Creamy Tomato Basil Bisque

Fresh rosemary, basil, and parsley along with fresh stalks of celery, onion, and garlic make this bisque one of the freshest, most fragrant tomato bisque’s you’ll ever eat. No broth is used in this recipe, just fresh ingredients, heavy whipping cream, and mozzarella cheese. This bisque is best when made with local tomatoes that are in season. If possible, buy your tomatoes from a local farmers market, but if that isn’t an option, vine ripened tomatoes from the grocery store will give you the best flavor when tomatoes are out of season. Makes 6-8 servings.

What you will need:
a food processor
butter (optional)
9-10 vine ripened tomatoes
3 celery stalks
1 red onion
5 garlic cloves
1 rosemary sprig
a handful of parsley
1 T Italian seasoning
1 T lemon pepper sea salt grinder
1 1/2 c chopped fresh basil
1 c heavy whipping cream
1 1/2 c mozzarella

Turn a large pot on low heat and start to melt the butter (you can leave the butter out if you want, but still turn the burner on to warm up the pot). In a food processor, combine 5-6 tomatoes, celery, onion, garlic cloves, fresh parsley, and fresh rosemary leaves and blend until smooth. Add to the pot. Meanwhile, chop the rest of the tomatoes into 1/2 inch chunks and add to the pot along with the Italian seasoning and lemon pepper seasoning and continue to cook on low heat for about 20 minutes. Then, add the fresh chopped basil, heavy whipping cream and mozzarella and continue to cook for another 15 minutes. Garnish with fresh scallions, croutons, or more cheese and serve.

Creamy Roasted Red Pepper Bisque

This roasted red pepper bisque is made of fresh herbs and veggies, with a little bit of heavy whipping cream and delicious Asiago cheese and goat cheese- no need for veggie broth here. It’s best when slow cooked over low heat, letting all of the flavors infuse and come together. This bisque also works great as pasta sauce. Makes about 4-6 servings.

What you will need:
a food processor
4-5 large red peppers
1 celery stalk
1 carrot
1/2 of a red onion
a couple pinches of fresh parsley
a couple pinches of fresh rosemary
a pinch of fresh thyme
lots of fresh basil
1 large garlic clove
1 c heavy whipping cream
3 oz goat cheese
5 oz shredded asiago cheese
a dash of Bragg’s Liquid Amino Acids
a pinch of sea salt (if you don’t have Bragg’s, just add more salt according to taste)

Preheat oven on the broil setting. Cut the red peppers in half, remove the stem and seeds, and place directly on the top oven rack. Cook for about 15 minutes, or until the peppers start to char. In a food processor, combine the celery, carrots, red onion, garlic, and fresh herbs along with all but one of the red peppers and blend until somewhat smooth. Transfer to a medium side pot and start to cook over low heat. In the food processor, take the last roasted red pepper and pulse it to a salsa consistency, being careful not to over blend it. Add it to the pot along with the heavy whipping cream, Bragg’s liquid amino acids, shredded asiago cheese and goat cheese and stir until everything is evenly mixed. Continue to cook over low heat for at least an hour and a half, letting all of the flavors combine and the veggies soften. Serve with crusty, toasted bread and shredded asiago cheese.

Vegan Corn Chowder- Soup Week!

Tis the season for sweet corn! Well, at least it is in northern Ohio! The sweetness of sweet corn and red bell pepper really complements the touch of smokey, spiciness in this chowder that comes from sriracha and liquid smoke. If you are planning on making this chowder, please use fresh ears of corn. Frozen or canned corn just won’t cut it, and the corn cobs are what makes the flavor of this broth. This also makes for an amazing chilled soup. Makes about 4-6 servings.

What you will need:
food processor and large pot
6 ears of corn on the cob
3/4 red pepper
1/2 onion
3 c vegetable stock
1/2 c almond milk
1 1/2 tbsp earth balance
a couple drops of liquid smoke
sriracha to taste

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and roast all 6 ears of corn for 30 minutes. While they’re roasting, chop the red bell pepper and onion. Once the corn is done, carefully remove the kernels from 5 of the ears of corn with a knife and set aside in a bowl (I’ll tell you what to do with that 6th ear in a minute). Add the corn cobs to the pot, along with chopped peppers, onions and vegetable broth and cook over medium low heat for about 20 minutes. Meanwhile, take the kernels from the 5 ears of corn and add to the food processor along with almond milk. Pulse and blend until creamy and smooth, about a minute or more.

Once the broth and veggies have cooked for 20 minutes, use tongs to remove the corn cobs and discard them. Remove the corn from the remaining corn cob and add it to the pot along with the corn and almond milk mix from the food processor. Add just a couple of drops of liquid smoke and sriracha to taste, just for a little kick. Stir and continue to cook on medium low heat for another 5 minutes. Pour into bowls and serve with bread or a tasty cheddar jalapeno scone, like I did.

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Creamy Asparagus Bisque- Soup Week!

This week at The Veggie Slaughterhouse is soup week! You’ll be feasting your eyes (and maybe eventually your stomachs) on different chowders, bisque’s, savory soups and more- all week long. Today’s recipe is for hearty asparagus bisque. Goat cheese, butter and heavy whipping cream really give this soup a rich, savory taste and a smooth, creamy texture. Makes about 2 servings.

What you will need:
food processor and sauce pan or pot
1 lb asparagus
1 c vegetable broth
3 tbsp butter
1/2 c heavy whipping cream
2 garlic cloves
2 oz goat cheese

In a sauce pan on low heat, combine vegetable broth and butter. Meanwhile, remove the hard, whitish ends of the asparagus and discard. Cut off the tips of the asparagus and set aside. Cut or break the remaining pieces in half and combine in the food processor with heavy whipping cream and garlic cloves. Blend until creamy and very smooth, about a minute. You will need to add some of the vegetable broth from the saucepan to help make it smooth. Combine the ingredients from the food processor in the saucepan, as well as the asparagus tips, and stir in the goat cheese. Simmer on low heat for 20 minutes, or until the asparagus tips are soft. Pour into bowls and serve with whole grain bread.

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