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Happy Fall everyone! 

I have something very exciting to share with my readers.  I grew potatoes for the first time this year and am happy to announce I just made my first harvest of beautiful red potatoes!  If you have grown potatoes before you know that there is nothing more captivating then scraping the soil back only to find big beautiful taters that almost look like they came out of nowhere!  I will now forever be a potato farmer. 

Hello beautiful

You can guarantee I’m already making plans on growing many different varieties of potatoes next year which means more planting beds for growing these nutricious tubers.  Also on the list is to make sure I label what I plant!  Unfortunately, I spaced on labeling what kind of red potatoes these are so next time I’m going to make my label first…then plant.  For now, we’ll just call this a Belly Button Potato 

The Dirt & Martinis Belly Button Tater!

Since my harvest was very small I won’t be storing them for winter eating, not to mention I’m not sure if this is a type of potato that would store well.  These babies are going to get eaten right away by myself, friends and family over the next week.  The first meal I made was a small mountain of simply prepared mashed potatoes.  The secret to perfect mashed potatoes are two things: 1) Add a bay leaf to the cooking water.  2) Do not boil but simmer the potatoes.  I learned this from a tweet made by Ron Zimmerman of the famous Herbfarm in Woodinville, WA and it really does make a huge difference in the flavor and texture of the mashed potatoes.  Second up on the potato harvest menu was cooking up a big pot of steaming potato-leek soup.  This recipe is not only simple but it can be made in short period of time.  Hopefully you’ll give this a recipe a try for your next lunch or prepare it for light lazy night supper.

Enjoy!

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                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         Spaghetti squash is admired for it’s spaghetti-like strands it gets when cooked and scraped from its shell. Available year round, spaghetti squash is low in calories (1 cup has 41 calories), is high in fiber and a “friend” to those on low carbohydrate diets. Today’s recipe is one that you would traditionally make in the fall/winter months. Since it was unseasonably cold and snowy last week I was craving something healthy and full of carbs. With the addition of green cardamom pods this soup has a complex flavor with a fresh lemony flavor.

•  1/4 cup olive oil
• 1 yellow onion, chopped
• 1 head of garlic, top sliced off (optional)
• 1 sweet potato, peeled and chopped
• 4 carrots, chopped
• 8-10 small red potatoes quartered, skin left on
• 1 spaghetti squash, left whole, prick skin with a fork
• 4-6 green cardamom pods
• 1 tsp curry powder
• Sriracha to taste (optional)
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 branches of fresh thyme and/or rosemary
• 5 cup water or broth
• Sea salt and freshly ground pepper

Preparation:

 Preheat oven to 350-degrees F. Place onion, garlic, sweet potato, carrots, potatoes on baking trays and drizzle with olive oil. Season with salt and pepper. Prick spaghetti squash with a fork and place on a baking dish. Bake for 30-40 until tender. Note: spaghetti squash may need 15-20 minutes more baking time.

When spaghetti squash is cool enough to handle, cut in half, remove and discard as many seeds as possible. With a fork scrape the “spaghetti” strands out and place in a soup pot. If you like roasted garlic squeeze the garlic cloves into the soup pot. Transfer remaining vegetables to the pot and add cardamom, herbs, bay leaf, curry powder, and 5 cups water or broth. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer 20 minutes.

Discard the bay leaf and herb branches. Transfer to blender and puree soup until smooth. Season with salt, pepper and sriracha. Serve.

Serves 6

Note: Cardamom is the second most expensive spice behind only Saffron. If you can’t find it your local grocery store I’d recommend ordering from www.MySpiceSage.com

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Food confession…I have a soup fetish.

Soup is my comfort food no matter what time of year.  Whether it be silky creamy soups, hearty chunky veggie stews, chili or cold gazpacho, I’m always drawn to making soup.  Making soup is therapy for me.  I’m obsessed.

I have several soups that I make at home but, to be honest, I don’t use recipes.  So my goal from now on is to write down the recipes of soups I make so I’m able to share them with you. 

What’s your favorite soup?

Carrot Orange Soup

Ingredients:

• 2 tbsp. olive oil
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 3 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1/2 sweet red bell pepper, diced
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 lb. carrots, diced (peel skins if you’d like, I left mine on)
• 2 tbsp. peeled and minced ginger
• 5 C. broth
• 1 C. coconut milk
• 2 tbsp. orange zest
• 1/2 C. freshly squeezed orange juice
• Sriracha to taste (optional)
• Salt and pepper
• Sriracha cream garnish (optional)
• Cilantro leaves garnish (optional)
• Pickled ginger garnish (optional)

Directions:

In a large soup pot heat olive oil over medium heat and saute onions and garlic until soft.  Season with salt and fresh cracked pepper.  Add bay leaf.  Next, add sweet red pepper, carrots and ginger and saute and additional 5-10 minutes, until carrots are soft.  Do not brown.

Add the broth and simmer over medium to medium low heat for approximately 20-25 minutes until vegetables are thoroughly cooked.

Take pot off the stove, fish out the bay leaf, and in small batches puree soup in a blender until smooth.  Return pureed soup back to the pot and add coconut milk (optional; add if you want a creamier soup with an Asian flair), orange juice and orange zest.  Season with salt and pepper and add a healthy squirt of sriracha, optional of course. I always add sriracha because I like to catch my mouth on fire.

Serve up soup in bowl and garnish with Sriracha Cream (1/4 C. sour cream mixed with a squirt of sriracha) and cilantro. 

Enjoy!

serves 4-6