Ay, Chihuaha!

I must be entering a certain astral cycle that involves brownies. Please let me explain. First, because I'm in the midst of a mild infatuation with Steve Marriott (the late Small Faces/Humble Pie frontman), I was wondering why I couldn't remember a single blessed thing about a Humble Pie concert I knew I went to in the 70s. A quick check of my diary revealed that concert happened in November 1973 at the Forum in L.A. and included Foghat and the James Montgomery Band. And also those wonderful relics of hippiedom "magic brownies." Aha! Well, that explains the memory loss. One of the last things I remember about 1973 was discovering how much easier it was get magic brownies into a concert than joints. Um, yeah, well, after that things get kind of fuzzy.

Second (bet you almost forgot this was a list), I just received one of those chain emails where you have to list four of something. My friend the sender listed one of her four favorite smells as brownies. You'd have to know my friend Karen to understand how serious a brownieholic she is. Has been for years. Totally understandable.

Third, for some reason I keep buying boxes of Hershey brownie mix at Costco even though I haven't made them in months in an attempt to lose weight. Every time I open the pantry several boxes of brownie mix stare back at me as if to say "WTF! Why did you buy us if you're on a diet?" Now this entry over at Baking Obsession just popped up on my Google Reader radar: Mexican Brownies. What???? Must... investigate. I'm beginning to understand now that if I don't do something soon, I may stay in this constant astral brownie cycle. Looks like making this recipe could just be the ticket!

National Soup Swap Day 2011 in Seattle!

Delicious fun was had by all! Thanks to Pam of Nerd's Eye View, with assistance from Bill, for the fine videography.

My soup inspiration this year came from 101cookbooks, via soupchick. To "sell" my humble soup, I offered a free loaf of Potato/Rye bread, freshly baked just two hours before the swap. I used the ABin5 recipe from the first book, seeding the crust with caraway, sesame and poppy seeds.

Rustic Cabbage Soup with Smoked Chicken Sausage

adapted from a recipe by Heidi Swanson, 101cookbooks.com

3 T extra virgin olive oil

2 t salt

5 lbs potatoes, cut in 1/2" cubes

3 lbs smoked chicken sausage, diced

3 onions, chopped

10 cloves garlic, minced

3 48-oz boxes of low sodium chicken broth

4 15-oz cans white beans, drained and rinsed

3 heads of cabbage, cored and sliced into 1/2" ribbons

Seasonings: bay leaf, thyme, fennel, salt, pepper

Heat the olive oil over medium heat in a large pot. Stir in the potatoes and salt, toss to coat with the oil, cover and cook for about 8 minutes, stirring a few times. Add the onion, garlic, sausage and herbs, sautéing for about 3 minutes. Add the broth and beans and simmer for 20 minutes, skimming any bean froth off the surface if necessary. Check to see if the potatoes are cooked, but still firm; if not, continue to simmer until they are. Stir in the cabbage until just wilted. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Remove the bay leaf.

Serving suggestion: drizzle with more extra virgin olive oil and grated Parmesan cheese

Makes about 12 quarts

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