HOME & LIVING
B2 — THE OBSERVER & BAKER CITY HERALD
TUESDAY, JUNE 14, 2022
6 tablespoons onion, minced
1 tablespoon butter
1 1 / 3 cups zucchini, sliced thin
2 tablespoons slivered almonds
5 cups chicken stock
2½ tablespoons ground
almonds, see note
2 / 3 cup half-and-half or
heavy cream
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 / 8 teaspoon cinnamon
1 / 8 teaspoon nutmeg
Note: You can use almond butter
for ground almonds. If you
don’t have it, grind slivered
almonds in a spice grinder
or chop small and grind
with a mortar and pestle.
SOUPS
Continued from Page B1
When puréed together —
and these recipes are going
to require a lot of puréeing
— the ingredients become
better than their individual
parts. The soup is also light
and smooth, perfect for a
warm summer’s evening.
I went the elegant route
for my next eff ort, Aspar-
agus and Shiitake Mush-
room Soup. The recipe
came from the now-sadly-
closed Trellis restaurant,
which in its heyday was
one of the best restaurants
in Virginia.
I have made aspar-
agus soup many times, and
loved it. I have made mush-
room soup many times, and
loved it. But never have I
thought to combine the two
into one incredible dish.
That takes the kind of culi-
nary genius possessed by
Marcel Desalniers, the
pioneering original chef-
owner of the Trellis.
The soup that results
is magnifi cently subtle,
playing the delicate,
fresh springlike taste of
asparagus off the satis-
fying umami burr of the
shiitake mushrooms.
As befi ts the restaurant
that also created the dessert
called Death By Chocolate,
this soup is not for people
counting their Weight
Watchers’ points. A rich
roux turns the texture of the
soup to velvet, and the fl a-
vors are all tied together by
a cup of heavy cream.
I used half-and-half to
save a few calories. That
way, I felt virtuous and
healthful, even though
I wasn’t.
My next soup also came
from a famous restaurant.
Cream of Zucchini and
Almond Soup was a dish
served at the Walnut Room
in the fl agship State Street
location of the Marshall
Field’s store in Chicago.
And again I am in awe at
the creativity of chefs.
Who would ever think
to combine the grassiness
of zucchini with the warm,
nutty crunch of almonds?
And then who would
think to put it together in a
cream soup?
But that’s not where
the brilliance of this dish
ends. The soup stands
out because of the subtle
inclusion of sweet spice:
a restrained mixture of
brown sugar, cinnamon
and nutmeg.
It’s a soup unlike
any you’ve had before,
unless you’ve been to the
Walnut Room.
My last soup is the eas-
iest of them all to make.
Sweet Pea Soup also has
the freshest taste — even
though it uses frozen peas.
You could use fresh peas
if you can fi nd them.
All you do is simmer
together the peas, some
sweet red pepper, a hunk
of onion and a carrot in
MAMMEN
Continued from Page B1
Halsey had her Merle
Norman Cosmetic Studio,
Betty Bruce would style a
wig just for you, and Geri
Koller, a beauty advisor,
helped you pull it all together
for any social event that
might come along. Next came
Valdene Gould and Judy
Loudermilk, proprietors of
The Cedar House, selling an
assortment of imported gifts,
gourmet cookware and a
variety of other unusual and
useful household items.
And then there was Lucy’s
Cafe. Lucy Bingham had
worked in the Sacajawea
Coff ee Shop for 15 years and
then at the Top Notch for two
years. Now, she had her own
place in Pat’s Alley. This
dream of Pat Fitzgerald had
Sauté onions in butter until
soft. Add zucchini and slivered
almonds. Cook, stirring for 3
minutes (zucchini should not
be barely tender, not limp). Add
chicken stock and simmer for 15
minutes. Add ground almonds.
Simmer 10 minutes. Stir in cream,
brown sugar, cinnamon and
nutmeg. Heat thoroughly.
Per serving: 134 calories; 8 g fat;
4 g saturated fat; 20 g cholesterol;
5 g protein; 8 g carbohydrate; 4 g
sugar; 1 g fi ber; 218 mg sodium;
21 mg calcium
— Adapted from “Marshall
Field’s Gourmet: A Taste of
Tradition”
SWEET PEA
SOUP
Yield: 4 servings
Hillary Levin/St. Louis Post-Dispatch
Sweet pea soup.
chicken stock, vegetable
stock or even ham stock.
When the vegetables are
thoroughly cooked, but just
barely, you puree it to a
silky smooth texture.
Salt it generously
and serve it, if you
want, with croutons or
crumbled bacon.
I used both. It seemed
like a summery thing to do.
BEET-FENNEL-
GINGER SOUP
Yield: 8 servings
2½ cups red beets, peeled
and chopped
4 cups chopped cabbage
2 cups chopped fennel
1 garlic clove, chopped
3 tablespoons chopped ginger
8 cups vegetable stock, divided
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon black pepper
½ cup nonfat yogurt
2 tablespoons chopped
fennel sprigs
1. Combine the beets, cabbage,
fennel, garlic, ginger and 6 cups of
the stock in a large soup pot and
bring to a boil. Cover, reduce the
heat to medium low, and simmer
until the vegetables are tender,
about 25 minutes.
2. Strain the soup through
a large-mesh sieve. Purée the
vegetables in 1 cup of the heated
broth in a food processor or
blender until smooth (you may
have to do this in batches). Add
the remaining heated broth, and
blend. If the soup is not of a pour-
able consistency, add some of the
turned into a festive down-
town shopping and gathering
place for the people of La
Grande.
The Fitzgerald family have
played a part in the develop-
ment of La Grande for many
years.
David and Cora mar-
ried in Nez Perce, Idaho,
in 1895 and, after living
in Washington for a short
while, came to La Grande
in the early 1900s. It was
here they raised their four
children, a daughter, Mary
May, and three sons —
David Clark, John Edward
and Patrick James. David, a
machinist, was the proprietor
of a foundry, La Grande Iron
Works, at the corner of Wash-
ington and Elm. In 1913,
he moved the building and
his business to 1604 Cove
Ave., where the building still
remains and Wyatt Williams
remaining 2 cups of broth until it
reaches your desired texture.
3. Chill at least 2 hours before
serving. Season with salt and
pepper. Serve in chilled bowls,
if desired, with yogurt and fen-
nel sprigs.
Per serving: 60 calories; 1 g fat;
1 g saturated fat; 1 g cholesterol;
3 g protein; 13 g carbohydrate; 8
g sugar; 3 g fi ber; 756 mg sodium;
51 mg calcium
— Adapted from “Healthy
Cooking” by At Home with the
Culinary Institute of America
ASPARAGUS
AND SHIITAKE
MUSHROOM
SOUP
Yield: 8 servings
1 pound fresh asparagus
½ pound shiitake mushrooms
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 tablespoon water
4 stalks celery, chopped
2 medium leeks, white
part only, chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
Salt and pepper
6 cups chicken stock
7 tablespoons butter
¾ cup all-purpose fl our
1 cup heavy cream or half-and-half
1. Fill a large bowl with ice
and water, and set aside. Bring 3
quarts of salted water to a boil.
2. Snap the woody stem off
each stalk of asparagus, and
reserve. Lightly peel half the num-
ber of stalks. Chop the reserved
ends and the remaining unpeeled
asparagus into ¼-inch pieces.
Cover with plastic wrap and re-
has his welding business. The
corner of Washington and
Elm then became the home
of the new YMCA building
across Washington from the
First Presbyterian Church.
The three boys were in
the furniture business for
a while. Then in 1945, Pat,
the youngest, decided to do
something entirely diff erent.
He started a nursery/land-
scaping business and fi nally
settled into the fl orist busi-
ness operating in a number of
spots through the years before
settling into Pat’s Alley and
becoming one of the lon-
gest operating businesses in
downtown La Grande.
Keep looking up! Enjoy!
█
Ginny Mammen has lived in La
Grande for more than 50 years
and enjoys sharing her interest in
the history of people, places and
buildings.
frigerate until needed. Blanch the
peeled asparagus in the boiling
water. Do not overcook; the aspar-
agus should be cooked yet remain
crisp. Transfer the blanched
asparagus to the ice water.
3. When the blanched aspara-
gus is cool, cut into ¾-inch pieces.
Cover with plastic wrap and
refrigerate until needed.
4. Remove and chop the mush-
room stems. Slice and reserve
the caps.
5. Heat the vegetable oil and
water in a large saucepan over
medium heat. When hot, add
the chopped (¼-inch) asparagus,
mushroom stems, celery, leeks
and onions. Season with salt and
pepper and sauté until the onions
are translucent, 5 to 7 minutes.
Add the chicken stock and bring
to a boil.
6. While the chicken stock
is heating, melt the butter in a
separate large saucepan over low
heat. Add the fl our to make a roux
and cook, stirring constantly, until
the roux bubbles, 6 to 8 minutes.
Strain 4 cups boiling stock into the
roux and whisk vigorously until
smooth. Add the remaining stock
and vegetables. Whisk until well
combined. Lower the heat and
simmer for 10 minutes.
7. Purée in a blender or a food
processor. Strain into a 5-quart
saucepan and return to low
heat. Hold at a simmer for a few
minutes while completing the
recipe (Note: If you are not going
to serve the soup within 1 hour,
do not complete the next step
until ready to serve; otherwise,
the delicate fl avor and color of the
asparagus will be dissipated).
8. Heat the cream, sliced shiita-
kes and ¾-inch asparagus pieces
in a nonstick sauté pan over me-
dium heat. When hot, add to the
soup and adjust the seasoning.
Serve immediately. (This soup
may be held hot in a double boiler
for up to 1 hour.)
Per serving: 250 calories; 18 g
fat; 11 g saturated fat; 45 g choles-
terol; 6 g protein; 19 g carbohy-
drate; 4 g sugar; 3 g fi ber; 389 mg
sodium; 58 mg calcium
— Recipe from “The Trellis
Cookbook” by Marcel Desaulniers
CREAM OF
ZUCCHINI
AND ALMOND
SOUP
Yield: 8 servings
½ tablespoon olive oil
1 cup chopped onion
4 (1-inch) slices sweet
red bell pepper
1 carrot, peeled and sliced thin
4 cups chicken, ham or
vegetable stock
2 cups frozen or fresh peas
Salt, to taste
Croutons
Crispy bacon, optional
Heat oil in a medium saucepan
over medium-high heat. Add on-
ion, red pepper and carrot. Cook,
stirring frequently, until onion is
translucent, 3 to 5 minutes. Add
stock and simmer 5 minutes. Add
peas and cook until peas are heat-
ed through, 1 minute for frozen
and 3 to 5 minutes for fresh. Add
salt to taste. Purée in a blender
until smooth. Serve with croutons
and crumbled bacon, if desired.
Per serving: 198 calories; 7 g fat;
2 g saturated fat; 5 g cholesterol; 7
g protein; 29 g carbohydrate; 13 g
sugar; 7 g fi ber; 1,355 mg sodium;
49 mg calcium
— Adapted from “Vita-Mix
Recipes for Better Living”
M ICHAEL
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