“Little House on the Prairie” was one of my favorite TV shows as a kid. Even though I always rooted for little Laura Ingalls to best her nemesis, richy-poo Nellie Olsen, I had a soft spot for Nellie’s dad. Poor Mr. Olsen! Despite marrying a pushy wife who spoiled their daughter rotten, he was just a nice guy trying to run a general mercantile in a tiny town. God, how I love general mercantiles in tiny towns! That’s why I snatched The B.T.C. Old-Fashioned Grocery Cookbook as soon as it arrived at the Sauce HQ.
Released just two weeks ago, The B.T.C. Old-Fashioned Grocery Cookbook tells the feel-good story of how a small Mississippi grocery store/cafe has played a part in the revival of a small community since opening in 2010. B.T.C. owner and now author Alexe Van Beuren shares the ups and downs of operating her store and eatery, including the lucky hiring of B.T.C. chef Dixie Grimes, whose 120 down-home recipes and the story behind each span the pages of this fun cookbook.
I chose to prepare Roasted Pear and Zucchini Soup. According to Van Beuren, it is B.T.C.’s most celebrated soup “mostly because it’s the most esoteric and was featured in the New York Times. It’s also really, really good.”
Most of the active time for this easy recipe will be spent peeling and slicing pears. The recipe calls for Bosc pears, but Van Beuren never explains why. If you don’t have Bosc, Anjou should be fine.
Once the pears have roasted in the oven, they go in the stockpot with an onion, shallots, garlic and lots and lots of zucchini.
While the ingredient list for this soup is long, don’t let that stop you. A good half of the ingredients are kitchen staples, mainly spices. If you keep a well-stocked kitchen, all you’ll really need to purchase is the produce: pears, zucchini and spinach.
After the ingredients marry after an hour in the stockpot, the soup is puréed, then cream is added. The recipe calls for a stick of butter at the finish, but honestly, it didn’t need a thing at that point – except a few slices of chunky, hearty bread on the side. The dish is tasty, and I especially enjoyed the licorice undertones imparted by Pernod (a brand of absinthe) and ground anise. It was the perfect choice for a soup in early spring.
Dixie Grimes’ Roasted Pear and Zucchini Soup
6 to 8 servings
8 ripe yet firm Bosc pears, peeled, cored and cut in 1-inch slices
6 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil, divided
1 medium Vidalia onion, chopped
2 shallots, chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
6 to 7 medium zucchini, diced (8 cups)
2 Tbsp. Pernod
8 cups chicken stock, homemade or store-bought, or vegetable stock
2 cups apple juice
1 Tbsp. honey
2 cups fresh spinach
¼ cup pear or apple butter
Juice of 1 lemon
1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp. ground anise or ground fennel
1 tsp. granulated garlic
1 tsp. granulated onion
½ tsp. dry mustard
½ tsp. ground cinnamon
1/8 tsp. ground allspice
1/8 tsp. ground ginger
1/8 tsp. white pepper
4 cups heavy cream
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, cold and cut into pieces
• Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.
• Spray a baking sheet with nonstick cooking spray. Toss the pears in 4 tablespoons of the oil and spread them out flat on the baking sheet. Roast until caramelized, about 20 minutes. Set aside to let cool.
• In an 8-quart stockpot set over medium heat, heat the remaining 2 tablespoons oil. Add the pears, onions and shallots and cook, stirring, until soft, about 10 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 5 more minutes. Add the zucchini and cook until soft, about 15 minutes. Add the Pernod and stir, scraping up any brown bits on the bottom of the pan, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the stock and apple juice and bring to a simmer. Add the honey, spinach, pear butter, lemon juice, Worcestershire sauce, anise, granulated garlic, granulated onion, mustard, cinnamon, allspice, ginger and white pepper. Simmer for 1 hour.
• Remove the pan from the heat, and using an immersion blender or working in batches with a regular blender, purée until smooth. Add the cream and bring the soup back to a low simmer. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Remove the pot from the heat and whisk in the cold butter.
• Serve hot. The soup can be store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 7 days.
Thanks to Planter’s House for supplying the absinthe used in this recipe. Reprinted with permission from Running Press What is the most esoteric soup you’ve ever eaten? Tell us about it in the comments section below for a chance to win a copy of The B.T.C. Old-Fashioned Grocery Cookbook. We’ll announce the winner in next week’s By the Book column.
This article appears in April 2014.