Winter
Seafood Chowder in Bread Bowls
Soup weather is officially here and I couldn’t be happier! There’s not much that’ better than warm soup eaten out of a bread bowl, is there?
This seafood chowder was inspired by one that I had a few week ago at The Original Soup Man; I love how thick and rich it was and couldn’t get enough of the sweet bay scallops. I drank every last drop and left with plans to recreate it at home ASAP!
Baked Risotto with Sausage and Kale
The man who works in the parking garage near my office was in a particularly bad mood this morning. I can’t say that I blamed him. Saturday’s warm sun had gone away, and cold rain settled in. The air was heavy and damp and everything looked gloomy. As he watched person after person head into their toasty warm offices filled with friendly colleagues, he was stuck sitting alone in his little booth (that is, until he had to come out in the rain to deal with my permit issues). On top of all that, it was Monday. I wished that had some of this hearty sausage and kale risotto to share with him – with it’s stick-to-your-ribs warmth, it would have been sure to cheer him up. I could have used some myself.
Caribbean Pork and Clementine Kebabs
Inspired by the success of my Clementine-Soy Chicken Thighs, I’ve been looking for more ways to incorporate clementines into savory dishes. In this recipe, the sweet-tart fruit combines beautifully with rum, brown sugar, and warm spices to make a glaze for grilled pork kebabs. Served with cilantro-lime rice, these are a quick and easy dinner that bring a little bit of summertime flair to the dead of winter.
(I can’t believe I’m posting a grilled recipe in February, but we’re having such a mild winter this year that it doesn’t make sense not to use it – usually the grill is buried under about 4 feet of snow this time of the year). If the weather where you are isn’t as gorgeous, the broiler in your oven will work just as well.)
Clementine-Soy Chicken Thighs
Happy (Chinese) New Year!
For some reason, we always celebrated Chinese New Year when I was a kid. I don’t know why, but I always looked forward to it. It was so fun, and we didn’t eat Chinese nearly as often back then as we do now. Mom would take out the electric wok and cook dinner right on the table – usually a chicken stir fry. The next night, we’d wrap the leftovers in tortillas and eat them as fajitas. Yum.
I made this clementine-soy glazed chicken a few weeks ago and thought it would be the perfect Chinese New Year post. But then I started researching and apparently I had it all wrong. The holiday has all sorts of food traditions, like eating noodles to bring long life and dumplings to bring wealth. And apparently serving a chicken or duck whole represents health, but serving it cut – like these thighs – is the opposite. Oops.
Oh well. This dish is delicious any time of the year, and you should definitely make it (if you’re superstitious or prefer to celebrate the New Year more traditionally, just wait until tomorrow.)
New England Clam Chowder
Like a lot of people, I re-committed myself* to eating healthier and losing a few pounds in the New Year. Unlike a lot of people, I won’t attempt to live off of cold salads and clear broths. It’s winter, people! I want comfort food – and lots of it.
This milky chowder filled with meaty bites of bacon and the subtle spice of Old Bay and peppery parsnips is what I consider the ultimate winter meal. The combination of smoke and cream reminds me of curling up in front of a fireplace while fat snowflakes fall outside. Close your eyes when you eat it and you can almost hear the bells of a horse-drawn carriage being pulled down the road.
Creamy Sweet Potato and Chipotle Soup
It’s getting to be the time of year when I plan to make soup at least once a week. In addition to being a quick weeknight meal, soup is an easy go-to for weekday lunches – something I’m especially grateful for when I’m trying to avoid holiday related weight gain.
I stumbled on this recipe for sweet potato soup on the Food + Wine website one afternoon and made it for dinner that night. I love potato soup, but it had never occurred to me to use sweet potatoes before! I skipped the fried cinnamon-sugar tortillas in the original recipe and paired the soup with cheese quesadillas for a warmly satisfying meal.