December 08, 2007

Tropical Ambrosia

Farmers_market_demo_fruit_display_2

I was asked to do a small 'festive or holiday' food demonstration at the new Kino'ole Farmers Market in Hilo.  The demo was this morning and I decided what is more festive and holidayish than an Ambrosia Salad.

In South Carolina, where we lived for many years, Ambrosia is traditionally served during the Christmas Holidays or even as part of the Christmas dinner.  Since we have so many beautiful fruits available to us at this time of year, I decided to make it a Tropical Ambrosia.

Starting with a pineapple, long recognized as 'the symbol for hospitality', I hollowed a pineapple shell with a great gadget that cores and slices it at the same time, leaving an intact shell which can be used for other purposes....of course, we saved the top to replant.Farmers_market_demo_sonia_3_sm

I then added the slices of small apple bananas and mixed well with the pineapple pieces and juice so they wouldn't turn color.  Building on that base I used an assortment of fruit as follows:

Pineapple cut in bite pieces
Apple banana slices
Mango, diced
Tangerine pieces
Strawberry papaya pieces
Solo papaya pieces
Star fruit slices
Persimmon, chopped
Pomegranate seeds
Coconut, freshly grated
Candied ginger, chopped in small pieces
Macadamia nuts, chopped and lightly toasted
Farmers_market_demo_tropical_ambros 
Mix all together and serve from a clear glass bowl...
or in stemmed wine or martini glasses.

November 08, 2007

Heart of Palm and Garden Salad

We recently attended a wonderful food event nearby which I predict will become "the foodie event of East Hawaii" very quickly. 

I will share more on this a bit later, but I wanted to share this salad which I made with Hawaii grown heart of palm I received as a gift from our friends Michael and Leslie who own Wailea Agricultural Group not too far from us.   Leslie and Michael's company had a booth at the 'Hamakua Alive' event. 

Heart_of_palm_cutting_1

First, let me explain, there are some varieties of heart of palm that to get to the edible part you need to chop down the whole plant, thus killing it, which never made sense to me.  The heart of palm grown and sold by Leslie and Michael is from the peach palm, which sends out 'shoots' around the main palm trunk, and these shoots are what is cut, so the palm continues to grow and produce without having to be killed. (*)  I will write more about heart of palm in the near future, but today I just wanted to share this wonderful salad.

(*) CORRECTION: Michael was here this morning and he corrected my impression of how the heart of palms were harvested.....

Actually it is the main trunk that is cut, but there are always several keiki (baby) plants coming around it to renew themselves, so using this variety is a sustainable way of harvesting...    Eat your heart and grow it too.... ;-)

Heart of Palm and Garden Salad

1 stem fresh heart of palm
a couple of handfuls of spinach (*)
a handful of pineapple sage leaves
a scattering of pineapple sage blooms
Liliko'i (passion fruit) vinaigrette

(*) I used a combination of Malabar and Moluccan (Dawn Dewa or Sambung Nyawa) spinachs from our garden.  The pineapple sage leaves and blooms also came from our garden.  The passion fruit vinaigrette was also made from fruit collected from our yard.

Pick and wash the greens early in the morning.  Pat dry with paper towels and refrigerate stored in separate ziplock bags until ready to put the salad together.

Slice the heart of palm stem in thin slices.  Store, covered in refrigerator until ready to assemble the salad.

Scatter the Malabar spinach around the platter.  Take bunches of the Moluccan (Dawn Dewa) spinach and cut into a thin chiffonade (*).  Scatter some over the Malabar spinach and save some to scatter over the sliced heart of palm.

Scatter some of the pineapple sage leaves over the two other spinachs.

Place the sliced heart of palm on top of the greens and then scatter a bit more of the chiffonade of Moluccan (Dawn Dewa) spinach and a few more pineapple sage leaves on top.  Scatter the red blooms of the pineapple sage over all.  Drizzle with the liliko'i (passion fruit) vinaigrette.

For instructions on how I make my passion fruit vinaigrette check the blog entry for the Demo at the Farmers Market

(*) A chiffonade of greens is actually any fresh greens that have been cut in thin ribbons.  To make a chiffonade, take a handful of green leaves: basil, lettuce, cabbage, spinach, etc. and loosely wad up under your hand over a cutting board.  With a very shap knife (I like to use my Santuko knife) and with rocking motions, cut across the wad of greens to make thin slices to form the ribbons.

Heart_of_palm_salad_with_dressing_2

As you can see, it makes a very festive salad.  It was also very ono (delicious) or like we sometimes say in Hawai'i, onolicious!

November 01, 2007

Easy Thanksgiving Dessert

Thanksgiving_04_pumpkin_mousse

Pumpkin Mousse

One of my foodie internet friends, an American who lives in Lebanon shared a version of this recipe a few years ago.  It has since become one of our traditional desserts for Thanksgiving or any other Fall event dinner.

The original recipe called for vanilla pudding.  I have since started using a combination of vanilla and butterscotch puddings which everyone seems to like better. I have also been using homemade whipped cream instead of the cool whipped topping as originally given.

1 large package instant sugar and fat free vanilla pudding
1 large package instant sugar and fat free butterscotch pudding
3 cups of skim milk
1 (29 oz) can pumpkin puree
3 cups homemade whipped cream or (12 oz) tub lite cool whipped topping
1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice (optional)

Get all the ingredients together before hand as the pudding will set quickly and you don't want to waste time hunting for anything.

Mix pudding with skim milk; when almost set (which will be almost instantly), quickly fold in all the other ingredients, being careful to not overmix the whipped cream as you fold it into the pudding mix.

Serve in individual wine glasses or in a clear glass pedestal bowl and sprinkle pumpkin pie spice on top, if using.

Yield: 16 - 20 servings

For another ono pumpkin recipe suitable to serve as an appetizer at anytime during the holidays find the Spiced Pumpkin Dip

October 19, 2007

Demo at the Farmers Market

I was recently asked if I would do a food demo at the new Kino'ole Farmers Market.  Of course, I accepted.  We were set up to do two demos that same morning, Saturday, October 13th...one at 8:30 AM and the other at 10:30 AM...both were of the same recipe.

Farmers_market_demo_adding_the_goat

Since this market is strickly handling island grown products, I made sure that the recipe included mostly locally grown or produced ingredients.

The recipe I chose is one we used to do during grilling cooking classes when we ran the Akaka Falls Inn Cooking School.  Simple, fast and everyone seems to like it. 

Farmers_market_demo_part_of_audienc

Quantity and selection of the ingredients depends on what is available.  The dressing for the salad can be whatever your favorite dressing might be.  I chose my own Liliko'i Vinaigrette (see recipe below).  This amount of eggplant can make generous servings of salad for 8 -10 people.

Grilled Japanese Eggplant on Local Greens and Herbed Chevre

4 Japanese eggplants sliced at a slant - unpeeled
1 bottle Italian salad dressing or make your own
Assortment of salad greens and leafy herbs
1 pound container fresh chevre (soft goat cheese)
1/4 cup chopped and roasted macadamia nuts
Freshly ground peppercorns (optional)
Dressing or vinaigrette of your choice

Layer the sliced eggplant pieces in a plastic tub or container.  Pour the salad dressing over it, cover tightly and invert to make sure all of the eggplant slices are evenly coated.  Store in refrigerator at least for 2 hours or overnight.  Turn the container over a couple of times, if you think about it...

Anthony grilled the marinated eggplant slices in a large George Foreman table grill until they were nicely cooked through and had good 'grill markings' on them.

To assemble the salad, I chose a red tipped leaf lettuce, some Dawn Dewa 'spinach' (aka Moluccan 'spinach') which I cut into a chiffonade, finely cut chives and Thai basil leaves.  I then added the grilled eggplant slices and spoonfuls of pesto-macadamia nut chevre. 

You can find the chevre (soft goat cheese) in an assortment of flavors from the Hawaii Island Goat Dairy in Ahualoa.

The whole thing was then sprinkled liberally with the chopped and roasted macadamia nuts and drizzled with Liliko'i (passion fruit) Vinaigrette.

Farmers_market_demo_last_touches

Liliko'i Vinaigrette

We have a couple of wild vines growing on the property and during season, I collect a few everyday.  I cut them in half, scoop out the seeds and pulp and save in a plastic container in the refrigerator until I have a full container.

Strain through a stainless steel mesh sieve, pushing with a wooden spoon to get as much of the juice and pulp as possible and collect it in a glass or ceramic bowl.

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In a sauce pan bring the juice and sugar to boil.  Amount of sugar depends on your own taste and acidity of the fruit.  When it boils, turn it down and reduce it to intensify the flavor.  Add small amount of white vinegar, again to taste.  Let it cook at a slow boil for a few minutes, turn the heat off and cool.  Store in glass cruet or sealed carafe in the refrigerator.  It will last several weeks.

Farmers_market_demo_finished_salad 

The finished salad!

October 05, 2007

Sonia's Mango Lassi Recipe

Recently my friend Linda Kane asked if I would be willing to make a little video for a place called Expert Village. 

Expert Village posts a list of topics they are interested in and the videographer selects from this list a video they want to shoot, submits it to EV for approval and on receiving approval, has 2 weeks to turn the assignment in...

We decided on the Mango Lassi, since it was something that was fairly easy, for our first project, really good and the mangoes at the market are gorgeous. 

The only thing I dislike about the site, is that they don't show the whole video as a 'seamless movie' but in segments and each segmet starts with the introduction of the 'expert'...in this instance, me.  So in each segment you will hear the same introduction....Aloha my name is....

The video can be seen at the following site, but a short cut to the recipe itself is here

Sonia's Mango Lassi Recipe

From that site, you can then scroll down and then choose any of the segments you wish to see...

I tried to take a still shot from the video and use PhotoShop to enlarge it, but it made it all out of focus....... I inserted one here from the video, without altering, but the quality is still very fuzzy.

If you try the recipe, I hope you enjoy it.  The ice cream is really, really good!

Showimage

Linda did a great job with the shooting and editing of the video...believe me....you would agree with me if you had been there to see the bloops....

September 02, 2007

"Ratatouille" Pie - for the real men who claim they don't eat quiche

I love making quiche.  You can use any leftovers or fresh ingredients and come up with an easy and complete meal in one dish.  Serve with salad and a piece of fruit and you have covered the recommended daily portions of the five food groups in a couple of easy steps.

We had some (fresh) vegetables leftover from the ingredients we got at the Farmer's Market last week to make the Grilled Ratatouille Salad and I decided to saute them and use them as a quiche (or pie, take your pick) filling.

Ratatouille_quiche_1

Photo - Sauteeing the veggies

I also had about 3/4 cup of roasted tomato sauce leftover in the fridge from
another meal and decided to add it to the veggies in the quiche/pie. It was really quite good.

2 9 inch deep pie shells or your favorite pie dough recipe
1 Tablespoon rough mustard
1/2 cup shredded medium sharp cheddar
A couple of drizzles of the garlic infused olive oil
1 medium white onion, chopped
1 zucchini, sliced
1 crooked neck yellow squash, sliced
1 eggplant, peeled and chopped in 1/4 inch pieces
1 Roma tomato chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
3/4 cup roasted tomato sauce
1 small bunch of basil leaves chiffonade (*)
4 eggs, beaten
1 cup milk
Salt & freshly ground pepper to taste
Freshly grated Parmeggiano-Reggiano cheese

Preheat oven to 350o F

Since we had a couple of deep pie shells in our 'emergency freezer stash', I decided to use them instead of making my own this time.

'Paint' the bottom and sides of the pie shells with the mustard and place in oven for about 8 minutes while the oven is heating up. Take out and let them cool while finishing prepping the veggies.

Ratatouille_quiche_2

Photo - Filling  being added to the one in forefront - Shredded cheese on the bottom of the second one.

The sliced zucchini and yellow squash can be halved if some of the pieces are too big.

Heat the garlic infused olive oil in a large skillet and add the onions, cook just enough to start looking soft and add all the other veggies. When cooked but not too soft, add the roasted tomato sauce and mix well.

Place both pie shells on a foil covered jelly-roll pan, in case of oven spills.

Ratatouille_quiche_3

Photo - Just out of the oven!

Cover bottom of each pie shell with 1/4 cup of the shredded cheddar and add the cooked veggies on top. Sprinkle the chiffonade of basil over all.

Add the milk to the beaten eggs and season with salt and pepper to taste. Pour over the veggies in the pie shells. Sprinkle the freshly grated Parmeggiano-Reggiano over the veggies and egg custard.

Bake for about 20-25 minutes or until puffy and golden. Sit for a while to cool and set a bit, then cut in slices.

Ratatouille_quiche_5

Photo - Yum!

We ate part of one for dinner that evening and the rest for lunch the next day when our friend Becky came over.

I waited for the other pie to cool completely, wrapped it tight with foil and placed in a large freezer baggie and stored in freezer for a later meal.

(*) A chiffonade of greens is actually any fresh greens that have been cut in thin ribbons.

To make a chiffonade, take a handful of any type green leaves; basil, lettuce, cabbage, spinach, etc. and loosely wad up in your hand over a cutting board.  With a very sharp knife and making rocking motions, cut across the wad of greens to make thin slices to form the ribbons - (From Notes on page 126 in 'Tropical Taste" cookbook by Sonia Martinez)

YIELD: 6 portions
SOURCE: Sonia's Kitchen

July 25, 2007

Bamboo Shoots & Our 'Yard Salad' with Fresh Bamboo Shoots

Bamboo is a grass.  That was news to me.   I knew you could eat the bamboo shoots or young canes, as I've eaten the canned varieties many times, but did not know what to look for or how to harvest or prepare them. 

Bamboo_clump_2

This stand of bamboo is approximately 30 feet around and about 60-70 feet tall.  If I were to stand beside it, I would be dwarfed!  This shot was taken from about half-way up our driveway looking down.

There is a huge clump of bamboo growing at the bottom of the driveway and a friend comes every so often to harvest the new shoots.  When he was here a few days ago, I asked him to show me what to look for and how to prepare it.  Patrick was very helpful and I finally prepared and tasted fresh bamboo shoots for the first time.

Bamboo_shoot_growing_2

Bamboo shoot coming out of the ground - not quite ready to harvest yet.  The shoots are harvested when they are approximately 2 weeks old.

According to one of the sources I checked, bamboo shoots are high in fiber, are a good source of potassium and contain very few calories (one cup of half-inch long slices contain only 14 calories) and hardly any fat, making it an ideal source of food.

Bamboo_shoots_2_2

Bamboo shoot after cutting and before peeling. 

Bamboo_shoots_3

Starting to peel

Bamboo_shoots_4

Trimming the bottom end

Bamboo_shoot_preparation_3

In the kitchen - peeling and trimming as I cut.  When you start peeling, there is a shiny pink layer of 'skin' similar to the skin on new ginger.  This layer needs to be trimmed off.

Bamboo_shoot_preparation_julienne

I sliced some of the shoot to make scalloped bamboo shoots and I cut some julienne style for our salad.

Bamboo_shoot_preparation_julienne_b

Most bamboo shoots need to be cooked before they are eaten.  There are some varieties I will mention below that can be eaten raw (*).  The internet sources I found said to cook the shoots for about 20 minutes.  Patrick told me they cook it for 1 hour.  I opted for safe I also cooked mine for an hour.

I rinsed them in cold water after cooking, drained and stored in a lidded-plastic container in the refrigerator until ready to use.  The cooked shoots can also be drained and frozen. 

The bamboo shoot can be stored in the refrigerator, raw while still whole and unpeeled.  Just place in the vegetable crisper drawer, but for no longer than two weeks as it then starts developing a bitter taste.  The site recommends keeping it away from sunlight as much as possible since that can also make it taste bitter.

Bamboo_shoot_salad_jpg_2

Our Fresh Bamboo 'Yard Salad'

We call it our 'yard salad' since everything in it, except for the chevre, came from our yard.  This salad varies, depending on what is available to pick in the garden at the time.

The salad pictured above consisted of whole Malabar spinach leaves, whole Okinawan spinach leaves and a chiffonade of Dawn Dewa spinach leaves.  Chiffonade of Italian or sweet basil, leaves of lemon basil; ruffled and plain purple basil; snippets of flat or Italian parsley leaves;  the little top knot of pineapple sage; snipped chives; whole mizuna leaves, and another salad leaf I can't identify.  I added some seeded and sliced purple peppers and some seeded rounds of banana pepper.   To add color, I sprinkled the petals from both one yellow and one orange marigold.  I added the cooked, julienne bamboo shoots and about a tablespoon size piece of chevre.

We used a vinaigrette I make with white vinegar, garlic cloves and ginger slices.  It is so easy to make I never let this one run out!

(*) According to Barry, one of my sources from a tropical plant group in which I'm a member, he grows two varieties that can be eaten raw.

Nastus elatus and Dendrocalamus brandesil.

He says he likes to use them, raw in salads with much the same ingredients as one would find in the Thai version of Green Papaya Salad.  Replace the fresh, thinly shredded bamboo shoots for the green papaya.  He also says that fresh palm hearts and Peach Palm (Bactris gasipaes) will work in this dish as well.

The owner-moderator of that group, Mike V. said he thinks the P. dulcis, iirc variety of bamboo can also be eaten raw.  Another good edible variety according to Mike V. is Vivax, though he thinks it is best cooked.

For more information or if interested in joining click on the Taro and Ti  group.

May 14, 2007

From the Herbal Gardens

I have known Barbara Fahs, owner of Hi‘iaka's Healing Herb Garden, for several years, both as a friend and as a colleague since we are both freelance writers for the Hawaii Island Journal. Barbara is an authority on healing herbs as well as a published author. Her newest book is titled Super Simple Guide to Creating Hawaiian Gardens.

A couple of weeks ago, Barbara contacted me about Team Teaching a Mother's Day class using fresh herbs and she would conduct the participants through a little tour of the gardens while they collected flowers and foliage for little gift bouquets everyone would get to take home with them.

The demo style class was held yesterday (Saturday, May 12) in her breezy upstairs lanai with a beautiful view of the gardens. Below are the recipes for the simple and fast herbal creations I demonstrated to our little group of guests.


EASY BLENDER PESTO

2 cups tightly packed fresh basil leaves, washed, dried on paper towels

3 Tablespoons chopped and toasted macadamia nuts (or pine nuts)

1/2 teaspoon salt, or to taste

1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil, or to taste

2-4 large cloves garlic, peeled and halved, or to taste

1/2 cup freshly grated Parmeggiano

Pesto_dip_herb_class_51207

By the time I thought about taking a picture, most of the pesto was gone!

I used Thai Basil, since that was what both Barbara and I had on hand. I also added an 8 ounce block of low-fat cream cheese and made it into a dip or spread.

Here is a tip when making large quantities of pesto (without the cream cheese) is to pack a tablespoonful of pesto in individual ice cube trays. Freeze and then pop out and store in freezer zip-lock bags. When you need some to make a sauce, use a cube or two, mix with a bit more olive oil or melted butter and pour over your pasta. If you mix a bit of cream with it, it will be a creamy pesto sauce.

Another idea for a creamy pesto sauce is to mix equal amounts of flour and butter and cut together until the crumbly stage. Pack enough in each compartment of an ice cube tray. Pop out when frozen and store in zip-lock bag in freezer. When needed, take a cube or two out, cook it in the pan first (making a roux) stirring all the time, just to get rid of the raw flour taste, then add the cube(s) of pesto and mix to the desired consistency. Milk or cream can also be added.

I keep a supply of the little flour/butter cubes in my freezer for instant white sauce at any time.


ROSEMARY BUTTER

3 cloves garlic, minced

3 teaspoons fresh rosemary leaves, removed from stem

1/2 teaspoon orange or lemon zest or grated rind

1 Tablespoon white wine or lemon juice

1/4 teaspoon dried crushed red chile pepper

Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

4 ounces unsalted butter (1/4 pound - 1 stick), softened


NASTURTIUM BUTTER

4 ounces unsalted butter (1/4 pound - 1 stick), softened

12-18 nasturtium flowers - rinsed and drained - chopped small

3-4 fresh chives (optional) - chopped small

2-4 fresh nasturtium leaves or a few sprigs fresh parsley - chopped small

2


For either butter: Mix all ingredients until well blended.

They can be rolled into logs and wrapped in plastic wrap. Can be frozen.

Put a frozen pat/slice on roasted chicken, a freshly grilled steak, baked potato, etc.


NASTURTIUM GOAT OR CREAM CHEESE DIP / SPREAD

8 ounces (1/2 pound) cream cheese or soft goat cheese (chevre)

4 teaspoons tender nasturtium leaves, chopped

4-6 nasturtium flowers for garnish - or can be chopped and mixed in if you wish.

Chevre_with_nasturtium_greens_2_her

Mix all ingredients until well-blended. We serve the Chevre and Nasturtium Leaves Dip/Spread with crackers. If you desire a creamier consistency, add a little bit of milk, cream or sour cream.

Sonia_getting_lemond_rind_51207

Grating the lemon rind for the Rosemary Butter.

Barbara assembling the floral bouquets.

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Sharing with some of our guests.

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The next class scheduled at Hi‘iaka's Healing Herb Garden will be held on

June 30th - A Healthy Fourth of July Barbeque: Team taught by Barbara & Sonia. Includes lunch - Mango/Tiki Fish and Veggie Kabobs, extra-fresh salad, grilled veggies, brown rice and other delicious surprises.

For more information, please contact Barbara.

Barbara J. Fahs, M.A.
Hi‘iaka's Healing Herb Garden, LLC

Helping to Conserve and Educate about Threatened Hawaiian Medicinal Plants

HCR 2, Box 9620
Kea‘au, HI 96749
(808) 966-6126
goddess@hiiakas.com
www.hiiakas.com

April 30, 2007

Frijoles Colorados "A La Crock-Pot"(Cuban Red Bean Soup)

My friend Cookie in Miami shared this recipe.  During my recent Miami trip, she gave me some fresh red beans, fresh bay leaves from her tree and some cachucha peppers.  Cachucha peppers are in the Habanero family.  Similar shape and taste, but they are not hot.

Red_beans_in_crockpot

Frijoles Colorados  "A La Crock-Pot"(Cuban Red Bean Soup)

1 package dried red beans (not kidney beans)

6 to 8 cups water (depending on size of crockpot)

1 medium onion, finely chopped

1 green pepper, finely chopped

1 or 2 cloves garlic, minced

1 teaspoon ground oregano

1 teaspoon powdered or ground cumin

2 bay leaves

1 Tablespoon sugar

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

1 Tablespoon red wine vinegar

2 - 3 cachuca peppers (optional)

Salt to taste

Wash the beans and place in the crockpot with all the ingredient.

Cook on low for 8-10 hours or on high for 4-5 hours.

Check during cooking to make sure liquid level looks ok. 

If beans start to get too thick, add a cup of warm water or more stock.

Adjust seasonings during the last hour.  I added 2 peeled and cut medium potatoes.



 

February 23, 2007

Cream of Warabi (Fiddlehead Fern) Soup

Whether you know them as warabi (Japanese), ho'i'o (Hawaiian, or pohole in Maui), ostrich fern (most of the mainland) or fiddlehead ferns, the Matteucia struthiopteris is the young, edible, thightly coiled shoot of the fern that resembles the end of a violin or fiddle.  The shoots remain coiled for about two weeks before they unfurl into the delicate, lacy greenery with which we are most familiar.

Fiddlehead ferns are a very rich source of Vitamins A and C, and have a deep green color and taste similar to a combination of asparagus and okra,  Its crispy texture when blanched lends itself to wonderful salads, but there are many other cooking methods using this easily gathered food souce.

We are lucky that they are available to us year-round.  In the mainland they are found from Virginia to Canada, usually between the months of April and July.  If you have never gone fern hunting before, find a friend who can take you the first time. 

Fiddlehead harvesting areas can be as closely a guarded secret as a favorite fishing hole.  I'm very fortunate having friends who didn't mind sharing their 'secret' place with me.

Look for smooth, shiny dark green coils covered with a light tan 'fuzz'.  Snap the stem off with your hand at the place where it gives the least resistance and gather them in a basket or open container.  On a hot day any wild edible will begin to decompose rather quickly in a plastic bag.

Choose small firm, brightly colored ferns with no signs of softness or yellowing.  If not planning on using right away, refrigerate them, tightly wrapped in paper towels, for no more than 2 days.  They should be washed and the ends trimmed before briefly cooking by steaming, simmering or sauteing.

The following recipe is the result of playing with warabi during a cooking class.  It was so good, we used it in a couple of our regular class menus.  The end result will never be completely smooth, but it will be creamy.

Cream of Warabi Soup

4 cups fiddleheads, fresh & cleaned
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 medium onion, sliced thin
4 cups chicken stock
1-1/2 cups whipping cream
Salt and pepper, to taste
Garnish:
Zest from 1 lemon or lime
Paprika to taste

Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat.  add the fiddleheads, return to boil and cook until they are almost tender, about 5 minutes. Drain and rinse with cold water.  Chop coarsely and reserve.

Melt the butter in a large saucepan or saute skillet with high sides.  Add the onion and cook stirring occasionaly until translucent; add the fiddleheads and saute for a few more minutes.  Add some of the chicken stock, stir and bring to a gentle boil.  Cover and cook until fiddleheads are throroughly tender, about 5 more minutes.

Using a blender or food processor, process the fiddleheads with some of the stock until smooth.  You will have to do this in a couple of batches.  Pour back into the saucepan as you finish each batch.  Add the rest of the chicken stock and the milk or cream, reducing heat to medium, but be careful not to boil or the milk might curdle.  If it does, continue stirring and adding a bit more stock until the mixture turns smooth again.

If you prefer a creamier soup, add less stock and more cream, or if your taste leans toward lighter soups, omit the milk or cream altogether.  I find I do not need to add salt, but do add a bit of freshly ground pepper .

Serve in individual bowls, garneshing with the lemon zest and sprinkle some paprika on top.

Serves 4 to 6 portions

Cream_of_warabi_soup

This recipe and others using the fiddlehead fern can be found in my cookbook "Tropical Taste", now on it's second printing!