Rev: Roasted Tomato-Harissa Soup 11/04

[tovie]

Made this over the weekend and it's really good. I can't wait to try it again next summer when I'll have decent tomatoes to work with. Ah, how spoiled I was this summer by the farmers market (g) and now I have to buy the sorry ones at the grocery store :-( I skipped the olive toasts.

One comment, do remove the skins from the tomatoes after roasting. The directions don't say to do this and i didn't even think about it until it was kind of too late. And they really needed to be removed.

It is pretty spicy, although the heat level will probably depend on the harissa you use. I couldn't find this and so googled for a recipe and made my own.

This was the sort of cheat with ground spices, etc one. I figured the soup was enough work without starting with the chili peppers and whole spices (g)

Harissa (North African Spice Paste)

1/2 cup olive oil
1/4 cup cumin, ground
1-2 Tbs cayenne pepper (I used 2)
2 tsp salt
2 Tbs coriander, ground

Puree all to form a paste. Keeps well in refrigerator. (I added a couple cloves of garlic because most of the other recipes seemed to call for it and I like it in just about everything).

Tovie

[newtricks]

This looks really good, I marked it to try. I thought all the vegetarian recipes looked delicious. (this was one of them wasn't it?)

Your tag line cracks me up. :)

[tovie]

I got it as a fortune in a fortune cookie a long time ago at a Chinese restaurant and I've used it as a tag or sig ever since (g)

Yes, it was one of the vegetarian recipes.

Tovie

[doggerham]

Doggone! I just went to Central Market last night and hunted down the harissa and smoked paprika! Oh well, I might still make my own instead. Thanks for the tip on removing the skins. I'm going to make this either Friday or Saturday, since the recipe says you can hold it in the fridge for a few days.

I'm excited to hear good things about this soup because I have this on Sunday's supper club menu. We're doing "Soups, Spreads & Breads" with four soups: Roasted Tomato Harissa, Rich Mushroom Soup, Hot & Sour Coconut Soup and All-American Chili (to keep the boys happy!). There are good reviews of all the others, and, of course, the chili is T&T.

FYI, the 4 spreads are:
Red Pepper Walnut Dip (CL, Nov. p. 232)
Peppered Garlic Confit (CL Oct. p. 184)
Red Pepper Cheese Spread (CL Oct p. 152)
*EITHER * Cool and Crunchy Crab Dip (possibly subbing shrimp?)  *OR* Smoked Trout Spread (CL Nov, pgs. 231-2)

and the breads are:
Cornmeal Scones (CL, Oct p. 252)
Country Rye Loaves (CL, Oct p.152)

[rhondac]

Thanks for the review. Our supper club is doing this menu for our next dinner in December. I was wondering about the harrisa... I saw it in powder form at Savory spice shop, but recipe says "commercially prepared paste (from memory). Thanks, again. Rhonda

[doggerham]

The 2 harissas they had at Central Market were both paste -- one was tinned, and the other was in a glass jar. I would imagine if you bought the spice mix from your spice shop, you would just add olive oil.

[lorilei]

Good to hear your review -- I had my eye on this recipe.

It was a very good move to add the garlic to your harissa paste. I've never heard of harissa being made without it!! I got addicted to harissa when I visited Tunisia in college, and I've actually been searching for a good recipe ever since. (I've actually had the best luck using dry harissa peppers right from the source)

Also - take care if you're planning to use a jarred harissa paste. They're VERY salty and not really worth buying, IMHO.

[doggerham]

Excellent! The best soup on the menu!

Thanks, Tovie, for the hint on removing the skins from the tomatos and peppers. I suppose they would "blend in", but I think you get rid of any silghtly "burnt" taste by removing the skins.

I was very cautious using the harissa, and the soup was delicious -- even my Mom liked it (and she doesn't "do" spicy). I think I would kick it up a bit the next time for me.

[tovie]

Originally posted by doggerham
Excellent! The best soup on the menu!

Thanks, Tovie, for the hint on removing the skins from the tomatos and peppers. I suppose they would "blend in", but I think you get rid of any silghtly "burnt" taste by removing the skins.

I was very cautious using the harissa, and the soup was delicious -- even my Mom liked it (and she doesn't "do" spicy). I think I would kick it up a bit the next time for me.

You're welcome :) Actually, the skins didn't blend in on mine, which is why I suggested removing them. I used my immersion blender, though, so i don't know if it would be different with a regular blender or food processor.

Interesting about your mom liking it -- I imagine that means the heat level does depend on the harissa you get because mine was spicy enough there's no way anyone else in my family would have eaten it (g)

Tovie

[sneezles]

I made this soup on Friday and used the Harissa that Amy mentioned from Central Market in the glass jar. The ingredients are simply hot red peppers, salt and olive oil, and it is imported from Morocco so I just assumed it was authentic. I did up the amount of garlic in the recipe but that's just something I do anyway. I only used half the amount of harissa because of the sodium level but added a 1/4 teaspoon of chipotle powder (in additon to using the smoked paprika). I did simmer it much longer than called for to get that deep color that's pictured in the magazine.
It was a wonderful soup and DH said it was even better last night!

[rhondac]

This is my choice for supper club...

I am questioning the harissa paste.
The soup recipe calls for
1/2 t ground cumin
1/2 t ground coriander
1/2 t Spanish smoked paprika OR chipole chile powder
PLUS: 1 teaspoon harissa

The ingredients for harissa are
cumin
cayenne pepper
coriander
salt
olive oil
garlic

Couldn't you therefore just increased these incredients in the recipe and not make a harissa paste?

[tholbrook]

Originally posted by rhondac
The ingredients for harissa are
cumin
cayenne pepper
coriander
salt
olive oil
garlic

Couldn't you therefore just increased these incredients in the recipe and not make a harissa paste?

There is one additional ingredient that I see in a lot of recipes, and it's also in the stuff I purchased: caraway seeds.
I think the harissa paste added a lot of depth to the flavor - it's definitely possible you could do the same by adding the spices individually. I would be inclined to toast the whole cumin, coriander (and caraway) seeds, then grind them.

I made this soup a few days ago. I can't remember if I already mentioned this but I thought the leftovers were much better than the original dish. The original had a somewhat grainy texture from the tomatoes, but it disappeared when it was reheated for lunch the next day (I have no idea why).

[sneezles]

Seems that the Tunisia harissa has all those ingredients while the Moroccan one is much simpler, which is what I used:

Harissa: Red Chile Paste (North Africa)

For the pantry. Harissa [hah-REE-sah] is a hot spicy condiment that gives Moroccan cooking its fiery kick. You can buy it in small jars or cans, or you could make it yourself to season a soup like Chiorba. Makes 150ml, almost 12 tablespoons. Time: prep 10 minutes, plus soaking; cooking 5 minutes. *Recipe from "Road to Morocco," BBC Vegetarian Magazine, March 1998.


1 3/4 ounces dried red chile pepper
2 garlic cloves
pinch salt
2 tablespoons olive oil

Place the chiles in a bowl and pour over enough hot water to cover. Leave to stand until the water is cold -- at least 2 hours. Drain the chilies and place in a food processor or blender with the garlic. Process to a thick paste, similar in consistency to tomato puree. Rub through a sieve, being careful not to get any on your hands, then spoon into a sterilized jar. Cover the surface with a little oil and store in the fridge for up to 3 months.

SERVING IDEAS: Harissa is often thinned down with olive oil and lemon juice and added to chopped tomatoes, peppers, olives and herbs to make a salad or added to the stock in which the couscous is soaked to liven up the finished dish.

VARIATION: Tunisian's harissa combines hot chiles, garlic, cumin, coriander, caraway and olive oil, or some variation.

TIP. Each time you use some of the paste, cover the surface with a little olive oil to keep the paste airtight and free from mold.

[lsdesign]

I made this soup over the weekend also. I skipped the harissa since I was lazy about making my own. Used chipotle and it was spicy enough for me. I have made my own harissa before and I have to say that the caraway component is wonderful. THis is the only way I can like caraway.