Salmon & Corn Chowder

Back in the early 70s my two brothers, Randy and Dave, moved to Alaska to work on the pipeline. Their first year was spent drinking beer and playing poker. The beer and poker were not mandatory, but the year wait to get in the union was. They established permanent residency, purchasing 7 acres of lake-front property with a small one room cabin with a small loft. They had their own private dock and they had wild blueberries growing in the back and it was not uncommon to see moose roaming around.
Salmon fishing became a regular summer event, when they weren't up on the north slope. After Dad retired, he started making the journey up each year, spending the summer either at Big Lake or down on the Kenai. Add some halibut charters and life is good!
So, when you have that much fish, you have to have some great recipes. This is one of my favorites. Sunday night we will be doing another favorite and I will post that recipe.
Bon appetite and stay well until next time!

Salmon and Corn Chowder
2 medium potatoes, peeled and cubed
1 large onion, chopped
1 cup celery, chopped
1 can (14 1/2 ounces) chicken broth
1 clove garlic, minced
1 1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon dried marjoram
2 cups lite cream
1 cup milk
1/4 cup butter
2 tablespoons flour
1 can (16 1/2 ounce) cream style corn

In a large saucepan, combine potato, onion, celery, chicken broth, garlic salt and marjoram. Bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer, covered for 10 minutes or until veggies are tender. Stir in cream, milk and butter. Combine flour and corn. Stir into soup. Heat but do not boil until slightly thickened. Gently stir in salmon and heat through.

French Onion Soup

A couple of weekends ago was "onion" weekend! Randy made onion dip, then made homemade onion rings, (yummo) then I made my favorite french onion soup. I was also thrilled to enjoy the leftovers the next day!
Bon appetite and stay well until next time!

French Onion Soup
makes 9 1/2 cups

Sweat in 1/4 cup olive oil, then caramelize:
2 each yellow, white and red onions, sliced (12 cups)
1/4 cup garlic, minced
Add and reduce:
1 cup dry white wine
1/2 cup dry sherry
Stir in; add and simmer:
3 tablespoons flour
3 cups chicken broth
3 cups beef broth
bundle of fresh thyme
Salt and pepper to taste
Toast; top soup with and broil:
8 slices baguette, toasted (1/2 " thick)
1 cup Gruyere cheese, shredded
1/2 cup Parmesan, shredded

Sweat onion and garlic in oil in a large pot, covered, over medium heat 10 minutes. Uncover and cook until onions are caramelized, 40 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Add wine and sherry, then increase heat to high. Cook until wine evaporates, stirring often.
Stir in flour and cook 1 minute. Add broth, thyme, salt and pepper; bring to a simmer and cook 10 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat broiler to high.
Toast baguette slices on a foil-lined baking sheet under the broiler. Then ladle soup into ovenproof bowls and arrange on the baking sheet. Top each bowl with a toasted baguette and sprinkle with Gruyere and Parmesan. Broil until cheese melts, 1-2minutes.
293 calories per serving

Tortilla Soup

I think that I have told you before that there is very little that comes out of the kitchen at the resort that I don't like. I have taken the art of sucking up to a new level when it comes to the kitchen staff!
This is one of my favorites!

Bon appetite and stay well until next time!

Tortilla Soup

Servings: Serves 6
6 cups vegetable stock
1 yellow onion
6 garlic cloves
1 cup refried beans
1/2 cup corn kernels
1 zucchini , sliced
1/4 cup green chilies
1 Tbsp. garlic powder
1 Tbsp. onion powder
4 corn tortillas
1/2 Tbsp. cumin
1 Tbsp. lemon juice
1 1/2 tsp. sea salt
1 1/2 tsp. black pepper
1/2 cup red enchilada sauce
Directions
In a medium-size pot, add all the ingredients together except for the tortillas. Bring to a boil and let simmer for 15 minutes. Add in the tortillas and cook for another 5 minutes until tortillas are soft. In a blender, blend the soup until smooth. Reheat back in the pot until it simmers, and serve hot.
Nutritional Information
Per serving: 129 calories, 2g fat, 34g carbohydrates, 8g dietary fiber..

Chicken Avocado Soup

Some of my favorite things are the soups that chef cooks at the resort. Up until several weeks ago my favorite soup was the tortilla soup. That was before chef introduced his latest soup, chicken avocado soup. Oh my, it is yummy! So, since so many people have been requesting the recipe from chef I thought you all would like to try it as well!
Bon appetite and stay well until next time!

Chicken Avocado Soup
serves 4
4 cups water
1.5 tablespoons vegetable base
1 tablespoon line juice
1.5 ounces garlic
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/8 cup corn starch plus 1/8 cup water, mix to make a slurry
2 ounces avocado
3 ounces chicken breast cooked and chopped

Mix first 6 ingredients and heat up. Divide the avocado and chicken in 4 bowls and serve.
So easy!!