All about broth

(ARA) - Cooler weather, warm coats and the approaching holidays - it's the season when heartier, warmth-building fare arrives on American dinner tables. And heartier fare cries out for the rich flavorful versatility of broth!

Whether you're looking to enhance your holiday fare or simply seeking hearty cuisine to carry your family through the winter months, broth can be your best friend in the kitchen.

"Weeknight family meal or a weekend soiree, the secret to an easy, fantastic meal isn't in the sauce, it's in the pantry - and it's broth," says Chef Michael Chiarello, the culinary genius behind Bottega restaurant in the Napa Valley and an Emmy-winning TV chef who appears on Food Network and Bravo.

Chiarello has teamed with Progresso to create a series of videos on how to use broth to enhance your cooking. "I am a big advocate for using broth to ramp up the flavor and depth of your dishes, but it can't be just any broth. It has to have great flavor," says Chiarello. "Progresso is my choice for rich flavor - the kind of flavor that will take any dish from average to amazing."

Here are some of Chef Chiarello's top tips for how you can use broth to turn ordinary dishes into extraordinary ones:

1. Just baste it.

Who hasn't watched the turkey slowly dry out while waiting for enough natural jus to collect in the bottom of the pan for a reasonable run at basting? Don't wait for the juices to cook out of the meat, begin basting right away with broth. "It's impossible to over-baste," Chiarello says. "Baste chicken, turkey, pork or beef with broth as it roasts and your main dish will come out juicy and delicious every time."

2. New life for leftovers

Refrigerators can steal moisture from the most succulent meal. Before you reheat last night's pasta or casserole, drizzle a little broth over it to rehydrate and add flavor.

3. When you're out of wine

If a pan sauce calls for wine and your pantry happens to be "dry" that day - or you prefer to cook without it - you can easily replace wine with broth. It's the perfect substitute, imparting rich flavor without the cost of wine.

4. Stuffing that won't stop

Stuffing can be just so-so. Using broth to moisten the bread crumbs pushes your stuffing over the edge when you're making your favorite stuffing recipe.

5. Mashed potatoes to the max

Replace milk and butter with broth to boost the flavor of your mashed potatoes - and reduce the calorie count. Cook potatoes in broth, save the broth when you strain the potatoes and add it back in when mashing until you achieve the perfect consistency.

6. Perfect pasta

Cook pasta risotto in chicken broth for a delectable treat. The broth has all the benefits of water as a cooking medium, plus it adds the great flavor of chicken broth to your pasta.

Broth adds flavor and depth to any recipe so it's a great base for soups. Here are two of Chef Chiarello's favorite recipes that rely on broth:

Very green broccoli soup

Prep time: 50 minutes
Start to finish: 50 minutes

Soup ingredients

1 1/2 pounds fresh broccoli
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 tablespoon finely chopped garlic
1 cup finely chopped onion
1/2 cup finely chopped celery
Gray salt
2 teaspoons finely chopped fresh thyme leaves
5 cups Progresso chicken broth (from two 32-ounce cartons)
2 cups packed fresh spinach leaves
2 teaspoons freshly grated lemon peel
1 cup whipping cream or buttermilk (if using buttermilk, use 1 teaspoon lemon peel)
Freshly ground pepper

Gremolata ingredients

1/4 cup Progresso panko crispy bread crumbs
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
2 tablespoons pine nuts, toasted

Directions:

Cut broccoli florets from stems. Peel tough outer skin from stems; trim off fibrous ends. Cut stems into 1/2-inch pieces.

In four-quart Dutch oven, heat oil and butter over medium-high heat until butter is melted. Add garlic; cook, stirring occasionally, until light brown. Stir in onion and celery; season with salt. Reduce heat to medium-low; cook about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are tender.

Meanwhile, in small bowl, stir together gremolata ingredients; set aside.
Stir thyme, broccoli stems and broth into soup. Heat to boiling. Cook uncovered over medium heat about three minutes. Stir in broccoli florets; cook about seven minutes, stirring occasionally, until broccoli is very tender. Stir in spinach and lemon peel (spinach will wilt).

In blender, cover and puree soup in small batches. (At this point, soup can be covered and refrigerated up to one day or frozen up to one month.) Return soup to Dutch oven; reheat over medium-low heat. Stir in cream; season to taste with additional salt and the pepper.

Ladle soup into warm individual soup bowls. Sprinkle one tablespoon gremolata onto each serving. Pass remaining gremolata at table.

Serves eight.

Spinach Arancini
Prep time: Ninety minutes
Start to finish: Three hours

Ingredients
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 small onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
3/4 cup uncooked Arborio rice
1/2 cup dry white wine
2 cups Progresso reduced-sodium chicken broth (from 32-ounce carton), heated
Freshly ground pepper to taste
1 cup chopped fresh spinach leaves
1 tablespoon butter
1/2 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
4 ounces mozzarella cheese, cut into 24 1/2-inch cubes
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups Progresso Italian style panko crispy bread crumbs
1 egg
1 tablespoon water
Vegetable oil for frying

Directions
Line cookie sheet with cooking parchment paper. In three-quart saucepan, heat olive oil over medium-high heat. Add onion; cook about one minute, stirring frequently. Add garlic; cook and stir five minutes. Reduce heat to medium. Stir in rice and wine; cook five to 10 minutes, stirring frequently, until liquid is absorbed. Add one cup broth; cook about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until broth is absorbed. Add remaining one cup broth; cook about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until broth is absorbed.

Season with pepper. Stir in spinach, butter and Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese. Spread onto cookie sheet. Cover with plastic wrap; refrigerate at least 90 minutes or until firm. (Mixture can be refrigerated overnight.) On cookie sheet, shape rice mixture into 12-by-8 inch rectangle. Cut into six rows by four rows to make 24 squares. Place one mozzarella cheese cube in center of each square; shape rice around cheese cubes to make balls.

Place flour and bread crumbs in separate bowls. In another bowl, beat egg and water until blended. Coat each ball with flour, then dip into egg mixture and coat with bread crumbs. Place coated balls on unlined cookie sheet; refrigerate 30 minutes.

Line platter or shallow pan with paper towels. In four-quart Dutch oven, heat about two inches of vegetable oil to 350 F. Fry eight balls at a time three to four minutes, turning once, until golden brown. With slotted spoon, remove balls from Dutch oven to towel-lined platter to drain. Serve hot.

For more great broth recipes, a copy of a new recipe book, tips and videos, visit www.ProgressoBroth.com.

Courtesy of ARAcontent

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General Mills Issues Voluntary Class One Recall Involving One Day’s Production of Progresso Hearty Tomato Soup

General Mills is voluntarily recalling a single day's production of Progresso Hearty Tomato soup because of a product labeling issue. Product produced on this date may have been mislabeled, and may contain allergens not listed on the ingredient label, specifically egg, milk, and soy.

There have been no reports of allergic reactions or illnesses associated with this product, however, the possibility of unlabeled allergens makes this a Class One recall.

This voluntary recall includes only 19-ounce Progresso Hearty Tomato soup with the following code date printed on the bottom of the can:

19May10 NV VN-3

A production error resulted in a limited number of cases of Progresso Light Vegetable and Noodle soup being mislabeled as Progresso Hearty Tomato soup. Mislabeled cans have the code date 19May10 NV VN-3 on the bottom of the can, but are mislabeled as Progresso Hearty Tomato soup.

The mislabeled soups contain a product that is visibly different from the soup depicted on the label. Rather than containing Progresso Hearty Tomato soup, a mislabeled can would actually contain Progresso Light Vegetable and Noodle soup. Consumers allergic to egg, milk or soy products, or who are unsure of whether they are allergic to egg, milk or soy products, should not consume product with a Progresso Hearty Tomato label bearing the code date 19May10 NV VN-3 on the bottom of the can, and should contact General Mills for replacement or a full refund.

No other varieties or production dates of Progresso soup are affected by this recall.

Consumers requesting refunds or calling with further questions should contact General Mills Consumer Services at 1-800-200-9377.

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Norwegian Crab Bisque - Great Clam Chowder substitute!

I'm not sure which one of my food-loving fellow contributors left the review of Campbell's Chunky Healthy Request Clam Chowder, but I'm glad you did. I saw it on the shelf and had contemplated trying it. I'll stick to what I know is good thank you very much!

Here's a recipe you might want to try when you're craving clam chowder or fish for that matter. This is a great soup, healthy and fairly low cal. I'm sure you'll be able to make a few modifications to cut back on the calories even further! I substitute clams from the can for the crab for a great tasting clam chowder.

Norwegian Crab Bisque

2 cups water

1 small onion, diced

2 stalks celery, chopped

2 medium potatoes, diced

2 carrots, sliced*

1 cup frozen peas**

6 - 8 whole allspice

1 tsp. dried dill weed

1/2 tsp. white pepper

2 cans (13 ox. each) evaporated skim milk

1 lb. imitation crab***

1 Tbsp. parsley

Dash of tabasco or other hot pepper sauce

Place water, onions, celery, potatoes, carrots, peas, allspice, dill and white pepper in 4-quart saucepan. Bring to boil; reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes. Remove and discard allspice.

Add mile and simmer (do NOT boil). Gently stir in imitation crab. garnish with parsely and tabasco.

Makes 6 servigns. 229 calories, 0.3 gram fat, 629 mg. sodium, 38 mg cholesterol per serving.

*I use the shredded kind in bags as I don't care for large pieces of carrots
** I usually leave these out as a few in my family don't like peas. I like having veggies in it though so I might put some brocoli on occasion. I tried spinach and loved it, but I was the lonely owner of a whole pot of bique as no one else would try it.
***I prefer not to use the imitation crab as it has a distinctive flavor and it has sugar in it. I have substituted clams, shrimp, and/or boneless fish. You need to simmer long enough to make sure the seafood is cooked if you use fresh, something you don't need to worry about with imitation crab. I usually just use frozen cooked shrimp or canned clams so I don't have to worry. However, the flavor is SO much better with fresh. Sometimes I'll precook the fish in the microwave to save a minute or two. I have also made this with scallops, real crab, shrimp and clams all together, for a great seafood gumbo.

The recipe is from "Light-Hearted Seafood - Tasty, Quick, Healthy" by Janis Harsila, R.D. and Evie Hansen. It's from way back in 1989 and was published by the National Seafood Educators, P.O. Box 60006, Richmond Beach, WA 98160 (206-546-6430 is the phone number listed, but who knows if it's still good). I'd suggest doing an Internet search if you're intersted in trying to find a copy.

It's a great little book if you love seafood like I do!

Judy

Cabbage Roll Up

My mouth was watering as I read the recipe for the Onion Pie. It would be delicious using our very own Vidalia onions! I'm most definitely going to try the Corn and Shrimp Soup, too. I have a recipe for Confetti Soup which has a lot of the same ingredients but no shrimp. I may have to toss some seafood into the Confetti Soup to see what that would taste like. I'll share that recipe later since we already have one corn soup in County Cuisine for now.

Here's another idea for a side item to go with the Onion Pie:

Cabbage Roll Ups

1/4 stick butter (or margarine)
1 cup cooked rice (brown rice works well as does regular white rice)
1 large head cabbage
1 1/2 lb. ground round steak
2 Tbsp. minced fresh onion (I usually increase the amount of onions)
1 can tomato sauce OR 1 can tomatoes
garlic salt to taste

Cut around the core of the cabbage and remove. Put head of cabbage into boiling water. As leaves soften, remove and drain. Add cooked rice to raw meat in separate bowl. Saute onions in the butter. Add onions to meat and rice mixture. Mix well by hand; if the mixture feels too dry, add a little bit of the canned tomatoes or sauce.

Holding a cabbage leaf in hand, put a scoop of the meat mixture into center and fold the leaf around it.

Layer in foil lined baking dish. Cover with any remaining cabbage leaves. Pour tomato sauce or tomatoes over the top. Cover tightly with foil and bake at 275 degrees for approximately 2 hours. You'll need to watch it closely as the cabbage will burn. I usually end up adding more tomato sauce.

As a variation you might want to try some of the excellent canned tomato mixes (Italian, Mexican and others).

Putting a little sausage in the mixture (best to cook it just a bit first, although not completely) adds a nice bite.

Happy New Year!
Claire