"In & Out of the Kitchen in Fifteen Minutes or Less" by Anne Willan - Fifteen-Minute Minestrone

Date I made this recipe:  November 30, 2015

In & Out of the Kitchen in Fifteen Minutes or Less by Anne Willan

Published by:  Rizzoli International Publications, Inc.

ISBN:  0-8478-1013-2

Recipe:  Fifteen-Minute Minestrone – p. 48

Even though my husband and I didn't come even close to stuffing ourselves this Thanksgiving, I was still in the mood for something quick, easy and refreshing and found it in this Fifteen-Minute Minestrone recipe from Anne Willan's cookbook.  Oddly enough, only two recipes in this book – the minestrone and a "Fifteen-Minute Fire Pot" – are the only two recipes in the book with a fifteen-minute moniker.  Not that this means anything, you understand, because all the recipes she included take "fifteen minutes or less"  of your time in the kitchen or the book wouldn't be named what it was named. At least we hope.  But do note, that while the recipes themselves may take a while to cook (like, e.g. the Roasted Root Vegetables with Nut recipe (p. 100) that takes 45-55 minutes, she fully intends for you to limit your time in the kitchen so as to relax, possibly with a glass of wine, while the oven does all the work. 

I must confess that I wasn't quite sure a minestrone soup made in fifteen minutes would come up to my high standards but I am happy to tell you it was delicious.  And we just felt so very healthy eating it to boot! 

I probably never should have doubted Anne Willan's prowess in the kitchen but I am ashamed to say that I did, even if for a brief moment.  I met Anne several years ago at a book signing and at that time, I knew of her from her work at The Greenbriar Hotel and Resort in West Virginia.  Not that I've ever eaten there, mind you, but I passed by it twice on travels through West Virginia. 

This cookbook has a nice variety of recipes, from fish to pastas, salads and the like.  All the photos looked pretty mouthwatering and if the taste of the minestrone was anything to go by, flavor is not lacking at all in these dishes.  I like that – fast and flavorful!  And if you really want to save time, each recipe contains an At-A-Glance set of truncated instructions should you not want to read the entire thing.

That said – you will need to allocate more than 15 minutes of your time to make the minestrone as there is some chopping and dicing to be done. Once you get that out of the way, the rest of the job involves opening cans and if it takes you more than 15 minutes to open cans, you need a new can opener!

Were it not for the fact that I limit myself to making only one recipe per cookbook one time only, I would certainly add this to my "make again" list. 

Fifteen-Minute Minestrone – serves 4

1 bay leaf

1 leek

3 celery stalks

2 tablespoons olive oil

6-ounce slice of country ham (Ann's note:  I bought a thick slice of ham from my grocery store's deli.  If you use non-deli ham, trim the sides to remove any excess fat.)

1 garlic clove

2 small zucchini

Salt and freshly ground pepper

¼ cup pasta bows (uncooked)

1 small can of plum tomatoes (8-ounce)

1 small can of white kidney beans (8-ounce)

R sprigs of fresh flat-leaf parsley, to decorate

½ cup grated Parmesan cheese, for serving

At-A Glance Instructions (full instructions are included)

Bring 1 quart water to boil with bay leaf in large covered soup pot.

Slice leeks and celery and wash.  Heat oil in frying pan, add sliced vegetables with pepper, and cover with foil.  Cook gently until soft.

Meanwhile, dice ham and add to pan.  Peel and chop garlic and add.

Trim, quarter, and slice zucchini.  Add to pot of boiling water some [freshly ground] pepper.  Stir in pasta and cover pan.

Drain tomatoes and add juice to soup.  Coarsely chop tomatoes then add.  Stir in beans, then add vegetables, ham, and garlic.

Cover, bring to a boil, and simmer 3-4 minutes.

Adjust seasoning, spoon into bowls, and top with parsley sprigs.  Served grated Parmesan separately.

"Keep It Simple - 30 Minute Meals from Scratch" by Marian Burros - Chicken and sweet peppers with hoisin

Date I made this recipe: June 10, 2007

Keep It Simple – 30 Minute Meals from Scratch by Marian Burros
Published by: William Morrow & Company, Inc.
© 1981
Recipe: Chicken and sweet peppers with hoisin – p. 98

If you’re a faithful reader of The New York Times’ Dining & Wine section like I am, then you’ll be familiar with Marian Burros.

Marian Burros has been a mainstay at the Times for over 20 years but this book was written when she was food editor of The Washington Post. Of the dozen or so cookbooks she’s written, four have a place of honor in my collection: Cooking for Comfort; Keep It Simple; The New Elegant But Easy Cookbook and Come for Cocktails, Stay for Supper (I adore that title!). Two of the books were autographed by Marian when she came to Minneapolis (actually, St. Paul) for book tours several years ago. Naturally, I found Keep It Simple about a week after she was in town. Oh well, Marian, you’ll just have to come back!

As promised, this meal was indeed simple and came in at 30 minutes (prep time included) which is a good thing because it was a hot day when I made it and I didn’t want to spend any more time in the kitchen than necessary. The dish was also tasty although I’m guessing that it is even better the next day when the flavors have had a chance to settle in.

Speaking of flavors, I added the Chinese vermicelli noodles (our local Rainbow grocery store carried them) to the pan so as to mix the toppings and noodles together for maximum flavor and for ease in serving. I also bought chicken tenders rather than full breasts but cut them into smaller pieces before serving. Okay, so maybe that meant that dinner was actually served in 31 minutes; just don’t tell Marian!

Chicken and sweet peppers with hoisin – serves 3
12 ounces boneless, skinless chicken breasts
3 tablespoons soy sauce
3 tablespoons dry sherry or apple juice
1 large onion
1 large clove garlic
2 tablespoons minced fresh ginger
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
4 red or green bell peppers
¼ cup water
1 tablespoon hoisin sauce
4 or 5 ounces Chinese vermicelli (or regular vermicelli)

Slice chicken on diagonal into thin slices, less then ¼ inch wide. Mix the soy and sherry and marinate the chicken in that mixture. Chop onion coarsely; mince ginger and put garlic through press. Heat the oil in a heavy skillet or wok. Add onion, garlic and ginger and cook over medium heat about 2 minutes, until onion begins to soften. Seed peppers and cut into strips less than ¼ inch wide. Add to skillet and cook about 3 minutes, stirring occasionally. Push peppers and onions to the side; add chicken, without marinade and cook quickly until chicken loses pink color, about 3 minutes. Add water, remaining marinade, and hoisin. Reduce heat and cook a minute or two, until peppers are crisp-tender.

Note: Instead of following Marian’s instructions on how to cook the noodles, I followed the recipe on the back and let me tell you, they were way, way off! The instructions said to cook the noodles for 3-5 minutes until tender. Uh, no. The noodles were definitely not done in that amount of time. I think I cooked them for about 10 minutes or so.

Marian’s method sounds better to me (would that I would have followed it): Bring 3 quarts hot water to boil. In a heatproof bowl pour water over vermicelli and allow to sit 15 minutes, until noodles are tender. Drain and serve.