Tomato Soup

This recipe has been derived from Cook's Illustrated Magazine's recipe for cream of tomato soup. We played with it a bit to get a very tasty tomato soup with a strong tomato flavor. The recipe can be made easier and about 30 minutes faster if you can find fire-roasted whole tomatoes. The Shaws supermarket here in Middletown, RI has them hidden on the bottom shelf in the Foods-Of-The-World section. Be warned… Once you try this soup, you may never want that canned kind ever again.

Ingredients:

2 cans (28 oz.) whole tomatoes, drained, 3 cups juice reserved. (Get fire-roasted tomatoes if possible)
1 1/2 tablespoons brown sugar
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
4 large shallots minced
1 tablespoon tomato paste
pinch ground allspice
2 tablespoons unbleached all-purpose flour
1 3/4 cups chicken stock or canned low-sodium chicken broth
Salt
Cayenne pepper (optional)
Asiago cheese (optional)

1. Skip this step if you can find fire-roasted tomatoes. Just make sure to add the brown sugar later when you add the tomatoes. Adjust oven rack to upper-middle position and heat oven to 450 degrees; line jelly-roll pan or rimmed cookie sheet with foil. Spread tomatoes in single layer on foil, and sprinkle evenly with brown sugar. Bake until all liquid has evaporated and tomatoes begin to color, about 30 minutes. Let tomatoes cool slightly, then peel them off foil; transfer to small bowl and set aside.

2. Heat butter over medium heat in medium non-reactive saucepan until foaming; add shallots, tomato paste, and allspice. Reduce heat to low, cover, and cook, stirring occasionally, until shallots are softened, 7 to 10 minutes. Add flour and cook, stirring constantly, until thoroughly combined, about 30 seconds. Whisking constantly, gradually add chicken stock; stir in reserved tomato juice and roasted tomatoes. Cover, increase heat to medium, and bring to boil; reduce heat to low and simmer, stirring occasionally, to blend flavors, about 10 minutes.

3. Strain mixture into medium bowl; Transfer tomatoes and solids in strainer to blender; add 1 cup strained liquid and puree until smooth. Place pureed mixture and remaining strained liquid in saucepan, and heat over low heat until hot, about 3 minutes. Season to taste with salt and cayenne, and serve immediately with coarsely grated asiago cheese.

Restaurant Review: Chen's Restaurant - Wakefield, RI

60 Old Tower Hill Rd., Wakefield, RI

Looking for some huge portions of delicious Chinese food? Try Chen's in Wakefield. This unsuspecting location for a Chinese restaurant with a slight Hawaiian flavor serves some of the best chicken wings around. Of course, those looking for the best hot wings have come to the wrong place. Here the wings are covered with a deliciously sweet oyster sauce served piping hot. The only real down side to these wings is that the high sugar content makes them impossible to handle without burning yourself when they come out of the oven. At $8.40 for a large bowl of wings, it is worth the risk of burns.

The beef teriyaki (8 skewers for $8.20) added on to this would have made a good meal if paired with some fried rice. Instead of stoping with the appetizers, each member of our foursome selected a meal choice. My father-in-law chose the Dye Ten Chicken, at $9.10, and my mother-in-law selected the Cashew Chicken Ding for $9.05. Both were deemed good, although my father-in-law was dissappointed that the waitress didn't inform him that the portion sizes were so large. He felt that his food alone would have been sufficient for 2 people.

My wife couldn't decide whether to have the standard General Tso's Chicken or venture out and try the Shrimp With Garlic Sauce. As a fortunate circumstance there is a menu item called the Dragon & Phoenix which combines the two options for $12.80. She felt that the shrimp were small and the garlic sauce was somewhat bland, but the General Tso's was good and satisfying which made her whole meal experience good.

Finally, I chose the Szechuan Ma Po Bean Curd, at $8.70, with a small side of Shrimp Lo Mein for $6.35. Overall, I felt my meal was excellent. The only thing that kept it from being absolutely perfect was the overly large pieces of tofu. I don't dislike tofu, but their large size prevented them from absorbing the very flavorful sauce.

The syling of the resturant is a traditional "red on red with some black". Unlike most typical take-out style Chinese restaurant, there is more than enough seating to accomodate many parties, which is a welcome change to be able to sit and enjoy the company of family and friends.

Gardening: Late Winter/Early Spring Task List

The snow is finally melting and the robins can be seen searching for worms and other tasty morsels. It is now time to return to the task of outdoor gardening. What gardener can resist the tempting allure of that first warm day? Here is a list of tasks that must be done before the frenzy of the planting season begins.

Lawn and Garden Power Tool Tune-Up: Time to get those lawn mowers, chainsaws, and weed trimmers tuned up and ready for use. If you didn’t do it last fall, drain the gas and put in fresh stuff. Add a fuel stabilizer to your last can of gas that you buy to avoid this step in the future. Clean the mower top and bottom to remove all the build up dirt and grass that you should have been removing after each mowing. Sharpen or replace the blade on the mower and the chain on the chainsaw. Replace the sparkplugs at the interval specified in the manual. Never read the manual and now its lost? Just replace the plug anyway because it's easy and only costs a couple bucks. Make sure your weed trimmer has enough string to get you well into the season and replace it if necessary.

Don’t Forget Those Lawn and Garden Hand Tools Too: Scrape all that built-up caked-on dirt from your shovels, forks, and hoes. Get them nice and clean to assess them for replacement. Sharpen the shovels and trowels with a metal file. Just remember, you don’t need to slice tomatoes so you want it “blunt” sharp not razor sharp. Your trimmers and shears, on the other hand, should be quite sharp every time you cut. This is especially important when cutting out those diseased branches and stems. The cleaner the cut, the faster the tree will heal. After you have them clean and sharp, use some WD-40 or 3-in-1 oil on the joints. You can also coat the blades with a very light coating to inhibit rust. If you want a non-toxic solution, wipe them down with a very thin coating of mineral oil.

Roam the yard: Pick up all those twigs and branches that fell during those winter storms and get out those rakes to clean up the leaves that you didn’t get to in the fall. If you don’t have a compose pile, consider installing one in a secluded corner of the yard. Its a great way to avoid filling those paper sacks of yard waste and those extra trips to the dump. Take some time to appreciate all the crocus, daffodils and tulips popping up around the yard. If you don’t have any, remember to plant some this fall. Take a look at all the trees and shrubs to see which ones are in desperate need of pruning. Look for signs of winter injury or disease. Any plants that are severely diseased as well as trees that are damaged to the point that they pose a safety risk should be removed. Others should be pruned to remove dead, diseased or crossing branches, and then pruned to thin and shape the tree into an attractive healthy form.

Inspect the Hardscape: While you are roaming the yard, take stock of the condition of the hardscape features. Did the winter wind and snow blow down a section of fence? Is a fence post rotten? Does your shed need repair or replacement? Are those field stones in your walkway heaved up out of the ground causing a tripping hazard? Do you need to install any new garden beds? Make a list of all the work that will need to be done so you can prioritize them.

Think spring: Make a visit to your local seed supplier to see if there are any plants you want to start from seed. I find that this is also a good way to get ideas for what established plants I want to buy come April/May. By this time of year, most places even have their summer-flowering bulbs and tubers out.

Get dirty: As the month moves on and the soil starts to thaw you can start to transplant or divide. With most things still dormant, you can transplant them without having to worry about babying them. Once the night temperatures are at or above freezing consistently, you can plant snow peas, snap peas, cabbage, kale, broccoli, radishes and any other cold season crops. Garden beds, trees, and shrubs can have a 1/4 to 1/2 inch top-dressing of compost. One word of caution though, don’t put any manure products on fruit/vegetable beds. This can contaminate your food with e-coli.

Now that winter is finally ending, get out there and soak up the warm spring sun. Breath some of that fresh cool air. Get excited about the long days spent getting covered with dirt that are in the very near future.

Hot Chocolate

Ingredients:
2 cups whole milk
1 1/2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1 1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 pieces of dark or bittersweet chocolate

The thing that makes this recipe good is premium quality ingredients. Also, make sure you use pure vanilla to avoid those synthetic chemicals.

Heat the milk in a microwave or on the stove top until just beginning to bubble around the edges. Remove from the heat and add the cocoa powder, sugar and chocolate. Stir or whisk vigorously until fully combined. Note: It may take some time to get the cocoa powder fully incorporated. Return to heat or microwave for another 15-30 seconds. Remove from heat, add the vanilla and serve. To make it more authentic, reduce the sugar and add a small amount of ground hot red pepper.

Restaurant Review: Ben's Chilli Dogs - Newport, RI

158 Broadway, Newport, RI

Looking for a simple, tasty and affordable lunch? Try Ben's Chilli Dogs. This barebones establishment offers hot dogs with a standard set of toppings for a very good price and with service that is both fast and friendly.

There isn't much more to say about this hot dog joint. They offer your choice of toppings including ketchup, mustard, relish, onions, chilli, cheese and sauerkraut to be served on your dog in a steamed bun. The price ranges from $1 and change to $2 and change. Lunch for 2 people usually comes to around $10 depending on how hungry you are and your choice of toppings.

The decor is just as barebones as the menu. The walls are dressed in wood panelling. Seating consists of 3 booths of 4 people, 2 booths of 2 people and bar stools facing the wall mounted bar-type table. Other than the plants in the front window, the only real adornments in the place are the somewhat amusing but rarely changing anti-Bush propaganda at the register.

When I stop and think about it, if I want a hot dog I can't think of any place I would rather get it than Ben's Chilli Dogs. Some people say New York Systems or Spike's Junkyard Dogs are better, but give me a Ben's any day and I'll be happy, my belly will be full and my wallet won't be empty.