Black Bean & Butternut Squash Soup with Spanish Chorizo

A couple of weeks ago while I was posting my ‘On this Day’ post to my Facebook page I noticed that for that particular date there were two different soup posts to choose from.  A few days later, I ran into another soup post…  And then a few days after that, yet another.  I decided to check, and it appears that in every January since I began writing For Love of the Table, I have shared at least one soup recipe.  It seems that January is soup month….at least as far as For Love of the Table is concerned. 

And of course it makes sense to be hungry for soup in January.  Soup is warming and filling—just what you need during cold…and sometimes damp…weather.  It is also nourishing….  Whether or not it plays a role in curing a cold or the flu, sitting down to a bowl of steaming soup will almost always make you feel better.   Furthermore, soups are typically fairly lean when it comes to calories and will fit nicely into most reasonable diet plans (should that be part of your January regimen).

So to keep up the streak, I thought I would share the delicious soup that I made over the weekend:  Black bean with Butternut squash and Spanish Chorizo. It was just the thing to have on hand during our recent spate of bone-chilling temperatures.      

When you make your soup, I recommend cooking your beans from dried.  You can of course use canned black beans. There are several good brands that are widely available…and they are truly convenient.  But if you have the time, I think the dried really are better.  When made with dried beans the final flavor seems richer (no surprise since you have the delicious bean cooking liquid to add to the soup)…and the texture more velvety.  It was in fact the presence in my pantry of a couple of pounds of very nice dried black beans from a local grower that put me in mind of a black bean soup.  I wanted to use some of those beans in a place where they would truly shine.   

You may cook the beans using whatever method you prefer—in a pot on the stove, in a wide pan in the oven, or a pressure cooker or Instant pot.  I think the beans cook more evenly if they are given an overnight or a quick soak, but you can cook them straight from dried too—just add an hour or so to the cooking time.

But this soup isn’t just about the beans.  It’s also about the sweet winter squash (excellent with black beans)…and the subtle smoky flavors of the Spanish chorizo and paprika.  This isn’t just an ordinary black bean soup….and we loved it.   It made a terrific dinner (with a big piece of warm cornbread).  But I think I liked it even better during the next few days for lunch. After a day or two the texture is even creamier…and the flavors more developed and nuanced.  Although, I have to admit that my feelings about this may have something to do with the fact that sitting down to a delicious bowl of hot homemade soup in the middle of a freezing cold January day is the very embodiment of Comfort Food.    

Black Bean Soup with Butternut Squash & Spanish Chorizo

3 T. olive oil

1 medium to large onion (white or yellow), cut in a ¼-inch dice

3 large cloves of garlic, minced

2 1/2 to 3 oz. finely diced Spanish chorizo (cured spiced pork sausage, casings discarded if desired)

2 t. cumin

2 t. smoked paprika

1 1/3 lb. Butternut squash, peeled, seeded and cut into a 1/3-inch dice (to make about 4 cups)

3 cups chicken or vegetable stock or a combination of half stock and half water, plus more as needed

5 to 5 1/2 c. cooked black beans (see notes)

1 to 2 T. Dry Sherry (or more, to taste)

Sour cream thinned with a bit of milk

Coarsely chopped Italian flat leaf parsley

Minced green onion (white and green portions)

Toasted pepitas (see notes)

Warm the olive oil in a medium sized soup pot or Dutch oven set over moderate heat.  Add the onions and sweat without color until very soft—15 to 20 minutes or so.  Add the garlic, chorizo, and spices and cook briefly to infuse the flavors into the fat and onions—about 5 minutes.  Add the squash and stir to coat with the onions, chorizo and spices.  Season with salt and continue to cook for another five minutes.  Add the stock/water, adding enough so that the squash moves freely in the liquid and is completely submerged…but not “swimming” in the liquid.  Bring to a simmer and cook (adjusting the heat to maintain a gentle simmer) until the squash is tender—about 20 minutes.

Add the beans, along with enough bean cooking liquid or water so that everything is submerged, moving freely, but not swimming.  Return to a simmer and cook for another 15 minutes (at a low simmer) to allow the flavors to blend.  Taste and season as necessary with salt and pepper.  If you like, add the Sherry. 

If the consistency of the soup pleases you, the soup is ready to serve.  If you would like a creamier soup, remove a cup or two of the soup and purée until very smooth using a traditional or an immersion blender.  Return the puréed soup to the pot and heat through.

Serve topped with a generous drizzle of thinned sour cream and a scattering of parsley, green onion and pepitas.

Makes a generous 2 quarts of soup.

Notes:

• You may cook your beans from dry or use canned. If you use canned, you will need 3 15 oz. cans. Drain and rinse the beans before using. Add fresh water to the soup when adding the beans. If using dried beans, you will need 12 oz. (1 3/4 cups) of black beans. Cook them according to your preferred method—on the stove top, in the oven, or using a pressure cooker or an Instant Pot. I don’t own either of the latter two.  My preferred method is to soak overnight (or use a modified quick soak) and then bake them in the oven. Black beans take about 2 hours. Add 2 or 3 T. of olive oil, a cinnamon stick, a couple of well-branched sprigs of thyme and 3 or 4 peeled and lightly crushed cloves of garlic before adding the water. Salt half to three quarters of the way through the cooking process.
• If you prefer, you may replace the cured Spanish chorizo with 4 oz. of fresh Mexican chorizo. If using Mexican chorizo, consider finishing with a squeeze of lime juice instead of Sherry and roughly chopped cilantro instead of parsley.
• If you like to add something acidic, you can add a 14 oz. can of diced tomatoes. Add it after adding and cooking the chorizo and spices, cooking until the tomatoes are slightly thickened. Add the squash and continue as directed in the recipe.
• If you would like some spicy heat, add 1/8 to 1/4 t. of cayenne or 1 t. of chipotle chili powder with the spices and chorizo.
• Toast pepitas (pumpkin seeds) in a 350° oven until they are light golden and beginning to puff and pop…about 5 minutes. Drizzle with a small amount of olive oil and season with salt.

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Kale, Sweet Potato & Chorizo Soup

The weather turned chilly overnight. Suddenly it's really autumn....and soup weather. So this evening, at the end of a busy week, I came home and made a simple soup with some of the vegetables that still remained from last Saturday's visit to the farmers' market.

If your market basket—like mine—includes kale and sweet potatoes, you might give this soup a try. It is light and flavorful and on the table in about an hour. A perfect weeknight meal for a blustery evening.

Kale, Sweet Potato & Chorizo Soup

2 T. Olive oil
1 small onion (5 to 6 oz.), finely diced
2 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
Salt
2 oz. Spanish Chorizo, casing removed and finely diced (see notes)
1/2 t. Smoked Spanish paprika
1 bunch Kale (about 6 oz.)—I used Russian kale, but Tuscan kale would be good too
1 sweet potato (about 8 oz.)
3 to 4 cups chicken stock
3/4 to 1 c. cooked chickpeas (about half of a 14 oz. can), rinsed
Olive oil for serving

Heat the olive oil in a large soup pot set over medium heat. Add the onions and garlic along with a pinch of salt and cook until soft and beginning to caramelize—10 to 15 minutes.

While the onions cook, strip the ribs from the kale and cut the leaves cross-wise into 1/2-inch wide ribbons. Rinse thoroughly and place in a colander to drain. Peel the sweet potato and cut it into a 1/2-inch dice (to make about 1 1/2 to 2 cups).

When the onions are ready, add the chorizo and paprika and cook another minute or two. The chorizo should begin to sizzle in the olive oil.

Add the kale and sweet potatoes and cook until the kale begins to collapse—about 5 minutes.

Add 3 cups of stock and bring to a simmer. Taste and correct the seasoning. Simmer the soup (covered, with the lid set slightly ajar) until the sweet potatoes and kale are tender—about 20 minutes. Add the chickpeas and the remaining cup of stock if the vegetables seem too crowded in the broth. Return to a simmer and cook for another 3 to 5 minutes.

When the soup is finished cooking, taste and correct the seasoning with salt and pepper. Ladle into warm soup bowls and serve with a generous drizzle of olive oil.

Makes a generous 5 cups of soup, serving 2 to 3. Recipe doubles easily.

Notes & Variations:
• This soup would be delicious served with a poached egg in each bowl or with a dollop of allioli (aioli).
• Spanish chorizo is a dry, cured sausage.  It is not the same thing as Mexican chorizo, which is a fresh, ground meat.
• If you don't have chickpeas, substitute Cannellini or Great Northern white beans.
• For additional depth and color, add a teaspoon or so of double concentrated tomato paste to the pan and cook for a minute or two before adding the kale and sweet potatoes
• Use Yukon or Russet potatoes instead of sweet potatoes.
• Substitute sweet paprika for the smoked.
• Add a pinch of cayenne to the pan along with the paprika and chorizo.

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Chicken & Artichoke Paella

This past weekend I prepared a mixed seafood paella for a client. I was still thinking about it on Sunday, so on Monday evening I prepared a small paella for our dinner. A mixed seafood paella can be a bit of a production—especially for a small group and on a weeknight—so for our paella I made a streamlined chicken version using some chicken thighs that I already had on hand. I also had some lovely California artichokes in my fridge and some of the last shelling peas from the farmers' market. It all came together to make a relatively simple and easy dinner...perfect eating for late spring/early summer.

Unfortunately, I have never been to Spain—and I am not an expert on paella—so I'm not going to spend any time on this post going into the details of the method involved in making a good paella—there is actually quite a bit of good information available on the web on this subject...people who are presenting the information much more knowledgeably than I could. Instead, I am offering a relatively detailed recipe that will walk you step by step through exactly what I did. My recipe is a combination of way too many that I have seen to cite them all, but I will say I am indebted to my friend Nancy for doing the trial and error leg work involved in discovering that an All-clad braiser is the perfect sized pan for making a paella for four using 1 1/4 cups rice. (Thanks Nancy!)

Those familiar with traditional paellas will notice my slightly unusual method for preparing and adding the chicken. Typically the chicken would be browned in the pan the paella is made in—the onions and other vegetables would then be added around the chicken, followed by the rice and then the liquid. But since the rice only takes 20 to 25 minutes to cook (plus a 10 minute rest), I have partially cooked the chicken before adding it to the pan with the liquid. Twenty to twenty-five minutes is plenty of time for the chicken to be cooked to a safe temperature...but not, to my way of thinking, enough time to become as tender as chicken thighs should be. So that none of the flavor of the browned chicken is lost, remember to deglaze the pan it is cooked in, then reduce the deglazings and add them to the paella along with the chicken.

For some people, there might not be enough chicken in this recipe. To me, Paella is all about the rice. The meat/seafood is a nice garnish...but what I really want is the flavorful rice. If you are a person who wants more protein with your meal, then you might want to add more chicken thighs. The size pan I used will easily accommodate 2 to 4 more.

Finally, when I made our paella, I only used two artichokes. That was all I had in my fridge. If I were to make this again, I would use three (I love artichokes). If you don't want to turn fresh artichokes to make this dish, you may use jarred or frozen (thaw before adding) artichoke hearts. Add them with the peas. But if I can get in a plug for fresh here, I would encourage you to turn your own fresh ones—they taste so very good...and it's always a good thing to practice turning artichokes.


The leftovers (with the meat pulled off of the bone) made an excellent lunch



Chicken & Artichoke Paella

2 1/2 c. chicken stock or low-salt broth
1/8 t. saffron threads
1 large vine-ripened tomato (6 to 8 oz.)
4 chicken thighs (about 1 1/3 lb.)
salt and pepper
3 to 4 T. extra-virgin olive oil
2 to 3 artichokes, turned and cut into 8 wedges each and tossed with the juice of one lemon
1 small onion (about 5 oz.), minced
2 to 3 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
3 to 4 oz. dry Spanish chorizo, casing removed and cut into 1/4-inch thick slices (if the chorizo is especially fat, halve or quarter it lengthwise before slicing)
1 1/4 t. smoked paprika (sweet paprika is fine if you don't have smoked)
1 bay leaf
1 1/4 c. Arborio or Carnaroli rice
1 c. hot water
1/2 c. shelled peas (use frozen if fresh are not available; thaw before adding)
Minced Italian flat-leaf parsley and lemon wedges

Preheat the oven to 375°. Place the stock in a saucepan. Add the saffron and bring to a simmer. Remove the pan from the heat and cover to keep hot. Halve the tomato cross-wise and coarsely grate the tomatoes into a bowl or onto a plate. Discard the skin and reserve the tomato pulp.

Season chicken with salt & pepper. (It's best if you can do this step the night before, but the dish will still be good if the chicken is seasoned just before it is cooked.) Heat some of the oil in a sauté pan set over moderately high heat. Add the chicken to the pan, skin side down and cook until the skin is rendered and golden brown. Regulate the heat as necessary to maintain an active sizzle. Turn the chicken over and transfer the pan to the oven. Bake for 20 minutes. Remove the chicken to a plate. Pour off the fat from the pan. Deglaze the pan with a bit of water and reserve the deglazings with the chicken.

While the chicken is browning, heat a bit more oil in a wide braiser or paella pan (the diameter of the cooking surface should be 9 to 10 inches) set over moderate heat. Add the artichokes to the pan, leaving the lemon juice behind in the bowl.

Sauté, turning occasionally until browned in spots—about 5 minutes. Add the onion and garlic to the pan along with a generous pinch of salt. If the pan seems dry, add more oil. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions are tender. You may need to reduce the heat a bit, but it's ok if the onions begin to turn golden around the edges. (See note on onions below.)

Add the chorizo to the pan. Continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until the chorizo is sizzling—one or two minutes.   Add the paprika and bay and cook until fragrant—another minute or two.

Add the reserved tomato pulp to the pan and cook until reduced and thick.

Add the rice to the pan. Stir to coat in the tomato-onion-spice mixture. Continue to cook for a couple of minutes until hot through and beginning to want to stick to the bottom of the pan.

Add the hot stock to the pan. Stir, scraping the bottom of the pan to make sure the rice isn't sticking and give the pan a gentle shake to distribute the rice in an even layer. Make sure that all the rice is submerged. Taste the broth and add salt if necessary. Add the chicken thighs to the pan skin side up along with any deglazings and resting juices.

Simmer over moderate heat until the liquid is thick and the rice is partially cooked—about 10 minutes. Add the peas and stir in. Give the pan another shake to make sure the rice is in an even layer. Most of the broth should have been absorbed, but the rice will still be a bit soupy and loose in the liquid after stirring in the peas.

If it is not, add hot water until it is. Transfer the pan, uncovered, to the oven. Bake until the rice is tender, but still just slightly al dente—about 10 to 15 minutes. Taste the rice a couple of times while it is baking. If the liquid has evaporated and the rice still seems hard, dribble more hot water, a few tablespoons at a time, over the rice and continue to bake. When the rice is ready, remove the pan from the oven. Cover the pan and let it rest for 5 minutes. Uncover and let stand another 5 minutes (it really does keep getting better as it sits). If you like, garnish with a shower of minced parsley and lemon wedges. Serves 4.

Note: When I made this, I used fresh summer onions from the farmers' market. These kinds of onions have not formed a papery skin, are quite juicy and cook very quickly. If you are making this dish with storage onions, either turn the heat way down and cook them slowly so the artichokes and onions won't get too brown before the onions are tender. Or, lift the artichokes out of the pan, add more oil, and add the onions and garlic to the pan and cook them thoroughly before returning the artichokes to the pan and proceeding with the recipe.

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Chicken & Chorizo Empanadas

After my post on how to make tender and flaky short crust pastry, I thought it would be appropriate to post a recipe that uses short crust pastry. So today I'm sharing—without too much comment—a recipe for Chicken Empanadas that I found several years ago in an article on Spanish Tapas in Gourmet magazine. The original recipe was made with a yeast dough instead of pie dough...but since I love empanadas made with short crust pastry, that's how I have always made them and that's how I will pass the recipe along to you.

This is one of my favorite empanada fillings. It is moist and loaded with flavor. The recipe may seem a bit complicated (the list of ingredients is a bit long)—but with a little organization and planning it is fairly easy to make. If you are familiar with the technique of braising, you will recognize that this filling is just a simple braise. I hope to write a tutorial on braising this winter—and when I do, I will post the link here. But until then, if you carefully follow the method as described in the recipe you should not have any problems.

There are a couple of things in the recipe that are worth emphasizing. First, make sure that the liquid that remains in the pan after the chicken has finished cooking is reduced to the consistency of heavy cream. If the liquid is too runny, the empanadas will be soggy.

Secondly, make sure the filling is cold before building the empanadas. If it is warm, it will melt the butter in the pastry. The filling is also much easier to handle when it is cold. I find that it works best to make the filling the day before I need it—not only will it have plenty of time to chill, but the flavors will have a chance to blend.

As with almost any empanada recipe, you can make these in any size that will suit your needs—from small "two-bite" sized empanadillas for tapas or appetizers to larger turnovers more appropriate for an entrée portion. The only changes you need to make are the oven temperature (450° for smaller empanadillas and 400° for empanadas) and the cooking time (12 to 15 minutes for the smaller size and 20 to 25 for the larger).

Whatever size you make them, they can be frozen—in their baked or unbaked form. If you freeze them before baking, they should be placed directly in a preheated oven from the freezer. They will only take a few moments longer to bake than they do when they are baked from fresh. And when you pull them piping hot from the oven—for your next party...or for a quick meal on a busy weeknight—after having made them weeks before, this will seem like one of the easiest and most convenient recipes in your repertoire.

Chicken & Chorizo Empanadas with Olives & Raisins

2 to 2 1/2 lbs. whole chicken legs, including thighs
1 t. salt—or to taste
1/4 t. black pepper—or to taste
2 T. extra-virgin olive oil
2 medium onions, cut in a 1/4-inch dice
2 large garlic cloves, minced
2 Turkish bay leaves or 1 California
2 oz. finely diced Spanish chorizo (cured spiced pork sausage, casings discarded if desired)
1 t. Spanish smoked paprika
1/2 c. dry white wine
1/3 c. chopped green olives
1/3 c. golden raisins
3/4 c. reduced-sodium chicken broth
1 recipe short crust pastry (below)
1 egg

Pat chicken dry and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a 12-inch heavy skillet over moderately high heat until hot, but not smoking, then brown chicken, turning over once, about 15 to 20 minutes total, and transfer to a plate.

Sauté onions, garlic, and bay leaves in fat remaining in skillet, stirring frequently, until onions are softened and beginning to caramelize, about 15 minutes.

Add chorizo and paprika and cook, stirring, 1 minute.

Add wine, stirring and scraping up any brown bits, and reduce by half. Add olives, raisins and broth and bring to a boil. Return chicken to skillet along with any juices accumulated on plate, then reduce heat to moderately low and simmer chicken, covered, turning over once, until tender and cooked through, 30 to 45 minutes.

Transfer chicken to a clean plate. (Sauce in skillet should be the consistency of heavy cream; if it’s not, briskly simmer until slightly thickened, about 5 minutes.) When chicken is cool enough to handle, discard the bones and cartilage and finely chop the meat and skin.

Stir chicken into sauce and discard bay leaves. Season with salt and pepper. Chill the filling before using.

To form the empanadas, bring the dough to room temperature. Roll a sixth of the dough out on lightly floured surface to 1/8-inch thickness. Cut dough into 3-inch rounds. Place 1 rounded tablespoon of filling in the center of each round.

Paint edges with egg, fold dough over filling and pinch to seal. Transfer formed empanadas to parchment lined baking sheets and brush with more egg wash. Gather the scraps and combine with another sixth of the pastry. Roll out, cut and form more empanadas as with the first batch of dough. Continue to form and roll, incorporating the scraps each time until you have used all of the filling. Chill the formed empanadas for at least 30 minutes. (See Spinach Empanada post for detailed instructions and pictures of rolling dough for empanadas). Bake at 450° until golden brown—about 12 to 15 minutes. Serve warm. Makes about 60 empanadillas.

Note: These freeze very well. After forming and placing on parchment lined sheets, freeze until hard. Transfer to freezer bags. Bake from frozen, adding a few minutes to the total cooking time.

To make larger empanadas for a light entrée (to serve with a salad): Roll dough out and cut 12 5.5- by 5.5-inch squares or 12 6-inch rounds. Place 1/12 of the filling (about 1/3 cup) on each of the squares (or rounds). Paint edges with egg, fold and seal. Brush with more egg wash and cut 2 or 3 vents in the top of the empanada. If you have larger appetites, serve two per person, or cut larger squares/rounds of pastry and make 8 empanadas with 1/2 cup filling each. To bake larger empanadas, reduce the oven temperature to 400° and increase the cooking time to about 25 minutes. Bake until the crust is golden brown and the filling is bubbling through the vents.

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(Empanada filling recipe from Gourmet Magazine, January 2005)

Short Crust Pastry

4 c. all-purpose flour (454g)
1 t. salt
3 sticks cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces (340g)
1/2 to 3/4 c. ice water

Combine the flour and the salt in a medium-sized bowl. Rub the butter into the flour until the butter is in small pea-sized pieces. Drizzle 1/2 c. ice water over the flour/butter mixture. Using your hands, fluff the mixture until it begins to clump, adding more water if necessary. Turn the dough out onto a counter and form into a mound. Using the heel of your hand, gradually push all of the dough away from you in short forward strokes, flattening out the lumps. Continue until all of the dough is flat. Using a bench scraper, scrape the dough off the counter, forming it into a single clump as you do. Turn the dough onto a piece of plastic wrap and press into a disc. Chill dough for at least 30 minutes.

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