# The SBHonline Community Daily > Restaurants Wine & Food Off The Island >  >  Soup of the Month Club

## JEK

Made this twice this Fall and everyone loves it!


  t

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## Grey

This looks delicious AND easy...the best kind of recipe.  Question:  instead of water could I use chicken stock?

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## JEK

I think it might be too rich. Great taste as is.

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## andynap

I have one made with Apple Cider- it's also called the simplest butternut squash soup- in the eye of the beholder.

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## JEK

This is French. Makes it better.

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## MIke R

I curry my butternut squash soup and  put a handful of fresh lobster meat on top of the soup in each bowl and a dollup of creme fraiche


never any leftovers

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## MIke R

homemade pea soup and homemade mushroom pizza tonight...goes perfect with football

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## andynap

> This is French. Makes it better.




Sure- adapted by Doris Greenspan.    :Wink:

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## andynap

So does grilled double veal chops

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## MIke R

> So does grilled double veal chops




yep they sure do!.....we decided on comfort and simple today because we ve been working all day outside cleaning the gutters, putting the veggie garden away, stacking the last of the firewood etc...

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## andynap

You did what I did yesterday and today- cleaned all the bird houses, took down a climbling hygrangea, transplanted some peonies, cleaned all my flower beds.

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## JEK

I supervised (from inside) a coordinated team of leaf blowers this week. Tough work.

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## MIke R

some of us actually enjoy working on our homes ourselves....  :thumb up:

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## JEK

I'm way too busy in retirement to do that :)

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## andynap

> I supervised (from inside) a coordinated team of leaf blowers this week. Tough work.




Well I certainly did not do the first leaf pickup- 4 guys with backpack blowers did a better and faster job than I. I'll do the final cleanup-

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## MIke R

I own my own backpack blower and get it done in nothing flat

but I'm not old yet


*running and ducking and not looking back*

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## andynap

Old?? Scuzi? I have a steel barrier next to the street and the leaves have to be on the street side for pickup- I used to drag them on my tarp and dump them but no more- I have too many trees. I have a lot of lawn too front and back and they have to be blown off. Too much work.

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## MIke R

yeah  but I have 4 acres.....

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## andynap

Sure- like you clean all the leaves on 4 acres- get out.

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## MIke R

no I dont


most of it is wooded forest

only about 3/4 an acre  isnt

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## Petri

Hate the noise from the blower, doing it the traditional way..

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## MIke R

yeah some times we do too...but we have a LOT of very  big, very old Oaks, Maples, and Birch which put an enormous amount of leaves on the ground


and I aint getting any younger.....LOL

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## Jeanette

Getting back to soup, SVP... I love the idea of a soup of the month club. I will try this recipe this week and compare it to the Food & Wine recipe my sister made last week.

Whenever I see anything "of the month" club, I think of a scene from the Chevy Chase Christmas Vacation movie. He was waiting, waiting, waiting for his big fat bonus check to be delivered and he opens it to find he was given a year subscription to Jelly of the Month Club as his bonus. Hysterical scene...

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## Jeanette

> Originally Posted by JEK
> 
> This is French. Makes it better.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Sure- adapted by Doris Greenspan.



Funny how you see a name and it pops up again a few days later...

I was just reviewing Daniel Boulud's recipe for Short Ribs Braised in Red Wine which was taken from the Café Boulud Cookbook, by Daniel Boulud and Dorie Greenspan.

Read More http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/fo...#ixzz15eCOpOWw

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## JoshA

We made two recipes (Chicken Grandmere and Veal Chops stuffed with porcini and fontina) from the Boulud/Greenspan cookbook this past week. They are a bit involved for a book that claims to be for the home cook but the recipes are winners - delicious.

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## Jeanette

Thanks, Josh. I found the recipe online and the chicken grand-mere recipe looks like something my kids would enjoy. 

I have not seen veal chops at my local grocer. Do you buy veal chops directly from a butcher?

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## amyb

Veal is not always available. My butcher lets me know when he has some and I take just 2 so the next guy can have a shot at them.

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## Jeanette

Amy, do you always find yourself comparing any veal you eat to that exquisite veal chop entree at La Gaiac?

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## amyb

The veal served at La Gaiac is veal with a capital "V" for sure.

When I ordered from the new menu, Phillipe made sure to tell me I had had this many times before. I had to assure him that my starter would be a new item! It was the wonderful sweetbread ravioli-oh my!

However, next trip I am doing the rack of lamb because that looked amazingly delicious as well.

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## Jeanette

Have you and Phil dined at La Gaiac for brunch?

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## amyb

A couple of times, but not as of late.

That date night dinner alongside the pool, starting on the patio with drinks and enjoying the stars and the moonlight and then moving in to the beautiful room to dine-that's magic.

We have enjoyed lunch too. In fact, that is where we met and bonded with Henry and Carole, aka Soyabeans.

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## Voosh

Home made mushroom, tomato, pumpkin or tripe soup, with right fixin's, makes my tummy go Ahhh.

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## JoshA

Wegman's is my butcher, Jeanette. They even cut a pocket in the veal chop for the stuffing for me. That was an awesome meal.

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## JEK

Speaking of Wegmans . . . what a strange spokesman . . . .

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## MIke R

I get our veal chops from here ( so does Kevin ):

words  can't describe how good his veal is:

http://www.houdefamilyfarm.com/

tomorrow is going to be two soups because I am getting company and want to offer a choice

Lobster Bisque
Chicken, Escarole, and Bean Soup

with spicy Thai Codfish cakes

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## JEK

I'm so happy for you and Kevin. We may not have locavore cod, but we do have veal.

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## Jeanette

> Wegman's is my butcher, Jeanette. They even cut a pocket in the veal chop for the stuffing for me. That was an awesome meal.



Good to know, Josh. There is a Wegman's around the corner in Princeton. I will try the veal recipe for a meal without kids. What wine did you serve with it?

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## Rosemary

May we hear about the Codfish cakes, please?

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## MIke R

what do  you want to hear?

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## Rosemary

What's in 'em?  How to.

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## MIke R

> I'm so happy for you and Kevin. We may not have locavore cod, but we do have veal.



  :cool:

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## JoshA

> I will try the veal recipe for a meal without kids. What wine did you serve with it?



2007 Cantina Zaccagnini Montepulciano d'Abruzzo Riserva. It's a great value which you can also find at Wegmans at least in Virginia. Savory dark fruit brightened by some tartness and balanced by fine tannins and tobacco. Nice long finish. Your tongue will be dark purple.

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## MIke R

> What's in 'em?  How to.




 1 pound codfish
 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
 1/2 teaspoon dried lemongrass
 1/2 teaspoon kaffir lime leaves
 1 teaspoon  coconut milk
 2 tablespoons oyster sauce
 2 tablespoons sweet chili sauce
 1 teaspoon brown sugar
 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
 4 green onions, sliced
 1 egg
 all-purpose flour

mix it all up and make a cake batter, form into cakes, fry in hot hot peanut oil in a cast iron pan...sear  and brown both sides and finish them in the same pan in the oven ( fifteen minutes or so at 350 )...

make up a peanut sauce and lay the cakes over a thin layer of peanut sauce in each plate

garnish with fresh cilantro

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## Rosemary

Wow! Will try it soon. Cod is my favorite fish.  Thanks.

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## MIke R

Haddock is my favorite, but Cod is right up there too...I got some beautiful dayboat fresh cod loins for these cakes...

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## andynap

Wow- that's too much for me- kaffir lime leaves? Yo. I have found that the batter in Kara's book- I substituted rice flour- is as good as it gets. Less is better sometimes. I use haddock.

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## MIke R

its not as much as it seems Andy because all the ingredients are in small amounts, which all combine for one nice Thai flavor.....and yes kaffir lime leaves...if you cant get em lime zest works

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## MIke R

and yes thanks to you I use rice flour a lot

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## Rosemary

I was behind a nice Rasta man in the checkout line the other day and he was buying a sack of coconut flour.  Has anyone ever cooked with it?  I think it sounds kind of rich for the cod/haddock cakes?

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## MIke R

no I never have...I  keep and use  four flours in my house....rice...chestnut...chick pea, and wheat

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## JoshA

> Originally Posted by Jeanette
> 
>  I will try the veal recipe for a meal without kids. What wine did you serve with it?
> 
> 
> 
> 2007 Cantina Zaccagnini Montepulciano d'Abruzzo Riserva. It's a great value which you can also find at Wegmans at least in Virginia. Savory dark fruit brightened by some tartness and balanced by fine tannins and tobacco. Nice long finish. Your tongue will be dark purple.



I was looking at the book for another veal recipe and noticed Boulud recommended a Napa Chardonnay with veal chop stuffed with fontina and porcini. I'd forgotten that but now remember I thought that pairing was strange. Tonight it's veal marsala and a rioja.

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## Jeanette

Thanks, Josh. I am going to try the veal recipe for a friend. It will be wasted on my children's tastes. I agree that the Chardonnay is a strange pairing. I had fun today reading oodles of Boulud's recipes online. Most recipes typically include a wine pairing.

I love rioja. My best friend is working on a projec in Spain and is very generous in bringing me home Spanish olive oil and great bottles of wine.

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## KevinS

Chardonnay and Veal is not strange at all. Try it.

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## JEK

Meursault can stand up to a leg of lamb.

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## Jeanette

> Chardonnay and Veal is not strange at all. Try it.



Agreed - I was not commenting on the pairing of veal and chardonnary. Veal as a white meat and depending on the preparation, can be paired nicely with a white wine. 

The "strangeness" of the pairing was veal stuffed with an Italian cheese and mushrooms being paired with a Chardonnary. I would have chosen a light red or an Italian white, not a chardonnay. I also wouldn't pair veal marsala withe a chardonnay.

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## JoshA

Right. Chardonnay with veal blanquette makes sense. Boulud specifically wanted an aged Napa Chardonnay which would presumably have some heft. I like the Italian red better but it's certainly an individual choice.

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