Corn & Cheese Chowder

4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) butter
1 whole onion, chopped
3 slices bacon, cut into pieces
3 whole capsicums, finely diced
5 ears corn, kernels sliced off
1/4 cup flour
3 cups chicken stock or broth
2 cups milk
1 cup (heaping) Grated Monterey Jack
1 cup (heaping) Pepper Jack
1/3 cup sliced green onions
Bread Bowls
(hollowed out bread rolls)

In a large pot, melt butter over medium-high heat. Cook onions for a couple of minutes. Add bacon and cook for another minute or so, then add diced bell peppers and cook for a couple of minutes. Finally, add corn and cook for a minute.

Sprinkle flour evenly over the top and stir to combine. Pour in broth and stir well. Allow this to thicken for 3 or 4 minutes, then reduce heat to low. Stir in half-and-half, then cover and allow to simmer/thicken for 15 minutes or so.

Stir in cheeses and green onions. When cheese is melted and the soup is hot, check seasonings. Add salt and pepper as needed. Ladle into hollowed out boules and serve immediately.

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Grape Focaccia with Rosemary

3/4 cup hot water
2 tablespoons cold milk
1 1/2 teaspoons sugar

1 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon kosher salt (or half as much table salt)
6 tablespoons olive oil
1 1/2 cups halved Concord, red or black grapes (optionally seeded)
1 teaspoon fresh rosemary needles, chopped

2 tablespoons coarse (or regular) sugar
2 teaspoons coarse sea salt (or a little less than that of kosher salt)

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, stir together the water, milk, sugar, and yeast. Let the mixture sit until foamy, about 10 minutes. Add the flour, salt and 2 tablespoons of the olive oil to the yeast mixture and mix well on low. Attach the dough hook, raise the speed to medium-low and knead the dough for 8 minutes longer.

Brush a large bowl with a generous amount of olive oil. Scrape dough into the bowl using an oiled rubber spatula, and brush the top with additional oil (or just roll it around in the oil. The dough is profoundly sticky: do not be alarmed!). Cover with plastic wrap (or a bowl cover) and let it rise in a cool place until it doubles in bulk, 1 1/2 to 2 hours.

Press the dough down with an oiled hand and divide it into two balls. Brush a large baking sheet (or two small ones) with olive oil, place the balls of dough on it and brush the top with more oil. Set it aside for 20 minutes, lightly covered with a kitchen towel.

After 20 minutes, dip your fingers in olive oil and press and stretch each ball of dough into a 8 to 9-inch oval shape. It will be dimpled from your fingers. Cover again with the towel and let it rise for another 1 1/4 hours in a cool place.

Preheat the oven to 450°F. Brush tops of dough with remaining olive oil and top the sprinkle grapes, rosemary, sugar, and coarse sea salt evenly over the dough. Bake for 15 minutes, until the crust is golden brown and puffed around edges. Let cool before serving. Serve warm or at room temperature.

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Bruschetta

6 slices ciabatta
1 garlic clove, cut in half
2tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 fresh tomatoes, skinned, deseeded and chopped
12 sun-dried tomatoes, roughly chopped, plus a little oil from the jar
A handful of fresh basil leaves, torn

Preheat the oven to 190C/gas 5. Rub each slice of ciabatta with the cut sides of the garlic clove.

Arrange them on a baking sheet and drizzle over the olive oil. Season with salt and pepper and bake for 10-15 minutes, turning once, until golden.

Mix the tomatoes, sundried tomatoes and half the basil together and season. Spoon on top of the ciabatta slices and arrange on a baking sheet.

Drizzle over a little of the oil from the sun-dried tomatoes and scatter over the rest of the basil to serve.

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Tomato soup

1kg ripe cherry tomatoes
4 large tomatoes
1 fresh red chilli
4 cloves of garlic
1 ciabatta loaf
2 small red onions
4tbsp balsamic vinegar
A small bunch of fresh basil
A few dollops of créme fraîche, to serve

Quarter the larger tomatoes, then put all the tomatoes into a roasting tray. Drizzle over a good lug of olive oil and season.

Halve and deseed the red chilli and add to the tray. Crush in 4 peeled cloves of garlic. Quickly toss everything, then put on the top shelf of the oven for 12 to 15 minutes.

CROUTONS: Get another roasting tray and rip the ciabatta loaf into 8 equal chunks. Add a good lug of olive oil, a pinch of salt and whack on to the bottom shelf of the oven.

Peel and roughly chop the onions and put them into the hot saucepan with a lug of olive oil and a good pinch of salt. Turn the heat up to medium and leave to soften, stirring occasionally.

Stir 4tbsp balsamic vinegar into the onions and let it cook away and reduce down.

Take the tray of tomatoes out of the oven and add everything to the pan of onions.

CROUTONS: Check them - if they are crisp and golden turn off the oven, but leave them in there to keep warm.

In two batches, carefully pour the vegetables from the saucepan into a liquidiser. Add most of the basil, put the lid on, cover with a tea towel and whiz to a fairly rustic consistency, pouring the mixture into a large pan or serving bowl as you go.

Once finished, mix well, season to taste and top with a dollop of créme fraîche, a few basil leaves and a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil. Take to the table with a stack of soup bowls and the tray of croutons from the oven.

TO SERVE: Put a crouton or two in the bottom of each soup bowl. Ladle the soup on top, then dig in. Serve with guacamole and extra bread.

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