Let’s be honest — this dish isn’t going to be winning any beauty pageants anytime soon.  With it’s reddish-brown color scheme and thick, chili-like texture, this isn’t the type of recipe that turns many heads on Foodgawker or Tastespotting.  So, like a friend who’s just set you up on a blind date with an aesthetically challenged individual, I implore you to move past its humble appearance and try to get to know the soul of this comforting dish.

For me, this is cold weather fare at its best.  A warm, stick-to-your-ribs type meal that’s like a hug from a loved one.  Creamy lentils and sausages combine to produce a dish that is both high in protein and rich in savory flavor.  The best part? It’s cheap and simple to make.  In fact, you probably already have everything to make it your kitchen.  All you really need is a handful of lentils, a few sausages from the fridge, a leftover glass of wine, and you can have a filling and satisfying meal at a moment’s notice.  This is hearty food that reheats well and makes great leftovers.

If looks don’t matter, you might have found your new soul mate.

SAUSAGE AND LENTIL STEW

I like to use French green lentils in this recipe because they hold their shape and retain great texture when cooked for long periods of time.  If you don’t have any on hand, feel free to substitute brown lentils but expect a slightly different finished texture.  If you want a healthier version of this stew, omit the bacon and pour off all of the rendered sausage fat after browning.  If you decide to go down this route, simply substitute a couple of tablespoons of good olive oil before cooking the vegetables.  Feel free to use any herbs or spices you have lying around your kitchen.  I’ve made this with everything from rosemary to curry powder with excellent results, so experiment away. Finally, I’ve found that other sausages work well in this application.  Merguez and goat would also make for a stellar stew.

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 slices smoky bacon
• 4 sweet or hot Italian sausages, cut into 1-inch pieces
  
• 1 cup petite French lentils, rinsed and drained
• 1 cup diced carrot
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 5 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 1 teaspoon fresh thyme leave
• Crushed red pepper flakes
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 cup dry red wine
• 1 14-ounce can tomatoes, crushed
• 2 cups chicken stock
• 2 roasted red peppers, sliced 1/4-inch thick
• 4 sprigs of parsley
  
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
  
• 1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
  
• Chopped parsley for garnish

METHOD:

1. Set a large, heavy-bottomed pot over moderately-low heat and cook bacon until the fat has rendered.  Using a slotted spoon, remove the bacon from the pot and set aside.  Increase the heat to moderately-high and brown the sausage pieces in the reserved bacon fat.  Be careful not to crowd the pot; fry the sausages in separate batches if necessary.  Once they are sufficiently caramelized (about 8 minutes per batch), remove the browned sausage pieces to a plate using a slotted spoon.
   
2. Lower the heat to moderate and add in the carrots, onion and garlic. Sauté until softened and just beginning to brown, about 10 minutes.  Add in the crushed red pepper flakes, bay leaves and thyme and sauté another 5 minutes.  Add in the red wine to deglaze and scrape up any browned bits from the bottom of the pot with the back of a wooden spoon.  Allow the wine to reduce by half before adding the lentils, tomatoes, chicken stock, red peppers and parsley.
3. Add the cooked bacon and sausages back into the pot along with any juices that may have collected.  Stir to mix well and bring to a boil.  Turn down the heat and simmer for an hour, or until the lentils are just al dente.  Stir occasionally to prevent scorching.
   
4. Stir in the balsamic vinegar and season the lentil stew with salt and pepper to taste.  Garnish with chopped parsley and serve.

Serves 4

While my Mom is good at cooking many things, my Dad and I both agree that she is especially great at making delicious, comforting soups.  From minestrone and lentil to chicken tortilla and roasted butternut squash, she would be the first to point out that, “it’s kind of hard to screw up soup”.  Ever the modest chef, my Mom’s casual approach to cooking is something I look to emulate in the kitchen on a daily basis.  With a propensity to sweat the small stuff when it comes to recipe components and cooking techniques, it is while making soup that I feel the most at ease.  In fact, I’ve found that soup making can be one of the most relaxing of kitchen tasks.  Throw a bunch of quality ingredients in a pot, simmer low and slow until the flavors come together and you have a simple and satisfying supper with leftovers for the week.

A hearty and warming soup, split pea with ham is one of my all-time favorites for the Fall because of its earthy flavor, rustic texture and tender shreds of smoky pork.  There are countless way to make this comfort classic, but I am particularly fond of adding bit of cream sherry at the end of cooking for a unique, sophisticated sweetness.  This is a very simple soup to prepare and certainly one falls into the category of dishes that are difficult to screw up.

SPLIT PEA SOUP

Adding the dried peas to the pot in two installments guarantees a good amount of texture to the soup.  Be sure to simmer the soup for the entire recommended length of time before adding any salt as the smoked ham hock will contribute a good amount of its own.  The addition of cream sherry at the end of cooking makes for a grown up flavor that slightly sweetens the soup while adding complexity and another dimension of flavor. This soup really thickens after a bit of refrigeration.  When reheating, it’s best to keep some extra stock (or water) on hand to thin down the soup to your desired consistency.

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 cup chopped yellow onion (about one medium onion)
• 1/2 tablespoon garlic (about 1-2 cloves)
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano or dried thyme
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 2 cups diced carrots
• 1 cup diced, unpeeled red skin potatoes
  
• 1 pound dried split peas
• 8 cups chicken stock or water
• 1 2 1/2 – 3 1/2 pound bone-in, smoked ham hock
  
• Kosher salt to taste
• 1 tablespoon cream sherry (optional)
  

METHOD:

1. In a 6-quart pot, heat olive oil over medium heat and sauté the onions, garlic, dried herbs and pepper until translucent and soft, about 10 minutes.
2. Add the smoked ham hock and sauté briefly until it begins to color slightly, about 5 minutes.
3. Add the carrots, potatoes and 3/4 of the dried split peas.  Add in the stock or water, bring to a boil and then turn the heat down to low and simmer uncovered for 40 minutes.  Skim off foam periodically as it collects on the surface.
4. After 40 minutes, add in the remaining split peas and continue to simmer for another 40-50 minutes, stirring every once in a while to make sure that the peas don’t scorch on the bottom of the pot.
5. Carefully remove the ham hock from the hot soup to a clean plate.  Allow the ham to cool slightly before pulling the meat from the bone and shredding it into bite size pieces.
6. Return the shredded ham to the pot and swirl in the optional cream sherry.  Add kosher salt to taste.
   
7. Serve warm in bowls garnished with a Parmesan crouton.
   

Serves 5-6

PARMESAN CROUTONS

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 sourdough baguette
• Olive oil for brushing
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
• Finely chopped fresh thyme or oregano

METHOD:

• Preheat the oven to 400º.
• Slice baguette on a bias into 1/4 thick pieces.  Place bread slices on a baking sheet and brush each with olive oil before sprinkling on kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper.
• Top each slice with a sprinkling of grated cheese and minced herbs and bake in the oven for 20 minutes, or until the bread is golden brown and the cheese is bubbly.
• Serve croutons at room temperature.

I usually do the cooking in my house, but on a recent trip to the farmers market, my girlfriend stumbled upon a vendor selling what looked to be the last of this season’s tomatoes and was instantly inspired to make this soup. A little overripe, she decided that the still beautiful specimens would taste especially good after roasting in the oven to concentrate their flavor.  Now, I myself am not the biggest tomato soup fan, but I was blown away at how delicious and flavorful the end product became. Somewhere between a tomato bisque and an earthy, slow-cooked tomato sauce, this soup had me sopping up the leftovers from the pot with a piece of toasted sourdough. Perfectly seasoned and especially comforting on a foggy San Francisco evening, my place in the kitchen might be in jeopardy if my girlfriend continues to turn out such satisfying fare.

ROASTED TOMATO SOUP

When roasting the tomatoes and bell peppers keep in mind that you want them to both soften and take on a bit of color. Once the tomatoes were in the pot, Lauren used a spatula to scrape in the residual carmelized bits from the sheet pan and added that as well. To make this more refined, just strain it through a fine mesh sieve before serving.

INGREDIENTS

• 1 lb. ripe tomatoes, halved or quartered depending on the size
  
• 2 large red bell peppers, halved and seeded
  
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 tsp. herbes de provence
• 1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes
• 3 to 4 cups chicken stock, vegetable stock or water
• 2 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil, plus extra for drizzling
• salt & pepper

METHOD

1. Preheat over to 375°.
2. Coat the tomatoes and bell peppers in a drizzle of olive oil and a hefty pinch of salt and pepper. Roast for 45 minutes to an hour. Remove from the oven and give the bell peppers a rough chop.
3. Heat 2 tbsp. of olive oil in a small pot. When hot, add the onions and saute over medium heat until golden. Add a pinch of salt, the garlic, the herbes de provence, and the pepper flakes. Stir until fragrant.
4. Using a spatula lift the soft tomatoes from the sheet and add to the onion mixture. Toss in the bell pepper and cook for a minute or two with the tomatoes and onions.
5. Pour in the chicken stock. You’ll want just enough to cover the tomatoes and onions. Bring to simmer and cook for 15 minutes.
6. Once the soup as come together use an immersion blender to blend the soup to your desired consistency. If necessary, feel free to add more chicken stock.
7. Taste for salt and pepper and allow to simmer 5 more minutes.
8. Serve with fresh basil and a drizzle of crème fraÎche or sour cream.

serves 2

I don’t quite know how it happened, but somehow I got a cold in the middle of August. While San Francisco isn’t exactly known for it’s sweltering summers, I found myself craving something that would warm me to the core and nourish me at the same time. Recalling the virtues of chicken noodle soup, I figured I would try my hand at creating a chinese-style broth infused with the healing qualities of garlic and ginger. So, with a batch of homemade chicken stock in the freezer and a handful of asian ingredients and cooking techniques, I set out to create a soup that would have me feeling healthy again in no time.

Drawing inspiration from Barbara Tropp’s iconic, China Moon Cookbook, I began by making a simple “infusion” that would serve as the backbone of my soup. The long, slow simmering of copious amounts of roasted garlic and other aromatics imbue the broth with a rich and savory quality while the basil stems thrown in during the last fifteen minutes of simmering add a beautiful floral finish. Once infused, the broth is good enough to eat by itself, but I was feeling a bit adventurous, and wanted to add some protein and vitamins. Using a technique called “velveting,” the marinated chicken breast is only partially cooked in simmering water before it is drained and finished in the soup. The pieces end up being juicy, extremely tender and pleasantly salty. Finished with some shiitake mushrooms, baby bok choy, spinach and a good pinch of Szechwan pepper-salt, I had a soup that is as delicious as it is healthy.

Restorative Asian Soup

Recipe and techniques adapted from Barbara Tropp’s, China Moon Cookbook

As suggested by Ms. Tropp, be patient while infusing the oil with the aromatics before adding the chicken stock. It is during this step that the bulk of the flavor for the broth is developed; it should not be rushed. When velveting the chicken, have another pot of water on the stove bubbling away at a strong simmer before water blanching the pieces. Marinating the chicken for a couple of hours is great, but overnight will yield especially flavorful and tender results.

INGREDIENTS

For the Broth Infusion

• 1 1/2 large, rock-hard heads of garlic, wrapped in tin foil and roasted at 375°F for 30-40 minutes
• 1 tablespoon corn or peanut oil
• 1/2 a small onion, thinly sliced
• 1/2 small green serrano chili
• 4 quarter-size coins of fresh ginger, smashed
• 6 cups of unsalted chicken broth, preferably homemade
• 1/2 stalk fresh lemongrass or small handful of basil stems
• Kosher salt
• Roasted Szechwan pepper-salt (recipe follows)
• 2 small baby bok choy, sliced in quarters
• 3/4 cup shitake mushrooms, sliced
• 1 large handful of baby spinach leaves

For the Velvet Marinated Chicken

• 1 large egg white
• 1 tablespoon Chinese rice wine or dry sherry
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• 3/4 lb. fresh chicken breast, skinned, boned and cut into strips 1 x 1/4 inch thick slices

METHOD

1. Prepare the chicken: Combine the marinade ingredients in a bowl and toss to coat the chicken. Allow at least two hours or overnight to marinate.
2. Prepare the infusion: Add the oil to the bottom of a non-aluminum, heavy stockpot and swirl to glaze the bottom of the pot. Heat over low heat until a slice of onion sizzles gently upon contact with the oil. Add the onion slices, chili, ginger and roasted garlic, stirring to combine. Cover the pot and, keeping the heat very low, sweat the vegetables until the onion turns translucent and the mixture is soupy, 10 to 15 minutes. Stir occasionally to prevent the vegetables from sticking to the bottom of the pot. This sweating step is crucial to the success of the flavors, so don’t rush it.
3. Add the chicken stock, cover the pot, and raise the heat to moderate. Bring the mixture to a near boil and adjust the heat to maintain a steady simmer for 1 hour. Add the lemongrass or basil stems during the last 15 minutes.
4. Remove the pot from heat. Let the infusion steep, uncovered and undisturbed, for 1 hour.
5. Strain the infusion through a fine-mesh sieve lined with layers of dampened cheesecloth and spoon off any excess oil lingering on the surface.
6. Season the infusion with enough kosher salt to bring out the garlic flavor, then end with roasted pepper-salt to taste.
7. Just prior to serving, place a small saucepan of water to simmer. Add the chicken pieces stir until the outside is white, about 30 to 40 seconds. Remove the chicken with a slotted spoon and set aside.
8. Meanwhile, add the vegetables to the hot broth. Allow to simmer until vegetables are tender. Add the partially cooked chicken and cook through, about five minutes.

Makes two large bowls

Szechwan Pepper-Salt

1. Combine two tablespoons szechwan peppercorns with 1/4 cup kosher salt in a heavy skillet over medium heat. Stir continuously for five minutes or until the peppercorns are toasted and the salt has taken on an off-white color.
2. Remove from heat and grind the mixture in a spice grinder or mortar until finely ground.