Creamy Carrot Soup

Today, in most parts of the U.S., is just another Friday.  But here, in Louisville, KY (and well, most parts of Kentucky in general) it's more like a holiday!  What "holiday" you ask?!  Why it's Kentucky Derby weekend!  Louisville seriously gets their party on.  Most places of employment have a 4 day weekend (or others just make sure to ask for the days off!).  Celebrities come into town and all that jazz.  All for a couple of horse races that take maybe 2 minutes to finish!  But you know, I don't think it's really all about the horse races (although it is tradition) more than it is about getting all dressed up and drinking.

And the hats!  When most people think of the Kentucky Derby, I think a Derby hat is one of the first things that come to mind! 

While I won't be donning a Derby hat this year (nor have I ever) I'll be spending today at Churchill Downs for the Oaks - sipping Mint Juleps and looking as good as I can (seriously, my dress is hella cute!) and hopefully meeting up with some friends!  My sister has offered to give us a ride down there (she's freakin' awesome!) and hopefully we'll end up finding a ride back home, too - so no worries of being unsafe!

Anyway, we've got a Derby party to attend to on Saturday and I need to bring something with me!  So help me out and vote in this week's poll!



This is not really a Derby recipe, but I was really in the mood for soup, so soup it is!


Ingredients:
Adapted from The Meaning of Pie's recipe

1 small onion, diced
2 ribs of celery, chopped
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
5 large carrots, peeled and sliced
1 white potato, cubed
4 cups chicken broth
1 to 2 teaspoons hot sauce (like Tabasco or Sriracha) 
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
3 bay leaves
1 teaspoon sugar
Salt and Pepper
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 cup milk

In a large Dutch oven, melt the butter under medium high heat.  Add onions and celery and cook until softened, about 5 minutes.

Add in carrots, potatoes, and chicken broth.  Simmer for about 5 minutes or so.

Stir in Tabasco, Worcestershire sauce, bay leaves, sugar, salt, pepper, and cayenne.  Let simmer on medium to medium low for about 30 minutes.

Remove bay leaves and blend up soup with an immersion blender until you reach your desired consistency.  Slowly stir in the milk until incorporated.  Ladle soup into bowls and serve with a drizzle of olive oil and garnish with croutons.

This was a quick one-pot meal that was a really tasty lunch!  Now, if you'll excuse me - I'm heading to the Oaks!  Have a great weekend guys!

Pan Seared Salmon With French Green Lentils

How was everyone's weekend? Our weekend was pretty eventful, despite the heat. We went to one of our favorite Cuban restaurants, Havana Rumba. Sad to say, we didn't have a very pleasant experience. It's always busy, so we expected a wait. So we waited... and waited... and finally, after seeing couples and groups have their buzzer go off before us, when they came well after us... Andy decided to check on the status of when we would get seated. Come to find out, we were mistakenly skipped. (insert big sigh here)... So they seat us right away. Well, then we order and Andy always gets the "Vaca Fritas"... everyone knows what vaca fritas are right? Well, it's shredded beef that's flash fried with onions and peppers. What comes to the table? A marinated steak. NOT vaca fritas. Does Andy send it back? No, because we weren't about to cause a scene. We're not THOSE people. But sorry Havana Rumba... we probably won't be visiting again for quite some time.

Has anyone ever had any experiences like that? You've ALWAYS had consistent service at a place, and loved everything about them, until one night of service and/or food just ruins it all? It's just a bummer, that's all. We've been on a string of Friday nights where we've gone to some of our favorite places and they've just failed to deliver. Or maybe our palates have just grown too snobby to like what we once did? We're the ones that have changed, not the restaurants. Maybe? For right now, I'll leave that decision at a draw. It could be a little bit of both.

Now on to today's recipe, which is so simple, yet so flavorful. And yes, this was my first time ever cooking with lentils. I can't believe I've never used them before!

Ingredients:
Adapted from Korean American Mommy's Blog

1 cup French green lentils
2 tablespoons olive oil, plus extra for rubbing salmon
1 onion, chopped
1 leek, white and light green parts only, chopped
1 teaspoon dried thyme
salt and pepper to taste
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 celery ribs, chopped
2 carrots, peeled and chopped
1 cup chicken stock
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
2 8 oz. salmon fillets, skin on

In a medium heat proof bowl, add the lentils and cover with boiling water. Let sit for about 15-20 minutes. Drain, and set aside.

In a large skillet, add 2 tablespoons of olive oil and add onions, leeks, thyme, salt, and pepper. Saute for about 10 minutes, or until onions start to soften.

Add the garlic and stir until fragrant, about 1 minute or two. Add celery, carrots, chicken stock, lentils, and tomato paste. Stir until tomato paste is well incorporated and cover. Stirring occasionally, simmer for about 20-25 minutes, or until lentils are tender. Slowly stir in the vinegar until you reach the desired taste. Set aside.

Preheat oven to 450 F.

Heat a large oven-proof skillet over high heat. Rub both sides of salmon fillet with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. If you want a crispier skin of the salmon, make about 2-3 diagonal scores on the skin before you add it to skillet. This will create less surface area to heat and allow for the skin to crisp up faster.

Place salmon fillets, skin side down, in the skillet and cook for about 2-3 minutes, or until skin is browned. Carefully flip each fillet over and transfer skillet to oven for about 5 minutes, or until pink throughout. (I'd never cooked salmon this way either, I usually just use that method for steaks, but was pleasantly surprised that the salmon came out PERFECT doing this)

Serve the salmon over a mound of the lentil mixture and dig in!

I definitely loved this recipe. It came together in no time, and was definitely light and filling. Enjoy!