April 6 – Bourbon Apple Cocktail & Cream of Tomato Soup
So we’ve been at this quarantining for a while now and stocks are running low. I need to use some pantry items. It’s also still raining here in Norcal and that makes me crave something warm and comforting, like cream of tomato soup and grilled cheese sandwiches. The cocktail I’ve chosen is equally simple, using just a few ingredients you hopefully have on hand. Hope you love it!
Bourbon Apple Cocktail
This is yummy! If you don’t have cider, use apple juice.
Makes 1 cocktail
2 oz bourbon
3 oz apple cider
1 t lemon juice
2 oz ginger beer, ginger ale, or sparkling water
Garnish: apple slice and a thyme sprig
Fill a cocktail shaker halfway with ice. Add bourbon, apple cider or juice, and lemon juice and shake vigorously for 15 seconds. Strain into a rocks glass filled with ice. Top off with ginger beer, ginger ale, or sparkling water.
Garnish with apple slice and thyme sprig.
Cream of Tomato Soup
Think of this as an easy, pantry pull recipe where substitutions are not just allowed, but encouraged. If it’s summer and you have fresh tomatoes, great, use them. Otherwise canned tomatoes work great here. If you’re vegan, use almond or coconut milk instead of heavy cream, and water or vegetable broth instead of chicken broth.
Serves 6
2 T olive oil (or ghee or butter)
1 yellow onion, rough chopped
1 carrot, rough chopped (optional)
1-2 stalks of celery, rough chopped (optional)
3 cloves of garlic, rough chopped
A couple sprigs of fresh thyme or 1⁄2 t dried thyme or Herbes de Provence
2 T tomato paste (optional)
1⁄2 c red or white wine (optional, I do this if I have an open bottle around. Don’t open a bottle for this step, unless you want to!)
1 1⁄2 t kosher salt
1⁄2 t black pepper
1 28 oz can tomatoes (can be puree, whole, or chopped)
4 c chicken broth (or water or vegetable broth)
1⁄2 c heavy cream (or coconut milk or almond milk)
Garnishes: thyme sprigs, croutons, crème fraîche or sour cream
Heat olive oil in a large soup pot. Add onion, carrot, and celery (if using) and stir. Sprinkle with salt and cook over medium heat to soften onions, about 5-7 minutes. Do not brown. Add garlic, thyme, and pepper and cook another minute, being careful not to burn the garlic. Stir in tomato paste, if using. Add wine, if using and increase heat. Simmer for 2 minutes until wine has reduced by half, then add tomatoes and broth or water. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer soup for 8-10 minutes more.
Remove thyme sprigs and transfer soup to a blender and purèe in batches. Return soup to pot, stir in heavy cream (or substitutions) and warm through over medium heat. Taste for seasoning, adding more salt and pepper if needed.
Serve with croutons, and/or a dollop of crème fraîche or sour cream, and a sprig of thyme for garnish.