Blokus

Dear friends

Last night we had a great celebration for Peter's stanford acceptance. During the party, I introduced the game Blokus, which I propose we play more than once. Here is a photo of Mike (yellow) winning at Blokus.

Mike

Soup recipe

Dear friends,

Here's a recipe my sister gave me for a soup. If no one else makes it, I will.

Love,

Mike

WASABI-SPIKED PARSNIP SOUP

Ingredients

2 tablespoons of butter

2 cups parsnips, peeled and diced (can replace one with a sweet potato)

1 cup chopped onion

1 cup peeled and diced Yukon Gold potatoes

4 cups stock (I used one tetra pack - 1L - of Campell's Vegetable Stock)

1 tablespoon wasabi paste

1 tablespoon soy sauce

Salt and freshly ground pepper

Method

Heat butter in soup pot over medium heat. Add parsnips, onions and potatoes and sauté for approximately 4 minutes (until they are shiny).

Add stock, wasabi paste and soy sauce and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for approximately 12 to 15 minutes or until vegetables are soft.

Pour soup into a blender or use a hand blender and purée until smooth.

Note! I find that if you put hot soup in a blender, it blows up everywhere! I just got a hand blender for Christmas (the type that you can immerse in a pot of soup) and it's excellent, and great for creamy soups and smoothies.

Serves 4-6.