Hot Wing Soup

This is my practice for an online cooking class I took at Rouxbe for making thick, starch based soups. They had many recipes to use for practice, such as split pea & ham, vichyssoise, and Italian white bean soup.  But I thought I would learn more by using what I had just learned to create my own starch based soup.

Starch based soups are just what the name implies:  Instead of using a roux as a thickener, the soup gets its body from the natural starches in starchy vegetables, legumes, and grains.  The lesson mentioned you can use bread, which reminded me of one of my favorite soups, Mexican Garlic Soup.

While I was taking this lesson, I was in the middle of smoking a rack of beef ribs and I had tossed a few extra chicken wings on the Big Green Egg.

I thought about the wings and BAM!  It hit me.  I was going to make a hot wing soup!  I used the techniques taught to plan out my soup.

Fat -  Had to be butter, since that goes into hot wing sauce, right?
Mirepoix - Celery & carrot.  Celery because it is a standard accompaniment and carrot to help get the orange color I wanted.
Starch - I thought about using potatoes but went with buttery croutons instead.
Liquid - Chicken broth, beer and hot sauce - a no brainer

Hot Wing Soup

source:  www.nibblemethis.com

Ingredients 

• 1 stick unsalted butter
• 5 cups Italian bread cubes, no crust*
• 1/2 cup finely diced carrot
• 1/4 cup finely diced celery 
• salt (see instructions)
• 1/2 Tbsp paprika
• 4 cups chicken broth
• 12 oz dark beer*
• 2 Tbsp hot sauce*
• 1/4 cup blue cheese crumbles
• garnish:  meat from chicken wings, more blue cheese, chopped celery leaves*

Instructions

1. Preheat a heavy bottom stock pan over medium high heat.
2. Add 3 Tbsp butter.  Once bubbling hot, add the bread cubes and quickly toss to coat evenly.  Season with a pinch or two of salt.  Cook until golden brown on all sides - about 5-7 minutes.  Remove.
3. Reduce heat to medium, add 4 tbsp butter to the now empty pot.  Saute the celery and carrot until tender - about 8 minutes.  Season with a pinch or two of salt while sauteing.  
4. Add the chicken broth, beer, paprika, blue cheese, and the croutons that you made earlier.  Bring to a simmer and cook until the bread begins to break apart - about 5-6 minutes.
5. Use an immersion blender to blend to a smooth consistency.
6. Bring back to a simmer and stir in the last tablespoon of cold butter.  I know that technique at the end of sauces adds a little luster so I thought it couldn't hurt with soup.  Taste for seasoning.  I added about 1/2 teaspoon more of salt at this point but let your taste buds be the judge.
7. Garnish with chicken wing meat, more blue cheese crumbles, and finely chopped celery leaves.

Notes

• Bread - I know, this sounds like a lot.  It will cook down.
• Beer - I used Sweetwater Brewing Georgia Brown but any good dark beer will do.  You could also skip beer altogether and use more chicken broth but beer and wings go together, right?
• Hot sauce - The family thought it was a little spicy at this level so if you want mild, just use one Tbsp.  Franks Hot Sauce would be the traditional hot sauce to use but I used Fire Ant Juice.
• Celery leaves - Weird?  I like chopping them finely for a garnish.  Use parsley instead if you like.
• Makes 4 servings

These were meant to be a snack but they served a greater purpose!  Smoked with Draper's AP Rub.

Chopping celery brings the "how to cut with a chef's knife" lesson memories back.  I sliced an entire bunch of celery one stalk at a time for that lesson. 

Great tasting "homework"!

This is definitely going into rotation at our house this winter.  Perfect for those cold, damp nights whether you're watching a football game or just curled up reading a book.  Its warmth and spiciness will heat you up from inside.

As of today I am 50% way through the current curriculum.  Of course, they add new classes so that's a moving target:)

[Standard Disclaimer]  I don't receive compensation from Rouxbe Online Cooking School.  I am signed up for their affiliate program but that was just so I would have access to share some of their videos here.  I don't even use the html links that would generate a sale for my account if you were to sign up.  The link I gave at the top is no different than if you googled it yourself. 

Texas Beef and Muenster

I smoked a beef brisket (flat only) Saturday on my Big Green Egg and I'll post more about that in my next post. 

What is even better is the lunch that I made from leftovers yesterday.  It's a sandwich with sliced beef brisket, caramelized onions, muenster cheese, and spicy BBQ sauce on kickin' Texas toast.

These were supposed to just be a lunch to hold us over until a chicken was done smoking.  But it ended up being our favorite thing of the weekend, with all of us grunting noises of approval as we devoured them.

This is a rif on Trevor's favorite sandwich from Dead End BBQ - their Tennessee Grilled Beef and Cheddar.    Alexis uttered sacrilege that these were even better than the Beef and Cheddar.  I don't know if I would go that far but they were rather awesome.

Texas Beef and Muenster
source:  Inspired by Dead End BBQ

Ingredients

• 8 slices Texas toast
• 1/2 cup Chipotle Cilantro butter (recipe follows)
• 1 1/4 lb sliced beef brisket
• 1 cup au jus or beef broth
• 4 slices Muenster cheese
• 2 sweet onions, sliced thin
• 1/2 cup Fischer and Wieser Texas Pit BBQ sauce

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 400f.
2. In an oiled skillet preheated to medium-low, caramelize the onions.  Be patient and keep the heat low, you aren't sauteing them.
3. Toast bread 4 minutes per side and remove (this will only be lightly toasted).  Melt the chipotle butter and brush lightly on both sides.  Toast another 2-3 minutes until golden brown and remove.
4. Switch the oven to broiler mode.
5. Dip the brisket slices in the au jus/broth.
6. Take 4 slices of the toast and top with the brisket and cheese.  Place under the broiler until the cheese is bubbly, about 30-45 seconds.
7. Top with the onions, bbq sauce, and other slices of Texas toast.  
8. Slice in half and serve

Chipotle Butter
adapted from Southern Living

Ingredients

• 1 stick unsalted butter, softened (1/2 cup)
• 2 Tbsp finely chopped cilantro
• 1 chipotle, seeded and finely chopped
• 1 Tbsp finely chopped green onion
• 1-2 pinches salt
• 1-2 pinches black pepper

Instructions

1. Mix all ingredients together, combining thoroughly.
2. Place on wax paper and form into a log.  
3. Roll up and place in the freezer for 15 minutes.  Keep in the refrigerator until ready to use.

Fischer and Wieser Texas Pit BBQ Sauce

The idea to smoke a brisket was partially thanks to Fischer and Wieser, who had sent us a bottle of their new  Texas Pit BBQ Sauce.  I have used Fischer and Wieser products for a while, including their Raspberry Chipotle BBQ Sauce.  My mother-in-law used their Habanero-Mango sauce for the cobia she made two weeks ago.  So I had pretty high expectations for this new product.

The all natural ingredient list is water, tomato paste, lime juice, sugar, onion, honey, pasilla chiles, salt, garlic powder, cilantro, paprika, and onion powder.  I normally don't list ingredients but that sounds more like something you make at home.

Appearance

Texas Pit BBQ Sauce has a medium thickness with some chunkiness (is that a word?).   The picture below shows how you can see the chile pulp and seeds in the sauce.

Both are the sauce, one is just spread thin so you can see the bits in the sauce.

Aroma

Texas Pit BBQ Sauce has a smoky chile aroma.  If I was blindfolded, I would SWEAR you were holding a jar of chipotle peppers under my nose.  But there are no chipotle in it.  It also doesn't have any liquid smoke (Greg Rempe's favorite sauce component....okay, maybe not).  That leads me to believe that they must char the pasilla chiles when making this sauce and that is something I really like.  

Taste

Kapow!  This stuff is strong right out of the bottle but in a good way.  It has a surprising amount of heat for a  product geared toward the general public, but I have noticed that as a food trend over the past few years.  Heat that used to be found only in hot sauces and special products is now working its way onto grocery store shelves.  The smoky bold flavor worked well on the brisket and it really made the sandwiches shine. 

Overall

I am impressed and I think this is my favorite spicy commercial BBQ sauce.  I'm glad to see it is carried locally because I will most definitely be buying more of this kicking sauce.  I can't wait to try it on some beef ribs.  Granted it is a bit pricey at $8.95 a bottle but I think the taste and quality is worth it.  

[Standard Disclaimer]  I received a complimentary bottle of Texas Pit BBQ from Fischer and Wieser; however, we have been a paying customer for 2 years.  

Pepper Jack Chicken Wraps

Did you see the Supermoon last night?  We went to the lake with my parents who are visiting and watched it come up.  

You've been "supermooned"

Earlier this week dinner needed to be easy because I had a bunch of things to do and Alexis was working late.  I took the opportunity to try out a few things and throw them all together in a spicy grilled chicken wrap.  Turned out to be one of our favorites.

No real recipe needed for this one.  Grilled some spicy chipotle chicken breasts about 6-7 minutes a side at 350f until it reached an internal temp of 160f.

Sliced the chicken breast.  Then on a sour dough wrap, I put a few slices of pepper jack cheese, thin sliced tomato (lightly seasoned with salt), chicken, avocado, and roasted red pepper.

Always cheese slices first.  Think of them as a "moisture barrier" to keep the other ingredients from making the wrap soggy.

Topped that with seasoned lettuce and fried onion bits.

Then rolled it all up burrito style and dove right it.  It was one of our favorite wraps that I've made and had a lot going on in it.  The spicy chicken and cheese were balanced by the cooling lettuce avocado.  The fried onions added a surprising extra layer of texture.

The three products I tried out on these wraps were...

Tumaro's New York Deli Style Deli Wraps
I received a sample of these from Tumaro's Gourmet Tortillas and wasn't expecting much, a wrap is a wrap.  Wrong!  The flavor is absolutely noticeable.  They take traditional deli bread flavors like pumpernickle, rye, and sour dough and pack them into a thin wrap.

My favorite was the cracked black pepper flavor, which I used to make a grilled bean and rice burrito.

The "everything" flavor to be a close second, similar to an "everything bagel", every flavor took on a slightly different flavor combination.  We also did things like a BLT on rye.  The only variety that I didn't care for was the pumpernickel, only because it seemed super fragile and tended to break or tear instead of bend.  We didn't have that issue with any of the other flavors.  Overall a very good product and much different that your ordinary tortilla!

Weber Chipotle Marinade Mix
This actually wasn't the marinade I was looking for.  I was looking for Weber's new Just Add Juice line of marinades that sounds very exciting.  I've been a customer of Weber Seasonings for years.  Yep, the same folks that product the iconic Weber grills and smokers.   I particularly like their Kick'n Chicken seasoning and Gourmet Burger spice mix.  Unfortunately, the Just Add Juice line hasn't hit the Knoxville market yet.  Hopefully soon.


But I did find this set of Weber instant marinades at Food City and at $1 a pack, I couldn't resist buying all three.  

Upon opening the Chipotle mix, I could see the red chunks of chipotle in the marinade mix and could smell the hint of smokiness.  The instructions are simple, mix with water, oil and a hint of citrus.  It boasts a marinating time of 15 minutes but I let mine go for an hour.  I was very happy with the final result.  The marinade cooked on well, leaving a tangy, spicy coating that you can see in the picture at the top of this post.  No sauce was used, just the Weber marinade.  A definite winner for me.

Loeb's Onion Crunch
I got an email from the Loeb's Onion Crunch folks a while back but never took them up on their offer of a free sample because I thought, "Meh - fried onions, I can buy Durkee's at the store."

Face palm.  Turns out these are NOT like Durkee's.

I saw them at Food City and decided to buy it and try them out.  This are crispy little bits of fried onions.  You know how Durkee's are a little...."soft" straight out of the can unless you bake them?  Not Onion Crunch.  They are crispy and ready to rock and roll.  Even used in this wrap with some damp ingredients, they held their texture and ABSOLUTELY added something to the dish.  Can't wait to try them on burgers.  Be forewarned - these are addictive and it is hard to stop eating them straight out of the jar. 

[Standard Disclaimer]  I received free samples from Tumaro's Gourmet Tortillas.

Blue Cheese Biscuits

Knoxville has been under a wet blanket of steady drizzling rain for the past two cool days and I was in the mood for comfort food last night.   Alexis had to work late so I made beef stew on my Big Green Egg while I baked blue cheese biscuits on her Egg.

Beef stew ladled over a split biscuit - extreme comfort food.

Speaking of our Eggs, my new next door neighbors also have an Egg and already knew this blog.  Their Egg is set up near our grilling area so John and I talk BBQ and grilling as we are cooking during the week.  He was cooking ribs on Sunday and I jokingly told him that I was going to sneak pictures of his food when he wasn't looking and post them on Nibble Me This for extra content.  

Back to beef stew and biscuits.  The beef stew was very similar to For The Love of Cooking's Beef and Barley Stew except I cooked it on my Egg in a dutch oven.  

325f direct - was covered during the cook except when browning the beef.

The biscuits were supposed to be a sour cream based biscuit but I was out, so I used thick homemade blue cheese dressing instead.  This should also work with chunky commercial brands but not thin, watery blue cheese dressings.  

 

Blue Cheese Biscuits

Adapted from White Lily's Peppered Sour Cream Biscuits

servings:  12 biscuits

Ingredients

• 3 cups self rising flour, sifted
• 1/4 tsp garlic powder
• 1/4 tsp black pepper, coarsely ground
• 1/2 tsp chives, diced
• 1 cup blue cheese dressing, thick chunky style
• 2/3 cup half and half
• 6 Tbsp butter, melted (divided 4T and 2T)

Instructions

1. Preheat your Big Green Egg (or oven) to 450f with the plate setter in "legs down".  
2. Mix the dry ingredients together.  Mix the dressing, half & half, and 4 Tbsp of melted butter together.  Stir together until it becomes a coarse dough.
3. On a floured surface, knead about 5 times.  
4. Roll out to about 1/2 inch thick. Cut out biscuits with a biscuit cutter. Roll scraps back up and cut out more until gone.
5. Place biscuits on a floured pizza stone and bake 15-18 minutes.  Brush with the 2 Tbsp of melted butter during the last 5 minutes.

A little flour on the pizza stone keeps biscuits from sticking.

The pizza stone was not preheated.

There's a lot of flavor in these fire baked biscuits.

Comfort food that will put your butt in the bed...or at least plant it on a couch!

Spaghetti and Meatball Pot Pie

Remember those meatballs I made for a “special idea” on Friday? Here is that idea, Spaghetti and Meatball Pot Pie.  

Before you mistakenly think I am a cooking whiz, I am actually just an opportunist. I saw the “Pizza Pot Pie” from Chicago Pizza and Oven Grinder Company on TV and told myself I am going to make that. Then Steph of Plain Chicken beatme to it and made her version last week.

I took the concept and figured if pizza was a good pot pie, then spaghetti and meat balls would be too. This isn't as much a recipe as it is a process.

I started by greasing the inside of ramekins (1 cup sized, 3 1/2” in diameter). Then I put in a mix of white and mild cheddar cheese. 

Next I add in two of the meatballs and sauce.

Top that with some vermicelli that had been tossed in the sauce too.

Another piece of cheese.

For the crust, we made one order of our standard pizza dough and then cut out 3 1/2” circles. You can make your own, buy a ball from your local pizzeria, or even use refrigerated dough.

I rolled those out a little bigger and then pressed them over the top of the ramekins.

Since I wanted the crust to be reminiscent of garlic bread, I made a glaze of butter, roasted garlic, parsley and thyme. I brushed them once at the beginning and then again during the baking.

I fired up Alexis' Big Green Egg to 450f and set it up in “convection oven” mode with the plate setter legs down.

I baked the pot pies on a pizza stone on the plate setter. You could do these in your oven or in a regular grill set up indirect, but in my opinion, this is where the ceramic cookers like Big Green Egg and Primo can't be beat.

About 15 minutes in, they started to brown.

We gave them the second baste of garlic butter and then let them go another 5 minutes.

They are done when the crust is crispy and golden. Carefully remove to a rack and let cool for a few minutes.

Invert the pot pie on a plate and remove the ramekin to serve. The trick is to give the bowl a sharp twist and then pull up.

The only question now is, do you eat it with your hands or with a knife and fork?

Garnished with red pepper flake and parsley.

These were seriously good.  It was like baked spaghetti in a garlic bread bowl. 

The only two things I would do differently the next time is double the cheese and invert it as soon as I can tolerate handling the ramekin. I let it sit too long and the cheese had started to harden.

I absolutely can't wait to try this again. We impressed ourselves with this one.

Alexis' Fire Roasted Lasagna

Which do you think gets your house hotter during the summer, cooking inside OR going in and out to cook outside on the grill?

One night this week, I cooked a meat sauce and vermicelli on the stove top and garlic bread in the oven.  It was 95f outside and 71f inside.  The temperature inside rose 4 degrees to 75f.  

The next night it was 95f outside and 71f inside.  Alexis cooked her lasagna and garlic bread on her Big Green Egg outside and the temp only rose two degrees to 73f.    Just one more reason to be cooking outdoors!  

Quick Grilling Tip
If your grill's thermometer is held in place with a spring clip on the inside of the grill, take it off so your thermometer spins freely.  Then, when you are cooking, rotate your dial so the target cooking temperature is at 12 o'clock at the top.   Here I have 350f at the top.

Then you can see from a quick glance at a distance if you are on your desired cooking temp.  You can't read the numbers from here but because it's easy to tell if the red needle is straight up and down.  

Speaking of Alexis' lasagna.....

Alexis' Fire Roasted Lasagna

1 lb lasagna noodles, cooked al dente

2 lb ricotta cheese

2 eggs

2 Tbsp fresh basil, chopped

1 Tbsp fresh oregano, chopped

2 Tbsp fresh parsley, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 cups mozzarella, shredded

6 cups meat sauce for spaghetti

4 cups mozzarella, shredded

Mix together the ricotta cheese, eggs, basil, oregano, parsley, garlic and 2 cups of the mozzarella.

Cover the bottom of a 13 x 9 stoneware casserole dish with a layer of the noodles.  Top with a layer of the ricotta mixture.  Sprinkle a little more mozzarella on top, maybe 1/4-1/2 cup.  Cover with another layer of noodles and add one half of the meat sauce, spreading it evenly.  

Repeat all of that for the third and fourth layer.  Top the meat sauce with the mozzarella cheese and any of the ricotta mixture that is left.  All this prep should take about 5 seconds if you are as fast as Alexis ;)

Click on picture for animation.

Preheat your grill to 375f set up for indirect heat.   The Big Green Egg and other ceramic cookers are IDEAL for this since they are effectively wood/coal fired brick ovens.  In this case, Alexis set up her Egg in the convection oven configuration with the plate setter in, legs down.  She put spacers so the casserole dish did not sit directly on the plate setter.    

Place the uncovered casserole in the grill and close the lid.....

Cook the lasagna for 1 hour or until hot and the cheesey gooey crust is golden brown.  She rotated hers once during the cook for even cooking.

At the halfway point.

Remove from heat and let rest for 15-20 minutes to cool down.

Meanwhile place 1/2 loaf of french bread, split, face down directly on your plate setter (only if it is clean like Alexis'.  I would have to put foil on mine before doing this).   For regular grills, you could use a preheated pizza stone as long as it was HOT.

Cook the bread cut side down for 2-3 minutes until browned and then flip.  Brush with a mix of clarified butter, parsley, and minced garlic.  Cook for 2 minutes more or until golden brown. 

Cut and serve.

Fire roasting the lasagna really brought out certain flavors.  The meat sauce was a little sweeter and the crispy cheese picked up a slight smokiness.   It was excellent.  Not only did we have it for dinner last night and for lunch today, we're finishing it off for dinner tonight.

Grand Slam Burger Recipe Contest

Philly-Gourmet Meat Company has a contest running where you could win this Burton tailgaiting kit.  

They are having the Philly Gourmet Grand Slam Burger Recipe Contest from April 15th through July 15th, 2011.   Click HERE for a link to their site and details on how to enter.