Roasted Garlic-Chayote Bisque
and Red Pepper Bisque
Note: The Rachael Ray Show just filmed an episode here in San Miguel de Allende. Look at the clip called Rachael's Surprise for some beautiful shots of my home, San Miguel!
Go Ahead, Play with Your Food!
by Victoria Challancin
No matter what you mother told you, play with your food! Just do it! Or that's what I think every time I make a two-toned soup. It is so gratifying to pour, and even more gratifying to eat. And there are so many variations--below I will give you two that I recently made.
Two-toned soups are fun and easy to make. Any time I have ever made these in class, I have discovered three things: everyone is afraid to attempt the simultaneous pour, everyone is amazed at how simple it is in the end, and everyone is dazzled by the beautiful results. And the variations are endless; pureed black and white beans are stunning, multicolored bell peppers magical, root vegetables practically scream to join the fray, winter squashes pair well with white beans or turnips, and potatoes set off just about any other colorful vegetable. Just remember to keep the consistencies of the two soups approximately the same to facilitate ease of pouring. And most of these cream or at least creamy soups are equally delicious served cold as well as hot.
The first of these soups was born out of a request in a private cooking classes I did with some fun and creative friends. They specifically asked me to come up with a chayote-based soup, which I did. Then I thought to pair it with a red pepper bisque to give them the opportunity to learn something new and fun.
Because chayote is naturally bland, I added a good bit of roasted garlic to give it some umph. I used the Mexican technique of simply roasting garlic cloves in their husks on a comal or in a dry skillet. Of course, the Italian technique of oven-roasting in foil with a drizzle of olive oil would work equally well. For color I chose fresh basil, though cilantro or parsley would work according to your preferences and your menu. Chicken broth was the base, but again, do what works for you--vegetable broth would also be fine.
I paired the light green chayote soup with a red pepper bisque I made recently in a class for Mexican cooks as a part of another two-toned soup recipe. The colors were stunning.
Jackie, pouring roasted garlic-chayote bisque and red pepper bisque
Jackie, still creating...see how simple it would be to tweak this a bit and have a Yin/Yang symbol?
Roasted Garlic-Chayote Bisque and Red Pepper Bisque
(Recipe by
Victoria Challancin)
Serves 8.
For the Chayote Soup:
6 large cloves garlic, unpeeled
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 small onion, diced (about 1/2 cup)
3 cups chicken broth, plus extra to thin soup if needed
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper,to taste
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil leaves
1/4 cup heavy cream
3
tablespoons finely chopped shallots
1/2
teaspoon fresh thyme, finely chopped
1
tablespoon unsalted butter
6
red bell peppers, roasted and roughly chopped (about 6 cups)
3 cups chicken broth, plus extra to thin soup if needed
1/4
cup heavy cream
Fresh
lemon juice to taste
Make the
chayote soup:
Place the unpeeled garlic cloves
in a small skillet. Roast over
medium heat until slightly charred and
soft, turning frequently. Once cool enough to handle, peel, and set
aside.
Heat the butter in a medium
saucepan over medium heat. Add the
onion. Sauté until soft, about 5
minutes. Add peeled roasted
garlic, chayote, and chicken broth.
Bring to a boil, cover, lower heat,
and simmer for 20 minutes, or until
squash is tender. Allow to cool slightly, add basil, and puree (in
blender in
batches or with an immersion blender directly in the saucepan). Return soup to the
saucepan if using
the blender method to puree, and add cream. Mix well and check for seasoning
and thickness, adding a bit
more broth if necessary. Set aside
until ready to serve.
Make the pepper
soup: In a heavy
saucepan cook the shallot, the thyme, and salt and pepper to
taste in the
butter over moderately low heat, stirring, until the shallot is soft, add the
bell peppers and
1 1/2 cups of the broth, and simmer the mixture, covered, for 12
to 15 minutes, or until the peppers
are very soft. Purée in blender and force through a sieve, if desired. Whisk in the cream, enough of
the
additional broth to reach the desired consistency, the lemon juice, and salt
and pepper to taste.
The soup can be made 1 day in advance and kept covered and chilled.
When ready to serve: Pour hot soup into two 2-cup glass measuring cups. Pour simultaneously
into individual bowls, adjusting the flow and shape of the two colors of soups as you go. Garnish
with a drizzle of cream and more chopped basil, if desired.
Another pair of delicious soups: Roasted Yellow Pepper Soup and Roasted Tomato Soup
with Serrano Cream from epicurious.com
Roasted Yellow Pepper Soup and Roasted Tomato Soup
with Serrano Cream
(from epicurious.com)
Serves 6.
For the Pepper Soup:
3
tablespoons finely chopped shallots
1/2
teaspoon dried thyme, crumbled
1
tablespoon unsalted butter
6
yellow bell peppers, roasted and chopped coarse
(about
6 cups)
2 cups chicken broth plus extra to thin soup
1/4
cup heavy cream
Fresh
lemon juice to taste
For
the Tomato Soup:
3 pounds plum tomatoes, roasted
3 unpeeled large garlic cloves,
roasted
3 tablespoons finely chopped
shallot
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano,
crumbled
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
2 cups chicken broth plus
extra to thin soup
1/4 cup heavy cream
Fresh lemon juice to taste
For
the Serrano Cream:
3 fresh
Serrano chiles or jalapeños, seeded and chopped fine
1 large garlic clove, minced and
mashed to a paste
with 1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup
sour cream
Make the pepper soup: In a heavy
saucepan cook the shallot, the thyme, and salt and pepper to
taste in the
butter over moderately low heat, stirring, until the shallot is soft, add the
bell peppers and
1 1/2 cups of the broth, and simmer the mixture, covered, for
12 to 15 minutes, or until the peppers
are very soft. Purée in blender and force through a sieve. Whisk in the cream, enough of the
additional broth to reach the desired consistency, the lemon juice, and salt
and pepper to taste.
The soup may
be made 1 day in advance and kept covered and chilled.
Make the tomato soup: In a heavy
saucepan cook the shallot, the oregano, salt and pepper to
taste in the butter
over moderately low heat, stirring, until the shallot is soft. Add the tomatoes and
peeled garlic, and
1 1/2 cups broth and simmered the mixture, covered, for 15 minutes. Purée in
blender, forcing through a
sieve. Whisk in the cream,
additional broth if necessary, the
lemon juice,
and salt and pepper to taste. The soup may be made 1 day in advance, kept
covered and chilled.
Make the serrano cream: In a
blender purée the chiles, the garlic paste, and the sour cream until
well-combined. Do not
overblend. Force through a fine
sieve, cover, and chill. Bring to
room
temperature before serving (if serving the soup hot).
Enjoy!
Note: I am submitting the second of these recipes to the "non-event" Magazine Mondays, hosted by Ivonne on her terrific blog, Cream Puffs in Venice. Check it out!
My home, San Miguel de Allende, Mexico
©Victoria Challancin. All Rights Reserved.
©Victoria Challancin. All Rights Reserved.
11 comments:
Hi Victoria, great looking soups. That two-toned effect certainly adds great presentation. Thanks for visiting my blog. Recently my site has been upgraded and with that of course comes some challenges so I certainly used to have a 'subscribe by email' option. I'll try to have that option back on my blog by the end of today. I've subscribed to your blog - great to have contact with someone in Mexico. Your city looks very beautiful.
San Miguel looks beautiful Victoria! And the idea of this soup is great, makes it so much fun! :D
Nice soup and its sure you have done a great recipe. Btw, I was also admiring the pic of your house.
Aha, so that's how it's done! Very nice recipe on both sides.
What a great site! I have just food it, the soup looks so effective and delicious and I loved your story on the day of the dead!
Terrific soup, Victoria! The Serrano cream gives it a nice hit of heat which I would love!
Oh I just love that! The presentation is gorgeous and I want to dip my spoon right in!
Victoria - you didn't put in the quantity of chayote in the soup. -Nancy
Yikes! I'm sorry about that. I roasted3medium chayote a with olive oil and s&p.
MKS Foods is sell a thai foods and mughlai foods in noida. you want to buy a thai foods and mughlai foods in Noida. So Come MKS Foods
Post a Comment