Spanish Tomato Soup with Roasted Chickpeas

Between the roasted red pepper, smoked paprika, almonds, and parsley, this recipe puts a major Spanish spin on classic tomato soup. After eating it I basically felt like taking a quick spin around the Prado and then catching a bullfight (and you probably know how I feel about bullfights). And this soup is not only very Spanish but also gooood. Like, lick-your-bowl-clean good. And so pretty (see below)! If I don't make this regularly throughout the upcoming cold weather months, I will be surprised.

Spanish Tomato Soup with Roasted Chickpeas
Adapted from Cooking Light

• Red bell pepper, halved lengthwise
• 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
• 8 garlic cloves, roughly chopped, divided
• 1/4 cup heavy whipping cream
• 28-oz can no-salt-added whole peeled tomatoes
• 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika (more to taste)
• Salt and pepper
• 15-oz can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/4 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley
• 2 tablespoons sliced almonds, toasted

Preheat broiler. Discard seeds and membranes from bell pepper; place, skin sides up, on a foil-lined baking sheet. Broil 8 minutes or until blackened. Seal in a bag and let stand 10 minutes. Peel. Reduce oven to 450 F.

Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a saucepan over medium heat. Add 3 garlic cloves; cook 1 minute. Add canned tomatoes (crush them with your hands before adding) and cream; bring to a simmer. Add paprika, a big pinch of salt, and a few grinds of the peppermill. Simmer 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Blend with an immersion blender, or blend in batches in a regular blender. (If using a regular blender, it's safer to let the soup cool for 5-10 minutes first.)

Meanwhile, while soup is simmering, combine 5 garlic cloves and chickpeas in a roasting pan. Drizzle with remaining tablespoon oil, cumin, and a pinch of salt. Toss to combine. Roast at 450 F for 12 minutes, stirring once. Ladle soup into bowls and top evenly with chickpea mixture, parsley, and almonds.

Skillet-Poached Eggs with Braised Peppers and Onions

If you ask anybody what the worst standard interview question is, I'm pretty sure most people would say it's, "What's your greatest weakness?" Ugh, that question sucks. Most people try to come up with an answer that's really a strength (see: "I'm a perfectionist") and it just never works out well. But if you were to ask me, "What's your greatest weakness as a cook?", I have an honest answer for that one. It's impatience.

Let's be real, by the time 7 or 8 o'clock rolls around and I've been working all day and it's time to cook dinner, I am a hungry hungry hippo. I've been known to shave a few minutes off of recipes here and there in the interest of getting food into my stomach faster. Once in a while, though, this approach works out better than expected. Take this skillet-poached egg recipe (which is delicious, by the way): I was feeling super impatient so I took the eggs out of the skillet even though I was sure they weren't done enough. Lo and behold, they ended up being done perfectly -- runny but not too runny, just right for dipping hunks of bread into. Yum.

Skillet-Poached Eggs with Braised Peppers and Onions
From Real Simple

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 3 red bell peppers, sliced
• 2 medium onions, sliced
• 1 14-oz can diced tomatoes
• 1 teaspoon paprika (or smoked paprika if you're feeling crazy)
• Kosher salt and black pepper
• 8 large eggs
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
• Country bread or baguette, for serving

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the bell peppers and onions and cook, stirring often, until beginning to soften, 3 to 5 minutes. Reduce heat to medium, cover, and cook, stirring occasionally, until very tender, 6 to 8 minutes more.

Add the tomatoes (with their juices), paprika, and 1/2 teaspoon each salt and black pepper to the skillet. Cover and simmer until the liquid has thickened slightly, 3 to 5 minutes. Taste and season again as necessary.

Using a spoon, make 8 shallow wells in the vegetables and crack an egg into each. Season each egg with a pinch of salt and a twist of the pepper grinder. Cover and cook over medium heat until the egg whites are set, 2 to 3 minutes. Sprinkle with the parsley and serve with the bread.

Fingerling-Leek Hash with Swiss Chard and Eggs

It's no secret that my favorite meal of the week is brunch. Breakfast food is pretty much the best, and brunch is a legitimate excuse to eat it after you've slept in and enjoyed a lazy morning. But sometimes you've got a busy Sunday planned, and there's just no time for a leisurely brunch. Yesterday was one of those days. I was having a productivity day: morning errands (farmers market, Trader Joe's, buying a printer), followed by a thorough apartment-cleaning, laundry, some afternoon friend time, and lots of basketball watching (even though my brackets are totally busted at this point).

So I missed brunch, but there was a consolation prize in sight: this breakfast-inspired dinner. A lovely springtime potato-leek hash with my favorite seasoning (smoked paprika, yay!) and fried eggs. Perfect with toast, and perfectly acceptable to be eaten in your pajamas at 8pm.

Fingerling-Leek Hash with Swiss Chard and Eggs
From Cooking Light

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 cups sliced leeks (about 2 large)
• 12 ounces fingerling potatoes, cut in half lengthwise (about 4 cups)
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 1/4 teaspoons Spanish smoked paprika, divided
• 1/2 teaspoon salt, divided
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper, divided
• 4 cups thinly sliced trimmed Swiss chard (about 1 bunch)
• 4 large eggs
• 1/4 cup (1 ounce) shredded Gruyere cheese
• Toast, for serving (optional)

Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add oil to pan. Add leek; cook 8 minutes, stirring frequently. Add potatoes and garlic; cook 15 minutes or until potatoes are tender, stirring occasionally. Stir in 1 teaspoon paprika, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Add chard; cook 4 minutes, stirring constantly. Using a spoon, push potato mixture aside to make 4 egg-size spaces. Crack 1 egg into each space; sprinkle remaining paprika, salt, and pepper over eggs. Cover and cook 3 minutes; sprinkle cheese over potato mixture. Cover again and cook 2 more minutes or until egg yolks are lightly set. Serve with toast.

Smoky Split Pea Soup

I'm pretty sure smoked paprika is the most beloved spice in our household. Yeah, there are a lot of other great spices, ones that we can't live without. I'd probably die if I went three days without using cumin, cinnamon, or curry powder. But nothing gets me quite so excited as when I find a new recipe that calls for smoked paprika (and hopefully a squeeze of fresh lemon juice, which just compliments it so well). If you don't have smoked paprika in your home, please do yourself a favor and buy some now. (And make this Moroccan pot-roasted eggplant dish that's Joe's absolute favorite.)

So, yeah, this soup was really great. It's not going to win any beauty contests, but it's super easy and tastes awesome when sprinkled with a garnish of fresh thyme from your Aerogarden and scooped into your mouth with a big crusty hunk of whole wheat bread. Which is how I ate it, in case you couldn't guess.

Smoky Split Pea Soup

From Appetite for Reduction

• 1 teaspoon olive oil
• 1 medium onion, diced small
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 teaspoon salt
• A few twists of the pepper grinder
• 4 teaspoons smoked paprika
• 2 teaspoons dried thyme
• 1 1/2 cups diced carrots
• 1 1/4 cups dry split peas
• 4-6 cups vegetable broth
• 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice

Preheat a large soup pot over medium-high heat. Saute the onions in the oil until translucent, about 4 minutes. Add the garlic, pepper, and salt, and saute for another minute. Add the paprika and thyme, and stir continuously for about 15 seconds to toast the spices a bit.

Add the carrots, split peas, and broth. Cover the pot and bring to a boil, the lower the heat to a simmer and cook for about 40 minutes, until the peas are creamy. Stir occasionally to prevent the soup from burning at the bottom. If necessary, thin the soup with water. Add the lemon juice and taste for salt and seasonings. (I had to add about another teaspoon more each of salt and smoked paprika to get it tasting super delicious.)

Pot-Roasted Eggplant with Tomatoes and Cumin

So I was traveling over the long Labor Day weekend. And I was so exhausted when I got home yesterday that when I cooked dinner, I forgot to take a picture. Unforgivable, I know.

But this dish is so good that I have to post the recipe, even if it has no images to accompany it. It's an older Food & Wine recipe that's a favorite in our apartment. Despite the name the magazine editors gave it, it should really be called Pot-Roasted Eggplant with Tomatoes and Smoked Paprika, because that smoked paprika is what gives it the most amazing flavor. Don't even think about substituting regular paprika, because it won't be nearly as special.

The magazine refers to the dish as a salad, but I eat it as a meal with some brown rice or couscous. And you should, too.

Pot-Roasted Eggplant with Tomatoes and Cumin

• 1 large eggplant (1 1/4 pounds)
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• Kosher salt
• 1 cup drained, canned diced tomatoes
• 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 3 tablespoons chopped parsley
• 1 tablespoon cilantro leaves
• 2 teaspoons sweet smoked paprika
• 3/4 teaspoon ground cumin
• Pinch of cayenne pepper
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• Freshly ground black pepper

Heat a large enameled cast-iron casserole (or any other large pot with a lid). Using a fork, prick the eggplant in a few places. Add the eggplant to the casserole, cover and cook over moderately low heat, turning once, until charred on the outside and soft within, about 40 minutes.

Transfer the eggplant to a colander set in the sink. Using a sharp knife, make a lengthwise slit in the eggplant; let drain for 10 minutes. Scrape the flesh into a bowl, discarding the skin and any hard seeds; mash to a puree and transfer to a large skillet. (I just put it back into the pot I used for roasting.)

Using the side of a large knife, mash the garlic to a coarse paste with 1 teaspoon of salt. Add the paste to the skillet along with the tomatoes, olive oil, parsley, cilantro, paprika, cumin and cayenne. Cook over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until all the liquid has evaporated, about 10 minutes. Stir in the lemon juice and season with salt and pepper. Serve warm or at room temperature.