Cook Like a Top Chef at Home

Roasted Tomato and Barley Soup

These days, people are making fewer visits to their favorite restaurants opting, instead, to dine at home. Inspired by cookbooks and television programs, such as Bravo’s “Top Chef,” home cooks are getting increasingly more creative in the kitchen. And with a greater array of kitchen helpers and chefs’ own trusted shortcuts available in grocery stores, it’s never been easier to cook like a top chef at home. For example, Swanson chicken broth is a pantry essential that adds rich, delicious flavor to everyday culinary creations.Here are some great recipes to try, inspired by a recent Quickfire Challenge on “Top Chef.”

Thai Roasted Squash Soup is a sweet and spicy dish, infused with flavors of coconut, curry, fresh ginger and cilantro. For a rustic dish that pairs beautifully with a variety of main courses, try Roasted Tomato and Barley Soup.

Roasted Tomato and Barley Soup

Prep: 10 minutes  Cook: 40 minutes  Bake: 25 minutes  Serves: 8

1    can (about 28 ounces) diced tomatoes, undrained

2    large onions, diced (about 2 cups)

2    cloves garlic, minced

2    tablespoons olive oil

4    cups Swanson Chicken Broth (Regular, Natural Goodness or Certified Organic)

2    stalks celery, diced (about 1 cup)

1/2 cup uncooked pearl barley

2    tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

1.   Heat oven to 425°F. Drain tomatoes, reserving the juice. Place the tomatoes, onions and garlic into a 17 x 11-inch roasting pan. Pour the oil over the vegetables and toss to coat. Roast for 25 minutes.

2.   Place the roasted vegetables into a 3-quart saucepan. Stir in the reserved tomato juice, broth, celery and barley and heat to a boil. Reduce the heat to low. Cover and cook for 35 minutes or until the barley is tender. Stir in the parsley.

Chilled White Asparagus Soup With Tuna and Olive Tapenade and Brioche is the recipe that won Chef Leah Cohen her first Quickfire Challenge. To save time in the kitchen, feel free to substitute store-bought ingredients instead of making all of the components from scratch. For Leah’s recipe, purchase prepared tapenade from the supermarket. Another option is to make this Roasted Asparagus and Shrimp Soup With Parmesan Cheese Croutons recipe. 

Chilled White Asparagus Soup With Tuna and Olive Tapenade and Brioche

Prep and Cook: About 50 minutes   Serves: 4 to 5

White Asparagus Soup

2    tablespoons butter

2    shallots

2    bunches white asparagus, cut into 1-inch pieces

1/2 cup Swanson chicken broth

1/2 cup cream

1    lime

Pinch cayenne

Salt to taste

1.   Heat up butter, add shallots and white asparagus. Sweat.

2.   Add chicken broth and cook until tender.

3.   Blend in a blender or food processor; pass through fine strainer.

4.   Add cream and chill in ice bath.

5.   Once soup is chilled, finish with salt, lime juice and cayenne.

Olive Tapenade

Nicoise olives, minced

3    tablespoons chives, minced

Juice of half a lemon, plus zest

1/4 cup olive oil

Brioche

Brioche bread loaf

Butter

Oil

Garlic

Thyme

1.   Punch out a round piece of brioche about 2 inches thick.

2.   Toast round piece of brioche in butter and oil.

3.   Add garlic and thyme at the end.

4.   Cook until crunchy.

Plating

1.   Place white asparagus soup in a bowl.

2.   Add round piece of brioche.

3.   Put thin slice of tuna punched out with the same ring cutter as the brioche.

4.   Plate a little tapenade on top of tuna, then lay another piece of punched out tuna on top, creating a sandwich.

5.   Make a small salad of wild baby arugula, lemon juice and olive oil.

6.   Place salad on top of tuna.

7.   Sprinkle a little smoked paprika around the white asparagus soup for garnish.

Roasted Asparagus and Shrimp Soup With Parmesan Cheese Croutons

Prep: 15 minutes

Bake: 25 minutes

Cook: 20 minutes

Serves: 4

1    pound thin asparagus spears, cut into 2-inch pieces (about 4 cups)

2    large tomatoes, peeled, seeded and diced (about 1 1/2 cups)

1    small sweet onion, chopped (about 1/2 cup)

2    cloves garlic, chopped

2    tablespoons olive oil

4    cups Swanson Chicken Broth (Regular, Natural Goodness or Certified Organic)

1    pound cooked shrimp, peeled, deveined and coarsely chopped

4    slices Pepperidge Farm Parmesan Texas Toast

1.   Heat oven to 425°F. Place asparagus, tomatoes, onion and garlic into a 17 x 11-inch roasting pan. Pour oil over vegetables and toss to coat. Bake for 25 minutes or until vegetables are tender.

2.   Heat broth in a 3-quart saucepan over high heat to a boil. Add vegetables and shrimp. Cook until the mixture is hot and bubbling. Season to taste.

3.   Prepare toast slices according to package directions. Cut into bite-size pieces. Divide soup mixture among 4 serving bowls and top with toast pieces.

Thai Roasted Squash Soup

Prep: 35 minutes  Bake: 25 minutes  Cook: 25 minutes  Serves: 6

2    tablespoons vegetable oil

2    teaspoons curry powder

1    butternut squash, peeled, seeded and cut into 2-inch pieces (about 6 cups)

1    large sweet onion, cut into eighths

1    tablespoon chopped fresh ginger root

3    cups Swanson Chicken Broth (Regular, Natural Goodness or Certified Organic)

1    can (15 ounces) cream of coconut

3    tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro  leaves

1.   Heat oven to 425°F.

2.   Stir oil and curry in a large bowl. Add squash and onions and toss to coat. Spread vegetables onto a 17 x 11-inch roasting pan.

3.   Bake for 25 minutes until vegetables are golden brown, stirring occasionally.

4.   Heat vegetables, ginger, broth and cream of coconut in a 4-quart saucepan over medium-high heat to a boil. Reduce heat to low. Cook for 20 minutes or until vegetables are tender.

5.   Spoon 1/3 of the vegetable mixture into an electric blender or food processor. Cover and blend until smooth. Pour mixture into a large bowl. Repeat blending process twice more with remaining vegetable mixture. Return all of the pureed mixture to the saucepan. Cook over medium heat until mixture is hot. Season to taste. Divide soup among 6 serving bowls. Sprinkle with cilantro.

Visit www.swansonbroth.com and www.bravotv.com for more chef-inspired recipes and tips.

Article courtesy of Family Features