Fiddlehead And Saffron Soup Recipes

SAFFRON CHICKEN NOODLE SOUP

Steps:

• Place chicken, leek, celery, carrot thirds (not sliced carrots), parsley sprigs, bay leaf, saffron, peppercorns, and 1 tablespoon salt in a large pot. Add enough water to cover completely (about 14 cups). Bring to a boil, then skim foam from surface; reduce heat to low and gently simmer until chicken is cooked through, 25 minutes.
• Remove chicken; continue simmering broth while you discard skin and remove meat from bones. Cover meat and refrigerate; return bones to pot and simmer 2 1/2 to 3 hours more.
• Strain broth through a fine-mesh sieve into a clean pot; discard solids, including bones. (You should have about 7 cups broth.) Skim fat. Add sliced carrots and celery to pot and bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer until vegetables are very tender, about 25 minutes.
• Meanwhile, cook egg noodles in a pot of salted boiling water according to package directions; drain. Shred or cut some of reserved chicken to yield 3 cups of bite-size pieces (save extra for salads or sandwiches) and add to broth with noodles; season to taste. Simmer until heated through, about 2 minutes; serve with parsley leaves.

CREAM OF FIDDLEHEAD SOUP

Steps:

• Melt butter in a large pot over medium-high heat until foamy, about 1 minute. Stir in onion and garlic; cook and stir until onion has softened and turned translucent, about 5 minutes. Stir in flour and cook, stirring constantly, for 2 minutes.
• Pour 4 cups chicken stock into the onion mixture, and bring to a full boil; stir in fiddleheads, carrot, and potato. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until vegetables are tender, about 30 minutes.
• Blend soup until smooth with a hand blender. Stir in cream; cook and stir until heated through, about 5 minutes. Taste soup, and stir in Worcestershire sauce and soy sauce. If you prefer a thinner soup, add additional chicken stock up to 2 cups. Season with salt and pepper. Garnish with Cheddar cheese.

FIDDLEHEAD AND SAFFRON SOUP

Steps:

• Trim the fiddleheads and wash by rinsing in a sink of cold water up to 4 times. Drain. Cook in a pot of boiling salted water until tender, about 10 minutes. Drain and immediately plunge into a basin of ice-water to set the color and stop the cooking. Drain, and set aside.
• Heat the chicken stock with the saffron to boiling. Turn off the heat. In a bowl, beat together the yolks and lemon juice. Whisk a ladleful of the hot stock over the yolk mixture. Add another. Then whisk the egg mixture back into the stock. Stir in the cream. Taste and adjust the seasonings. Add the fiddleheads and gently reheat, without boiling. Serve. Cook's Note: If it boils, it will curdle.

JERUSALEM ARTICHOKE SOUP WITH LEMON AND SAFFRON

Steps:

• Using a heavy casserole with a cover, saute the onions in the olive oil over low heat, covered, about 20 minutes. Uncover, add garlic and the artichokes, and increase heat. Continue to saute for a few more minutes. Add the chicken broth and salt and pepper, to taste. Bring to a boil and simmer, covered, for 30 minutes. Grind the almonds in a spice grinder and mix with the water. Whisk the mixture into the soup along with with saffron strands and the lemon juice. Reheat, sprinkle parsley on top, and serve.

FIDDLEHEAD FERNS

Steps:

• Before you're ready to cook cut about 1/8-inch off the thick ends if they look brown and rinse the fern shoots thoroughly to get rid of the brown fuzzy chaff that clings to their sides. Dry the shoots thoroughly before cooking by first spinning them in a lettuce spinner and then patting them with paper towels. Melt butter in a pan at medium heat. Add garlic, parsley and fiddleheads to the pan. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Saute for 5 minutes or until they are done.

FIDDLEHEAD FERNS

Steps:

• Clean the fiddleheads by snipping off the tough 1/8-inch at the bottom and any stray coarse tips visible. Wash the ferns in cold water. Bring 2 quarts water to a boil and add a teaspoon salt. Add the fiddleheads to the boiling water, return to the boil and cook for 2 to 3 minutes or just until tender. Drain the boiling water and refresh the ferns in ice water. Drain and pat dry the ferns.
• In a large saute pan, heat the butter over medium heat. As the butter begins to bubble, add the dry, blanched fiddleheads and saute for 2 minutes. Add the lemon juice, season with salt and pepper and serve immediately.

"CREAMY" FIDDLEHEAD SOUP

Steps:

• In a large heavy bottom saucepan, sauté onion in butter or oil until soft but not brown, about 5 minutes. Add potatoes, fiddleheads, bay leaf, and enough chicken stock to make the vegetables just swim.
• Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and barely simmer, partially covered, for one hour. Remove from heat and cool slightly. Remove bay leaf.
• In a blender, process mixture in batches. (Can be prepared to this point a day or two ahead of time. Cool, cover and refrigerate.).
• Return mixture to saucepan and slowly bring to a simmer, stirring frequently. Add milk, a little at a time, until it reaches the consistency you like. Add salt and pepper to taste. Serve in heated soup bowls, garnish as desired.

FIDDLEHEAD FERN SOUP

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat.
• Add the fiddleheads, return to a boil and cook until they are almost tender and turn pale green, 5 to 8 minutes.
• Drain and rinse with cold water.
• Coarsely chop and reserve.
• Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat.
• Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until they become translucent, about 5 minutes.
• Add the fiddleheads and chicken stock.
• Stir, increase the heat to medium-high and bring to a gentle boil.
• Cover and cook until the fiddleheads are thoroughly tender, about 5 minutes.
• Add the milk, reduce the heat to medium, and heat until nearly boiling.
• Do not let the soup boil or the milk will curdle.
• Stir in the lemon zest and season the soup to taste with salt and pepper.
• Divide the soup into four bowls, garnish with paprika and serve immediately.

FIDDLEHEAD SOUP

Steps:

• In a large saucepan, cook the fiddleheads, mushrooms, leeks and onions in butter until the onions are tender, about 4 minutes. , Stir in the flour, salt and cayenne. Gradually add the milk and broth, stirring until blended. Bring to a gentle boil; cook and stir for 10 minutes or until thickened. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, for 10 minutes or until heated through. Stir in lemon juice.