Lunch for 100

1. Yesterday I had the privilege of cooking a soup and sandwich lunch for 100 guests in the 55+ age group at my church, the Vineyard in Duluth, MN. It is always a bit nerve racking to cook for that many people, especially the day before the event when I wake up in the middle of the night with that panicky feeling that I don't have enough food or something might go wrong. Well, something did go wrong. I had made 6 gallons of chicken stock (see "a boatload of chicken stock" post on this blog) a couple of days before the event and I learned a very good lesson as a result. It was difficult to cool that much hot liquid down quickly at home and I had finished cooking it in late evening so I let it sit on the cook top, then at about 5:00 AM I put it outside at 34 degrees F for about 3 hours and then into an Igloo Beverage cooler in my garage refrigerator. What I didn't realize was that the cooler insulated the warm liquid too well in the refrigerator and it didn't cool until I removed the top some time later. To make a long story short, I transferred it to a large 6 gallon stock pot to make the soup on the morning of the event and started warming it. 

One of the things I always think about is the safety of the food I am preparing and a thought ran through my head; maybe I should taste that stock to make sure it is good. I was glad I did because it looked cloudy, which it shouldn't, and tasted sour. Oh crap! I had bad stock and 4 hours until serving time! What now? Thank God the church kitchen had Chicken Base and I had brought an extra gallon of frozen homemade  stock just in case. I knew it wouldn't  taste as good but I had no choice in the matter. I started over on the chicken soup and suffice it to say it turned out fine. 

I had brought about 3 1/2 gallons of small batch chicken stock made as described in my "boatload" post for the Creamy Asparagus soup and that was well underway and as a safety precaution I was tasting and smelling everything from there on out. The final outcome was a success and cooked 6 gallons of Chicken Soup with Ancini de Pepe pasta and 3 gallons of the Creamy Asparagus soup. So to make them more accessible in family sizes here are the recipes:

Chicken with Ancini de Pepe 

3 qts. homemade chicken stock

1 to 1 1/2 lbs cubed cooked chicken (Rotisserie chicken is great!)

2 stalks celery, finely chopped

2 medium sweet onions. diced

2 medium carrots, diced or cut in 1/8" slices

1 rounded teaspoon minced fresh garlic

1 teaspoon dried Thyme or 1/4 bunch of fresh Thyme tied with twine

3/4 cup Ancini de Pepe pasta ,dried

2 teaspoons Extra Virgin Olive oil

Salt and pepper to taste along the way. season at every step and taste as you go.

In a 6 qt stockpot, add the oil and cook the carrots celery and onions over medium heat until the onions and celery look translucent but not browned. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. 

Add  the stock and Thyme and bring to a boil. cook at a simmer for about 20 minutes to soften the carrots and then add the cubed chicken and pasta. bring to a boil again and and cook for about 8-9 minutes until the pasta is done to your liking, remove the Thyme bundle if you use fresh, check for seasoning and serve.

Creamy Asparagus Soup:

2 qts homemade chicken stock

1 3/4 lbs Asparagus, woody ends removed

Olive oil

2 medium sweet onions ,chopped

2 sticks celery, chopped

2 Leeks, trimmed, cu tin 1/2" pieces and thoroughly rinsed

Kosher salt and fresh pepper

Chop the tips off the Asparagus and save in the refrigerator for later.

Roughly chop the Asparagus stalks and set aside.

in a 6 qt stockpot, add a bit of olive oil and cook the Leeks,Onions and Celery over medium heat until translucent. Add the stock and Asparagus stalks. bring to a boil and simmer for about 20 minutes until the Asparagus is completely soft. Season with salt and pepper all along the way and taste it to get it right.

with a hand blender or in a regular blender, puree the soup until very smooth. Bring back to a boil and add the Asparagus tips and cook for another 8-10 minutes or so to soften the tips and serve with croutons or crackers and a dollop of sour cream or Mascarpone cheese in the middle of the bowl.

These are both very nice soups for a main course.

Cook well and eat well,

Tim