Soups/Stews

Succotash Chili with Coconut Milk

Winter is on its way out where I live in Florida, and I’m already regretting it. Before you question my sanity, let me clarify that winter here is typically a three-month cool break from the steamy conditions that prevail during the rest of the year. It’s the season when I [...]

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Ratatouille Bisque with Parmesan Croutons

Developing new recipe ideas for this blog is a joy, but, as in other aspects of life, sometimes the creative juices just don’t want to flow. A bit of a nudge is needed. And so yesterday I took a stroll through my organic vegetable garden in search of inspiration. Although [...]

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White Bean Soup with Collards and Chorizo

Fall, my favorite time of year, has finally arrived at my mid-Florida home. Here the season involves none of the drama of more northern climes — leaves turning to brilliant red and gold, the arrival of freezing weather, and mountains of leaves to rake. Instead, our fall is a more [...]

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Cream of Pea Soup with Ginger and Cilantro

I feel that I can almost chart my culinary life with pea soup. It was the first dish I learned to “cook” at age six, and, as with other North Americans of my vintage, it involved a can of Campbell’s Split Pea. Mastering that canned soup gave me confidence to [...]

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Shrimp, Scallop, Corn and Tomato Chowder

When an American hears the term “chowder” it typically brings to mind three very traditional hearty soups: “New England style” seafood chowder with its heavily thickened cream or milk base, “Manhattan style” seafood chowder with a base of chopped or pureed tomatoes, and vegetarian corn chowder which typically involves a [...]

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Oxtail Ragout

Spring is rumored to have arrived here, but I’m not quite sure I believe yet. I, for one, am still reaching for a sweater every morning and still finding that wintertime dishes, such as this Oxtail Ragout, hit the spot at dinner time. I grew to love oxtails while living [...]

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Brunswick Stew

Brunswick stew is one of the great, and one of the oldest, comfort food dishes of the American South. That said, if you were to quiz twenty Southerners about its ingredients you might get at least that many answers. The Brunswick, Virginia version uses chicken, rabbit, or squirrel as a [...]

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Quick Zucchini Yogurt Soup

I’ve been making this delicious, low-fat soup for so many years that I think of it as my own. However, it is actually adapted from the circa 1987 cookbook, Eater’s Choice, by Dr. Ron and Nancy Goor. They refer to it as “one of the greatest recipes known to mankind” [...]

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Chicken Soup with Spinach Pesto Stuffed Noodles

Chicken noodle soup is perhaps the most comforting of comfort food dishes. It wards off the chill of a fall or winter day, restores your spirits if you’re feeling down, and puts spring in your step as you venture out to face the world. I also love Italian food and [...]

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Hearty Mixed Bean Soup

Autumn has finally arrived here in Florida — not a moment too soon as far as I’m concerned — and my mind is turning to soups, stews, and other hearty fare. I’ve always been a fan of beans. However, my love affair with them really took off when I was [...]

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