Gluten Free Tofu Ravioli Soup Recipe

Tofu ravioli soup is a great first course. The soup is very light and as a bonus, it's gluten free. The twist is that thin slices of tofu are used as the wrapper for the ravioli. I filled the gluten-free raviolis with pre-cooked mushrooms, mung bean paste and jicama. I served them phở-style, meaning that I brought the ravioli to the table in bowls and then covered them with boiling-hot broth just before serving.

I learned the recipe from the lovely Chef Theresa Lin while attending the top 100 Chinese Restaurant Show in January in San Francisco. She's a hostess of several Chinese-language TV and radio programs around the world. She also was the executive food designer of the hit film "Eat Drink Man Woman," which garnered an Oscar nomination as Best Foreign Film. I got the opportunity to spend some time and have lunch with her, and in a very brief amount of time I learned quite a bit about Chinese cuisine. She is such a sweet lady and let Lulu and me taste her delicious food. This was one of the dishes she featured, and we loved it. You will too!

Cream of Asparagus Soup Recipe

Cream of asparagus soup is a dish I recently served for a dinner party as a first course. The soup is packed with asparagus flavor. This is because I made the vegetable stock with the roots from the asparagus, then I blended in the asparagus that I roasted for a few minutes. The usual roux helps thicken the soup to which I then added St Félicien cheese, -one of my husband Lulu's favorite cheeses-, for extra creaminess.

This step is optional but if you want to be met with a round of "oohs" and "ahs" when the bowls of soup are brought to the dinner table, I suggest that you cover the bowl of soup with puff pastry. For decoration, top with a little saffron cream and an asparagus spear. It's a truly seductive way to start a meal.

Cream of Broccoli Cheese Soup

I made cream of broccoli soup (velouté de brocolis in French) as a cure for two of my girls’ aversion to broccoli. Much of the flavor of the broccoli is concealed by gooey cheese (I used French Chaumes cheese) and a drizzle of heavy cream for richness.

To make the soup, broccoli is first boiled and then blended with vegetable broth. To thicken the mixture, I made a roux, which is a combination of flour, butter and liquid. The result is a beautiful, bright green soup.

I let the kids dip bread into the soup, and they loved it! Now that broccoli doesn’t seem so awful to them, I can try and introduce it in other dishes. And of course, I’ll share them with you so you can trick your kids (big or small) into enjoying broccoli as well!

Vietnamese Fried Bean Curd Soup (Hu Tieu Chay)

Lulu calls hủ tiếu chay (fried bean curd soup in Vietnamese) the ultimate Asian comfort food. The hearty broth is flavored with bold Asian ingredients, such as ginger, garlic and mushroom seasoning salt. There are a couple of uncommon elements; I used Fuji apples and rock sugar to add a touch of sweetness to the broth, and a Vietnamese variety of cured daikon radish (củ cải khô) that provides the signature flavor of hủ tiếu broth.

The real treat though, is the addition of fried tofu skin. It's used throughout vegetarian Vietnamese cuisine as a substitute for fried pork or chicken skin in mock meat dishes. The texture is crispy, yet chewy, and really shows off the versatility of tofu.

Korean Tofu Soup with Rice Cakes

Rice cakes are made from glutinous rice flour. We buy them at the Korean market. They're a great alternative to bánh phở or ordinary noodles. What I love most about this product is  that they're made with no additives or preservatives. They're a favorite at our house. The texture is very nice, and works well in a simple, clear vegetable broth. If you're looking for a healthy meal, this is not your average diet cabbage soup.