Pepper & corn soup with basil
4 Servings
Ingredients
| Quantity | Ingredient | |
|---|---|---|
| Stephen Ceideburg | ||
| 5 | cups | Chicken stock |
| 1 | tablespoon | Unsalted butter |
| 1 | tablespoon | Light olive oil |
| 1 | large | Leek * |
| Salt and cayenne pepper | ||
| 7 | Ears of corn, shaved, about 7 cups | |
| 3 | Medium-size red bell peppers, 1/2 cup diced and about 2 cups | |
| Coarsely chopped | ||
| 4 | Garlic cloves, finely chopped | |
| 2 | tablespoons | Chopped fresh basil |
Directions
* white part only, cut in half lengthwise, thinly sliced, and washed, about 2 cups
Adapted from Annie Somerville's "Fields of Greens. " The flavor of sweet peppers is essential combine red and yellow peppers if you like, but don't use green peppers, because their strong flavor works against the sweetness, of the corn.
Warm the stock over low heat,
Heat the butter and ½ tablespoon olive oil in a soup pot. Add the leek, ½ teaspoon salt and a few pinches of cayenne. Saute over medium heat until the leek is heated through, about 2 minutes. Cover the pot and steam the leek for 5 to 6 minutes, until tender.
Set aside 1 cup corn, along with the diced peppers, to be sauteed separately and added to the soup later, Add the remaining corn and the chopped peppers to the leek along with the garlic, ¼ teaspoon salt, and a pinch of cayenne. Saute for 2 to 3 minutes.
Add 2 cups stock, cover, and cook over medium heat for 25 to 30 minutes, until the corn and peppers are tender. Add I cup stock, puree in a blender or food processor, then pass the puree through a food mill. Return the puree to the pot and cook over low heat.
Heat ½ tablespoon olive oil in a saute pan. Add the remaining corn, the diced peppers, ½ teaspoon salt and a pinch of cayenne; saute until tender, 5 to 7 minutes. Add to the puree along with about 2 cups stock, to reach the desired consistency. Season to taste with salt and cayenne and cook over low heat for 10 to 15 minutes. Add the basil just before serving.
PER CUP: 180 calories, 7 g protein, 32 g carbohydrate, 5 g fat (1 g saturated), 4 mg cholesterol, 27 mg sodium, 7 g fiber.
Sibella Kraus writing in the San Francisco Chronicle, 10/27/93.
Posted by Stephen Ceideburg