Sweet Potato Soup with Chorizo, Chickpeas, and Kale

One of the most genius things I've gleaned from my time pouring through Joe Yonan's cookbooks recently is the idea of making a concentrated soup base. Invest a little extra time one day, and you'll have a freezer full of flavorful foundation for diluting and dressing up at dinner time. This sweet potato soup base, while delicious all on its own, becomes something truly spectacular with a topping of savory chorizo, crispy chickpeas, and earthy kale. Rendering the fat from the chorizo quickly infuses the chickpeas and kale with flavor, creating the perfect crispy, spicy topping for the sweet and silky soup. This soup deftly balances indulgent and healthy elements, but if you absolutely have to cut back or are a vegetarian, you can crisp up the chickpeas and kale in olive oil instead.

With one more sweet potato soup left in Yonan's book for me to try, I hardly wait to break the next portion out of the freezer - if it's half as successful as this variation, I'm guaranteed to savor every bite. Now to decide what personal touch I'm going to put on the final serving...

Sweet Potato Soup with Chorizo, Chickpeas, and Kale
adapted from Serve Yourself by Joe Yonan
serves 1

1 cup Sweet Potato Soup Base, defrosted if frozen (see below)
½ to ¾ cup water or vegetable stock
1 (3- or 4-ounce) link fresh Mexican chorizo
1/3 cup cooked chickpeas, preferably homemade, rinsed and drained
4 or 5 leaves kale, stripped from the stem and torn into bite-size pieces

1. Pour the soup base into a small saucepan over medium heat. Whisk in ½ cup of the water and cook until the soup is bubbling hot, 3 to 4 minutes. Add more water if you want the soup thinner. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and keep it hot.

2. Heat a medium skillet over medium-high heat. Slice through the chorizo casing and squeeze the sausage into the skillet (or cut into small pieces). Cook, breaking it up with a spoon, until the chorizo’s fat starts to melt, 1 to 2 minutes. Add the chickpeas and cook until the chorizo and chickpeas brown, 4 to 6 minutes. Add the kale and stir-fry until the kale wilts slightly, brightens in color, and gets a few crunchy edges, 2 to 5 minutes.

3. Pour the soup base into a soup bowl, top with the chorizo mixture, and eat.

Sweet Potato Soup Base
from Serve Yourself by Joe Yonan
makes about 4 cups

2 (10- to 12-ounce) sweet potatoes
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 carrots, peeled and thinly sliced
1 celery stalk, thinly sliced
1 small leek, white and pale greens, thinly sliced
2 sprigs thyme
Kosher or sea salt
Pinch of curry powder
2 cups light chicken or vegetable stock, warmed

1. Preheat the oven to 425°F.

2. Use a fork or sharp knife to prick the sweet potatoes in several places. Place on a piece of aluminum foil
and bake until the sweet potatoes are tender and can be easily squeezed, 60 to 75 minutes.
(Alternatively, to speed up the process, microwave the pricked sweet potatoes on High for 1 minute,
then carefully transfer to the oven on a piece of foil. Bake until the potatoes are tender, 30 to 45
minutes.)

3. Pour the oil into a 3-quart saucepan over medium heat. When it starts to shimmer, add the carrots,
celery, leek, thyme, and a pinch of salt. Stir to combine well, then decrease the heat to low, cover the
pot, and allow the vegetables to sweat in their own juices until very soft, 10 to 15 minutes. (Take care
not to allow the vegetables to burn.)

4. Scrape into the saucepan the soft flesh from the roasted sweet potatoes, add the curry powder, and stir
to combine, mashing the sweet potato flesh with a spoon. The mixture will be chunky. Stir in the stock
and combine well. Bring the mixture to a boil, then decrease the heat so the mixture gently simmers, and
cook, covered but with the lid slightly ajar, for about 15 minutes to let the flavors meld. Allow the mixture
to cool slightly, then remove and discard the thyme.

5. Use a handheld immersion blender to puree the soup base, which will be very thick. (Alternatively, you
can puree it in a blender or food processor. If using a blender, be sure to remove the center cap on the
lid and cover with a dish towel to let steam escape, and work in small batches to avoid splattering the
soup.) Taste and add salt if needed.

6. Let the soup base cool to room temperature. Divide it into 4 portions and use immediately, refrigerate
for up to 2 weeks, or freeze in small containers or heavy-duty freezer-safe resealable plastic bags,
pressing as much air out of the bag as possible before sealing. It will keep frozen for several months.

Mexican Beans with Chorizo and Greens

My trip to Cilantro last Friday inspired me to crack open my Rick Bayless cookbooks again and look for a recipe to try this week. As with most of my cookbooks, Post-It notes are peeking out, marking part of my endless queue of recipes. I opted to find a recipe out of Mexican Everyday instead of Authentic Mexican; the latter has recipes better for long days in the kitchen on the weekend instead of quick weeknight dinners.

This hearty dish is somewhere between a soup and a stew, but isn't too heavy for a summer dinner. Chorizo, like bacon, lends a lot of flavor to a dish even when you only add a small amount. Choose a chorizo with a spice palate you enjoy. If you don't like things spicy, only add one chipotle en adobo; I added two because I love hot food. To make this dish vegetarian, saute onions and garlic in a little olive oil in lieu of the chorizo. The next time I make this dish I may add some chopped onions and garlic (while still using chorizo), although this dish quite wonderful just the way it is.

Mexican Beans with Chorizo and Greens
Frijoles con Chorizo y Espinacas o Acelgas

serves 4
from Mexican Everyday by Rick Bayless

8 to 12 oz. fresh Mexican chorizo sausage, casing removed
10 oz. cleaned young spinach (about 10 cups) OR one 12-ounce bunch Swiss chard, thick lower stems cut off, leaves sliced crosswise into 1/2-inch strips (about 8 cups)
Two 15-ounce cans black beans, drained OR 3.5 c. home-cooked black beans, drained
1 to 2 canned chipotle chiles en adobo, stemmed, seeded, and finely chopped
Salt
1/2 c. crumbled Mexican queso fresco or other fresh cheese such as feta or goat cheese
1/2 c. chopped green onions or thin-sliced red onion, for garnish

1. In a medium-large (4- to 6-quart; 10- to 12-inch-diameter) heavy pot, preferably a Dutch oven, cook the chorizo over medium heat, stirring regularly and breaking up clumps, until lightly browned and thoroughly done, about 8 to 10 minutes.

2. While the chorizo is cooking, place the spinach or Swiss chard in a microwaveable bowl, cover with plastic wrap, poke a few holes in the top and microwave on high (100%) until completely wilted, usually about 2 minutes for spinach, 3 minutes or so for the Swiss chard. (If your spinach comes in a microwaveable bag, simply microwave it in the bag). Uncover the bowl (or open the bag) and set aside.

3. When the chorizo is ready, add the beans, chopped chipotles and 1.5 cups water. Simmer for 5 to 10 minutes to blend the flavors. Taste and season with salt, usually about 1/2 teaspoon, depending on the saltiness of the chorizo and beans. Add the wilted and greens and let the mixture return to a boil.

4. Ladle into bowls and serve, passing the cheese and onion for each person to add al gusto.

Chorizo Pizza

I was inspired to make a "Mexican" pizza by this recipe in July issue Food and Wine. I almost called this Mexican pizza too, but I just couldn't bring myself to put that name on something so not Mexican, even if it does use ingredients common in Mexican cooking. My pizza is a bit reminiscent of a the black bean and chorizo tortas I made a while back. Chorizo is as prevalent in Mexico as bacon is here, and like bacon, it makes everything better.

Pizza is one of the best ways to get creative in the kitchen, especially if you're not particularly culinarily-inclined. I've had big success with nontraditional pizzas like this one and Smoked Salmon and Asparagus pizza. Pizzas are a great weeknight dinner which can be healthy or indulgent, traditional or adventurous, simple or labor-intensive, and are infinitely customizable to individual taste.

Chorizo Pizza

1 c. canned black beans, rinsed and drained
1/2 c. roughly chopped roasted red pepper
2 cloves garlic
2-3 t. chili powder, depending on personal taste
Salt
One 12-inch whole wheat pizza crust
One 4- to 5-ounce piece chorizo
1/2 c. fresh or frozen corn or canned corn, rinsed and drained
1/4 c. chopped white onion
3/4 c. shredded sharp cheddar cheese
Salsa, sour cream, and hot sauce (such as Tapatio), for topping (optional)

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (or as directed on pizza crust package). Place black beans, roasted red peppers, garlic, and chili powder in a food processor and process to desired consistency, depending on how you like your pizza sauce. Add salt to taste. Spread evenly over crust.

 2. Slice chorizo into approx. 1/2-inch thick slices (or thicker, if you want). Cook in a skillet over medium heat until both sides are seared and chorizo is cooked through. Drain on paper towels and blot away excess grease. Cut larger slices in half, if desired. Distribute evenly over pizza.

3. Sprinkle corn and chopped onion evenly over pizza. Top with shredded cheese.

4. Bake pizza for 12 to 14 minutes, or as directed on crust package, until cheese is melted and starting to brown. Top with salsa, sour cream, or hot sauce if desired. Cut into 8 slices.

Crusty Black Bean-Chorizo Subs

I LOVE chorizo. It's basically the bacon of Mexico, so it's no small wonder that I happen to adore it. Just a little bit adds a huge amount of flavor to a recipe and there are seemingly endless varieties. It's readily available in most grocery stores; both Johnsonville and Klement's make chorizo, as well as a number of other companies.

Crusty Black Bean-Chorizo Subs (Tortas de Chorizo y Frijoles Negros)
from Mexican Everyday by Rick Bayless

8 oz. fresh Mexican chorizo sausage, casing removed (about 1 cup)
3 to 4 T. vegetable or olive oil (divided use)
Two 15-ounce cans black (or other) beans OR 3.5 c. home-cooked black beans (or other beans), with just enough liquid to cover them
Salt
4 telera or bolillo rolls, crusty French rolls or submarine sandwich rolls
About 6 oz. Mexican queso fresco or other fresh cheese such as feta or goat cheese, sliced 1/4-inch thick
1 ripe avocado, pitted, flesh scooped from the skin and cut into 1/4-inch slices
About 3/4 c. roasted tomatillo salsa, or bottle hot sauce, such as Mexican Tamazula or Bufalo

1. Set a very large (12-inch) skillet over medium heat and add the chorizo. Cook, breaking up the clumps, until browned and thoroughly cooked, about 8 to 9 minutes. Add 1 to 2 tablespoons of the oil (depending on how much the chorizo has rendered) and the beans. As the beans come to a simmer, mash them to a smooth paste with a Mexican bean masher, old-fashioned potato masher or the back of a large cooking spoon. Cook, stirring nearly constantly, until the consistency of very soft mashed potatoes-expect about 10 minutes after adding the beans. Taste and season with salt if you think necessary. Keep warm over the lowest heat, covered to keep the beans soft and moist.

2. Heat a large griddle or skillet over medium. Slice the rolls open. Use fingers or a spoon t scrape out some of the soft bread in the center of each half, making a small hollow. Brush the insides with the remaining 2 tablespoons oil, then lay them cut side down on the griddle or skillet to crisp to a rich golden brown, about 2 minutes. (You may have to do this in batches if your rolls are large or your griddle/skillet small.)

3.  Smear about 1/2 cup of the chorizo-bean mixture over the bottom half of each rolls. (You'll have about 1 cup of the mixture left over; cover and refrigerate for a midnight snack.) Top with slices of the cheese and the avocado. Spoon on the salsa or dash on the hot sauce. Set the top of each roll in place, and you're ready to serve.