Monthly Archives: January 2008

White Bean and Roasted Garlic Soup

January 30, 2008 | by Ben 0

This is fast becoming a soup blog, but we’ve had some good luck with them lately (and some good reader response), so here’s another one.

If you read the recipe below, you’ll notice two bulbs of garlic. That said, the roasting really mellows the flavor–the garlic is powerful but more warming than sharp or pungent.

The pureed white beans make this a hearty, filling soup that can easily be the centerpoint of a meal. Rustic bread and carrot sticks are a good accompaniment.

White Bean and Roasted Garlic Soup(from Isa Chandra Moskowitz’s Vegan with a Vengeance)Serves 62 Tb Olive Oil1 medium-sized onion, chopped (about 1 1/2 cups)1 teaspoon saltA few dashes fresh black pepper1/2 tsp. fennel seeds, crushed4 cups vegetable broth, or 2 boullion cubes dissolved in 4 cups water3 cups cooked great nothern beans, drained3 fresh sage leaves, chopped1 bay leafJuice of 1/2 lemon, or to taste2 heads garlic, roasted*In a stockpot over medium-high heat sauté the onions … continue reading

Vegan with a Vengeance Matzo Ball Soup

January 26, 2008 | by Sarah 0

This week we got the Vegan with a Vengeance recipe book. While I don’t think we will becoming Vegans anytime soon (we love cheese too much!), we are looking to include more vegetarian dishes in our diets. So the first recipe we tried with the Matzo Ball Soup because I have been craving Matzo Ball soup lately. I made the veggie broth recipe from the book the night before, and then the next day I made the Matzos. The broth itself is very flavorful, so we were pretty excited to try the soup. The preperation of the matzo balls was pretty simple, but we had to refrigerate the dough overnight. The following day when I made the soup, the dough stuck together really well and actually smelled pretty good too. When the matzos were done cooking they looked to me just like “real” ones. I reheated the broth and added the carrots and dill, then added three … continue reading

White Bean and Black Olive Soup

January 22, 2008 | by Ben 4

It’s soup season, and I recently made White Bean and Black Olive Soup from The Moosewood Cookbook:

The aroma of this soup was the envy of a number of people near the microwave at work today. Here’s the recipe:

2 T olive oil1 heaping cup chopped onion1 stalk celery, diced1 medium carrot, diced1 to 1 1/2 tsp. salt (1 tsp. is fine with kalamata olives)1 tsp. oregano1 ½ tsp. basil1 small (5 to 6 inch long) zucchini, diced1 small bell pepper, diced3–4 medium cloves garlic, crushedFresh black pepper4 cups water3 oz. tomato paste (1÷2 small can)¼ cup dry red wine (optional, but a good addition)2 cups cooked white beans1 cup sliced kalamata olives (or plain black ones)1 T fresh lemon juice

minced parsely and tomato (optional) for garnish

1) Heat the olive oil in a kettle or Dutch oven. Add onion, celery, carrot, salt and herbs. Sauté over medium heat 8 to 10 minutes, or until the vegetables are just tender.

2) … continue reading

La Gelateria Pizzeria

January 20, 2008 | by Ben 2

La Gelateria in Cleveland Heights recently started serving traditional Italian pizza from a brick oven. Sarah and I have been patronizing La Gelateria for years and decided to try some of the pizza. We ordered one margherita pizza:

and one pizza with mushrooms and proscuitto:

They were both excellent. The crust is extremely thin but chewy and flavorful. They seem to use whole milk mozarella (which is always good) but in small enough quantities so that the pizza isn’t too rich. The tomato sauce is pretty basic–a strong, sharp tomato flavor–but simplicity isn’t necessarily a bad thing. The basil on the margherita was a nice touch, and the proscuitto was tasty but a bit more like regular ham than some I’ve had recently (e.g. at Bar Cento or Whole Foods Osteria).

The pizzas are $8-$10, and each 12″ pizza will feed about 1 1/2 hungry adults. Our family (two adults and a kid) polished off the … continue reading

Butternut Squash, Sage, and Goat Cheese Ravioli with Hazelnut Brown Butter Sauce

January 17, 2008 | by Ben 2

One wouldn’t think that squash or pumpkin ravioli is a very traditional italian preparation, but put either search into google and you’ll find a plethora of results.

There’s a reason for this, of course. The ravioli tastes really good, and, surprisingly, doesn’t even taste particularly unfamiliar. It tastes like a comfort food you haven’t discovered yet. The hazelnuts and brown butter sauce is a really nice touch. Use the italian nomenclature, “Zucca Di Ravioli,” and it will sound more appetizing. As George Carlin points out in Napalm and Silly Putty,“‘You Want Some Squash’ sounds like someone sat on dinner.” But call it “zucca” and you’ll enjoy it.

The recipe I used is from the Gourmet cookbook and can be found here. The aged goat cheese (vs. regular) makes a difference. It tastes more like Brie than the goat cheese you may be familiar with, but it’s not too hard to find, e.g. Zagara’s has it.

The recipe … continue reading

Double Raspberry Chocolate Chip Muffins

January 13, 2008 | by Ben 2


I’ve been working on this concept (pureed raspberries as the liquid base for a muffin) for a while, and I finally came up with a recipe that works. The whole raspberries make the flavor even stronger, and the chocolate chips are a nice counterpoint.
12 oz. package frozen raspberries1/3 – ½ cup sour cream, yogurt or a combination of yogurt and heavy cream½ cup oats, either regular or quick-cooking

1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour½ cup whole wheat pastry flour (or regular wheat flour)½ t. baking soda1 t. baking powder½ t. salt

2/3 cup sugar, divided2 eggs¼ cup canola oil

¼ — ½ cup chocolate chips (to taste)turbinado sugar (optional)

(1) Combine 8 oz. (2÷3 of the package) raspberries, thawed, and 1/3 cup sugar. (Leave the remaining 4 oz. of raspberries in the freezer). Let sit at room temperature for at least one hour, or in refrigerator for up to a few days. This will allow the raspberry flavor to intensify.

(2) … continue reading

Bar Cento

January 12, 2008 | by Sarah 0

This weekend we went to Bar Cento for dinner. Ben and I were both pretty excited about going because of all of the positive reviews it has been receiving and that Jonathan Sawyer (who learned some of his chops from Michael Symon) is the head chef. We were also excited that it was kid friendly.

The atmosphere was kind of cozy, but in a friendly way. When we were seated the waiter brought us a small paper bag with rolls and a small ramekin of olive oil. The bread tasted very fresh and went well with the olive oil. We ordered the antipasto plate for an appetizer. It was fantastic: there was an assortment of three meats and four cheeses as well as a slice of grilled bread and marinated veggies. Ben and I especially enjoyed the prosciutto while Jonathan was more into the cheese. For entrees we chose a pizza Marinara with prosciutto and the cheese … continue reading