Soup Sunday at El Gato Azul

Eight Great Soups to take the Chill off today! 11 - 3, plus our full menu!

Creamy Vegan Black Bean

Spicy Tomato & Cabbage

Sherried Onion and Fennel

Potato Bacon

Winter Basil & Tomato

Curried Spinach & Roasted Garlic

Posole

Chicken & Vegetable

Then tonight ... Ramon, Denny & Barry at 129 1/2 - 6 to 9!

Stop on in and take the chill off with some great food, great drinks, and great music!

Havin' a great Sunday - great Soup too

OK -
This may very well be my oddly favorite soup ever. I'm not certain if it is because of the flavor - or the surprising flavor despite the ingredients.

Kierland Stew
- Ham and Potato with Cabbage (sounds simple enough huh?)

OK -the only issue here is that I made a Pork Stock, and used that for the base of the soup. You should be able to use a nice Vegetable base, but don't make it too strong, or salty, as the ham will carry that.

In a large sauce pan - heat 1 gallon stock (pork or vegetable, but not chicken) to a rolling boil.

Next, add 1 1/2 # medium diced Potatoes. I suggest Red Bliss as the tend to stay firmer a little longer.

1# Diced Ham - use a deli type if you like, or scraps from a bone in

2 t Nutmeg (you know I love this stuff, and this is the perfect application)

2 T Fresh Parsley

3 C Shredded Cabbage

1 t Fennel Seeds, or if you have it, 1/4 C thinnly sliced Fennel Bulb

Bring it all to a nice boil, and then simmer for about 20 minutes until the flavors blend

- Really nice and simple - great flavors


Pork Stock:

I also use this for the base to my posole - nice subtle flavors, not as distinct and strong as Chicken or Vegetable

In a Medium Sized Stock Pot:

1 Gallon Water
1 C Chopped Red Onion
1 t S/P
1/2 Cup Parsley
1 C Orange Juice
2 T Chopped Garlic
1/4 C Cilantro
1/2 # Pork Cushion - you can add this to the soup if ya want, but I'd prefer making little carnitas out of it
- bring it all to a boil and let it reduce and simmer to about 3/4

Come by next week and try out some of our Soups for Soup Sunday at El Gato. Also, our new web page is coming soon that will have recipes, videos and all sorts of fun stuff! - Have a great week!

Butternut Squash and Carrot Soup

Ready to start the week fresh! Got some cool stuff planned for this week. New dishes at 129 1/2 - Cowboy Surf & Turf, Cornmeal Catfish, and a great Spinach Fettucine and Smoked Salmon Dish - sounds comfy no?

Gato - Soup Sunday was a hit - all Vegan Soups this week - here is a great simple recipe that was by all means my favorite:

Butternut Squash & Carrot Bisque
1 medium sized Butternut Squash, peeled, seeded and rough chopped
6 nice size carrots - peeled and rough chopped

- Saute in Olive Oil for about 6 - 8 minutes until the begin to soften with a dash fo Salt & Pepper

- Once Softened, dust with 1/4 C Flour and create a roux

Season with 1T Chinese Five Spice (I actually rarely use this, but it worked great here)

Add 1 qrt Vegetable Stock, and 1 can Coconut Milk

Simmer for about 15 mintues, and puree, or leave it nice and chunky - kind of a hearty winter soup

You can also sub the Chinese Five Spice with Curry, or Nutmeg, Cumin and a dash of Cloves

- Enjoy!

Souper Bowl Weekend ...

Yeah, I menat to to say "Souper" as in Soup Sunday at El Gato!

The weekend has a lot going on as always - and were all gonna be watching the game at 129 1/2 - and startingt he day with a great Soup Sunday at El Gato Azul.

Tonight it's the return of Ed Cornett at 129 1/2 along wiht Steve Sandner and Brian Sinclair on Satnd up Bass - always a great night. And then on Saturday, for the the pre pre game party - it's Rosemary, Frankie, Tom & Jack for a night great tunes, great food and good times!

So have a great weekend, and stop on by if your downtown. And oh yeah ... I'll de doing a cooking segment on AM Arizona with Tonay Mock and Lou Reese Monday the 2nd - post super bowl. - Check it out if you're around.