Soups

THE SECRET OF GOOD SOUPS is in the stock. To create flavorful soup, you need a good rich stock as your foundation. You can use water and the soup will be adequate, but usually it will lack character and be, well, watery. Stocks are fairly simple to make; they just take a little time. You can buy canned stock or flavored bases to save time, but there is really no substitute for making your own. What we do at The Black Dog is to start with the best basic ingredients and proceed. You want to make chicken soup, you go buy a really fresh chicken.

Basic Fish Stock

Because we buy whole fish, sometimes more than 300 pounds a day, we have lots of fish bones available. You can get them at any good fish market; just ask.

3 tablespoons canola oil

1 large white onion

2 stalks celery

2 carrots

3 pounds white fish bones (a mix of flounder, haddock, halibut and cod, if possible)

1 teaspoon whole peppercorns

1 small bunch parsley

3 quarts cold water

1 tablespoon salt

1. Roughly chop the vegetables.
2. Heat a large, heavy-bottomed stockpot and add the oil. Add the vegetables and stir occasionally until they become transparent.
3. Place the fish bones on top of the vegetables, add the peppercorns, parsley, and salt, and cover with the cold water.
4. Bring the stock to a boil and skim any foam that rises to the top.
5. Lower the heat and simmer uncovered for 20 minutes.
6. Strain through a fine colander. Use within three days or freeze for later use.

YIELDS: 3 QUARTS

Basic Chicken Stock

To make a clear chicken stock, take a chicken or chicken parts, but not the livers, and simmer. Jack actually raises chickens at home, so if he starts getting a cold, the Queen (his significant other) goes out back and butchers a bird to make stock ~ now that’s basic.

1 whole chicken, 4 to 5 pounds

1½ teaspoons salt

fresh ground black pepper

1 large onion or 2 small onions, chopped

2 large carrots

3 stalks celery

2 bay leaves

1. Take the chicken, remove the giblets, if any. Rinse the bird and place in a large, heavy-bottomed pot. Cover with water and add salt and pepper.
2. Bring to a boil and simmer for 20 to 25 minutes. Skim pot as necessary to remove foam.
3. Remove the pot from heat and remove chicken to cool. Reserve liquid in pot.
4. When the chicken is cool enough to handle, remove all the meat and reserve. You can use this meat to make a chicken salad or chicken soup, once your stock is finished. Chop the bones and skin and return them, along with any meat that may adhere to the bones, to the pot.
5. Add vegetables and bay leaves. Return to boil, then simmer for at least 2 hours. You can simmer longer. When done, strain the broth, discarding all the bones, skin, and veggies. You can chill the broth and de-fat after chilling (don’t remove all the fat because it carries the flavor). You can freeze any stock that you don’t need immediately.

YIELDS: 3 QUARTS

Basic Vegetable Stock

For veggie soups or sauces, it’s great to have some vegetable stock on hand. It has very similar ingredients to our other stock recipes; the main difference is that you do not cook it as long.

2 teaspoons canola oil

2 carrots

2 to 3 celery ribs

1 large white onion

any fresh vegetable trimmings or scraps you have on hand

1 tomato, optional

8 cups water

2 bay leaves

2 teaspoons black peppercorns

2 to 3 sprigs fresh thyme

1 tablespoon salt

2 to 3 sprigs fresh parsley

1. Heat a large heavy-bottomed stockpot. Add oil.
2. Rough chop all the veggies in 1-inch pieces, and add to the pot. Add any veggie trimmings you may have on hand. Sauté until the onion is soft.
3. Add the water and seasonings and bring to a boil.
4. Reduce to a simmer and cook for 25 minutes.
5. Strain the vegetable broth through a sieve and use in soups or sauces.

YIELDS: 2 QUARTS

I’m not a vegetarian because I love animals, I’m a vegetarian because I hate plants.

~ A. WHITNEY BROWN

B.D. Quahog Chowder

Quahog (clam) chowder is one of the foods New England is known for worldwide. During the summer season, up and down the New England coast you’ll find chowder contests where participants compete for the richest, most traditional, and tastiest chowder. We’ve won our share. If you want to make good chowder, you have to start with great clams. We’ve had this chowder on our menu since ’71 ~ it has to be good!

2 ounces salt pork, rind removed

2 cups diced onion

1 cup diced celery

3 cups diced potatoes

1 teaspoon dried thyme

1 teaspoon ground black pepper

4 cups shelled quahogs with juice (about 6 pounds in shell)

½ cup salted butter

½ cup all-purpose flour

1½ quarts light cream

1. Dice the salt pork and sauté in a large pot until translucent.
2. Add the onions and celery and sauté for 5 minutes.
3. Pour in about 1½ cups of the juice from the clams and add the potatoes and seasonings.
4. Simmer this mixture until the potatoes are tender. This should take about 10 minutes.
5. Melt the butter in a small saucepan. When it is bubbling, add the flour and cook for about 5 minutes, stirring often. This is called a roux, pronounced “rue.”
6. Roughly chop the quahogs, reserving any liquid.
7. When the potatoes are tender, add the quahogs to the large pot and simmer for 2 minutes.
8. Stir in the roux and continue simmering for another 5 minutes, stirring frequently. This is your chowder base.
9. In a separate saucepan, scald the cream by heating it until small bubbles appear around the edges of the pan. Do not boil.
10. Stir the hot scalded cream into the chowder base, mix together, and remove from heat.
11. At The Black Dog, we serve it topped with a dollop of butter, accompanied by oyster crackers or crusty bread.

SERVES 8 TO 10

BLACK DOG TAVERN

Sorry but our chowder cups did not arrive, so we can’t open until Monday, Jan. 11th.

From the Vineyard Gazette • January, 1971

Joshua Slocum’s Fish Chowder

AS RENDERED IN SHENANDOAH’S GALLEY

Joshua Slocum recorded this simple recipe, slightly modified by The Black Dog cooks, as he sailed alone around the world. It’s one of Capt. Douglas’s most frequently requested dishes, both on board and off. It’s exceptionally creamy ~ we think it tastes great, but know it tastes best when simmered on a coal stove at sea while loafing down-wind.

1 large onion, chopped

¼ cup butter (or bacon fat)

5 large potatoes, cut in ½-inch cubes

4 cups light cream

1 cup fish stock (see page 43)

salt to taste

2 pounds fresh skinless and boneless cod fillets

1 teaspoon ground white pepper

1 teaspoon chopped fresh parsley

¼ teaspoon dried thyme

garnish: butter, paprika

1. Wilt the onion in butter until soft and clear.
2. Add the potatoes and cover with cream and stock. Add a pinch of salt. Heat gently until tender. If you don’t have any fish stock available, just add more cream.
3. Cut the fish in 1-inch pieces and add the fish and seasonings. Simmer until the fish flakes easily. Be careful not to allow the soup to boil. Adjust seasoning.
4. Serve in mugs or bowls with a bit of butter floating on top. Sprinkle with paprika if you like.

SERVES 6

Smoked Bluefish & Corn Chowder

An end-of-season favorite, this chowder is made at the Tavern with native corn from Morning Glory Farm and Chappaquiddick Smoked Bluefish. How local can you get? Since you don’t have access to our walk-in cooler, you could substitute your favorite smoked fish for the bluefish.

4 tablespoons salted butter

½ cup diced onion

½ cup diced celery

¼ cup all-purpose flour

6 cups hot chicken or fish stock

2 cups diced new potatoes

2 cups fresh corn kernels (about 4 ears)

¼ teaspoon thyme

½ teaspoon black pepper

½ pound shredded smoked bluefish

1 cup light cream

1. In a heavy-bottomed pot, melt the butter over medium low heat.
2. Add the onions and celery and sauté slowly, partially covered, until they are translucent.
3. Sprinkle the melted butter and veggies with the flour. Continue cooking and stirring over low heat for about 5 minutes. Let the flour and butter mixture bubble slowly until the flour has cooked but not browned.
4. Stir in the hot stock and bring to a boil. Add potatoes, fresh corn, and seasonings. Lower heat to a simmer and cook until the potatoes are soft.
5. Add the smoked bluefish and continue simmering for another two minutes. Remove from heat and stir in the cream.

SERVES 6 TO 8

Vidalia Onion Soup

In early spring, when Georgia’s Vidalia onions hit the market, they quickly appear on The Black Dog’s menu. Their unique sweetness adds interest to many dishes. We often just slice them into ½-inch slabs, top with a little salt, pepper, and melted butter and grill them for 3 or 4 minutes. But on a cool summer night, there’s nothing better than this soup.

2 tablespoons canola oil

4 large Vidalia onions, thinly slivered (may substitute Walla Walla, Maui, or other sweet onions)

½ cup dry sherry

1½ quarts chicken stock (see page 44)

2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme

2 bay leaves

2 teaspoons salt

1 teaspoon ground white pepper grated Parmigiano-Reggiano

1. Preheat a heavy-bottomed saucepan. Add the oil. When it starts smoking, stir in the onions.
2. Reduce the heat and allow the onions to brown evenly, caramelizing the natural sugars. This intensifies their sweetness and overall flavor. Don’t let them burn.
3. Add the sherry and deglaze the pan, incorporating any browned bits of onion.
4. Pour in the stock, herbs, and seasonings. Stir together and bring to a boil.
5. Reduce to a simmer for about twenty minutes.
6. Serve with a sprinkling of grated cheese.

SERVES 6

Watercress Mushroom Soup

One of our favorite summer greens is watercress. It grows along the upper ends of some of the streambeds on the Island. One of the local farmers picks the cress for us a couple of times a week, depending on our needs, and the rate of growth (if the migrating ducks haven’t found it first). The vibrant greens are generally served in a salad or as a garnish the first day. If we have any left, the next day it becomes soup or salad dressing. The peppery cress adds a nice touch to this quick and easy light chicken-based soup that is good on a rainy summer day.

2 tablespoons olive oil

½cup diced onion

½ cup diced carrot

½ cup diced celery

1 cup sliced mushrooms

6 cups chicken stock, (see recipe, page 44)

1 cup diced cooked chicken

1 cup chopped watercress

¼ teaspoon dried basil or 1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil salt and pepper

1. Sauté the celery, carrot, mushrooms, and onion in the olive oil until tender.
2. Add the stock and bring to a boil.
3. Add the chicken, watercress, and basil and simmer for about five minutes.
4. Correct seasoning by adding salt and pepper if necessary.
5. Serve in steaming mugs.

SERVES 4 TO 6

Tavern Gazpacho

There’s a pace to life on the Island. We call it “Island time.” Seems as though we’re always waiting for something ~ like the next ferry to come in, or the fishing boats to arrive, or the local tomatoes to ripen. There’s nothing quite like the first batch of radiant red ripe tomatoes. Soon after the bonanza begins, we help out Andrew Woodruff of Whippoorwill farm, our local grower, by buying some of the less picture-perfect but delicious tomatoes. We then make batches of gazpacho ~ a treat on hot summer days.

3 pounds tomatoes

1 small red onion

1 peeled and seeded cucumber

1 red pepper, seeded

4 scallions

2 stalks celery

1 quart tomato juice

½ cup red wine vinegar

½ cup olive oil

1 teaspoon Tabasco

¼ cup chopped fresh basil

2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce

salt and pepper to taste

1 cup sour cream

garnish: 1 lime, cut in wedges

1. Finely dice all the veggies. You can chop them by hand or use a food processor if you watch it carefully. You don’t want mush.
2. In a large bowl, blend the diced vegetables with the tomato juice, oil, vinegar, and seasonings.
3. Chill, covered, for several hours. (Or overnight for the best flavor.)
4. Serve in bowls with a dollop of sour cream and garnish with a wedge of fresh lime.

SERVES 6

Chilled Melon Soup

Serve this soup as a refreshing first course, or as a light lunch on a hot day. For best flavor, be sure that your melons are ripe. If the blossom end of the melon is very aromatic, that’s generally a good sign.

1 ripe cantaloupe

½ ripe honeydew or Crenshaw

½ pound red seedless grapes

2 ounces dry sherry

4 ounces fresh apple cider

½ teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon brown sugar sour cream and fresh mint leaves for garnish

1. Cut melons in half and scoop out seeds into a fine holed strainer placed in a bowl. Push down on the seeds to extract all the juice. Reserve the juice.
2. Cut up melon flesh into chunks.
3. Place the melon juice, melon, and all the other ingredients, excluding the garnish, in a large blender or food processor and pulse until smooth. It may be easier to do this in 2 batches.
4. Strain mixture through a fine-holed sieve or food mill. Chill.
5. Serve cold, garnished with a dollop of sour cream and a bit of fresh mint.

SERVES 4

Carrot Ginger Soup

If you love ginger, you’ll love this soup. It has a bright, delicious fresh flavor that satisfies. As for the ginger, besides adding great flavor, it’s been known to help quiet queasiness and that rocking and rolling feeling some of us get on the water.

¼ cup canola oil

1 cup chopped onion

¼ cup peeled and grated fresh ginger

4 cups chopped carrots, peeled

4 cups vegetable stock (see page 45)

2 tablespoons salt

1 tablespoon ground white pepper

2 teaspoons ground coriander sliced scallions for garnish

1. Heat the oil in a large saucepan. Add the onion and ginger and sauté for 5 minutes.
2. Add all the remaining ingredients, except the scallions, and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and continue cooking for about 15 minutes or until the carrots are soft.
3. Purée the hot mixture. Serve garnished with a few bits of chopped scallion.

SERVES 4

Roasted Eggplant Soup

August abundance on the Island makes our winter dreams come true with eggplant, tomatoes, and fresh herbs ready for picking, or picking up, at the Farmer’s Market in West Tisbury.

2 whole eggplants

½ cup olive oil

1 head elephant garlic

2 pounds fresh plum tomatoes

1 onion, diced

1 red pepper, diced

1 green pepper, diced

2 quarts vegetable stock or chicken stock (see pages 44 & 45)

3 tablespoons chopped fresh basil

3 tablespoons chopped fresh oregano

3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

2 cups ricotta salt and pepper to taste

1. Preheat oven to 425°F.
2. Cut the eggplants in half. Drizzle with ¼ cup olive oil. Place on a baking sheet with the head of garlic and the whole tomatoes. Roast in the preheated oven for about 30 minutes or until soft.
3. When the vegetables are cool, remove any stem remains and skin from the eggplant and tomatoes. Coarsely chop, reserving any liquid.
4. Remove the pulp from the garlic by gently squeezing the skin. Set aside.
5. Heat remaining olive oil in a large saucepan, and sauté the diced onion and peppers until onion is transparent.
6. Add the stock, herbs, and chopped eggplant-tomato mixture to the saucepan.
7. Reduce to a simmer and continue cooking over a low flame. The soup should be ready in about thirty minutes.
8. While the soup is cooking, blend the garlic and ricotta in a food processor. Add salt and pepper to the mixture and set aside.
9. After thirty minutes, adjust the soup seasoning with salt and pepper. Serve with a dollop of the garlic-ricotta mixture on top.

SERVES 6

Split Pea Soup

Why split pea in the summer? On rainy days on Martha’s Vineyard people don’t go to the beach, they go shopping and out to eat. We serve more soup on one of those rainy days than we do in a week in winter. The chowder pipeline is always open, and we usually make a huge pot of split pea ~ comfort food.

1 pound (2 cups) dried split peas

6 cups water or chicken stock (see page 44)

1 pound ham hock (optional)

1 tablespoon dry mustard

½ teaspoon dried thyme

½ teaspoon dried rosemary

1 teaspoon dried basil

1 pinch of ground cloves

1 teaspoon salt

2½ tablespoons olive oil

4 cloves garlic, minced

1 cup diced onion

1 cup diced carrot

1 cup diced celery

½ cup diced red bell pepper

1 cup dark beer

1 to 2 tablespoons tamari or soy sauce

1. Rinse the split peas in a colander and then transfer them to a large stockpot along with 6 cups of water or stock.
2. Bring this to a boil and reduce to a simmer, stir, and skim off the foam as it develops.
3. When the peas have stopped foaming add the seasonings. Add the ham hock, if desired.
4. Cook at a low simmer for two hours, partially covered, making sure that the liquid doesn’t completely evaporate. Have a little water or stock on hand to add, just in case.
5. Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan and sauté the onion, carrot, celery, red pepper and garlic until the onion is translucent.
6. Now remove the ham hock, if you have used one, from the pot and set aside to cool.
7. Stir the sautéed garlic and vegetables into the pot and add the beer. Cook for another half-hour.
8. Trim the meat off the hock and chop into bitesize pieces. Add it to the soup. Taste, add the tamari and whisk the soup. Correct the seasoning if necessary.

SERVES 8 TO 10

Hot & Sour Soup

Sometimes the best relief on a hot summer day comes from a bowl of hot, spicy soup. Many examples of this can be found in Asian cuisines. With typical Yankee practicality, we’ve adopted and adapted this old standby. The “hot” comes from the white pepper, not the chilis, and combined with the sour vinegar, it will cool you off and clear your sinuses. This recipe works equally well with sautéed pork strips or grilled fresh tuna. Luckily now most groceries stock what used to be “exotic” ingredients.

12 dried shiitake mushrooms

2 ounces dried lily buds*

10 dried tree ears*

1 cup fresh button mushrooms

¾ pound lean pork loin or fresh tuna

4 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 tablespoon dark sesame oil

7 scallions, sliced

1 teaspoon white pepper or more to taste

½ cup kim chee* ~ optional

8 cups rich chicken stock (see page 44)

½ cup cider vinegar

6 tablespoons tamari

½ pound fresh tofu

2 beaten eggs

*available at specialty markets

1. Soak the dried shiitakes, lily buds, and tree ears, each in two cups of hot water in their own separate bowls. Let them soak for twenty minutes.
2. Slice the refreshed shiitake mushrooms while reserving the soaking liquid. Drain the lily buds and tree ears and rinse. Tear the tree ears into smaller pieces and remove any hard parts.
3. Slice the fresh mushrooms and set aside. Slice the pork or tuna in thin strips.
4. Place a large saucepan or large wok over high heat. Add the vegetable oil and sesame oil. Sauté the pork and scallions. When the pork loses its pinkness, add the fresh mushrooms.
5. Now add the shiitake mushrooms, tree ears, and lily buds, and cook to heat through. This should take about two minutes.
6. Season with the white pepper. Add the kim chee if you like.
7. Add the mushroom soaking liquid and the chicken stock. Stir to blend and add the vinegar and tamari. Bring the mixture to a boil, lower to a simmer, and taste.
8. Adjust the hot and sour balance by adding additional pepper or vinegar, carefully.
9. Slice the tofu into strips and add to soup.
10. Turn off the heat and stir in the beaten eggs.

SERVES 8 TO 10

ALL of the Black Dog’s salad dressings are made from scratch. What we offer on a daily basis depends on what fresh ingredients are available and the cook’s preference. We typically start with a basic vinaigrette, and add fresh herbs and other ingredients. Most of our recipes are three to four parts oil to one part acid ~ depending on how tangy a taste is desired. It’s so easy to whisk together oil, vinegar, a little salt and pepper, and a bit of Dijon mustard or fresh herbs ~ why ever buy bottled dressing? When you make it yourself, you know? what you’re eating.