Wednesday, September 14, 2011

THE DARING COOKS’ SEPTEMBER, 2011 CHALLENGE: STOCK TO SOUP

Peta, of the blog Peta Eats, was our lovely hostess for the Daring Cooks September 2011 challenge, "Stock to Soup to Consomme". We were taught the meaning between the three dishes, how to make a crystal clear Consomme if we chose to do so, and encouraged to share our own delicious soup recipes!

This month's challenge has brought back sooo many memories from culinary school! I remember stressing and memorizing terms and staying up late in school waiting for the beef stock which we were cooling after cooking it for 8 hours and then properly storing it for the next day's class. Oh and how can I forget when my raft broke and I thought for sure my consomme won't clarify, but wonders of all wonders it did! Ah...those were the days! Wait...am I making sense here? Stock? Raft? Consomme?

What am I talking about? According to Peta's definition "Consomme is usually and traditionally made by adding eggwhites with ground meats or fish (no bones) and/or vegetables for flavor to a base of good quality stock. These solids form a floating mass called a 'raft' which is caused by the proteins in the egg whites adhering to each other forming a fine matrix with many cavities..." Hmm but I didn't make consomme, I skipped that part of the challenge because it was optional. But you get the point...

The mandatory parts of this challenge was to make a stock which you have to make into a soup and an accompaniment for that, which could be crackers, dumplings or in my case...bread. Here in the Philippines, we don't usually eat bread with our local soups but I wanted to make a FIlipino bread to go with it so I made Pan de Sal which is THE bread here. All the bakeries sell it and almost everyone here likes it with their morning coffee slathered with butter or jam.

PAN DE SAL

ALL PURPOSE FLOUR 2 cups

INSTANT YEAST 1/2 teaspoon

SUGAR 1 Tablespoon

SALT 3/4 teaspoon

VEGETABLE OIL 1 Tablespoon

WATER, room temp 3/4 cup (this is variable, you could add more or not use everything)

BREAD CRUMBS

In a bowl combine flour, instant yeast, sugar and vegetable oil. Stir the salt into the water to dissolve. And pour it slowly into the flour mixture. Like what I said beforehand, water is plus or minus depending on the appearance or feel of the dough. Use about half of the water first and then knead your dough, if it looks dry add the rest. Sometimes you might need to add more water but you have to it carefully or you might end up with a gooey mess and start all over again. Knead the dough for about 8-10 minutes until it's smooth. Place the dough in a greased bowl, cover with a towel and let it rise until double in volume about 1 hour in a warm place. Punch down the dough to release the gases, and knead it, shaping it into a log. Sprinkle with bread crumbs and cut the log into even sized pieces with a bench scraper or a sharp knife. Place cut dough pieces on a lightly greased baking sheet cut side up and sprinkle with more bread crumbs. Let it rest for another 15 minutes.

Bake in a preheated 375 degrees farenheit oven for 20 minutes until golden brown. Best enjoyed when hot!

I chose to make a soup which in our house we call Sotanghon because of the noodles used, but when I looked it up, apparently it's actually called Almondigas. I used this recipe from The Filipino-American Kitchen cookbook written by Jennifer M. Aranas.

ALMONDIGAS

Meatballs

Shrimp, peeled and deveined 1/2 cup

Ground Pork 1/4 kilo

*I used ground beef

Garlic, minced 2 cloves

Japanese panko breadcrumbs 2 Tablespoons

Spring Onions, finely chopped 1

Chop the shrimp into small pieces, combine all ingredients thoroughly. Form into balls, place on a tray. This can be done a day ahead. I put the meatballs in a covered plastic container and froze it. In the morning I thawed them in the refrigerator before using them for the soup.

Soup

Olive Oil 1 Tablespoon

Shallot or Red Onion, chooped 1 piece

Red Bellpepper, sliced 1 piece

Tomato Paste 2 Tablespoons

Beef Stock 5 cups

Soy Sauce 2 tablespoons

*I also added a little bit of Salt and Pepper to taste

Bean Thread Noodles 1 bundle (soaked in warm water)

Heat olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the shallots/onions and red pepper. Cook until onions are translucent, about 3 minutes. Add the tomato paste, stir it well. Pour in the beef stock and soy sauce. Bring soup to a simmer. Carefully drop meatballs into the pot. Simmer for another 10 minutes, the meatballs will float to the surface. Remove bean thread noodles from soaking liquid, and add to pot. Discard soaking liquid. Season soup with salt and pepper. Cook for another 5 minutes. Ladle into soup bowls. Garnish with Spring Onions.

That was a long post wasn't it? But it was worth it. The meatball soup and the pan de sal went well together. Perfect for the rainy season we are now experiencing.

Thank you Peta for this wonderful challenge! For Peta's recipes click here. Oh and please do drop by the other Daring Cooks blogs, who've made all sorts of delicious soups and accompaniments.








16 comments:

Kitchen Belleicious said...

Well you went and did it again! Surprise and amazed me with another challenge well done! the soup looks fantastic. Perfect for even hot or cold weather in my opinion. The flavors just scream delicious!

shelley c. said...

Wow - your pan de sal and soup looks so delicious, and must have made for a wonderful, hearty, filling meal! YUM! Wonderful work!

Audax said...

What an intriguing looking and sounding soup so exotic and the bread (pan de sol) is to die for great work, Wonderful photos as well. Cheers from Audax in Sydney Australia.

Monkeyshines in the Kitchen said...

I love the sound of your almondigas soup - perfect for cooler weather. Lovely creations as always!

Anonymous said...

Wow, your almondigas soup looks so comforting and amazing! Albondigas with shrimp, jalapeno etc...YUM! Speaking of Fiipino bread, I used to get Enseymadas (sp?) at a local Filipino bakery where I used o live. I am dying to make them myself! When I saw your Pan de Sal, I couldn't help thinking of them because I used to see those in that bakery too. Fabulous job on the challenge!

The Garlic Press said...

Your soup looks luscious and your bread is perfect. Nice job!

INMA said...

I love your soup, the combination of ingredients sound luscious, congratulations!!!.

cuppy said...

Your soup looks just like the stuff my mom used to make us. Beautiful! ;) I have never heard of Filipino bread before, and now know I'm missing out. ;( Thank you for sharing this recipe! :D I must try pan de sal!

Heather @Gluten-Free Cat said...

Meatball soup? Wow! That looks incredible! Love your take on this challenge!

Don't Make Me Call My Flying Monkeys! said...

Love your photos and the food looks scrumptious. Great job!

Anonymous said...

I LOVE your pan de sal and the soup looks like the very definition of comfort food!
great job on the challenge

MyMacaroniPie said...

Those rolls look heavenly! I have already saved the recipe - thanks! Your soup also looked hearty and delicious. Great job! Will be nice for our upcoming chilly fall here in Ontario, Canada.

Andy said...

great job! I love the Pan de Sal!

SimplyCooking101 said...

The soup looks delicious what a great job!

Oggi said...

Pandesal and albondigas soup, yummy! I love your beautiful photos too.:)

Unknown said...

The soup and bread looks great.