It was just within the last 6 months or so that I discovered C&W even offered this package of butternut squash. I don’t know about you, but sometimes just CUTTING a fresh butternut squash is daunting. I have one gigantic curved chef’s style knife that is good for cutting squash, but even with that long and sturdy knife, sometimes I must work at it for 20-30 minutes peeling, cutting, de-seeding, etc. Trader Joe’s sometimes has fresh squash in little packages (maybe 2-3 servings), but the frozen squash sure makes it easy. I haven’t compared prices, but I’d guess the C&W frozen is probably the better buy.

This recipe comes from one of the cooking schools Cherrie and I enjoy attending. I’ve mentioned it before – Our House, South County – located in San Juan Capistrano (where the famous swallows return to the Old California mission every year during one week in March). Cherrie and I both just loved-loved-loved this soup. Sarah, the co-chef of the cooking school, told us about the C&W squash. I think I stopped at the market on the way home that day to buy a bunch of them. I liked this soup so much that when my DH and I had a “kitchen warming” for our newly remodeled kitchen a few weeks later, I served this to all of our guests. The recipe looks like it came from Sunset Magazine (October, 2006). For any of you who don’t live in the Western States of the U.S., you may not know about Sunset. It’s a fabulous monthly magazine which focuses not only the cuisine of the west, but also house projects, landscaping and ideas for living/entertaining unique to our area. It’s a magazine I’ve subscribed to for at least 40 years. I must have missed this recipe, but am so glad Our House, South County decided to serve it to us. Any number of guests asked for the recipe that night I served it. I was happy to share, as I am now.
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Remember a couple of weeks ago I posted about my dinner visit to Cindy’s Backstreet Kitchen in St. Helena? And I showed a picture of the soup Cherrie and I had that night that we thought was so terrific – Tomatillo, Poblano and Asiago soup? And I researched on the internet and found a recipe from Stephan Pyles restaurant in Dallas.

Here’s what Cindy’s soup looked like:

Here’s my soup: Well, I’m here to tell you, this is very close if not one and the same. It looks the same. It tastes just about the same. And I’m a very happy camper, because now I can make this soup in a big quantity and freeze it like I do with most of my soups.

So what’s different at all? Well, the waitress at Cindy’s told us they sautéed the tomatillos for one thing. And they use masa to thicken the soup. I hunted all over in my pantry, but didn’t have any. I didn’t have any fine grind corn flour either (other than cornstarch, and I was certain that wasn’t what we wanted here). I did have polenta and cornmeal, but they’re both too coarse. So I used the regular flour called for in the recipe. And she thought there wasn’t any cream in it, but this soup (with milk and a little cream) looks JUST like theirs, so I’d say they did. Make sure you don’t get a single poblano chile seed in the soup – it won’t puree very well.
If I changed anything next time I make it, I will use less cheese. Asiago has a slightly bitter taste on the palate, and I think less would be an improvement. I only had a little over 1/2 pound, and the recipe called for 10 ounces. I think it has ample at that, and could easily be reduced, so I’ve changed the quantity in the recipe below. Asiago melts into the soup well – it’s doesn’t become stringy and difficult as some cheeses can do when added to hot soups. I did quick/flash fry the tomatillos first. A little olive oil, a hot burner and they browned in a hurry. Tomatillos have a lot of water in them, so once that was rendered out, they reduced to small pieces. I also sautéed the onion with the tomatillo, then the poblanos before adding any of the liquid. I’ve changed the recipe to that effect. I also didn’t strain the soup. I think the little bit of texture tastes just fine. I blended it well, though, so it wouldn’t have to be strained.

I can tell you I love simple soups, and this is one. You’re not likely to have all the ingredients on hand, however, but this one is certainly worth a trip to the market to buy the poblanos, the tomatillos, Asiago cheese, spinach and cilantro. Oh, yes, I’ll be making this again. Most definitely. Soon.
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Ramekins, the cooking school Cherrie and I visited last Saturday and Sunday is in Sonoma. It’s been in existence for a long time, and first came to my attention because Joanne Weir, one of my all-time favorite cooking instructors, mentioned that she occasionally demonstrated there. Also, Tarla Fallgatter, a local Orange County teacher, also taught there in years past. Over the years I’ve looked at Ramekins‘ website and watched who was visiting there to teach, when, etc. One trip to wine country I even dropped by the school and peeked in to see what it was like, and was fortunate to be able to see some of the guest rooms (it’s a B&B also). That’s when I decided that someday I’d go for a class and an overnight.The cooking school is housed in a lovely building about 3 blocks from the main square in downtown Sonoma, just next door to The General’s Daughter, a fabulous restaurant we visited one night last week. Unlike some cooking schools which are side rooms of cookware stores (often cramped), this one was set up to be a cooking demo and participation kitchen. Actually the building also has a very large banquet room (and accompanying commercial kitchen) to seat about 100+ people, and they do large parties, weddings, etc. there. A lovely patio adds to the charm of the place. In the picture, the banquet room is on the left, the kitchen school on the right, the B&B rooms upstairs (which are just lovely) and the delightful patio under those leafy trees.

The cooking school kitchen has ample room for seating or prep tables. Most of Ramekins’ classes are participation style (you are given an overview of the class, then everyone digs in and prepares a part of the meal). We chopped, minced, sautéed, pureed, tossed, etc. whatever our assignment was, then went to tables outside (both days were just beautiful weather, ideal for sitting out under their big shady trees) and the staff served us the meal we’d all fixed.

So, on Saturday, the class was French Bistro favorites. We had the soup (below), a country paté, mussels in broth, steak with Béarnaise sauce, pommes Anna and chocolate soufflés. I doubt I’ll make any of the other dishes, but the tomato soup was outstanding. One point the teacher, Lisa Lavagetto (the cooking school manager), told us was the importance of using only San Marzano canned tomatoes. You may already know about these, but I didn’t, and having tasted them right out of the can today, I can definitely say they’re
far sweeter and more tasty than any canned tomato I’ve ever met before. They’re not at your neighborhood chain grocery – you’ll need to find an upscale grocery or an Italian deli. The 28 ounce cans I bought were $3.69 each, but well worth the expense. The soup isn’t hard to make, at all. You just have to have the ingredients at the ready – onions, carrots, celery, tomato paste, the San Marzano tomatoes, some fresh herbs, chicken broth. Oh, and some heavy cream. This isn’t exactly low calorie or low fat, but a cup of heavy cream for 8 people is only 2 tablespoons per person.
That’s not bad! And this soup will definitely be a staple in my repertoire from now on. I doubled the recipe so I’ll have some to freeze.
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A short time warp to 1981. Dave and I were on our first trip to England. At a small pub and restaurant in Ilminster, Somerset, an older gentleman simply pulled up a chair as we were served our dinner. Friendly sort, he was. Said he enjoyed hearing Yanks talk. Shortly, he called over to the bartender and asked him to phone his wife to come join us, which she did. That began a friendship that has withstood the years. Jimmy (a retired RAF Wing Commander) had a hundred and one WW II war stories to tell. Pamela, who had also served in the WAAFs (Women’s Auxiliary Air Force), the ground transport wing of the RAF, had an equal number of stories to tell, and among other things, she was a professional chef. To this day, we still discuss food whenever we talk. Either in person, or on the phone. Sadly, Jimmy passed away a few years ago. But we have visited them and now her many, many times over those years.

But the summer of 1990, when two of our children were nearly graduated from college, we took them to England and Ireland for a few weeks and included a visit to Jimmy & Pam. The weather was fair that day, the sun shone brightly, and we enjoyed a multi-course luncheon on the back lawn. It was glorious. It was magical. It was memorable. They were so happy to meet our children. We were so proud to show them off. They were so delighted it was a pretty day. We were thrilled to enjoy Pam’s cooking again. Jimmy was in rare form, warbling on about his military past (mostly he ferried planes from Canada to England) to our kids, and Pamela had outdone herself with an elegant meal. We had a Pimm’s, with fresh cucumber, mint and raspberries (pronounced raws-brees) on special twigs in each drink. We had a summer pud(ding), a very seasonal treat only available in mid-summer when berries are at their peak. Our daughter vividly remembers that summer pud to this day. A summer pudding is made in a large round bowl, with layers of soft de-crusted white bread, sugar and fresh berries. It sits for 24 hours while the berries give up their juice to soak into the bread, then it’s unmolded onto a platter and served with whipped cream. And, naturally, we had some good English tea. The main dish was a large, cold poached salmon elegantly festooned with layered, thinly shaved cucumber slices to resemble fish scales. What was almost comical was that our daughter didn’t eat fish. So poor Pamela insisted on returning to the kitchen to cook her an egg.

It’s the soup that has become one of my regulars and it may be one of the very simplest recipes I make. When the weather turns hot (it will be in the mid-90’s in Southern California today), I remember this soup, which is so refreshing. As long as you have the frozen peas (only the very best will do, the smaller the better), consommé or beef stock, the half-cream (that’s half and half in British-speak), and the fresh mint from the garden you’re in business. Allow to chill thoroughly before serving. You can make this with fat-free half and half, although most of those products contain some sugar or sweetener, which doesn’t always taste as good as a natural dairy product in a savory soup. Sometimes I add a splash of cream sherry to the mixture too.
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