Sunset Magazine’s Cookbook “Eating Up the West Coast”

Happy Friday Everyone!

I’ve been a big fan of Sunset Magazine since I was in high school. My mom used to read it religiously and I fell in love seeing familiar places printed inside. When Sunset Magazine reached out to me to review their upcoming cookbook– I jumped at the chance.

Eating Up the West Coast is a new take on your traditional cookbook. It features several road trips throughout California, Oregon and Washington with recommended food stops along the way. Isn’t that such a neat idea? I quickly turned to the Oregon routes and realized I hadn’t heard of most of the places. (shame on me!) I then moved to the California and Washington routes and wanted to take them all. Throughout the cookbooks are recipes for recreating these amazing local dishes. They also have recipes inspired by the route. I’m so excited to be able to take my own trip and follow along these routes. For now, I’ve just tested a recipe, but stay tuned for my adventure!

I decided to make the Roasted Garlic and Crab Soup (shown above). Let me know if you try this. Drew and I each had two bowls!

Tell me that doesn’t look AMAZING. Here is the recipe from Eating Up the West Coast:

Ingredients:

15 garlic cloves, peeled
3 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
1/8 tsp each of fine sea salt and pepper
4 tbsp of unsalted butter
1/2 cup thinly sliced yellow onion
1 small carrot, finely chopped
1 stalk of celery, finely chopped
1 bay leaf
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
3/4 lb shell-on shrimp, coarsely chopped
1 cup of dry white wine
3 cups of fish stock or vegetable broth
1 1/4 cups heavy cream
1/4 tsp ground white or black pepper, plus more to taste
Fine sea salt to taste
1/2 lb shelled cooked lump Dungeness crab or jumbo lump crab
2 green onions, light and dark green parts only, finely chopped

1. Roast the garlic: Preheat the oven to 350. Make a double layer of foil about 6 in. square. Place the garlic in the center and bring up the sides a little to form a cup; place on a small rimmed baking sheet. Drizzle with the oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bring the sides all the way up and twist together to make a firm seal. Roast the garlic in the foil packet for 20 min. The garlic should be tender and golden but not dark brown. Open the top of the packet so the garlic will stop cooking. In a mini food processor, puree the garlic until smooth.

2. In a large saucepan over medium-low heat, melt 2 tbsp of butter. Add the onion, carrot, celery, bay leaf, and red pepper flakes and saute. Stir until tender, but not brown (about 6 min). Add the remaining 2 tbsp of butter and the chopped shrimp to the pan; increase the heat to medium-high and saute. Stirring for 5 min, then add the wine and simmer until reduced by about half, about 6 min. Add the stock: bring to a simmer and adjust the heat so the liquid simmers gently. Partially cover the pot and let simmer for 30 min. Let cool for 10 min, then strain through a fine mesh sieve into a clean saucepan, pressing down firmly on the solids to extract all their deliciousness. Discard solids.

3. Over medium-high heat, warm the shrimp broth. Stir in the cream and roasted garlic puree: bring to a simmer and cook gently over  medium heat for 10 min, until slightly thickened. Add pepper and taste for seasoning (if the fish stock is very salty, you may not need any salt). Add the crab and stir through for a minute or two to warm the crab, but do not return to simmer. Ladle soup into bowls and scatter with green onions. Then enjoy!

If you would like your own copy of Eating Up the West Coast click here!

Enjoy the sunshine today!

Love,
Rachel xo