Barcelona
- Recipes - Soups
Andalusian
Gazpacho
Serving Size: 6
1 cup onions,
chopped
1 medium cucumber, peeled and chopped
1 medium bell pepper, seeds removed
5 ounces pimiento
3 lb tomatoes
2 garlic cloves
5 tablespoons olive oil
3 slices of bread, cubed
3 tablespoons white wine vinegar
1 teaspoon tobasco sauce
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
3 tablespoons chive, chopped
In an electric
blender or food processor, combine half each of the tomatoes, onions,
cucumber, bell pepper, and pimiento with enough of the tomato juice
to facilitate blending.
Blend covered
at high speed for at least 30 seconds to thoroughly mix the raw
vegetables. In a large mixing bowl, combine the mixed vegetables
with the remaining tomato juice and chill for at least 2 hours.
You may also elect to chill the serving bowls at this time.
Meanwhile, rub
the interior of a skillet with the garlic clove, and add the
olive oil. In the skillet, sauté the bread cubes over medium
heat until golden brown. Set aside until serving time.
Chop the remaining
tomatoes, onions, cucumber, bell pepper, and pimiento, and combine
in a small mixing bowl while adding the red wine vinegar, Tobasco
sauce, salt, and pepper.
Thoroughly combine
all ingredients and marinate at room temperature until serving time;
or refrigerate if you won't be serving the Gazpacho within an hour.
To serve, place
equal portions of the gazpacho in the chilled soup bowls. Add about
2 tablespoons of the marinated vegetable mixture to the center of
each serving. Sprinkle with the chopped chive, and garnish with
a few of the toasted bread cubes.
Butifarra
amb Mongetes - Butifarra con Judias
Servings Size: 6
6 1/4 lb butifarra
(Catalan sausage), or mild Italian
3 tablespoons Spanish olive oil
6 cups precooked dried white beans
Salt and fresh ground pepper, to taste
1 cup aioli or roasted red bell aioli
2 tablespoons Italian parsley, minced
With a fork,
make marks in the sausage in several places and grill under broiler
or over charcoal‚ until they are done. Fry precooked beans
in the olive oil over fairly high heat until browned, turning them
with a broad spatula to avoid bruising. It is essential to use olive
oil, which imparts a special flavor and consistency to the beans.
When the beans
are fried, pour a thin stream of olive oil over them, arrange in
a warmed serving platter, and serve with the sausage on top. Garnish
with a dollop of aioli, garlic mayonnaise or roasted red bell mayonnaise
and minced parsley.
Catalan
Cod Soup
Serving Size: 4
1 1/2 lb frozen
Alaska cod fillets
1/3 cup pine nuts or slivered almonds, toasted
4 large garlic cloves, minced
2 cups chopped fresh or frozen onions
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 large pinch saffron or 1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1 can (28 ounces) diced tomatoes, drained
2 cans (14.5 ounces each) fat-free chicken broth
2/3 cup dry white wine or additional 1 cup chicken broth
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley or 2 tablespoons dried parsley
4 slices Italian bread cut into bite-size pieces and toasted or
1 1/2 cups croutons
Cover cod in
microwavable dish; cook on medium-low (30% power) about 10 to 15
minutes, just until slightly cooked. Break into 1-inch pieces. In
food processor or blender, grind nuts and garlic to a paste. In
5- to 6-quart spray- coated stockpot, cook onions in olive oil until
lightly golden. Add paste, cod, saffron or turmeric, tomatoes, chicken
broth and wine. Cook, uncovered, over medium heat until simmering,
about 10 minutes. Simmer gently an additional 5 minutes. Mix in
parsley and bread; cook 3 minutes. Serve hot.
Catalan
Fish Soup - Sopa de Pescado a la Catalana
Serving Size: 6
4 lb cleaned
fish and shellfish, sliced [see *Note]
1 small onion, minced
1 medium tomato, chopped
1/3 cup olive oil
3 garlic cloves, peeled
12 toasted almonds, peeled
10 cup water
4 slices white bread, cut in fine shavings
1 bay leaf
2 sprigs parsley
Salt and pepper, to taste
*Note: Use any
lean white fish, small or large, cleaned, but with heads and tails.
Any shellfish is suitable: for example, a few clams or mussels and
four or five shrimp or small crabs or a crayfish.
Put fish in
10 cups boiling water. Boil 15 minutes covered. Heat olive oil.
Fry minced onion. When it takes on color, add tomato. Let tomato
liquid reduce. Add tomato-onion mixture, bay leaf, and parsley to
fish when it has been boiling 15 minutes. Boil 15 minutes longer,
covered. Place bread shavings in a separate pot. Strain fish soup
over bread and return soup to fire. Crush almonds with garlic in
a mortar; add to soup.
Boil soup slowly
for 10 minutes more while separating shells, bones, and skin from
fish and shellfish. Strain soup a second time, reheat with cleaned
fish and shellfish, season, and serve.
Catalan
Kale, Potato & Garlic Soup
Serving Size: 6
16 large garlic
cloves, peeled
3 tb unsalted butter
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 large Spanish onion, peeled and finely minced
6 or 8 chicken stock
1 1/2 lb kale, stemmed, washed, and torn into 1-inch pieces
2 medium potatoes, peeled and finely diced
Salt and freshly ground white pepper
1/2 cheavy cream (optional)
Bring water
to a boil in a small saucepan, add the garlic cloves, and blanch
for 2 minutes. In a 4-quart casserole melt the butter with the oil
over medium heat. Add the stock, kale, diced potatoes, and blanched
garlic cloves and season with salt and pepper. Bring to a boil,
reduce the heat, partially cover, and simmer for 25 to 30 minutes
or until the vegetables are tender.
With a slotted
spoon, remove about 2 cups of vegetables from the broth, excluding
the garlic cloves, and reserve. Strain the soup into a large bowl.
Transfer the drained vegetables to the workbowl of a food processor
or blender and process until smooth.
Whisk the pureed
vegetables into the strained broth and return to the casserole.
Add the reserved 2 cups of cooked vegetables and the optional heavy
cream. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat, and simmer for 10 minutes.
Taste and correct the seasoning and serve hot, accompanied by a
crusty loaf of French bread.
Escudella
i Carn d'Olla - Escudella de Pages
Serving Size: 4
1/2 cup dry
white beans
1 small ham bone
1 marrow bone (veal or beef)
1/4 chicken or 2 small serving pieces
6 thick slices cooked pork sausage
2 slices cured ham, thin sliced (about the size of the palm of your
hand)
8 cups cold water
1/2 head cabbage, cut in chunks
1 large potato, cut in eighths
1/4 cup raw rice
1 cup thin noodles
1 cup cooked chick-peas
Salt and pepper, to taste
Rinse the beans
in cold water and tie the bones in cheesecloth. Put both with the
chicken, sausage, and ham in a pot or casserole with 8 cups of cold
water and salt. Bring to a boil, reduce flame, and cook gently,
covered, about 2 hours or until beans are cooked and chicken very
tender.
Remove ham and
marrow bones and discard them. Put chicken aside. If there is little
liquid left, add a bit of water for the cooking of the remaining
ingredients and bring soup to a rapid boil. When it is boiling,
put in cabbage, potatoes, rice, noodles, chick-peas, and pepper
to taste.
Continue cooking
over medium flame for 30 minutes (or until newly added ingredients
are cooked through). A few minutes before serving, put chicken meat,
removed from bones and shredded, in the pot to heat. Correct seasoning
and serve.
Catalan
Potato Lima Soup
Serving Size: 4
2 cups onions,
chopped
2 tablespoons olive oil
4 cups potatoes, sliced or cubed
2 cups lima beans, fordhook, frozen, or fresh
4 cups water or vegetable broth
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
Salt and black pepper, to taste
1 jalapeno chile pepper, to taste (optional)
1 cup skim milk, or buttermilk, or 1/2 cups nonfat dry milk powder
(optional)
1 roasted red pepper or pimiento strips
Saute the onions
in the oil for about 5 minutes, until translucent. Add potatoes,
lima beans and water or broth and bring to a boil. Add the cilantro
and salt and pepper to taste; lower the heat, and simmer for 10
minutes. Puree in batches; return to the soup pot, and gently reheat,
if necessary.
If you prefer
a creamy soup, stir the skim milk or buttermilk into the soup and
gently reheat.Serve
garnished with roasted red pepper or pimiento strips.
Chickpea
Soup with Garlic and Mint
Serving Size: 4
2 lb tinned
chickpeas
3 garlic cloves, chopped
7 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 lemon, juice
1/4 teaspoon paprika or cayenne pepper
4 tablespoons fresh mint and parsley, chopped
Salt and ground black pepper, to taste
Drain the chickpeas,
reserving the liquid. Use the liquid and added water to make up
nearly 4 cups. Put the chickpeas, liquid, oil, garlic and lemon
juice in a blender and whiz until smooth. Now pour the soup into
a pan, add the salt, pepper and paprika, and stir in most of the
chopped herbs. Heat the soup to very hot for a few minutes, remove
from the heat, check seasoning and stir in the remaining herbs.
Red
Onion Soup
Serving Size: 6
1 large Spanish
red onion, chopped
2.2 lb Spanish red onions, quartered and finely sliced
2 lb tinned tomatoes
4 tablespoons Spanish olive oil
5 garlic cloves, crushed
1 bouquet garni bag (or make one with a bayleaf, some sprigs of
thyme and a piece of orange peel)
1 cup Spanish red wine
4 cups vegetable stock
Salt and ground black pepper, to taste
In a big heavy-based
pot, fry the chopped onion gently for 10-15 minutes, until light
golden. Stir in the sliced onion well and cook on a low heat for
about 20minutes until the onions are soft. Meanwhile, strain the
tomatoes (removing the seeds, if desired). Chop the tomatoes. Keep
1 cup of the juice.
Now stir the
garlic into the onions and let this cook for 2-3 minutes. Now add
the bouquet garni, tomatoes and juice. Mix in the red wine and bring
to the boil. Keep the soup bubbling until about half of liquid has
evapourated.
Now pour in
the vegetable stock, half cover and allow to simmer gently for about
half an hour. Now remove the bouquet garni and check seasoning.
Crispy croutons and a drizzle of good quality olive oil are a perfect
accompanyment to this soup.
Potato
Soup with Saffron and Mussels
Serving Size: 6
2.2 lb fresh
mussels, scrubbed and de-bearded
3/4 cup dry white wine
3 tablespoons Spanish olive oil
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1 lb potatoes, peeled and cubed
2 bay leaves
1/2 teaspoon saffron threads, crushed
4 cups good quality fish stock
Salt and ground black pepper, to taste
Some fresh parsley, chopped, to garnish (optional)
Before starting,
check that all the mussels are closed, or tap them a few times,
to close them. Throw out any that remain open!! Now, put the mussels
and wine in a shallow pot. Cover and put on a high heat until the
liquid begins to bubble. Take them out one at a time, as they open,
so that they do not overcook, placing them in a strainer over a bowl,
in order to keep the liquid. Discard any that remain closed.
Meanwhile, heat
the oil gently in a medium pot, stirring in the onion and potato
cubes and cook on a gentle heat for about 5 minutes. Now strain
the mussel liquid through a very fine strainer and add to the potato
and onion. Add the bay leaves and stock and bring the soup to boiling.
Now turn down the heat, until the soup is simmering gently, stir
in the saffron and cook gently for 15-20 minutes. Now, you can remove
some or all of the mussels from their shells, or remove one side
from most of the mussels (this decision is yours!).
When the potatoes
are well cooked, discard the bay leaves and whiz the soup in a blender
until velvety smooth. Now stir in the mussels, re-heat if necessary,
and check the seasoning. Garnish with the parsley and serve very
hot.
