Yummy Butternut Squash Soup Recipe

Here's a healthy, quick, and satisfying winter soup I've been making lately... good and good for you, but if you want to dress it up, finish it with a swirl of creme fraiche and some chopped chives.

Recipe courtesy of Cathy Lowe @ foodnetwork.com...

Ingredients:

• 1 butternut squash, peeled

• nutmeg

• 2 tbls. unsalted butter

• salt & pepper

• 1 onion, chopped

• 6c. chicken stock 

Directions:

Peel squash and cut into 1-inch chunks. In large pot, melt butter. Add onion and cook until translucent, about 8 minutes. Add squash and stock. Bring to a simmer and cook until squash is tender. Remove squash chunks with slotted spoon and place into blender and puree. Return blended squash to pot. Stir and season with nutmeg, salt, and pepper. Serve

The Chimes

3357 Highland Rd.

Baton Rouge, LA 70802

225.383.1754

Ah, the old stand-bys... the "go-to's." There is a certain beauty in those places around town you know will always score a home run. For me, as sure as the sun will rise in the East, the pizza will always be good at the Fleur-de-Lis, Sammy's will always yield a solid burger, and whatever I get at the Chimes won't fail to satisfy. Over the years, I imagine I've had nearly everything on their menu, but the Chimes is one of the rare places an adventurous eater like yours truly will find himself ordering the same thing nearly every time- which is precisely what I did last night. A dozen oysters ($8.50) , a cup of their sublime Shrimp and Corn Soup ($5.50) and a Chimes Club- fried, in all its artery-clogging glory ($7.50).

On this December Saturday night, the Chimes was predictably full, and the hostess informed us the wait would be 35 minutes. That was just enough time for a trip down memory lane, tracking down a couple of faded old entries from this famous old watering hole's Round the World board, an alcoholic wall-of-fame denoting those who have had 60 different beers from 20 different countries (at least those were the qualifications during my time at the Ole War Skule.) My name ignominiously appears two times, once in '90 and another in '91, which in essence provided me with a pair of $250 t-shirts, a gut, and many a headache. I noted with no small amount of amusement that the surrounding entries were littered with the names of old friends, classmates, professors, and several current pillars of the Baton Rouge community- many of whom, shockingly (pun intended) are members of the Bar. My quest for the elusive sweatshirt granted to 3-time Round The World'ers was ended prematurely when those closest to me suggested that I might do well to spend more time in the library (on campus, that is, not down the street) than in the Chimes, in order to get out of LSU after six years.

Our buzzer went off after twenty minutes, and we were seated promptly. I ordered the usual along with an iced tea, and the better half chose the Hot Crawfish Salad ($11.95) with Remoulade dressing and a Blue Moon. It's been a good year in Louisiana for oysters, and they arrived plump and salty, and after a squeeze of lemon and a kiss of cocktail sauce, they disappeared in short order. Next up came the Shrimp-and-Corn Soup, and it didn't disappoint. Velvety smooth with soft shrimp and sweet corn in a roux-thickened tomato broth, it was delicious, cayenne-spiked goodness. The soup is served with a buttered hot roll which my wife promptly offered to help me eat. After polishing this off, the main courses arrived right on time. The salad was a large bowl of fresh lettuce and fried crawfish tails with Remoulade dressing served on the side. It was garnished with three garlic toasts, quartered hard-boiled egg, and sliced roma tomatoes. The crawfish were plentiful and nicely fried- crisp, but not greasy. The boiled egg was the only sour note here- too hard and dry- frankly, they tasted old.
The Chimes Club is a substantial sandwich, with a whole chicken breast battered and deep-fried to perfection, topped with thick-cut bacon and served dressed on whole-wheat toast. Very filling and every bit worth the angioplasty. After putting this away I was stuffed to the point of requesting a stretcher to leave! It was scrumptious.
Service was great- friendly, unobtrusive and timely. Tax and tip brought the bill to a very reasonable $50 for two, and we left satisfied yet again with a trip to one of our Baton Rouge favorites- the go-to... The Chimes.

thechimes.com

Montana's Restaurante

Montana’s Supermercado, Carniceria, Mexican & Colombian Restaurante
11954 Coursey Blvd.
Baton Rouge, LA
Hours:
Monday through Friday 11am-9pm
Saturday 9am-9pm
Sunday 9am-6pm

Lunch: Yes
Kid Friendly: Yes
Credit Cards: Yes
Reservations: No
Attire: Casual


Something remarkable is taking place in the strip malls of Baton Rouge- a transformation from humble retail outlets into portals from which to taste and see the world! Vietnamese, Indian, Latin, and Middle Eastern markets are all flourishing here, providing lucky Baton Rougeans with a taste of the real thing. One of the latest additions to this scene comes by way of Colombia, at Montana’s Restaurante on Coursey Boulevard.
Located in the back of its bright and spacious Latino market, Montana’s serves up authentic Colombian cuisine along with a handful of Mexican dishes. Daily special menus feature treats like Arepas, the stuffed corn patties of South America, filled with beef tongue (lengua) in Creole sauce, shrimp and avocado, shredded beef or chicken, or even deep-fried pork rind (chicharron).
The uninitiated to Colombian cuisine should probably start with the “Bandeja Paisa”- the “typical” plate of Colombian food. A marinated and grilled slice of skirt steak is served on top of fluffy white rice and crowned with a lightly fried egg. Kidney beans with little scraps of pork in a flavorful gravy, thinly-battered slices of sweet fried plantain, a piece of chicharron, and a dense, herby link of chorizo sausage are all served on the side. The plate is garnished with fresh avocado and a delicious cilantro-and-chili-spiked salsa verde.
Friendly, attentive servers are on hand to guide you through the menu if you have questions, and Montana’s also offers an array of soups, salads and tacos if you are not ready to make the trip all the way to Bogota’- although it’s easy to think you already have with the sounds of Colombian newscasts on the TV, dining side-by-side with families of transplanted South Americans who’ve come to Montana’s for a little taste of home.

Restaurant Review #1- Louis DeAngelo's Casual Italian Dining 12/23/07

Louis DeAngelo's Casual Italian Dining
13686 Coursey Blvd. (Coursey @ Hickory Ridge)
Baton Rouge , LA 70817

DeAngelo's on Coursey is another of Louis DeAngelo's successful chain of pizza-and-pasta casual dining spots, and we entered it late on a Sunday night in anticipation of some hearty fare to warm up from a pre-Christmas cold snap.

DeAngelo's is housed in an attractive space at the entrance of Hickory Ridge subdivision on Coursey Boulevard. The restaurant has a warm and spacious neighborhood feel, with walls painted in warm ochre tones, and tables with white tablecloths.

We found the entrance curiously unmanned, which we wrote off due to a late arrival on a holiday night. Eventually we were seated, with our server taking a drink order promptly. Although DeAngelo's is perhaps best known for its pizzas and calzones, we were in the mood for comfort food, and thus opted for some different choices this evening.

We ordered two appetizers, the DeAngelo starter salad ($4.50) and a cup of Tomato-Basil Soup ($3.25). Our server informed us that they were out of the Tomato-Basil, so we elected instead to go with the Shrimp Bisque ($4.95)

The salad was fresh and flavorful, tossed in a red wine vinaigrette and topped with tasty, if meager, slices of red onion, Roma tomato, and buffalo mozzarella cheese. The bisque, however, turned out to be a disappointment... a watery soup, not really bisque-like at all, with a few insipid, over-cooked shrimp in a spicy yet odd-flavored broth which we found to have a curious aftertaste. It was left unfinished, with higher hopes for the evening's entree selections- the Shrimp and Crawfish Diavolo ($15.95), shrimp and crawfish tossed in an asiago cheese and tomato cream sauce served over linguine; and the Seafood Cannelloni ($16.95) pasta tubes filled with a shrimp, artichoke heart and cheese filling in a brandy-cream sauce and topped with lump crab meat.

The Diavolo was well-received- solid if not spectacular, in a pinkish tomatoey cream sauce with a bit of a kick. Paired with a glass of Pinot Noir, it made for a satisfying meal. The Cannelloni came out of the oven in a ceramic boat, topped with drier-than-expected crab meat.
Filled with tasty seafood stuffing and rich asiago and parmesan cheese flavors, this dish would have shined were it not for a rather bland and uninspiring cream sauce that was lacking in flavor, especially that of brandy. Indeed, the brandy in the sauce was imperceptible, if there was any at all. The crab meat topping was consisted of good quality meat, free of shell or grit but again lacking enough seasoning and flavor. We thought a quick saute' in wine would have added a needed zing to what was otherwise a very flavor-neutral dish. Still, it made a filling repast.

Service was friendly, if not quite as attentive as we would have expected. We were not given silverware, and had to wait for drink refills. Trash and empty dishes were not taken promptly from our table.

Compared to our past visits to DeAngelo's, this night was a disappointment. Pizzas and calzones are always a safe and affordable bet. There also seems to be some differences in execution from one location to another- we've had better experiences at the Jefferson and Bluebonnet locations of DeAngelo's.

Still, DeAngelo's succeeds in providing good casual Italian food in a neighborhood setting at fair prices, and will maintain it's place in our regular rotation- we just hope they can make the leap from pretty good to great. -Eat Baton Rouge

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