Thanksgiving Recipe Series

Hello peoples!! Are you as excited as I am that the most delicious holiday of the year is right around the corner??!! I thought that it would be a good idea to do a Thanksgiving Recipe Series for the next couple of weeks leading up to the BIG day. I know lots of people are scrambling trying to find those crowd-pleaser recipes guaranteed to impress the fam, so I'm gonna try to help you out.

Since 2004 when I moved to DC and my friends and I were forced to make our own Thanksgiving together, I've been trying out all sorts of different recipes, some that I've liked, others that I (and my dinner guests) could've done without. So follow me these next couple of weeks as I share my favorite Thanksgiving recipes, including my mom's bacon-wrapped oven-roasted turkey recipe. Yes, I said BACON-wrapped!

For today, we're going to start off with probably the easiest soup you've ever made. It's Sweet Potato and Red Pepper Soup. You can serve it as an appetizer or as part of the main course. You can even substitute the sweet potatoes for butternut squash, which I've done on numerous occasions. Best thing about this soup... ZERO fat! Kinda helps make up for the other, not so health-conscious recipes. :)

Sweet Potato and Red Pepper Soup

Ingredients:

• 4 large sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed
• 2 red peppers, chopped
• 3 carrots, chopped
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, chopped
• 1 quart vegetable stock (I used Kitchen Basics Vegetable Stock b/c it's lower in sodium than many other stocks)
• 1 1/4 cups dry white wine
• 1 cup sherry wine (if you don't have sherry, just add 1 more cup of veggie stock instead)
• hot sauce, to taste
• salt and freshly ground pepper

Instructions:

1. Put the sweet potatoes, red peppers, carrots, onions, garlic, veggie stock, and wine in a saucepan. Bring to a boil.

2. Lower the heat and simmer for 30 minutes, or until the veggies get soft.

3. Transfer the soup to a blender or food processor, and process until smooth. Season with salt, pepper, and a generous dash of hot sauce (if you like a little kick). Serve warm.

More to come!!! Stay tuned...

It's Flu and Cold Season...

...And I've got just the thing!

After an entire year of being in a hospital around all sorts of illnesses thinking I might get through it without getting sick, ... I got sick. :P It was like a domino effect. One day one of my classmates had it, the next day two did, and so on until I got it. It's all over Miami! This morning I went to CVS and found myself in the cold & flu aisle along with four other people (it's 8 am on a Saturday morning). We all looked at each other like "yep, I feel ya". Whatever this flu/cold/sinus thing is, I've decided I'm going to nip it in the bud today. Which leads me to today's recipe: a shmishmorshen of caribbean veggies made into a delicious and hearty soup.

I give you ajiaco [ah-hee-ah-ko]. It's the kind of food mom used to make when you were young that somehow magically cured all and made you feel better instantly! Traditionally, ajiaco is made with tasajo (cured, dry beef) and pork. For today, I decided to ix-nay both. I made it with yuca (cassava), malanga, boniato, corn on the cob, platanos (plantains), calabaza (West Indian squash), potatoes, and carrots. You can find all of these vegetables at a latin grocery store or in the latin produce section of your supermarket.

*I used a pressure cooker to make the ajiaco. If you have one, great! If not, just use a large pot, it'll just take longer to cook.

Ajiaco (vegetarian)

Ingredients:

• 1 medium yellow onion, diced
• 10 garlic cloves, diced
• 1 small green bell pepper, chopped
• 2 bay leaves
• Sazón Completa seasoning
• 2 corn cobs, cut into smaller pieces
• 1 malanga, peeled and cut into chunks
• 1 small yuca, peeled and cut into chunks
• 2 yellowish-green platanos, cut into 2-inch pieces
• 1 boniato, peeled and cut into chunks
• 1-2 cups of calabaza, peeled and cubed
• 3 carrots, chopped
• salt and pepper

Instructions:

1. Fill the pressure cooker half way up with water and add the corn cobs, green pepper, onion, garlic, 2 bay leaves, and a few dashes of Sazón Completa . Bring the heat to medium-high, secure the lid on the pressure cooker, and cook for 10-15 minutes. This will give the corn the extra time it needs to cook.

2. Let the pressure out of the pressure cooker and open the top. Add the rest of the vegetables to the broth and add a little more water if the water level is too low. (*Do NOT fill the pressure cooker past the maximum level line) You may also want to add a few more dashes of Sazón Completa to maintain the seasoning level for the added water.

3. Secure the lid back on and cook for another 5 mins. on medium-high heat. Let the pressure out once more, open the top, and check to see that all the veggies have cooked through. Adjust salt and pepper to taste and serve. Squeeze some lime on top and you'll be feeling great in no time!

Enjoy! :)

It's A Soup Kinda Day

I know it's 100 degrees outside and the last thing I should be thinking about is a nice, warm bowl of soup, but guess what? I am! Now that I'm in Miami, I never really have the reason of cold weather for making soup like I did during the harsh DC winters. Nevertheless, that hasn't stopped me from making one of my favorite foods.

Today I got my trusty soup book out and decided to make Chicken and Almond Soup. It sounded interesting and I was curious to see what it would taste like. As I found out, the smell alone was worth making this soup!! The poblano chili packed immense flavor throughout and made my kitchen smell deeeelicious.

Chicken and Almond Soup

Ingredients:

• 6 tbsp butter
• 1 leek, chopped
• 1/2 tsp fresh, shredded ginger
• 3/4 cup almonds, finely ground (use food processor)
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp crushed black peppercorns
• 1 poblano chili, chopped
• 1 carrot, sliced
• 1/2 cup frozen peas
• 1 cup boneless, skinless chicken, cubed
• 2 tbsp fresh, chopped cilantro
• 2 1/2 cups of water
• 1 cup light cream

Instructions:

1. Melt the butter in a deep skillet or wok. Add the chopped leek and the ginger root and sauté until soft but only just turning brown.

2. Lower the heat and add the ground almonds, salt, peppercorns, chili, carrots, peas, and chicken. Fry for about 10 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through, stirring constantly. Add the cilantro.

3. Remove from the heat and let it cool slightly. Put the mixture in the food processor or blender and process for about 90 seconds. Pour in the water and blend for another 30 seconds.

4. Pour back into the rinsed pan and bring to a boil. Once boiling, lower the heat and add the cream gradually while stirring. Simmer for 2 more minutes and you're done.

5. If you'd like, serve soup with a sprig of cilantro and a few thin slices of avocado to complete the dish.