"Recipes from the Chef's Kitchen"

Pat  Solley - Soup Specialist

Pat Solley has been researching soups for several years.
She has written a cookbook which will be published in
September 2004.  She got a award for her website...
http://www.soupsong.com

Ingredients:
1)   2 cups seedless green Grapes - stemmed
2)   zest of 2 Limes - finely grated
3)   juice of 2 juicy Limes
4)   2 big Cucumber - peeled and chopped
         (slice 4 thin rounds for the Garnish and reserve)
5)   1/2 cup Green Pepper - cored, seeded, chopped
6)   1/2 Jalapeno Pepper - seeded and chopped fine
7)   4 Green Onions - chopped
8)   1/4 cup Cilantro - chopped
9)   1/4 cup Tequila

Preparation:
1)   Puree everything together but the tequila and the garnish, then press
       through a sieve.
2)   Chill in the refrigerator until ready to serve.
3)   Then, when ready to serve, stir in the tequila, pour into bowls, and float
       a thin slice of cucumber on top of each serving for garnish.
4)   Serve with crisp white tortilla chips on the side.

Ingredients:
1)   1 slice crusty White Bread
2)   Water to soak the Bread
3)   2 pounds ripe fresh Tomatoes - cored and quartered
4)   1 large Cucumber - peeled and chopped
5)   1 Green Pepper - trimmed, seeded, and chopped
6)   1 Red Pepper - trimmed, seeded, and chopped
7)   1 large clove Garlic
8)   1/2 cup Olive Oil
9)   1/4 cup Sherry Vinegar
10) 1-2 teaspoons coarse ground Salt

Preparation:
1)   Soak the bread in water.
2)   In a blender, puree all the vegetables, garlic last of all.
3)   Add the soaked bread, oil, vinegar and salt and blend again.
4)   Refrigerate and serve very cold. If you don't have the time to refrigerate,
       just add some ice cubes to the blender or add a few to each bowl when
       serving.
5)   If you want a very smooth texture, you can peel the tomatoes and
       remove the seeds from them and the cucumbers.
6)   Serve with a full array of the garnishes (see below).

Garnishes:
1)   When served "formally", gazpacho is presented with an array of
       garnishes consisting of tomato, onion, cucumber, green pepper,
       hard-boiled egg, and Spanish dry ham, all diced.
2)   Every item is put in a separate bowl so you can choose what garnish
       and how much you want.
3)   When serving you can drop a few leaves of spearmint on each dish.

Ingredients:
1)   3 medium Beets - boiled, peeled, and cut into thick matchstick pieces
2)   2 Eggs, hardboiled - shelled, and sliced into matchstick pieces
3)   1 medium Cucumber - peeled and sliced into thick matchsticks
4)   1/4 cup Green Onions - chopped fine
5)   1 tablespoon fresh Dill - chopped
6)   8 cups cold Buttermilk
7)   Salt and Pepper - to taste
8)   chopped fresh Dill for garnish

Preparation:
1)   Prepare the beets and eggs the night before: boiling the beets for an
       hour, then peeling and refrigerating; boiling the eggs for 10-15 minutes,
       then cooling and refrigerating.
2)   When ready to make the soup, slice the beets, eggs, and cucumber and
       chop the green onions and dill.
3)   Whisk the buttermilk in a large bowl, then toss in the the rest of the
       ingredients.
4)   Season to taste with salt and pepper.
5)   You may add cold water or ice cubes if the soup is too rich or thick for
       your tastes.
6)   Serve with boiled potatoes, sprinkled with dill.

Preparation:
1)   Heat the oil in a large saucepan over low heat, then add the carrots,
       leeks, and ginger.  Cover and sweat them for about 15 minutes until they
       are soft with an almost roasted aroma.
2)   Add stock, bring to a boil, then reduce heat, cover, and simmer for about
       20-30 minutes, until vegetables are done.
3)   Puree, solids first, then liquid.
4)   Then stir in the orange juice.
5)   Season to taste with salt--remember to oversalt cold soups a little.
6)   Refrigerate and chill.
7)   When ready to serve, pour into bowls and top each with leek circles.
8)   It's lovely to serve this with deep fried Indian poppadums
       (lentil-flour puffs) on the side.

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