Roasted poblano and corn soup

Every New Year’s Day our home calls for a gathering of family and friends.   After the detritus from fireworks has been swept away and our minds have cleared of the bubbly imbibed the night before, those closest to me trickle in for a low-key celebration to welcome the start of a new calendar year.  The stars of the meal are invariably Krofne - Serbian doughnuts.  Sweet and yeasty, they symbolize growth, abundance and everything good from the first day on.   While the yeast dough is rising and the kids wait patiently for the first batch of krofne to come out of the fryer, we indulge in a variety of soups.   In the old country soup is consumed almost every day and is an integral part of the main meal.   A clear thin broth at the start stimulates the appetite for heavier courses to follow.

In our new homeland, there are heartwarming and nourishing favorites that make an appearance every New Year’s Day – my sister’s Chicken Tortilla Soup from Stop and Smell the Rosemary;  Wild Mushroom Soup - a thick and creamy combination of wild and cultivated mushrooms always laced with sherry, port or Marsala and sometimes finished off with dried porcini powder; and Debbie’s Potato Soup that I learned to make during a ski trip to Utah several years ago. 

Since I love to change things up and can’t leave well alone (a common complaint of favorite husband!) I introduce a couple of new soups every year.  This year I made a Root Vegetable Soup including rutabagas and parsnips and a Roasted Poblano and Corn Soup.   Both were very well received!

My personal favorite this year was the Roasted Poblano and Corn Soup.   I come from a food culture that takes its peppers very seriously.  Every fall a haze blankets the old country and excites the senses with its sweet-smoky aroma.  Caused by the rising smoke of roasting sumptuous red peppers, families gather to make and can this distinctive relish known as ajvar.   It is a labor-intensive but much loved tradition.   Ajvar defines our cuisine and is eaten daily throughout the year. 

Living in Texas and in close proximity to Mexico has been a boon for me when it comes to food.   I think it’s safe to say that much of Mexican cuisine includes the use of an enormous variety of peppers.   Native to South and Central America, peppers were introduced to southeast Asia hundreds of years ago and spread throughout the world during the spice trade.   The poblano pepper has been my favorite pepper for many years now.   Far more complex in taste than your common green bell pepper, the poblano chile can range in heat from mild to hot.   My Roasted Poblano and Corn Soup will be as spicy as the heat intensity in the poblano peppers dictate.   In my mind, the higher on the poblano range of the Scoville scale the better!  

The poblano pepper’s firm walls and pseudo heart shape lends itself well to being roasted and stuffed as in Chiles en Nogada and Chiles Rellenos.   Poblano chiles are a bold contrast to avocados in my favorite omelette and add crunch to a flavorful chicken salad.    When dried, the poblano chile is called an ancho chile, a key ingredient of Mexican mole. 

Poblano peppers under the broiler.   Roasting the peppers imparts a smoky flavor and intensifies the heat:

As you can see the skin has already separated from the flesh and is very easy to peel:

Corn, another ‘new world’ wonder, adds sweetness and balance to the heat:

The soup before it is blended:

Roasted Poblano and Corn Soup  loosely adapted from a recipe by M.S. Milliken & S. Feniger

Serves 6

9 – 10 poblano chiles, about 2 pounds

2 ears or fresh corn, husks intact, silken ends trimmed

1 quart milk (I used 1% but any other milk will do)

1 tablespoon cumin seeds

1 bay leaf

1/4 cup olive oil

1 medium onion, diced

2 large cloves garlic, minced

½ -1 teaspoon ground cumin

2 cups chicken stock

chopped chives, cilantro, sour cream and lime segments for garnish, optional

To roast the poblano chiles and corn you may grill or broil them – the choice is yours. Preheat the broiler in your oven or fire up your grill. Grease the poblanos by dipping your fingers in a little oil and rubbing them all around. Place poblanos and corn about 5 inches below the broiler or on the grill. Roast until charred on all sides, turning every few minutes. Place roasted poblanos in a bowl or paper bag. Cover and allow them to steam for about 15 minutes. Now clean them but do not run them under water to rinse them. You will lose their flavorful juices if you do so. Carefully peel the skin off the poblanos. Pull the stem off but be careful not to burn your fingers as the steam escapes.  Split the poblanos in two lengthwise. Remove the seeds and discard. Chop coarsely and place in a bowl with any juices that they may have released. When the corn husks are charred on all sides, remove them from the broiler or grill and cool. Remove husks and silk and cut kernels off with a knife. Place in a bowl with the chopped poblano peppers. Set aside.

Infuse the milk by placing it in a medium saucepan with the cumin seeds and bay leaf. Place over medium heat and bring to a bare simmer but do not boil. Remove from heat and let sit for 20 minutes.

Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the chopped onion and sauté until starting to brown, about 10 to 15 minutes. Add the garlic and ground cumin and cook, stirring frequently, for about 5 minutes. Then stir in the diced poblanos and corn kernels and continue to cook over low heat for 5 more minutes.

Using a sieve, strain the infused milk into the corn and chili mixture. Add the chicken stock and bring to a slow simmer over low heat. Simmer gently for 15 minutes.

To puree the soup you can use an immersion blender and puree to the consistency of your liking. You can also cool the soup for about 20 minutes (to prevent possible explosion of soup) and pour it into a food processor or blender to puree it. Pour it back into the soup pot to warm before serving.

Serve hot with sour cream, chives and cilantro as garnish and a squeeze of few drops of fresh lime juice.

Prijatno!

Grilled corn (esquite) with black beans, lime dressing and queso Cotija

One of my favorite aromas is grilled sweet summer corn emanating from Hispanic food stands and taco trucks.   Smoky and hot with the presence of a little char, roasted corn on the cob is becoming a common street food here in Texas as it is in Mexico.  Known as elote, corn is usually roasted in its husk.  When stripped but left attached at the end, the husk (also known as the shuck) becomes the handle with which one eats the corn.   Slathered with mayonnaise, lime and chili powder, it is one toothsome treat!

Elote that has been cut off the cob are called esquites, and that’s what I served my delightful bunco group at my Cinco de Mayo feast this year.  Served with traditional Mexican accompaniments of mayonnaise, lime juice, chili powder, cayenne pepper and Cotija cheese, I took my esquites one step further by adding black beans and scallions.   It was very well received!

Roasted corn (esquites) with black beans, lime dressing and queso Cotija

4 ears corn, husks on

½ – 1 can black beans (14-oz), rinsed and drained

2 scallions, chopped

Lime dressing (see below)

1/3 cup queso Cotija (Cotija cheese), crumbled

To roast the corn: Soak corn with husks intact in cold water for 30 minutes. Drain water and pat dry. Broil or grill corn, turning every few minutes, until the husks char and corn kernels are cooked but still firm, about 12 – 18 minutes depending on the intensity of the heat. Cool and remove husks. Cut kernels off the cob and place them in a bowl.

Add black beans, scallions and lime dressing. Toss to combine and top with crumbled Cotija cheese and sprig of cilantro.

Lime dressing:

1/3 cup mayonnaise (sour cream or yogurt would be fine as well)

2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lime juice

¼ teaspoon chili powder, or a little more to taste

¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper

¼ teaspoon cumin

¼ teaspoon salt

Combine sour cream or mayonnaise, lime juice, chili powder, cayenne, cumin and salt in a small bowl.  Set aside. 

 Prijatno!

Cinco de Mayo!

Hola, dear friends!  Today many Americans of Hispanic heritage commemorate the victory of a small, ill-equipped Mexican army over a much larger and more sophisticated French militia at the Battle of Puebla.  The Batalla de Puebla took place on May 5, 1862.  Contrary to popular belief, Cinco de Mayo is not Mexico’s Independence Day (that being September 16, 1821).  It is not widely celebrated in Mexico but is a regional holiday limited to the state of Puebla.

The Darling Bakers are also celebrating Cinco de Mayo today!  Here’s how the holiday came to be:  Napoleon III was determined to collect a loan and expand his empire.  His troops landed near the coast of Veracruz and proceeded to march towards Mexico City.  Abraham Lincoln, sympathetic to the Mexican cause, could offer no assistance because he was involved in his own war, the American Civil War.  In Puebla, General Ignacio Zaragoza Seguin and his small militia were able to stop and defeat the French.  It was a sweet victory for a troubled country.

But that was not the end of the French!  Napoleon sent 30,000 (yes, thirty thousand!) more troops who eventually took over Mexico City.  His cousin, Archduke Maximillian of Austria became the ruler.  After the American Civil War, Lincoln provided more military assistance and Maximillian was executed in 1867.  That, in a nutshell is the story behind CDM.

That’s Linda Landeros in the picture above.  Landeros is a dance instructor and performer with many dance companies in the San Francisco Bay Area.  The colors in her dress express the spirit and vitality of the Mexican people.  In the US, particularly in the border states, Cinco de Mayo is celebrated with music, folklore dancing, art and of course food!

One of my favorite Mexican foods is grilled corn with a chili lime sauce.  I first came across it outside a local Hispanic grocery store called Fiesta.  The aroma of roasted corn wafted through the parking lot, leading me to a mobile kitchen where the vendor was slicing the kernels off the cob and into a styrofoam cup.  He topped it off with a delicious, spicy and creamy sauce.  My daughter and I just can’t resist this kind of street food!

 I broiled these in their husks.

Quesedillas are also a favorite.  These are filled with crabmeat, roasted poblano pepper, roasted sweet red pepper, avocado, caramelized red onion, corn, cilantro, chili powder and Monterrey jack cheese.  I served them with my Cilantro Crema – sour cream, lime juice and chopped fresh cilantro. 

This is how I like my cerveza:  ice cold and in an ‘O’ with lime.  Believe it or not, that’s the entire 12oz. bottle in there!

Lime suspended in a golden brew:

Mangos flameados comes from Diana Kennedy’s classic book The Cuisines of Mexico.  It’s a Mexican take on Bananas Foster crossed with crepes Suzette!  I served it with vanilla ice cream.   Mmmm….

These Mexican Nutella cookies are perfect with a cup of coffee.  You can serve them plain or with a dusting of powdered sugar.

I leave you with a bite!   Adios!

 

Prijatno!

Dorie’s delectable Savory Corn and Pepper Muffins!

I do not have much time to write tonight, but I did manage to make Dorie’s moist and delectable corn muffins this morning. Move over Aunt Jemima – make way for these tasty delights! If you have not made corn muffins from scratch yet – this is an easy recipe to begin with.

The inclusion of buttermilk in the recipe immediately won me over! I hail from a culture where buttermilk and yogurt are consumed on a daily basis and are credited with longevity (I’m hoping for the same!). When used in baking, they add lots of moisture and sometimes a little tang. Pair buttermilk or yogurt with hot corn ‘mush’ or polenta and, in my humble opinion, you have a wholesome breakfast that beats any over processed cereal from a box.

I was lucky enough to pick several small red bell peppers from our garden less than a week ago (such are the perks of mild Houston winters). I chopped a couple up and they added beautiful color and flavor to the muffins. I used frozen corn and added 3 more tablespoons to the batter. I used only 1 tablespoon of sugar because I like my savory muffins less sweet. In the absence of a fresh jalapeno, I chopped up some pickled slices from the relish shelf in the refrigerator. They provided just the right amount of heat. Cilantro is my favorite herb, so I jacked up the amount by about 1/2 tablespoon.

When combined, I noticed that the batter was quite thick and foamy and I suspected that the baking soda was already reacting to the the acids in the buttermilk, getting the leavening process underway. I baked the batter in three different size muffin pans for variety and when they came out, the first thing I did was devour a couple with a chilled glass of buttermilk. They were very flavorful and moist – the perfect breakfast treat!

Moist and flavorful!

Thanks to Rebecca of Ezra Pound Cake for suggesting Savory Corn and Pepper Muffins on page 6 of Baking, From My Home to Yours by Dorie Greenspan.

Prijatno!