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| And it's so pretty! |
In Fall 2000, I went off to college with 17 years under my belt and freshly box-dyed red hair. I didn't know what to expect as I walked out of my dorm room on the first day of orientation, but I happened upon a group that first day that I was lucky enough to stick with all four years. Among those excellent, attractive, hilarious people was Travis Scott Taylor.
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| Stolen from yr Facebook page, bud! |
It was with Travis that I realized exactly how much I loved stand-up comedy -- my abs hurt so much from laughing that I couldn't sit up straight for days after we saw Mitch Hedberg at the Ontario Improv. And it was with Travis that I started to figure out I loved food to an outlandish degree. We watched so much Food Network, we had the most fun dinner parties (with varying degrees of success), and we devoted a large percentage of our practically zero college student dollars to omakase sushi.
But where most of my food interest remains in consumption, Travis took his passion and made it his life. That's right, folks: A FOR-REALSIES ACTUAL TRAINED CHEF MADE A SOUP FOR THIS BLOG.
My friendship with Travis has been studded with so many memorable meals. A few years back he came out to visit during the MidPoint Music Festival, and spoiled me all weekend with such delights as paella (the first and only time my paella pan has been used for its proper purpose) and homemade ravioli. The food Travis makes is characterized by research, experimentation, imagination, care and effort. He doesn't do anything halfway; he'll go to the moon and back if you want a grilled mooncheese sandwich.
Listen, I know I've waxed nostalgic here, but this is a special man, who made a special soup just for me and y'all. And I'm so freaking stoked to share it with you. THANKS, Trav-o-pie! Also, wait till you see how charming he is in writing his recipe. It's got so much personality; I'm not worthy! Without further ado, words and a recipe from TST:
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About two years ago my mother and father purchased a wood pellet smoker. At first it was quite a treat. My weekly visits were punctuated by a hearty meal of smoked chicken, pork, beef, fish, you name it. Soon after all reasonable ideas had been exhausted, arbitrary things were more often than not making their way into the smoker. Smoked baked potato anyone? Yeah, me neither. After a couple of months everything began tasting like hot dogs….
There were, however, a couple of culinary gems to be found amongst the abominations that came from this era, including this recipe. I can tell you first hand that any time an unintuitive combination of flavors is discovered in a professional kitchen, the discoverer is met with a litany of high fives. Have you EVER tried mixing wasabi with kiwi? Its incredible. For some reason, this recipe struck me in the same way. It was simply something I had never thought of before. Creamy, smoky, and very rich. Definitely a comfort food worthy of a cold night in.
[Editor's note: Um, it's -12 degrees here right now. Travis lives in LA. COLD NIGHT IN, YOU SAY?]
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| Just to remind you how pretty it is. |
Smoked Purple Cauliflower Soup
INGREDIENTS:
1 head of purple cauliflower, cut into small pieces (you can use regular cauliflower but the purple variety has a subtle nuttiness that I really like in this recipe)
4 medium purple fingerling (for same reason as the cauliflower) or Yukon gold potatoes
1 small onion
1 tbsp olive oil
12 oz smoked stock (I used bones from a smoked chicken that I simmered for about 4 hours, but a good smoked ham hock would be perfect as well… if you want to cheat I have even used 1 tsp of liquid smoke and regular chicken stock)
8 oz heavy cream (you can use more or less depending on how creamy you want your soup)
Salt and pepper to taste
Sour cream or crème fraiche as garnish
Chives for garnish
METHOD:
Preheat oven or smoker to 375.
The first time I did this recipe I smoked the head of cauliflower in the smoker with the potatoes at 375 for 1 hour. This was amazing, but VERY smokey, so if you want to give it a try I totally recommend it.
Otherwise, toss the cauliflower, onions, and potatoes in olive oil and roast in the oven at 375 for 1 hour instead. Once roasted, puree together with the smoked stock and heavy cream. Since all produce is variable in size please be sure to add stock a little at a time, being sure to check the consistency of the puree to ensure that it is pourable. If necessary, blend in batches and pour the resulting purple puree into a saucepan to heat to service temperature and adjust the salt and pepper balance to your liking.
Ladle the soup into bowls and top with a drizzle of crème fraiche or a dollop of sour cream and a pinch of fresh chives.
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