Well we finished our international soupfest, and I am finally taking the time to share the other countries we visited.
First there was France!
Bouillon de Volaille au vermicelli
(Chicken Soup with Vermicelli)
INGREDIENTS:
* 5 cups chicken broth
* 1/2 cup sliced onion
* 1/4 cup chopped celery
* 1/4 cup chopped carrots
* 1 leek, sliced – white part only
* 1/2 bay leaf
* optional: 1/2 teaspoon thyme
* 3-4 oz. vermicelli or angel hair pasta
* 1/2 cup frozen peas
PREPARATION:
1. Combine all the ingredients, EXCEPT the vermicelli and the peas, in a large stockpot.
2. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to low and simmer for 20 minutes, skimming when necessary.
3. Strain the soup through a fine sieve, pressing on the vegetables.
4. Return the broth to the pot and bring to a boil again.
5. Add the vermicelli and cook according to the package directions.
6. Remove from the heat and stir in the peas.
To serve: Ladle into 6 soup plates and serve.
We doubled this and ladled it into 11 bowls.
French Bread Rolls
Easy to make French bread rolls. Dough can be made in mixer, bread maker, or by hand. Loaves or rolls can be brushed before baking with a glaze of 1 beaten egg white mixed with 1 tablespoon water if desired.
Original recipe yield: 16 rolls
PREP TIME 20 Min
COOK TIME 20 Min
READY IN 2 Hrs 20 Min
INGREDIENTS
* 1 1/2 cups warm water (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)
* 1 tablespoon active dry yeast
* 2 tablespoons white sugar
* 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
* 1 teaspoon salt
* 4 cups bread flour
DIRECTIONS
1. In a large bowl, stir together warm water, yeast, and sugar. Let stand until creamy, about 10 minutes.
2. To the yeast mixture, add the oil, salt, and 2 cups flour. Stir in the remaining flour, 1/2 cup at a time, until the dough has pulled away from the sides of the bowl. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface, and knead until smooth and elastic, about 8 minutes. Lightly oil a large bowl, place the dough in the bowl, and turn to coat. Cover with a damp cloth, and let rise in a warm place until doubled in volume, about 1 hour.
3. Deflate the dough, and turn it out onto a lightly floured surface. Divide the dough into 16 equal pieces, and form into round balls. Place on lightly greased baking sheets at least 2 inches apart. Cover the rolls with a damp cloth, and let rise until doubled in volume, about 40 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
4. Bake for 18 to 20 minutes in the preheated oven, or until golden brown.
Then came Ireland where we sampled:
Irish Potato Soup
Evaporated milk and butter make this potato soup rich and creamy. For a smoother soup, run it through the food processor before serving.
Ingredients:
6 potatoes, peeled and cubed
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1/2 cup diced celery
1/2 cup diced peeled onion
1 1/2 cups canned evaporated milk
1/2 cup butter or margarine
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1.Place potatoes in a stockpot with enough water to cover. Boil until tender, about 10 minutes. Drain and set aside.
2.In a large saucepan, heat oil over medium heat. Add celery and onion and cook until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add potatoes. Stir in evaporated milk, butter, salt and pepper. Heat until just below boiling. Serve immediately.
Makes 5 servings. (Again, we tripled this)
Irish Soda Bread
This bread is popular throughout Ireland. Because it is easily and quickly made it is often baked fresh for tea or even breakfast.
Ingredients:
4 cups plain flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp sugar (optional)
2 cups buttermilk or sour milk
Sieve the dry ingredients into a large bowl. Scoop up handfuls and allow to drop back into the bowl to aerate the mixture. Add enough buttermilk to make a soft dough. Now work quickly as the buttermilk and soda are already reacting. Knead the dough lightly – too much handling will toughen it, while too little means it won’t rise properly.
Form a round loaf about as thick as your fist. Place it on a lightly-floured baking sheet and cut a cross in the top with a floured knife. Put at once to bake near the top of a pre-heated oven, gas mark 8, 450°F, 230°C, for 30-45 minutes. When baked, the loaf will sound hollow when rapped on the bottom with your knuckles. Wrap immediately in a clean tea-towel to stop the crust hardening too much.
Wheaten bread or brown soda is made in exactly the same way but with wholemeal flour replacing all or some of the white flour; this mixture will probably require less buttermilk.
Then we stopped in Spain for some:
Albondigas Soup
This classic Spanish soup combines meatballs–albondigas (ahl-BON-dee-gahs)and a spicy broth.
Meatballs:
3/4 pound ground round
1/4 cup Italian-seasoned breadcrumbs
1/4 cup minced fresh onion
1/4 cup bottled salsa
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
Cooking spray
Soup:
2 (6-inch) corn tortillas, cut into 1/4-inch strips
1 teaspoon vegetable oil
1 cup chopped onion
1 cup chopped seeded poblano chile or 1 (4.5-ounce) can chopped green chiles
4 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 cup bottled salsa
1/2 cup water
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 (16-ounce) can fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
1 (14.5-ounce) can no-salt-added diced tomatoes, undrained
1/4 cup diced peeled avocado
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
Preheat oven to 450°.
To prepare meatballs, combine first 5 ingredients. Shape mixture into 32 (3/4-inch) meatballs; place on a broiler pan coated with cooking spray. Bake at 450° for 12 minutes or until done. Set aside.
To prepare the soup, place the tortilla strips in a single layer on a jelly-roll pan coated with cooking spray. Bake at 450° for 5 minutes or until lightly browned. Set aside. Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add 1 cup onion, poblano, and garlic; cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in 1/2 cup salsa and the next 4 ingredients (salsa through tomatoes); reduce heat, and simmer for 10 minutes. Stir in the meatballs; cook for 5 minutes or until thoroughly heated. Ladle the soup into individual bowls, and top with the tortilla strips, diced avocado, and chopped cilantro.
Yield: 4 servings (serving size: 1 3/4 cups soup, about 12 tortilla strips, 1 tablespoon avocado, and 1 tablespoon cilantro)
We tripled this for our family.
CALORIES 297 (28% from fat); FAT 9.3g (sat 2.6g,mono 4.1g,poly 1.5g); PROTEIN 24.9g; CHOLESTEROL 52mg; CALCIUM 118mg; SODIUM 733mg; F
IBER 4.5g; IRON 4.5mg; CARBOHYDRATE 29.8g
Cooking Light, OCTOBER 2000
And our last stop on the international soup train was China, where we discovered Egg Drop Soup, better than any we’ve ever tasted in a restaurant.
Soup can be re-heated or frozen and re-heated.
Original recipe yield: 4 servings (we tripled this)
PREP TIME – 10 Min
COOK TIME – 10 Min
READY IN – 20 Min
INGREDIENTS
12 cups chicken broth, divided
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 cup and 2 tablespoons chopped fresh chives
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup and 1 teaspoon cornstarch
6 eggs
3 egg yolk
DIRECTIONS
1.Reserve 3/4 cup of chicken broth, and pour the rest into a large saucepan. Stir the salt, ginger and chives into the saucepan, and bring to a rolling boil. In a cup or small bowl, stir together the remaining broth and cornstarch until smooth. Set aside.
2.In a small bowl, whisk the eggs and egg yolk together using a fork. Drizzle egg a little at a time from the fork into the boiling broth mixture. Egg should cook immediately. Once the eggs have been dropped, stir in the cornstarch mixture gradually until the soup is the desired consistency.
(according to reviews, better if cornstarch mixture is added first)
About Janne
That sounds like such a great learning experience for the whole family! I have some very picky eaters around here though. I think we would have to do international desserts. ;D They would eat almost anything that is sweet, do you think that would still count?
Thank you for visiting my blog. I wanted to say that if there are none other of you in the USA, that you (like Kathleen) are just one of a kind! :>
Love & Blessings,
(: Amanda :)
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You are soooo adventurous in the kitchen! I’m not even that adventurous at a restaurant, much less in my own kitchen. You do inspire me, though…
Have a good one,
ali
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