Category: Entree

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Creamy Asparagus Avocado Soup

 

Creamy Asparagus Avocado Soup | Bijouxs Little Jewels

Simple soups–comfort in a bowl at lunch or dinner, always a little jewel.

SIMPLE SOUPS

The beauty of this soup are the fresh green vegetables blended with avocado into a nourishing bowl of rich, green soup. I have been making simple puréed soups for years. The basic technique is to short cook the vegetables, along with some herbs, add a generous amount of stock and simmer. Once the vegetables are tender allow the soup to cool and puree in the blender. Voila, soup is served.

Creamy Asparagus Avocado Soup |Bijouxs Little Jewels

RECIPE COLLECTION

Here are 5 simple soup recipes from my Recipe Collection Membership, they include Celery & Almond Soup, Spinach & Basil Soup, Spicy Thai Carrot, Potato Leek, and Balthazar Creamy Mushroom Soup. With over 500+ recipes to choose from by joining the Collection Membership it’s a great value to add your everyday cooking. Bijouxs Little Jewels from the Kitchen thanks you.

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Raw Asparagus, Walnut, Lemon & Romano Cheese Salad

Raw Asparagus, Walnut, Lemon & Romano Cheese Salad | Bijouxs Little Jewels

Raw salads are high on my list of favorite salads. Here’s my take on a raw asparagus salad that makes the most of Spring.

CHOPPED SALADS

Chopped salads are a classic in the culinary world. Think of the all-time classic the La Scala Chopped Salad. I used to swing by the La Scala Boutique, and grab the famous chopped salad after visiting the design center. Almost any salad can become a chopped salad. I frequently chop my salads for ease of eating. I loved the Raw Asparagus Salad with Breadcrumbs, Walnuts, and Mint from Joseph McFadden, A New Way with Vegetables. Beautiful. Every chef sees different things in every recipe. I saw a chance to turn this into a chopped salad, call me crazy. This salad is anchored by the very small and thin slices of raw asparagus. Toasted walnuts and bread crumbs add some crunch along with fresh mint leaves.

Raw Asparagus, Walnut, Lemon & Romano Cheese Salad | Bijouxs Little Jewels

 

PRESERVED LEMON PASTE

Lemon is the key addition to the salad, as both fresh juice and preserved lemon paste. When combined in the salad along with the olive oil, a bright somewhat acidic dressing is created. It adds the punch to the salad to counter the bread crumbs and walnuts. Start small when adding the lemon paste, it can be quite strong for some. I like to make my own Preserved Lemon Spread using some of my on hand preserved lemons always in the fridge. (see recipe)

Raw Asparagus, Walnut, Lemon & Romano Cheese Salad | Bijouxs Little Jewels

SPRING SALADS

Every chance I get I add another Spring salad to the Collection. Current favorites are Farmer’s Market Sunny Salad, Victory Garden Salad, Yoga Pants Salad, On-Hand Panzanella and my Market Basket Summer Salad for just a few. Please enjoy these and of course the Raw Asparagus, Walnut, Lemon & Romano Cheese Salad  No. 544 from the Membership Collection.

 

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Via Carota Burger

Via Carota Burger | Bijouxs Little Jewels

Simplicity, a burger with no bun, no ketchup, not bit of distraction. A taste from my childhood, via the upscale NYC Via Carota Burger, truly a little jewel.

CLASSIC BURGER

Culinary fads come and go, the the Bijouxs remain. This trendy burger is really from my past. To begin, at 5 years old my Grandmother would get a cast iron skillet scorching hot and fry up a simple burger that created a very crispy crust. Because I was a very discerning eater even at 5, I loved my burger plain with lots of salt and pepper.

Fast forward. Living the Hollowood life as a young wife we frequented Ma Maison, and the first appearance of 22 year old Chef Wolfgang Puck. Of course when his cookboook, Wolfgand Puck’s Modern French Cooking for the American Kitchen was published I began cooking from the book. One we loved for dinner was Ground Steak with Roquefort Cheese and Green Peppercorn Sauce, still a winner with the stained pages from the many times I have made this recipe. It is from his first cookbook, prior to Chef stardom, Wolfgang Puck’s Modern French Cooking for the American Kitchen, order original used from Amazon.

VIA COROTA NYC 

Acoss the country one of the best Italian NYC restaurants, Via Carota, serves the Carota Svizzerina. This is hand-chopped grassfed steak, served just how I love it, seared on a flat-top (aka my Grandmother’s cast iron skillet) and served naked on the plate, lightly seasoned with garlic and rosemary, perfect.

Via Carota Burger Bijouxs Little Jewels

Via Carota Burger | Bijouxs Little Jewels

SVIZZERINA

The recipe name is from the chef’s mom in Tuscany where, they used to serve these “plain” ground burgers as a way to get children to eat meat, no bun no ketchup, please. Served seared on the outside and very rare on the inside and topped garlic cloves and rosemary cooked in olive oil. A key to the recipe is to hand-chop a New York strip steak (or lightly chop in a food processor) the meat, so it is still chunky and served seared and rare on the inside. 

Via Catora Burger simplicity, a true Little Jewel.

 

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Stir-Fry Mushroom Larb

Stir-Fry Mushroom Larb | Bijouxs Little Jewels

You will love this plant-based take on Larb, the classic Thai spicy salad. Traditional with ground meat but here the mushrooms are the stars in Stir-Fry Mushroom Larb, another Little Jewel from the Kitchen.

THAI LARB GAI

Thai Larb Gai Salad is a tangy and spicy salad with ground meat, cucumber, radishes and herbs. Often Served with lettuce wraps for a refreshing meal.

THAI FOOD

I came to love this dish at a local Thai restaurant near my home, where the fish cakes were stellar! I share them here on my blog. The chef and his wife cooked and ran the tiny eatery, I was so sad when they shuttered. Many times the chef allowed me into the kitchen to see how they prepared the dishes. When I entered the restaurant they began making my favorite dishes. Such beautiful people.

SHITAKI MUSHROOMS

The real “meat” in this recipe are the dense Shitaki mushrooms. When they are crisp and brown they take on a substational part of the recipe. Traditional Larb ingredients such as mint, peanuts, ginger, garlic and fish sauce complete the dish. Stir-fry is a quick way to develop intense flavors in a recipe.

Stir-Fry Mushroom Larb | Bijouxs Little Jewels

BON APPETIT

Stir-Fry Mushroom Larb | Bijouxs Little Jewels from the Kitchen

This stellar recipe was adapted from Bon Appetit Chef Andy Baraghani. His flavors are beautifully balanced and perfect for today’s appetites. His cookbook looks like one to add to my library. Ha, just what I need another cookbook! I was happy to see some of his recipes are available on his website, check it out.

Stir-Fry Mushroom Larb join here to access all 538 Recipes in the Collection.

 

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Pasta al Limone

Pasta al Limone | Bijouxs Little Jewels

A simple weeknight Italian pasta for just a couple of people-Pasta al Limone, another Little Jewel from the Kitchen.

SIMPLE ITALIAN FOOD

Italian genius, just a few on-hand ingredients create  a quiet plate of pasta for two. I love simple Italian cuisine and Pasta al Limone is a prime example of rustic, simple food.
There is nothing to learn, just create a simple lemon sauce and toss with hot pasta-done!

No special equipment required, basic kitchen equipment will do. One medium sauce pan, my favorite here,  is all that is required is to make the simple sauce  along with a pot to boil the water for the pasta. The ingredients are simple as well, lemons, Pecorino Romano cheese, olive oil, a knob of butter and pasta, that’s it.

Pasta al Limone | Bijouxs Little Jewels

Pasta al Limone | Bijouxs Little Jewels

LEMON LOVE

It’s no secret at Bijouxs I display my love of all things citrus and also the back story. Oranges and lemons were a big part of my growing up and the smell and taste is etched in my memory. Currently I have a large orange tree, but I am wanting to plant a lemon, oh, could I find an Amalfi Lemon tree to plant?? There are a plethora of lemon recipes (well, over 20 to be exact) on my Bijouxs website, the all time winner is this one, which still gets lot of views.

 

Still Hungry?