CHICKEN MISO SOUP with Butternut Squash, Sage & Apple

     Our chicken population was getting out of control. We were going through a bag of chicken feed every week and so it was definitely time to cull the flock. Although these lovely birds of ours aren't great for roasting, they do make great stock. If I remember to pick the meat off early enough, then I have a some nice tender meat to make sandwiches and soups with too.
     When it comes time to make soup, I often ask myself the same question; is there any way I can make chicken soup a little more exciting? Here was yesterdays chicken soup redo with a batch of the sourdough biscuits my family loves so much slathered with salty butter...

CHICKEN MISO SOUP with Butternut Squash, Sage & Apple

2 pounds leftover cooked chicken meat

2 onions, chopped

1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil or coconut oil

3 cups, peeled and cubed butternut squash

1 cup peeled and diced parsnip

1 1/2 cups apple cider

2 cups mineral rich chicken stock

2 cups peeled and chopped apple

2 Tbsp chopped fresh sage, or 2 tsp dried

1 Tbsp peeled and grated ginger root

2 tsp sea salt, or more to taste

fresh black pepper

1/2 Tbsp white miso per bowl of soup

Method: Heat a large soup pot over medium heat, drizzle with oil, and saute onions until soft. Add the vegetables, apple, chicken, stock and cider. Bring to a boil, then reduce and simmer until squash is tender. Place 1/2 Tbsp miso in each bowl, dilute with some stock, and then fill with soup. Stir and serve.

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SOURDOUGH BISCUITS

2 cups whole wheat flour

1 Tbsp coconut sugar

1/2 tsp sea salt

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 cup butter

2 cups sourdough culture

Method: In a bowl, combine the flour, sugar, salt and baking soda. Cut in the butter with a pastry cutter until it looks like coarse crumbs. Add the sourdough culture, stirring with a fork. Add more flour as necessary to prevent the dough from being to sticky and wet. Turn out onto a floured surface and knead very briefly until the dough is soft and barely sticky. Add more flour as needed. 

Using your hands form the dough into a rectangle about 2 inches thick. Using a large knife cut into 8 biscuits. Place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and let rest at room temperature for 2 hours. Bake in a preheated 375*F oven for about 20 minutes or until golden. Serve hot.

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TAHINI MISO SPREAD

     If you're one of those people who has to avoid dairy and miss butter on your toast real bad, this spread is for you. Every piece of toast needs some sort of salty goodness on it to make you feel like all is right with the world. And it is my friends, it is.

TAHINI MISO SPREAD

3/4 cup organic raw tahini

1/4 cup organic white miso

2 Tbsp nutritional yeast flakes

Method: Put all ingredients into a bowl and stir until well blended. Keep refrigerated.

SPRING SALADS

Weekly trips to the Farmer's Market this time of year always include a stop at the booths laden with fresh salad greens.  Good thing many farmers around here have hoophouses or we'd be in big trouble considering all the snow and cold weather we've been having on the East Coast.  To keep things exciting on the dinner table, I try to make new salad dressings every once in a while.  This creamy, savoury Miso-Tahini Dressing is a definite keeper.

MISO-TAHINI SALAD DRESSING

1/4 cup organic tahini

1/4 cup water

3 Tbsp fresh organic lemon juice

2 Tbsp organic white miso paste

1/2 tsp organic sweet paprika

1 tsp maple syrup

1/4 tsp sea salt

Method:  Put all ingredients in a blender and mix until creamy.

The salad featured in the photos is a mesclun blend with carrot shavings, sunflower seeds, purple sauerkraut, sunflower sprouts, and feta cheese.

HOT ROCKING

We rocked it New Year's....hot rocked it that is, or rather hot stoned.  My $3.99 Value Village purchase of a Hot Stone Grill a few year's ago finally got a workout.  Luckily all the parts were in the box because I didn't actually check it until the morning of the dinner party (uh oh!).  

I had no idea how the thing worked because I'd never seen one in action, but luckily it was pretty straight forward and actually not all that different from a fondue really.  You see you have a stone platter with handles that gets placed into a cold oven and then warmed up to 400* for half an hour.  

The three little fondue style fuel pots then get lit, which gives you just enough time to grill enough food to feed 4 adults.  Now, I'm not so sure it was the greatest idea to host this kind of dinner party with two four year olds and two almost one year olds in attendance, but hey, we survived despite the chaos of it all. 

 Even though my whole house was filled with smoke from grilling indoors, I think I'm addicted to the hot stone grill!

*The 2012 New Year's Hot Stone Grill Menu*

Mini  Greek Lamb Patties

Scott's Wild Turkey - Tandoori Style

Miso Marinated Scallops

Balsamic Marinated Portobello Mushrooms

Red and Yellow Bell Peppers

Asian Style Noodles and Salad

Honey Vanilla Ice Cream and Waffles with Warm Chocolate Sauce (that seized)

GREEK LAMB PATTIES

1 pound ground grass fed lamb

1 small organic onion, grated

1 clove organic garlic, minced

1/4 cup organic whole wheat bread crumbs

1 organic egg

1 tsp dried organic mint

sea salt and pepper to taste

Method:  Combine all ingredients and let sit for 20 minutes, then form them into small, flat patties.

MISO MARINATED SCALLOPS

1 pound wild scallops, tough bit removed

2 Tbsp organic white miso

1 Tbsp organic sugar

2 Tbsp mirin

1 tsp organic sesame oil

Method:  Combine all the miso, sugar, mirin and oil in a bowl and whisk.  Add the scallops and allow to marinate for a few hours.  Remove from marinade and grill.

TANDOORI TURKEY

1 1/2 pounds organic turkey breast, cut into thin strips

1/4 cup organic yogurt

1 Tbsp organic lemon juice

1/2 Tbsp organic minced garlic

1/2 Tbsp organic peeled and minced ginger

1/2 Tbsp organic ground cumin

1/2 tsp organic ground coriander

1/8 tsp organic ground cardamom

1/8 tsp organic ground cloves

1/8 tsp organic ground black pepper

1 tsp sea salt, or to taste

Method:  Marinate the turkey in a bowl with all of the above ingredients except salt, which you add just before cooking.

BUTTERNUT SQUASH SOUP with Cauliflower and Sage

     It was another beautiful sunny fall day after a week long deluge of torrential rain here in Nova Scotia.  After a long day hanging out with my wee one, I really craved a comforting bowl of soup.  The cauliflower in the fridge was begging me to get creative with it, so this is the soup I came up with.  It is going to taste great with a salad chock full of homegrown sprouts and some warm rye sourdough bread dripping with butter.

BUTTERNUT SQUASH SOUP with Cauliflower and Sage

3 cups diced and peeled organic butternut squash

4 cups chopped organic cauliflower

1 large organic onion, chopped

4-5 cloves organic garlic, chopped

2 Tbsp organic butter

2 tsp dried organic sage leaf, or 2 Tbsp fresh organic sage, minced

3-4 Tbsp organic white/mellow miso paste

sea salt and pepper to taste

enough organic chicken or vegetable stock to cover the vegetables ( or use water )

Method:  Heat a large soup pot over medium low heat.  Melt butter and saute the onion until soft.  Stir in the garlic, sage, squash and cauliflower.  Add enough stock to just cover the vegetables.  Bring to a boil, adding some salt and simmer until soft.  Dilute the miso with a ladleful of stock, then stir into the pot, being sure not to boil it to.  Using a blender, puree the soup and thin with more stock if soup is too thick.  Season to taste with sea salt and pepper.  Serve with a dollop of yogurt if desired.

Flu Season Soup

I have been hovering on the edge of full blown cold or flu symptoms for days now and part of my stay healthy regime has been this delicious, easy miso soup every morning for breakfast.  

FLU SEASON MISO SOUP

(makes one large bowl)

1/4 small organic onion, minced

1 clove organic garlic, minced

1/2 Tbsp organic ginger, peeled and grated

1 heaping Tbsp organic white miso 

a wee ripped off piece of wakame sea vegetable

pinch organic cayenner pepper

Method:  Bring the onion, garlic, ginger, wakame and cayenne to boil in about 2 cups water.  Then simmer for 5 minutes.  In your soup bowl, dilute the miso paste with some warm water.  Then pour the hot garlicky water into the bowl and stir.  Enjoy first thing in the morning.  

Sushitime

Just as I was about to make my sushi rolls I couldn't find my sushi mat.  Luckily my friend Serena gave us placemats that are pretty much just larger versions of sushi mats so it came in handy.  My first time making rolls with rice on the outside - very easy to do.

MISO SOUP

(serves 4)

4 cups water

1 2" piece of kombu sea vegetable

1/2 cup bonito flakes

a bit of wakame sea vegetable

sliced green onions for garnish

3 Tbsp organic white miso paste

1/4 organic white onion, sliced

1/2 Tbsp organic ginger

1 tsp organic sesame oil

2 Tbsp grated carrot

a few cubes organic tofu

1 clove garlic

Method:  Bring water to boil with kombu in it.  When boiling, remove kombu and add the bonito flakes.  When water resumes boiling, remove from heat.  The stock is done when the flakes sink.  Strain.

In a saucepan fry the white onion, ginger, garlic and tofu for 3 minutes.  Add stock and carrot and bring to a boil.  Remove from heat and add the miso and wakame to hot fish stock.  Stir and pour into 4 bowls.  Garnish with green onion.

SEA VEGETABLE  SALAD

(serves 4)

1/2 cup arame seaweed, soaked in water for 5 minutes

1 cup Nova Scotia nori seaweed, rinsed and then squeezed, pick our any shells

1 long piece of wakame seaweed, soaked for 3 minutes and cut in pieces

1 small organic cucumber, sliced thin

some thin sliver of organic carrot

some organic sesame seeds

a few leaves of organic salad 

Dressing: 

3 Tbsp organic brown rice vinegar

1 Tbsp organic tamari or Bragg's Liquid Aminos

1 1/2 Tbsp raw organic sesame oil

1/2 Tbsp organic toasted sesame oil

2 tsp local honey

1 tsp grated fresh organic ginger

1/2 clove organic garlic, grated

Method:  Line four salad bowls with organic lettuce leaves, followed by wakame, nori and arame.  Top each mound of sea vegetable with the cucumber, carrot and sesame seeds.  Drizzle with dressing and serve.

SUSHI RICE

I also make sushi with organic short grain brown rice which I pressure cook with slightly less water than ususal so it gets nice and sticky.  I then pour the dressing onto it and proceed with the sushi rolling.

2 cups organic white sushi rice

2 cups water

2 Tbsp organic brown rice vinegar

2 Tbsp local honey

1 Tbsp sea salt

Method:  Place rice in a bowl and fill with water, and then drain.  Do this several times until the water runs clear.  Combine water and rice in a pot.  Bring to a boil with lid off.  When it boils, reduce heat to low and cover, simmering for 15 minutes.  Remove from heat and let rest covered for 10 minutes.  Combine the vinegar, honey and salt in a small saucepan and warm slightly.  Move rice into a glass or ceramic bowl and pour dressing over it, fanning it and gently cutting into it with a spatula, not stirring.  Bring to room temperature and make your sushi.