Eat Your Heart Out Bennigan's

Do you remember Bennigan's? There used to be a few locations here in Miami and all but one have closed down. We used to have one fairly close to us in Boston and that one closed down unexpectedly. I remember walking by it one day and seeing it open and lively and then walking by it the following night and seeing it closed and boarded up. I remember the drinks being good and the desserts scandalous, but the one thing I really miss is their baked potato soup. I was in the mood for this soup and came across this recipe that made me relive the satisfaction I used to get from that Bennigan's soup. Because I was giving some of the soup to Cati, my soup wasn't as chunky but it was still perfection. The pictures do not do this soup justice, so you are just going to have to try it for yourself.

 

Edit: I completely forgot I wanted to dedicate this post to our 15.5 year old poodle, Perla. Branny Boils Over is having a Charity Souper Bowl and for every entry she receives she'll donate $1 to the ASPCA. Here the most recent picture of Perla being tormented by the littlest human:

Baked Potato Soup
Source: Sherry Haupt on AllRecipes.com

6 slices bacon
1/3 cup margarine
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
3-1/2 cups milk
2 large baked potatoes, peeled and cubed
2 green onions, chopped (I omitted)
1/2 cup and 2 tablespoons shredded Cheddar cheese
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

Place bacon in a large, deep skillet. Cook over medium heat until browned. Drain, crumble, and set aside.

In a stock pot or Dutch oven, melt the margarine over medium heat. Whisk in flour until smooth. Gradually stir in milk, whisking constantly until thickened. Stir in potatoes and onions. Bring to a boil, stirring frequently.

Reduce heat, and simmer 10 minutes. Mix in bacon, cheese, sour cream, salt, and pepper. Continue cooking, stirring frequently, until cheese is melted.

Seasons 52: Roasted Butternut Squash Soup

Here's another recipe from Seasons 52. As usual, I messed up the recipe. I didn't scoop out the flesh of the butternut squash and I think that made the soup being a little grainy. Or is butternut squash normally grainy (this is my first experience with this type of squash)? As a result, the soup was a partial miss in my house. It tasted really, really good but the texture made the soup hard to finish. Eaten with sourdough bread the soup was fantastic, but eaten on its own you dealt with the grainy texture.

If you've done a recipe with butternut squash before can you tell me how the squash tastes?

Roasted Butternut Squash Soup
Source: Seasons 52
Serves 6 to 8

1 ea Butternut squash – about 4_ packed cups
2 ea Apples (not red), peeled, cored and sliced
1 Tbs Brown sugar
1/2 tsp Cinnamon, ground
1 Tbs Canola oil
1 ea Onion, Spanish, peeled and diced
1 Tbs Ginger, minced
1 quart Vegetable stock (low-sodium)
1 tsp Chipotle Tabasco
2 Tbs Honey
1 Tbs Kosher salt

Garnish:
1 ea Apple, washed, cut in small slivers
Dollop Sour cream, reduced fat
Pinch Chives, sliced fine
Pinch Pumpkin seeds, toasted

Gather and measure all ingredients. Wash and prep veggies, cut squash in half, lengthwise and spoon out seeds.

Place squash halves and apples on foil-lined cookie tray, cut side up. Combine sugar and cinnamon and sprinkle mix evenly onto squash. Roast squash halves in 350º oven for 45 to 60 minutes until tender.

Cool at room temperature for 30 minutes until able to handle. Scoop pulp from skins. Reserve pulp for soup.

Heat oil in soup pot at medium heat. Add apples, onion and ginger. Sauté for 5 minutes until tender and sweet. Add vegetable stock. Stir in cooked squash pulp. Simmer on low heat for 15 minutes. Add Tabasco, honey, and salt. Puree fine in a blender until smooth.

Garnish with apple slivers, sour cream, chives, and toasted pumpkin seeds.

Beer Beef Stew

I made this soup a few weeks ago and, wow, was it delicious. I could seriously eat any vegetable as long as it is in this soup. I used Sierra Nevada for the soup and the soup really took on the flavor of the beer so I recommend using a beer you like.

Beef Beef Stew

1 lb beef loin cut into chunks
2 tbsp olive oil
Salt
Pepper
2 cups water
12 oz pale ale
2 beef bullion cubes
1 cup chopped potato (about 1 large potato)
1 cup chopped carrots (about 3 large carrots)
1/2 tsp corn starch
1/2 tsp cold water
Saltine crackers (optional)

Season the beef with salt and pepper.

In a large pot over medium heat, heat the olive oil. Add beef and brown. Add water, beer, and bullion cubes. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer, covered, while you chop the vegetables.

Add the vegetables and continue to simmer, covered, until vegetables are soft, about 20 min.

In a small bowl combine the corn starch and water. Add to stew and continue to cook until the broth thickens, about 5 min.

Serve warm.

Loaded Baked Potato Soup

I went to my friend Claudia's house earlier this week and she was making a potato soup. It wasn't ready by the time I left her house so I left craving the soup big time. It seems almost ridiculous to want soup given the 90+ degree weather we've been experiencing here in Miami, but I was drawn to the thought of potatoes, bacon, and cheese poured into my bowl. This soup did not disappoint and it satisfied the craving. Heck, it did more than simply satisfy a craving, it made our taste buds sing and our stomachs soar to the food heavens.

I did make a few mistakes but it goes to show you how flexible the recipe is. I burned the garlic (my sous chef Cati didn't warn me!) and forgot to bake the potatoes beforehand. I put the chopped up potato in the oven while I got everything ready and let them finish cooking in the soup (this only added a few minutes to the cook time). I also poured ALL the potatoes in the soup and mashed them up in the soup instead of reserving some of the potatoes in case the soup was too thin.

Loaded Baked Potato Soup
Source: All Recipes as seen on Christine's Kitchen Chronicles

Prep Time: 10 mins
Cook Time: 20 mins
Ready In: 30 mins
Yields: 4 Servings

5 bacon strips, diced
1 small onion, chopped (I omitted)
2 cloves garlic, minced
4 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon dried basil (I omitted)
1/2 teaspoon pepper
4 cups (2 cans) chicken broth
2-3 large baked potatoes, peeled and cubed
1 cup half-and-half cream (I used 1/2 cup milk, 1/2 cup half and half)
1/2 teaspoon hot sauce
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
Salt, to taste
Green onions or chives, sliced (I omitted)
Sour cream (optional)

In a large saucepan, cook bacon until crisp. Drain, reserving about 1 tablespoon of drippings. Set bacon aside on paper towel covered plate to drain.

Saute onion and garlic in the drippings until tender, taking care so that garlic does not burn.

Stir in flour, salt, basil and pepper; mix well.

Gradually add broth. Bring to boil; boil and stir for 2 minutes.

Add most of the potatoes (reserve some in case mixture is too thin), cream or milk, cheese, and hot pepper sauce; heat through but DO NOT BOIL, stir continuously. If mixture is too thin, mash some of the potatoes and add to broth or add some potato flakes. If mixture is too thick,add more liquid (broth, cream, milk, or water).

Garnish with bacon, sour cream, green onions, and additional cheese, if desired.