Thai Coconut Lemongrass Soup

This is the one and only recipe that I have ever made that includes lemongrass. To be honest, before I went to the Ann Arbor People's Food Co-op in search of lemongrass for this particular recipe, I'd never even seen it. I'd heard of lemongrass tea, of course, but never lemongrass soup. It turns out that lemongrass is quite a wonderful ingredient. It smells so strongly of lemon that each time that I cut into it, I wish that my mom were here to take a whiff of this stuff, too (she is likely lemon's number one fan).

Thai Coconut Lemongrass Soup

Adapted from the Moosewood Collective's Moosewood Restaurant New Classics

Lemongrass Stock:

6 cups water

3 fresh lemongrass stalks, chopped coarsely

2 celery stalks, chopped

1 leek or onion, chopped coarsely

1 large carrot, peeled and chopped

3-inch piece of fresh ginger root, sliced

1/4 teaspoon whole black peppercorns

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon coriander seeds

Soup:

1 3/4 cups lite coconut milk (14 ounce can)

2 tablespoons fresh lime juice

pinch of cayenne, or to taste

1/2 teaspoon tumeric

1/2 cake (6 ounces) firm tofu, cut into bite sized cubes

2 cups thinly sliced mushrooms

1 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro
1/2 teaspoon salt

additional cilantro for garnish (optional)

Before making the actual soup, start by making your lemongrass broth. If I have a lot of lemongrass around at one time, I like to double the recipe for the broth and freeze one broth batch for a simple future soup. To make delicious lemongrass broth, combine water, lemongrass, celery, leeks or onions, carrots, ginger, peppercorns, salt, and corriander in a large soup pot and bring the ingredients to a boil. Once boiling, cover and reduce the heat to a simmer; simmer for 35 to 45 minutes.

Drain the broth's vegetables in a strainer, making sure to place a large bowl or other large container beneath the strainer. Remember, it is the liquid here that you are after - not the chopped ingredients. Press the chopped vegetables in the strainer with the back of a spoon, squeezing the extra goodness out of the vegetables and into the stock. Place the stock back into the soup pot and discard the chopped vegetables. To the stock, add coconut milk, lime juice, cayenne, and tumeric and bring to a simmer. Then, add tofu, mushrooms, cilantro, and salt, cooking gently for an additional 3 to 5 minutes. If available, garnish the soup with some fresh or dried cilantro.

Cheese, Potato and Bacon Soup

This is a wonderful soup for a chilly fall or downright cold winter day. It's not fancy, but it does the trick when you're craving something with potatoes and cheese.

Adapted from Bon Appetite December 1995

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 cup chopped celery

1 cup chopped carrot

1 cup chopped onion

1/2 teaspoon dried thyme

3 tablespoons all purpose flour

2 cups canned low-salt chicken broth

2 cups milk

2-3 large russet potatoes, peeled and diced

1 cup packed shredded sharp cheddar cheese (approx. 4 oz.)

1/2 cup chopped cooked bacon

Hot pepper sauce

1. Heat oil in a large stockpot over medium heat and add celery, carrot, onion, and thyme. Saute until all vegetables begin to soften, about five minutes.

2. Sprinkle flour over the cooking vegetables and stir for two minutes. Gradually whisk in broth and then milk.

3. Add potato and bring soup to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer soup until potato is tender, about 20 minutes. While soup simmers, crisp bacon strips in a skillet.

4. Add cheese 1/3 cup at a time, stirring until melted and smooth after each addition. Mix in bacon.

5. Season soup to taste with hot pepper sauce, salt, and pepper. Serve!