Avocado soup with grilled asparagus and tortilla chips

Avocado Soup

Ingredients:

5-6 small to medium avocados (very ripe)

1 Tbsp olive oil (or veg. oil)

2 small onions (finely diced)

2 tsp minced garlic (about 4 cloves)

2 cups of vegetable broth

1 cup soy milk (or any milk you want to use)

1 Tbsp lemon juice

1 tsp salt

2 heaping tsps cumin

pepper to taste



Garnish:

sour cream

tortilla chips



Directions:

Slice and mash the avocados very well. (you can also puree them in a food processor). Set aside.

Heat the oil in a medium sized pot and dice your onions. Fry the onions and garlic till soft and browned.

Add in the vegetable broth, the avocados, and the “milk” and stir well (keeping all this on medium heat).

Add in the remaining ingredients.

As soon as it’s hot it’s ready to serve. Add some tortilla chips and maybe a dollop of sour cream!

French Onion Soup

Ingredients

1/2 stick butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
8 cups thinly sliced onions (about 2-1/2 pounds)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1 tablespoon flour
8 cups homemade beef stock, or good quality store bought stock
1/4 cup Cognac, or other good brandy
1 cup dry white wine
8 (1/2-inch) thick slices of French bread, toasted
3/4 pound coarsely grated Gruyer

Directions

Heat a heavy saucepan over moderate heat with the butter and oil. When the butter has melted, stir in the onions, cover, and cook slowly until tender and translucent, about 10 minutes. Blend in the salt and sugar, increase the heat to medium high, and let the onions brown, stirring frequently until they are a dark walnut color, 25 to 30 minutes.

Sprinkle the flour and cook slowly, stirring, for another 3 to 4 minutes. Remove from heat, let cool a moment, then whisk in 2 cups of hot stock. When well blended, bring to the simmer, adding the rest of the stock, Cognac, and wine. Cover loosely, and simmer very slowly 1 1/2 hours, adding a little water if the liquid reduces too much. Taste for seasoning

Divide the soup among 4 ovenproof bowls. Arrange toast on top of soup and sprinkle generously with grated cheese. Place bowls on a cookie sheet and place under a preheated broiler until cheese melts and forms a crust over the tops of the bowls. Serve immediately.

Vegetarian Gumbo & White Chocolate-Cherry Christmas Fudge

Vegetarian Gumbo

Ingredients

Nonstick baking spray

2 15-ounce cans black beans, rinsed and drained

1 28-ounce can diced tomatoes, undrained

1 16-ounce package frozen stir-fry vegetables

2 cups frozen cut okra

2 to 3 teaspoons seasoning

3 cups hot cooked white or brown rice (optional)

Chopped green onion (optional)

Directions

1. In a 3 1⁄2- to 4 1⁄2-quart slow cooker combine beans, tomatoes, stir-fry vegetables, okra, and cajun seasoning.

2. Cover and cook on low for 6 to 8 hours or on high for 3 to 4 hours. If desired, serve over hot cooked rice and sprinkle with green onion

White Chocolate-Cherry Christmas Fudge

INGREDIENTS:

2 1/2 cups confectioners’ sugar

3/4 cup half-and-half

1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, cut into 4 equal pieces

12 ounces white chocolate, coarsely chopped

1 1/4 cups dried cherries

1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

18 maraschino cherries

2 bunches fresh mint (72 mint leaves)

DIRECTIONS:

Line the bottom and sides of an 8-inch square pan with parchment paper.

In a saucepan over medium heat, combine the confectioners’ sugar and half-and-half. Add the butter and bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Once the mixture reaches a boil, stop stirring and let it cook for 5 minutes. It will be thick.

Reduce the heat to low and stir in the chocolate, whisking until smooth. Stir in the dried cherries and vanilla extract. Pour the mixture into the prepared pan. Chill until firm, about 2 hours.

Invert the pan onto a cutting board, lift off the pan, and peel off the parchment. Cut the fudge into 1-inch squares. Cute the maraschino cherries in half. Remove seventy-two mint leaves from the mint sprigs (the smaller the leaves, the better). To decorate the fudge, place a maraschino half, cut-side down, on the fudge, pressing it gently into the fudge to adhere. Place two mint leaves at the top of the cherry to resemble cherry leave, pressing the gently into the fudge to adhere.

Store in an airtight container for up to 1 week

Dried Cranberry–Pecan Stuffing, Gingersnap Punch and Cranberry Pepper Biscotti

Dried Cranberry–Pecan Stuffing

2 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided

1 tablespoon olive oil

3 medium Vidalia or sweet yellow onions, chopped

6 cloves garlic, thinly sliced

2 tablespoons chopped fresh thyme or 2 teaspoons dried, divided Salt Freshly ground black pepper

5 stalks celery, chopped

1/2 cup very thinly sliced fresh basil leaves, divided

1 1/2 cups chopped fresh parsley, divided

10 cups cubed bread (see headnote above)

1 cup dried cranberries, cherries, or tomatoes

1 cup (3 1/2 ounces) pecan halves or other nuts, coarsely chopped

1 to 1 1/2 cups milk

Directions

1. In a large skillet, heat 1 tablespoon of the butter and the oil over medium-low heat. When the butter has melted and begins to sizzle, add the onions and garlic and cook, stirring, for about 8 minutes, or until the onions are soft. Season with half the thyme and some salt and pepper. Add the celery, half of the basil, and half of the parsley, and cook for 5 minutes, stirring frequently, or until the celery is just beginning to soften. The celery should still have somewhat of a crunch.

2. Meanwhile, place the bread in a large bowl, and mix in the remaining thyme, basil, parsley, the dried cranberries, and pecans. Pour the celery mixture from the skillet on top of the bread and gently toss to mix all of the ingredients. Place the skillet back over low heat and add the milk and the remaining 1 tablespoon butter and simmer for 2 to 4 minutes, using a spatula to scrape up any bits and pieces clinging to the bottom of the skillet. Pour 1 cup of the hot milk mixture over the bread and toss; the stuffing should be somewhat moist. If the stuffing seems dry, add the remaining 1/2 cup milk. Season to taste.

3. If making the stuffing more than an hour ahead of time, cover and refrigerate until you are ready to stuff the bird. The stuffing can also be placed in a lightly greased baking dish or casserole and baked at 350 degrees F for about 20 minutes, or until hot throughout. If possible, baste with some of the turkey juices from the bottom of the turkey pan to keep the stuffing moist.

Variations -- Add 1 dozen freshly shucked oysters (and their juices) to the skillet when the celery is cooking and cook for about 1 minute. They add a rich, briny flavor. -- Add 1 pound sweet sausage (taken out of the casing) to the skillet along with the onions and cook for about 8 minutes, until golden brown. -- Add 1 cup roasted, coarsely chopped chestnuts instead of or in addition to the pecans

Cranberry pepper biscotti

INGREDIENTS:

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 cup dried cranberries

1/2 cup coarsely chopped walnuts

1 teaspoon coarse ground pepper

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/8 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup butter (or hard margarine), softened

1/2 cup granulated sugar

2 large eggs

DIRECTIONS:

Put first 6 ingredients into large bowl. Stir. Make a well in center.

Cream butter and sugar in medium bowl. Add eggs 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Add to well. Stir until soft dough forms. Turn out onto lightly floured surface. Knead 6 times. Divide dough in half. Shape each half into 8 inch long log. Place logs crosswise on greased baking sheet about 3 inches apart. Flatten logs slightly to 3/4 inch thickness. Bake in 350ºF oven for about 25 minutes until edges are golden. Remove from oven. Let stand for about 10 minutes until cool enough to handle. Using serrated knife, cut logs diagonally into 1/2 inch slices. Arrange, cut-side down, on greased baking sheet. Reduce heat to 275ºF. Bake for about 20 minutes until bottoms are golden. Turn slices over. Turn oven off. Let stand in oven for about 30 minutes until dry and crisp.

1 biscotti: 102 Calories; 4.2 g Total Fat (1.1 g Mono, 1.2 g Poly, 1.5 g Sat); 23 mg Cholesterol; 14 g Carbohydrate; 1 g Fibre; 2 g Protein; 47 mg Sodium

Make Ahead: The biscotti may be baked up to 2 weeks ahead of time and stored in an airtight container at room temperature. For longer storage time, these freeze well for up to 3 months.

INGREDIENTS:

6 cups ginger ale

2 ounces raspberry syrup

3 ounces freshly squeezed lime juice

8 candied lime slices, for garnish

DIRECTIONS:

Fill a large glass punch bowl with ice. Pour in ginger ale, raspberry syrup, and lime juice. Stir. Serve in a glass punch cup, garnished with a slice if candied lime.

Change of Menu!

Ok, so last night's dinner menu changed while I was at the supermarket buying the ingredients. First I realized that it's not fennel season, and here in Italy it's hard to get out of season veggies; Second, at the fish counter they didn't have fresh salmon fillets so I decided to change it all together!

I bought fresh tuna and swordfish. I cut the tuna and swordfish into cubes and marinated them in extra-virgin olive oil with a few cloves of chopped garlic and parsley for 45min. In the meantime that it marinated I prepared the side dish: I browned cubes of eggplant and chopped leek with just a touch of onion and topped it off with a dash of soy sauce (I use soy sauce with cooked vegetables as a salt substitute).
After marinating, I cooked the cubes of tuna & sordfish in pan. I served the tuna & sordfish together with the browned eggplant & leak .

I also made a smoked tuna carpaccio salad with rocket leaves, cherry tomatoes dressed with extra-virgin olive oil and balsamic vinegar. And just in case it wasn't enough, I made "patate al verde" (steamed potatoes dressed with fresh chopped parsley, extra-virgin olive oil and 1 crushed garlic clove) Oh yeah! And as an appetizer we had smoked salmon bits with butter crostini (toasted Italian bread with butter on top) .
We finished with watermelon slices and lemon sorbet.

It all turned out really yummy and our guests were happy and had a full belly! I love having people over and improvising recipes!