vegetarian soup

Slim Man Cooks Minestrone

Minestrone and Tequila and OscarMy uncle Oscar and I were real close. He was my Dad’s only brother. They grew up poor on the streets of New York City, sons of Italian immigrants. Their Mom, Angela, moved the family to Baltimore, Maryland, when she started organizing the ILGWU—the International Ladies Garment Workers Union. Oscar (I called him “Unc”) went to medical school, became a surgeon, and—with a little encouragement from Angela--started a little health care company for the unions that evolved into United HealthCare. Unc made a fortune. He did it the old-fashioned way. He earned it. Started with nothing.I was just a kid when my folks got divorced. I stayed with my Mom in Baltimore, and my Dad moved back to New York. Unc was like a father to me—he was the guy I turned to in times of trouble, and in the good times, too. Unc was my doctor, my confidant, and my go-to guy.When I was a stupid teenager, I was at a party that got busted for under-age drinking. I had just walked in, and the cops came in right behind me—I was the first kid they cuffed. Unc was the guy who bailed me out—he and my Mom came and got me. All charges were dropped.When Unc went out of town, he used to lend me his big new Cadillac Brougham with the blue velour bucket seats and the wide whitewall tires. I’d drive around Baltimore, listening to Tony Bennett on the 8-track.When I broke up with XF2 (ex-fiancé number two), Unc was the guy I called. He told me to come over, and stay for a while. I ended up staying for a couple years.Oscar was a great cook. He taught me more about cooking in those few years than I had learned in my whole life. Oscar had gone to Marcella Hazan’s cooking school in Italy. Marcella’s cookbooks on Italian cooking are my favorites, she’s legendary. He took other cooking classes in Italy. Unc had skills.Oscar taught me all about food during those years. He also taught me a lot about wine. When I was a teenager, I accidentally opened up one of his very rare bottles of 1954 Chateau Mouton Rothschild cabernet when Angela--his Mom, my grandmother—asked me to pour her a glass of wine. Unc had gone out to dinner, but when he got back and found the open bottle, he was very understanding.“What the hell were you thinking? Have you lost your fucking mind?”He wasn’t really angry, that’s just the way he talked to me. Lucky me. When I told him the story, he laughed. It didn’t really bother him. Then he told me about the wine. It was the first of many lessons.Many years later, when I was living with Unc after my break-up with XF2, he went down to Florida for the winter. On my birthday, he called me at his house, and told me to go to the wine cellar and get a bottle of wine for my birthday—any bottle I wanted. I was making dinner for me and Hit Man Howie Z, and I told Howie to go down to Unc’s cellar and get a bottle of whatever he had the most of, figuring that the chances of opening a rare wine would be a whole lot less that way.Howie brought up a bottle of wine, and told me Unc had two full cases of it—way more than any other. I was busy cooking--I didn’t even look at what kind of wine it was, I just told Howie to open it, which he did. When I looked over at the bottle of wine, my heart sank. It was a bottle of Chateau Mouton Rothschild cabernet. What were the chances of that happening? We drank it—what else could we do? Put the cork back in? It was incredible.When Unc came back to Baltimore in the spring, I took him wine shopping in Annapolis. We were strolling around the wine store when I saw a bottle of the same wine that Howie had opened. It was $999.99--a thousand bucks a bottle. Unc noticed it and said, “I’ve got two cases of that.”I said, “Not any more.” I told him the story.He said, “Are you fucking kidding me?” Then he shook his head and laughed. I knew it didn’t make any difference to him—he was as generous as could be. But he always liked to give me a beat-down to keep me in line. Unc had a cellar full of really good wine—but not the kind of wine I was used to drinking. His tastes were a little more refined than mine.Unc also liked to drink tequila occasionally.I was in my early twenties, living at my Mom’s house when Unc called me up one night and asked me if I’d ever drank tequila. I told him no. He told me to come over. I told him I’d be right there. You can’t refuse a request from The Godfather.I had an old Datsun station wagon with rusted out floorboards — you could see the ground below on both the driver’s and the passenger’s side. It was a stick shift and it backfired when you downshifted — sounded just like gunshots.I got in the car and drove 10 minutes to my uncle’s house. When I walked in, he was standing in his kitchen with a bottle of tequila and two glasses. He poured us each a shot. He gave me a slice of lime. He put some salt on the skin between my thumb and index finger. He told me what to do - lick the salt, drink the shot, and suck the lime. I did. It tasted like turpentine. Smelled like it, too. It tasted like something you might drink after ingesting poison, so you could induce vomiting. It burned going down. My eyes were tearing up, my throat was on fire, and I had an instant headache.Let’s have another. We stood in the kitchen and drank some more. His wife was upstairs. Smart woman. Good-looking, too. Oscar was a sharp dresser, but that night, he was in his bathrobe. He had no drawers on. How did I know?Unc was not a modest man. He once got naked and went swimming in the river at his 75th birthday party. There were dozens of people there. He just took off all his clothes and dove in.Me? I have recurring nightmares about being caught naked in public.   I rarely wear short sleeves or shorts. I don’t even wear flip-flops or sandals. When I go to bed at night, I don’t sleep naked. I wear my boxers and an undershirt. Why?Because if someone breaks into the bedroom and I have to jump out the window, at least I won’t be running down the street naked. But Unc? He didn’t mind who saw him naked. It wasn’t a sexual thing. Unc just didn’t see any problem with letting it all hang out; which he was doing that night.So there we were, in Unc’s kitchen, drinking shots of tequila, Unc with his bathrobe untied, and I’m starting to feel a little untied myself. Have you ever tried on someone’s eyeglasses, and they’ve got a really strong prescription? And things look really out of focus, and you get a bit of a headache after a few seconds and then feel nauseated?That’s how I felt. We’d had a couple of shots. I must have looked like a seasick sailor, because Unc was giving me worried glances. That’s when he said, “You don't look so good. I’ll give you a ride home.”Oscar loved my Mom, so he welcomed the opportunity to give me a ride home. Why we took my car, I don’t know. Unc always had real nice cars; Cadillacs, Mercedes, Maseratis -why he wanted to drive my old Datsun that backfired and had rusted out floorboards was a mystery. Unc got behind the wheel in just his bathrobe with no drawers on and started the engine. It backfired; sounded like a shotgun blast. I looked over and he had a look of glee in his eyes. He took off.He had a blast driving that car. Every time he shifted, the car would backfire. BANG! He’d let out a holler and a laugh; and drive on. You could look down through the holes in the floorboards and see the street zipping by. It made me dizzy. I felt sick to my stomach. Unc was having a grand ol’ time.He pulled up to my Mom’s house, parked on the street out front, and I got out and started staggering up the sidewalk to the front door. Neither my uncle nor I realized his wife had heard us leave his house and was following right behind us. When Unc got out of my car and started following me to the front door, she grabbed him by the back of his bathrobe and pulled him into her car and drove off. I was oblivious. I got to the front door of my Mom’s house, and turned around to let Unc in, and -He was nowhere to be found. I looked all around, in the bushes, behind the trees, in the car. I couldn’t find him. I was baffled. Where the hell did he go? I looked up and down the street. It was late. It was dark. I walked in the front door and walked into the kitchen.I woke up the next morning, asleep on the kitchen floor. My head felt like someone was firing staples into my skull. I couldn’t focus my eyes and my mouth felt like several small animals had spent the night in there.At least I had my clothes on.MINESTRONEAfter a night of tequila, ain’t nothing like a bowl of minestrone followed by a trip to the Betty Ford Clinic. I made this soup last night. It was the best I ever made, if I may say so myself. A couple things to remember -Italians don’t use a lot of corn. But I put some in this recipe. Why? Because it tastes really good. I like the texture and the color it adds, too.Pancetta is Italian bacon. If you are a vegetarian, you can skip the bacon. But I love the flavor it adds. When you cook pancetta, treat it like bacon. Let the pancetta brown on one side. Then give it a stir, and try and get the unbrowned pieces to brown on the other side. If you don’t have pancetta, you can use bacon.I use fresh oregano. I normally like dried oregano better, but for some reason, fresh tastes best in this recipe, but dried works, too.The tomatoes need to be smooshed. Open the can, pour them in a bowl, and dig in with your mitts, and squeeze the tomatoes. Remove the yellow center core, and any skin.The chick peas and the corn are already cooked. All you need to do is heat them up. So add them last.You can eat this soup as is or you can put some rice or pasta in it.I used to put the pasta right in the soup and let it cook in there. The only problem was the pasta would end up absorbing all the broth. So now I cook the pasta separately and add it to each individual bowl before serving.This recipe yields about 20 cups of soup. Which is 5 quarts. I think.INGREDIENTS6 ounces pancetta cut into small pieces¼ cup olive oil plus 2 tablespoonsCrushed red pepper (I start off with ¼  teaspoon)1 cup each – chopped onion, carrots, celery5 cloves minced garlic (about 2 tablespoons)2 cups each – green zucchini, yellow squash, Savoy cabbage – all cut in small pieces1 twenty-eight ounce can Italian plum tomatoes, smooshed up (about 3 ½ cups)8 cups chicken broth2 cups water2 tablespoons fresh Italian flat leaf parsley, coarsely chopped1 tablespoon fresh oregano, leaves stripped from the stems, chopped (or 1 teaspoon dried oregano)1 sixteen-ounce can garbanzo beans (chick peas)1 cup yellow corn (fresh, canned or frozen)¾ cup grated Romano-pecorino cheese, plus some for sprinkling/topping½ pound small pasta (ditalini, elbow macaroni, mini farfalle)Salt (I use kosher)Here goes…Put a large pot over medium heat. Add the pancetta, cook for 4 minutes without stirring.Give it a stir, let it brown for 4 minutes more without stirring.Turn the heat to medium-low. Add the olive oil and the crushed red pepper. Let it heat up for a minute. Stir.Add the onions, carrots, celery and garlic and cook for 10 minutes. Stir, baby, stir.Add the green zucchini and the yellow squash. Add a drizzle (1 tablespoon) of olive oil. Cook for 5 minutes.Add the Savoy cabbage, add another drizzle (1 tablespoon) of olive oil. Cook for 5 minutes.Add the tomatoes, the broth, and the water. Turn the heat to high. Let it come to a boil, and then reduce the heat to medium-low.Cook for 10 minutes or so, until the zucchini and squash are semi-soft.Add the parsley and oregano.Add the garbanzo beans (chick peas) and the corn.Add the grated Romano cheese.Let the soup cook for 5 minutes or so.Taste for salt and pepper and adjust.Remove from heat.For the pasta…Get a medium-sized pot, fill it with water, and put it on the highest heat.When the water comes to a boil, add a couple tablespoons of salt (I use kosher).Add your pasta. Follow the cooking instructions on the box. Two minutes before the pasta is supposed to be done, take a piece and bite into it. If it is chalky in the center, it is not done. Check your pasta every 2 minutes.When the pasta is done (al dente, firm to the bite), drain, and put in a bowl.Drizzle with a tablespoon of olive oil and stir. You might not use all the pasta.Dish it up! Get a soup bowl, fill it about ¾ of the way with soup.Add some pasta to the soup. Give it a stir.Top with grated/shaved Romano cheese, serve with some crusty bread, and…MANGIAMO!!!

Slim Man Cooks Roasted Vegetables

Ronnie Dunn and the Roasted VegetablesBack in the mid-1980s, a good friend of mine asked me to help him organize a country music talent contest. Nationwide.The friend was Carl Griffin – the guy who signed me to Motown. We were both “in between engagements” at the time, which is a polite way of saying “out-of-work” in showbiz. My band, BootCamp, had just broken up. My girlfriend and I had just broken up, too. I was all broked up. And broke.Carl had Marlboro as a sponsor. Marlboro wanted us to find the next big country music star. They didn’t want to just run a contest--they wanted whoever won to be HUGE. Marlboro wanted to be a leading force in the country music scene. They sank a ton of dough into sponsoring concert tours and talent contests.Carl wasn’t a big country music fan. Neither was I. The only two country CDs I had were a Best-of Hank Williams, Sr. and the first Dwight Yoakum. But when Carl told me how much Marlboro was paying, I started liking country music a whole lot more.Carl ran the talent contest out of New York City. He asked me to organize the contestants, which I did for the first two tours. For my third Marlboro tour? Carl asked me to MC and host the shows. A promotion!Marlboro wanted me to have an assistant, someone to do my old job – organize the bands. The first call I made was to Hit Man Howie Z, also known as Howard Zizzi. Howie was the drummer in my band, BootCamp.He was in between engagements, too. Howie signed on. We hit the road. Two city boys heading out into the Wild Wild West.Marlboro chose a bunch of markets – mostly small southern towns — all across the USA. Bands would submit their music to the NYC office, and the New Yorkers would choose 30 bands for each town. Ten bands a night, three nights in a row, all in the same club.In each town, we had a panel of judges – local music biz folks – who would choose one band to represent their town at the finals in Nashville. The contests were held in what I affectionately call honkytonk hellholes — rough and tumble small clubs on the outskirts of a town.The grand prize was substantial — a $50,000 production deal with Barry Beckett, who produced Hank Williams, Jr. and Bob Dylan, among others.Each band had 15 minutes on stage. If you went over your 15 minutes, big points were deducted. That was a strict rule.Let me set the stage – a small town, a small club, packed with country music fans, smoking the free Marlboros they’d been given. The lights go dim. Lee Greenwood’s “God Bless The USA” blasts out of the speakers. The song finishes, a spotlight cuts a beam through the fog of cigarette smoke and lands on a microphone stand, center stage…The very first time I walked on stage and looked over the audience, I could feel the apprehension. It got mighty quiet. I could almost hear the whispers, “Where is this boy from? New York City?”I introduced myself to the crowd. My real name is real long, real complicated and real Italian. I looked totally out-of-place, like Joe Pesci in My Cousin Vinny. People didn’t throw stuff at me, but I did see some folks looking around for a piece of rope and checking their guns for ammo.I didn’t get killed that first night, but I decided I needed a stage name, something to lighten things up. The next day, I came up with a nickname- Slim Chance. Slim, because I thought it was a good countrified name. And Chance, because it was a talent contest, after all. From then on I introduced myself as Slim Chance. It didn’t get a ton of laughs, but at least it kept the cowboys from pulling out their six-guns. From that point on, I kept my stage banter light and lively.One day Howie and I pulled into Tulsa, Oklahoma. The contest was at a place called Tulsa City Limits. We got the club ready for the big show. We made sure the Marlboro signs were hung. We made sure the sound company was good to go, and that the judges were ready to judge.The bands showed up for their sound checks. There were some good bands that day, but nothing really knocked us out. When the last band started their soundcheck, the whole club went silent. They were incredible. The drummer was amazing. The singer was even more amazing. He had a great voice. I looked at Howie and said,“Here’s our big winner. This Guy’s going all the way.”When The Guy and his band played that night, they killed. Killed.The local favorite happened to be a gal named Suzy Brandt. She packed the place with her fans. Towards the end of her 15 minutes, she started yodeling, the way some country singers do on occasion. Then she started yodeling faster. And faster. And higher. And higher. I thought her head was gonna explode. Suzy kept on yodeling. She was going so fast it sounded like she was speaking in tongues, like Robert DeNiro at the end of Cape Fear.Suzy went into overtime. She finally stopped. The crowd went wild. I went out to the microphone, told everybody to sit tight and that I’d be back with our big winner. I went into the back room with the judges. We totaled up their score sheets. Suzy had won. But when we deducted the penalty points for the overtime yodeling, she came in second.Who came in first?The Guy. The Guy went on to win the national finals in Nashville. My psychic prediction came true. Marlboro started grooming this Guy for success. Barry Beckett produced some songs for The Guy, Scott Hendricks engineered the session, and everything was going great, when suddenly -Nothing happened. The Guy couldn’t get a record deal. Not a nibble. A few years later, the engineer—Scott Hendricks—played one of the songs for a record executive who was looking for a country music duo. The executive already had one half of the duo—a guy named Kix Brooks--and needed the second half. When he heard the Barry Beckett demo of The Guy, he put the two halves together and they became…Brooks and Dunn. Ronnie Dunn was the Guy who sang at Tulsa City Limits when Howie and I were doing the Marlboro Contest. His drummer, Jamie Oldaker, had played with Eric Clapton a few years before. It was Jamie who entered Ronnie Dunn into the contest. Brooks and Dunn went on to become one of the most successful country music duos ever.Ronnie Dunn at the Finals in NashvilleA few years ago, I was playing a small jazz club in Fresno, California. I walked outside the hotel and took a jog. On the way back, I noticed a bunch of 18-wheelers, painted black, parked outside the big auditorium downtown. The fleet of trucks had the Brooks and Dunn steer horns logo on the side.I finished my jog and walked inside the hotel. And who was walking out? Ronnie Dunn. He said,“Slim! Man! How are ya?”And the Slim Man name was born.Roasted VegetablesAfter a long night of honky-tonkin’, ain’t nothin’ like some roasted vegetables to soak up Roasted vegetables 7the booze and ease the joints. Here at Slim’s Shady Trailer Park, I roast vegetables a lot. Why? It’s easy—you chop ‘em up, add a little olive and salt and pepper and stick them in the oven.Another reason? Roasted vegetables are real healthy.The most important reason? They are molto delizioso. That’s Italian Cowboy talk for, “These vittles are lip-smackin’ good!”The other night, I decided to make dinner. The first thing I did was chop up some red beets. I added a little olive oil and salt and pepper. Then I stuck them in the oven while I prepared some salmon with my incredibly incredible cippolini and bell pepper sauce.I roasted the beets for 20 minutes at 400 degrees. Then I gave them a stir and put them back in the oven. I checked them every 10 minutes, stuck them with a fork. It took about an hour, total.Sometimes, it takes less than an hour. The last time I cooked beets, it took about 40 minutes, total. I used the same oven, the same baking dish, but it took 20 minutes less. Why?Who the hell knows!The important thing to remember is…give the vegetables a stir after 20 minutes, and stab ‘em with a fork. If it goes in easily, the vegetables are done. Most likely, they’re not. Put them back in the oven, and check every 10 minutes or so. Average cooking time is about 50 minutes for beets, carrots, potatoes, things like that.When they’re done, take them out of the oven and let them cool for a couple of minutes. You don’t want to be burning the roof of your mouth!That’s my basic roasting method. Olive oil and salt and pepper, roasted in a 400 degree oven for 40 minutes to an hour.A few IMPORTANT things…Use a metal pan if you want your vegetables to be crispy on the outside. When I cook potatoes or sweet potatoes, I use a metal pan, because I want the outsides to be crunchy.I use a glass baking dish when cooking beets and carrots, because they roast better that way.When roasting vegetables, it’s important to remember to roast vegetables that are similar.For instance, sometimes I roast red beets and carrots together. They both take about the same amount of time, about 50 minutes, usually.Zucchini and summer squash roast together quite nicely, they only take about 15 or 20 minutes.I like roasting potatoes. I use red potatoes, or Yukon gold. I also roast sweet potatoes. Sweet!There are so many variations. Here is the basic roasted beets recipe, followed by some delectable variations.Makes 4 side servings, perfect with just about any Slim dish!IMG_7216Roasted Red BeetsINGREDIENTS4 cups of red beets1 ½ tablespoons of olive oilSalt and pepper to tasteOPTIONAL: 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegarHere we go…Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.Wash and peel the beets. Cut the smaller beets in quarters, cut the larger beets in eighths. The larger the pieces, the longer they take to cook. They should be about the size of your average strawberry.Put the beets in a glass baking dish. I used an 8”x11” dish, and 4 cups fit perfectly.Drizzle with the olive oil and mix. Make sure they are coated with oil, but not swimming in it!Add the salt and pepper. I start off with about a ½ teaspoon of kosher salt, and about 6 turns of the peppermill.Mix, make sure all the beets have a bit of salt and pepper on them.Put them in the oven.After 20 minutes, give the beets a good stir. Then, stick a fork in one. If it goes in easily, they are done. My average cooking time for roasted beets is about 50 minutes.Check every 10 minutes or so. When the fork goes in easily, they are done.When the beets are done, take them out of the oven, and let them cool for a few minutes.If you want, you can add a tablespoon of balsamic vinegar.Toss gently and serve.That’s it!MANGIAMO!Beet Variations:Roasted Red and Yellow BeetsUse 2 cups of red beets and 2 cups of yellow beets, and follow the instructions above.Roasted Red Beets and CarrotsUse 2 cups of red beets and 2 cups of baby carrots and follow the directions above.IMG_7213Roasted Red Beets with Goat Cheese and Chives and Balsamic VinegarFollow the instructions above. When the beets are done, pull them out of the oven. Add a tablespoon of balsamic vinegar and stir. Crumble 3 or 4 ounces of goat cheese over top of the warm beets. Top off with about a tablespoon of snipped chives (I use a scissors.)Roasted Potatoes with Rosemary and ShallotsPreheat your oven to 400 degrees.Use red potatoes or Yukon gold potatoes. Scrub the potatoes. Leave the skin on! Cut them in quarters.INGREDIENTS4 cups red or Yukon gold potatoes, scrubbed, skin on, and quartered1 ½ tablespoons olive oil1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary1 tablespoon chopped fresh shallotsSalt and pepperHere we go... Put the potatoes on a metal baking pan. You can line it with aluminum foil if you like.Drizzle the olive oil on the potatoes and mix. Make sure each one is coated.Add the rosemary, shallots and salt and pepper. Mix, make sure each tater gets some love!Put the taters in the oven.After 20 minutes, give them a turn. Only stir once! We want each side of the potatoes to get nice and brown.Cook for another 20 minutes. Stick a fork in a piece of tater. If it goes in easily, it’s done.My average cooking time is about 50 minutes.When the potatoes are done, take them out of the oven and…MANGIAMO!IMG_6248Roasted Sweet PotatoesTwo or three sweet potatoes should give you about 4 cups, depending on their size. Scrub your sweet potatoes. Leave the skin on! Cut them into small wedges.INGREDIENTS:4 cups of sweet potatoes, cut into small wedges1 ½ tablespoons of olive oilSalt and pepperHere we go…Put the sweet potatoes on a metal baking pan. Line with aluminum foil, if you like.Add the olive and mix. Make sure each wedge is coated!Add the salt and pepper and stir. I usually use about ½ teaspoon of kosher salt and 6 twists of the peppermill.Mix the sweet taters again.Put them in the oven.After 20 minutes, turn them over. We want each side to get toasty brown.Let them cook for another 20 minutes.Then, stick a fork in one. If the fork goes in easily, they’re done.Dish ‘em up!MANGIAMO!IMG_7221Roasted Zucchini and Summer Squash with Oregano and GarlicOne medium zucchini should yield about 2 cups sliced. Same with the summer squash. You’ll need 2 cups of each.Fresh oregano is milder than dried. If you use fresh oregano, you’ll need a tablespoon, chopped. If you’re using dried, a generous teaspoon should do it. I prefer dried for this dish.Scrub your zucchini and summer squash. Slice in circular slices.Peel 4 cloves of garlic, and smash each one with the flat side of a knife.INGREDIENTS2 cups of zucchini, cut in circular slices2 cups of summer squash, cut in circular slices4 cloves of garlic, peeled and smashed1 ½ tablespoons of olive oilSalt and pepper1 teaspoon of oregano (I use dried, you can use either dried or fresh)OPTIONAL: ¼ cup or so of freshly grated Parmiggiano-Reggiano cheeseHere we go…Put the zucchini, squash and garlic in a glass baking dish.Add the olive oil and mix gently. Make sure each piece is coated with olive oil, but not swimming in it. Start off with 1 ½ tablespoons of olive oil. You can add more if you need to.Add the salt, pepper, and oregano and give it a gentle stir.Put it in the oven.After 10 minutes, check your vegetables! Take a stab at a piece of zucchini. If the fork goes in easily, it’s done. Most likely, it ain’t. No need to stir or flip the vegetables.Cook for another 10 minutes and check.They should take about 20 minutes to be done.Take them out of the oven. You can sprinkle a little freshly grated Parmiggiano-Reggiano cheese on top, if you like.Dish it up!MANGIAMO!