Spring Chicken Soup With Artichokes White Beans And Lemongrass Food

SPRING CHICKEN WITH CARROTS AND PEAS

Steps:

• Place the chicken wings in a small saucepot and cover with water. Add the lemon and bay leaves, and sprinkle with salt. Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 20 to 30 minutes.
• Meanwhile, pat the remaining chicken pieces dry and sprinkle liberally with salt and pepper on both sides. Heat the EVOO in a deep skillet or wide Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the chicken, side-down, and cook until crisp, 15 to 18 minutes. Flip the chicken and cook, partially covered with a lid or foil, until cooked through, 8 to 10 more minutes. Remove the chicken to a plate. Lower the heat a bit, then add the shallots and sugar to the skillet and season with salt and pepper. Cook until tender, about 10 minutes. Deglaze the pan with the wine, scraping up the browned bits from the bottom, and cook until reduced by half, 2 to 3 minutes.
• Strain the poaching liquid and add 1 cup of it to the skillet. Add the peas, carrots and herbs, then stir in the butter and season with a little more salt and pepper. Bring to a simmer and cook until the peas and carrots are tender, 6 to 7 minutes. If you are not serving the stew immediately, stop after you add the carrots and peas (do not simmer them). Arrange the chicken on top and cover. Cool and store in the refrigerator. To serve, removed the chicken to a broiler pan and crisp up under the broiler. Simmer the stew until the peas and carrots are tender, 6 to 7 minutes. Return the chicken to the stew.
• Ladle the stew into shallow bowls and top with the chicken. Serve with warm buttered baguette.
• Cook's Note: You can use store-bought chicken stock instead of the poaching liquid if you want to skip that step.

CHICKEN COCONUT SOUP

Steps:

• Combine the coconut with the milk in a heavy saucepan. Heat slowly, bring to a simmer, then remove from the heat and cool. Strain the milk, pressing down on the coconut meat to extract all the liquid. Squeeze all the coconut through a towel to get any last drops. Discard the coconut.
• Remove the grassy tops of the lemongrass, leaving stalks about 6 inches long, and cut off any hard root section. Using the blunt edge of a large knife or cleaver, bruise each stalk all over. Cut each stalk into 4 pieces.
• In a saucepan bring chicken stock to a boil, reduce to a simmer, then add lemongrass, galanga, peppercorns, serrano chile, and lime leaves. Simmer 15 minutes, then add coconut milk and cook an additional 5 minutes. Add chicken pieces, straw mushrooms, snow peas, and carrots. Simmer for another 10 to 12 minutes. Stir in fish sauce, and lime juice and serve immediately. Garnish with cilantro leaves. Be careful to avoid chewing the lemongrass, galanga or ginger, or lime leaves when eating.

WHITE BEAN AND ARTICHOKE GRATIN

Steps:

• Bring a small amount of water to a simmer in a pot and set a steamer basket over it.
• Using a sharp paring knife, peel the stems on the artichokes and remove the tougher outer leaves; remove the inner leaves by hand, then cut away the center chokes. Place the artichokes in the steamer basket, cover and cook until tender when pierced, about 30 minutes, adding hot water if needed during cooking. Roughly chop the artichokes into 1/2-inch pieces and combine them with the cannellini beans and leeks in a large bowl.
• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
• In a separate bowl, whisk together the Parmigiano-Reggiano, heavy cream and creme fraiche. Pour into the artichoke mixture and toss well. The mixture should be creamy and smooth; if too thick, add more cream to thin. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.
• Pour the mixture into an 8-inch casserole dish. In a small bowl, combine the breadcrumbs, thyme leaves and lemon zest; sprinkle over the top of the casserole.
• Bake the gratin until the mixture is bubbly and the crust is golden brown, about 30 minutes. Finish with a sprinkle of fleur de sel.

HERB CHICKEN SOUP WITH SPRING VEGETABLES

Steps:

• Tie the parsley, tarragon, and thyme sprigs and bay leaf together with kitchen twine and put in a large saucepan with the onion, carrot, celery, lemon zest, and chicken breasts. Cover with the broth, bring just to a boil over high heat, skim off any foam that comes to the surface. Adjust the heat to very low and cover. Cook the chicken until firm to the touch, about 20 minutes. Remove the chicken to a platter, when cool enough to handle and pull into large strips; discard the bones.
• When ready to serve, add the asparagus, peas, and mushrooms to the broth. Cook until the vegetables are just tender, about 3 to 5 minutes, and remove herb bundle. Return chicken to the broth and warm through.
• Divide chicken between 4 large soup bowls and ladle some broth and vegetables into each bowl. Garnish each soup with the chopped parsley and tarragon. Serve.

ARTICHOKE & WHITE BEAN SOUP

Steps:

• Puree artichoke hearts and beans in the food processor.
• Heat the oil over medium heat in a small saucepan.
• Add the garlic and saute.
• Add the artichoke/bean puree and the broth and heat through.
• Season with salt and pepper.
• Garnish with mint and croutons.

CHICKEN SOUP WITH BEANS

Steps:

• In a small skillet, saute onion in oil until tender. Add garlic; cook 1 minute longer., Transfer to a 5-qt. slow cooker. Stir in the chicken, beans, corn, tomatoes, water, chopped green chiles, lime juice and seasonings. Cover and cook on low for 6-7 hours or until heated through. If desired, serve with avocado slices.

LEMONGRASS CHICKEN SOUP

Steps:

• Place chicken, lemongrass, scallions, onion, sliced ginger, chile, peppercorns, and water in a large pot. Cover, and bring to a simmer. Uncover partially, and gently simmer for 1 hour.
• Add cilantro and mint stems, and simmer for 15 minutes. Add fish sauce, and strain through a cheesecloth-lined sieve. Reserve broth and chicken. Discard remaining solids. Shred chicken meat, and discard bones. Refrigerate broth and chicken separately for at least 4 hours (or overnight).
• Skim fat from broth, and reheat broth. Combine chicken, julienned ginger, cilantro leaves, thinly sliced mint, and bean sprouts in a bowl. Divide broth among bowls, and serve with chicken mixture on the side.

SPRING RAVIOLI SOUP

Steps:

• For the soup: Using a vegetable peeler or cheese grater, make shavings from the wedge of Parmesan until you have 1/2 cup. Set aside. Cut off and reserve the rind from the wedge.
• Combine the oil, onions and garlic in a large heavy-bottomed pot or Dutch oven. Cook, stirring occasionally, over medium-low heat until the onions are translucent, about 5 minutes.
• Add the asparagus, broth and Parmesan rind. Bring the mixture to a boil then reduce it to a simmer. Add the ravioli and peas and cook until the ravioli are al dente, 4 to 5 minutes.
• Turn off the heat then immediately stir in the arugula and lemon juice. Taste and season the soup with salt and pepper. (If the Parmesan rind hasn't fully melted, remove and discard it.)
• For the pesto topping: Toast the pine nuts in a small skillet over low heat, stirring frequently, until golden brown, about 5 minutes.
• Combine the toasted pine nuts, basil, Parmesan, garlic, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper in a food processor and pulse until roughly chopped. With the motor running, pour the oil in through the feed tube and process until smooth. If needed, scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula and continue processing.
• Drizzle the pesto over the soup, garnish with the shaved Parmesan and serve.