Tonight BIV was inspired by a luxurious potato soup recipe from the Williams-Sonoma Potato Collection. The West African Potato Peanut Soup reminded us of a recent book we had both read - Barbara Kingsolver's "The Poisonwood Bible". We both read the book late in 2009 and were captivated by the story. We jumped at chance to pay homage to the book with a great meal.
Our appetizer was a simple recipe comprised of minimal ingredients and minimal preparation. This is worth the 15 minutes it takes to prepare - we promise you will not be disappointed.
Polenta Rounds With Black-eyed Pea Topping (myrecipes.com)
Preparation Time: 15 minutes minutes
Cooking Time: 11 minutes minutes
1/2 (16-oz.) tube refrigerated sun-dried tomato polenta, cut into 6 even slices
Vegetable cooking spray
1 (15-oz.) can black-eyed peas, rinsed and drained
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
1/4 cup water
1/4 teaspoon ground red pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup diced tomatoes
4 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
1/4 cup light sour cream
1. Cook polenta rounds in a large nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray over medium-high heat 4 minutes on each side or until lightly browned. Remove from heat, and keep warm.
2. Wipe pan with paper towel, spray with cooking spray, and cook peas and next 4 ingredients over medium heat 3 minutes or until water evaporates. Remove from heat; stir in tomatoes and 3 Tbsp. cilantro. Spoon warm black-eyed pea mixture over polenta rounds, and top evenly with sour cream. Sprinkle with remaining 1 Tbsp. cilantro.
Our inspiration was the West-African Potato Peanut Soup. This soup was easy to prepare with basic kitchen staples, yet the result was truly a special treat. The soup was creamy, yet contained no dairy product (well - we did add a dollop of sour cream for flair) and had several layers of flavor - Yum :). We paired the soup with a simple green salad topped with roasted root vegetables and a slice of crusty bread.
To finish out our African theme this evening, we made baked bananas gabon. These simply prepared bananas were dipped in egg, coated with graham crackers and baked to achieve a crispy coating while keeping a moist, warm interior.
Another successful night!
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2 comments:
Well, we will admit we are a bit discouraged about not having many comments or followers these days. Anyone have suggestions how to increase our following. Our bright spot of the evening was finding one of our photos posted on our favorite cooking blog www.101cookbooks.com in the category of your photos. At least there is someone out there listening :)
Thanks as always for reading and supporting us!!
I'm sorry I haven't been leaving comments, but I check your blog each week, and always impressed and amazed with the recipes you two choose to tackle!
Don't give up, takes time to get a following, now if everyone will just send this link along to a few people, that will help get it rolling!!
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