“Write once, live twice”.
Shaunaspoke those words last weekend at the Blogher Food conference in San Francisco. The conference brought together 300 food bloggers from around the world to mingle, share, and learn from one another.
I had the privilege of speaking on a panel with Marla, Amanda, and Natanya on Friday morning. It was a blast giving new bloggers tips and trying to pass on as much practical advice as possible.
Saturday after our morning session, Pete and the kids joined a group of us for a lunch-time excursion to the Ferry Building. Katie and Susan, two new friends, came along (if you haven’t checked out their blogs, you really must).
Saturday was my birthday, so I got to pick our lunch spot. As we walked through the ferry building I saw “Prather Ranch Meat Company“ selling grass-fed meat and organic trimmings. I got myself a huge preservative-free, hot dog, slathered it with mustard, piled on the sauerkraut, and smiled a happy birthday smile. Afterwards, we stopped by Miette for a few macarons and ate them on the pier while watching the Fleet Week airshow.
Saturday afternoon I attended the session entitled “Do you have a cookbook in you?” Before the session started, my daughters got to meet Shauna and Dorie. The girls were thrilled to meet two ladies they admire so much.
As I thought about this gathering of people who enjoy enjoy expressing themselves about food, I kept returning to the idea, “You write to live twice.” How wonderful for me to tell you about the weekend, and “live twice”.
After a wonderful (and tiring) trip, I needed some comfort food. This roasted eggplant soup was exactly what I was looking for. The vegetables are roasted to bring out their sweet flavor and then combined with chicken stock, cream and spices. It’s blended together to make a creamy, satisfying dinner.
My husband and kids are not huge eggplant fans, but they loved this soup. So if eggplant isn’t your favorite I encourage you to give this one a try. Serves 8. Adapted from Abundant Harvest1 (32-ounce) can whole tomatoes, drained
1 tablespoon organic whole cane sugar or sucanat1 medium eggplant, peeled and cut into large pieces
1 small onion, quartered
6 cloves garlic, not peeled
2 tablespoons olive oil
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
6 cups chicken broth
1 tablespoon dried thyme
1 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, grated
basil, for garnish
Preheat the oven to 350°F and adjust rack to middle position. Place tomatoes on an oiled baking sheet in an even layer. (This should take up about half of the baking sheet). Evenly sprinkle the tomatoes with whole cane sugar. Fill the rest of the baking sheet with the eggplant, onion, and garlic. Drizzle the olive oil over the eggplant, onion and garlic (rub the oil into the vegetables with your hands) and season generously with salt and pepper. Roast for about 45 minutes, until tender. When the vegetables are tender place them in a large stock pot (make sure and remove the skins from the garlic). Pour in the chicken broth and add the thyme. Bring to a boil and then reduce the heat to a simmer. Continue to simmer for 30 minutes until a knife can be inserted into the eggplant with little resistance. Puree the soup using a hand immersion blender or you can also blend until smooth in small batches in a blender. Stir cream into soup and season with salt and pepper if needed. Ladle into bowls and garnish with Parmesan cheese and fresh basil.
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I rave about myself every night at the dinner table, “Honey, can you believe I made this??” And it’s all thanks to you!! (and teaching me that organic butter is welcomed and embraced! No more fat free, yay!!
{ 23 comments… read them below or add one }
Carrie this is a great recap of this past weekend! Loved your pictures and your girls are adorable. It was so nice to meet you and I'm glad we got the chance to chat on Friday morning. I hope you and your family enjoyed San Fran.
You write to live twice… I loved that too. I love your photos, Carrie and the one of your daughters and Dorie is priceless. How sweet is that? It was wonderful to finally meet you!
I truly love all that you captured here. (Especially the star struck look on your girls' faces standing next to Dorie!) You are an incredible woman, a beautiful person, and a true role model. I adore you!
"Write once, live twice." That is such a great quote, thanks for bringing it back to my memory. So much happened this past weekend it is such a blur. Kinda like a wedding weekend – a lot takes place & we need our family & buddies to help relive the memories. Your re-cap is very happy & our friendship is so special to me. Always fun to see your precious little girls too
The Eggplant Soup you share looks like a warming and comforting meal. xo
or how about me getting the quote right! LOL"you write to live twice"xo
Wow, these are wonderful pictures, Carrie! It looks like you had so much fun. Thanks for sharing all about your experience. I look forward to following your cooking adventures more, as I've just discovered your blog and am happy I did!
Carrie, Shauna's quote stayed with me as well.I am so excited to have met, chatted, and hang out with you. You and your family are lovely! I can't wait until our paths cross again. And – BIG congrats on the book!!
It was great meeting you and having dinner at Le Colonial. So glad your daughters were able to meet their idols – what a cute pic with Dorie – they'll cherish that forever!
It seemed to be a wonderful experience for all. I glad for your daughters!!!The Creamy Eggplant Soup, is a must do. Looks fantastic!Thanks for sharing this wonderful post and recipe.
It was so nice to finally meet you and your cute family. I hope you will come visit us in Utah soon!
What a delightful recipe!! I will have to try it out.Thanks for being such a kind and thoughtful friend for this weekend… I really enjoyed your perspective and insights and smiles!
Love that quote! Can you recommend a site for organic soups? I would like to start making once a week soup night for dinner! My husband loves soup!Thanks so much.
Sue: My friend Molly has several great soups on her blog: http://www.organicspark.blogspot.com. I have several soup recipes on my recipe page on this blog. Also, the book "Nourishing Traditions" has a soup chapter with fantastic soups. Hope that helps!
Carrie, i love this post. I got chills reading it. it was such a fun weekend. I especially loved our intimate dinner on Friday night and just getting to know you better; one on one! I am printing this soup recipe…can't wait to make it. xxx p.s. would have loved a photo of the hot dog. now that is right up my alley!
Made this soup last week, it was absolutely fantastic!! Thanks for sharing such a wonderful recipe.
whoaaaa ! pas mal du tout ! I’m going to try this by tomorrow latest
Merci !
Great recap…your girls are adorable! Thanks for the very delicious soup recipe.
Tried this recipe a few days ago and my entire family loved it!! Even my five yr. old asked for seconds. I forgot to skin the eggplants and it still tasted great! Thank you soooo much. Are some of the recipes on your blog also in your cookbook?
I’m so glad your family enjoyed it! Thanks for letting me know. There are a few recipes from the blog in the book, but over 75 new ones.
I’d love to make this but don’t have any cream- how do you think it would turn out with coconut milk (if I didn’t strain the cream from the top?)
For this particular soup, I think the coconut milk will taste very nice. Eggplant and coconut go together so well. If you try it, please let me know how it is!
This turned out wonderfully! Thank you!
Good to hear!
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