Creamy Colorado Two Tomato Bisque with Herbs and Mushrooms
How’s that for a mouthful?
The centerpiece of yesterday’s marjoram-themed lunch was a thick, creamy bean soup featuring herbs from our patio garden. This is a high-protein soup ideal for cold days and hungry bellies, and it was made even better by grilled focaccia with garlic and marjoram.
The soup starts with a pound of Colorado River beans which I had soaked and pressure-cooked the day before and then stored in the fridge. I found these beans at Native Seeds in Tucson some time ago, and I was curious about them They’re pretty–small and pale with purplish markings. It turns out that they’re mild and keep their shape well when cooked. It also turns out they make for very tasty soup.
The bisque was also a way for me to use up some leftover rice I had in the fridge from an earlier meal. It is a blend of several different varieties of rice, including some wild rice. The combination lends a nutty, earth flavor, which balances the soup well and adds a pleasing texture. Finally, it allowed me to experiment with the shallot I had bought for the French Dijon vinaigrette. Not a bad deal. That’s another key element of keeping things simple–become comfortable planning your recipes based on what you have on hand. Like, let’s say, just hypothetically…marjoram and leftover rice.
This soup is easily adapted for vegans, as the half and half is optional. It will be delightfully creamy without it, thanks to the blending some of the beans with the tomato base.
Creamy Colorado Two Tomato Bisque with Herbs and Mushrooms
3 T butter or olive oil
1 clove garlic, peeled and minced
1/2 c shallot, peeled and chopped fine
6 medium tomatoes, chopped
6 sundried tomatoes
1/2 c plus 2 c water, separated
2 large shiitake mushrooms (about 2-3″ in diameter), very thinly sliced
2 large portobello mushrooms, cut in half and then thinly sliced
1 medium zucchini, cubed or cut in half lengthwise and then sliced (whatever your aesthetic demands)
1 lb. dry Colorado River beans (sub red or white kidney beans), cleaned, soaked, and fully cooked
1 1/2 c. cooked wild rice blend
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes (optional)
1 T paprika
about 6 leaves fresh basil, torn
about 1/2 c. chopped fresh parsley
2-3 T marjoram leaves (removed from the stem)
1/2 c half and half (optional)
1 1/2 tsp sea salt
several grinds of black pepper
Heat 2 T of the butter or oil in a large, heavy-bottomed pot, then add the garlic and shallot and sauté until they are soft and fragrant.
Add the chopped tomatoes, 1/2 c water, and the sundried tomatoes. Bring to a boil, then reduce to medium heat and let them cook down and become saucy. (I do like my veggies saucy.)
Meanwhile, heat the remaining T of butter or oil in a large skillet. Once it’s hot, add the shiitake and sauté over medium heat for two minutes. Then add the portobello and the zucchini and sauté until the vegetables are tender. (Add a splash of water or more oil if it seems too dry to you.) Remove from heat and save for later.
Now, put the saucy tomato and shallot mixture in a blender (or use an immersion blender, if you have one) along with 3 cups of the cooked beans and 2 cups water. Purée until it is creamy smooth.
Return the blended tomatoes and beans to the heavy-bottomed soup pot. Add the remaining unblended beans, the sautéed portobellos and zucchini, the wild rice, the spices, and the herbs. Using medium-low heat, warm through and let the flavors blend. Add the 1/2 c half and half and stir well. Adjust any of the herbs and spices to your taste, and garnish individual servings with a sprig of marjoram.
This bisque practically begs for a crusty, whole-grain bread. Since it’s still in the 90s in Phoenix right now, I decided not to heat up the house to make some. I chose a grilled focaccia recipe from Rose Levy Beranbaum’s The Bread Bible, topping it with coarse salt, lots of chopped garlic, and fresh marjoram. The focaccia was delicious, and hands-down, one of the simplest breads I’ve made. After the second rise (both of which are brief), the focaccia is started on the grill on a cookie sheet, then transferred directly to the grill after it has set up.
The grilled taste was wonderful, and the texture was both chewy and crisp. It makes a focaccia about 6″x 9″, so if you have a lot of people, you’ll want to double the recipe. For the two of us, it was perfect.
Sadly, although we filled almost 3 quart jars with leftover soup, there were no focaccia leftovers for dinner.
Happy eating!
4 Comments so far
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That looks thick enough to qualify as a chili, but the spices seem to be different. I think I would like this best with some cornbread, but the focaccia looks really good too!
Oh, it’s somewhere in the stoup continuum.
I didn’t feel like “soup” really fit it, but neither did “stew” or “chili,” so I picked one at random.
And the focaccia was great. I had tried one of Beranbaum’s other focaccia recipes a while ago and not been impressed, but the grilled version was very nice. I did substitute whole wheat flour in this version as well.
The verdict is in! It’s a bisque! (Sort of.)
ooooooooo.mmmmmmmmm.that looks soooooo tasty.