RECIPES
Grilled Heirloom Tomato Soup with Cilantro Crème Fraiche
Braise Culinary School
www.BraiseCulinarySchool.com
(414) 241-9577
Serves 8-10
Tomato Soup
4 pounds red and yellow heirloom tomatoes, cored and cut in half
1 pound sweet onions, peeled and cut into ½ inch slices
½ pound heirloom Italian red peppers
1 Ancho chile, cleaned
2 garlic cloves
1 serrano chile pepper, seeded
1 bunch cilantro
¼ cup lemon juice
¼ cup apple cider vinegar
2 tablespoons salt
1 cup olive oil
Grill the tomatoes, onions and peppers until tender and slightly charred. Grill the ancho chile until soft and pliable. Place all ingredients in blender, except olive oil (May need to work in batches) and process until smooth. While blender is running, slowly add the olive oil. Pass through a medium strainer.
Warm soup over medium heat. Ladle into bowls and serve with dollop of cilantro crème fraiche.
Cilantro Crème Fraiche
1 cup cilantro leaves, chopped
½ cup crème fraiche
1 lime juiced
2 teaspoons salt
In bowl mix all ingredients together and set aside.
NotesShortbread with Lemon Cream and Berries
Serves 4-6
Shortbread
350 grams butter
130 grams confectioner’s sugar
½ teaspoon salt
75 grams rice flour
100 grams whole wheat flour
170 grams cake flour
Cream butter, sugar and salt together in mixer. Sift flours into bowl and add to mixer. Combine gently until dough just comes together. Remove from mixer, press into a buttered and floured pan, about ½ inch thick. Chill dough until firm, around 2 hours. Bake at 375º until golden brown, remove from oven and let cool to room temperature.
Lemon Cream
150 grams sugar
2 eggs
3 egg yolks
100 grams lemon juice
150 grams butter, cut into pieces, chilled
In medium bowl sitr together sugar, eggs and yolks. Add lemon juice. At the stove heat a medium saucepan half filled with water. Place bowl over saucepan and gently whisk mixture until thick and creamy, about 10 minutes. Take off heat and add butter a few pieces at a time until all butter is incorporated. Transfer to container place plastic wrap directly on the surface. Chill until cold.
Break shortbread into pieces, dollop with lemon cream and top with fresh berries. Sprinkle with confectioners sugar and serve.
SAINT PAUL FARMER’S MARKET VEGETABLE PIE
From Garden County Cooking—Where Everyone is Welcome to sit at the Table by John Michael Lerma
This is an old family recipe from Grand Forks, North Dakota but I’ve transported it to the Twin Cities of Minnesota. I renamed this recipe for my favorite farmer’s market near my home in Highland Park—the Saint Paul Farmer’s Market. If you visit the market you will be leave the real world for a world of music, freshly squeezed lemon aid, intoxicating odors and the best honeys, jams, vegetables, live plants, and Asian delicacies within 50 miles of Saint Paul, Minnesota.
Crust:
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon fine sea salt
½ cup cold butter flavored Crisco shortening, cut into small pieces
½ cup cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
½ cup cold water
1 egg yolk and 1 teaspoon water for egg wash.
All ingredients should be cold. Combine all the dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Add shortening and butter. Using a pastry blender, cut in the shortening and butter until the mixture resembles course meal.
Drop by drop, add the cold water. Mix in with the finger tips not hands as the palms will warm the dough. Continue mixing water in until the dough begins to hold together without being sticky but not crumbly.
Place dough in plastic wrap. Fold over plastic wrap and press down to form a disk. This will make rolling out easier after chilling. Finish warping in plastic and place in the refrigerator for at least ½ hour.
Lightly spray a deep 9-inch deep dish pie pan. Roll out dough and place in pie plate, allowing the excess pastry to hang over the edge. Cut away excess and refrigerate until filling is ready. Makes pastry for 9-inch double-crust pie.
Filling:
4 tablespoons of unsalted butter, divided
1 small head of Savoy cabbage, shredded, regular is fine if Savoy is unavailable
1 large onion, chopped
1 large garlic clove, minced
2 teaspoons fresh basil, chopped
1 teaspoon kosher or Hawaiian salt
½ teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
Dash of Indonesian white pepper
8 ounces of mushrooms, any variety, sliced
8 ounces of cream cheese (regular, low-fat, or fat-free), room temperature
4 large eggs, hard-boiled and sliced
Several sprigs of fresh dill weed
Preheat oven to 350F degrees. In a heavy bottom stock pot or Dutch oven, melt 2 tablespoons of butter over medium heat. Add cable and onions, Stir occasionally until cabbage wilts and onions are translucent. Stir in garlic, basil, salt, black pepper, and white pepper. Pour into a bowl and set aside.
Melt remaining 2 tablespoons of butter and add mushrooms. Stir and cook until mushrooms release their moisture. Fold mushrooms into cabbage and onion mixture.
Brush prepared bottom pie crust with egg wash including edges. Spread cream cheese over the bottom pie crust. Layer the eggs slices over the cream cheese and sprinkle with dill weed. Spoon vegetable mixture into crust and spread evenly. Before applying top crust, brush bottom crust edge with egg wash (this will create a glue-bond between the top and bottom crusts). Roll out top crust and carefully attach bottom and top crusts; crimp edges. Create a decorative edge and cut slits in the top to release steam. Brush top with remaining egg wash. If you have small cookie cutters that resemble vegetables; get creative and cut out remaining dough and paste on top of crust with egg wash.
Bake for 50 minutes or until crust is golden. Remove from oven and cool on a rack for 20 minutes before serving. Serves 8-10
“Yes, in the poor man's garden grow far more than herbs and flowers- Kind thoughts, contentment, peace of mind, and joy for weary hours.”
~ Author unknown
ZUPPA DI VERDURE (VEGETABLE SOUP
By John Michael Lerma from his forthcoming book A Gathering in Tuscany—Garden County Italain
3 cups (12 ounces/375 grams) cooked beans plus 2 cups (6 ounces/250 grams) cooking liquid
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 medium onion, peeped and finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, peeled and finely chopped
2 stalks celery, finely sliced
2 medium carrots, scraped and finely sliced
1 leek, cleaned and finely sliced
4 fresh ripe flavorful tomatoes, peeled (or 1 cup canned tomatoes with juice)
3 medium potatoes, peeled and cut in small chucks
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 bunch green chard, finely sliced
1 small Savoy cabbage (cavolo), finely sliced
1 teaspoon fresh thyme or ¼ teaspoon dried thyme
Drain the cooked beans, reserving the liquid in which they cooked.
In a heavy soup kettle or stock pot, heat the oil. Add the onion, chopped garlic, celery, carrots, and leek and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are soft but not brown. Chop the tomatoes coarsely and ad them and their juice to the vegetables. Stir in the potatoes and add 1 ½ cups boiling water. Taste and add salt and pepper as desired. Cook, covered, for 5 to 10 minutes, or until the potatoes just start to soften.
If you are using large leaves of chard or cabbage, remove the thick stalks and discard them, then sliver the greens. Together with the slivered cabbage, you should have 4 to 5 cups of greens. After the potatoes have started to soften, add the greens, beans, and thyme, stirring to incorporate everything well.
Lower the heat to low, cover the kettle, and cook at a bare simmer for 30 minutes to 1 hour, or until the vegetables are very soft. Add boiling water from time to time as necessary to prevent the beans from sticking to the kettle.
Serve as is or over toasted slices of garlic-rubbed bread. Drizzle each serving with al little extra virgin olive oil. Serves 10.
RIBOLLITA (TWICE BOILED VEGETABLE SOUP)
Tuscany’s most famous bread soup is so-called because it is always reboiled before being served the first time and is often saved for the next day and boiled yet again. Although officially a soup, ribolita is often thick enough to eat with a fork.
8 cups (64 fluid ounces/2 liters) leftover Zuppa di verdure (Vegetable Soup)
8 thin slices country-style bread
1 clove garlic, unpeeled, cut in half
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, plus more to pass
Heat the leftover zuppa di verdure to simmering. Grill the bread slices until they are toasted brown, and rub each slice on one side with the cut clove of garlic. Place 4 of the slices in the bottom of a soup tureen and drizzle on about 1 tablespoon of oil. Ladle half the soup over them. Top with the remaining bread slices and remaining oil, and cover with the rest of the soup. Let rest for a few minutes in a warm place (a turned-off oven is fine) so that the bread can absorb the soup, then serve immediately, passing more oil so that each person can add as much or as little as desired. Or set the soup aside in a cool pantry to serve at room temperature, a nice thing to do in the summertime.
Braise Culinary School
www.BraiseCulinarySchool.com
(414) 241-9577
Serves 8-10
Tomato Soup
4 pounds red and yellow heirloom tomatoes, cored and cut in half
1 pound sweet onions, peeled and cut into ½ inch slices
½ pound heirloom Italian red peppers
1 Ancho chile, cleaned
2 garlic cloves
1 serrano chile pepper, seeded
1 bunch cilantro
¼ cup lemon juice
¼ cup apple cider vinegar
2 tablespoons salt
1 cup olive oil
Grill the tomatoes, onions and peppers until tender and slightly charred. Grill the ancho chile until soft and pliable. Place all ingredients in blender, except olive oil (May need to work in batches) and process until smooth. While blender is running, slowly add the olive oil. Pass through a medium strainer.
Warm soup over medium heat. Ladle into bowls and serve with dollop of cilantro crème fraiche.
Cilantro Crème Fraiche
1 cup cilantro leaves, chopped
½ cup crème fraiche
1 lime juiced
2 teaspoons salt
In bowl mix all ingredients together and set aside.
NotesShortbread with Lemon Cream and Berries
Serves 4-6
Shortbread
350 grams butter
130 grams confectioner’s sugar
½ teaspoon salt
75 grams rice flour
100 grams whole wheat flour
170 grams cake flour
Cream butter, sugar and salt together in mixer. Sift flours into bowl and add to mixer. Combine gently until dough just comes together. Remove from mixer, press into a buttered and floured pan, about ½ inch thick. Chill dough until firm, around 2 hours. Bake at 375º until golden brown, remove from oven and let cool to room temperature.
Lemon Cream
150 grams sugar
2 eggs
3 egg yolks
100 grams lemon juice
150 grams butter, cut into pieces, chilled
In medium bowl sitr together sugar, eggs and yolks. Add lemon juice. At the stove heat a medium saucepan half filled with water. Place bowl over saucepan and gently whisk mixture until thick and creamy, about 10 minutes. Take off heat and add butter a few pieces at a time until all butter is incorporated. Transfer to container place plastic wrap directly on the surface. Chill until cold.
Break shortbread into pieces, dollop with lemon cream and top with fresh berries. Sprinkle with confectioners sugar and serve.
SAINT PAUL FARMER’S MARKET VEGETABLE PIE
From Garden County Cooking—Where Everyone is Welcome to sit at the Table by John Michael Lerma
This is an old family recipe from Grand Forks, North Dakota but I’ve transported it to the Twin Cities of Minnesota. I renamed this recipe for my favorite farmer’s market near my home in Highland Park—the Saint Paul Farmer’s Market. If you visit the market you will be leave the real world for a world of music, freshly squeezed lemon aid, intoxicating odors and the best honeys, jams, vegetables, live plants, and Asian delicacies within 50 miles of Saint Paul, Minnesota.
Crust:
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon fine sea salt
½ cup cold butter flavored Crisco shortening, cut into small pieces
½ cup cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
½ cup cold water
1 egg yolk and 1 teaspoon water for egg wash.
All ingredients should be cold. Combine all the dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Add shortening and butter. Using a pastry blender, cut in the shortening and butter until the mixture resembles course meal.
Drop by drop, add the cold water. Mix in with the finger tips not hands as the palms will warm the dough. Continue mixing water in until the dough begins to hold together without being sticky but not crumbly.
Place dough in plastic wrap. Fold over plastic wrap and press down to form a disk. This will make rolling out easier after chilling. Finish warping in plastic and place in the refrigerator for at least ½ hour.
Lightly spray a deep 9-inch deep dish pie pan. Roll out dough and place in pie plate, allowing the excess pastry to hang over the edge. Cut away excess and refrigerate until filling is ready. Makes pastry for 9-inch double-crust pie.
Filling:
4 tablespoons of unsalted butter, divided
1 small head of Savoy cabbage, shredded, regular is fine if Savoy is unavailable
1 large onion, chopped
1 large garlic clove, minced
2 teaspoons fresh basil, chopped
1 teaspoon kosher or Hawaiian salt
½ teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
Dash of Indonesian white pepper
8 ounces of mushrooms, any variety, sliced
8 ounces of cream cheese (regular, low-fat, or fat-free), room temperature
4 large eggs, hard-boiled and sliced
Several sprigs of fresh dill weed
Preheat oven to 350F degrees. In a heavy bottom stock pot or Dutch oven, melt 2 tablespoons of butter over medium heat. Add cable and onions, Stir occasionally until cabbage wilts and onions are translucent. Stir in garlic, basil, salt, black pepper, and white pepper. Pour into a bowl and set aside.
Melt remaining 2 tablespoons of butter and add mushrooms. Stir and cook until mushrooms release their moisture. Fold mushrooms into cabbage and onion mixture.
Brush prepared bottom pie crust with egg wash including edges. Spread cream cheese over the bottom pie crust. Layer the eggs slices over the cream cheese and sprinkle with dill weed. Spoon vegetable mixture into crust and spread evenly. Before applying top crust, brush bottom crust edge with egg wash (this will create a glue-bond between the top and bottom crusts). Roll out top crust and carefully attach bottom and top crusts; crimp edges. Create a decorative edge and cut slits in the top to release steam. Brush top with remaining egg wash. If you have small cookie cutters that resemble vegetables; get creative and cut out remaining dough and paste on top of crust with egg wash.
Bake for 50 minutes or until crust is golden. Remove from oven and cool on a rack for 20 minutes before serving. Serves 8-10
“Yes, in the poor man's garden grow far more than herbs and flowers- Kind thoughts, contentment, peace of mind, and joy for weary hours.”
~ Author unknown
ZUPPA DI VERDURE (VEGETABLE SOUP
By John Michael Lerma from his forthcoming book A Gathering in Tuscany—Garden County Italain
3 cups (12 ounces/375 grams) cooked beans plus 2 cups (6 ounces/250 grams) cooking liquid
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 medium onion, peeped and finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, peeled and finely chopped
2 stalks celery, finely sliced
2 medium carrots, scraped and finely sliced
1 leek, cleaned and finely sliced
4 fresh ripe flavorful tomatoes, peeled (or 1 cup canned tomatoes with juice)
3 medium potatoes, peeled and cut in small chucks
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 bunch green chard, finely sliced
1 small Savoy cabbage (cavolo), finely sliced
1 teaspoon fresh thyme or ¼ teaspoon dried thyme
Drain the cooked beans, reserving the liquid in which they cooked.
In a heavy soup kettle or stock pot, heat the oil. Add the onion, chopped garlic, celery, carrots, and leek and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are soft but not brown. Chop the tomatoes coarsely and ad them and their juice to the vegetables. Stir in the potatoes and add 1 ½ cups boiling water. Taste and add salt and pepper as desired. Cook, covered, for 5 to 10 minutes, or until the potatoes just start to soften.
If you are using large leaves of chard or cabbage, remove the thick stalks and discard them, then sliver the greens. Together with the slivered cabbage, you should have 4 to 5 cups of greens. After the potatoes have started to soften, add the greens, beans, and thyme, stirring to incorporate everything well.
Lower the heat to low, cover the kettle, and cook at a bare simmer for 30 minutes to 1 hour, or until the vegetables are very soft. Add boiling water from time to time as necessary to prevent the beans from sticking to the kettle.
Serve as is or over toasted slices of garlic-rubbed bread. Drizzle each serving with al little extra virgin olive oil. Serves 10.
RIBOLLITA (TWICE BOILED VEGETABLE SOUP)
Tuscany’s most famous bread soup is so-called because it is always reboiled before being served the first time and is often saved for the next day and boiled yet again. Although officially a soup, ribolita is often thick enough to eat with a fork.
8 cups (64 fluid ounces/2 liters) leftover Zuppa di verdure (Vegetable Soup)
8 thin slices country-style bread
1 clove garlic, unpeeled, cut in half
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, plus more to pass
Heat the leftover zuppa di verdure to simmering. Grill the bread slices until they are toasted brown, and rub each slice on one side with the cut clove of garlic. Place 4 of the slices in the bottom of a soup tureen and drizzle on about 1 tablespoon of oil. Ladle half the soup over them. Top with the remaining bread slices and remaining oil, and cover with the rest of the soup. Let rest for a few minutes in a warm place (a turned-off oven is fine) so that the bread can absorb the soup, then serve immediately, passing more oil so that each person can add as much or as little as desired. Or set the soup aside in a cool pantry to serve at room temperature, a nice thing to do in the summertime.
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