Celery and Pear Bisque

Cooler temperatures, scarves, hot soups, and warm beverages. Fall has arrived. I welcome this climate with open arms each year in the Lowcountry. It does not dampen the spirit of our coastal lifestyle. It gives rise to a great many more reasons to invite guests to our home, to clean out the wardrobe closet, to enjoy a bounty of produce previously not available at the farmers market and to explore our own back yards. My only regret is the limited daylight hours that this half of the year invokes. We still enjoy the beach, albeit not always in a bathing suit, accompanied by a chair, a great book, girlfriends and a thermos! Bon Appetit Magazine tweeted this recipe earlier this week and I immediately thought to pull out that vintage thermos and share it with the girls during our weekly beach ritual. Note rain does not make for a great beach day, so the ritual shifts to a toasty warm home environment, just in case you were wondering.

Ingredients

* 4 1/2 tablespoons butter
* 6 cups thinly sliced celery with leaves (preferably organic; about 12 stalks) plus chopped leaves (for garnish)
* 18 ounces unpeeled ripe Bartlett pears, cored, diced (generous 3 cups) plus 1/2 cup finely diced (for garnish)
* 1 1/2 cups chopped dark green leek tops
* 3 small Turkish bay leaves
* 1 1/2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme
* 1 1/2 tablespoons all purpose flour
* 3 cups (or more) low-salt chicken broth



Read More http://www.bonappetit.com/recipes/quick-recipes/2010/11/celery_and_pear_bisque#ixzz14PabYyv2

Sweet & Sour with Epicurous.com

Sweet & Sour Celery, Sweet Cherry Chili Spare Ribs, Candied Lemon Peel
epicurous.com

The contents of the refrigerator included produce that would eventually turn towards the later part of its life so their state of existence drove the menu selections for this particular spiritual Sunday. I, for one, love citrus fruits, not just the peeling of them to eat the meaty fruit they protect but also for their smell, taste and lingering aroma; thus, a candied lemon peel made it to the counter (which should have been prepared pre-season, but here it is post holiday). The celery recipe a Passover dish prepared out of season in this case (sensing a trend here) fit the tribute to sweet and sour whilst also serving as a fair accompaniment to the meat course. The pork spare ribs not out of the ordinary other than I chose cherry preserves as the sweet additive to the soy, lemon, honey, red pepper flakes, thai red chili basting and not found on epicurous.com. I love eating with my hands (hence the no forks or spoons apply mantra) and much like licking your fingers after really great fried chicken this baste brings that same comfort experience with the ribs. I might not cook the celery to the recommended tenderness next time as I prefer more crisp texture and I might have coated the lemon peel with granulated sugar at the backend as instructed when this time I chose to let it stand on its own.