chopped

2 Tbs garlic, finely minced (I usually just use the jarred stuff)

1 can (6 oz) tomato paste

1 can (8 oz) tomato sauce

1 can (14.5 oz) petite-cut tomatoes

2 cans (14.5 oz) low-sodium chicken broth

1 can black beans, drained and rinsed

1 can corn, drained *

Tortilla Chips

Sour Cream

Me & Bro

This recipe makes quite a bit, so you’ll need to use a Dutch oven or a very large saucepan. Brown the sausage in the olive oil over medium-high heat, seasoning with salt & pepper. Add the chopped onions and sauté for 5 or 6 minutes, add the  garlic and sauté for another 2 or 3 minutes.

Add all the canned ingredients and bring to a boil; lower heat and simmer for 10 - 15  minutes. Serve with tortilla chips and sour cream.

* You can, of course use fresh or frozen corn kernels.

Lasagna Soup

Fall is the season of comfort food--warm, hearty fare to keep out the chill and help prepare you for Winter hibernation. This soup fits the bill and is pretty healthy too (Not counting the sausage!). The original recipe was in the December, 2005 issue of Cuisine At Home magazine, but I've modified it a bit to suit myself . The recipe can be made to suit both gluten-free and lactose-free diets.

Lasagna Soup

1 or 2 Tbs olive oil
1 lb Sweet Italian Sausage
Salt & Pepper, to taste
Dried Italian seasoning, to taste
1 large sweet onion (usually Maui or Vidalia), chopped
2 medium carrots, shredded
2 cups mushrooms, sliced (I prefer Cremini)
2 Tbs garlic, finely minced (I usually just use the jarred stuff)
1 can (6 oz) tomato paste
1 can (8 oz) tomato sauce
1 can (14.5 oz) petite-cut tomatoes
2 cans (14.5 oz) low-sodium chicken broth *
1 cup mini-farfalle or campanelle pasta (optional: omit if you want gluten-free)
2 cups fresh spinach, chopped (preferably baby spinach)
Optional: diced mozzarella and/or Parmesan cheese

This recipe makes almost a gallon of soup, so you'll need to use a Dutch oven or a very large saucepan. Brown the sausage in the olive oil over medium-high heat, seasoning with salt, pepper and dried Italian seasoning. Add the onions and carrots and continue to sauté for 3 or 4 minutes. Add the mushrooms and garlic and sauté for another 3 or 4 minutes.

Add all the canned ingredients and bring to a boil. Add pasta (if using), lower heat and simmer for about 10 minutes (or amount of time required to cook pasta almost al dente, per package directions). Stir in spinach and cook until wilted, about 1 or 2 minutes.

The original recipe says to ladle the soup over 1/4 cup of cubed mozzarella to give the soup that "gooey cheese element" of lasagna and further garnishes the top with grated Parmesan. I find stringy cheese in my soup unpleasant, so I leave it out—this is also a good idea for those who are lactose-intolerant. This is not a soup to be served with crushed crackers—I usually serve it with toasted slices of a crusty sourdough bread for dunking, or if I don't have any of that I top it with croutons.

*Note: leftovers are great, but if you have them and need to reheat the soup you should add some additional chicken broth, as the soup seems to get thicker when refrigerated.

Hijinks at Roads End, Lincoln City, Feb 1998
Cousin Terri, Mom, Aunt Peggy & Uncle Lee

New England Clam Chowder

For about five years I helped my Mom run Ocean Park Crab and Seafood Market in Ocean Park, Washington. One of the favorite items we sold was Clam Chowder. Many people tried to finagle the recipe from us, wanting to know why it was so good. My usual response: "We drag the clam through it twice!"


Of course Mom made me promise never to give out the recipe, even after the store was gone, so this recipe is not quite the same, but it is pretty much the recipe we use at home. To make the chowder less starchy, we use both Russet and Yukon Gold potatoes, and since most people don't have access to fresh razor clams, the recipe call for the chopped sea clams usually available at "the big box" stores. If you are not a member smaller cans and bottled clam juice can be used. And if you do have your own fresh clams, that would be ideal--but of course that would mean you probably have your own recipe for chowder!

New England Clam Chowder

2 russet potatoes, peeled and cut into about 3/4" pieces

2 Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and cut into about 3/4" pieces

51-oz can Chopped Sea Clams

1 tsp Kosher salt

1 tsp dried dill weed

6 thick slices bacon, diced

1/2 sweet onion (such as Maui or Vidalia), finely diced 

3 stalks celery, diced

4 Tbs butter

3 to 4 Tbs Flour

1-1/2 to 2 cups half-and-half

Place potatoes in a large pan; strain juice from canned clams over potatoes to cover. Bring to boil, add salt and dill weed. Cook until potatoes are tender. Meanwhile, in Dutch oven fry bacon until cooked, but not too crisp.

Remove bacon from Dutch oven, reserving pan drippings. Add butter and saute onion and celery until limp, but not browned. Add flour and continue cooking for several minutes. Add potatoes and clams to onion mixture and continue cooking until potatoes are very tender. Add half-and-half and simmer until hot--do not boil after adding the half-and-half. Stir in reserved bacon and serve with crackers, oyster crackers or (my favorite) seasoned croutons.

NOTES:

For those who are lactose intolerant, you can substitute non-dairy creamer mixed with water for the half-and-half. This recipe makes about one gallon of chowder. You can refrigerate any leftovers for several days; it does tend to thicken, so you may need to thin it with additional half-and-half when reheating.



My limit of Razor Clams