Colcannon!

Also, chicken and dumpling soup with very fresh baguette and Lurpak unsalted butter, and a green salad with Cambozola cheese pieces and Ken's Italian dressing or olive oil, lemon juice, and Jane's Crazy Mixed-Up Salt.

Tibbrix, I love colcannon, yum.

Darlene, it's cold here in Michigan too, wind chills today were not as cold as yours, but still about 10 below. I was struggling with the wind to get the net wrap off the round bale of hay and I'm glad that a bale will last my 5 cows and 2 horses about 4 days before I have to deal with hayfeeders again. I still have to fill water tanks and feed and water the chickens, but as long as the tank heaters keep working and the outside spigot stays unfrozen, I'm happy. Last year we hauled water in barrels, 150 gallons every day, all winter, and pumped it into tanks. That was NOT my idea of a good time. Ahem.

So, comfort food? I like beef stew and dumplings, but Elery doesn't like dumplings in any form. Odd for a man who likes noodles and gnocchi, I think, but whatever. So I default to mashed potatoes, hot biscuits and creamy soup.

Annie

Wow Rose, you sure brought back memories. The frozen sisal or plastic twine, brushing snow off the bales, seeing the cattle's breath in the air.

Now I live in the city, and I shovel the driveway, sidewalks and parking lot of the apartment building for exercise. (Rake leaves as well).

I love comfort food. Meatloaf and scalloped potatoes is right up there.
Also chicken with 40 cloves of garlic.
Baked ziti with homemade rolls
A big pot of cabbage soup
Spicy chili (no beans) over rice with a dollop of yogurt

jasdip, if you want to relive some of that instead of just having memories, have I got a deal for you! LOL

Annie, I know exactly how you feel about last year. Winter from H_ll!! First of December last year we were at -49C, windchills around -60C. It never warmed up all winter. Minus 30 or worse for 5 months! I normally don't have to feed bales, but BIL and his wife are in a tropical paradise for 10 days so we are helping pick up the slack there. I'm doing the cows here on the home quarter, about 110 head, which means two ton of feed a day right now.

My job is making sure the calves get their chop everyday, about 150 lbs, that there is mineral out for the cows, about 100 lbs every couple of days, and checking that the water holes are open. Last year, after chopping ice open for months, we now have stock heaters in both water troughs. So far the troughs are filling on their own, the pump hasn't frozen. If that happens it will be augering open holes in the stock ponds to water them.

On the bright side, there is now enough snow to go snowshoeing! Hopefully, tomorrow afternoon. :-)

We're having the opposite problem here :-) I know you think warm weather would be nice, but here it's been 45C, which is 113F. At my job I had to sweep the outside eating area twice (about 15' x 30' and covered with leaves) and clean the outside toilet block (the ladies' room looked like something out of The Amityville Horror, with flies covering the walls of the ladies' shower, guess it was a little cooler for them in there). Came home sweaty all over :-P

This below zero weather also made me want a warm and comforting stew. I am doing low carb dining till I go to visit my sister in Feb. I made green chili pork stew. I left out the potatoes and added shredded cabbage with the tomatoes and peppers. At the end I added fresh green beans to steam. I was very satisfied the small amount leftover is going in an omelette. I am determined to look better in a swimsuit on the white sand beach but coming from Minnesota I might blend in with the sand.

Winter is finally making it's way to the South, and I am so excited! We are expecting the high temps to be in the 20's over the next 3 days. My husband and I will be bundled up in our camo's before daylight tomorrow. I am hopping to harvest my first deer of the season.My daughter and I made some cabbage soup and cornbread to serve after the hunt. There is enough firewood for 3 days stored inside. I love feeding the fire and reading my kindle!

It finally got cold (very cold) here, then it dumped a foot of snow, then it rained. Gray, damp, cold and mooshy. My cholesterol goes up in the winter. Our comfort foods are soups, stews, sauces, casseroles, gravies, things with cream and butter.

I had four days off over New Years weekend so I started cleaning out the freezers and pantry (aPOOFn' anda POOPin') made a big pot of spaghetti sauce, roasted a chicken and cooked down the carcass for chicken and noodles, and cooked a ham bone down for a pot of beans (will have with cornbread). Last week it was pot roast, with the leftovers going to beef and barley soup, and we POOFed some leftover posole. Oh, and I made my first corn pudding with some two year old homemade creamed corn I found in the back of the freezer. Ohmy it was....comforting.

We also crave greens this time of year. Been trying to balance out with lots of salads. DH has been growing sprouts and we have some window boxes with kale, Asian greens, mustard and arugula under lights in the greenhouse.

Winter isn't about weather here (you don't want to know), but I was cold enough for comfort food anyway. :) Barbecue (flavor) lasagna from the freezer.

We're wimps in CA. Cold is 50 degrees and freezing cold is 38, LOL. I guess the blood thins out when you're 40 yrs away from the Midwest!

Cold weather foods for us are oxtail stew, Korean seafood tofu soup, yosenabe, lasagna. Chicken pot pie. Casserole roasted duck with turnips. Lamb tagine. Chicken Cordon Bleu.

Cassoulet. Roast dinners. Soup and cheese scones warm from the oven. ...;..;

It's supposed to be 12 degrees tomorrow....brrrrrr!

Chili, Chicken Noodle Soup, Chicken & Rice (called Chicken Bog), Shepherd's Pie, Biscuits & Gravy (Sunday's Breakfast), Butternut Squash soup, more homemade bread on the weekend, a new stir fry recipe called Chicken Yakisoba and more soups!

Teresa

Gonna be chilly tonight (below 0) so I'm making pork chops with apples and cranberries...just finished up the chicken and rice soup. Another cold weather favorite is shepherd's pie. Of course, any kind of stew be it beef, hungarian goulash, or chicken cacciatore.

We're having chicken and dumplings tonight, the drop variety, that's what mama made, that's what I make. The difference is, I put mixed vegetables in mine and she didn't.

Annie, have you tried potato dumplings for him? My wife won't touch dumplings either.I made some chicken and dumplings a few weeks ago with potato dumplings instead of the bread or noodle type.

She didn't want to taste it. I had a $50 gift card from work, so I said take one bite and if you don't like it the card is yours.

She ate until she was almost sick! She loved it! I gave her the card anyway! :)

Back to the OP, My favorite is homemade veggie soup with ground beef. I make it at least every 2 weeks during the winter using the veggies that I put up from my garden. Always tomatoes, corn, and okra, then I add either/and/or potatoes, cabbage, beans, ETC.

My #2 or at times it may be #1? :) Creamy potato soup! I boil the potatoes until almost done, and drain them. Then suet a finely chopped onion in butter, add some plain flour to make a rue. Then add cream, put the potatoes back in and simmer about 15 minutes. MM MM Good!

My comfort food all year 'round is soups. They just become a bit thicker and heartier in the winter. Right now, I have split pea-barley-ham soup and black bean and rice soup in the fridge and I'll be making from-scratch cream of mushroom on Friday.

Some foods I seem to make more in winter than summer are: stuffed cabbage rolls, beef and turnip stew, braised short ribs, anything with barley in it, beets, and dishes with citrus fruit in them.

Soups and casseroles. Kind of anything that makes you run the stove or oven, lol.
Last night I made squash soup using 3 different kinds of squash, thick with gouda cheese and chick peas. Night before was tater tot casserole. Tonight is going to be enchiladas.

I like to make Tom Yum soup, and I use Kaffir limes from my tree plus galangal root that I have in my freezer, as I do not want to have to buy it each time. I have lemongrass in the yard, but lately I have been using Gourmet Garden lemongrass paste in a tube, as it is very convenient and I do not have to fish out the tough bits of lemongrass from the soup. It was 83 degrees here yesterday, but we had cold weather last week with highs around 60, which is still not cold enough to create much of a chill, especially since we had no wind. We went to the desert (Borrego Springs) for New Year's Day and drove though snow in the mountains (above 3000 feet) to get there. We were there for three days, but since Borrego Springs is low desert, it was also 60 degrees there during the day, but it got down to 32 at night. The snow on the mountains was very pretty - I had not seen snow up close for several years, and so it was a treat.

I also like to make a Vietnamese style crab asparagus soup, and lately I have been putting Habaneros in a lot of dishes, but I do not always use a whole one and always mince it very finely. Last night I made Basmati rice with dried (reconstituted) mushrooms and grilled chicken breast, and I added one Habanero to the dish. It was a very good substitute for black pepper. Chilies warm me up when the weather is cold.

Lars

Lars,

Could you, or have you, posted your recipe for the Vietnamese crab and asparagus soup. That sounds amazing. Anything with asparagus is yummy, IMHO

Lars, could you please post your recipe for tom yum soup. I love it with chicken, or actually tom kha gai (kai). I will use lemon instead of lime. Don't have kaffir lime but I do now have a lemon tree! We have an Arizona house and we are here for the winter. So yeay, we are lucky. Thanks in advance.

Here is my Crab Asparagus recipe - I wrote it down in 2003, and so I make it slightly differently now, with different chilies:

Crab Asparagus Soup

2 pounds asparagus
6 stalks celery
1 onion
2 Serrano peppers
4 cups water
1 tsp crab soup base
1 tsp lobster soup base
1 tsp Thai fish sauce
1/4 teaspoon Chinese chili paste (or to taste)
1 pound crab meat
Soy sauce to taste

Remove the tips from the asparagus and reserve. Coarsely chop the asparagus stems, celery, onion, and Serrano peppers and put in a stock pan with the water. Bring to a boil and simmer covered for 45 minutes. Blend the mixture in a food processor or use a hand-held blender to puree. Strain the pureed mixture into another soup pan or bowl and force as much puree through as possible, leaving the stringy pulp to be discarded. I use a Chinois for this.

Return the liquid to the heat and add the soup base, fish sauce, and chili paste. You can substitute a dash of cayenne for the chili paste. Add the asparagus tips and simmer for about 3-5 minutes, but do not overcook the tips. Add the crab meat and remove from heat. Adjust seasonings with soy sauce and/or chili paste and serve immediately.

I'll have to write down the Tom Yum recipe, as I normally throw it together from memory.

Lars

wertach, I have tried potato dumplings and also the breadcrumb type dumplings.

I think sliders are just big noodles, but he says not. Grandma always made the puffy biscuit type dumplings, so I like those, but he really especially dislikes those, even when I add herbs, ala AnnT.

Maybe if I called them something else, LOL....

Annie

Here's how I make Tom Yum Soup:

Shrimp Tom Yum Soup

6 cups water
12 whole shrimp
1 tbsp lemongrass paste (or two stalks, crushed)
1 tbsp minced galangal (can substitute ginger paste)
juice and zest of two Kaffir limes (or 6 Kaffir lime leaves)
3-4 cloves garlic, minced
4 Serrano chilies, minced (or one Habanero chili, minced)
4-5 mushrooms, sliced
2 tbsp tamarind paste (optional, but gives a good sour taste)
2 tbsp Thai fish sauce
2 tsp crab or lobster soup base
1-1/2 oz glass noodles (bean thread) - optional
fresh cilantro and green onions, for garnish

Bring the water to a boil in a stock pot, add the shrimp and cook for three minutes, or until pink. Remove the shrimp with a skimmer/strainer and store in ice water until cooled, and then peel and devein the shrimp and reserve.

Add the rest of the ingredients to the pot that had the shrimp, except for the noodles, and simmer for 10-15 minutes - longer if using lemongrass stalks and lime leaves. Remove lemongrass stalks and lime leaves (if used). Add the bean noodles (if using) and cook for 2-3 minutes, until noodles are soft.

Place peeled shrimp into individual bowls and ladle hot soup over the shrimp, which will reheat them. Garnish with cilantro and serve. Add additional fish sauce or soy sauce if you want it saltier.

I sometimes make it with chicken instead of shrimp and use chicken soup base instead of crab base or else use chicken stock instead of water. If I only have dried mushrooms, I reconstitute them in the water first and use the soaking water for cooking the shrimp. I also sometimes make egg drop if I do not have shrimp or chicken, or use dried tofu cubes (dofu). If I use tofu, I generally also add dried wakame and maybe add sesame oil, giving it a Japanese flavor. I often mix Thai and Japanese recipes!

If you use regular limes instead of Kaffir limes, use two very small or one medium.

Lars

This post was edited by publickman on Wed, Jan 7, 15 at 22:32

Call them mashed potato balls Annie!!!!! :)

Speaking of okra, my all time favorite comfort food is gumbo:

Seafood Gumbo

1-1/2 pounds okra, sliced into 1/4” thick pieces (fresh or frozen)
2 tbsp canola oil
2 cups chopped celery
1 large onion, finely chopped
1 green bell pepper, finely chopped
4-5 large cloves of garlic, minced
2 tbsp grapeseed oil (or canola or avocado oil)
8 cups water
4 vegetable bouillon cubes or 4 tsp paste
2 tbsp clam or crab soup base, or to taste
2 tbsp butter
2 tbsp canola oil
1/2 cup flour
3-4 bay leaves
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil (or 1 tbsp dried basil)
1-1/2 tsp chopped fresh thyme (or 1 tsp dried thyme)
4 tsp chopped fresh oregano (or 2 tsp dried oregano)
1/3 cup chopped fresh parsley (do not substitute dried for this one)
4-6 Thai chili peppers, seeds removed, finely chopped
1 tbsp filé powder
1 10 oz. can chopped tomatoes, drained
1-1/2 pounds King Crab legs (or 1 pound lump crab meat)
1 pound shrimp, shelled and de-veined
1/2 pound bay scallops or clam or oyster meat
1/2 tsp salt, or to taste
4 cups cooked rice

Saute the okra in a small amount of oil in an iron skillet for 8 minutes on high heat and then about 7 minutes more on medium heat, or until the stringiness is gone. Set aside.
Note: Do not substitute olive oil in this recipe.

Saute the celery, onions, bell pepper, and garlic in 2 tbsp oil until the onions are translucent. I usually start the celery first for a few minutes, and then I add the onions and bell pepper and saute those for a couple of minutes and add the garlic last. This way the garlic will not burn and not turn bitter. I saute with the garlic only about 2 minutes. You can then store these on top of the okra.

In a large saucepan or stockpot, make a roux with the 1 tbsp butter, 2 tbsp canola oil, and 1/3 cup flour. Cook the roux until it is a deep reddish brown - this will be just a few minutes past the “peanut butter” color stage. Add more oil, if needed. The roux should have the consistency of yogurt and be fairly easy to stir at this point so that you do not burn it. Add the tomatoes and cook until all liquid has been absorbed and the mixture is thickened into a paste. Add the file, basil, oregano, and thyme and cook about 5 minutes more. It will be a very thick paste at this point, similar to a choux or puff paste. Add the water slowly, stirring constantly, and then add the bay leaves and bouillon. Stir until the bouillon has dissolved, and then add the sauteed vegetables, including the okra, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer covered for about 30 minutes. This is a good time to start making the rice.

Just before you are ready to serve, add the crab, shrimp, parsley, and scallops, and cook for 5 minutes more, or until the scallops are done. Check the seasoning, and add a dash of cayenne, Tabasco sauce, Chinese Chili Paste if it is not hot enough. It should be slightly salty, as the rice will require a bit of salt, but be careful not to overdo the salt - this will ruin the flavor. You can always add a tiny bit of salt at the table. If you are using precooked shrimp, add them only at the time of serving, and store leftover shrimp separately. Serve in large, deep soup bowls over rice. You may want to offer Tabasco or chili paste for those who want more pepper flavor, but I don’t find this necessary. If you use Thai chili peppers, it will be hot enough. If you use milder peppers, you may have to increase the quantity or you can leave the seeds in.

When I make quantities that I expect to freeze, I always store the leftovers in individual containers of whatever amount I want to reheat at one time. Gumbo can be reheated once, but not twice.

Yield: 4 quarts, or 8 large (2 cup) servings, not including rice

Lars

Wow, thank you Lars. Sounds delicious. I have tried a few online recipes but they never even came close to tasting like restaurant tom kha. It's all about the proportions, even when the ingredients are the same or similar. I don't have the Thai larder here that I have at home in Illinois but now I can start building one. I have two or three bottles of fish sauce there and none here. And great curry and chili pastes and jarred lemongrass although I could pop for the tube. Thanks for the recipe.

According to the Sept. 15, 2014 article linked below, there's no such thing as "comfort food" according to their studies. So in honor of the horrible cold weather and howling winds (shouldn't complain, we finally saw the sun today), I'm serving "Ham and Swiss Rosti" tonight, which is a traditional Swiss potato pancake usually served as a side dish, but I'm going to combine it with some leftover Christmas ham, Swiss cheese, egg, fresh chives and fresh rosemary (cut from my indoor "garden"). A lovely one-pan meal I find comforting.

-Grainlady

Here is a link that might be useful: There's No Such Thing as Comfort Food

I never thought that "comfort" food meant that it was supposed to alleviate depression or anxiety - I thought it was supposed to warm you up on a cold day or alleviate hunger, and so my definition of "comfort" food is very different from that in the article. If I eat hot soup on a cold day, I will feel more comfortable. I guess people have different meanings for "comfort".

I ate lunch outside today in my pergola and watched the hummingbirds frolicking, and that gave me comfort, but then I was neither cold nor depressed. After lunch, I moved some of my orchids back outside, since the weather has warmed up from last week, and I thought they would like the fresh air. I only bring them in if I think it will get below 45 degrees at night, and so they normally stay outside.

Lars

Grainlady, interesting link, but I suspect that the methodology was poor. Badly designed experiments yield useless results.

One thing that has been shown, and I think is still considered "true" is that fats help combat stress hormones. I used to go to working lunches dealing with budget issues, etc., and would find myself using far more butter on my bread than is normal. :) If this is indeed the mechanism of comfort from anxiety, it would imply that it's the cream and butter in the mashed potatoes, not the potatoes themselves. :) Or the butterfat in the ice cream, not the chocolate flavor or the milk.

Outside of laboratories, however, people who use the phrase "comfort food" don't usually mean an antidote for anxiety, but rather something nice to counter something bad. A hot, filling stew on a blustery day to make one feel warm. Mama's burnt and soggy chicken and waffles to make you feel, again, her love even if the cooking wasn't so great. Chocolate to rouse those amourous parts of the brain when one's sweetheart acts like a louse--or just because chocolate is yummy. These don't relieve bad moods. They just make offsetting good feelings that make the bad easier to take.

It's warmer out than in here, but I feel yucky. I've been contemplating making LPink's yellow pea health soup, but if I don't get that far, I'll heat up some "minestony" (minestrone flavored stone soup). Soup is comfort food if you don't feel well because it's warm and steamy and doesn't need a lot of chewing. It's not for relieving anxiety, but works a treat on congestion. :)

Comfort foods to me remind me of my childhood. They are homey, comforting meals. And especially in the winter.

Roast chicken is also a comfort food for me, as is breaded pork chops, with mashed potatoes and creamed corn :-)

I have to disagree with the article. There is such a thing as comfort food in my world. To me, its the food you crave, whether it is the time of year, or other reasons. Its the food that you want when you come inside after hours working or playing in the cold. Its the so called, heavy starchy meals that warm you up and refuel your body when the temps are sub zero frigid.

I would be really depressed, if, after being outside in a freezing ground blizzard, lunch was a light salad instead of a hearty soup. Hence, comfort food.

Grainlady: Swiss potato cake recipe please.

American chop suey

Swedish meatballs, mashed potatoes and gravy - my Swedish grandmother made the best meatballs.

Soup and grilled cheese sandwiches, and now my daughter's baked potato and cheese soup.

Sunday night waffles

pink_warm_mama_1 -

The original recipe from Eating Well is at the link below. I've adapted to make a much smaller amount (1/2 a recipe). After you make it once, you'll be able to make all kinds of alterations to meet your personal tastes and use ingredients you have on-hand. Almost any kind of meat can be added.

I use dehydrated hash browns in the recipe - 1/2 c. dry hash browns rehydrated with 1/2 c. hot water (Sam's Club: http://www.samsclub.com/sams/golden-grill-premium-hashbrown-potatoes/prod3170020.ip?navAction=) and cut the remaining ingredient amounts in half (I'll use a medium egg, or use an amount equal to 1/2 of an egg using Ova-Easy Egg Crystals (powdered egg product).

I also don't flip the pan full of the mixture (my name isn't "GRACE" for a reason - LOL). I cook it on a griddle and cut it with my spatula into a manageable amount and flip each portion.

It also reheats well. ;-)

-Grainlady

Here is a link that might be useful: Eating Well - Ham & Swiss Rosti