Perfect for cold weather picnics!
What could be better for winter picnics than hearty, filling soups and stews? Cook up a big batch, pour them into thermoses and pair them with some warming beverages and crusty bread and you’ve got an excellent cold-weather meal on the go. Coffee & tea packs are a great way to enjoy soups and stews on winter picnics – they come with insulated thermoses and mugs that make it easy to transport hot meals.
Soup with Winter Greens and Meatballs
Source: FoodNetwork.com
Ingredients:
1 pound very lean ground lean meat (a combination of veal and pork)
1 egg, plus 2 eggs
1 cup fresh bread crumbs
1/4 cup freshly grated caciocavallo, or pecorino or Parmigiano-Reggiano
1 bunch parsley, finely chopped to yield 1/4 cup
1 clove garlic, sliced
Salt and pepper
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus 2 tablespoons
6 cups brown chicken stock, recipe follows
2 bunches escarole, cut into ribbons
1/4 cup flour
1 pound stale bread, crusts removed, cut into 3/4-inch cubes
Instructions:
In a small bowl, combine ground meat, 1 egg, bread crumbs, grated cheese, parsley, garlic, a pinch of salt, and black pepper. Form into meatballs about the size of a walnut. Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a 12 to 14-inch saute pan over medium heat and brown the balls, working in batches.
In a 2-quart saucepan, bring the chicken stock to a simmer over medium-low heat. Add the escarole and cook 7 to 10 minutes. Add the meatballs and simmer 10 minutes more, or until meatballs are cooked through.
Place the flour in a shallow bowl. In a separate shallow bowl, beat the remaining 2 eggs. Roll the cubes in the flour, then in the beaten eggs.
In a 10-inch saute pan, heat the remaining 1/2 cup oil over medium-high heat and fry the bread cubes until golden brown on all sides. Remove and drain on paper towels.
Divide hot stock meatballs and bread cubes among 6 to 8 warmed soup bowls and serve, garnished with extra grated cheese, if desired.
Brown Chicken Stock:
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
3 1/2 pounds chicken wings, backs, and bones
3 carrots, coarsely chopped
2 onions, coarsely chopped
4 ribs celery, coarsely chopped
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 tablespoon black peppercorns
1 bunch parsley stems
In a large, heavy-bottomed saucepan, heat the oil over high heat until smoking. Add all the chicken parts and brown all over, stirring to avoid burning. Remove the chicken and reserve. Add the carrots, onions, and celery to the pot and cook until soft and browned. Return the chicken to the pot and add 3 quarts of water, the tomato paste, peppercorns, and parsley. Stir with a wooden spoon to dislodge the browned chicken and vegetables bits from the bottom of the pan. Bring almost to a boil, then reduce heat and cook at a low simmer until reduced by half, about 2 hours, occasionally skimming excess fat. Remove from heat, strain, and press on the solids with the bottom of a ladle to extract out all liquids. Stir the stock to facilitate cooling and set aside. Refrigerate stock in small containers for up to 1 week or freeze for up to 1 month.
Yield: 1 1/2 quarts
Red Wine Beef Stew with Potatoes and Green Beans
Source: FoodNetwork.com
Ingredients:
2 pounds beef chuck for stew, cut into 1-inch cubes
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
3 tablespoons butter
4 medium carrots, peeled, halved and cut into 1-inch chunks
3 small onions, diced
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 (14 1/2-ounce) cans reduced-sodium beef or chicken broth
2 cups dry red wine
1 cup canned crushed tomatoes
3 sprigs fresh rosemary
2 medium russet or Yukon gold potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks
2 handfuls green beans, ends trimmed
Instructions:
Season the beef cubes lightly with salt and pepper. Heat 2 tablespoons of the butter in a heavy 6-quart pot over medium heat. As soon as the butter starts to turn brown, add half the beef and raise the heat to high. At first, the beef will give off some liquid, but once that evaporates, the beef will start to brown. Cook, turning the beef cubes on all sides until the pieces are as evenly browned as possible, about 5 or 6 minutes after the water has boiled off. If the pan starts to get too brown at any point, just turn down the heat a little. Scoop the beef into a bowl and brown the rest of the beef the same way using the remaining butter.
Scoop out the second batch of beef, then add the carrots and onions and raise the heat to medium-high. Cook until the onion starts to turn translucent, about 5 minutes. Stir in the flour until it has been worked into the veggies and you can’t see it any more. Pour in the chicken broth, wine, and crushed tomatoes, and toss in the rosemary. Slide the beef back into the pot and bring the liquid to a boil.
Turn down the heat so the liquid is just breaking a gentle simmer. Partially cover the pot and cook 50 minutes. Stir the stew several times while simmering so it cooks evenly and nothing sticks to the bottom.
Stir the potatoes into the stew, cover the pot completely, and cook until the potatoes and beef are tender, stirring occasionally, about another 45 minutes. Add the beans and cook for another 5 minutes until the green beans turn bright green and are cooked through but still have a nice snap to them.
More Winter Soups and Stews:
Creamy Winter Squash Soup
Quick Crab Stew
Winter Vegetable and Bean Soup with Pesto
Hearty Kielbasa Stew
Heart Warming Winter Soup
Ahh, the beach on Memorial Day weekend. What a great way to celebrate the arrival of summer. Last week we gave you some beach picnic tips, and now we've got some tasty beach picnic recipes that will provide a welcome change from the same-old-same-old with surprising, delicious flavor combinations that will offer the perfect complement to the salty sand-and-sea environment.
