I had a request to post some of the recipes that I learned in my culinary classes this past month. This is by far my favorite and I'm drooling as I write it and planning to go get the incredients later today. Enjoy, I know I did.

Creamy Roasted Tomato & Basil Soup
1 pound ripe plum tomatoes, cut in half
¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons good olive oil
1 tablespoon kosher salt
1.5 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
1 cup chopped yellow onions
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1 14-ounce canned plum tomatoes, with their juice
1 cup fresh basil leaves, packed
1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
1 quart chicken stock
½ cup of heavy cream or half/half (optional)
1 bottle of your favorite wine
1 loaf of your favorite bread
1 favorite friend (optional)
1. Pre-heat oven to 400 F. Toss together the fresh tomatoes, ¼ olive oil, salt, and pepper. Spread tomatoes in 1 layer on a baking sheet and roast for up to 45 minutes. A convection oven will speed up this process, if you want to speed up this process.
2. In an 8-quart stockpot over medium heat, sauté the onions and garlic with 2 tablespoons olive oil, butter, and red pepper flakes for 10 minutes or until the onions start to brown.
3. Add the canned tomatoes, basil, thyme, and chicken stock. Next add the oven-roasted tomatoes, including the liquid on the baking sheet. Your option to peel off the skins at this time.
4. Bring to boil and then simmer uncovered for 40 minutes. Open your favorite bottle of wine, and begin sipping it while enjoying the incredible aroma of this soup. Your house will smell like an Italian kitchen.
5. Pass through a food mill, not you, the soup, silly, fitted with the coarsest blade. I prefer to use a hand-held puree blender immersing it right into the stockpot.
6. For those that aren’t watching their hips grow, add the ½ cup of heaving whipping cream while blending.
7. Taste for seasonings, and add appropriately. (not sure what that means or how to measure, but have another glass of wine, and figure it out) Serve hot or cold.
8. This only yields 4 servings, so you might want to double it and then simply refrigerate or freeze any extras. However, most likely, if your friends taste this, you won’t have any leftovers.

Saturday, November 22, 2008

Last week Saturday we (Cathy, brother Pete & Sharon) were sitting at my first Camp Randall Badger Football game freezing our arse's off but having a great time. But let me back up to the start of the day. The Great Dane Brewing Company was our kick-off spot with some delicious Bloody Mary's and IPA chasers. What a great micro-brewery and the location was perfect......100 feet from our car and 120 feet from the Bucky Badger Shuttle Bus.

Our seats were in row 22 section Q, which happens to be right next to the 'rowdy' student section of thousands that did not sit while the game was being played. Jumping and yelling and screaming was done by all. (along with the student section)

With a dismal looking half-time score of 21-7, a few fans retreated to the warmth of the local pub. Not us! We braved the sub-zero climate (Celsius that is) and of course stayed for the infamous 5th quarter. The Wisconsin band has become nationally famous for its post-game celebration called the Fifth Quarter. Win or lose, fans sing, dance and cheer the band as it plays traditional favorites like "On Wisconsin", the Bud song, and "Varsity".

Those that braved the cold were not disappointed because the Badgers came roaring back scoring two safeties, a field goal and 3 more touchdowns in the second half for an exciting 35 to 32 win over the Minnesota Gophers.

Our chartered limousine, the Bucky Bus, returned us to The Great Dane where more beverages and food was enjoyed by all. It was truly a memorable experience that might best be summed up with a song: On Wisconsin, On Wisconsin, Plunge right through that line, Run the ball clear down the field, boys, Touchdown sure this time. On Wisconsin, On Wisconsin, Fight on for her fame, Fight fellows, Fight! Fight! Fight! We'll win this game.

If your travels ever take you to Madison in the fall, a Badger Game Day experience is a must-do. You will not be disappointed in the pre-game, post-game, and game.

Wednesday, November 12, 2008
Let’s talk about Food! One of my favorite subjects. Some of you know that I have been taking some culinary classes, and last night I attended a fantastic 4 hour class on Soups & Sauces. Loved it.
Those that know me, know that I love to make bacon wrapped beef tenderloins and what goes with that? Béarnaise Sauce. Last night, while learning how to make hollandaise sauce, I asked the Chef about Béarnaise sauce. Using fresh tarragon, we then put a twist on it, using a burgundy wine to enhance the flavors.
We (plural because there were 12 of us in class) also made three kinds of soups: French Onion, Mushroom Sherry, and Creamy Roasted Tomato & Basil Soup. The T&B was clearly my favorite and fun to make. We roasted some of the tomatoes, and even used some canned tomatoes. One of the lessons we learned was to create something with what you have on hand. If you can’t get fresh tomatoes in Wisconsin in February, you make do with your pantry stock.
We also made a cranberry chutney, an excellent alternative to canned jellied cranberries you might find on the Thanksgiving table. I wanted to learn alternatives, so I added diced apples to my concoction. Pineapple, mango, raisins, dates, and many other fruits can be used. Once you learn the base, you can let your imagination fly. That’s my style.
Another cool thing about the class was to learn culinary terms such as chinois, bain marie, emulsions, and sharp knives. A spotted the first aid kit as soon as I entered the kitchen. Moraine Park Technical Institute in Fond du Lac has a really incredible culinary program. A recent addition allows up to 20 students to learn/cook at the same time. It’s that large. Video cameras capture those things you don’t want captured. (while cooking)
Oh, the pics. Wisconsin is known for its Friday Fish Fry’s. I think it’s a law that you have to eat cod, haddock or perch on Friday, and I have no problem with that. This particular photo was taken at Wendt’s On the Lake, an excellent place for perch, a few weeks ago. Pete, Sharon, Cathy, and myself are seen enjoying the condiments that compliment perch. (aka: Bloody Mary’s with a beer chaser)
The other photo is one of my favorite meals at home: Bacon Wrapped Beef Tenderloin on the grill served with ….. Béarnaise Sauce, before I knew how to make it from scratch.