swiss chard + parsnip POTAGE

Several years ago, as an exchange student I discovered soups of all sorts. In the US, I ate my childhood quota of Cambell's chicken noodle and cream of tomato, but the closest my family got to soup was chili con carne. We never even had stew.

My host mom served soup everyday at the start the evening meal and although she was not a good cook in general (dinner often arrived charred) she could make soup, or rather potage quite well. The French have many classifications* for what we americans call 'soup' including soupe, potage, consommé, velouté, crème, gratinée, garbure, and bisque (and many, many more). Although, I most frequently make soupe or veloutés I really love potages.

A potage is a blended soup without milk or cream (adding milk or cream will most likely make it a velouté or a crème). Potages are an elegant soup (although I always think of porridge when I see it written!) that are excellent starts for a meal, but usually too light to be considered a meal themselves. To turn it into a light meal have with half a sandwich, a salad, a quesadilla /grilled cheese or treat it as a starter for a small dish of pasta. I've been enjoying this soup with a quesadilla and another vegetable for lunch this week.

This marriage came together from my csa box. I have too many parsnips, I suspect I will be having many parsnips potages in the weeks to come (I really need to expand my parsnip preparations ... any favorites?). The basic potage recipe can be applied to any two seasonal vegetables and works well with winter greens and vegetables.

swiss chard and parsnip potage

1 T. olive oil

1 onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 bunch swiss chard (I used rainbow), cleaned and chopped

3 parsnips, well scrubbed and sliced

broth/water, to cover

sea salt + pepper, to taste

1. In large soup pot, heat olive oil over medium heat and cook onion until translucent (about 5 minutes). Add garlic, chard, parsnip and season with sea salt and freshly ground pepper. Cook for about 5 minutes.

2. Cover the vegetables with broth and/or hot water, bring to a simmer. Cover. Cook for 25 minutes, or until vegetables are cooked through.

3. Use your immersion blender to whiz the soup to a smooth, velvet consistency. If you don't have a hand blender (I'm sad for you), use a food processor, blender, food mill, or potato masher and blend the soup as smoothly as you can. Add more water/broth if potage is too thick.

* the most complete online resource I found, not conclusive: French Soups

beet green pasta

As a kid, if anyone asked me what I wanted for dinner I had one answer: spaghetti. We always made it with red sauce, usually with hamburger, always with copious amounts of dried oregano and scoops of dried parmesan. Once I got a bit older my palette matured and I realized pasta could be served with something other than marinara (thanks Gabby!) and I was introduced to real, fresh parmesan.

Every two weeks when I get my CSA box (or the weekend before when I get the contents list) I make a quick assessment about what I must eat in the next couple of days and what can wait. On the top of the eat soon list are a variety of greens. Not usually lettuce, that keeps for a bit, but things like chard, kale, carrot tops and beet greens. My box this week contains kale, carrot tops, and beets. First on the eat list are the beet greens - they have the shortest shelf life. The beets keep uncooked for a while but the tops will wilt immediately. I usually go ahead and roast the beat (I prefer to eat them cold, so they are ready in the fridge for eating). I also remove the carrot tops and prep them by washing and either immediately make pesto (which is my fail-safe) or keep them in the spinner in the fridge for a day until I have time to use them.

Beet Green Pasta

onion, sliced

garlic, peeled

basil, fresh

olive oil

beet greens, tops of 3 small beats washed, dried and chopped

salt & pepper, to taste

whole wheat pasta

parmesan

Slowly saute the onion with olive oil over med-low heat until they are well browned. Add the cloves of garlic and the beet greens. Add salt, pepper, and more olive oil as desired/needed. Cover than cook slowly until greens are limp. Add basil. Meanwhile cook pasta in boiling water to al dente. When pasta is done, drain and add to sauce pan. Stir. Cook for another minute. Serve with parmesan. Yield: 2 large portions

Beet Greens.

This past weekend I bought some golden beets at the farmer's market. I love roasted beets (and all of you beet haters, try them. They're great). On top are these great beet greens which you should eat too (they are especially rich in vitamins A & K and anti-oxidants beta carotene and lutein). Young greens can be eaten raw, but older greens should be cooked. When buying, look for fresh, healthy looking greens, much like with any other green/lettuce. The greens can substitute for spinach in any recipe.

Beet Greens

~10 cups of beet greens, well washed

3 garlic cloves, chopped

2 T. ginger, chopped

1 T. oil

1 t. fish sauce

1 t. soy sauce

1 t. rice vinegar

sesame seeds

red pepper flakes

Wash greens well and chop them. Include stems. Dry well. Heat oil in wok and cook garlic and ginger for 30 seconds. Add greens and stir well. As the greens cook add fish sauce, soy sauce, and rice vinegar. Cook until greens are wilted. Serve with sesame seeds and red pepper flakes.