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Tomato Soup with Goat Cheese and Goat Cheese Biscuits

by 8 Comments

I know.  I’m all about the goat cheese.  I just can’t help myself.

 

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And have y’all seen this trend of shooter appetizers?  We were watching CNN or HLN or some news channel the other day and they had a segment on wedding trends.  It was a bunch of food shooters. I guess for the cocktail hour before the dinner?

 

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They were cute and all and most of them were down right beautiful.  And I guess it’s handier than a pocket on a shirt to hold your appetizer, walk around, and still be able to hang on to your cocktail. But I gotta tell ya, when it comes to soup and these cold days I really need more than a shooter. I need  the mother load in a big bowl with some biscuits, bread, or plain old saltines.

 

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I normally put cream in my tomato soup, but because I used goat cheese I didn’t this time.  You can totally add some if you want.  I usually like my tomato soup kind of a pink color.  We really liked it though. You be the judge.  Big or small, shooters or bowls, it’s still soup season.

 

Biscuit recipe slightly adapted from Art Smith at Oprah.com

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Tomato Soup with Goat Cheese and Goat Cheese Biscuits

Ingredients

Tomato and Goat Cheese Soup

  • 3 small carrots peeled and diced
  • 1 onion diced
  • 3 garlic cloves minced
  • 2 tablespoons butter
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 3 oz tomato paste 1/2 6 oz can
  • 1 28 oz can crushed tomatoes
  • 1 15 oz can tomato sauce
  • 2 cups chicken stock
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1/8 - 1/4 teaspoon pepper
  • 5-6 basil leaves torn or chopped
  • 2 tablespoons sugar

Biscuits

  • 2 cups flour
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 4 tablespoons butter
  • 4 oz goat cheese
  • 1 cup buttermilk
  • 2 tablespoons parmesan

Instructions

  1. Heat a Dutch oven on medium-high, add butter and olive oil
  2. Add carrots, cook 3-4 minutes
  3. Add onions, cook 2-3 minutes
  4. Add garlic, cook 1 minute
  5. Add tomato paste, stir for 1 minute
  6. Add crushed tomatoes, tomato sauce, chicken stock, salt, pepper, basil leaves, and sugar.
  7. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, cover and simmer for 20-30 minutes
  8. Using an immersion blender, puree soup until fairly smooth
  9. Add goat cheese, stir and cook over very low heat until melted, blend again until smooth. (If adding cream, I would do it here)
  10. While soup is cooking prepare the biscuits
  11. Preheat oven to 450 and put cast iron skillet inside
  12. Combine flour and salt in a bowl and using a pastry cutter, cut in butter and goat cheese until pea size balls form
  13. Make a well in the middle of the flour mixture and add buttermilk, stir to combine
  14. Remove hot skillet from oven, add a tablespoon of butter, when melted drop 1/4 cup size balls of the batter to the skillet
  15. Brush the tops with melted butter
  16. Bake until golden brown on top (the instructions said 14 - 16 minutes, but mine took closer to 25 so I think it depends on how big they are)

Pumpkin Soup

by 13 Comments

It snowed again.  We didn’t get the 10 inches that was predicted, but we got a few.  It was enough to make me want flannel PJ’s, blankets, a fire in the fireplace, and soup.

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I know it’s not the usual time of year for pumpkin, but who cares?  I can have pumpkin in August if I want.  Who says pumpkin is just for Fall?   Pumpkin is one of my absolute faves and I cook with it all year long.  I mean, after all, Libby’s is kind enough to put it in a can and sell it to me year round, so I should be grateful and use it, right?

 

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So anyway, I made pumpkin soup.  In February.

 

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I love it regardless of the time of year.  I hope you do too!

 

Print

Pumpkin Soup

Ingredients

  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 4 tablespoons butter divided
  • 1 medium onion diced
  • 3 garlic cloves minced
  • 1 piece of fresh ginger 1-1 1/2 inch, grated
  • 1 16 ounce can pure pureed pumpkin not pie filling
  • 3 cups chicken stock reduced sodium
  • 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon pepper
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 1/2 cup heavy cream

Instructions

  1. Melt 3 tablespoons of butter and the olive oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat
  2. Add onions and cook until almost translucent, 3-4 minutes
  3. Add garlic and cook for another minute
  4. Add ginger and cook while stirring for another minute, until all are soft
  5. Add pumpkin and chicken stock, stirring to combine
  6. Add spices
  7. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer about 30 minutes
  8. Adjust seasoning, if necessary
  9. Stir in heavy cream and 1 tablespoon of butter
  10. Remove bay leaves
  11. Using an immersion blender, blend until relatively smooth. You can use a regular blender or food processor if you don't have an immersion blender, but you will probably want to blend only a couple of coups at a time
  12. Serve in individual bowls. Add another tablespoon of heavy cream on top and swirl with a spoon

Recipe Notes

If you are feeling ambitious, a garnish of candied pumpkin seeds or pistachios would be nice

Update: I added “remove bay leaves” to the recipe.  Don’t forget to remove them before blending like I did!!