Romanesco Cream Soup

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It is officially soup season and I am constantly going between 2 major what-to-eat-moods. Soup or salad. Salad or soup. Soup, because it is freezing outside and cup of warm yummy soup of any kind unfreezes my toes and makes my cold cheeks happy. And salad, because I am constantly craving fresh, crisp veggies that remind me of the summer and my favorite farmers market, which are almost gone now. Once in a while the salad will win over my heart and I will eat it in a typical fashion of mine – a few days on a row. But then a teeny-tiny voice starts whispering “Soup...warm, cozy soup”, and I can’t resist it, I have to make it.

It has been a couple of years now since I discovered this wonderful green giant, the Romanesco broccoli/cauliflower. And I have been in love with its mild cabbage flavor (much milder than broccoli or cauliflower in my opinion) and how lush and creamy it becomes when made into cream soup. So when I saw it at my late fall farmers market, I grabbed a few and decided to treat myself to a soup. Usually, I will make a simple cream soup with it by adding potatoes, onion and cream for thickness and texture, but this time I had leek, a couple of zucchinis and some pea shoots in my kitchen, so I decided to experiment and add them to the soup as well. The result was a lush, silky soup that had a complex flavor, much more complex than when adding potato or onion only. The addition of zucchini made it extra smooth and the pea shoots added some spring freshness and a beautiful green color. If you don’t have or don’t like zucchini or pea shoots, you can skip them, but I am quite sure that if you added them to your soup, they might become your favorite ingredients for any cream soup :)

So, here you have it, my latest soup obsession... The salad recipe is to come next ;)

I also wonder what seasonal or all-time cravings do you have? Mom, if you are reading this, I know about your feta cheese toast for dinner every night of the week craving. 

xoxo

Romanesco Cream Soup

Serves 6

Ingredients
• 1 medium to large Romanesco
• 4 tbsp olive oil
• 1 large leek, white part only, thinly sliced
• 2 small (or 1 large) zucchinis, peeled and cut into 1-inch cubes
• 2 medium (any kind) potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch cubes
• 4-5 cups homemade chicken or vegetable stock (low-sodium store bought works too)
• 1 cup of pea shoots (optional) + more for serving
• 3 tbsp butter
• 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
• 1/4 whole milk (optional) 
• salt + pepper

Directions:

1. Wash Romanesco and separate the florets into about 2-inch chunks. The stems can be peeled with a paring knife, removing the stringy exterior and added to the flowerets. Place all in a bowl and set aside.

2. In a large pot heat 2 tbsp of olive oil and add the leeks. Sauté over medium heat for 1-2 minutes until soft. Add the remaining olive oil, the potatoes and the zucchinis. Stir and cook for 2-3 minutes until the potatoes start to stick to the bottom of pot (but are not burning). At this point, add the chicken/vegetable stock, the Romanesco and bring to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer until the potatoes are soft, about 15 minutes. Add the pea shots, if using, and simmer for 5-10 more minutes.

3. With an immersion or a standard blender set on low speed blend the soup until no large chunks are present. Increase the speed and blend until really smooth and creamy. Add the butter and the Parmesan cheese and blend until smooth. Taste the soup and if you prefer it creamier, add the whole milk and blend for 10 more seconds. Taste for salt and pepper and add if needed.

4. Ladle soup into bowls, top with a few fresh pea shoots (if using) or freshly grated Parmesan cheese.

Enjoy!

Turnip Rock Farm / Part 2

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This is the second part of the Turnip Rock Farm visit that Eliesa Johnson and I did back in July (I am slow to post...sorry my dear blog and lovely Turnip Rock people). Eliesa Johnson who is a wonderful photographer and a relentlessly positive and energetic person took the beautiful photos. And Josh and Rama, the warm hearted owners and farmers of Turnip Rock farm, opened their farm to us to explore and photograph.   

This is a special project for me mainly because I feel such a strong connection to the Turnip Rock Farm people. I have always believed in nature’s wisdom, natural processes and balance, where everything has its purpose and all the elements are interdependent. That is why I support and admire Turnip Rock farm’s mission where Josh and Rama strive to create an organic, sustainable farm with a whole ecosystem where each element of their farm is interdependent. They farm by balancing annual vegetables, natural habitat, grasses and trees with animals integrated into the fold. They grow 6 acres of produce and get supported by 160 CSA members. They also raise pigs, sheep and cows and from the milk Rama, the magician cheesemaker, makesa beautiful selection of soft and aged cheeses. Their love for growing and sharing their own food is so strong and anyone who encounters them feels that. They are a family of people who have a tremendous respect for the soil, their natural environment, resources, their produce and their lifestyle is a reflection of that. 

It always makes me happy to see Rama’s and Josh’s smiling faces at the farmers market. They radiate warmth and genuineness that are always present and that is what makes them wonderful to be around (I could sit and chat with them for longer than they probably want). While at their farm, I realized that they attract people with the same qualities to work with them. Everyone on the farm was so kind and welcoming to us. They even invited us to join them for a home-cooked farm lunch prepared by Liberty. In the world we live today I so often get disconnected form what is real and important and I feel that food has been one of them – it’s easy to forget how it is made and to take its vast availability all for granted. What I loved about that farm lunch (which I will always remember) was that it was made from produce picked fresh from the farm minutes before it was to be enjoyed. The lunch was fresh and seasonal and it showed the loving and respectful relationship that every member of the Turnip Rock Farm had with the land and the gifts of nature. Liberty made us zucchini cakes with yogurt and cucumber sauce; arugula, potato and pesto salad; cucumber and quinoa salad all accompanied by a huge plate of Cosmic Wheel feta cheese, and to finish it Rama indulged us with the most amazing, finger-licking quark cheesecake (you can find the recipe in the previous post). I had eaten these dishes before but that day I felt like I discovered their taste all over again. Maybe it was the air, maybe the people or maybe the love and the care surrounding us is what made them so memorable and yummy. In the days after, I kept thinking about these wonderful people, their farm, the lunch and how lucky I was to be part of it. And every time this summer when I felt like being transported back to that day at the Turnip Rock Farm I made myself a huge batch of zucchini cakes, a plate of feta cheese and a big bowl ofthe wonderful warm potato, pesto, and arugula salad.

Photography by Eliesa Johnson

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To honor Turnip Rock Farm and their wonderful produce I picked a few of the vegetables that grew in season on their farm as well as some of Rama’s Cosmic Wheel soft and aged cheeses. I used the produce in 2 different ways to create 2 recipes that tell the story of the farm. One is a fresh beets and carrot salad with honey-lemon on a quark cheese crostini. And the second one is a savory bacon, eggs and kale tart with a cheese crust. 

This story is about community and being a part of one. And I hope with all my heart that you can find the strength to do the not-so-easy task of supporting and giving your time and energy to what is important to you. We are all connected in a beautiful web of people and their gifts of labor. And either that gift of labor comes in a form of a cheese, or vegetables, or a product, a service or a gesture of kindness, we all benefit from it. So support your community and you will be rich.

xoxo

Photography by Eliesa Johnson

Recipes

Beets and Carrots Salad Crostini

Makes about 20 crostini

Ingredients:

Dressing
• 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1 tbsp honey
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp caraway seeds

Crostini
• 1 baguette, sliced, brushed with olive oil and toasted in the oven
• 4 medium red beets, peeled and thinly sliced on a mandoline
• 3 large carrots, peeled and thinly sliced on a mandoline
• 6 oz Cosmic Wheel Garlic Quark cheese (Goat cheese works too)
• A few sprigs of fresh dill

Directions:

1. Place all the dressing ingredients in a jar with a lid and shake until creamy.

2. In a medium bowl place the beets, carrots and dressing. Toss and let sit for 10 minutes. Taste and add more salt or honey if desired.

3. Assemble the crostini by spreading a dollop of Quark cheese on each piece. Top with a small amount of the beet salad and sprinkle with dill.

Bacon & Kale Tart with Cheese Crust

Serves 6-8

Ingredients:

For crust
(Adapted from Donna Hay)
• 2 cups (300g) all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp salt
• 150g cold unsalted butter, cut in small cubes
• 1/2 cup (60g) grated aged Cosmic Wheel cheese (any kind)
• 1/2 cup (40g) grated Parmesan
• 1 egg

For filling
• 10 strips of bacon
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 1 bunch of Dino kale, center vain removed and chopped
• 3/4 cup (200ml) cream
• 3/4 cup (200ml) milk
• 5 eggs, lightly beaten
• 1 cup grated aged Cosmic Wheel cheese (any kind)
• 4oz (100g) Cosmic Wheel Garlic/Dill Quark
• Salt and black pepper

Instructions:

1. Place all crust ingredients in the bowl of a food processor and process until the pastry comes together. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour or until firm.

2. While the cheese dough is chilling, preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C).

3. Line a baking tray with aluminum foil (this will ensure easy clean up) and lay the bacon strips. Bake for 10 minutes, flip the bacon and bake for additional 5 minutes. Remove the bacon and lay on a plate lined with paper towel. Reserve 2 tbsp of the bacon drippings. When the bacon is cool, chop roughly and set aside.

4. Lightly grease the base and sides of a 9-inch (23cm) springform pan. Grate the pastry and press into the base and sides of the form going all the way to the top. Line the pastry with non-stick baking paper and fill with baking weights or uncooked rice or beans.

5. Place on a large oven tray and cook for 25 minutes. Remove the paper and weights and cook for another 5–10 minutes or until the pastry is lightly golden.

6. While the pastry is cooking, heat the preserved bacon fat in a medium non-stick frying pan over medium heat. Add the onion and sauté for 4–6 minutes or until soft. Add kale and cook for 2 more minutes or until wilted. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

7. Place half of the kale, bacon and quark cheese in the pastry shell. In a medium bowl combine the eggs, cream, milk and grated aged cheese. Pour the egg mixture in the pastry shell and top with the remaining kale, bacon and quark cheese.

8. Reduce heat to 325°F (160°C). Bake the tart for 1 hour 15 minutes or until golden and set. Set aside to cool for 30 minutes before removing from the spring form to serve.

Turnip Rock Farm / Part 1

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It is an early and cool mid-July morning and I am waiting on the sidewalk with several bags bursting with plates, bowls, silverware and napkins – my props for today. My heart full of joy and excitement for the day ahead – I get to go to spend a day at a farm with Eliesa Johnson and my camera. I get in the car as I am balancing a huge cheese pie, which overflew in my oven the night before as I misjudged the amount of eggs I needed for the size of my pan. I am half awake and half asleep as the car moves quickly through the city and into the hilly Wisconsin side of the state border. Every time I spot a farm or a field I get a bit more alert as I am thinking ‘Here we are! This is it!’ My eagerness is not due to my impatience or boredom (no one could ever be bored in the energetic company of Eliesa Johnson), but more so of my excitement for the day ahead. We are going to the Turnip Rock Farm.

I met Rama and Josh, the owners of Turnip Rock Farm, a few years ago at the Mill City Farmers market, where they sell their Cosmic Wheel Creamery cheese. Rama’s huge smile and genuinitykept drawing me to their stand. I always had to stop, chat with them and get some cheese. To me it was not a good day at the market if I didn’t stop to say hello and get a chunk of their divine cheese – soft, ripe, spreadable, aged, you name it – I love it all.  And in my humble opinion, Rama’s cheese is in par with some of the best quality artisan European cheeses I have had over the years. It is creamy, full of flavor and it reflects the love and care Rama and Josh give to their animals, land and their respect to the entire process of what it takes to make a really good cheese. 

That is where my excitement to visit their farm came from. I was eager to see their world, how their days were shaped, where they made the cheese, the vegetable fields, the animals – to get a glimpse of Rama and Josh’s day-to-day life, of their challenges and blessings.

A little over an hour and we arrived at the farm cheerfully greeted by a small heard of friendly dogs that were as happy to be at there as we were. Armed with our cameras, Eliesa and I started wondering around breathing the crisp air and taking pictures of our beautiful surroundings. We slowly moved between the open fields of grass where the cows were grazing in different age groups, then to the calm sheep who seem super excited for us at first and then not so, making our way to the vegetable fields, where Rama, Josh and their helpers were. Eliesa and I were super excited for what we will see next while we were totally mesmerized and consumed by the calming effect our surroundings had on us. It made me think that there was something so powerful about nature. It draws us in, a gentle reminder that we humans belong to it.

I always felt the calmness and content of Rama and Josh, which is so unusual for find in the busy, city people and I always wonder if this is the effect that nature has on us when we spend more time with it. As I slowly got to know them I realized that they had the same approach and philosophy about what they do, where they live and most importantly how they do it. Their sense of intention and purpose to live well rounded lives, grounded in nature and its laws, was so strong and it shone through their presence, energy and their cheese craftsmanship. Their farm and home was a reflection of that. They approached each piece form a holistic point of view where everything is connected to everything The healthy fields provided the best food for their animals. The fields were kept healthy by rotational grazing, giving the best grass by moving animals after a certain period to the next field. As cows would eat their favorite grass first in a pasture containing several grass species, rotational grazing prevents the fields of being overgrazed and keeps the animals moving. In turn, the cows will give the best milk when roaming the fields freely, the best condition for their natural cow-self. When cow milk is turned into cheese the flavor is as full and complex as the lives of the cows. And when that real, healthy love and natural interest to the best conditions needed for our object of love to bloom, flourish and be their very best self is applied to cheese making, beautiful things happen. Rama is a self-thought cheese maker who approaches cheese making with full-hearted love and wisdom of what it takes to make a really good cheese. She is as curious about the techniques of cheese making as she is interested in what it takes to have the best milk and healthy cows. Her relentless love, hard work, determination and science-like curiosity produces cheese, in which the flavors are full, bold, complex and as beautiful as the nature, the animals and the hands involved in producing it.

Photography by Eliesa Johnson

Photography by Eliesa Johnson

Photography by Eliesa Johnson

Photography by Eliesa Johnson

Photography by Eliesa Johnson

I will eat any of Rama’s cheeses. I love them all. Without any exaggeration, I eat her cheese every single day. Following and in the next blog post you can find some recipes that use some of Rama’s soft and aged cheeses. The cheesecake recipe you will find here is sublime; it is a courtesy of Rama. She made this cake for Eliesa and me when we visited the farm and we kept thinking and talking about that sensational cheesecake for days. It was as delicious as it was beautiful and it was made with plain Quark cheese rather than cream cheese. Hands down, the most delicious thing ever!

And this is the end of Part 1 of the Turnip Rock project. Part 2 will be posted in a couple of weeks when more stories and beautiful pictures will be revealed. Hope to see you back then.

xoxo

Photography by Eliesa Johnson / Styling by Iglika Petrova

Photography by Eliesa Johnson
Styling by Iglika Petrova

Photography by Eliesa Johnson / Cake by Rama Bryceson

 

Recipes

Zucchini mint Salad

Makes 4 salads

Ingredients:

Dressing
• 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp black pepper
• 1 tbsp Dijon Mustard
• 1/2 tsp of chopped fresh thyme
• 1/2 tsp of chopped fresh basil

Salad
• 4 medium-small zucchinis (2 green and 2 yellow), julienned in long strips
• 4 round tablespoons of Cosmic Wheel Creamery garlic Quark cheese
• Fresh herbs such as thyme, basil and savory
• 4-6 squash blossoms (optional) cut in half with center pollen removed

Directions:

1. Place all the dressing ingredients in a jar with lid and shake until thick and creamy. Set aside.

2. In a medium bowl toss the zucchinis with 1/2 of the dressing. Taste and add more dressing and seasoning to your liking.

3. Divide the zucchinis among 4 shallow bowls and top with a tablespoon of the Quark cheese, the fresh herbs and 2-3 squash blossom halves.

Quark Cheesecake Cockaigne

Ingredients:

For Crust
• 20 whole graham cracker (10 ounces total), broken
• 3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) chilled unsalted butter, diced
• 1/2 cup packed golden brown sugar

For Filling
• 1 1/2 pounds cream cheese or firm quark cheese (room temperature)
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla or almond extract
• 3 large eggs (room temperature)

For Topping
• 1 cup sour cream (room temperature)
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 tablespoon vanilla
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• Fresh berries

Instructions:

Make Crust

Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 350°F. Wrap foil around outside of 10-inch-diameter springform pan with 3-inch-high sides. Combine graham crackers, butter and sugar in processor. Using on/off turns, blend until crumbs begin to stick together. Press crumbs onto bottom and 2 3/4 inches up sides of springform pan. Bake crust 10 minutes. Transfer to rack and cool while preparing filling. Maintain oven temperature.

Make Filling

1. In a medium bowl, beat until creamy (about 30 seconds to 1 min) 1 1/2 pounds quark cheese. Gradually beat in 1 cup sugar, 1 teaspoon vanilla/almond extract.

2. Beat in the eggs – 1 at a time, just until incorporated, scraping the sides of the bowl and the beaters after each addition.

3. Scrape the batter into the crust and smooth the top. Place on a cookie sheet. Bake until the center just barely jiggles when the pan is tapped, 45-55 minutes. Let cool in the pan on a rack for at least 1 hour.

Make Topping

1. Whisk all ingredients in a medium bowl to blend. Spread topping over the cake.

2. Let cool completely in the pan on a rack before unmolding. Cover and refrigerate for at least 3 hours, preferably 24, before serving top with fresh berries.

Recipe provided/modified by Rama Bryceson, Turnip Rock farm. From The Joy of Cooking (1997) by Irma S. Rombauer, Marion Rombauer Becker, and Ethan Becker