Green Bean and Pancetta Soup

Pancetta is a tasty, tasty addition to anything. I say any fatty pork product is a delicious addition.
Green Beans, Pancetta, and Truflle Oil made into a creamy soup.

Fry Pancetta in pan.
Add garlic.
Add green beans,(about 2 1/2 pounds) butter, and truffle oil.
Sautee all ingredients together until beans are cooked through, but still crisp.
Pour all ingredients into blender/Cuisinart and blend thoroughly.
Pour into pot and add two bay leaves.
Pour in about a half cup of heavy cream.
Simmer about 20 minutes.
Salt and pepper to taste.
Remove bay leaves.
Drizzle with Truffle Oil and serve.

Creamy Roasted Squash and Saffron Soup

I absolutely love fall squash. Soups, tarts, pies, pasta you name it.
Being the season for the squash, I acquired both Butternut and Acorn Squash at the market the other day and I couldn't resist. This soup is so easily prepared. I could have added many varieties of root vegetables but I decided to keep it simple with just the Acorn and Butternut squash, and carrots.
Here we have the Creamy Roasted Squash and Saffron Soup:

1 med sized Butternut squash
1 med Acorn Squash
4 carrots chopped
1 med onion chopped
2 cloves garlic chopped
1/4 stick butter
7 strands saffron
2 bay leaves
8 oz heavy cream
2-3 cups chicken stock or vegetable stock
3 Tbsp olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Chop both squash, carrots, and garlic. Scoop out seeds from the squash and place on a baking sheet, sprinkle with salt, and bake in 425 degree oven until toasty and golden.
Place veggies on a baking sheet and dress with 3 pads of butter and sprinkle with olive oil, salt, and pepper. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 45 minutes or until all vegetables are tender.

Sautee chopped onion in 3 Tbsp butter and 1 Tbsp olive oil until lightly golden. Add chopped garlic and sautee for one minute. Add veggies and stir to mix. Pour in stock to almost cover veggies. Add Bay leaves and Saffron. Simmer for at least 20-30 minutes. With an immersion blender blend soup till desired consistently. ( I left mine just a bit chunky, but mostly smooth)
Pour in cream and simmer for another 10-15 minutes.
Serve with toasted seeds as garnish.

Zucchini and Yellow Squash with Saffron and Sage Soup

Tis the season for squash and zucchini and what better than a soup. A very simple soup started with onions and garlic, and finished with a touch of cream. With the additions of a few leaves of chopped sage and a few strands of Saffron, this simple soup transformed into a bowl of sweet and smoky summer time.

1 half medium sized yellow onion chopped
3 cloves garlic chopped
1/2 stick butter to coat bottom of pan
2 Yellow squash thinly sliced then chopped
2 Zucchini of preference, thinly sliced then chopped
1/3 cup cream
3 Sage leaves chopped
5-8 strands Saffron
2 cups chicken stock
water if desired to thin soup

Sautée onions in butter until almost brown. Add garlic and sautée for a minute or two. Add chopped Zucchini/Squash, sautée for a few minutes until incorporated with onion/garlic. Add chopped Sage.
Add stock/water to cover just a bit over vegetables. I lightly blended the veggies with an immersion blender but you can leave it all the way chunky. Add Saffron, stir and simmer for twenty minutes. Pour in cream and simmer for a few more minutes.
There you have it, a simple deep flavored summer soup.
Bon Appetit!

Broccoli Cheese Soup

One of my favorite soups. Broccoli Cheese. Pretty much anything with cheese and cream in it is delicious as far as I am concerned.
Onions, garlic, Broccoli broken up into small pieces. A bit of water added to help the Broccoli cook. I added a few strands of Saffron to this recipe, for an added boost of color as well as to deepen the flavors. Grated Cheddar and Swiss cheeses. Simmer down, add heavy cream. Simmer everything for twenty minutes or so. Salt and pepper of course to taste. Just that easy.

Roasted Garlic, Parsnip, and Asparagus Bisque

I thought I would throw some things together for a soup and see how it turned out. Roasted a bulb of garlic. Sautéed a chopped onion. Boiled parsnips and asparagus. Blended everything together, added some sea salt, pepper, and heavy cream. It turned out delicious. Served with some crusty bread for dipping. It is surprising how much sweetness the parsnip has. Only within the last year or so have I discovered the flavor of the parsnip, and love how versatile it is. And you can't go wrong with asparagus...