Cream of Basil Pea Soup

 

 

This morning I walked out of the house in a hurry on the way to work...

without a jacket, sweater or anything...arms exposed and chilly.  I thought it was supposed to warm up, so I wasn't that concerned.  It did not!  I was cold all day and wanting something warm and comforting for dinner.  Soup came to mind and in particular a soup that I had made for our Downton Abbey finale dinner recently (with sweet friends Lori and Bailey Baynham) from The Unofficial Downton Abbey Cookbook by Emily Ansara Baines.  I was shy many a main ingredient, so I determined the primary substitutions to be peas and basil.  The proportions are quite different too, but it works.  Neil (my husband) said it was dangerously good and to indeed serve it again.  I will be keeping a bag of frozen peas standing by at the ready... for when I start craving delicious, heartening soup again.

 

Cream of Basil Pea Soup

 

1 pound bag frozen green peas - defrosted

 

½ cup unsalted butter

3 shallots – finely minced

1 teaspoon kosher salt

6 tablespoons all-purpose flour

4 cups vegetable stock

 

1 teaspoon white pepper

2 tablespoons tamari sauce

15 to 20 leaves fresh basil, pile leaves, roll then thinly slice – chiffonade (reserve 2 teaspoons for garnish)

½ cup heavy cream

½ cup sour cream, plus additional for garnish

 

Method

·       Melt butter in pan

·       Add shallots and sauté until soft (6 to 8 minutes), stirring frequently

·       Add peas and salt; continue stirring until heated through (2 minutes)

·       Add flour; continue stirring until incorporated

·       Add stock, pepper, tamari sauce and basil and continue stirring until thickened

·       Add cream, turn off heat

·       Puree mixture with an immersion blender or in small batches in a blender and return to pan

·       Remove one cup of mixture and stir in sour cream

·       Add back to soup, stir gently and heat through, pour into serving dishes, garnish with a dollop of sour cream and reserved basil

 

Enjoy 

~CGJ

 



Irish Cream



Who knew you could make Irish Cream?  It's a cream liqueur that we all have added to our coffee or sipped in front of a crackling fire.  I have forever been a fan and when I started running across recipes that seemed relatively simple...

it was on. 

I found several interesting ones and after getting home this evening began searching out the ingredients.  Not in one recipe...did I have every item.  You have done this and I have many times before: substituted this and that, so if you are shy of something... get creative and the result will be delicious!

Irish Cream

1 14 oz can sweetened condensed milk

1 1/4 c strong coffee

3/4 c high proof whiskey (I used 128.5 proof, the guide recipes called for 2 cups Irish Whiskey)

1 c half and half (I used fat free)

1 c heavy cream

1 t vanilla extract

1/2 t almond extract

Pour all ingredients into a bowl and mix with a hand mixer until fully combined.  Chill.  Serve and enjoy.  Keep in an enclosed container in the refrigerator.

Here I sit sipping the richest most elegant of concoctions.

Happy St. Patricks Day

~CGJ