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Cook's Corner Liz Reiter tracks down the recipes you're looking for. Got a question or recipe request for Liz? Click here MOST RECENT COLUMNS • Apr. 7 City Cafe's soups are easy to make at home • Mar. 31 Here's to health: Dip and drink • Mar. 24 BBC makes tasty veggie 'burger' • Mar. 17 Duck, sausage gumbo can take 2 days • Mar. 10 Frangipane tart is worth the work • Mar. 3 It's easy to fall for pumpkin desserts in spring What recipes do people request most? We've been keeping track. Click here to see. Recipes you've asked for lately … • Lynn's Paradise Cafe's walnut crusted chicken • The Cafe at the Louisville Antique Mall tomato dill soup • Crowned apple cake Find more recipes in our Food section.

"Hello, I was wondering if you could scout up the recipes for cream of mushroom soup, cream of tomato soup and Florentine sauce from Pesto's on South Fifth Street. Have a great day!"

Donna Lawrence, by e-mail

These three simple recipes are quite easy to make. Unfortunately, I've found a strong correlation between recipes that are easy to make and those that are easy to, well, screw up.

These may be soupier than some people like, and for that reason, the recipe recommended thickening the sauces and soups with a white roux. Roux can be a little tricky, so I've provided some information and tips at the bottom of this column.

Pesto's cream of mushroom soup

15-ounce can chicken stock
2 bay leaves
1 rib celery (see note), diced
1 carrot, diced
16 ounces button mushrooms, sliced
Salt and pepper to taste
4 cups heavy cream or half-and-half

Place chicken stock and bay leaves in a stockpot set over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil. Remove bay leaves. Add celery, carrot and mushrooms. Add salt and pepper, then heavy cream. Bring to a boil; lower heat, and simmer 10 minutes. If desired, thicken soup with a white roux made from ¼ cup flour and ¼ cup butter. (See below.)

Cooks can use half-and-half or heavy whipping cream for Pesto's cream of tomato soup. Half-and-half is lower in fat grams and calories. Photo by ARZA BARNETT

Serves 8 to 10.

Nutritional information per serving made with heavy cream: 363 calories, 36 grams fat, 4 grams protein, 9 grams carbohydrate, 2 grams fiber.

Made with half-and-half: 161 calories, 12 grams fat, 5 grams protein, 11 grams carbohydrate, 2 grams fiber.

Cream of tomato soup

The restaurant uses fresh tomato sauce for this soup. I've substituted canned crushed tomatoes.

28-ounce can crushed tomatoes
15-ounce can crushed tomatoes
1 rib celery, diced (see note)
1 carrot, diced
1 green pepper, diced
1 tablespoon oregano
Salt and pepper to taste
1 quart heavy whipping cream or half-and-half

Heat tomatoes in a stockpot set over medium-high heat. When tomatoes bubble, add celery, carrot and green pepper. Cook, stirring often, until vegetables soften slightly. Lower heat to medium-low. Stir in oregano, salt and pepper. Fold in heavy whipping cream. Heat through. Serve immediately.

Serves 10.

Nutritional information per serving when made with heavy cream: 366 calories, 36 grams fat, 4 grams protein, 11 grams carbohydrate, 2 grams fiber.

Made with half-and-half: 164 calories, 11 grams fat, 5 grams protein, 13 grams carbohydrate, 2 grams fiber.

Pesto's Florentine sauce

2 cups heavy cream
Salt and pepper to taste
½ teaspoon nutmeg
1 cup fresh, washed baby spinach

Heat heavy cream in a saucepan set over low heat. Add salt and pepper, then nutmeg. Bring to a boil. If desired, thicken sauce with a white roux made of ¼ cup flour and ¼ cup butter. (See below.) Lower heat, and add spinach. Serve tossed with pasta of your choice — long thin noodles, such as linguine, are a good match.

Makes 2 cups, or enough for 1 pound of pasta.

Nutritional information per serving (based on ½-cup serving with 4 ounces of cooked pasta): 574 calories, 45 grams fat, 8 grams protein, 36 grams carbohydrate, 2 grams fiber.

Sauce without pasta (4 ½-cup servings): 413 calories, 44 grams fat, 3 grams protein, 4 grams carbohydrate, trace of fiber.

Note: Most people call a rib of celery a stalk. But this is incorrect, according to the people who care about this type of thing. Really, a stalk of celery consists of a bunch of individual ribs. The ribs are then separated for use in recipes.

Roux: a mixture of flour and a fat, such as oil or butter. (In the recipes above, I recommend using a white roux made with butter for flavor.) The two ingredients are mixed into a paste, then cooked together over low heat, with near-constant stirring, until the mixture begins to brown. The length of cooking time, and the use of butter, determine what kind of roux is made. The amount of flour in proportion to the fat determines the thickness of the final dish.

Once cooked, the roux is stirred into a soup or sauce. This can be a little tricky, if the cook is not experienced (ask me how I know ... ). Roux should be allowed to cool for about five minutes before it is added to the soup or sauce but should not be added when cold.

Always stir the warm roux, a little at a time, into your mixture. If you drop a lump in at once, without stirring hard, it will cook like a dumpling. And I've found that if you add it to a cold mixture, it won't combine as easily.

But, making things more complicated, if you add it to a mixture that is too hot, it can cook into small lumps. I like to add it to a mixture that is steaming but not boiling.

Also, if the roux begins to separate into little white lumps that won't stir out, it's usually possible to fix it if you lower the heat and use a whisk to smooth the sauce or soup.

White roux: always uses butter and is cooked the shortest amount of time. It's done when the mixture just barely begins to turn light beige and the "glue" smell is gone from the flour. This usually takes about 8 minutes, but cooking times will vary depending on the pan used. (I generally use an 8-inch cast-iron skillet.)

Blond roux: is also made with butter, which is melted before being mixed with flour, and cooked until the mixture is a pale, golden color. This usually browns in about 20 minutes, but again cooking times vary.

Brown roux: can be made with any type of fat, but usually lard or oil is used. The mixture is cooked for up to an hour, until it turns a deep mahogany color. This rich thickener often adds color and smoky flavor to Creole and Cajun dishes, especially gumbo.

Want a recipe? Write to "Cook's Corner," The Courier-Journal, P.O. Box 740031, Louisville, KY 40201-7431. Include your name, address and phone number (this won't be published). If you want a recipe from a restaurant, please include the restaurant's address.

Online: Reach Liz at courier-journal.com/liz

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