July 2016 - vespresso

Creamy Tomato Soup with Parmesan Chips

Today we’ll talk about tomato soup, a simple soup yet fascinating in its simplicity. I think tomatoes are the most versatile vegetables (or fruits, if we approach the problem in a scientific manner), they taste so good in so many combinations, this is why there are hundreds, even thousands of extremely tasty tomato soup recipes out there. I have two recipes, one suitable for cold weather, and one for hot weather. The first one is a tomato soup with homemade quadretti pasta, smoked sausage and poached egg. The second one is a tomato cream, flavored with roasted garlic and fresh basil and served with laced parmesan chips.

The cream of tomato soup is so welcomed during hot summer days, when the tomatoes are in season. It is a veritable flavor, color and texture symphony and it is so easy to make. I half or quarter the tomatoes, depending on their size, I drizzle them with olive oil and I roast them until they caramelize; this extra step augments the soup’s flavor. I serve this soup with adorable parmesan chips, which give the dish not only flavor, but also an elegant touch. Continue reading Creamy Tomato Soup with Parmesan Chips

Baked Zucchini and Feta Cheese Patties

I grew up in a meat-lover environment and the thought of a meatless lunch was simply unbearable. I try really hard to break the chain and I try to include in my family’s diet as many fruit and veggies as possible. It’s been a while since I’ve discovered this delicious zucchini and feta patties and I tend to make them once or twice a month. They are so simple to make, you just mix some basic ingredients, you form 12 balls, you flatten them and you bake them in the oven at high temperature. This way, the patties have a crunchy crust and a soft, almost creamy center. This being said, this delicious recipe has quickly become my summer “must-make”, and I hope it will become yours, as well! Continue reading Baked Zucchini and Feta Cheese Patties

Grilled Corn with Herb Butter

Nothing reminds me of my childhood as grilled corn does. Now that I think of it, I can even taste its unmistakable flavor and its sweet and warm smell. I remember taking the hot corn right from the burning coal and devouring the whole thing, without even waiting for it to cool down. Since that particular moment I had hundreds, maybe thousands of them and I enjoyed with the same pleasure each and every single one of them. This time I chose to grill the corn to enhance its sweetness and then I dressed the knobs with a herb butter mixture. There’s not much to say about the herb butter, maybe just the fact that that beautiful bouquet of herbs came from my own garden. I wish I could describe how divine the combination was! Continue reading Grilled Corn with Herb Butter

Vegan Quinoa and Sour Cherry Salad

I’ve been waiting since forever to present you my favorite salad, and now, as the sour cherries are in season, I can finally get to talk about it. It is such a rustic, simple and unpretentious dish, but it is also unbelievably tasty. This salad has just a few ingredients, ingredients that might not “go together” at first sight but they complete heavenly one another taste-wise and create a true flavor symphony. These being said, let’s get to the best part: this salad is not only delicious, but it is in fact vegan and extremely healthy! Continue reading Vegan Quinoa and Sour Cherry Salad

Bacon Wrapped Tenderloin with Sour Cherry Sauce

Whenever I want to roast pork, I seem to choose tenderloin more and more often, and the reasons are multiple: it cooks fast, it’s tender, it’s delicious, it’s moist and it’s inexpensive. While pork shoulder is sometimes quite fat and the pork loin quite dry, the tenderloin has just the right amount of fat. It’s so easy to work with tenderloin because it remains moist and juicy long after it’s sliced, not to mention that regarding the side dish, tenderloin literally goes with everything.

Don’t get me wrong, even without being marinated, tenderloin is juicy and flavorful, but today I chose to run the extra mile and I brined it in pomegranate tea and sea salt. It became even more tender and the fruity flavor was spot-on. After the marinating process, I coated the tenderloin with creamy roasted garlic and I wrapped it in thin bacon slices.

It’s not a big culinary secret that pork goes heavenly with all sorts of fruit, so I dressed up this marvelous steak with a sweet and tangy sour cherry sauce. To keep it simple, this morning I’ve picked some lovely new potatoes, I’ve boiled them in broth and I sauteed them in sage-flavored butter. The whole business took less than an hour, including the time spent waiting for the garlic to roast / drinking a coffee / taking more than a dozen trips to my vegetable garden as I have the memory of a 90 year old and I always forget half of my ingredients. Continue reading Bacon Wrapped Tenderloin with Sour Cherry Sauce