vom_marlowe

Yesterday, I made an absolutely delicious sauce.  I wanted to record it, in case I have the time to make it again. 

Makes really quite a lot.

You will need:
4 sweet onions
1 lb ground buffalo
half a bunch celery
a good sharp chopping knife
a head of garlic
1 glass sherry or sweet wine
2 jars of Ragu Traditional (if you switch brands, be sure that it is only tomato sauce, spices, and a bit of olive oil, not the corn-syrup sugary sweet kind that is most often made)
1 1/2 pounds ripe pear or cherry tomatoes
A large pot
Olive oil
Small rind of parmesan cheese
1/8 teaspoon thyme
1/2 teaspoon fresh black pepper
Salt, to taste

In the large pot, brown the buffalo over medium-high heat while you chop the vegetables.  You want the buffalo to be browned in very small pieces, so break it up as it cooks.

Very finely mince the onions. Put them in a large bowl as you go.  (You'll need to put them somewhere, as there will be so many.) 

After the onions, chop off the bottoms of the celery and then very finely chop the celery, making it easier on yourself by long-slicing the ribs a few times and then mincing across.  Put these, too, in the bowl.

By this time, the buffalo will likely be done.  Put the cooked buffalo in another bowl.  If you substitute beef for the buffalo, you'll want to put it in a colander to drain off the fat. 

Pour olive into the pot, right on top of the browned bits.  How much oil you use depends on the size of the pot and whether you want this to have fewer calories.  I poured in enough to cover the pot's bottom.

Heat the oil until it spits a bit, then sprinkle all the chopped onions and celery in.  Stir gently, cooking on medium until softened some. 

While the onions and celery cook, break off the garlic cloves.  I enjoy garlic, so I used nearly the whole head, about seven cloves.  Mince and sprinkle in, with the pepper and thyme. 

When all is slightly softened, about fifteen minutes, pour in some wine so that it bubbles gently.  Let it reduce for a time, then stir in the buffalo, then Ragu.  Gently stir in the tomatoes.  Taste and add some salt.

Turn the sauce to low, put on the lid, then allow to simmer gently for about four hours.  Stir every twenty minutes or so.  After an hour or so, remove the lid and add in the hardest rind of parmesan cheese so that will melt gently into the sauce. 

Serve over hot buttered spaghetti.

Makes really quite a lot, but after the several hours, it will be quite thick.

This is one of my favorite soups and I have been enjoying it thoroughly.  I wanted to share it with everyone before the seasonal vegetables were out of season!

It is based on some soups I've eaten in Vietnamese restaurants, an old Jaimie Oliver recipe, a collection of Thai online recipes, various of my own mad kitchen experiments, and some inspiration from my garden and my mom's delightful gift of very large bowls for when my girlfriend visited for Christmas. 

The basic soup is vegetarian and can be vegan as well as gluten free, assuming you use the right sort of rice noodles and appropriate broth.  It takes very little time to make.

Basic Version
You will need (per serving):
A very large wide mouthed bowl, the kind that pho comes in
Seven or eight baby bok choy
A serving of wide dry rice noodles (such as the kind used in Pad See Ew)
3 cups of strong broth (I like Rapunzel vegan broth cubes or my own homemade stock)
Two quarter-size pieces of fresh ginger, finely chopped
Quite a lot of fresh basil of various kinds, including Thai Holy Basil, Pistou Basil, Italian sweet basil, random purple basil, etc, ideally one handful of mixed basil per serving
A bit of fresh mint
Two tablespoons of coarse raw sugar (turbanado sugar)
Several tablespoons of lime juice, fresh or bottled
Aleppo pepper flakes (they are not really hot and are very rich and full flavored, but feel free to sub in hotter pepper if you prefer)
Nasturtium flowers or violets
Soy sauce

In a small saucepan, heat the broth to a rich boil.  Add the sugar, chopped ginger, and the rice noodles.  Grind in some black pepper.  By cooking the noodles in the broth, the starchy noodles will absorb the broth flavor and also thicken the broth slightly.  This is all to the good.  Because I like salt, I make my broth extra-rich and salty.  If you need less salt, use no-salt or homemade broth, it will still be good!

While the noodles cook, pull open the baby bok choy so it's in individual leaves.  Lay the leaves prettily in the bowl and sprinkle with lime juice, most of the basil, mint, and aleppo pepper. 

When the noodles are quite soft and the broth is a bit thick, bring to a very hard boil and then pour the whole thing over the baby bok choy and greens in the bowl.  Garnish with the last of the basil and the flowers.  Serve with soy sauce, additional pepper, chili-garlic paste, chili-oil, extra lime wedges, etc. 

Allow to sit for a minute or two before diving in.  The broth will cook the baby bok choy and greens, but not so much that they get too cabbagey or mushy. 

Variations:
1.  Use pea shoots instead of baby bok choy.  Really really good, but you pretty much have to have your own garden for this.
2.  Instead of black pepper, grind in Schezwan pepper. 
3.  Add garlic and finely chopped fresh spring onions.
4.  Garnish with chive flowers instead of violets. 
5.  Use green garlic, finely shredded beet greens, some sherry, and orzo, omitting the sugar, ginger, and lime.  Garnish with olive oil. 
6.  Add marinated tofu, cooked chicken, slices of beef, or other protein of your choice.

Small request: My shiso has come up and is growing well.  Does anyone have recommendations for a good recipe to try out shiso?  I can't eat fish or seafood, but am otherwise open....