1995’s Top 10 Recipes

It’s the same every year. December comes, and we can’t remember a thing we ate.

Then someone mentions the turkey galantine that we tested at the beginning of summer for our Thanksgiving issue and someone else says, “Oh yeah, that was really good . . . and remember that ragout with shrimp and fava beans from June?”

By the time the final ballots are cast for the best recipes of the year, there are far too many good recipes to include in a Top 10 list, and some of the first recipes mentioned don’t get included. That’s not surprising, because we print about 1,500 recipes annually.

The voting was so tight this year that we had a run-off for the last three places on the list, and we decided to print the runners-up that made it to the third ballot.

Even so, some excellent recipes didn’t make the cut: the spaghetti with cherry tomatoes from Rex il Ristorante; the walnut gateau from Richard Olney’s “Lulu’s Provencal Table,” which ran at the beginning of the year; the chestnut cake that ran just last week; and the turkey and shrimp recipes mentioned earlier. There was some good eating done in The Times Test Kitchen this year.

But there was no question about our No. 1 choice, the Iranian chelo kebab from Charles Perry’s late summer story, “Meat on a Stick: Of Skewer Events in the Shisk Kebab Zone.” The vote was nearly unanimous. We think you’ll like our other choices as well.

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1. The rice is what everyone went crazy for in this dish. Chelo starts as a plain rice pilaf, but it’s very buttery and it’s made so that a crunchy golden crust forms on the bottom of the pot. Everyone wants a bite of the crust, but it’s traditional in Iran to offer the crust to your guest. Sour ground sumac berries, available in most of Southern California’s Near Eastern markets, is sprinkled over the dish.

Fresh onion juice is used to give the meat marinade a richer aroma than that of chopped onions. Saffron makes the kebab elegant, but if you can’t get saffron, substitute 2 teaspoons ground cumin and 2 tablespoons ground coriander. Made with saffron, the marinade is also excellent with chicken and fish.

IRANIAN CHELO KEBAB

CHELO

1 3/4 cups fragrant long-grain white rice such as basmati

Water

Salt

1/3 cup melted unsalted butter

Rinse rice in three changes of lukewarm water. Soak rice in cold water to cover with 1 1/2 tablespoons salt 1 hour.

Put 2 quarts water in pot, add 1 tablespoon salt and bring to boil. Drain soaked rice and add to boiling water. Boil until rice is nearly done but not soft, 5 to 10 minutes, stirring twice to keep grains from sticking together. Drain rice in colander and rinse with lukewarm water.

Put 1/3 of melted butter and 2 tablespoons water in bottom of pot. Using large spoon, sprinkle rice grains into pot, distributing evenly. Allow rice to form cone shape. Pour remaining melted butter over rice. With handle of wooden spoon, punch 2 to 3 holes from top of rice mound to bottom of pot.

Put dish towel or paper towels over pot, then cover with pot lid. Set pot on medium heat 10 to 15 minutes, then reduce heat to low 35 to 40 minutes. Can be kept in warm oven 1 hour.

KEBAB

5 large onions

1/8 teaspoon saffron threads

2 pounds boneless lamb or beef, in kebab pieces

Salt, pepper

1/4 cup butter, melted, optional

Cilantro

4 onions, quartered, optional

1 to 2 teaspoons ground sumac, optional

KEBAB

Quarter 1 onion and reduce to fine puree in food processor (leave kitchen windows open because of fumes). Push puree through fine strainer.

Grind saffron to powder in mortar, or on plate using back of spoon, and dissolve in onion juice.

Clean meat and trim excess fat. Mix meat with onion juice marinade, cover with plastic wrap and marinate 1 hour at room temperature.

When ready to cook meat, season with salt and pepper to taste and thread onto skewers. Grill until done. Brush with melted butter.

To serve, set Chelo pot in sink of cold water 1 minute to loosen crust on bottom of pot. Remove pot lid. Turn large serving plate upside-down and cover pot with it. Holding pot and plate tightly together, turn both upside-down. Rice should come out on plate.

Remove pot. Divide crust among diners and serve rice with Kebab. Quarter remaining onions. Garnish with cilantro and raw onions, and sprinkle kebab with sumac.

Makes 4 to 6 servings.

Each of 4 servings contains about:

658 calories; 780 mg sodium; 151 mg cholesterol; 24 grams fat; 66 grams carbohydrates; 40 grams protein; 0.29 gram fiber.

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2. After years of trying to make a good clafoutis, Russ Parsons finally figured out a way to get the usually tough pancake-like crust to be more like the ideal he imagined when he first saw a picture of clafoutis, something tender and almost custard-like, puffed and brown and dotted with melting fruit. He experimented with several recipes from several respected cookbook authors, including Julia Chila, Patricia Wells and Richard Olney, then took the best of those, fiddled some more and came up with his own recipe. Several tasters in The Times Test Kitchen agreed that it was the best clafoutis they had eaten.

The recipe calls for summer apricots but will work well with almost any seasonal fruit that can go into a pie.

APRICOT-ALMOND CLAFOUTIS

Sugar

3 eggs

3/4 cup whipping cream

3/4 cup milk

1/2 teaspoon almond extract

1/2 cup flour

8 apricots, about, cut in half and pitted

1/3 cup slivered almonds

Place 1/4 cup sugar, eggs, cream, milk and almond extract in blender or food processor and blend until smooth. Sift flour over mixture and pulse just to mix. Set batter aside to stand 10 minutes.

Arrange apricots, cut-side down, in heavily buttered and sugared 9-inch glass pie plate. When batter has rested, pour batter over apricots. Sprinkle with almonds and 1 to 2 tablespoons sugar.

Bake at 400 degrees until puffed and brown, about 45 minutes. Serve immediately.

Makes 6 to 8 servings.

Each of 6 servings contains about:

290 calories; 59 mg sodium; 142 mg cholesterol; 17 grams fat; 30 grams carbohydrates; 8 grams protein; 0.69 gram fiber.

TIED FOR THIRD PLACE

3. Even in the early days of California cuisine, creme bru^lee was ubiquitous. In response to the overabundance of burnt sugar, Jimmy Brinkley, the original pastry chef of Michael’s restaurant in Santa Monica, came up with this variation back when the restaurant opened in 1979. The recipe ran as part of a cover story marking the reunion of chefs who cooked at Michael McCarty’s breakthrough restaurant, which helped define California cuisine and later Modern American cuisine. Sixteen years later, we’re still eating too much creme bru^lee and Brinkley’s alternative seems practically new.

Note that the Pate Sucree recipe makes much more pastry than you’ll need for a single tart; it’s designed to make four (10-inch) tart crusts. But the pastry freezes well; you may also divide the recipe in half.

CREME BRULEE TART

PATE SUCREE

5 1/3 cups flour

3/4 cup granulated sugar

2 cups unsalted butter, chilled and cut into 1-inch cubes

3 large egg yolks

3 tablespoons heavy whipping cream

Put flour and sugar into bowl of mixer fitted with dough hook. With mixer on low, add butter and mix until ingredients resemble cornmeal, about 10 minutes. (Food processor may also be used.)

In separate bowl, whisk together egg yolks and cream until smooth. Increase mixer speed to medium and add yolk-cream mixture. As soon as dough comes together (should just take few seconds), stop mixer. Divide dough into 4 equal pieces. Gather each piece of dough into ball; wrap each in plastic wrap. Chill in refrigerator 30 to 60 minutes before using.

FILLING

3 cups heavy whipping cream

7 large egg yolks

6 tablespoons granulated sugar

3/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar

Bring cream to boil in heavy saucepan over medium heat. At same time, bring water to boil in bottom of double boiler, then reduce heat to simmer. Combine egg yolks and granulated sugar in top of double boiler set over simmering water. Whisk together until mixture is very thick.

Whisking continuously, pour hot cream into yolks. Reduce heat to low and let mixture cook 30 minutes, whisking about every 3 minutes.

Place cake ring 8 inches in diameter and 2 inches high on baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Roll out pastry to circle about 10 inches in diameter. Roll pastry around rolling pin and unroll onto cake ring. Press pastry into bottom and up sides of ring, raising and pinching edges just barely over rim. Place large flat coffee filter inside and fill with pie weights or beans. Bake pastry at 350 degrees on bottom oven rack until edges are light golden brown, about 20 minutes. Remove pie weights and filter. Slide circle of heavy cardboard under pastry and remove ring.

Fill pastry shell with thick cream mixture. Using sifter, sift even layer of brown sugar on top. Crimp strip of foil over edge of pastry to prevent burning. Place dessert in heated broiler and broil until sugar is melted, 1 to 1 1/2 minutes, watching carefully to prevent burning.

Refrigerate tart until filling sets, about 2 hours.

Makes 1 (8- or 10-inch) tart, about 8 servings.

Each serving contains about:

678 calories; 51 mg sodium; 420 mg cholesterol; 51 grams fat; 51 grams carbohydrates; 7 grams protein; 0.06 grams fiber.

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3. Most winter squash look more like instruments of self-defense than like something to eat. But winter squash is not only delicious, it’s also easy to cook. One of the easiest methods is also among the best-tasting.

There are two ways to get squash pulp. You can pierce the skin of the squash all over with a sharp carving fork then bake it at 400 degrees until the squash is soft, 50 to 60 minutes. Or you can cut the squash in half, place it, cut side down, on a jelly roll pan or in a roasting pan, then add about a quarter-inch of water before baking at 400 degrees until soft, 30 to 40 minutes. The second method cooks the squash faster and more evenly; the first method may give the squash a more concentrated flavor.

Once the squash is softened, spoon the pulp away from the skin. This pulp can be used for all sorts of recipes, including this one, which many on the staff like almost as much as mashed potatoes.

BALSAMIC SQUASH PUREE

2 tablespoons minced shallots

1/4 cup butter

3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

2 cups roast squash pulp

1 teaspoon salt

Freshly grated nutmeg

Cook shallots in medium saucepan with 1 tablespoon butter over medium heat until soft, about 3 to 5 minutes. Add vinegar, increase heat to high and cook until vinegar is reduced to syrup, another 3 to 5 minutes. Add squash pulp and salt and stir to combine. Reduce heat to low and cook until heated through, about 5 minutes. Cut remaining butter into small cubes, add to squash and beat until fairly smooth. Serve immediately, dusted with freshly grated nutmeg.

Makes 4 servings.

Each serving contains about:

159 calories; 708 mg sodium; 31 mg cholesterol; 12 grams fat; 13 grams carbohydrates; 1 gram protein; 0.83 gram fiber.

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3. Budapest-born Tamas Vetro gave The Times Test Kitchen this recipe in which 2-inch deep cuts are made all over the surface of the lamb then filled with slivers of garlic that have been rolled in small pieces of bacon. With the bacon, there is no need to season with salt or to baste with oil. All you need to do is brush the lamb occasionally so that the melting bacon fat spreads over the whole surface. If the garlic and bacon start to pop out of the slits, just push them back in.

LEG OF LAMB A LA TAMAS

1 (6- to 7-pound) leg of lamb

Garlic cloves, cut into slivers

1/4 pound bacon, cut crosswise into 2-inch pieces

Dijon mustard, optional

Make deep 2-inch cuts at regular intervals over entire surface of lamb. Roll 1 sliver garlic in 1 (2-inch) piece bacon and insert completely into lamb slit. Repeat until all bacon is used.

Place lamb on spit over hot charcoals or in electric rotisserie. Cook until lamb reaches desired doneness, about 3 hours for medium-rare to medium. Brush surface of lamb during cooking as bacon juices begin to come out. If bacon starts to pop out of slits, push back in. Serve with mustard.

Makes 12 servings.

Each serving contains about:

228 calories; 141 mg sodium; 90 mg cholesterol; 12 grams fat; 1 gram carbohydrates; 28 grams protein; 0.05 gram fiber.

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3. Kourambiedes, delicate, tender, crumbly and not too sweet despite a blizzard coating of powdered sugar, are Greek butter cookies. In May, Barbara Hansen watched the women at St. Nicholas Orthodox Church in Northridge make 3,000 kourambiedes for the church-sponsored Valley Greek Festival.

ST. NICHOLAS VALLEY GREEK FESTIVAL KOURAMBIEDES

1 pound butter, softened

1/2 cup sifted powdered sugar, plus more for coating

1 egg yolk

1 tablespoon bourbon

4 cups flour, sifted

Whip butter in electric mixer about 25 minutes, until white and fluffy. Add 1/2 cup sifted powdered sugar, egg yolk and bourbon. Mix well. Add flour gradually and beat until dough is very soft but can be handled without sticking.

Shape dough into walnut-size balls. Place on ungreased baking sheets and flatten slightly. With finger tip, make depression in center of each.

Bake at 325 degrees until lightly browned, about 25 minutes. Immediately remove cookies from hot baking sheet and place on another baking sheet thickly coated with sifted powdered sugar. Cover with additional sifted powdered sugar. Cool completely. Place in individual paper cups and store in airtight container.

Makes 3 dozen cookies.

Each cookie contains about:

146 calories; 2 mg sodium; 35 mg cholesterol; 10 grams fat; 11 grams carbohydrates; 2 grams protein; 0.04 gram fiber,

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3. This dessert was developed by Charles Perry to showcase the exotic perfume of pickled lemons for his story on the history and many uses of pickled lemon in Arabic cuisine. Many tasters found the cheesecake unusual and refreshing. If you want, garnish the cheesecake with slices of pickled lemon.

To pickle a lemon, or a lime, first wash and scrub it with water (there’s often a thin layer of wax or other preservative on the peel). Make two cuts at right angles to each other from one end almost to the other, leaving enough uncut so that the fruit can be opened without falling apart, about 1/2 inch. Next, generously salt the exposed flesh, using at least 3 tablespoons per pound of lemons. Put the salted fruit in a big, clean jar and cover with fresh lemon juice or water. Lemon juice gives a better flavor, but resist the temptation to use bottled lemon juice, which gives an unpleasant metallic quality. Put on the lid and leave the jar at room temperature for four or five weeks. Pickled lemons should keep about one year in brine; they also freeze well.

PICKLED LEMON CHEESECAKE

PASTA FROLLA

3/4 cup flour

3 tablespoons sugar

3 tablespoons butter, room temperature

1 egg

Combine flour and sugar in mixing bowl. Cut butter into flour mixture until crumbly. Mix with egg. Knead just until mixture can be formed into ball. Cover with plastic wrap. Let stand 30 minutes at room temperature. Roll out pasta frolla and line 8-inch springform pan with dough.

CHEESECAKE

1 pound ricotta

1 cup sugar

3 eggs

2 pickled lemons, or 3 pickled limes, seeded and diced

3 tablespoons flour

While dough is resting, combine ricotta, sugar and eggs in mixing bowl. Add diced lemons. Stir in flour and mix well.

Pour in ricotta mixture. Bake at 375 degrees 40 minutes. Remove from oven. Let stand 30 minutes before slicing or removing from pan. When cool, refrigerate.

Makes 8 servings.

Each serving contains about:

457 calories; 166 mg sodium; 195 mg cholesterol; 19 grams fat; 60 grams carbohydrates; 15 grams protein; 0.05 gram fiber.

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4. OK, it cooks in less than 15 minutes, it’s got almost no fat and it tastes really wonderful. What’s the catch? We’re still looking for one. This recipe is from Nirmala Kripanarayanan, who comes from Southern India. It’s an example of Hindu vegetarian cooking at its best. You can sometimes find it on the menu at India’s Tandoori, a restaurant in West Los Angeles that Kripanarayanan and her family run.

BEANS THORAN

2 1/4 teaspoons oil

1/2 teaspoon mustard seeds

1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds

1 tablespoon split, peeled urad dal

1 onion, chopped

4 jalapeno chiles, chopped

1 stalk curry leaves

1 teaspoon turmeric

1 pound green beans, cut crosswise in thin slices

1/4 coconut, grated

2 teaspoons salt

Chopped cilantro

Heat oil in skillet. Add mustard and cumin seeds. When mustard seeds pop, add dal, onion and jalapenos. Cook until onion is tender-crisp. Add curry leaves and turmeric and cook briefly. Add green beans and stir to mix with seasonings. Add coconut and continue to stir. Add salt and cook 5 to 7 minutes, stirring. Beans should be slightly crisp. Check seasoning. Serve garnished with cilantro.

Makes 8 servings.

Each serving contains about:

49 calories; 594 mg sodium; 0 cholesterol; 2 grams fat; 7 grams carbohydrates; 2 grams protein; 1 gram fiber.

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4. When Michelle Huneven started thinking about recipes to serve at a fund-raising dinner that she was to cook for her church, a friend suggested this traditional French country dish. It can be made with prunes or a combination of prunes and dried plums. (Prunes are dried plums, but not all dried plums are prunes.) Huneven especially likes good dried Angeleno plums, which have a nice, bright tartness. If you’re not cooking for a crowd, this recipe divides easily.

PORK SHOULDER STUFFED WITH PRUNES AND PLUMS

3 cups prunes, pitted, or combination 1 1/2 cups prunes and 1 1/2 cups dried plums

1/4 cup balsamic vinegar

3 (3-pound) boneless pork shoulder roasts

4 large cloves garlic, peeled and crushed

Salt

Freshly ground pepper

Port wine

Stock, optional

Place prunes in bowl and cover with lukewarm water. Add balsamic vinegar. Cover and soak 3 hours or overnight.

Remove strings binding roasts and rub all sides with garlic and salt and pepper to taste. Lay roasts flat and place thick row of soaked prunes down middle. Roll roasts around soaked fruit and tie carefully, neither too tightly nor too loosely. If prunes fall out, stuff back in and tie roast lengthwise to hold inside.

When all 3 roasts are tied, brown well on all sides over medium-high heat, about 15 minutes. Place roasts in large roasting pan, well apart from each other. If there are extra prunes, arrange around roasts and add small amount of soaking mixture to bottom of pan.

Roast at 350 degrees. After first 40 minutes, baste every 15 to 20 minutes until meat is done, about 2 1/2 hours. Remove string before serving. Cut into slices.

To make sauce, degrease roasting pan. Deglaze with wine. Place over medium heat, add stock and stir, scraping to loosen cooked-on bits, adding more stock and/or fruit soaking liquid until there is small amount of dark sauce.

Makes 22 to 24 servings. Each serving contains about:

443 calories; 97 mg sodium; 102 mg cholesterol; 33 grams fat; 14 grams carbohydrates; 23 grams protein; 0.46 gram fiber.

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5. It takes about five pomegranates to make one cup of juice, and it takes six cups of juice to make the pomegranate molasses from Paula Wolfert’s “The Cooking of the Eastern Mediterranean” that’s used in this dish. Wolfert recommends buying the Cortas brand, which is widely available in local Middle Eastern markets. The combination of molasses and Middle Eastern red pepper sauce makes a terrific marinade for meats, as Michelle Huneven found with this recipe for ribs. It’s very tart, but soon enough the tartness proves addictive.

RIBS BASTED WITH POMEGRANATE AND RED PEPPER SAUCE

POMEGRANATE MOLASSES

6 cups fresh or bottled pomegranate juice

1 cup sugar

1 cup lemon juice

Place pomegranate juice, sugar and lemon juice in non-reactive saucepan over high heat and slowly reduce by boiling to 2 cups. Cool, bottle and refrigerate. Makes 2 cups.

RIBS

2 racks of lamb or pork back ribs, approximately 1 pound each, cut into separate rib pieces

Water

1 stick cinnamon, optional

5 cloves, optional

3 to 5 whole allspice, optional

1/4 cup pomegranate molasses

1/4 cup red pepper sauce

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

Salt

Freshly ground pepper

Place ribs in stockpot. Cover with water, add cinnamon, cloves and allspice and bring to boil. Reduce heat and simmer 1 hour.

Combine pomegranate molasses, red pepper sauce, olive oil, lemon juice and salt and pepper to taste.

Remove ribs from water, drain and place in a roasting pan. Sprinkle with salt to taste. Brush on pomegranate sauce. Bake at 300 degrees, basting every 20 minutes or so until caramelized but not dry, about 1 hour.

Makes 2 servings for dinner, 4 or more as an appetizer.

Each appetizer serving contains about:

557 calories; 251 mg sodium; 90 mg cholesterol; 48 grams fat; 14 grams carbohydrates; 17 grams protein; 0 fiber.

The Runners-Up

Is this a stew, a soup or a pasta? Who cares? This recipe from Russ Parsons is a perfect meal for a fall day when made with fresh cranberry beans, and it works well in winter when made with dried beans. In a pinch, you could even substitute well-drained canned beans. Charring the tomatoes gives a slight smoky quality to this stew and intensifies the tomato flavor as well. You don’t need to push the idea too far, just let the tomatoes scorch enough to flavor them.

STEW OF CHARRED TOMATOES AND CRANBERRY BEANS

3 plum tomatoes

2 ounces prosciutto, minced

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 carrot, diced

1/2 onion, diced

1 clove garlic, minced

1 small sprig sage

1 pound cranberry beans, shelled (about 1 1/2 cups)

1 1/2 cups water

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 pound dried pasta shapes, like gnocchi or medium shells

2 tablespoons torn basil leaves

Slice tomatoes in half lengthwise and place cut-side-down on hot griddle. Cook until tomato begins to blacken and char, about 5 minutes. Turn over and repeat on opposite side, another 3 minutes. Cool, squeeze out seeds, chop and reserve.

In large saute pan over medium heat, cook prosciutto in oil until lightly browned, about 5 minutes. Add carrot, onion and garlic, reduce heat and cook, covered, until vegetables soften, about 10 minutes.

Add sage, cranberry beans, tomatoes, water and salt. Bring to boil, reduce to simmer and cook, covered, until beans are soft, about 30 minutes.

When beans are done, cook pasta in plenty of rapidly boiling salted water. Drain well and add to beans. Raise heat to high and cook, stirring, 2 to 3 minutes to meld flavors. Divide among 4 pasta plates and garnish with torn basil.

Makes 4 servings.

Each serving contains about:

299 calories; 782 mg sodium; 8 mg cholesterol; 5 grams fat; 52 grams carbohydrates; 10 grams protein; 1.05 grams fiber.

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When Kathie Jenkins started exploring cooking under pressure, one of the real winners was this Mexican-flavored stew. After an hour in the pressure cooker, the meat becomes flavorful and so tender that it literally falls apart. The tasters in The Times Test Kitchen couldn’t get enough. Don’t be concerned if the roast has to be wedged into the pot; it will shrink considerably during cooking. And above all, don’t even think about the fact that it came from a cookbook published by Presto, the Eau Claire, Wis., company that manufactures pressure cookers.

CHILORIO

1 (3- to 4-pound) pork shoulder or loin roast

Salt, pepper

1 medium onion, sliced

3 cups boiling water

3 medium jalapeno chiles, seeded and sliced

2 cloves garlic

1/4 teaspoon cumin seeds

1 teaspoon fresh oregano

1/4 cup lemon juice

Dash cayenne pepper

2 tablespoons chopped cilantro

2 dozen corn or flour tortillas

Chopped lettuce, optional

Chopped tomatoes, optional

Place cooking rack in 6-quart pressure cooker. Trim as much surface fat from meat as possible. Sprinkle entire roast with salt and pepper to taste. Place meat and sliced onion on rack. Add boiling water. Lock lid in place, bring up to full pressure and cook 60 minutes. Allow pressure to come down naturally. Remove meat and rack.

Boil juices rapidly to reduce to about 1 1/2 cups. Add jalapenos, garlic, cumin, oregano and 1/2 teaspoon black pepper. Lock lid in place, bring to full pressure and cook 2 minutes. Reduce pressure quickly.

Puree liquid with hand blender or in standard blender or food processor. Add lemon juice and 1/2 teaspoon salt.

Remove meat from bones, discarding bones and fat. Coarsely chop meat with knife and then place meat in bowl. Add half of sauce to meat, mixing well. Add cayenne and cilantro to remaining sauce.

To make tacos, heat tortillas over griddle or low flame. Place about 2 tablespoons meat mixture in each tortilla. Top with remaining sauce, lettuce and tomatoes.

Makes 24 tacos.

Each taco contains about:

132 calories; 101 mg sodium; 28 mg cholesterol; 4 grams fat; 14 grams carbohydrates; 11 grams protein; 1.14 grams fiber.

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Pears and sweet red peppers might seem like an odd combination for a soup, but it works surprisingly well. The sweetness of the pears seems to balance the acid of the peppers. Times Test Kitchen assistant Mayi Brady thought up the soup a few years ago when she was working at the old Mario Cooking for Friends. One of her jobs was to come up with the daily soup specials, and one day she got desperate. The red pepper soup she’d made had an unpleasant edge. Instead of cutting the bitterness with sugar, she threw in a pear instead. The soup ended up being one of their best-sellers. One of ours too.

ROASTED RED PEPPER AND PEAR SOUP

3 large red bell peppers

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 large leek, white part only, chopped

3 cloves garlic, chopped

1 pear, peeled, cored and chopped

1/2 teaspoon dried thyme

2 (14-ounce) cans vegetable broth

Salt, pepper

Roast red bell peppers over open flame or under broiler until charred black. Allow to cool several minutes inside paper bag or under covered bowl. Rub off charred skin, remove core and seeds and chop.

Heat oil in 2-quart pot, add leek and garlic and saute over medium-low heat about 5 minutes. Add pear and cook another 5 minutes. Add roasted peppers and thyme. Cook until vegetables are very tender, another 10 to 15 minutes. Add vegetable broth and salt and pepper to taste. Simmer another 15 to 20 minutes.

Transfer soup to blender and puree until very smooth. Adjust seasonings to taste.

Makes 2 servings.

Each serving contains about:

359 calories; 2,166 mg sodium; 0 cholesterol; 12 grams fat; 59 grams carbohydrates; 8 grams protein; 3.92 grams fiber.