La Madeleine's Tomato Basil Soup

I can't believe I have never posted this recipe. It is one of my favorite soups. I've served it several times and it rivals La Madeleine's version with more work but less expense. Serve it with fresh bread, cheese and wine and you will be dining in fine French style. 

Ingredients:

Servings: 8

• 4 cups fresh tomatoes, cored, peeled, and chopped (8-10) or 4 cups canned whole tomatoes, crushed
• 4 cups tomato juice (or part vegetable or part chicken stock)
• 12 -14 basil leaves, washed fresh
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 1/4 lb sweet unsalted butter
• salt
• 1/4 teaspoon cracked black pepper
• lemon juice (optional) 
• few drops of red food color

Directions:

Prep Time: 15 mins

Total Time: 1 hr

1. Combine tomatoes, juice/and or stock in saucepan.
2. Simmer 30 minutes.
3. Puree, along with the basil leaves, in small batches, in blender, food processor (or better yet, one of those handy hand-held food blenders, right in the cooking pan). Return to saucepan and add cream and butter, while stirring, over low heat. Garnish with basil leaves, and add a few drops of red food color to enhance appearance.

Kids and Politics

This current political season offers a great opportunity for you to engage your children in the political process. Voter turnout and grassroots participation in politics has been waning for decades. Parents need to explain the political process to kids if we have any hopes of maintaining our democratic way of life.

Seven Suggestions for Developing Future Voters

1. Set a good example. If your children see you voting, they'll be more likely to follow your lead when they are older. Take them to the polls with you (if they are old enough), so they can see you vote and see how the process works.

2. Talk about news stories. Use dinner time to engage in a little old-fashioned political debate.

3. Ask your kids who they would vote for and why? You might get some interesting answers.

4. Mention the political ads and signs when you're driving in the car. Discuss how the signs got there (volunteerism) and why do people display their support in this way.

5. Volunteer yourself to help with campaign efforts. If the task is simple, let you kids help out.

6. Talk to your children about why voting is an important responsibility in our country.

7. When discussion get heated either in your own home or in the media, talk to your children about civility and respecting other people's positions--even when they are different from your own. Civil discussion is lacking in modern society, so teaching children that the discussion are great, but that they need to be done with respect will help the democratic process for years to come.

Chicken Velvet Soup

We have a local restaurant, La Fiesta Patio Cafe, that serves amazing soups. One of my favorites is their Chicken Velvet Soup. One of my friends tried the recipe I found which was a close approximation, but still not quite as good. Here is the recipe she used:

Chicken Velvet Soup

6 T. Butter
1/3 c. flour
1/2 c. milk
1/2 c. light cream
3. c. chicken broth
1-1/2 c. finely chopped, cooked chicken

Melt butter in saucepan. Blend in flour; add milk, cream and broth. Cook and stir until mixture thickens and comes to a boil. Reduce heat. Stir in chicken and a dash of pepper. Heat again to just boiling. Serve immediately. Serves 4.

I added a dash of Melting Pot's Garlic and Wine seasoning to it, which was not like the original, but very flavorful. If anyone has a better or different Chicken Velvet Soup that may be closer to Patio Cafe's soup, please feel free to post your recipe. Enjoy!